In this research, char was prepared from Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) cave-in-rock species and characterized from the perspective of value addition either as a soil amendment or as a feedstock for energy production. Char from torrefaction/pyrolysis was produced in a fixed bed lab-scale reactor, using a N2 flow at three temperatures (300, 400, and 500°C) and for two residency times (2.5 and 5 minutes). Proximate and ultimate analyses as well as calorific value tests were done on each of the chars obtained. Chars scanning electron microscopy (SEM) pictures were taken. Organic composition of char leachates was characterized using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) following a Soxhlet extraction with dichloromethane. Char was analyzed using FTIR-ATR. No significant difference was observed in most char characteristics between 2.5 and 5 min residency times, for each temperature studied. Among the compounds identified, two may be of particular interest with respect to the biochar domain. 1-undecanol, a compound commonly used as a growth regulator in agriculture, was observed in 300 and 400°C chars for 5 and 2.5 min residence time, respectively. Naphthalene, commonly used as an ingredient in pesticide products, was the only polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) observed in chars and was found solely in the extracts obtained from the char produced at 500 °C (for both residency times).


Following World War II, the American Military Tribunal indicted twenty-three Nazi doctors and administrators for performing agonizing and often fatal experiments on helpless concentration camp inmates. Using primarily court records, this book attempts to answer the following salient questions: What sort of medical experiments did the Nazi doctors perform? Who were their victims, and what was their fate? What, if any, were the medical results? What legal charges were brought against the doctors, and what was their defense? Who were the witnesses? Did the defendants try to reconcile their brutal acts with the Hippocratic Code never to do harm, or were they devoid of any medical ethics? Did they constitute dishonorable exceptions to a principled German medical profession, or were they symptomatic of a more widespread disregard for traditional medical ethics? In trying to answer these questions, Horst H. Freyhofer gives the reader the opportunity to follow the exchanges between prosecutors and defendants as well as the final reasoning of the court.


Discharge in Long Air Gaps: Modelling and applications presents self-consistent predictive dynamic models of positive and negative discharges in long air gaps. Equivalent models are also derived to predict lightning parameters based on the similarities between long air gap discharges and lightning flashes. Macroscopic air gap discharge parameters are calculated to solve electrical, empirical and physical equations, and comparisons between computed and experimental results for various test configurations are presented and discussed. This book is intended to provide a fresh perspective by contributing an innovative approach to this research domain, and universities with programs in high-voltage engineering will find this volume to be a working example of how to introduce the basics of electric discharge phenomena.


In the Central Arkansas River Valley, archaeological investigations of the protohistoric occupation in the Carden Bottoms locality of Yell County, Arkansas suggest the interaction of groups from three adjoining regions at the site (the Central Mississippi Valley, the Lower Arkansas River Valley, and the Middle Ouachita region). Until now, the analysis of whole ceramic vessels associated with the site (derived from looted contexts) constituted the strongest evidence of this process, but this analysis was based on stylistic cues and macroscopic examination of pastes to discriminate between local and nonlocal wares. This project employed instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) as an important crosscheck of these assumptions and found that some wares previously identified as evidence of trade with Caddo communities from the Middle Ouachita region of southwest Arkansas may have been produced locally by Caddo potters residing at the site. Other results from INAA support some exchange relationships with communities farther downstream on the Arkansas River. In combination with findings obtained from large-scale excavations and other research undertaken during the larger Central Arkansas River Valley project, I suggest that the Carden Bottoms community may be an early example of societal coalescence in which several formerly distinct groups came together during times of regional instability precipitated by the De Soto entrada, the dissolution of nucleated chiefdoms in northeast Arkansas, and severe drought associated with the Little Ice Age. Most other examples of coalescence in southeastern North America are known from colonial contexts. These combined results shed new light on the process of social interaction, integration, and the projection of social identity in the Central Arkansas River Valley and have broader implications for research throughout the protohistoric Southeast.


In vitro infection of primary cultures of leukocytes from kidneys of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss showed that Renibacterium salmoninarum, an obligate pathogen of salmonids, survived within the mononuclear phagocytes (MP). Transmission electron microscopy revealed that intracellular survival of the bacterium partially depended on its ability to move from the phagosome and into the cytoplasm. Formalin-killed R. salmoninai-un? also escaped into the cytoplasm, albeit at a slower rate and after sustaining greater cell wall damage, suggesting that the extracellular protein of the bacterium plays a role in intracellular survival. The durability of its cell wall enhanced survival within MP and significant bacterial losses occurred only after 96 h as the MP died and exposed the bacteria to antibiotics in the media. The bacteria appeared to maintain a slow rate of intracellular division, and dividing bacteria were seen in the micrographs through 240 h. Live R. salmoninarum were cytotoxic to MP; however, the MP persisted in culture and k~lled limited numbers of the bacterium. Adherence of the bacterium to the surfaces of lymphocytes and erythrocytes was also noted. An economical and time-saving method for observing and quantifying information obtained from transmission electron microscopy is described. The colony-forming units assay and cell viability counts provided additional information to support the data from electron microscopy.


Background: Application of Hybrid 6 degrees of freedom fixation could lead to space motion in each 3 anatomic plates together and decrease the time of complex deformities correction. This study is an investigation on the function of hybrid external fixation and the influence of it on decreasing the treatment time. About this case utilize of Ortho-SUV Frame (OSF) system is explained for the first time in Iran and report of its novel. These robotic systems are divided into two groups: active and passive, about active system all movements are done by actuators in joints and links. And in passive, the system needs an operator or patient to actuates Sturats by hand. Methods: The femur bone has been investigated was nonunion with deformity in sagittal, frontal and transversal planes. Ilizarov external fixation was applicate firstly, with this condition that the OSF systems jacks were replaced instead of simple rods in side of fracture. Software work was done on February of 2016 in Ayatollah Taleghani Hospital, Tehran, Iran. Fractures were happened in a car accident and some other operating were perforemed for this patient without any result. Results: The correction of studied deformity needs 3 planar moving. Acting this movement by Ilizarov requirements 33 mm displacement in frontal plane, 12 mm horizontal distraction and 48 mm displacement in sagittal plane. Due to the rate of correction in Ilizarov which is 1 mm per day, this bone needs 93 days for general correction and three times changing in shape of rings connections. While, by using the hybrid external fixation, all displacements were corrected in 46 days and first connection had supported all planes. Conclusion: According to that the decreasing of treatment time is one of the main goal, the hybrid external fixation systems could be an appointment choice in complex deformities and replaced with some common fixation. In addition to, using of updated software increases the accuracy of displacement. Abstract


Following 180 years of agricultural settlement, the Midlands area of Tasmania has been drastically transformed and
83% of the original area of native vegetation has been replaced. By comparing information from two recent intensive
floristic surveys with historical botanical records, it was determined that 11.8% of the higher plant flora has vanished.
With current rates of change and land tenure, it is probable that further extinctions will occur in this environment.
Grazing was found to increase significantly native species richness on loams and clays, although the same relationship
was not evident on sandy soils. The management of grassy remnants should include regular burning and/or grazing as
a means of intermittently depleting the grass sward. Many herbaceous exotics are habitat specific, and it is suggested
that their passive spread is not an immediate threat to native vegetation on well-drained land. The long-term viability
of native vegetation may, however, necessitate the implementation of simple management programs designed to
maintain native species diversity and to minimise the spread of the more vigorous woody exotics.


We investigate batch policy optimization for cost-sensitive classification and contextual bandits---two related tasks that obviate exploration but require generalizing from observed rewards to action selections in unseen contexts. When rewards are fully observed, we show that the expected reward objective exhibits suboptimal plateaus and exponentially many local optima in the worst case. To overcome the poor landscape, we develop a convex surrogate that is calibrated with respect to entropy regularized expected reward. We then consider the partially observed case, where rewards are recorded for only a subset of actions. Here we generalize the surrogate to partially observed data, and uncover novel objectives for batch contextual bandit training. We find that surrogate objectives remain provably sound in this setting and empirically demonstrate state-of-the-art performance.


In 1996, two years after the election of a fully democratic government and the return of South Africa as an acceptable member of international society, the Premier of South Africa's Limpopo Province met with his counterpart, the Governor of Gaza Province, in Mozambique, to discuss the potential of establishing business links between these two adjacent regions. As a result, an International Agreement to establish the Great Limpopo National Park (GLTP) was signed in 2000. Areas included in the GLTP are the Kruger National Park (KNP) in South Africa, Limpopo National Park (LNP) in Mozambique and the Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe. Other areas earmarked for inclusion are the Sengwe Communal land in Zimbabwe, and Zinave and Banhine National Parks in Mozambique. This thesis explores the processes of decision making throughout the administrative hierarchy of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (GLTP), and evaluates these in terms of social and environmental justice principles. The three main objectives are: to identify decision making procedures and approaches currently being used in the setting up of the GLTP; to determine the extent to which decision making approaches have incorporated concerns relating to social and environmental justice; and to assess public participation in the GLTP to date particularly at the community level. Findings indicate that the popular rhetoric surrounding the GLTP has, to date not taken place in reality. Many of the flagship projects have been met with opposition from the community. Social justice is not sufficiently prioritised within the GLTP, as shown by ongoing power differentials, prioritising of wildlife over people in terms of water rights, ongoing harsh treatment of "poachers", the disruption of traditional land use activities, and resettlement of villages into new and potentially different communities. Findings displayed in the questionnaire results, indicate that policies and action plans for the GLTP were developed by the state with little public participation. The community's powerless to influence any decisions or affect any change is encapsulated in the fact that they are, at present living with introduced wild animals. A public participation technique that took the form of a community barriers meeting did take place. This however did not contribute to the community having a say in the park plans. One cannot deny that decision makers have realised their mistake of bypassing community consultation and moving directly to implementation. It seems more effort is being made to bring communities into the process, through the formation of the Project Liaison Board, and thereby ensuring that they receive their promised benefit from the development of the GLTP. It is very difficult to try and categorise the type of approach to community conservation in the GLTP. Certain elements from all three relationships are evident, but more so from Protected Area Outreach.


Novel aspects of human dynamics and social interactions are investigated by means of mobile phone data. Using extensive phone records resolved in both time and space, we study the mean collective behavior at large scales and focus on the occurrence of anomalous events. We discuss how these spatiotemporal anomalies can be described using standard percolation theory tools. We also investigate patterns of calling activity at the individual level and show that the interevent time of consecutive calls is heavy-tailed. This finding, which has implications for dynamics of spreading phenomena in social networks, agrees with results previously reported on other human activities.


Computational models of complex biological systems can provide a better understanding of how living systems function but need to be validated before they are employed for real-life (e.g. clinical) applications. One of the most frequently employed in silico approaches for validating such models is model checking. Traditional model checking approaches are limited to uniscale non-spatial computational models because they do not explicitly distinguish between different scales, and do not take properties of (emergent) spatial structures (e.g. density of multicellular population) into account. This thesis defines a novel multiscale multidimensional spatio-temporal meta model checking methodology which enables validating multiscale (spatial) computational models of biological systems relative to how both numeric (e.g. concentrations) and spatial system properties are expected to change over time and across multiple scales. The methodology has two important advantages. First it supports computational models encoded using various high-level modelling formalisms because it is defined relative to time series data and not the models used to produce them. Secondly the methodology is generic because it can be automatically reconfigured according to case study specific types of spatial structures and properties using the meta model checking approach. In addition the methodology could be employed for multiple domains of science, but we illustrate its applicability here only against biological case studies. To automate the computational model validation process, the approach was implemented in software tools, which are made freely available online. Their efficacy is illustrated against two uniscale and four multiscale quantitative computational models encoding phase variation in bacterial colonies and the chemotactic aggregation of cells, respectively the rat cardiovascular system dynamics, the uterine contractions of labour, the Xenopus laevis cell cycle and the acute inflammation of the gut and lung. This novel model checking approach will enable the efficient construction of reliable multiscale computational models of complex systems.


Spatial structure of cities is the substratum over which human urban life develops. Understanding the relevance of the streets that form such substratum is fundamental to understand the movements of people in the city. Our purpose in this study is to propose and explore methods to find relevant streets sets that conforms the basis of complex urban networks. We used two methods based on previous work by Volchenkov and Blanchard (2008) and Shetty and Adibi (2005), and a method developed by us. To illustrate the use of these tools, we performed an analysis of the main streets network of the coastal city of Ensenada, Mexico.


Extensive analysis by NMR spectroscopy of the delipidated lipopolysaccharide of Shigella flexneri serotype 6 strain MDC 2924-71 confirmed the most recently reported structure of the O-antigen repeating unit as {→4)-β-D-GalpA-(1→3)-β-D-GalpNAc-(1→2)-α-L-Rhap3Ac/4Ac-(1→2)-α-L-Rhap-(1→}, and revealed the non-stoichiometric acetylation at O-3C/4C. Input from the CASPER program helped to ascertain the fine distribution of the three possible patterns of O-acetylation. The non-O-acetylated repeating unit (ABCD) corresponded to about 2/3 of the population, while 1/4 was acetylated at O-3C (3AcCDAB), and 1/10 at O-4C (4AcCDAB). Di- to tetrasaccharides with a GalpA residue (A) at their reducing end were synthesized as their propyl glycosides following a multistep linear strategy relying on late-stage acetylation at O-3C. Thus, the 3C-O-acetylated and non-O-acetylated targets were synthesized from common protected intermediates. Rhamnosylation was most efficiently achieved by using imidate donors, including at O-4 of a benzyl galacturonate acceptor. In contrast, a thiophenyl 2-deoxy-2-trichloroacetamido-D-galactopyranoside precursor was preferred for chain elongation involving residue B. Final Pd/C-mediated deprotection ensured O-acetyl stability. All of the target molecules represent parts of the O-antigen of S. flexneri 6, a prevalent serotype. Non-O-acetylated oligosaccharides are also fragments of the Escherichia coli O147 O-antigen.


In this article, we examine the implementation of mediation in domestic violence cases in Nicaragua as a case study of the transnational movement of alternative conflict resolution within rule of law reforms across the world. Unlike scholarship about mediation in the United States, the effects of mediation's global implementation are undertheorized. This article examines the importation of U.S. style mediation and its implementation in domestic violence situations in developing countries such as Nicaragua where traditional legal systems are weaker than those institutionalized in the United States. In particular, we evaluate mediation as applied in Mulukuku, an isolated community in the rural north central part of the country. We reflect upon the community motivations and external influences bringing mediation to Mulukuku. We analyze these issues in order to foster a better understanding of how such a community can more effectively own and implement its dispute resolution processes. We argue in this article that Mulukuku's mediation experience suffers from many pitfalls both in its conception and as implemented. At the same time, we believe that the model may provide a vehicle that can incorporate the community's already-existing informal mediation methods. We, therefore, offer insights gleaned from the experiences of domestic violence victim advocates in the U.S. and other parts of the world. Principally, we aim to inform Nicaraguans about how best to own and adapt mediation to their cultural and societal needs. This exploration is particularly timely given the increasing skepticism of the transformation claims surrounding mediation and the growing realization in Nicaragua that mediation in domestic violence cases carries potential dangers to victims.


We compare the results of various cosmological gas-dynamical codes used to simulate the formation of a galaxy in the Λ cold dark matter structure formation paradigm. The various runs (13 in total) differ in their numerical hydrodynamical treatment [smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH), moving mesh and adaptive mesh refinement] but share the same initial conditions and adopt in each case their latest published model of gas cooling, star formation and feedback. Despite the common halo assembly history, we find large code-to-code variations in the stellar mass, size, morphology and gas content of the galaxy at z= 0, due mainly to the different implementations of star formation and feedback. Compared with observation, most codes tend to produce an overly massive galaxy, smaller and less gas rich than typical spirals, with a massive bulge and a declining rotation curve. A stellar disc is discernible in most simulations, although its prominence varies widely from code to code. There is a well-defined trend between the effects of feedback and the severity of the disagreement with observed spirals. In general, models that are more effective at limiting the baryonic mass of the galaxy come closer to matching observed galaxy scaling laws, but often to the detriment of the disc component. Although numerical convergence is not particularly good for any of the codes, our conclusions hold at two different numerical resolutions. Some differences can also be traced to the different numerical techniques; for example, more gas seems able to cool and become available for star formation in grid-based codes than in SPH. However, this effect is small compared to the variations induced by different feedback prescriptions. We conclude that state-of-the-art simulations cannot yet uniquely predict the properties of the baryonic component of a galaxy, even when the assembly history of its host halo is fully specified. Developing feedback algorithms that can effectively regulate the mass of a galaxy without hindering the formation of high angular momentum stellar discs remains a challenge.


For many years, researchers at the Human-Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL) have partnered with children ages 7-11 in designing technology through Cooperative Inquiry. In this paper, we present two cases in which we have worked with adolescents as designers using both a modified form of Cooperative Inquiry and design-focused interview techniques. We find that adolescents can participate as design partners given modifications to Cooperative Inquiry design techniques. However, designing with adolescents can present challenges in terms of logistics, communications, relationships, and power structures.


The recent period of high and volatile food prices has cast doubt on many longstanding assumptions such as the inevitability of declining real food prices, and brought to an end a long period of food price stability. Some of the key driving forces appear to have been declines in yield growth for major commodities and the rapid growth of biofuels. Both high and volatile food prices are justly causes for concern. Key elements of the cure for high food prices include a strong focus on agricultural research and development, as well as rural development more generally, and a reconsideration of the role of biofuels. The best cures for food price volatility aim to reduce it by improving market information and reducing output volatility. Social safety nets are the best policy for coping with its effects, while the widely-used trade and storage policy measures have many complex and uncertain effects.


This chapter discusses frameworks and conceptual lenses that help orient design-based implementation research (DBIR) work to the types of infrastructure required for success, while contributing to theories about the processes of educational improvement. Such infrastructures can be conceived as a framework: a set of interconnected elements that facilitate the integrated development of an initiative, provide a continuing narrative for this development, create shared responsibility for its implementation, and facilitate its sustainability. The chapter posits that several types of infrastructure are necessary for successful, sustainable DBIR, including conceptual frameworks that attend to issues of scale, human capacity, technical support, policies, organizational learning, and long-term funding. In addition, the chapter discusses the roles that feedback loops, intermediary organizations, and multiple timescales play in systemic educational improvement, and describes how attention to these different infrastructural needs can lead to sustained improvements and support their evolution over time. The chapter also comments on theoretical and practical advances in social policy that often are not integrated into learning sciences research but are crucial for evolutionary educational improvement, including using organizational learning as a measure of progress, attending to social feedback loops and networks inside and outside of schooling, and utilizing the tools of policy informatics.


OBJECTIVE
The extraocular muscles are one of the primary tissues implicated in the autoimmune-mediated inflammation of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO). Our aim was to determine the prevalence and level of antibodies against three candidate eye muscle antigens and the orbital fibroblast membrane antigen collagen XIII, in well-characterized patient groups.

STUDY DESIGN AND PATIENTS
The study cohort consisted of patients with Graves' hyperthyroidism with and without ophthalmopathy, controls patients with other thyroid or other autoimmune disorders and healthy subjects. The presence of eye muscle antibodies was determined using an optimized and standardized enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. We measured antibodies against (i) the 67-kDa flavoprotein (Fp) subunit of the mitochondrial enzyme succinate dehydrogenase; (ii) G2s, a 141 amino acid fragment of the winged-helix transcription factor FOXP1; (iii) calsequestrin, a 63-kDa calcium-binding protein; and (iv) collagen XIII, a connective tissue protein that is closely linked to the congestive ophthalmopathy subtype of TAO. Eye muscle antibody levels were correlated with clinical diagnosis and presence or not of ophthalmopathy.

RESULTS
Prevalences of positive antibody tests to calsequestrin (75.0%) and collagen XIII (43.8%) were significantly greater in Graves' disease (GD) patients with ophthalmopathy than in healthy subjects, whereas modest significance was demonstrated with antibodies against Fp, but not G2s. Significantly greater serum levels of antibodies against calsequestrin, G2s, and collagen XIII, but not Fp, were found in GD patients with ophthalmopathy compared to control patients without eye disease and healthy subjects.

CONCLUSIONS
Calsequestrin and collagen XIII antibodies are the most specific to TAO, whereas antibodies against G2s, and to a lesser extent Fp, are also markers of ophthalmopathy, but less reliable. These results are unique in that it is the first time the significance of a panel of three candidate eye muscle antibodies and a connective tissue antibody have been evaluated in the same patients with ophthalmopathy.


A novel all fiber cavity Yb^(3+)-doped double-clad fiber laser (DCFL) based on two double-clad fiber (DCF) Bragg grating is presented. The fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) as the input and output mirrors have been formed in Yb^(3+)-doped DCF with the phase-mask method, and their reflectivities are 99% and 22%, respectively. When the input pump power is 417 mW, the maximum output power is 144 mW with linewidth <0.1 nm at the wavelength of 1.057 ?m, over 40-dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and 50.8% slope efficiency.


Mammalian genomes can vary substantially in haploid chromosome number even within a small taxon (e.g., 3–40 among deer alone); in contrast, teleost fish genomes are stable (24–25 in 58% of teleosts), but we do not yet understand the mechanisms that account for differences in karyotype stability. Among perciform teleosts, platyfish (Xiphophorus maculatus) and medaka (Oryzias latipes) both have 24 chromosome pairs, but threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and green pufferfish (Tetraodon nigroviridis) have just 21 pairs. To understand the evolution of teleost genomes, we made a platyfish meiotic map containing 16,114 mapped markers scored on 267 backcross fish. We tiled genomic contigs along the map to create chromosome-length genome assemblies. Genome-wide comparisons of conserved synteny showed that platyfish and medaka karyotypes remained remarkably similar with few interchromosomal translocations but with numerous intrachromosomal rearrangements (transpositions and inversions) since their lineages diverged ∼120 million years ago. Comparative genomics with platyfish shows how reduced chromosome numbers in stickleback and green pufferfish arose by fusion of pairs of ancestral chromosomes after their lineages diverged from platyfish ∼195 million years ago. Zebrafish and human genomes provide outgroups to root observed changes. These studies identify likely genome assembly errors, characterize chromosome fusion events, distinguish lineage-independent chromosome fusions, show that the teleost genome duplication does not appear to have accelerated the rate of translocations, and reveal the stability of syntenies and gene orders in teleost chromosomes over hundreds of millions of years.


"This paper provides a new modeling framework to analyze two-sided platforms connecting producers and consumers. In contrast to the existing literature, indirect network effects are determined endogenously, through consumers' taste for variety and producer competition. Three new aspects of platform pricing structures are derived." "First, the optimal platform pricing structure shifts towards extracting more rents from producers relative to consumers when consumers have stronger demand for variety, since producers become less substitutable. With platform competition, consumer preferences for variety, producer market power, and producer economies of scale in multihoming also make platforms' price-cutting strategies on the consumer side less effective. This second effect on equilibrium pricing structures goes in the opposite direction relative to the first one." "Third, variable fees charged to producers can serve to trade off producer innovation incentives against the need to reduce a platform holdup problem." Copyright (c) 2009, The Author(s) Journal Compilation (c) 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc..


Novel medicated straws were developed based on drug-loaded electrospun fibers prepared by direct current electrospinning (DCES) and high-speed electrospinning (HSES) of scaled-up productivity. Good quality micro-and nanofibers were electrospun using both techniques despite the multiple times higher throughput rate of HSES based on the scanning electron microscopic imaging (SEM). Solid state analyses revealed that the poorly soluble model drug carvedilol (CAR) was dispersed in an amorphous form in the electrospun polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVPK30) fibers. In vitro dissolution studies revealed ultrafast drug release from the prepared fibrous formulations inserted into plastic straws. Based on the results the developed drug delivery system is suitable for storing the formulation in a solid dosage form and in situ turning it into liquid form when administered.


This essay reviews and critiques two new books on the debate over immigration and citizenship, Anna O. Law, The Immigration Battle in American Courts, and Ediberto Roman, Citizenship and Its Exclusions: A Classical, Constitutional, and Critical Race Critique. Law's book takes a procedural approach to unraveling the complex immigration cases emanating from the U.S. courts of appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court. This essay challenges some of Law's conclusions and suggests methodological alterations that may strengthen her key arguments. Roman's book is distinct from Law's in that it takes on a much broader historical and procedurialist view of the idea of citizenship. He explores the roots of the present day American citizenship construct through a personal and philosophical approach to exploring the citizenship construct as it exists in the U.S. today, incorporating significant historical influences. This essay commends Roman's contribution to the study of immigration law and the concept of citizenship but also recognizes the eternal struggles in making meaningful and lasting progress in this area of law.


SUMMARY Background & Aims: The progression and therapy of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) may be influenced by somatostatin-receptors in HCC cells. This has offered the rationale for evaluating the therapeutic usefulness of octreotide in patients with HCC. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical and biochemical impact of octreotide administration in patients with HCC. Method: Thirty patients with HCC, who were unsuitable for surgery, ethanol injection or transarterial embolization were divided into two groups (A and B) according to the presence or not of cirrhosis. All patients received 500Ig octreotide subcutaneously twice daily indefinitely. Results: Mean survival time was 5 +1.3 months in group A and 8.3+0.96 months in group B, with significant differences between the two groups (log rank test, p=0.03). Cirrhotic patients with Okuda I+II stage had a longer survival time in comparison to patients with Okuda III stage (log rank test, p=0.04). Moreover, octreotide administration stopped gradual elevation of a-fetoprotein (AFP) levels. Conclusions: Octreotide seems to improve the survival time in non-cirrhotic patients with HCC and especially in patients with Okuda II stage with no elevation of AFP, offering acceptable quality of life, safety and tolerance.


In cells of the immune system, the secretion of extracellular vesicles is modulated through cellular activation. In particular, T cell activation is achieved through cell–cell contacts with antigen presenting cells and the consequent formation of a specialized signaling junction called the immunological synapse. Recent works on CD4 T cells have elucidated that cognate antigen recognition by the T cell receptor (TCR) engages two distinct exocytic events. The first involves the exocytic targeting of signaling molecules at the synaptic membrane and drives the functional architecture of the immunological synapse. The second enlists the extracellular secretion of the TCR itself, once the functional architecture of the immunological synapse is accomplished. HIV-1, a human lymphotropic virus, has evolved sophisticated mechanisms to co-opt CD4 T cell physiology. Notably, it has become apparent that HIV-1 intersects the regulated secretory system of CD4 T cells in order to bud from the plasma membrane of the infected cell and to promote bystander cell death. Here, I review the relevance of CD4 vesicle exocytosis to immune regulation and to HIV-1 pathogenesis and discuss their potential therapeutic applications.


Context. Core extremely red quasars (core ERQ) have been proposed to represent an intermediate evolutionary phase in which a heavily obscured quasar blows out the circumnuclear interstellar medium with very energetic outflows before it becomes an optical quasar.
Aims. We investigate whether the properties of core ERQ fit the AGN orientation-based unification scenario.
Methods. We revised the general UV and optical emission line properties of core ERQ in the context of the orientation-based scenario. We used diagnostic diagrams based on UV emission line ratios and UV-to-optical line kinematic information to compare the physical and kinematic gas properties of core ERQ with those of other luminous narrow- and broad-line AGN. In particular, we provide a revised comparison of the [OIII] kinematics in 21 core ERQ (20 from Perrotta et al. 2019, MNRAS, 488, 4126 and SDSS J171420.38+414815.7, based on GTC EMIR near-infrared spectroscopy) with other samples of quasars with matching luminosity with the aim of evaluating whether core ERQ host the most extreme [OIII] outflows.
Results. The UV line ratios suggest that the physical properties (e.g., density and metallicity) of the ionised gas in core ERQ are similar to those observed in the broad-line region of blue nitrogen-loud quasars. The [OIII] outflow velocities of core ERQ are on average consistent with those of very luminous blue type 1 quasars, although extreme outflows are much more frequent in core ERQ. These similarities can be explained in the context of the AGN unification model under the assumption that core ERQ are viewed with an intermediate orientation between type 2 (edge-on) and type 1 (face-on) quasars.
Conclusions. We propose that core ERQ are very luminous but otherwise normal quasars viewed at an intermediate orientation. This orientation allows a direct view of the outer part of the large broad-line region from which core ERQ UV line emission originates; the extreme [OIII] outflow velocities are instead a consequence of the very high luminosity of core ERQ.


Received 9 September 2004; revised 19 April 2005; accepted 2 June 2005; published 21 September 2005. [1] Frequencies of observed occurrences of shore-fast ice in the northeastern Kara Sea for each month during 1953–1990 reveal a multimodality of shore-fast ice extent in late winter and spring. The fast ice extent exhibits mainly three different configurations (modes) associated with the regional topography of coasts and islands. These modes show fast ice areas equal to approximately 98 ± 6, 122 ± 6, and 136 ± 8 1000 km 2 . Analysis of the time series of fast ice extent shows that favorable conditions for expansion of fast ice seaward in winter and spring are met if the atmospheric circulation over the northeastern Kara Sea is controlled by the Arctic high, resulting in offshore winds and a significant (up to 6� C) decrease of the monthly mean surface air temperature. In contrast, the penetration of the Icelandic low into the Kara Sea, accompanied by Arctic cyclones coming from the west, is responsible for the partial breakup and decrease of fast ice extent in winter or spring.


Article type: Original Article Background: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional disorder of the lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract caused by stress and is also is associated with anxiety and depression which may benefit from a treatment such as mindfulness. Objectives: to determine the effectiveness of the mindfulness in decreasing the anxiety and depression in the patients suffering from IBS. Methods: The research design was based on single-subject. Three IBS patients diagnosed by Rome-II criteria participated in this treatment project in Tabriz in 2015 voluntarily and with their personal consent. Eight sessions of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) were held for them individually. Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) were used before starting the treatment and at the end of the second, fourth, sixth and eighth sessions regarding to their intensity of anxiety and depression. Results: The anxiety and the depression scores of each subject were decreased in post-test comparing with pre-test. The percentage of the three patients' remission regarding to the anxiety by BAI were 86.67, 56.52 and 70.59 percent and the remission percentage average was 65.25. The percentage of remission regarding to the depression by BDI-II were 35.29, 65.12, 95.24 respectively, and the average percentage of the remission was 57.14. Conclusion: Based on the research findings, the treatment education and MBSR had the positive impact on decreasing the anxiety and e depression of the patients suffering from IBS.


Tailor made bioceramic scaffolds in combination with the corresponding surface chemistry and biology is of great importance for a successful implantation and rapid osseo-integration. The present study investigates the fabrication of Hydroxyapatite (HA) scaffolds with defined macro porosity by means of powder based 3D-printing. In order to mime natural bone with its elastic collagen structure, the 3D-printed ceramic structures were post-treated by polymeric infiltration. Compressive Strength analysis (CS) confirmed the positive impact of an elastomeric phase on mechanical properties. 3D-printed HA scaffolds in combination with polymer result in biodegradable scaffolds with promising mechanical properties for potential use in regenerative medicine.


Communication is central to palliative care. It unifies all nursing practice, and plays an integral role in the operationalization of palliative care. To deliver quality palliative care, it is paramount that nurses have adequate communication skills. Positive patient outcomes are derived when communication between the nurse and patient is effective. Ineffective communication may result in inaccurate information on treatment/medication increase patient risks and may cause patient dissatisfaction with care. It is therefore necessary to be familiar with the facilitators and barriers that influence communication. This study aimed to describe barriers and facilitators of effective communication between nurses and patients receiving palliative care. A literature review of fifteen articles was utilized to answer the study's aim. Searching the CINAHL Complete and MEDLINE databases performed data collection. Data was analyzed using the matrix method. The findings were categorized into two main themes: barriers of effective communication and facilitators of effective communication. Three subthemes emerged under the barriers of effective communication and two sub themes for the facilitators. The main barrier to effective communication was the nurse's lack of knowledge and skills. In conclusion, the nurse-patient interaction is compounded by variables such as: nurses' competence, patient's attributes and environmental or care setting. All together these factors require the nurse's ability to overcome the communication barriers and highlight the facilitators. It would be of benefit if nurses receive training in communication skills in palliative care with emphasis on transitions and how to handle them within the palliative care scope.


In this hilarious tale of mishap and misadventure, Dr. Seuss reminds us that there is always someone, somewhere, worse off than ourselves. With his unique combination of hilarious stories, zany pictures and riotous rhymes, Dr. Seuss has been delighting young children and helping them learn to read for over fifty years. Creator of the wonderfully anarchic Cat in the Hat, and ranking among the UK's top ten favourite children's authors, Seuss is firmly established as a global best-seller, with nearly half a million books sold worldwide. This delightful book forms part of the third stage in HarperCollins' major Dr. Seuss rebrand programme. With the relaunch of six more titles in January 2004, such all-time favourites as The Lorax, The Foot Book and Yertle the Turtle boast bright new covers that incorporate much needed guidance on reading levels: Blue Back Books are for parents to share with young children, Green Back Books are for budding readers to tackle on their own, and Yellow Back Books are for older, more fluent readers to enjoy. Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? belongs to the Yellow Back Book range.


A comprehensive thermal analysis of three different electrical machines is presented, with a view of identifying design aspects that can be exploited to achieve higher power density. A review of some novel cooling methods is initially made. Following this, the stator and rotor thermal resistance paths of the three selected machines are created and the individual components of each resistance path mathematically analysed to identify the parts of the machines that provide greatest potential to reduce stator and rotor temperatures. This is verified with a Design of Experiments analysis on the thermal resistance models of each. Finally, a different novel cooling method is applied to the model of each machine, demonstrating the typical temperature reductions that can be achieved.


Internet Service Providers ("ISPs") provide end users with access to and from the Internet cloud. In addition to providing the first and last mile carriage of traffic, ISPs secure upstream access to sources of content via other ISPs typically on a paid (transit), or barter (peering) basis. Because a single ISP operates in two separate segments of traffic routing, both the terms and conditions of network interconnection and the degree of marketplace competition can vary greatly. In this double-sided market, ISPs typically have many transit and peering opportunities upstream to content providers, but downstream end users may have a limited choice of ISP options for first and last mile Internet access. Regardless of the scope of retail Internet access competition, consumers generally select only one ISP to handle all traffic requirements. The variability of competitiveness in the market for upstream and downstream Internet access has motivated some stakeholders to claim that federal government agencies, such as the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC"), should intervene to remedy market failures and existing or potential anticompetitive practices. The so-called Network Neutrality debate has focused largely on the retail, ISP-to-end user link with advocates claiming that ISPs have the ability and incentive to favor affiliates in the delivery of traffic to subscribers. The Network Neutrality debate occasionally addresses upstream routing discrimination, but the likelihood of anticompetitive practices are tempered by the fact that consumers and retail ISPs have access to a competitive marketplace for long haul carriage of Internet traffic. Notwithstanding such upstream competition, content eventually routes through a single retail ISP to end users. Advocates for regulatory intervention have expressed new concerns that the process used to secure upstream access to content, may suffer from the same sort of discrimination or anticompetitive practices as allegedly has occurred at the retail level. Recently a long haul ISP, Level Three, sought FCC intervention to resolve a traffic dispute with Comcast. Level Three had contracted with Netflix to serve as a primary Content Delivery Network ("CDN") distributor of online movies thereby substantially increasing the volume of traffic that Level Three needs retail ISPs like Comcast to deliver to its subscribers. In response to the increase in terminating traffic generated by Level Three, Comcast imposed a surcharge. Level Three objected to it being singled out for a surcharge asserting that Comcast had installed an Internet toll booth for only certain traffic that happens to compete with Comcast's pay per view cable television service. Under ordinary circumstances when the volume of traffic between Internet peers changes and becomes unbalanced, the carrier generating more traffic than it receives bears the financial obligation to compensate the terminating carrier. However peering ISPs typically seek to balance out the traffic if possible in lieu of resorting to a monetary settlement. For CDNs that concentrate on the downstream delivery of content, an offsetting upstream flow of traffic may not be available to forestall a surcharge. However in the dispute between Level Three and Comcast, Level Three operates a large transcontinental network that could handle more upstream traffic from Comcast had Comcast elected to offset the Netflix downstream traffic volume. Level Three appears to want the FCC to resolve the traffic dispute by prohibiting Comcast from imposing a surcharge, on top of the Internet access charges Comcast's subscribers pay. Comcast frames the issue narrowly as a peering matter between an upstream ISP and the ISP providing last mile termination. This paper will examine the terms and conditions under which Internet carriers switch and route traffic for each of several links between a source of content, e.g., Netflix, and the delivery of that content to consumers via a retail ISP. The paper concludes that for each networking element commercial terms and conditions apply and that the FCC may lack direct statutory authority to intervene based on its determination that the largely unregulated information service classification applies to much of what constitutes Internet access. Additionally the FCC may appropriately forebear from regulating disputes regarding long haul telecommunications capacity, like that offered by carriers such as Level Three, because sufficient competition favors industry self-regulation. Similarly for peering disputes upstream from a retail ISP the marketplace appears sufficiently competitive for ISPs to pursue remedies free of regulatory intervention. Despite substantial reasons not to intervene, the FCC nevertheless might have to clarify its understanding of what subscribers of retail ISP services can expect to receive. Under truth in billing and other consumer safeguards the Commission might require ISPs to explain what a subscription guarantees not only in terms of transmission speed and downloading capacity, but also what subscribers can expect their ISPs to do when receiving content requiring downstream termination. The paper concludes that both Netflix customers and retail ISP subscribers expect their service providers to guarantee delivery of movies and all sorts of Internet traffic respectively. For physical delivery of DVDs Netflix must pay the U.S. Postal Service and for delivery of streaming bits Netflix must pay that Level Three. But for Internet traffic involving two or more ISPs, the paper examines whether other retail ISPs providing last mile delivery of content violate their service commitments to subscribers by demanding additional payment from upstream carriers.


Resistant bacteria have emerged and established themselves worldwide as a threat to the favourable outcome of common infections in community and hospital settings. Beta lactamase production by several gram negative and gram positive organisms is perhaps the most important single mechanism of resistance to penicillins and cephalosporins. ESBL and AmpC beta lactamases are typically associated with multiple antibiotic resistances, leaving few therapeutic options. In this study, a total of 116 patient samples were evaluated for occurrence of ESBL and AmpC by Combination disk test and Modified three dimensional test respectively. 58.1% of isolates were ESBL producers, 23.3% were AmpC producers and 15.5% were both ESBL and AmpC producers.


Let $\gamma (n,\delta)$ denote the largest possible domination number for a graph of order $n$ and minimum degree $\delta$. This paper is concerned with the behavior of the right side of the sequence $$\gamma (n,0) \ge \gamma (n,1) \ge \cdots \ge \gamma (n,n-1) = 1. $$ We set $ \delta _k(n) = \max \{ \delta \, \vert \, \gamma (n,\delta) \ge k \}$, $k \ge 1.$ Our main result is that for any fixed $k \ge 2$ there is a constant $c_k$ such that for sufficiently large $n$, $$ n-c_kn^{(k-1)/k} \le \delta _{k+1}(n) \le n - n^{(k-1)/k}. $$ The lower bound is obtained by use of circulant graphs. We also show that for $n$ sufficiently large relative to $k$, $\gamma (n,\delta _k(n)) = k$. The case $k=3$ is examined in further detail. The existence of circulant graphs with domination number greater than 2 is related to a kind of difference set in ${\bf Z}_n$.


Our predictive understanding of the outside world is predominantly based on learning about the relationship between stimuli (classical or "Pavlovian" conditioning) and on learning about the consequences of our own behavior (operant conditioning). The neuronal mechanisms underlying operant conditioning are largely unknown. Brembs et al. (see the Perspective by Rankin) developed an operant conditioning paradigm in the marine invertebrate Aplysia and used in vivo and in vitro experiments to unravel the cellular basis of operant conditioning of feeding behavior. B. Brembs, F. D. Lorenzetti, F. D. Reyes, D. A. Baxter, J. H. Byrne, Operant reward learning in Aplysia: Neuronal correlates and mechanisms. Science 296, 1706-1709 (2002). [Abstract] [Full Text] C. H. Rankin, A bite to remember. Science 296, 1624-1625 (2002). [Summary] [Full Text]


We present a unified approach for constructing iterative restorations of positively constrained objects. Specifically, a set of nonlinear algorithms, one of which is the Richardson–Lucy algorithm, is described for estimating positively constrained objects from data modeled by either Poisson or Gaussian processes. Exponential and monomial functions are used to remap the estimation space and to positively constrain the restorations. This technique also provides a method to accelerate the rate of convergence of known algorithms. Both one- and two-dimensional examples are presented.


The Crab nebula originated from a core-collapse supernova (SN) explosion observed in 1054 AD. When viewed as a supernova remnant (SNR), it has an anomalously low observed ejecta mass and kinetic energy for an Fe-core-collapse SN. Intensive searches have been made for a massive shell that solves this discrepancy, but none has been detected. An alternative idea is that SN 1054 is an electron-capture (EC) explosion with a lower explosion energy by an order of magnitude than Fe-core-collapse SNe. X-ray imaging searches were performed for the plasma emission from the shell in the Crab outskirts to set a stringent upper limit on the X-ray emitting mass. However, the extreme brightness of the source hampers access to its vicinity. We thus employed spectroscopic technique using the X-ray micro-calorimeter on board the Hitomi satellite. By exploiting its superb energy resolution, we set an upper limit for emission or absorption features from as yet undetected thermal plasma in the 2-12 keV range. We also re-evaluated the existing Chandra and XMM-Newton data. By assembling these results, a new upper limit was obtained for the X-ray plasma mass of less than or similar to 1 M-circle dot for a wide range of assumed shell radius, size, and plasma temperature values both in and out of collisional equilibrium. To compare with the observation, we further performed hydrodynamic simulations of the Crab SNR for two SN models (Fe-core versus EC) under two SN environments (uniform interstellar medium versus progenitor wind). We found that the observed mass limit can be compatible with both SN models if the SN environment has a low density of less than or similar to 0.03 cm(-3) (Fe core) or less than or similar to 0.1 cm(-3) (EC) for the uniform density, or a progenitor wind density somewhat less than that provided by amass loss rate of 10(-5) M-circle dot yr(-1) at 20 km s(-1) for the wind environment.


Supporting decision making in domains in which the observed phenomenon dynamics have to be dealt with, can greatly benefit of retrieval of past cases, provided that proper representation and retrieval techniques are implemented. In particular, when the parameters of interest take the form of time series, dimensionality reduction and flexible retrieval have to be addresses to this end. Classical methodological solutions proposed to cope with these issues, typically based on mathematical transforms, are characterized by strong limitations, such as a difficult interpretation of retrieval results for end users, reduced flexibility and interactivity, or inefficiency. In this paper, we describe a novel framework, in which time-series features are summarized by means of Temporal Abstractions, and then retrieved resorting to abstraction similarity. Our approach grants for interpretability of the output results, and understandability of the (user-guided) retrieval process. In particular, multilevel abstraction mechanisms and proper indexing techniques are provided, for flexible query issuing, and efficient and interactive query answering. Experimental results have shown the efficiency of our approach in a scalability test, and its superiority with respect to the use of a classical mathematical technique in flexibility, user friendliness, and also quality of results.


Carbon dioxide (CO2) absorption in several imidazolium-based ionic liquids (ILs), pyridinium-based ionic liquids and a tetraalkylammonium-based poly(ionic liquid) (PIL), poly[(p-vinylbenzyl) trimethylammonium hexafluorophosphate] P[[VBTMA][PF6], was studied. The trend of CO2 solubility in all of the ILs increases dramatically with decreasing absorption temperature. Based on the same bis(triflamide) [Tf2N] anion, imidazolium, pyridinium and trihexyltetradecylphosphonium-based ionic liquids all show relatively similar CO2 solubilities, which were higher than for the [ES] anion. The highest CO2 absorption was found in a poly(ionic liquid) P[[VBTMA][PF6]], however, the monomer also showed higher CO2 capacity than the other ionic liquids. The poly(ionic liquid) is remarkable in that it can adsorb 77% of its body weight of CO2 with a selectivity over nitrogen of 70 : 1. The absorbed CO2 gas can be readily desorbed from ionic liquids and poly(ionic liquid) and the selectivity for CO2 over N2 was consistent over repeated cycles. The materials can be reused several times for consecutive sorption/desorption cycles, without loss of performance in a large-scale reactor and therefore represent serious candidates for use in commercial adsorbers.


Drilling operations are preformed by several countries. Some countries are forced to drill offshore, whereas others to drill onshore. Offshore drilling operations are more challenging comparing to onshore operations. The sea waves disturbs the rig/drill ship continuously. Floaters such as drill ships and floating rigs are more affected by the waves than fixed construction. The result of the sea waves are horizontal and vertical movements of the floaters. However, the horizontal movements are eliminated with advanced positioning systems. Whilst the vertical movements are avoided with use of heave-compensators. Extension of the drill string is needed during drilling operations. The extension stage is called "connections". During connections, the mud pump and the heave-compensators are disabled. Which causes the floaters to oscillate vertically due to the sea waves. Such vertical movements of the floaters causes the drill string to move vertically inside the well. Vertical movements of the drill string are unwanted, as they create pressure changes in the wellbore. Pressure alterations may cause huge damages to the well and the drill string. However, several control techniques have been developed in order to obtain constant pressure throughout a connection. Common for this techniques are the consideration of a deactivated mud pump and no mud circulations, as in reality. It is therefore interesting to activate the mud pump and investigate the effect of continuous circulation during connections. Furthermore, the possibility to control the circulation to attain constant pressure. This thesis presents simulations and results that indicates damped pressure oscillations during connections, using controlled circulation.


Many attackers use the nodes location information for security threats in network, as every sensor node in network is having its own location. An attacker tries to get location information of source or receiver. Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are group of collection of sensor nodes which are collaboratively communicate with each other for information sharing. The sharing of information is done between source sensor node and sink sensor node using the routing protocols. The major constraint of this network is the security. Thus we need to have source location privacy methods in WSN to prevent such threats from the network. Source privacy preservation is also called source anonymity and recent time this attracts many researchers interests. The attacker or unauthorized sensor node not able to get events location information through the current network traffic is called as source anonymity problem. Recently we have studied efficient method for source anonymity in WSNs. In most of real life applications of WSNs, sensor networks are having the location information about various events and this information needs to secure or anonymous. In that method the statistical framework is presented, this is based on the binary hypothesis testing for modeling, analyzing, and evaluating statistical source anonymity WNS. The concept of notion of interval in distinguish ability in order to model source anonymity, however this method fails to satisfy the notion of interval in distinguish ability practically. Therefore, in this paper we are further extending this method address such issues and practically prove its efficiency, we proposed a modification to existing solutions to improve their anonymity against correlation tests. Key-Words: Pairwise Key Establishment, Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), Sensor Network Security, Security communication overhead.


The fine structure of the coronal cilia of the rotifer Philodina citrina has been studied in detail. Specimens were fixed with OsO4 and embedded in butyl—methyl methacrylate, Epon 812, or Vestopal and sectioned with a Porter-Blum microtome. The details of structure of the rootlets, basal bodies, basal plates, and free cilia are described. The general structure of the rotifer ciliary apparatus conforms well to that established for other species. One of the main observations is the difference in structure of the peripheral filaments in the opposing halves of a cross-section of the free cilium. Also, in longitudinal sections evidence is offered for the existence of a helical structure in the peripheral filaments.


Part of the debate about the 'productivity puzzle' concerns the potential mismeasurement of digital activities. Specific measurement adjustments explored in previous research appear not to make a quantitatively large difference to real GDP or productivity growth estimates. However, although these potential adjustments may be small individually, taken together they could be wide in scope and quantitatively significant. This paper sets out a taxonomy of the range of potential measurement artefacts arising from digital innovations. It also specifically considers digitally-enabled substitutions in activity across the production boundary. I argue that these, along with other substitutions occurring within the production boundary, go beyond the effects of digital considered in earlier research; and may be making a meaningful contribution to the productivity puzzle as measured on existing statistical definitions.


This research is focused on the grammar especially conditional sentences. The teaching of grammar is generally felt boring and even confusing for students at MA Darul Ulum Semarang because it needs more analytical ability.
This research is aimed at finding the answer to the following research questions: How is the implementation of song improve students' understanding on conditional sentences?
The objective of this study is to identify the implementation of song to improve students' understanding on conditional sentences.
This study is a classroom action research that was done in three cycles. Data collection is done using observation, documentation, and test. To analyze the data, descriptive quantitative analysis is used; it is to present the result of study in the form of descriptive explanation. Statistic analysis is used to analyze the data about the improvement of students' understanding on conditional sentences.
Result of the study shows that by using song can improve students' understanding on conditional sentences at the eleventh grade of MA Darul Ulum Semarang in The Academic Year of 2010/2011. This success can be seen from the result of students' average score and good responses students. The result after getting all of the treatment using song, the students' average increased in line with the increase of the students' score achievement in each cycle. Students' average score from the pre cycle was 56.6, first cycle was 64, second cycle was 75.3, and the third cycle was 88.
Based on the result of the study, the writer suggested that the use of song can be an alternative way to teach language, especially to improve the students' understanding on conditional sentences. This result hopefully would motivate language teacher to use song in teaching English in the classroom, especially when teaching grammar to the level of Senior High School students.


This paper is to examine the urban and rural construction land data of Dafang between basic year and final year based on country scale and spatial econometrics, and analyze its spatial pattern and change feature. According to the results, the construction lands in all the villages of Dafang County showed strong spatial autocorrelation and significant spatial cluster. After the analysis of local Moran's I, the construction lands in 381 villages of 36 counties presented strong activity. The original small-scale villages were gradually enlarging, which will not only gradually benefit local development, but also be in accordance with the strategy of "one city, one district, eight parks†.


In this thesis, we study the management of relational data in modern, i.e., asymmetric computer systems. We explore different strategies to identify asymmetries in persistent data, map them to asymmetries in the memory landscape and, eventually, exploit them to increase query processing performance. To this end, we study memory conscious decomposition and storage of data at different granularities: relations, vertical partitions, single attributes as well as individual bits. In the interest of conciseness, we exclude techniques that require auxilliary data structures such as indices or horizontal partitioning which come with significant maintenance overhead. Further, we argue that, when managing memory-resident data, the problem of optimal data placement is tightly connected to the efficiency of the query processing paradigm and can, therefore, not be studied in isolation. Consequently, we also investigate the connection between storage model and processing paradigm. In the case of decomposition at partition granularity we identify Just-in-Time compilation as the only viable query processing model. In the case of distribution at the granularity of individual bits, we develop a novel processing paradigm that efficiently exploits the asymmetries in the underlying data and memory components.


Although digital devices have their own unique features that differentiate them from other tangible types of resources for reading, writing and sketching, a majority of people still prefer traditional paper media as it provides better user experiences in many aspects: readability, portability, ease of making annotations, shared reading, tactile sensory experiences, etc. This paper identifies barriers and opportunities for paper-related features based on human-centric design research directed towards the overarching goal of providing insights for finding disruptive opportunity spaces. In framing our design research, we define journeys that tangible and digital media follow – from original form, transitions and final form. Our target populations are college students and professionals in diverse majors and work environments. Based on insights from our design research, we present personas and case studies.


Abstract The period from 1650 to 1750 was not characterised by major institutional innovation in the government of London, let alone revolutionary structural change. The contrast between the centralised and well-organised government of the City and the atomised and somewhat improvised governmental institutions of the rest of the metropolis was as striking in 1750 as it was in 1650. However, the nature of government changed. The power relations between national and local government shifted, as did the scope and competence of administrative activity. Many of the characteristic features of London's governance as it is today emerged or became significant within this period. This paper focuses on three main developments in London's government. The overarching one is the politicisation of the process of choosing or identifying the governors of London, and the increased significance in national party-politics of the stance of London's governors. Underpinning this is the financial revolution and the invention of 'the City' as we understand the term. Thirdly, local government in the rest of London, while still fairly ad hoc in its institutions, began to respond to heightened expectations of the quality of life in the metropolis, but encountered a number of new problems, notably that of accountability.


In a multicentre study consecutively patch-tested dermatitis patients were tested simultaneously with 1.0% and 2.0% (w/v) formaldehyde in aqua applied with a micropipette (15 µl) to the filter paper disc in Finn Chambers (0.30 mg/cm(2) and 0.60 mg/cm(2), respectively). A total of 2,122 dermatitis patients were patch-tested. In all, 77 (3.6%) patients reacted positively to formaldehyde; 37 reacted only to 2.0%, 35 reacted to both concentrations and 5 patients reacted only to 1.0%. Significantly more patients were thus diagnosed with contact allergy to formaldehyde with 2.0% compared to 1.0% (p < 0.001) without causing more irritant reactions. The detected number of isolated allergic reactions to the 2 formaldehyde-releasers in the Swedish baseline series and not to formaldehyde itself raises the question whether quaternium-15 1.0% and diazolidinyl urea 2.0% should be present in the Swedish baseline series.


A large amount of images with accompanying text captions are available on the Internet. These are valuable for training visual classifiers without any explicit manual intervention. In this paper, we present a general framework to address this problem. Under this new framework, each training image is represented as a bag of regions, associated with a set of candidate labeling vectors. Each labeling vector encodes the possible labels for the regions of the image. The set of all possible labeling vectors can be generated automatically from the caption using natural language processing techniques. The use of labeling vectors provides a principled way to include diverse information from the captions, such as multiple types of words corresponding to different attributes of the same image region, labeling constraints derived from grammatical connections between words, uniqueness constraints, and spatial position indicators. Moreover, it can also be used to incorporate high-level domain knowledge useful for improving learning performance. We show that learning is possible under this weakly supervised setup. Exploiting this property of the problem, we propose a large margin discriminative formulation, and an efficient algorithm to solve the proposed learning problem. Experiments conducted on artificial datasets and two real-world images and captions datasets support our claims.


This study set out to investigate how the influence of adjacent land use impacts upon a river. The land uses which were investigated were agricultural and urban, around the city of York. Samples were taken from the village of Nether Poppleton which can be found to the north, the city of York, and Fulford which is located to the south.
Samples gained from each site had their physical and chemical characteristics tested. This was in order to determine the pollution that agricultural and urban land use had upon the water quality. The samples that were acquired were tested in both the field and also the laboratory. The parameters that were tested was temperature (oC), conductivity (μ), pH, dissolved oxygen (mg/l), chlorides (ppm), sulphates (ppm), nitrates (ppm) and suspended solids (g).
From the data that was gathered, it could be seen that anthropogenic influences had a negative effect on the water quality of the river Ouse when compared to the control sample. However, the fifth agricultural sample that was gathered appeared to be abnormal, suggesting that the results are unreliable. It was also noted that through statistics, significant differences were only found between the land uses whilst testing temperature and pH. However, when compared to the control site, it could be seen that anthropogenic influences impacted negatively on the water quality of the river Ouse.


This is not the first generation facing a fearful future. Exactly fifty years ago, 1968 – nestled between the Summer of Love ('67) and Woodstock ('69) was known as the year of revolt. From Vietnam protests and Civil Rights marches, to the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, American culture, like that of countries around the world, was awash in struggle yet alive in activist ideology. In particular, Classic Rock of the era served as a reflection of the times, a call to action, and eventually offered enduring insight into the qualities of effective protest music. Using Sellnow's Illusion of Life methodology, which examines music as rhetoric, this essay analyses the top ten hits of that year (per http://ultimateclassicrock.com), including such timeless masterpieces as Joplin's "Piece of my Heart," Cream's "White Room," Hendrix's "All Along the Watchtower," and the Rolling Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil." The humanistic methodology begins by identifying first the patterns found in the songs' virtual time (music) and virtual experience (lyrics). Analysis then delves into the use of strategies such as congruity and incongruity to get across meaning. Interpretations are offered on the impact such works had on their original generation, and concludes with applications for today.


We use Spitzer Space Telescope and Herschel Space Observatory far-infrared data along with ground-based optical and near-infrared data to understand how dust heating in the nearby face-on spiral galaxies M81, M83 and NGC 2403 is affected by the starlight from all stars and by the radiation from star-forming regions. We find that 70/160 m surface brightness ratios tend to be more strongly influenced by star-forming regions. However, the 250/350 m and 350/500 m surface brightness ratios are more strongly affected by the light from the total stellar populations, suggesting that the dust emission at >250 m originates predominantly from a component that is colder than the dust seen at <160 m and that is relatively unaffected by star formation activity. We conclude by discussing the implications of this for modelling the spectral energy distributions of both nearby and more distant galaxies and for using far-infrared dust emission to trace star formation.


As to date, there is no report on the architecture of the whole genomes of the unique Orang Asli subtribes in Peninsular Malaysia. The Che Wong was selected as the group of interest as they have a dwindling population of 651, while the Semai Orang Asli with a population number of 51,313 was selected as the control group. The Semai is the largest sub-tribe of the Senoi which is also the largest group amongst the Orang Asli. This study aims to understand the variation in genomics composition of the Che Wong and Semai Orang Asli by a deep and systematic characterization of the genome through development of an in-house bioinformatics pipeline. The disease risk and protection conferred by genetic traits were explored via sequencing the whole genome of a trio family of both the Che Wong and Semai sub-tribes. The Che Wong and Semai genomes were sequenced and mapped to the human reference genome (hgl9) with an average coverage of 44.1 x and 43.Ox, respectively. A total of-6.23 million and -6.18 million variants were identified for the Che Wong and Semai trios, respectively. An average of 448,166 and 436,520 of these variants were found to be unique to the Che Wong and Semai trios, respectively. An average of 1.6% of the total variants called for the Che Wong and Semai genomes were known to be evolutionary conserved. A closer relationship between the Che Wong and Semai with the Asian populations than the African, American and European peoples was also observed. There is a distinctive difference in health status between the Che Wong and Semai trio where the Semai are seen to be in a healthier state. Medico-genomic association also revealed more disease impact for the Che Wong trio as compared to the Semai trio genomes. A total of 93 and 106 de novo mutations (DNMs) were identified for the Che Wong and Semai trio respectively. These mutations were also studied for their medico-genomic association. We report here for the first time the catalogues of the genomic architectures of the Orang Asli, the Che Wong and Semai in precise along with their medico-genomic findings. These data provide new perspectives of the genomics background of the indigenous populations in South East Asia (SEA) which we believe would be useful for the scientific and health community.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The underlying reasons for the decline in stroke mortality in the United States are not well understood and have been the subject of ongoing debate. This study was undertaken to determine whether survival of hospitalized stroke patients has changed during the 1980s, thereby contributing to the decline in stroke mortality during that period.

METHODS
For the years 1980, 1985, and 1990, we obtained listings of discharge diagnoses from hospitals in the Minneapolis-St Paul metropolitan area and identified all hospitalizations with a discharge diagnosis code of acute cerebrovascular disease according to the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision. A 50% random sample of men and women aged 30 to 74 years was selected in each survey for detailed medical record abstraction. Standardized sets of criteria for stroke were then used to validate acute stroke events throughout the 1980s. Each of the three period cohorts of hospitalized stroke patients (1980, 1985, and 1990) was followed for at least 2 years for all-cause mortality end point.

RESULTS
A total of 1853 patients met minimal criteria for acute stroke: 564 patients in 1980, 598 patients in 1985, and 691 patients in 1990. Controlling for age, the odds of death within 2 years after stroke were approximately 40% lower in 1990 than in 1980. The relative odds of 2-year death in 1990 (versus 1980) were 0.65 (95% confidence interval, 0.47 to 0.89) and 0.60 (95% confidence interval, 0.42 to 0.85) for men and women, respectively. The improved survival was evident in the short term (28 days) as well as for stroke patients who survived that period. Analysis according to stroke subtype revealed that improved survival of ischemic stroke and specifically of stroke with no apparent cardioembolic source largely accounted for the overall trend. The prognosis of stroke patients who were admitted in a comatose state has not changed during that decade.

CONCLUSIONS
Despite the absence of any clear major advances in acute stroke therapy, survival of stroke patients substantially improved during the 1980s. The underlying reasons for this unexpected yet remarkable trend remain uncertain but may include improved supportive and rehabilitative care of stroke victims as well as a change in the natural history of the disease.


Privacy constraints are typically enforced on shared data that contain sensitive personal attributes. However, owing to its adverse effect on the utility of the data, information loss must be minimized while sanitizing the data. Existing methods for this purpose modify the data only to the extent necessary to satisfy the privacy constraints, thereby asserting that the information loss has been minimized. However, given the subjective nature of information loss, it is often difficult to justify such an assertion. In this paper, we propose an interactive procedure to generate a data generalization scheme that optimally meets the preferences of the data publisher. A data publisher guides the sanitization process by specifying aspirations in terms of desired achievement levels in the objectives. A reference direction based methodology is used to investigate neighborhood solutions if the generated scheme is not acceptable. This approach draws its power from the constructive input received from the publisher about the suitability of a solution before finding a new one.


Because of the limited approximation capability of using fixed basis functions, the performance of reflectance estimation obtained by traditional linear models will not be optimal. We propose an approach based on the regularized local linear model. Our approach performs efficiently and knowledge of the spectral power distribution of the illuminant and the spectral sensitivities of the camera is not needed. Experimental results show that the proposed method performs better than some well-known methods in terms of both reflectance error and colorimetric error.


This article reflects on the criticism regarding the pastoral counsellor's dealings with spousal rape victims. It argues that counsellors should be sensitive not to be biased, either personally or theologically, and should have an understanding of the biopsychosocial (biological, psychological and social) impact of spousal rape, such as rape-related post-traumatic stress and other related illnesses such as depression, victimisation and stigmatisation. The pastoral counsellors should be aware of the legal and medical ramifications of spousal rape and have knowledge of the correct referral resources and procedures (trusted professionals, shelters and support structures). They should be self-aware and understand the effect that gender or previous traumatic personal experiences may have on their reactions. The article consists of the following sections: the phenomenon 'rape'; acquaintance rape; spousal rape; post-traumatic stress; post-traumatic stress disorder; rape trauma syndrome; cognitive behavioural therapy; spirituality; doctrinal matters; social system of patriarchy; a pastoral counselling model; self-care.


This study of the bathymetry of the mid-shelf of the Durban Bight, KwaZulu-Natal revealed a series of previously undocumented seafloor features. These features were mapped using a high-resolution multibeam bathymetric echosounder and a detailed map of the seafloor topography was produced. We recognised several features that closely resemble features of contemporary segmented lagoon and lake systems: semicircular seafloor depressions, arcuate ridges, cuspate spits and prograding submerged barriers. Based on the striking similarity in morphology to Kosi Bay – a segmented lagoon system from the sandy northern KwaZuluNatal coastal plain – a similar evolutionary model is proposed. This model is of an incised valley formed following a sea level lowering to the Last Glacial Maximum at about 18 000 BP. Thereafter, continued transgressive infilling occurred to a point where an extensive lagoon and back-barrier system was established. At this point, sea levels remained static, causing the net segmentation of the system and the slow closure of the tidal basins or circular depressions. This type of seafloor topography is rarely preserved and is the result of fortuitous cementation after deposition and the later removal of sediment that would ordinarily bury such features.


This thesis examines the value of using dispersed conductive fillers as a stress/strain sensing material. The effect of the intrinsic conductivity of the filler on the ability to be effective and the influence of filler concentration on the conductivity are also examined. To meet these objectives, nanocomposites of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) with carbon nanofibers (CNFs) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were prepared by melt-blending using a twin screw extruder. Since PVDF has a potential to be piezoresistive based on the type of crystalline phase, the effect of CNFs on PVDF crystallinity, crystalline phase, quasi static and dynamic mechanical property was studied concurrently with piezoresponse. Three time dependencies were examined for PVDF/CNTs nanocomposites: quasi-static, transient and cyclic fatigue. The transient response of the strain with time showed viscoelastic behavior and was modeled by the 4-element Burger model. Under quasi-static loading the resistance showed negative pressure coefficient below yield but changed to a positive pressure coefficient after yield. Under cyclic load, the stress-time and resistance-time were synchronous but the resistance peak value decreased with increasing cycles, which was attributed to charge storage in the nanocomposite. The outcomes of this thesis indicate that a new piezoresponsive system based on filled polymers is a viable technology for structural health monitoring.


The gravitational wave signal from a compact object inspiralling into a massive black hole (MBH) is considered to be one of the most difficult sources to detect in the LISA data stream. Due to the large parameter space of possible signals and many orbital cycles spent in the sensitivity band of LISA, it has been estimated that ∼1035 templates would be required to carry out a fully coherent search using a template grid, which is computationally impossible. Here we describe an algorithm based on a constrained Metropolis–Hastings stochastic search which allows us to find and accurately estimate parameters of isolated EMRI signals buried in Gaussian instrumental noise. We illustrate the effectiveness of the algorithm with results from searches of the Mock LISA Data Challenge round 1B data sets.


This paper describes a mechanism developed by the authors to gather student feedback from formative revision Multiple Choice Questionnaires (MCQs) within an on-line learning system. The MCQs provided first year Computer Science students with instant formative feedback, while data was also gathered about student responses, such as the percentage opting for each answer and the time taken to answer the question. We measured how students were using our on-line learning system; whether they were in fact 'workers' who provided answers to the MCQs, were 'lurkers' who did not provide answers but asked for solutions or 'shirkers', who did not access the site at all! The data indicates that the time taken to answer a harder question was less than that of an easier question suggesting that the workers turned into lurkers strategically when they thought they could not answer successfully. It was not however clear whether the lurker suddenly finding an easier question would change back into a worker. Future work to encourage the shirkers to participate is also discussed.


Engagement services for persons with mental illnesses improve the quality of their life, social participation and assists their integration in society. Engagement activities provide an opportunity for the persons to change their environment and to engage in their favourite activity. The purpose of the article is to reveal the provision of engagement services for psychiatry patients. The study tasks are: 1) to describe the forms of enegagement services and the potential for their application to psychiatric patients; 2) to establish what possibilities to choose engagement activities have been created for the patients, their participation in engagement activities, motivations, frequency and duration  of psychiatric hospital X. The study sample is targeted and criterion-based. While cooperating with the medical staff of an institution 176 investigatees were interviewed according to the following criteria: 1) a person is treated in a psychiatric hospital X, 2) a mental illness of the person is in the remission phase, 3) the person is able to independently answer the questions presented in the questionnaire. The study was conducted in the January of 2015 while respecting ethical principles. It is appropriate to use psychotherapeutic, social and daily living skills development, task performance, food cooking, the development of computer literacy, gardening, social, communication and sharing, physical activity, games, various handicrafts, music, art, bibliotherapy and other activities for psychiatric patients. Through the engagement services, labour, leisure and household skills are developed in psychiatric patients in  order to  reduce obstacles for psichiatric patients to integrate in society. The study established that the majority of the persons, who are treated in the psychiatric hospital X, are informed about the services provided in the hospital, which they can obtain in the hospital, and participate in the engagement activities organised by the hospital. The study revealed that the investigatees mostly participate in psychotherapeutic, daily living and social skills development, sports, computer literacr, ceramics, food cooking activities in which they can choose independently and decide how often during a week they will attend them and how much time they will allot to an engagement activity. The persons, who do not participate in engagement activities, list their weak health as one of the main reasons why they do not participate in engagement activities.


This research focuses on American companies operating in Bahrain, employing Bahrainis whose national culture governs their daily routine. Making EDS a case study, this research explores the conflicts that arise at the work place when organisational culture encounters national culture and customs. Even with extensive globalization, particularly in the Middle East, there is a lack of research exploring the influence of national culture on the local employees, the impact of national culture of host countries on the operations of multinational companies or guidelines for American companies to follow while venturing to set up business in Bahrain. This research follows a social constructionist paradigm, utilizing reflexive qualitative interviews conducted with EDS managers and EDS local employees, analysed through template analysis, to explain complex social processes which govern the national culture and the conflicts created when organisational culture is imposed upon the local employees. The findings of this research offer a holistic picture of the previously unrecognized alienation and resentment that arises when organisational culture is imposed on the local work force in Bahrain, without understanding the cultural influences that define them. The study discovered that American companies should create an awareness and understanding in their expatriate managers about the national culture and the impact of organisational culture on the local workforce already governed by their own national culture. The thesis offers guidelines to the local government policy makers to develop practice based training for local employees to meet the challenges of working in a multinational company. The research bridges the gap in perceptions between the local employees and American companies, thus paving the way to mutually beneficial working relationships. Finally the thesis develops a practice based framework by integrating influencing factors into policy making process, thus providing a practical guide to American companies setting out to do business in the Middle East, as well as to local governments in the Middle East.


In most proposed video-on-demand (VOD) systems, customers are serviced individually by dedicating a transmission channel and a set of video server resources to each customer. We consider a VOD system that uses multicast delivery to service multiple customers with a single set of resources. The use of multicast requires that some interactivity and part of the on-demand nature of the system are sacrificed to achieve scalability and cost-effectiveness. Previous work has considered how VCR actions could be handled in this type of system through the provisioning of set-top box buffering. We consider the provision of discontinuous VCR actions in which the duration of the action is specified in integer multiples of a specified time increment. We evaluate the performance of this system through the use of simulation and compare its performance with an individual delivery (unicast) system and a multicast system with continuous VCR actions.


Abnormal bearer session release (i.e. bearer session drop) in cellular telecommunication networks may seriously impact the quality of experience of mobile users. The latest mobile technologies enable high granularity real-time reporting of all conditions of individual sessions, which gives rise to use data analytics methods to process and monetize this data for network optimization. One such example for analytics is Machine Learning (ML) to predict session drops well before the end of session. In this paper a novel ML method is presented that is able to predict session drops with higher accuracy than using traditional models. The method is applied and tested on live LTE data offline. The high accuracy predictor can be part of a SON function in order to eliminate the session drops or mitigate their effects.


Background: Musculoskeletal injury is a major cause of chronic pain due to a weakness of the tendons and ligaments. Currently, prolotherapy is used for treating chronic pain by strengthening the tendons and ligaments. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of prolotherapy on chronic musculoskeletal diseases. Methods: Twenty chronic musculoskeletal disease patients were injected with a 12.5% dextrose solution as a proliferent and the side effects were checked. The VAS (visual analogue scales) were measured before the injection and 2 months after the injection. Results: This study showed that a post-prolotherapy VAS was significantly reduced compared to the pre-prolotherapy VAS in 80% of subjects, and the average ratio of the post-prolotherapy VAS to the pre-prolotherapy VAS was 0.36. There were several side effects such as pain after the injection, dizziness during injection, new pain development, and a hematoma. Conclusions: Prolotherapy is another good method for treating chronic musculosketal diseases that respond poorly to conventional treatments like a trigger point injection, a nerve block, medication, etc.


Education in South Africa has, thankfully, not escaped the winds of change. The introduction of Outcomesbased Education (OBE) has generated much debate. How have technikons responded to the educational transformation impelled by sociopolitical change? I refer here specifically to the Communication curricula for engineers at Mangosuthu Technikon. This research explores the effects in my Communication classroom of introducing performance, through games and a dramatic text. My intention is to subvert the potential dangers of OBE, given its behaviourist and prescriptive thrust, and a possible reversion to the transmission model in its application at Mantec. I argue that gaps in the historically decontextualised Communication curriculum may be addressed through the use of performance as a critical alternate literacy and pedagogic tool. Government policy supports the view of literacy as an inclusive act, contrasting with the exclusionary politics characteristic of apartheid. Educators also offer a rationale for the use of literary texts in developing language competence. Vygotskian pedagogy, the social constructivist model of education and qualitative research methods condition this research. I consequently offer a comprehensive, multiperspectival view of the research experience my students and I shared during a semester, through a range of lenses and data collection tools. Many insights filtered through our experience. Students' journal reflections are captured throughout, and their capacity to demonstrate specified outcomes analysed. I saw in their presentations the beginnings of understanding of the power of performance and body language. Texts which raised issues relevant to their sociocultural, political and personal lives, were valued. Reading in class and performance techniques heightened participation and competence in comprehending, interacting and conversing. Students' culminating performances balanced a theoretical understanding with practical application, which drew on personal, political and sociocultural experiences. By the end of the semester, they exhibited more confidence in their own literacies and in building relationships. The study concludes that a collective effort, made at institutional level, is necessary if we are to succeed at educational transformation through the methodology of OBE. We need a more considered, critical application, and to still seek other alternatives.