The coupling of soil and root water fluxes at the plant scale is a particularly challenging task. Numerical three‐dimensional plant‐scale models exist that consider these soil–root interactions. The influence of the hydraulic conductivity drop at the microscopic scale and especially the effect on root water uptake is not yet assessed in such models. In this study, an analytical approach describing the hydraulic conductivity drop from the bulk soil to the soil–root interface for a three‐dimensional plant‐scale model was derived and validated by numerical means. With these tools, quantification of the local hydraulic conductivity drop with time was possible. Furthermore, the effect of the hydraulic conductivity drop on the time occurrence of plant stress was evaluated. Root water uptake was assessed, with and without considering the hydraulic conductivity drop around single roots in a three‐dimensional plant‐scale model in terms of total water uptake at the root collar under different soil and root properties. It was shown that the total root water uptake was strongly affected, especially under conditions where the radial root hydraulic conductivity, which regulates root water uptake, was larger than the soil hydraulic conductivity, which regulates water flow in the soil. These findings were backed up by numerical validation of the model using mesh refinement. Incorporation of the hydraulic conductivity drop around individual roots in a three‐dimensional plant‐scale model can solve problems with greater accuracy for larger grid resolutions, and with smaller computational times, than not considering the hydraulic conductivity drop.


An ad hoc network must operate independent of a preestablished or centralized network management infrastructure, while still providing administrative services needed to support applications. Address allocation, name resolution, service location, authentication, and access control policies represent just some of the functionality that must be supported-without preconfiguration or centralized services. In order to solve these problems, it is necessary to leverage some aspect of the environment in which the network operates. We introduce the notion of a spontaneous network, created when a group of people come together for some collaborative activity. In this case, we can use the human interactions associated with the activity in order to establish a basic service and security infrastructure. We structure our discussion around a practical real-world scenario illustrating the use of such a network, identifying the key challenges involved and some of the techniques that can be used to address them.


In this paper, we automatically assess the aesthetic properties of images. In the past, this problem has been addressed by hand-crafting features which would correlate with best photographic practices ( e.g ."Does this image respect the rule of thirds ?") or with photographic techniques ( e.g ."Is this image a macro ?"). We depart from this line of research and propose to use generic image descriptors to assess aesthetic quality. We experimentally show that the descriptors we use, which aggregate statistics computed from low-level local features, implicitly encode the aesthetic properties explicitly used by state-of-the-art methods and outperform them by a significant margin.


Most papers on methyl group tunnelling use a model in which the motion of a rigid rotator is hindered by a potential of threefold symmetry. There are a number of difficulties with such a description and, in this paper, the model is replaced by one which describes the motion of three protons, which have mutual interactions and which are hindered by an external potential. The analysis makes considerable use of symmetry ideas and arrives at conclusions which are substantially different from those of the previous model. A comparison of the two models shows that, in the absence of dipolar interactions, both will have an orbital singlet level with spin of 3/2, but that the level described as 2E in the rigid-rotator model will not occur in the present model and that there will be no corresponding level with fourfold degeneracy. Instead there will be two separated orbital singlets, each with spin 1/2. The inclusion of the dipolar interaction splits the quartet into two doublets, so that finally there are four separated low-lying energy levels, each being doubly degenerate.


In Cambodia, the interactions between large-scale land investment and land titling gathered particular momentum in 2012–13, when the government initiated an unprecedented upland land titling programme in an attempt to address land tenure insecurity where large-scale land investment overlaps with land appropriated by peasants. This paper is based on a spatially explicit ethnography of land rights conducted in the Samlaut district of north-west Cambodia – a former Khmer Rouge resistance stronghold – in a context where the enclosures are both incomplete and entangled with post-war, socially embedded land tenure systems. We discuss how this new pattern of fragmentation affects the prevailing dynamics of agrarian change. We argue that it has introduced new forms of exclusion and a generalized perception of land tenure uncertainty that is managed by peasants through the actualization of hybrid land tenure arrangements borrowing from state rules and local consensus. In contrast with common expectations about land formalization, the process reinforces the patterns of social differentiation initiated by land rent capture practices of early migrants and pushes more vulnerable peasants into seeking wage labour and resorting to job migration.


Several recent commentators have criticized trends in the patent system by suggesting that the goals of the system can be better achieved through a variety of approaches that avoid or mitigate the monopoly-type impact of property rights. Suggested alternatives include the use of cash rewards, buy-outs, and liability rules, as distinct from property rules. This paper uses the important contributions made by these commentators to reveal shortcomings in any view of the patent system that focuses only on incentives to engage in inventive activity. The paper offers a new view of the patent system that embraces property rights and property rules as core elements of the patent system. According to this view, property treatment is essential for the subsequent commercialization activity that is necessary to get embodiments of nascent inventions into the hands of consumers and for efficiently identifying which inventions are worth the costs of government intervention in the first instance. The recently suggested alternatives fail to address these important goals of the patent system and would actually frustrate them. In addition, the current system already addresses many of the concerns raised by such commentary. The paper reveals how property rights and commercialization motivated the creation of our current patent system and explains many controversial trends in the system, including those that sparked the recent critical commentary, as well as those in other intellectual property regimes such as trademarks.


The nonlinearity of biomedical signals time series is detected by surrogate method. However, the traditional statistics in surrogate method, such as correlation dimension (D2) and approximate entropy (ApEn), have some insufficiency in application, especially lower time efficiency. To solve these deficiencies, this study presents the fuzzy entropy (FuzzyEn) as a statistics of the surrogate method to detect the nonlinearity of time series and verify that in two simulation datasets. It was found that, for various lengths of time series, the new method can accurately detect the linearity or nonlinearity of them, and perform much better in time efficiency compared with traditional statistics. The results show that, the method presented in this article is an accurate, effective method to detect the nonlinearity of the biomedical signal.


ABSTRACT Molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases converge at the interface of pathways impacting cellular stress, protein homeostasis and aging. Targeting the intrinsic capacities of neuroprotective proteins to restore neuronal function and/or attenuate degeneration represents a potential means toward therapeutic intervention. The product of the human DYT1 gene, torsinA, is a member of the functionally diverse AAA+ family of proteins and exhibits robust molecular-chaperone-like activity, both in vitro and in vivo. Although mutations in DYT1 are associated with a rare form of heritable generalized dystonia, the native function of torsinA seems to be cytoprotective in maintaining the cellular threshold to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Here we explore the potential for torsinA to serve as a buffer to attenuate the cellular consequences of misfolded-protein stress as it pertains to the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The selective vulnerability of motor neurons to degeneration in ALS mouse models harboring mutations in superoxide dismutase (SOD1) has been found to correlate with regional-specific ER stress in brains. Using Caenorhabditis elegans as a system to model ER stress, we generated transgenic nematodes overexpressing either wild-type or mutant human SOD1 to evaluate their relative impact on ER stress induction in vivo. These studies revealed a mutant-SOD1-specific increase in ER stress that was further exacerbated by changes in temperature, all of which was robustly attenuated by co-expression of torsinA. Moreover, through complementary behavioral analysis, torsinA was able to restore normal neuronal function in mutant G85R SOD1 animals. Furthermore, torsinA targeted mutant SOD1 for degradation via the proteasome, representing mechanistic insight on the activity that torsinA has on aggregate-prone proteins. These results expand our understanding of proteostatic mechanisms influencing neuronal dysfunction in ALS, while simultaneously highlighting the potential for torsinA as a novel target for therapeutic development.


The new edition of this leading overview of comparative politics once again blends theory and evidence across democratic systems to provide unparalleled coverage. The student-friendly structure and clear, concise writing ensure that complex issues are clearly explained and students engage with the key theories. The third edition is updated throughout, with a new chapter, 'Public Spending and Public Policies', increased coverage of defective democracies, and revised coverage of e-democracy and the power of the media. The pedagogy is simplified with a focus on 'Briefings' and 'Controversies' that feature examples from across the globe, alongside clear key terms, 'What We Have Learned' and 'Lessons of Comparison' sections, and a wealth of online materials to complete a rich teaching and learning package.


In the global race to reach the end of AIDS, why is the world slipping off track? The answer has to do with stigma, money, and data. Global funding for AIDS response is declining. Tough choices must be made: some people will win and some will lose. Global aid agencies and governments use health data to make these choices. While aid agencies prioritize a shrinking list of countries, many governments deny that sex workers, men who have sex with men, drug users, and transgender people exist. Since no data is gathered about their needs, life-saving services are not funded, and the lack of data reinforces the denial. The Uncounted cracks open this and other data paradoxes through interviews with global health leaders and activists, ethnographic research, analysis of gaps in mathematical models, and the author's experience as an activist and senior official. It shows what is counted, what is not, and why empowering communities to gather their own data could be key to ending AIDS.


"The years, of which I have spoken to you, when I pursued the inner images, were the most important time of my life. Everything else is to be derived from this. It began at that time, and the later details hardly matter anymore. My entire life consisted in elaborating what had burst forth from the unconscious and flooded me like an enigmatic stream and threatened to break me. That was the stuff and material for more than only one life. Everything later was merely the outer classification, the scientific elaboration, and the integration into life. But the numinous beginning, which contained everything, was then." These are the words of the psychologist C. G. Jung in 1957, referring to the decades he worked on The Red Book from 1914 to 1930. Although its existence has been known for more than eighty years, The Red Book was never published or made available to the wide audience of Jung's students and followers. Nothing less than the central book of Jung's oeuvre, it is being published now in a full facsimile edition with a contextual essay and notes by the noted Jung scholar Sonu Shamdasani and translated by Mark Kyburz, John Peck, and Sonu Shamdasani. It will now be possible to study Jung's self-experimentation through primary documentation rather than fantasy, gossip, and speculation, and to grasp the genesis of his later work. For nearly a century, such a reading has simply not been possible, and the vast literature on his life and work has lacked access to the single most important document. This publication opens the possibility of a new era in understanding Jung's work. It provides a unique window into how he recovered his soul and constituted a psychology. It is possibly the most influential hitherto unpublished work in the history of psychology. This exact facsimile of The Red Book reveals not only an extraordinary mind at work but also the hand of a gifted artist and calligrapher. Interspersed among more than two hundred lovely illuminated pages are paintings whose influences range from Europe, the Middle East, and the Far East to the native art of the new world. The Red Book, much like the handcrafted "Books of Hours" from the Middle Ages, is unique. Both in terms of its place in Jung's development and as a work of art, its publication is a landmark.


The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, founded by artist and craftsman William Morris in 1877, sought to preserve the integrity of historic buildings by preventing unnecessary repairs and additions. William Morris's intention and that of the SPAB, as outlined by the original manifesto, was that buildings of any period had a life that was best protected through the conservative repair of what was falling into ruin and the prevention of injury to buildings by safeguarding them as much as possible and practical. This practice became known as historic preservation. In this study, Donovan, relying upon many original documents from the SPAB archives in London, traces the history of the SPAB from it's foundation in nineteenth-century England to its current activities in England and Western Europe.


The Basel Accords, while extremely influential, are oftentimes too detailed and technical to be easily accessible to the nontechnical policymaker or interested scholar. This paper looks to fill that gap by detailing the origin, regulation, implementation, criticism, and results of both Basel I and Basel II. Findings of note include (1) the limited scope and general language of Basel I gives banks excessive leeway in their interpretation of its rules, and, in the end, allows financial institutions to take improper risks and hold unduly low capital reserves; (2) Basel II seeks to extend the breath and precision of Basel I, bringing in factors such as market and operational risk, market-based discipline and surveillance, and regulatory mandates, but is oftentimes excessively long and complex; (3) both Basel I and II effectively ignore the implications of their rules on emerging market banks; and that (4) although each accord states that its positions are not recommended for application in emerging market economies, the use of Basel I and II by most private and public organizations as truly international banking standards predicates the inclusion of emerging markets in each accord.


The complexity of the behaviour of neonate Eldana saccharina Walker (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae and the limited information on their response to the morphological characteristics of South African sugarcane varieties was the primary justification to study antixenotic/antibiotic effects on larval behaviour. Laboratory experiments were conducted with stalk segments in plastic jars inoculated with larvae and in a metal cage covered with gauze. In jars, the larvae were observed until they penetrated the stalks. After 14 days, the stalks were dissected and larvae weighed. In all varieties, larvae moved directly to the node after inoculation and penetrated the stalk through leaf scars and buds. No significant differences in larval mass were observed among varieties. In cage experiments different parts of the node, namely the rind below the wax band; the bud; and the root primordia were tested. There was a clear indication that rind hardness and the budscale properties are associated with varietal resistance and only affect early instars. The experiments were repeated using whole cane plants in a glasshouse. The results were similar to those of laboratory experiments. In the Insect Rearing Unit, scraped waxes from different varieties were incorporated into the diet. Larval masses from different diets showed significant differences among varieties, but they did not conform to the known resistance ratings, as cane varieties N12 and N21 showed high susceptibility, instead of resistance. Dispersal behaviour of neonates shortly after hatching was investigated III 'mobility experiments' conducted on live cane plants. Mobility is important because the more time neonates spend wandering around on the stalk surface or on exposed parts of the plant, the more vulnerable they are to predation and other adverse factors that may reduce their survival. Experiments to test stalk penetration by larvae on the node showed that neonates required a softer food source before attacking the hard nodal parts. Second and third instar larvae were used subsequently to the mortality of all neonates fed on the rind, which in turn resulted in non-significant differences, suggesting that feeding on debris and/or leaves is critical to the survival and penetration of larvae into the sugarcane stalk. Incorporation of the characteristics tested in these experiments aims to reduce the number of larvae that penetrate the stalk and to expose them for longer on the surface where their numbers may be controlled by predators and insecticides. The resistant varieties used in these experiments have high fibre and less sugar, but newer varieties, such as N29 and N33 incorporate both high resistance and high sucrose yield, which are the two key elements for optimised sugar production. Chemical characteristics of the plants need to be taken into consideration as high sucrose is seldom found in fibrous varieties. Leaf sheath tightness is another characteristic that would go well with leaf sheath hairiness, because though not tested in this work-would make it difficult for the larvae to get to the smooth adaxial surface of the leaf. The hardness of trichomes is another feature that needs to be investigated, because a variety may have dense, but soft pubescence that does not repel even the most sensitive larvae, neonates. At present, integrating plant resistance with cultural control, i.e. field hygiene etc. is cost-beneficial for the sugar industry.


When faced with a global crisis within the scope of its mandate, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC or Council) has no obligation to decide whether or not to take action. This Article argues that it should. The UNSC is the only governing body with the legal authority to authorize binding measures necessary to restore peace and security, yet neither the United Nations Charter nor the UNSC's own rules clarify the extent of its obligations. Unlike courts, the UNSC lacks a procedural rule establishing that it has a duty to decide. Unlike the United States Congress, which accepts its practical duty to declare war, the UNSC lacks consensus about when it must take up a matter. As a result, UNSC members can, and frequently do, defer making decisions in politically difficult cases. The costs of this ambiguity to those who depend on the UNSC for their security are high, making debate about UNSC reform critical and necessary.In contrast to conventional scholarship addressing UNSC reform, this Article focuses on improving the UNSC's decision-making process through the adoption of new procedural measures. It presents a novel approach to thinking about UNSC reform by translating wisdom from the realm of legal process theory to the political, quasi-judicial UNSC. The central argument is that the Council itself should adopt three procedural duties aimed at improving its decision-making process. First, the duty to decide would require the Council to take up decisions about whether or not it will take action in crises under its jurisdiction. Second, the duty to disclose would require the Council, when it makes no decision in a particular situation, to publicly disclose its reasoning for not doing so. Third, the duty to consult would obligate the Council to take reasonable measures to consult those nations, and the people therein, most affected by decisions falling under its Chapter VII authority regarding sanctions, intervention, and the use of force. After describing these duties, this Article draws upon qualitative data from within the U.N. itself to justify why this reform proposal, unlike many others, is viable. It also draws upon insights from the disciplines of legal process theory, social psychology, and negotiation to give explanatory power to why such reform matters will prove effective. Making these changes will enhance the UNSC's decision processes in ways that will further its legitimacy and relevance in today's world of multi-varied and evolving forms of conflict.


Smartphones have become an indispensable part of daily life of GenerationY. Currently, Generation-Y accounts for the biggest proportion of the Malaysian population, and they are the main users of smartphones. The main objective of this research is to determine the factors influencing the smartphone purchase decisions of Generation-Y. Based on a literature review and survey, this study finds seven factors that influence smartphone purchase decisions: brand, convenience, dependency, price, social influence, product feature and social needs. The research used a questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale for data collection and a sample of 152 respondents (Generation-Y) from the Kuching region of Malaysia. We find evidence that social influence, product feature, and brand image have significant positive impacts on the smartphone purchasing decisions. Other factors, such as convenience, dependency, price and social needs were statistically insignificant.


Objective Through genome-wide association scans and meta-analyses thereof, over 70 genetic loci (Crohn's disease (CD) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)) are significantly associated with CD. We aimed to investigate the influence of CD-SNPs and basic patient characteristics on CD clinical course, and develop statistical models to predict CD clinical course. Design This retrospective study included 1528 patients with CD with more than 10 years of follow-up from eight European referral hospitals. CD outcomes of interest were ileal (L1), colonic (L2) and ileocolonic disease location (L3); stenosing (B2) or penetrating behaviour (B3); perianal disease; extraintestinal manifestations; and bowel resection. A complicated disease course was defined as stenosing or penetrating behaviour, perianal disease and/or bowel resection. Association between CD-SNPs or patient characteristics and specified outcomes was studied. Results Several CD-SNPs and clinical characteristics were statistically associated with outcomes of interest. The NOD2 gene was the most important genetic factor, being an independent predictive factor for ileal location (p=2.02×10-06, OR=1.90), stenosing (p=3.16×10-06, OR=1.82) and penetrating (p=1.26×10-02, OR=1.25) CD behaviours, and need for surgery (p=2.28×e-05, OR=1.73), and as such was also the strongest factor associated with a complicated disease course (p=6.86×10-06, OR=2.96). Immunomodulator (azathioprine/6-mercaptopurine and methotrexate) use within 3 years after diagnosis led to a reduction in bowel stenoses (p=1.48×10-06, OR=0.35) and surgical rate (p=1.71×10-07, OR=0.34). Association between each outcome and genetic scores, created using significant SNPs in the univariate analysis, revealed large differences in the probability of developing fistulising disease (IL23R, LOC441108, PRDM1, NOD2; p=9.64e-4, HR=1.43), need for surgery (IRGM, TNFSF15, C13ORF31, NOD2; p=7.12×10-03, HR=1.35), and stenosing disease (NOD2, JAK2, ATG16L1; p=3.01×10-02, HR=1.29) among patients with low and high score. Conclusions This large multicentre cohort study has found several genetic and clinical factors influencing the clinical course of CD. NOD2 and early immunomodulator use are the clinically most meaningful predictors for its clinical course.


In practice, many different people with backgrounds in many different disciplines contribute to the design of an enterprise. Anyone who makes decisions to change the current enterprise to achieve some preferred structure is considered a designer. What is problematic is how to use the knowledge of separate aspects of the enterprise to achieve a globally optimized enterprise. The synthesis of knowledge from many disciplines to design an enterprise defines the field of enterprise engineering. Because enterprise systems are exceedingly complex, encompassing many independent domains of study, students must first be taught how to think about enterprise systems. Specifically written for advanced and intermediate courses and modules, Design of Enterprise Systems: Theory, Architecture, and Methods takes a system-theoretical perspective of the enterprise. It describes a systematic approach, called the enterprise design method, to design the enterprise. The design method demonstrates the principles, models, methods, and tools needed to design enterprise systems. The author uses the enterprise system design methodology to organize the chapters to mimic the completion of an actual project. Thus, the book details the enterprise engineering process from initial conceptualization of an enterprise to its final design. Pedagogical tools available from the authors website include: For instructors: PowerPoint slides for each chapter Project case studies that can be assigned as long-term projects to accompany the text Quiz questions for each chapter Business Process Analyzer software available for download For students: Templates, checklists, forms, and models to support enterprise engineering activities The book fills a need for greater design content in engineering curricula by describing how to design enterprise systems. Inclusion of design is also critical for business students, since they must realize the import their decisions may have on the long-term design of the enterprises they work with. The books practical focus and project-based approach coupled with the pedagogical tools featured on the authors website gives students the knowledge and skills they need to lead enterprise engineering projects.


A significant amount of energy is consumed by the typical illumination systems of underwater vehicles. Attempts to utilize more efficient LED illumination underwater have been unsuccessful because the light-emitting diodes (LEDs) were coupled to a standard imaging system and they were not able to generate enough light to adequately illuminate the scene. In cases where the LEDs were grouped together, to provide more scene illumination, the lighting assembly was inefficient in size. The recent availability of high intensity LEDs provides a way to produce efficient and adequate lighting from a compact assembly. This paper covers the development of a deep ocean assembly based on these high intensity LEDs


We describe a mechanism for replacing files, including open files, of a read-only file system while the file system remains mounted; the act of replacement is transparent to the user. Such a "hot replacement" mechanism can improve fault-tolerance, performance, or both. Our mechanism monitors, from the client side, the latency of operations directed at each file system. When latency degrades, the client automatically seeks a replacement file system that is equivalent to but hopefully faster than the current file system. The files in the replacement file system then take the place of those in the current file system. This work has particular relevance to mobile computers, which in some cases might move over a wide area. Wide area movement can be expected to lead to highly variable response time, and give rise to three sorts of problems: increased latency, increased failures, and decreased scalability. If a mobile client moves through regions having partial replicas of common file systems, then the mobile client can depend on our mechanism to provide increased fault tolerance and more uniform performance.


This paper presents a study of the efficiency of machine learning algorithms applied on an image recognition task. The dataset is composed of aerial GeoTIFF images of 5 different vineyards taken with a drone. It presents the application of two different classification algorithms with an efficiency comparison over a small dataset. A Neural Network algorithm for classification through the TensorFlow platform will be explained first, and a Decision Tree Ensemble algorithm for classification through a machine learning platform will be explained second. This work shows that the accuracy of the Decision Tree Ensemble algorithm (94.27%) outperforms the accuracy of the Deep Learning algorithm (91.22%). This result is based on the final detection accuracy as well as on the computation time.


Despite repeated calls for the introduction of a "fair use" defence to copyright infringement in Australia, there appears to be little prospect of Australia adopting such reform. Instead, the debate over copyright exceptions reform appears to be at impasse, with one camp arguing forcefully in favour of fair use and the other camp defending the status quo. In this paper we seek to revitalise the debate around the desirability of options for reform other than "fair use", such as the addition of new fair dealing purposes or the development of other closed provisions that utilise a less prescriptive drafting style. We start from the premise that the exceptions regime in Australia has fundamental problems and is in need of reform. Our aim is to assess the value of a model that maintains but expands and improves upon a closed-list system, compared to one based around an open-ended "fairness" exception. In Part II we observe how exceptions debates in Australia and elsewhere have come to be focused around the issue of whether or not to adopt fair use. We note that while a focus on fair use is to be welcomed for highlighting inadequacies of the current closed-list system, this has led to the ousting of any meaningful consideration of alternative approaches. In Part III we turn to consider substantive arguments in favour of fair use and the status quo, noting how those arguments tend to converge into debates over "certainty versus flexibility." Here we see the repetition of certain tropes, for instance that closed exceptions provide greater certainty in outcomes and practice but are unresponsive to changing conditions, whilst fair use affords a greater degree of flexibility and adaptability but is unpredictable. We seek to depolarise this aspect of the debate by providing a fuller account of what "increasing flexibility" actually entails, including by reference to recent experiences in Canada and the UK that demonstrate how closed systems may exhibit benefits usually associated with a fair use approach. While we remain of the view that fair use is the best reform option for a country such as Australia, we argue that it is important not to overestimate the merits of fair use in comparison with a substantially rehabilitated closed-list model. Expanded fair dealing, coupled with a range of specific exceptions, remains a viable option and is worthy of careful consideration. It ought not to be marginalised or repudiated in the rush to make a case that Australia's system of exceptions should be liberalised.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the effects of 2 weeks of intense exercise on expression of markers of pulmonary venous remodeling in the caudodorsal and cranioventral regions of the lungs of horses.

ANIMALS
6 horses.

PROCEDURES
Tissue samples of the caudodorsal and cranioventral regions of lungs were obtained before and after conditioning and 2 weeks of intense exercise. Pulmonary veins were isolated, and a quantitative real-time PCR assay was used to determine mRNA expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 and -9, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 and -2, collagen type I, tenascin-C, endothelin-1, platelet-derived growth factor, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Protein expression of collagen (via morphometric analysis) and tenascin-C, TGF-β, and VEGF (via immunohistochemistry) was determined.

RESULTS
Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage was detected in 2 horses after exercise. The mRNA expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 and -9, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2, TGF-β, and VEGF was significantly lower in pulmonary veins obtained after exercise versus those obtained before exercise for both the caudodorsal and cranioventral regions of the lungs. Collagen content was significantly higher in tissue samples obtained from the caudodorsal regions of the lungs versus content in samples obtained from the cranioventral regions of the lungs both before and after exercise. Exercise did not alter protein expression of tenascin-C, TGF-β, or VEGF.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Results of this study indicated 2 weeks of intense exercise did not alter expression of marker genes in a manner expected to favor venous remodeling. Pulmonary venous remodeling is complex, and > 2 weeks of intense exercise may be required to induce such remodeling.


Abstract Organic grain growers rely on cultural practices and biological control to regulate pests, and the implementation and timing of cultural practices can affect many characteristics of the cropping system as a habitat for natural enemies of arthropod pests. Ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in particular are important insect and weed-seed predators, and are sensitive to crop rotations, tillage and environmental complexity. In a reduced tillage system in transition to organic management, we evaluated the effect of cover crop species and termination date, crop rotation and high residue cultivation on ground and tiger beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) activity-density, community composition and size and trophic groups. The 3-year experiment included a sequence of corn (Zea mays L.), soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) and winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). A mixture of hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth) and triticale (x Triticosecale Wittmack) preceded corn, and cereal rye (Secale cereale L.) preceded soybean, and each crop sequence was present in each year (full-entry). We compared three cover crop termination (and cash crop planting) dates by terminating the overwintered cover crops with a roller-crimper, and immediately or soon after, we no-till planted corn and soybean through the mat created by the rolled cover crops. In the corn and soybean phases of the rotation, we also compared inter-row cultivation as a pest management strategy to a control treatment (no inter-row cultivation in corn, and an alternative row-spacing in soybean). Wheat was planted on a single date in each year into tilled soil. Carabids were sampled using pitfall traps 2 weeks after termination of the two cover crop treatments, and in mid-June in wheat. Carabid activity-density and species richness increased across the experimental site during the 3-year transition, and community evenness across the experimental site increased by the third year. Crop species influenced carabid community composition, and by the third year, the carabid community was comparable between wheat and hairy vetch-triticale cover crop. The late cover crop termination date was positively associated with higher activity-densities of large carabids in rolled hairy vetch-triticale and rolled cereal rye; carnivorous beetles in rolled hairy vetch-triticale; and granivorous beetles in rolled cereal rye. Inter-row cultivation occurring in corn and soybean resulted in a significantly higher proportion of small beetles in the wheat phase of the rotation, with a significantly higher proportion of large beetles in wheat treatments, which had not received inter-row cultivation in corn and soybean. Results have strong implications for management during the transition to organic, including the importance of plant residue, reduced tillage and timing of cover crop termination dates for augmenting carabid populations.


In 2015, the University of Huddersfield Press launched Fields: The Journal of Huddersfield Student Research. The journal was developed with two key purposes: ensuring that high quality student research was made available to a broader audience and inspiring students to work to the highest standards by considering the potential of their work for impact in the wider world. The existing literature is reviewed regarding the growth of student research journals as well as some of the benefits these journals can offer to students. The institutional rationale for Fields is outlined, and the process of setting up a multi-disciplinary open access student research journal is discussed. The outcomes of this evaluation are presented with particular focus on the lessons learned and on future developments to improve support for authors. The experience of the project team will be useful to universities and university presses considering strategies for supporting students in the development of research for publication/dissemination.


In this paper, we present an automatic framework for modeling nodeand cluster-level power consumption, using only portable OS-level performance counters. We evaluate these models using an emerging class of MapReduce-style workloads, executed on current server-class systems as well as energy-efficient low-power desktops, high-end laptops, and embedded systems. We also validate generic, cross-platform (with respect to model features) cluster power models for our four workloads running on six types of clusters. Our models yield highly accurate predictions without the intrusiveness and/or the correctness and portability problems of hardware performance counters or board-level measurements. We define a new metric called Dynamic Range Error (DRE) to describe how well the model characterizes the dynamic system behavior (a tighter bound than MSE or median error) and facilitate interand intra-cluster model accuracy comparisons. Using this metric, we quantify the tradeoffs between model complexity and accuracy for different workloads. The generic feature model removes the feature selection process and only degrades prediction accuracy by at most 1% DRE when compared to the best cluster power model for the workloads and clusters we studied. To the best of our knowledge, this is the most complete study of system power modeling covering such a wide variety of platforms, workloads, and models.


The EU-project MINATROC (MINeral dust And TROpospheric Chemistry) aims at enabling an estimation of the influence of mineral dust, a major, but to date largely ignored component of tropospheric aerosol, on tropospheric oxidant cycles. Within the scope of this project continuous atmospheric measurements of gas-phase HNO 3 and SO 2 were conducted in June and July 2000 at the CNR WMO station , situated on Monte Cimone (MTC) (44 • 11 N – 10 • 42 E, 2165 m asl), Italy. African air transporting dust is occasionally advected over the Mediterranean Sea to the site, thus mineral aerosol emitted from Africa will encounter polluted air masses and provide ideal conditions to study their interactions. HNO 3 and SO 2 were measured with an improved CIMS (chemical ionization mass spectrometry) system for ground-based measurements that was developed and built at MPI-K Heidelberg. Since HNO 3 is a very sticky compound special care was paid for the air-sampling and background-measurement system. Complete data sets could be obtained before, during and after major dust intrusions. For the first time these measurements might provide a strong observational indication of efficient uptake of gas-phase HNO 3 by atmospheric mineral-dust aerosol particles.


Abstract Objective: The aim of our study was to determine the reliability and validity of the Trunk Control Test (TCT) in people with adult neuromuscular diseases (NMD). Subjects: Sixty six people with NMD participated in the study. Methods: Patients were evaluated using the TCT, manual muscle test (trunk, upper and lower extremities), Motor Function Measurement (MFM), Functional Independency Measurement (FIM) and the Rivermead Mobility Index (RMI). Results: Test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients) was excellent for the TCT. The intraclass correlation coefficient score was 0.979 (95% confidence interval 0.968–0.986). Cronbach alpha value was 0.749, and item-to-total correlation coefficient for "rolling from supine to the dominant side," "rolling from supine to the other side" and "sitting up from lying down" was (r = 0.61), (r = 0.57) and (r = 0.92), respectively, for construct validity. The TCT was found to be correlated with MFM (r = 0.57), MFM trunk (r = 0.62), trunk muscle strength (r = 0.61), shoulder flexion muscle strength (r = 0.39), hip flexion muscle strength (r = 0.39), FIM (r = 0.35), FIM motor (r = 0.66) and RMI (r = 0.39) for convergent validity. Conclusion: Our results confirm that the TCT is an easy, reliable and valid instrument for the measurement of trunk performance in ambulatory NMD patients.


The rise of ubiquitous computing devices has provided the catalyst for the next generation World Wide Web, one that shifts the focus from the desktop computer to mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs, in an ever increasing range of modalities. Web interaction management in this setting must contend with a plethora of interaction interfaces and a diverse range of content types in addition to helping realize the full potential of multimodality (i.e., supporting flexible and personalized interactions between humans and sites). This thesis presents WS://IM, a new software framework for web interaction management that is capable of supporting multimodal interactions. In addition to presenting a loosely bundled, factorized architecture that supports hyperlink interaction, WS://IM has the unique facilitation for out-of-turn interaction. Out-of-turn interaction is a novel technique that helps realize mixed-initiative interactions between humans and Web sites. Design methodology, implementation details, and exposition through three implemented case studies are provided. For My parents and grandparents. Your guidance, support, and encouragement have made all the difference in the world.


We spend a third of our lives in sleep. One of the most common yet understudied sleep behaviours in human beings is daytime napping. While napping is traditionally viewed as a countermeasure to sleepiness and as a strategy to boost performance, especially in healthy younger adults or among shift workers,1 the effects of napping in middle-aged to older-aged populations are largely unknown.

One key question is whether naps are protective or harmful for heart health among older adults. A pioneering Greek case–control study from the late 1980s2 compared 97 men with an acute episode of coronary heart disease (CHD) and 90 control subjects, and showed a 30% reduction in the incidence of CHD associated with a 30 min afternoon nap. Over the past decade, growing epidemiological evidence has pointed to napping as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), and a recent meta-analysis3 summarised 11 prospective studies and concluded that there was a J-shaped dose–response relationship, in which the risk of CVD decreased with increasing nap duration until it reached 30 min/day, but started to increase with longer naps after the 30 min/day threshold. While this meta-analysis suggests that napping duration could be an important factor to consider in studies of naps, most previous studies have only compared nappers and non-nappers, or have considered only the duration but not the frequency of napping. Furthermore, the majority of studies only examined CVD mortality, whereas non-fatal CVD events are much less studied in relation to napping. Many studies have failed to fully address the influence of potential confounders or the independent effects of napping.

In their Heart paper, Hausler et al 4 examine the longitudinal association between self-reported napping frequency and average napping duration and incidence risk of both fatal and non-fatal CVD among 3462 men and women (mean age 57.1) with …


Comparison among warm-season legume forage trials may not be valid if harvest techniques vary. To address this question, herbage dry matter (DM) yields, branching, crude protein (CP), and fiber concentrations for nine warm-season annual herbaceous legumes were measured by hand-plucking all leaves and pliable tips or clipping at 7.5- or 15-cm height. The experiment was conducted in Texas on a Windthorst fine sandy loam over 2 yr. Harvest technique did not affect DM yield in 2004, but the hand-plucked harvest technique produced 34 to 39% less forage in 2005 (low rainfall year) compared with the clipped plots. Most entries had greater branching on hand-plucked than on clipped plants (entry by harvest P < 0.05). Crude protein concentration was greater (P < 0.05) and fiber concentrations lower in the hand-plucked compared with the clipped plants. These results suggest that neither yields nor nutritive values of hand-plucked forage trials examining annual warm-season herbaceous legumes should be compared with clipped forage trials, whereas clipping heights may be less problematic. Results support a careful choice of experiment harvest technique based on the future field-scale harvest method or degree of target herbivore selectivity.


We report on the emission of water vapor from biomass combustion. Concurrent measurements of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are used to scale the concentrations of water vapor found, and are referenced to carbon in the biomass. The investigated fuel types include hardwood (oak and African musasa), softwood (pine and spruce, partly with green needles), and African savanna grass. The session-averaged ratio of H 2 O to the sum of CO and CO 2 in the emissions from 16 combustion experiments ranged from 1.2 to 3.7, indicating the presence of water that is not chemically bound. This non-bound biomass moisture content ranged from 33% in the dry African hardwood, musasa, to 220% in fresh pine branches with needles. The moisture content from fresh biomass contributes significantly to the water vapor in biomass burning emissions, and its influence on the behavior of fire plumes and pyro-cumulus clouds needs to be evaluated.


In order to make a robot perform a contact task with an environment, robot must have an enough skillfulness and compliance simultaneously.Parallel manipulator has attracted an interest because of its features such as a multiple d.o.f. for its compact mechanism which is available for complicated tasks. In the meanwhile pneumatic actuator has a high power/weight ratio and an inherent compliance function due to the air compressibility which makes it possible to perform a minute force regulation. In this paper we apply an impedance control to the prototype of parallel manipulator driven by pneumatic cylinders and its control performances are investigated.There are 2 general impedance control strategies, one is force based type and the other is position based one. In the former one the influence of manipulator's dynamics such as inertia force and damping one affect on the control variable directly, while in the latter one applied external force works as a disturbance. Therefore we construct both types of control system based on the pressure control system to kill out the influence of these disturbances which are estimated with a dimension of a pressure by using a disturbance observer. Moreover we comprise an simplified position based impedance control system. The control performances are compared among the proposed three control systems analytically and the validity of them are proved by some experiments.


The paper develops an explicit formula for the calculation of optimal carbon taxes in a dynamic integrated assessment framework. We attempt to generalize the Gosolov et al. (2014) theory by relaxing the restrictions with logarithmic preferences, Cobb-Douglas production and the full periodwise capital depreciation. By taking advantage of the cumulative climate response (CCR) function, we show that all that matters for the tax formula from the economic module pins down to a single economic parameter i.e. a weighted harmonic mean of the growth-adjusted consumption rate of discount. We demonstrate the theory with a stylized climate-economy model with depletable fossil resources, test the formula with the new DICE2016 model, and provide an application to the real world economy beyond any integrated modeling framework.


The philosophy of the social sciences considers the underlying explanatory powers of the social (or human) sciences, such as history, economics, anthropology, politics, and sociology. The type of questions covered includes the methodological (the nature of observations, laws, theories, and explanations) to the ontological -- whether or not these sciences can explain human nature in a way consistent with common-sense beliefs. This Handbook is a major, comprehensive look at the key ideas in the field, is guided by several principles. The first is that the philosophy of social science should be closely connected to, and informed by, developments in the sciences themselves. The second is that the volume should appeal to practicing social scientists as well as philosophers, with the contributors being both drawn from both ranks, and speaking to ongoing controversial issues in the field. Finally, the volume promotes connections across the social sciences, with greater internal discussion and interaction across disciplinary boundaries. Available in OSO: http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/oso/public/content/oho_philosophy/9780195392753/toc.html


The purpose of this research was to estimate the potential of cellulosic fibers of highly available and renewable Tunisian biomass Phragmites australis for the biosorption of an anionic metal complexed dye: Alpacide blue. The present study shows that the Phragmite australis were used successfully for the adsorption of Alpcide blue from aqueous solution. Equilibrium was reached after 5 h at 20°C and at pH 2. Optimal adsorption parameters for adsorption of dye onto fibers extract of upper rods were accomplished after 5 h of biosorption using an initial dye concentration of 50 mg L-1, biosorbent amount of 0.5 g of Phragmites australis, pH 2 and a granulometry size between 250 and 500 μm. In these conditions, the adsorbed amount of Alpacide blue is 6.11 mg g-1 and the biosorption percentage is 85.9%. When the temperature increases until 60°C, the retention rate increases also to reach a value of 90.5%. Regarding fibers extracted from roots, we notice improvement of the adsorbed amount which reaches 7.0 mg g-1 and the overall retention rate of 92.6% at 20°C. While at 60°C the amount adsorbed is 7.4 mg g-1 and the fixation rate reached 94%. The biosorption phenomenon seems to be endothermic. Moreover the adsorption process is fast, following the model of pseudo-second order for both parts of the plant stems and roots. Finally, mathematical modeling of adsorption isotherms showed that the Freundlich model perfectly describes the biosorption of organic dye studied by these fibers of Phragmites australis for both stems and roots.


In classical physics, memoryless dynamics and Markovian statistics are one and the same. This is not true for quantum dynamics, first and foremost because quantum measurements are invasive. Going beyond measurement invasiveness, here we derive a novel distinction between classical and quantum processes, namely the possibility of hidden quantum memory. While Markovian statistics of classical processes can always be reproduced by a memoryless dynamical model, our main result shows that this is not true in quantum mechanics: We first provide an example of quantum non-Markovianity whose manifestation depends on whether or not a previous measurement is performed – an impossible phenomenon for memoryless dynamics; we then strengthen this result by demonstrating statistics that are Markovian independent of how they are probed, but are nonetheless still incompatible with memoryless quantum dynamics. Thus, we establish the existence of Markovian statistics gathered by probing a quantum process that nevertheless fundamentally require memory for their creation.


The researcher believes that the wide ranging use of the term business model in academic and practitioner arenas suggests that the clarification of its use rhetorically, strategically or managerially or lack of use would be of interest to both academics and management practitioners. Universities face increasingly challenging economic conditions and the identification of the use within higher education of business models using interview data, cross-referenced to institutional success, measured by a variety of metrics, may allow inferences to be drawn about the relationship of the relative success of institutions and the role, if any, of business models which may then inform future decision making. The researcher suggests that a business model approach, whilst not introducing new concepts is a useful descriptive and analytical tool for both practitioners and academics. In a discursive sense the term can act as a useful short hand whilst as a framework for value propositions it can aid the identification and development of the underlying economic reality of business activity. Furthermore, business models when viewed in the context of competing value propositions and business model innovation provide a link to and an aid in, the development of strategy. The researcher found that the term business model was frequently described in interview as inappropriate and no evidence of significant explicit usage of the term business model was found in university strategic plans. Further evidence from interview and the analysis of strategic plan documentation highlights the use of business-like language and practices suggesting that implicit, rather than explicit, business model approaches are being adopted in universities for decision making purposes.


ABSTRACT Pro-Vice-Chancellors (PVCs) form the second-tier leadership of UK higher education institutions. However, their role and position remain under-theorised and under-researched. The present article explores the extent to which a PVC Education role requires core expertise in education or generic managerial skills. Using a mixed-methods approach, we first establish the disciplinary backgrounds of PVCs Education in Russell Group (RG) and post-1992 institutions. Fewer than one in five PVCs Education have a disciplinary background or additional formal training in education. Second, we conducted 24 semi-structured interviews with PVCs Education, Heads of Education Departments and Heads of Learning and Teaching units. These interviews suggest the PVC Education role requires managerial skills, usually acquired in previous headships, as well as academic credibility and knowledge of institutional processes rather than particular expertise in education. In sum, generic managerial skills rather than educational expertise are paramount for understanding the profile of PVCs Education in UK universities.


Comments and suggestions regarding this draft document should be submitted within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register of the notice announcing the availability of the draft guidance. Submit electronic comments to http://www.regulations.gov. Submit written comments to the Division of Dockets Management (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852. All comments should be identified with the docket number listed in the notice of availability that publishes in the Federal Register.


Abstract Case is a conjectured syntactic property of noun phrases that accounts for aspects of their distribution and form that do not otherwise follow from their PF and LF content (Chomsky 1981, 1986; Chomsky & Lasnik 1995; Lasnik 2008). Traditionally, Case Theory consists of two core components: (i) noun phrase licensing – noun phrases must be licensed through syntactic dependencies, capturing their distribution; and (ii) noun phrase morphology – the licensing of noun phrases influences their morphological realizaiton, capturing their form. In work over the past decade or two, however, the distribution of noun phrases is largely ensured by the properties of clausal heads, independently of Case (e.g. Schütze 1993, 20001; Marantz 1991/2000; Chomsky & Lasnik 1995; Sigurðsson 1991, 2009). These considerations have led to, or been accompanied by, theories that shift the determination of case morphology to PF (e.g. Marantz 1991; McFadden 2004; Bobaljik 2008; Sigurðsson 2009, 2010). If these analyses are correct, there may be no role for C/case in syntax, at all. In this dissertation, I argue that nominals must indeed be licensed during the course of a well-formed derivation. However, nominal licensing does not require Case-feature valuation, as is commonly assumed (Chomsky 2000, 2001). I demonstrate that Case-features can survive the derivation unvalued (Preminger 2011, 2014; Kornfilt & Preminger 2015). This conclusion invalidates the common view that nominals are licensed through obligatory Case-feature valuation, and phenomena that have commonly received Casetheoretic explanations based on such obligatory valuation are accorded alternative anlyses. Nevertheless, I demonstrate that presence/absence of the functional head K0 in the nominal projection does affect the distribution of nominals in ways reminiscent of, but not identical to, traditional Case theory. I identify three groups of nominals that enter the derivaton without K0: the objects of Pseudo Noun Incorporation constructions, the objects of Antipassive constructions, and the in situ subjects of Balinese and Malagasy. In each case, those nominals which entirely lack KP, the locus of Case-features, display unique distributional constraints, not captured under previous analyses of these phenomena. I suggest that the conditions under which nominals can be licensed without Case (K0) demonstrate that K0 is relevant for nominal licensing. The result of this argumentation is a recasting of the core components of Case Theory. Noun phrase licensing is achieved by the K0 head itself (cf. Bittner & Hale 1996a,b). Its presence/absence accounts for aspects of a nominal's distribution and form that do not otherwise follow from its PF/LF content. Noun phrase morphology is (indirectly) determined by how Case-features, hosted at K0, are valued, if at all.Case is a conjectured syntactic property of noun phrases that accounts for aspects of their distribution and form that do not otherwise follow from their PF and LF content (Chomsky 1981, 1986; Chomsky & Lasnik 1995; Lasnik 2008). Traditionally, Case Theory consists of two core components: (i) noun phrase licensing – noun phrases must be licensed through syntactic dependencies, capturing their distribution; and (ii) noun phrase morphology – the licensing of noun phrases influences their morphological realizaiton, capturing their form. In work over the past decade or two, however, the distribution of noun phrases is largely ensured by the properties of clausal heads, independently of Case (e.g. Schütze 1993, 20001; Marantz 1991/2000; Chomsky & Lasnik 1995; Sigurðsson 1991, 2009). These considerations have led to, or been accompanied by, theories that shift the determination of case morphology to PF (e.g. Marantz 1991; McFadden 2004; Bobaljik 2008; Sigurðsson 2009, 2010). If these analyses are correct, there may be no role for C/case in syntax, at all. In this dissertation, I argue that nominals must indeed be licensed during the course of a well-formed derivation. However, nominal licensing does not require Case-feature valuation, as is commonly assumed (Chomsky 2000, 2001). I demonstrate that Case-features can survive the derivation unvalued (Preminger 2011, 2014; Kornfilt & Preminger 2015). This conclusion invalidates the common view that nominals are licensed through obligatory Case-feature valuation, and phenomena that have commonly received Casetheoretic explanations based on such obligatory valuation are accorded alternative anlyses. Nevertheless, I demonstrate that presence/absence of the functional head K0 in the nominal projection does affect the distribution of nominals in ways reminiscent of, but not identical to, traditional Case theory. I identify three groups of nominals that enter the derivaton without K0: the objects of Pseudo Noun Incorporation constructions, the objects of Antipassive constructions, and the in situ subjects of Balinese and Malagasy. In each case, those nominals which entirely lack KP, the locus of Case-features, display unique distributional constraints, not captured under previous analyses of these phenomena. I suggest that the conditions under which nominals can be licensed without Case (K0) demonstrate that K0 is relevant for nominal licensing. The result of this argumentation is a recasting of the core components of Case Theory. Noun phrase licensing is achieved by the K0 head itself (cf. Bittner & Hale 1996a,b). Its presence/absence accounts for aspects of a nominal's distribution and form that do not otherwise follow from its PF/LF content. Noun phrase morphology is (indirectly) determined by how Case-features, hosted at K0, are valued, if at all. Thesis Supervisor: David Pesetsky Title: Ferrari P. Ward Professor of Linguistics


The distribution of incidents in time and space is a central issue in the study of crime, for both theoretical and practical reasons. It is also a context in which quantitative analysis and modelling has significant potential value: such research represents a means by which the implications of theory can be examined rigorously, and can also provide tools which support both policing and policy-making. The nature of the field, however, presents a number of challenges, particularly with regard to the incorporation of complex environmental factors and the modelling of individual-level behaviour. In this thesis, the techniques of complexity science are used to overcome these issues, and the approach is demonstrated using a number of examples from a range of crime types. The thesis begins by presenting a network-based framework for the analysis of spatio-temporal clustering. It is demonstrated that signature `motifs' can be identified in patterns of offending for burglary and maritime piracy, and that the technique provides a more nuanced characterisation of clustering than existing approaches. Analysis is then presented of the relationship between street network structure and the distribution of urban crime. It is shown that burglary risk is predicted by the graph-theoretic properties of street segments; in particular, those which correspond to levels of street usage. It is further demonstrated that the `near-repeat' phenomenon in burglary displays a form of directionality, which can be reconciled with a novel street network metric. These results are then used to inform a mathematical model of burglary, which is situated on a network and which may be used for prediction. This model is analysed and its behaviour characterised in terms of urban form. Finally, a model is presented for a contrasting crime problem, the London riots of 2011, and used to examine a number of policy questions.


We analyze the correlation pattern and the cross-talk noise of optical correlators, using multiplexed volume holograms as matched filters. Our results show that sidelobes of the correlation patterns are suppressed in such an optical system; therefore the signal-to-noise ratio in pattern recognition is significantly higher than that in a planar holographic correlator system. We consider both angle- and wavelength-multiplexed holograms and compare the results for various thicknesses of volume holographic media. Our results show that the degree of sidelobe suppression depends on the thickness of the holographic medium and the angle between the object beam and the reference beam during recording. When the correlation patterns obtained with the transmission holograms in angle multiplexing are compared with the reflection holograms in wavelength multiplexing, it is seen that the sidelobes decrease much faster with the increase of thickness with angle multiplexing than with wavelength multiplexing. In addition, we demonstrate the effect of sidelobe suppression, and our experimental result is in good qualitative agreement with theoretical predictions.


Including current published evidence is vital as part of evidence-based decision making in veterinary practice. Sometimes there is no published evidence which is relevant or applicable to the clinical situation. This can be either because it refers to patients with experimentally induced conditions, from a referral population or who lack the co-morbities often seen outside of the experimental context. The Veterinary Clinical Trials Network is unique. It is a rapidly expanding network of veterinary practices, with whom we are working to establish methods for running prospective, pragmatic, practical clinical trials in veterinary practice. Data is extracted from the patient record using an XML Schema. The data extracted is already captured by the Practice Management Software (PMS) system as part of the consultation, no extra information is required, and the extraction method is automated. This improves participation as it minimises the time input required from vets and vet nurses. Other data is obtained directly from owners of the animals involved. By working with a large number of first opinion veterinary practices we are able to include enough patients to ensure that our trials are suitably powered, and the participants will be representative of the wider vet-visiting pet population. The research generated from this clinical trials network will help strengthen the evidence base to aid decision making by veterinary practitioners.


This paper is about how the Syrian government lost control over its rural and rural-to-urban constituents. From the twin perspective of ethnography and political economy, I show how the same pressures that structured men's decisions to migrate from the countryside to sell labour power in the city resemble the material foundations for the uprising itself. The dominant narrative of the Syrian uprising is that protests calling for democracy were suppressed with violence, and with that the movement degraded into a sectarian civil and proxy war. Contra this narrative, I describe from a moment of cynicism expressed toward the Baʿth party's official slogan how the government once relied not only on the 'repressive apparatus of the state', but also a politico-economic system that guarded against total impoverishment. Following liberalising reforms in the 1990s—deepened in the 2000s—this arrangement crumbled; agricultural input subsidies were stripped; food price capping was removed; guaranteed pricing on crops was cancelled; and import barriers fell. In attempting to answer challenges thrown up by Syria's position within global capitalism, the government abandoned its welfare pact. In a context rapidly determined by accumulation by dispossession and mass impoverishment, Syria's marginalised population vocalised chains of what Ernesto Laclau (2005. On Populist Reason. London: Verso) would recognise as 'populist demands'. These demands were refused or responded to via transparent propaganda. Against a backdrop of uprisings across the Arab world, the Baʿth party's remaining thread of a social contract snapped.


This briefing paper advocates for the systematic and widespread collection and use of household panel surveys to monitor progress and inform policy making around the first Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) – end poverty by 2030. It argues that panel data could generate invaluable insights on whether poverty eradication interventions are working or not, for whom they are working or not, and why. Importantly, they could be used to monitor whether anyone is being 'left behind' and in what circumstances. This information would greatly improve the design and targeting of poverty reduction policies. October 2014


Recent developments concerning the nature of bivalve filter feeding are reviewed and interpretations of data are examined. No convincing evidence was found for: (1) a function of mucus in the normal feeding mechanism; (2) sorting of suspended particles according to food value; (3) low rates of water processing in nature; (4) physiological control of water pumping and filtration efficiency according to nutritional needs. Recent findings are consistent with the view that the capacity for water processing is evolutionarily adapted to the concentrations of suspended food, primarily phytoplankton. that prevail in the biotope during the productive seasons of the year. 'Scope for growth', computed from measurements of the energy balance parameters, is extensively used to assess effects of environmental factors, including pollutants, on the physiology and energetlcs, particularly of mussels. Estimates tend, however, to underrate the values they are believed to reflect due to neglect of negative effects of the experimental conditions on the filter-pump. Possible effects of the experimental conditions on filtration rates should therefore be established before a calculated 'scope for growth' can be extrapolated to the habitat whlch the experiment simulates.


Guided by the increasing awareness and detectability of spatiotemporally organized climatic variability at interannual and longer timescales, the authors motivate the paradigm of a climate system that exhibits excitations of quasi-oscillatory eigenmodes with characteristic timescales and large-scale spatial patterns of coherence. It is assumed that any such modes are superposed on a spatially and temporally autocorrelated stochastic noise background. Under such a paradigm, a previously described (Mann and Park) multivariate frequency-domain approach is promoted as a particularly effective means of spatiotemporal signal identification and reconstruction, and an associated forecasting methodology is introduced. This combined signal detection/forecasting scheme exhibits significantly greater skill than conventional forecasting approaches in the context of a synthetic example consistent with the adopted paradigm. The example application demonstrates statistically significant skill at 5‐ 10-yr lead times. Applications to operational long-range climatic forecasting are motivated and discussed.


Recent theoretical and experimental evidence indicates that many of the materials that are thought to exist in the mantles of terrestrial exoplanets will metallize and become good conductors of electricity at mantle pressures. This allows for strong electromagnetic coupling of the core and the mantle in these planets. We use a numerical dynamo model to study the effect of a metallized lower mantle on the dynamos of terrestrial exoplanets using several inner core sizes and mantle conductivities. We find that the addition of an electrically conducting mantle results in stronger core-mantle boundary fields because of the increase in magnetic field stretching. We also find that a metallized mantle destabilizes the dynamo resulting in less dipolar, less axisymmetric poloidal magnetic fields at the core-mantle boundary. The conducting mantle efficiently screens these fields to produce weaker surface fields. We conclude that a conducting mantle will make the detection of extrasolar terrestrial magnetic fields more difficult while making the magnetic fields in the dynamo region stronger.


In My Tibetan Chldhood , Naktsang Nulo recalls his life in Tibet's Amdo region during the 1950s. From the perspective of himself at age ten, he describes his upbringing as a nomad on Tibet's eastern plateau. He depicts pilgrimages to monasteries, including a 1500-mile horseback expedition his family made to and from Lhasa. A year or so later, they attempted that same journey as they fled from advancing Chinese troops. Naktsang's father joined and was killed in the little-known 1958 Amdo rebellion against the Chinese People's Liberation Army, the armed branch of the Chinese Communist Party. During the next year, the author and his brother were imprisoned in a camp where, after the onset of famine, very few children survived.

The real significance of this episodic narrative is the way it shows, through the eyes of a child, the suppressed histories of China's invasion of Tibet. The author's matter-of-fact accounts cast the atrocities that he relays in stark relief. Remarkably, Naktsang lived to tell his tale. His book was published in 2007 in China, where it was a bestseller before the Chinese government banned it in 2010. It is the most reprinted modern Tibetan literary work. This translation makes a fascinating if painful period of modern Tibetan history accessible in English.


Neural networks are prone to learning shortcuts -- they often model simple correlations, ignoring more complex ones that potentially generalize better. Prior works on image classification show that instead of learning a connection to object shape, deep classifiers tend to exploit spurious correlations with low-level texture or the background for solving the classification task. In this work, we take a step towards more robust and interpretable classifiers that explicitly expose the task's causal structure. Building on current advances in deep generative modeling, we propose to decompose the image generation process into independent causal mechanisms that we train without direct supervision. By exploiting appropriate inductive biases, these mechanisms disentangle object shape, object texture, and background; hence, they allow for generating counterfactual images. We demonstrate the ability of our model to generate such images on MNIST and ImageNet. Further, we show that the counterfactual images can improve out-of-distribution robustness with a marginal drop in performance on the original classification task, despite being synthetic. Lastly, our generative model can be trained efficiently on a single GPU, exploiting common pre-trained models as inductive biases.


SUMMARY
A new technique is presented to jointly invert the teleseismic and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) data by simultaneously searching for the hypocentre and the relative weight of InSAR data. In this technique, the parameters of causative fault is determined by using InSAR data first, and then the hypocentre is searched for by jointly inverting teleseismic and InSAR data with the assumption that each subfault on the fault is a potential hypocentre. With this technique, we investigated the source rupture process of the 2009 April 6 L'Aquila MW 6.3 earthquake without the use of the existing hypocentre locations. Our estimated hypocentre is 42.366°N, 13.385°E, depth 6.9 km, with an uncertainty of 1∼2 km, similar to the hypocentre (42.348°N, 13.380°E, depth 9.5 km) determined by National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) using arrival time data within the epicentral distance of 50 km. Our joint inversion suggests a scalar moment of 3.5 × 1018 Nm, equivalent to a moment magnitude of MW 6.3. The source process consists of two subevents with a total duration of 7.7 s. The first event (0∼3 s) corresponds to the slip patch near the hypocentre and the second (in the next 4.7 s) ruptured the other slip patch at 4∼16 km along the strike direction. These unilateral rupture characteristics of the L'Aquila earthquake are confirmed by the apparent source time functions (ASTFs) analysis. In addition, two resolution tests are performed to check the reliability of this work, clarifying the differences between the inversion results with teleseismic data only, InSAR data only and joint inversion, indicating that a higher resolution can be achieved through the joint inversion.


Dark Matter (DM) direct detection experiments usually assume the simplest possible 'Standard Halo Model' for the Milky Way (MW) halo in which the velocity distribution is Maxwellian. This model assumes that the MW halo is an isotropic, isothermal sphere, hypotheses that are unlikely to be valid in reality. An alternative approach is to derive a self-consistent solution for a particular mass model of the MW (i.e. obtained from its gravitational potential) using the Eddington formalism, which assumes isotropy. In this paper we extend this approach to incorporate an anisotropic phase-space distribution function. We perform Bayesian scans over the parameters defining the mass model of the MW and parameterising the phase-space density, implementing constraints from a wide range of astronomical observations. The scans allow us to estimate the precision reached in the reconstruction of the velocity distribution (for different DM halo profiles). As expected, allowing for an anisotropic velocity tensor increases the uncertainty in the reconstruction of f (v), but the distribution can still be determined with a precision of a factor of 4-5. The mean velocity distribution resembles the isotropic case, however the amplitude of the high-velocity tail is up to a factor of 2 larger. Our results agree with the phenomenological parametrization proposed in Mao et al. (2013) as a good fit to N-body simulations (with or without baryons), since their velocity distribution is contained in our 68% credible interval.


Unsustainable levels of energy consumption, resulting in carbon emissions, are leading to
one of the world's greatest environmental problems: climate change. The only short-term
strategy for reducing these emissions is a reduction in end-user energy demand.
Households have a major part to play in this reduction as they are responsible for 29% of
total UK emissions (excluding direct transport related emissions and indirect emissions).
The research reported in this thesis contributes to understanding what makes people adopt
or not adopt climate change mitigation behaviours. The study employed an on-line
questionnaire answered by a nationally representative quota sample of just over five
hundred participants of Great Britain (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales)
aged 18 years and older. It thus contributes a major dataset for secondary analysis.
The findings of this research contribute through an analysis of three different aspects of
climate change beliefs and behaviours. Firstly, the examination of climate change beliefs
reveals that justifications differ depending on belief. More specifically, those who believe
that climate change is happening base their belief on changing weather, while those who
don't believe climate change is happening were found to base their belief on the natural
process involved. A third category of those unsure whether climate change was happening
was also identified. These respondents were found to point to both humans and other
causes for climate change. Additionally, perceptions of believers about climate change
(impact of lifestyle and action for climate change, ability of humans to overcome climate
change, problem extent of climate change, and levels of confidence in scientists'
confidence both regarding climate predictions and regarding the link between emissions
and climate change) were found to differ to those held by deniers.
Secondly, the data demonstrate that there is little association between belief in climate
change and the adoption of climate change mitigation behaviours. Although the majority of
the public state that they believe climate change is happening and that they take action out
of concern for climate change, neither of these two factors was found to be related to the
adoption of the 21 energy saving behaviours examined (Gardner and Stern, 2008).
Furthermore, the findings indicate that self-efficacy (which is concerned with people's
beliefs about their capabilities to perform a specific behaviour) is associated with
behaviour adoption. However, despite money being found to be the key motivator for
behaviour adoption, the behaviours carried out do not correspond to the ones that are the
most effective for saving money, nor those perceived to be the most effective. This could
be due to misunderstandings of the effectiveness of behaviours. Thirdly, interventions
aimed to encourage households to reduce their energy consumption are examined through
a literature review. This is followed by an examination of the potential audiences that
could benefit the most from targeted interventions. Sociodemographic variables are able to
partially identify the groups of people that may respond most positively to targeted
interventions (incorporating antecedent and consequence strategies); those who want to do
more for the environment, those who save the least amount of energy, and those who make
the biggest error regarding the potential financial savings.
This research suggests that interventions should focus on supporting individuals in
developing self-efficacy in relation to mitigation behaviours, providing information on the
possible savings when adopting different behaviours and on addressing the barriers to
behaviour adoption.


A new idea of analog cellular neural network (CNN) VLSI implementation is described. The main problem in neural networks realization is the size of adjustable connections between neurons in the net. The weight circuits may occupy more than 90% of the single neuron space. The main advantage of current mode pulse stream neurons is small size of the weight circuit. The simplicity of the building blocks used allows one to operate them with relatively high speed. As compared with the other pulse stream circuits, this approach is based on current pulses. Therefore, for both basic neural operations, summation and multiplication are easy to implement, if only the phase is irrelevant.


Globalization and the transnational movement of people have intensified the migration of highly educated people from developing countries to the industrialized countries of the North. While causing a serious 'brain drain' or 'talent shortage' in developing countries, these migrations have also produced profound ethnic, cultural and racial diversity in receiving countries. Even as developed countries lure and vie for high-calibre immigrants in order to gain or maintain a competitive advantage in the 'knowledge-based' global economy, structural barriers in the labour markets of these countries exclude and deny immigrants access to occupations and jobs commensurate with their training and expertise. Denying people access to hiring opportunities for reasons unrelated to their abilities or industry is discriminatory, oppressive and unjust. This paper argues that anti-oppressive practice is an effective social work practice tool for gaining a better understanding of the oppression, marginalization and exclusion of skilled immigrants of colour in Western societies. In working with visible minority immigrants, anti-oppressive practice becomes a powerful instrument of resistance and for advocating for structural change that would emancipate and empower immigrants in Canada and other immigrant-receiving countries.


As a field test for Cherns and Wright9s previously published hypothesis based on Paleozoic faunas—that the paucity of certain molluscan groups in the fossil record may be largely a taphonomic, not ecologic, effect—a typical Mesozoic molluscan-dominated fauna is compared with its early-silicified (lagerstatten) equivalent from a similar depositional setting. A Lower Jurassic offshore carbonate ramp facies in South Wales comprises alternating thin limestones and organic-rich shales; the former are largely diagenetic and carry marine isotopic signatures. Their typical fauna is mainly well preserved, calcitic and bimineralic (calcite + aragonite), epifaunal and semiinfaunal bivalves. Evidence of aragonitic shells is normally restricted to molds, common in inner ramp settings in high-energy skeletal grainstones, but mostly poorly preserved and restricted to deep-burrowing bivalves in offshore deposits. However, locally, early silicification in offshore facies has preserved much more diverse faunas with abundant, formerly aragonitic, molluscs, including many more infaunal burrowers. It appears that major aragonite dissolution normally distorted both apparent diversity (65% decrease in bivalve diversity) and the trophic structure of the offshore facies, providing aragonite that probably sourced the diagenetic carbonates. We suggest that aragonitic shells were selectively dissolved in the upper sediment column in lower-energy settings, where high organic contents favored microbial decay and acidity; such early dissolution was absent from the higher-energy facies that originally had low organic contents. Taphonomic loss through early skeletal aragonite dissolution was an equally important process in Mesozoic offshore shelf environments, and although still leaving depleted molluscan-dominated faunas, resulted in a massive distortion of diversity.


The present paper examines the stability of self-enforcing International Environmental Agreements (IEAs) among heterogeneous countries in a two stage emission game. In the first stage each country decides whether or not to join the agreement, while in the second stage the quantity of emissions is chosen simultaneously by all countries. We use quadratic benefit and environmental damage functions and assume k types of countries that differ in their sensitivity to the global pollutant. We find that the introduction of heterogeneity does not yield larger stable coalitions. In particular, we show that, in the case of two types, when stable coalitions exist their size is very small, and, if the asymmetry is strong enough, they include only one type of countries. Moreover, heterogeneity can reduce the scope of cooperation relative to the homogeneous case. We demostrated that introducing asymmetry into a stable, under symmetry, agreement can disturb stability.


Portal hypertension (PH) is the main driver of cirrhosis decompensation, the main determinant of death in patients with cirrhosis. PH results initially from increased intrahepatic vascular resistance. Subsequently, increased inflow from splanchnic vasodilation and increased cardiac output lead to a further increase in portal pressure (PP). Reducing PP in cirrhosis results in better outcomes. Removing the cause of cirrhosis might improve PP. However, this is a slow process and patients may continue to be at risk of decompensation. Additionally, for some chronic liver diseases, such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), etiological treatments are not yet available. Therefore, there is a need to develop better therapies specifically aimed at reducing PP. For over 35 years, the mainstay of such therapy has been the use of nonselective beta‐blockers (NSBBs) that act by reducing portal venous inflow. Recently, many drugs (mainly targeting intrahepatic mechanisms) have shown promise in preclinical and early clinical studies and may act alone or synergistically with NSBBs in reducing PP in cirrhosis. The objective of this position paper is to propose a novel framework for the design of clinical trials (phase 1, 2, and 3) in patients with cirrhosis and PH and to prioritize targets and pharmacological therapies in this setting. We have focused the discussion on patients with compensated cirrhosis. The paper summarizes discussions held at The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) Industry Colloquium in January 2018, with the participation of clinical and translational investigators, regulatory professionals, and industry partners.


What is mental toughness? This research draws on the experience of elite athletes and coaches to unearth a conceptualisation and definition of mental toughness. The interviews of 33 elite athletes and coaches (including 25 current or former elite athletes, of whom 15 had achieved an Olympic Gold Medal or World Champion status) were transcribed verbatim and analysed qualitatively to reveal underpinning components of mental toughness. Mental toughness is multi-dimensional and consists of twelve components, including: self-efficacy, potential, mental selfconcept, task familiarity, value, personal bests, goal commitment, perseverance, task focus, positivity, stress minimisation, and positive comparisons. Mental toughness is defined as an unshakeable perseverance and conviction towards some goal despite pressure or adversity. This conceptualisation of mental toughness provides a platform from which instruments of measurement can be developed.


Abstract Biomechanical models illustrate how the principles of physics and physiology determine function in organisms, allowing ecological inferences and functional predictions to be based on morphology. Dynamic lever and linkage models of the mechanisms of the jaw and skull during feeding in fishes predict function from morphology and have been used to compare the feeding biomechanics of diverse fish groups, including fossil taxa, and to test ideas in ecological morphology. Here we perform detailed computational modeling of the four-bar linkage mechanism in the skull and jaw systems of Dunkleosteus terrelli, using software that accepts landmark morphological data to simulate the movements and mechanics of the skull and jaws during prey capture. The linkage system is based on the quadrate and cranio-thoracic joints: Cranial elevation around the cranio-thoracic joint forces the quadrate joint forward, which, coupled with a jaw depressor muscle connecting the jaw to the thoracic shield, causes the jaw to rotate downward during skull expansion. Results show a high speed transmission for jaw opening, producing a rapid expansion phase similar to that in modern fishes that use suction during prey capture. During jaw closing, the model computes jaw and skull rotation and a series of mechanical metrics including effective mechanical advantage of the jaw lever and kinematic transmission of the skull linkage system. Estimates of muscle cross-sectional area based on the largest of five specimens analyzed allow the bite force and strike speed to be estimated. Jaw-closing muscles of Dunkleosteus powered an extraordinarily strong bite, with an estimated maximal bite force of over 6000 N at the jaw tip and more than 7400 N at the rear dental plates, for a large individual (10 m total length). This bite force capability is among the most powerful bites in animals. The combination of rapid gape expansion and powerful bite meant that Dunkleosteus terrelli could both catch elusive prey and penetrate protective armor, allowing this apex predator to potentially eat anything in its ecosystem, including other placoderms.


We have used synchrotron-based high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy in combination with ab initio density functional theory calculations to investigate the characteristics of water and CO adsorption on the bimetallic Cu/Pt{110}-(2 x 1) surface at a Cu coverage near 0.5 ML. Cu fills the troughs of the reconstructed clean surface forming nanowires, which are stable up to 830 K. Their presence dramatically influences the adsorption of water and CO. Water adsorption changes from intact to partially dissociated while the desorption temperature of CO on this surface increases by up to 27 K with respect to the clean Pt{110} surface. Ab initio calculations and experimental valence band spectra reveal that the Cu 3d-band is narrowed and shifted upward with respect to bulk Cu surfaces. This and electron donation to surface Pt atoms cause the increase in the bond strength between CO and the Pt surface atoms. The pathway for water dissociation occurs via Cu surface atoms. The heat of adsorption of water bonding to Cu surface atoms was calculated to be 0.82 eV, which is significantly higher than on the clean Pt{110} surface; the activation energy for partial dissociation is 0.53 eV (not corrected for zero point energy).


Objective: Number of CAM user among person suffer from cancer was high, especially breast cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of CAM in breast cancer patients in a public hospital in Padang, Indonesia. Methods: This study was descriptive study with cross-sectional design done for three months for all patients suffering from breast cancer in oncology unit in a public hospital in Padang, Indonesia. Breast cancer patients who are unable to communicate well and/or are unwilling to take part in the study are excluded. Data were collected by structured interview for patients who used CAM and open interview for patients who not use CAM. Results: Among 85 participants, 8 of them (9.41%) never use CAM, 22 of them (25.88%) had used CAM for some period and 55 of them (64.71%) had been using CAM. Herbal medicine was the most commonly used in CAM therapies, followed by supplement, spiritual healing, and Chinese medicine. The reason to use the CAM is their belief that the CAM has a positive impact to help them fight the cancer. Family and friends were the most common source of CAM information. Only 29.09% of participants had discussed CAM that they want to use with health care providers. Conclusion: It is necessary for health care providers to give information to patients about safety and efficacy of CAM therapy. Key words: Complementary and alternative medicine, Complementary and alternative therapy, Herbal therapy, Herbal medicine, Breast cancer, Hospital pharmacy, Indonesia.


Abstract. "The dragon and the elephant" between China and India is an important manifestation of global multipolarization in the 21st century. As an engine of global economic growth, China and India have similar development processes, different development models as well as differences in urban development, which have attracted widespread attention from scholars. Based on the 1992–2012 consecutive annual nighttime lighting data (DMSP-OLS), this paper uses the Gini coefficient, the Getis-Ord Gi* index and the Compounded Night Light Index (CNLI) to conduct a multi-scale comparative analysis of the differences in urban development between China and India from the perspective of geospatial. The results show that: (1) The space of urban land in the two countries expanded rapidly, with an average annual expansion rate of 5.24% and 3.85% respectively. China's urban land expansion rate is 1.36 times that of India. Among them, the arid resource towns in northwest China and the resource towns in central India have recently developed rapidly. (2) India's imbalance in development is more prominent than China's. China's regional and provincial imbalances are narrowing, while the regional differences in India are gradually widening. (3) The spatial pattern of land use in both countries shows a certain degree of coastal and inland differences. The main spatial pattern of China's regional development is the difference between East-Central-West, while the spatial pattern of regional development in India is North-South difference. (4) The strength of the expansion of the core cities of the two countries is quite different. From 1997 to 2007, China's core urban expansion intensity remained at a relatively high level while India was at a relatively low level. But from 2007 to 2012, India's core cities expanded at a relatively high level while China was at a relatively low level.


In the present examination, antidiabetic capability of Monothica separates (methanol) has been assessed in alloxan-prompted diabetic hares. Fifteen solid, bunnies were separated into four unique gatherings including, Normal control, Diabetic control , treated with Monothica methanol remove, with 3 hares in each gathering. The concentrates were given orally for 24 hours, 100 mg, 200 mg, 300 mg extricate per bunny every day. At regular intervals blood test was gathered, serum isolated and absolute glucose level, cholesterol level was controlled by unit strategy. The body weight was recorded on like clockwork interim. The Monotheca methanol extricates lowered blood glucose and cholesterol level demonstrated greatest decrease adequately. The treatment with these concentrates additionally diminished the blood glucose and cholesterol. Along these lines, it is presumed that the Monotheca possess noteworthy antidiabetic movement.


While feedback of the grasping force is necessary to manipulate objects skillfully, most Virtual Reality systems do not provide such feedback. Grasping an object is often reduced to pushing a button on the interface. This paper presents the design and realization of a haptic forceps for microsurgery training, and its integration on a haptic 6DOF DELTA device. Psychophysical experiments were first conducted to determine the critical factors for the design. The haptic forceps has similar dimensions as a microsurgery forceps and integrates two active degrees of freedom for rotation about its axis as well as opening and closing. The transformation of the force/torque from the forceps tip to the haptic device TCP, necessary to compute the desired force/torque at the forceps tip, was derived and implemented. Preliminary experiments emonstrate the potential of this haptic forceps in a VR microsurgery trainer.