The contemporary trend of increasing connectivity, interoperability and efficiency of technologies, which are used in organizations, also affected Industrial Control System (further only ICS). The recently isolated system is becoming more dependent on interconnection with external technologies. This leads to a formation of new vulnerabilities, which are significant threats to ICS. For this reason, it is necessary to devote considerable effort to analyze vulnerabilities. Neglecting of this area could lead to damage or unavailability of ICS services. The purpose of the article is to evaluate vulnerabilities related to individual elements of ICS. The fundamental question of the article is to find a true distribution of security risk related to ICS.


Allelopathy is the inhibition of growth of one species of plants by chemicals produced by another, typically competing, species. The chemical compounds released in this phenomenon have the potential to be used as natural weed control agents. In this study, we tested kudzu (Pueraria montana) to determine its allelopathic potential for weed control and suppression. The aqueous extracts of different kudzu organs (leaf, stem, and root) were assessed for allelopathic properties on the seeds of several competing species: white clover, dandelion, bermudagrass, and ryegrass. Remarkably, both the kudzu leaf and root extracts significantly changed the majority of the measured germination indices, comprising total germination and the speed of germination. The total germination of white clover seeds was 25% less than the control in both the kudzu leaf and root extract bioassays, while speed of germination was reduced by 77% and 72%, respectively. Likewise, dandelion seeds demonstrated 53% and 73% reduced speed of germination when treated with kudzu leaf extract and root extract, respectively. Both leaf extract and root extract also reduced total germination in ryegrass and bermudagrass seeds by a minimum of 25%. These results suggest that the kudzu leaves and roots can be considered to be allelopathic and show potential as a weed control agent.


Wave maps are the simplest wave equations taking their values in a Riemannian manifold (M,g). Their Lagrangian is the same as for the scalar equation, the only difference being that lengths are measured with respect to the metric g. By Noether's theorem, symmetries of the Lagrangian imply conservation laws for wave maps, such as conservation of energy. In coordinates, wave maps are given by a system of semilinear wave equations. Over the past 20 years important methods have emerged which address the problem of local and global wellposedness of this system. Due to weak dispersive effects, wave maps defined on Minkowski spaces of low dimensions, such as $R_{t,x}^{2+1}$, present particular technical difficulties. This class of wave maps has the additional important feature of being energy critical, which refers to the fact that the energy scales exactly like the equation. Around 2000 Daniel Tataru and Terence Tao, building on earlier work of Klainerman–Machedon, proved that smooth data of small energy lead to global smooth solutions for wave maps from 2+1 dimensions into target manifolds satisfying some natural conditions. In contrast, for large data, singularities may occur in finite time for $M=S^2$ as target. This monograph establishes that for $H$ as target the wave map evolution of any smooth data exists globally as a smooth function. While we restrict ourselves to the hyperbolic plane as target the implementation of the concentration-compactness method, the most challenging piece of this exposition, yields more detailed information on the solution. This monograph will be of interest to experts in nonlinear dispersive equations, in particular to those working on geometric evolution equations.


For fossil fuel power plants to be built in the future, carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies offer the potential for significant reductions in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. We examine the break-even value for CCS adoptions, that is, the critical value in the charge for CO2 emissions that would justify investment in CCS capabilities. Our analysis takes explicitly into account that the supply of electricity at the wholesale level (generation) is organized competitively in some U.S. jurisdictions, whereas in others a regulated utility provides integrated generation and distribution services. For either market structure, we find that emissions charges near $30 per tonne of CO2 would be the break-even value for adopting CCS capabilities at new coal-fired power plants. The corresponding break-even values for natural gas plants are substantially higher, near $60 per tonne. Our break-even estimates serve as a basis for projecting the change in electricity prices once carbon emissions become costly. CCS capabilities effectively put an upper bound on the increase in electricity prices resulting from carbon regulations, and we estimate this bound to be near 30% at the retail level for both coal and natural gas plants. In contrast to the competitive power supply scenario, however, these price increases materialize only gradually for a regulated utility. The delay in price adjustments reflects that for regulated firms the basis for setting product prices is historical cost, rather than current cost.

This paper was accepted by Gerard P. Cachon, accounting.


Human pulmonary surfactant protein A (SP-A) is encoded by two genes, SP-A1 and SP-A2, that exhibit coding sequence (allelic) and 5' splicing variability. In this report we determine the effect of the genetic variability within the SP-A1 and SP-A2 genes on the level of SP-A mRNAs and on the SP-A2 splicing variants in different individuals. We analysed mRNA specimens from 23 unrelated adults using genotype analysis, Northern analysis and primer extension, and made the following observations. (1) The level of SP-A mRNA varies among individuals (coefficient of variation = 0.49). One SP-A genotype (6A(2)6A(2)1A(0)1A0) appears to be associated with a low to moderate level of SP-A mRNA. (2) The SP-A1/SP-A2 mRNA ratio varies among individuals, from 0.94 (lowest) to 6.80 (highest) within the study population. One genotype appears to be associated with a moderate to high SP-A1/SP-A2 mRNA ratio and another with a low to moderate ratio. (3) There is no correlation between the level of SP-A mRNA and the SP-A1/SP-A2 mRNA ratio. (4) Variability in the ratio of the major SP-A2 splice variants among individuals results from nucleotide differences in the splice-recognition sequence of specific SP-A2 alleles. The SP-A mRNA levels, the SP-A1/SP-A2 mRNA ratio, and the ratio of the major SP-A2 splice variants have a genetic basis in that they vary depending upon the specific SP-A alleles present.


Musculoskeletal pain is the complaint most frequently reported in health interview surveys. There is a confusing magnitude of names given to musculoskeletal pain complaints reflecting diverging opinions and a lack of consensus of what it is all about. This article discusses how to monitor the occurrence of unspecified musculoskeletal complaints and possible sources of information are presented. The main focus of the article is on how to include musculoskeletal complaints in health interview surveys, and a standard question to be included in all general health questionnaires is recommended.


Neonatal jaundice and the associated yellow skin discoloration is caused by hyperbilirubinemia, a condition in which there is too much bilirubin in the blood. In 2010, the failure to treat jaundice resulted in 114,000 avoidable infant deaths and 75,000 children with brain dysfunction worldwide. Studies have found hyperbilirubinemia to be one of the top three causes of death among newborns in sub-Saharan Africa, and affordable jaundice detection technologies are urgently needed. Transcutaneous bilirubinometers are robust screening methods commonly used by the medical community, but the price tag limits their widespread availability. Using smartphone cameras to capture skin induced color values, we create a low-cost alternative to expensive bilirubinometers. Through computer vision and deep learning, the final fully-connected feed-forward neural network achieves competitive results compared to Dräger JM-103, a state-of-the-art bilirubinometer. In the critical cases where treatment is required, the neural network even outperforms Dräger JM-103, resulting in 75% fewer false negative predictions. Contrary to the transcutaneous bilirubinometers, the proposed solution relies on images, where light sources and camera sensors drastically impact the skin information. To make images illumination and camera independent, we propose a novel approach for color correction, the Gaussian process regression (GPR), a machine learning model that adapts to environmental variables. The results show that the GPR achieves equal results to state-of-the-art color correction techniques, while also creating more general models.


Transfer RNA (tRNA)-charged amino acids are direct precursors of protein synthesis. Therefore, the amount and profile of amino acids in the aminoacyl-tRNA pool may be closely related to the rate of protein synthesis in the tissue. This study was designed to compare the aminoacyl-tRNA pools in liver and muscle, 2 distinct tissues with different rates of protein synthesis. Liver and muscle samples were taken from 6 rabbits and aminoacyl-tRNA was isolated with sequential acid-phenol:chloroform extraction, followed by total RNA and tRNA purification. Amino acids in the aminoacyl-tRNA pool were measured by HPLC after deacylation. Liver contained 3.4 times more tRNA than muscle (585 +/- 120 vs. 132 +/- 11 microg of tRNA/g of tissue; P < 0.001). Overall tRNA charging was also greater in liver (14.22 +/- 4.42 nmol of amino acids/mg of tRNA) than in muscle (7.00 +/- 1.76 nmol of amino acids/mg of tRNA) (P < 0.05). The greater availability and charging efficiency of tRNA in liver as compared with muscle may influence the extent to which amino acid precursor availability regulates protein synthesis in these 2 tissues.


The Millennium Development Goal for primary schooling completion has focused attention on a measurable output indicator to monitor increases in schooling in poor countries. We argue the next step, which moves towards the even more important Millennium Learning Goal, is to monitor outcomes of learning achievement. We demonstrate that even in countries meeting the MDG of primary completion, the majority of youth are not reaching even minimal competency levels, let alone the competencies demanded in a globalized environment. Even though Brazil is on track to the meet the MDG, our estimates are that 78 percent of Brazilian youth lack even minimally adequate competencies in mathematics and 96 percent do not reach what we posit as a reasonable global standard of adequacy. Mexico has reached the MDG—but 50 percent of youth are not minimally competent in math and 91 percent do not reach a global standard. While nearly all countries' education systems are expanding quantitatively nearly all are failing in their fundamental purpose. Policymakers, educators and citizens need to focus on the real target of schooling: adequately equipping their nation's youth for full participation as adults in economic, political and social roles. A goal of school completion alone is an increasingly inadequate guide for action. With a Millennium Learning Goal, progress of the education system will be judged on the outcomes of the system: the assessed mastery of the desired competencies of an entire age cohort—both those in school and out of school. By focusing on the learning achievement of all children in a cohort an MLG eliminates the false dichotomy between "access/enrollment" and "quality of those in school": reaching an MLG depends on both.


The south-east Queensland region is currently experiencing the most rapid urbanisation in Australia. This growth in human population, industry and infrastructure puts pressure on the unique and diverse natural environment of Moreton Bay. Much loved by locals and holiday-goers, Moreton Bay is also an important biogeographic region because its coral reefs, seagrass beds, mangroves and saltmarshes provide a suitable environment for both tropical and temperate species. The bay supports a large number of species of global conservation significance, including marine turtles, dugongs, dolphins, whales and migratory shorebirds, which use the area for feeding or breeding.

Environmental History and Ecology of Moreton Bay provides an interdisciplinary examination of Moreton Bay, increasing understanding of existing and emerging pressures on the region and how these may be mitigated and managed. With chapters on the bay's human uses by Aboriginal peoples and later European settlers, its geology, water quality, marine habitats and animal communities, and commercial and recreational fisheries, this book will be of value to students in the marine sciences, environmental consultants, policy-makers and recreational fishers.


The repair of UV light-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers can proceed via the base excision repair pathway, in which the initial step is catalyzed by DNA glycosylase/abasic (AP) lyases. The prototypical enzyme studied for this pathway is endonuclease V from the bacteriophage T4 (T4 bacteriophage pyrimidine dimer glycosylase (T4-pdg)). The first homologue for T4-pdg has been found in a strain of Chlorella virus (strainParamecium bursaria Chlorella virus-1), which contains a gene that predicts an amino acid sequence homology of 41% with T4-pdg. Because both the structure and critical catalytic residues are known for T4-pdg, homology modeling of the Chlorellavirus pyrimidine dimer glycosylase (cv-pdg) predicted that a conserved glutamic acid residue (Glu-23) would be important for catalysis at pyrimidine dimers and abasic sites. Site-directed mutations were constructed at Glu-23 to assess the necessity of a negatively charged residue at that position (Gln-23) and the importance of the length of the negatively charged side chain (Asp-23). E23Q lost glycosylase activity completely but retained low levels of AP lyase activity. In contrast, E23D retained near wild type glycosylase and AP lyase activities on cis-syn dimers but completely lost its activity on the trans-syn II dimer, which is very efficiently cleaved by the wild type cv-pdg. As has been shown for other glyscosylases, the wild type cv-pdg catalyzes the cleavage at dimers or AP sites via formation of an imino intermediate, as evidenced by the ability of the enzyme to be covalently trapped on substrate DNA when the reactions are carried out in the presence of a strong reducing agent; in contrast, E23D was very poorly trapped on cis-syndimers but was readily trapped on DNA containing AP sites. It is proposed that Glu-23 protonates the sugar ring, so that the imino intermediate can be formed.


ABSTRACT Many musicians contributed to the early spread of Schenkerian ideas in the U.S., but one played a crucial and unparalleled role during the earliest decade, the 1930s: Hans Weisse (1892––1940), one of Schenker9s most esteemed students. Although Jewish, Weisse was not a political or war refugee, as were later Schenker eemigrees. Instead, he came to the U.S. to teach, in the fall of 1931; by the time his former colleagues were finding their ways from Europe, Weisse had already become an American citizen. He died prematurely in 1940, but by then his impact on the pedagogy of music theory and analysis was already being felt, not only directly, at institutions where he taught, but through his many students who were active in disseminating the Schenkerian approach. As the Schenker enterprise now enters its eighth decade in the U.S., a better understanding of its early and largely unexplored foundations becomes ever more essential, and the contributions of Weisse provide a logical point of departure. Heretofore his role has remained largely undocumented. Investigation of three aspects of Weisse9s accomplishment and legacy help shed light on his pivotal role as a music educator and thinker in this country: the record of his highly active professional life as a teacher of music; the theoretical positions and pedagogical strategies revealed by his few preserved writings and remarks; and the enduring influence of his teachings. Through the work of his students, it can be seen that his contribution was decisive in laying the foundation for future Schenkerian work.


Study the meaning of ´information´ to make ICT meaningful

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) became the backbone of a new era: the information-age. This technology influenced practically all walks of Western life. Developing countries should not stay behind in the adoption of ICT. However, if it is to be implemented as a vehicle in development cooperation, the most legitimate question is how ICT actually will be perceived at the grass root level in less developed countries. Due to socio-cultural aspects like traditions, values, political system, economical developments and institutional relationships, the meaning of a technology can differ from one region to another and even amongst groups of people. Therefore the local context should be studied in order to make ICT work for local people in less developed regions.

Case studies in IT: Jamaica and Tanzania
Eight months of fieldwork in Jamaica and Tanzania were carried out to analyse the contexts of small-scale farmers in three development projects of the International Institute of Communication and Development (IICD). The projects concern the introduction of ICT in the form of an information-service made available through tele-centres or extension services. ICT supports the provision of marketing and agricultural information by which farmers would become able to improve their social situation. The aim of the fieldwork was to gain insights in the socio-cultural aspects that influence the meaning of ICT for local farmers. Several units of analysis can be differentiated where socio-cultural aspects make ICT adoption everything but a straightforward process. An illustrative example touches the essence of ICT, namely the deconstruction of the notion of ´information´.

The different meanings of information
In Western societies information has connotations to ´learning´, ´knowledge being power´ and ´development´ or ´progress´. Information contains some kind of value in itself. Reliable information sources in professional terms relate to science, valued thinkers and respected institutions. ICT perfectly thrives in a modern breeding ground in which information needs to be timely, transparent and adequate. The technology matches a mentality in which one is eager to learn and business-oriented. Though in the developing regions under study barely any of those notions referred to the situation in the farming communities.

Small-scale farmers in the Jamaican and Tanzanian contexts mainly practice subsistence farming. They do not treat agriculture as a business in Western terms, which reflects on their information-practices. Long-term planning, bookkeeping, time-management and training are not as timely or prioritised. When it comes to information sources a Jamaican farmer tends to rely on an Almanac that directs planting activities by the position of the moon and Tanzanian farmers can consult a witchdoctor for the explanation of a low yield. The local value of certain types of information and ways of retrieving it, result in an attitude of farmers that does not necessarily support the use of ICT according to a Western frame of mind. Due to past extension initiatives and development projects that were tangible-oriented, many Jamaican and Tanzanian farmers are disappointed when they hear that ICT is just about the provision of information. In a tribe where it can even be a disadvantage to have much information, and the use of it for personal progress can lead to social exclusion, it will be problematic for an information technology in a Western format to be adopted. To make ICT valuable for potential users it is necessary to fine-tune the technology and its content to the local context. ICT in less developed countries, as indeed IICD acknowledges, needs to be based in local culture. An understanding of the socio-cultural aspects that influence the meaning of ICT and integration of the local dimensions of information in the project design avoids the introduction of a technology that does not meet the existing practices and reality.

Marjon Hagenaars is Research Fellow at the International Institute of Infonomics (http://www.infonomics.nl/

MERIT). She currently carries out a long-term research for http://www.iicd.org

IICD.


ObjectivesA multimarker strategy for the handling of patients with heart failure has been suggested in the literature. Therefore, the potential prognostic relevance of combined copeptin, high-sensitivity troponin T (HS-TnT), and N-terminal proBNP (NT-proBNP) measurement in plasma from elderly patients with symptoms of heart failure was evaluated. MethodsThis study included 470 elderly patients (mean age 73 years) from a rural municipality with symptoms of heart failure. Clinical examination, echocardiography, and biomarker measurements were performed. All patients were followed for 13 years and all mortality was registered. Cardiovascular mortality was evaluated using Kaplan–Meier plots and multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analyses. ResultsCopeptin, HS-TnT, and NT-proBNP measurements provided independent prognostic information in a multivariate setting over 5 years (hazard ratio, HR: 3.66; 95% confidence interval, CI 1.27–10.53, HR: 2.52; 95% CI 1.20–5.28, HR: 2.73; 95% CI 1.19–6.26, respectively). Also, the group with all three biomarkers below cut-off values had a low risk for cardiovascular death (1.8% of the patients in this group died in the 5-year follow-up period). In the 13-year follow-up, combined copeptin and HS-TnT measurement did not provide independent prognostic information. ConclusionCombined copeptin, HS-TnT, and NT-proBNP plasma measurements provide prognostic information on cardiovascular mortality that is superior to single biomarker use.


The present study examined differences in body appreciation and functionality appreciation between student-athletes and nonathletes. Additionally, the present study assessed differences in these constructs among female and male athletes outside of their sport and directly following participation in their sport. Seventy-five student-athletes and 211 nonathletes from a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I university completed online measures, including the State-Based Body Appreciation Scale and Functionality Appreciation Scale. Student-athletes completed the same measures following a sport practice. Student-athletes reported higher levels of body appreciation and functionality appreciation compared to nonathletes. No differences in body appreciation were found among student-athletes outside of their sport compared to directly following participation in their sport; however, student-athletes reported higher levels of functionality appreciation after their sport practice. Implications for coaches and athletic staff are discussed, including placing a greater emphasis on body functionality rather than specific body ideals.


The red spectral shape of the visible to near-infrared reflectance spectrum of the sharply edged ringlike disk around the young main-sequence star HR 4796A was recently interpreted as the presence of tholin-like complex organic materials which are seen in the atmosphere and surface of Titan and the surfaces of icy bodies in the solar system. However, we show in this Letter that porous grains composed of common cosmic dust species (amorphous silicate, amorphous carbon, and water ice) also closely reproduce the observed reflectance spectrum, suggesting that the presence of complex organic materials in the HR 4796A disk is still not definitive.


In robotics, optimizing controller parameters under safety constraints is an important challenge. Safe Bayesian optimization (BO) quantifies uncertainty in the objective and constraints to safely guide exploration in such settings. Hand-designing a suitable probabilistic model can be challenging, however. In the presence of unknown safety constraints, it is crucial to choose reliable model hyper-parameters to avoid safety violations. Here, we propose a data-driven approach to this problem by meta-learning priors for safe BO from offline data. We build on a meta-learning algorithm, F-PACOH, capable of providing reliable uncertainty quantification in settings of data scarcity. As core contribution, we develop a novel framework for choosing safety-compliant priors in a data-riven manner via empirical uncertainty metrics and a frontier search algorithm. On benchmark functions and a high-precision motion system, we demonstrate that our meta-learned priors accelerate the convergence of safe BO approaches while maintaining safety.


Abstract The food enzyme lysozyme (peptidoglycan N‐acetylmuramoylhydrolase; EC 220.127.116.11) is produced from hens' eggs by Bioseutica B.V. It is intended to be used in brewing processes, milk processing for cheese production as well as wine production. The dietary exposure to the food enzyme–total organic solids (TOS) was estimated to be up to 4.9 mg TOS/kg body weight per day. This exposure is lower than the intake of the corresponding fraction from eggs, for all population groups. The Panel considered that, under the intended conditions of use, the residual amounts of lysozyme in treated beers, cheese and cheese products and wine, may trigger adverse allergenic reactions in susceptible individuals. Based on the data provided, the origin of the food enzyme and an exposure to the food enzyme comparable to the intake from eggs, the Panel concluded that the food enzyme lysozyme does not give rise to safety concerns under the intended conditions of use, except for the known adverse allergic reactions that occur in susceptible individuals.


How biomedical research using various animal species and in vitro cellular systems has resulted in both major successes and translational failure. In Model Systems in Biology, comparative neurobiologist Georg Striedter examines how biomedical researchers have used animal species and in vitro cellular systems to understand and develop treatments for human diseases ranging from cancer and polio to Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia. Although there have been some major successes, much of this "translational" research on model systems has failed to generalize to humans. Striedter explores the history of such research, focusing on the models used and considering the question of model selection from a variety of perspectives—the philosophical, the historical, and that of practicing biologists.
 Striedter reviews some philosophical concepts and ethical issues, including concerns over animal suffering and the compromises that result. He traces the history of the most widely used animal and in vitro models, describing how they compete with one another in a changing ecosystem of models. He examines how therapies for bacterial and viral infections, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological disorders have been developed using animal and cell culture models—and how research into these diseases has both taken advantage of and been hindered by model system differences. Finally, Striedter argues for a "big tent" biology, in which a diverse set of models and research strategies can coexist productively.


Acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplastic changes and monosomy 7 is a rare form of pediatric leukemia associated with very poor disease-free survival. The refractoriness of the disease is due to the protection offered by the bone marrow niche, making leukemic stem cells impervious to whatever chemotherapy or myeloablative regimen is chosen. Using a mobilizing agent for haematopoietic stem cells, Plerixafor, could sensitise leukemic cells to the myeloablative therapy. This approach was not previously used in a pediatric population, and in adult populations, was used in combination with busulphan with no difference in overall survival. We describe the case of a 4-year-old boy affected by refractory acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplastic changes and monosomy 7. The child had never achieved a remission. We proposed a combined time-scheduled scheme of therapy with plerixafor and melphalan. Combining pharmacokinetics of plerixafor with pharmacokinetics and rapid and elevated myeloablative potential of melphalan in high dosage (200 mg/m2), we succeeded in mobilizing more than 85% of stem blasts immediately before infusion of Melphalan. The count of residual blasts after 8 h from melphalan infusion was only 1.3 cells/μL. The child achieved an engraftment at day +32 with full donor chimerism. Sixteen months after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), he is well and in complete remission. Our case suggests that the use of plerixafor before a conditioning therapy with melphalan could induce remission in acute myeloid leukemia refractory to the usual conditioning therapy in pediatric patients. This work adds strength to the body of knowledge regarding the "personalized" conditioning regimen for high-risk leukemic patients.


Data alone are worth almost nothing. While data collection is increasing exponentially worldwide, a clear distinction between retrieving data and obtaining knowledge has to be made. Data are retrieved while measuring phenomena or gathering facts. Knowledge refers to data patterns and trends that are useful for decision making. Data interpretation creates a challenge that is particularly present in system identification, where thousands of models may explain a given set of measurements. Manually interpreting such data is not reliable. One solution is to use data mining. This thesis thus proposes an integration of techniques from data mining, a field of research where the aim is to find knowledge from data, into an existing multiple-model system identification methodology. It is shown that, within a framework for decision support, data mining techniques constitute a valuable tool for engineers performing system identification. For example, clustering techniques group similar models together in order to guide subsequent decisions since they might indicate possible states of a structure. A main issue concerns the number of clusters, which, usually, is unknown. For determining the correct number of clusters in data and estimating the quality of a clustering algorithm, a score function is proposed. The score function is a reliable index for estimating the number of clusters in a given data set, thus increasing understanding of results. Furthermore, useful information for engineers who perform system identification is achieved through the use of feature selection techniques. They allow selection of relevant parameters that explain candidate models. The core algorithm is a feature selection strategy based on global search. In addition to providing information about the candidate model space, data mining is found to be a valuable tool for supporting decisions related to subsequent sensor placement. When integrated into a methodology for iterative sensor placement, clustering is found to provide useful support through providing a rational basis for decisions related to subsequent sensor placement on existing structures. Greedy and global search strategies should be selected according to the context. Experiments show that whereas global search is more efficient for initial sensor placement, a greedy strategy is more suitable for iterative sensor placement.


Abstract Deltas represent the major sediment source for tectonically confined, tide-dominated seaways or straits. Modern examples show how along-shore tidal currents are able to modify the impinging delta shape, generating asymmetrical coastal plains, deflected delta fronts and elongate sandbanks. Seaway or strait deltas can become become tide-influenced or tide-dominated, assuming physical attributes that may depart from classical models. Ancient deltas in seaways and straits can also reveal unexpected facies stacking and stratigraphies, which can be misinterpreted or attributed to different depositional settings. Two ancient analogues of deltas that prograded into elongate basins dominated by amplified tidal currents are presented here. A common element in these deltas is the progressive-upwards change in the dominant process of sediment dispersion recorded in the delta facies. Early stages of progradation are dominated by river- and wave-influenced lithofacies, whereas late deltaic advancements occur with a dominance of tidal current circulation on the delta fronts and the consequent morphologies are deflected/elongated in the direction of tidal flow. This study provides the basis for a preliminary stratigraphic framework for the depositional style of these types of delta. The studied deposits also suggest analogies with the spatial distribution of many hydrocarbon reservoirs investigated along the margins of confined, narrow, linear basins, the interpretation of which is still debated.


Delayed umbilical cord clamping appears to be beneficial for term and preterm infants. In term infants, delayed umbilical cord clamping increases hemoglobin levels at birth and improves iron stores in the first several months of life, which may have a favorable effect on developmental outcomes. There is a small increase in the incidence of jaundice that requires phototherapy in term infants undergoing delayed umbilical cord clamping. Consequently, obstetrician-gynecologists and other obstetric care providers adopting delayed umbilical cord clamping in term infants should ensure that mechanisms are in place to monitor and treat neonatal jaundice. In preterm infants, delayed umbilical cord clamping is associated with significant neonatal benefits, including improved transitional circulation, better establishment of red blood cell volume, decreased need for blood transfusion, and lower incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis and intraventricular hemorrhage. Delayed umbilical cord clamping was not associated with an increased risk of postpartum hemorrhage or increased blood loss at delivery, nor was it associated with a difference in postpartum hemoglobin levels or the need for blood transfusion. Given the benefits to most newborns and concordant with other professional organizations, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now recommends a delay in umbilical cord clamping in vigorous term and preterm infants for at least 30-60 seconds after birth. The ability to provide delayed umbilical cord clamping may vary among institutions and settings; decisions in those circumstances are best made by the team caring for the mother-infant dyad.


Through a comparative case study, Sheridan and colleagues explore how makerspaces may function as learning environments. Drawing on field observations, interviews, and analysis of artifacts, videos, and other documents, the authors describe features of three makerspaces and how participants learn and develop through complex design and making practices. They describe how the makerspaces help individuals identify problems, build models, learn and apply skills, revise ideas, and share new knowledge with others. The authors conclude with a discussion of the implications of their findings for this emergent field.


Objectives: This study aims to examine the impact of European Union (EU) law relating to information technology (IT) on health systems. Methods: The study identifies EU directives relating to IT, analyzes them in terms of their impact on the use of IT in health systems, and outlines their implications for health technology assessment (HTA). Analysis is based on a review of literature identified through relevant databases and Internet searches. Results: Developments in IT have serious implications for EU health systems, presenting policy makers with new challenges. The European Commission has adopted a range of legal measures to protect consumers in the "information society" However, as few of them are health-specific, it is not evident that they have implications for health, health systems, or HTA, and they may not be effective in protecting consumers in the health sector. Conclusions: In light of the growing importance of IT in the health sector, legal and nonlegal measures need to be further developed at EU and international level. Where possible, future initiatives should pay attention to the particular characteristics of health goods and services and health systems. Although definitions of HTA usually recognize the importance of evaluating both the indirect, unintended consequences of health technologies and the legal aspects of their application, it seems that, in practice, HTA often overlooks or underestimates legislative matters. Those involved in HTA should be aware of the legal implications of using IT to provide health goods and services and compile, store, transfer, and disseminate health information electronically.


Livestock rations are formulated to minimize feed cost subject to nutritional requirements for a target performance level, which ignores the potentially substantial cost of disposing of nutrients fed in excess of nutritional requirements. We incorporate nutrient disposal costs into a modified least-cost ration formulation model to arrive at a joint least-cost decision that minimizes the sum of feed and net nutrient disposal costs. The method is demonstrated with phosphorus disposal costs on a representative dairy farm. Herd size, land availability and proximity, crop rotation, and initial soil phosphorus content are shown to be important in determining phosphorus disposal costs.


The study addresses the effect of product usage, satisfaction derived out of the same and the brand switching behaviour in several product categories while looking at the product involvement level in the Indian marketplace. A fair amount of work has been done in the area of customer satisfaction and loyalty and many customer satisfaction indexes are available in the market using different variables and characteristics. The study attempts to understand the brand switching behaviour of the customers and its relation not with just satisfaction derived out of the product but also connects to the usage pattern of the customers and product involvement. Five categories (vehicles, television, soap, hair oil, and ice cream), involving varying levels of involvement were chosen. Cluster analysis was used to understand the grouping of the characteristics across the categories and their effect on brand switching behaviour in correlation with satisfaction and involvement level. It was observed that product usage and related level of satisfaction fail to explain the brand switching behaviour. Product involvement was found to have moderate impact on readiness to switch. The study emphasises that marketers will have to keep a constant eye to understand the usage pattern associated with their products and the satisfaction derived out of it and also at how customers involve themselves with the product to lessen the brand switching behaviour among their customers.


Developing bioactive hydrogels with potential to guide the differentiation behavior of stem cells has become increasingly important in the biomaterials field. Here, silk hydrogels with tunable mechanical properties were developed by introducing inert silk fibroin nanofibers (SNF) within an enzyme crosslinked system of regenerated silk fibroin (RSF). After the crosslinking reaction of RSF, the inert SNF was embedded into the RSF hydrogel matrix, resulting in improved mechanical properties. Tunable stiffness in the range of 9-60 KPa was achieved by adjusting the amount of the added NSF, significantly higher than SNF-free hydrogels formed under same conditions (about 1 KPa). In addition, the proliferation of rat bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells cultured on the composite hydrogels and differentiated into endothelial cells, myoblast and osteoblast cells was improved, putatively due to the control of stiffness of the hydrogels. Bioactive and tunable silk-based hydrogels were prepared via a composite SNF and crosslinked RSF system, providing a new strategy to design silk biomaterials with tunable mechanical and biological performance.


The efficacy of Khaya senegalensis products was evaluated for the control of Tribolium confusum infesting pearl millet seeds. The plant products were used at 5 g, 10 g, and 20 g, and 2.0 g Actellic dust was used as standard check which was replicated three times and also with an untreated control. The parameters assessed include mortality, emergence, and seed damage. The results showed that Actellic dust (2 %) caused significantly higher ( p < 0.05) mortality of adult T. confusum at 24 hrs than Khaya senegalensis treated grains and the control. The seed powder at 20 g caused significantly (p < 0.05) mortality of T. confusum than other formulations and the untreated control. The leaf powder at all levels is not significantly different compared to the control. At 48 hrs and 72 hrs Actellic dust caused significantly ( p < 0.05) mortality (100 %) of adult T. confusum compared to others while the seed powder at 5 g had higher mortality compared to the control. No. significant mortality was recorded among plant products and the control at 72 hrs. At 8 weeks post-treatment the progeny emergence was significantly higher ( p < 0.05) on the control than on leaf powder, seed powder at different concentrations and Actellic dust, but there was no significant difference among the treatments. The percentage grain damage showed significant differences between the treatments, although the control had more grain damage than the treated grains. Keywords: Khaya senegalensis products, efficacy, Tribolium , millet


Today, more than ever, printers the world over are deliberating financial decisions, and pondering potential investments as they strive to survive the credit crunch, and work out how to create a prime position for their businesses once the downturn in the economy swings back the other way. At the same time, they are closely examining how they can win more business, and reduce day-to-day running costs. With all this on their minds, the added pressure of being environmentally friendly is perhaps not as high up the agenda as it was. However, tackling environmental issues often goes hand-in-hand with reducing costs, and for the enlightened, there are definite business opportunities to be gained, so the subject should remain a priority for most.


From Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, "Making Globalization Work" gives real, concrete ways to deal with third world debt, make trade fair and tackle global warming. In "Globalization and its Discontents" Joseph Stiglitz changed the views of the public and world leaders alike by showing why globalization doesn't work for the world's poor. In this bold, ambitious follow-up, Stiglitz shows how powerful organizations such as the UN, the IMF and the World Bank can be made to consider everyone's interests. Stiglitz examines how change has occurred rapidly over the past four years, proposing solutions and looking to the future. He puts forward radical new solutions to the seemingly intractable international problems which we face - in forms that are more likely to be accepted both by the US and the developing world than previous proposals. Another world is possible, he argues, and is not only morally right, but of benefit to us all. "Passionate, engaging ...he speaks from the heart as well as the head". ("Independent"). "The man with a mission to save the poor ...offers a wealth of ideas for global reform". ("The Times"). "A searing critique of conventional wisdom". ("Newsweek"). "An excellent book ...a lodestar for those who want to achieve a different and better world". ("Guardian"). Joseph Stiglitz is one of the world's best-known economists. He was Chief Economist at the World Bank until January 2000. Before that he was Chairman of President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers. He is currently Professor of Finance and Economics at Columbia University. He won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2001 and is the author of the bestselling "Globalization and Its Discontents" and "The Roaring Nineties", both published by Penguin.


Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. It is an alternative to "conventional" waste disposal that can save material and help lower greenhouse gas emissions. Recycling can prevent the waste of potentially useful materials and reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, thereby reducing: energy usage, air pollution (from incineration), and water pollution (from landfilling). Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle" waste hierarchy. Thus, recycling aims at environmental sustainability by substituting raw material inputs into and redirecting waste outputs out of the economic system. There are some ISO standards related to recycling such as ISO 15270:2008 for plastics waste and ISO 14001:2015 for environmental management control of recycling practice. Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, tires, textiles, batteries, and electronics. The composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste—such as food or garden waste—is also a form of recycling. By analysing the importance of Recycling and Environmental Science, Longdom Conference is organizing International Conference on 2nd International Conference on Recycling and E-waste Management (Recycling 2021) during May 21-22, 2021 in London, United Kingdom based on the theme "Reduce and Recycle waste for feasible waste administration". Scientific sessions of Recycling 2021 includes Recycling basics, Reduce, reuse, recycle and rediscovery, E- waste recycling and management, Paper recycling, Food agricultural waste and recycling, Bio-plastic, Bio-electrochemical treatment systems, Industrial waste recycling, Waste water recycling, Solid waste management, Metal recycling, Chemical waste recycling, Bioremediation, Rubber recycling, Thermal waste recovery, Bio-energy from waste, Effects of 3rs on climate change, Waste processing industries, Pollution and climate change, Recycling market, Waste Management Techniques. Recycling 2021 embraces with Keynote Session, Oral Session, Poster Session, Young Researchers Session and Exhibitor Session. London is hosting the Recycling Conference 2021 During May 21-22. London, metropolis, capital of the United Kingdom. It is the various oldest of the arena's terrific towns—its records spanning almost millennia—and one of the maximum cosmopolitan. By some distance Britain's biggest metropolis, it is also the country's economic, transportation, and cultural center. London is located in south-eastern England, mendacity astride the River Thames some 50 miles (80 km) upstream from its estuary at the North Sea. In satellite TV for pc images, the city can be visible to take a seat compactly in a Green Belt of open land, with its primary ring dual carriageway (the M25 motorway) threaded round it at a radius of about 20 miles (30 km) from the city center. The growth of the constructed-up region was halted by strict metropolis planning controls inside the mid-Nineteen Fifties.


Abstract The composers of the early madrigal used a wide variety of textual forms for their compositions, and treated them in a comparably wide variety of ways. While a lot has been written and said about what kind of poetry was chosen, especially as compared with other genres such as the indigenous frottola and the French chanson, not much as been done to coherently classify the form of this poetry. In the present essay each fixed form is studied in turn (ballata, canzone, sonnet, and so forth), as is the free 16th-century madrigale. I then propose a system to categorize the texts that fall in-between ballata and canzone and the free madrigale, placing these hybrid texts on a continuum, their relative position being based on how many and which characteristics of the fixed form they have and lack.


Most industries go through a "shakeout" phase during which the number of producers in the industry declines. Industry output generally continues to rise, however, which implies a reallocation of capacity from exiting firms to incumbents and new entrants. Thus shakeouts seem to be classic creative destruction episodes. Shakeouts of firms tend to occur sooner in industries where technological progress is rapid. Existing models do not explain this. Yet the relation emerges naturally in a vintage-capital model in which shakeouts of firms accompany the replacement of capital, and in which a shakeout is the first replacement echo of the capital created when the industry is born. We fit the model to the Gort-Klepper data and to Agarwal's update of those data.


Electronic marketplaces (EMs) are an important empirical phenomenon, because they are theoretically linked to significant economic and business effects. Different types of EMs have been identified; further, some researchers link different EM types with different impacts. Because the effects of EMs may vary with types, classifying and identifying the characteristics of EM types are fundamental to sound research. Some prior approaches to EM classification have been based on empirical observations, others have been theoretically motivated; each has strengths and limitations. This paper presents a third approach: surfacing strategic archetypes. The strategic archetypes approach has the empirical fidelity associated with the large numbers of attributes considered in the empirical classification approach, but the parsimony of types and the theoretical linkages associated with the theoretical classification approach. The strategic archetypes approach seeks a manageable number of EM configuration types in which the attributes are theoretically linked to each other and to hypothesized outcomes like performance and impacts. The strategic archetypes approach has the potential to inform future theoretical and empirical investigations of electronic marketplaces and to translate research findings into successful recommendations for practice.


'Une exposition venan d'Irlande vous offre des pieces de lin produites selon des methodes traditionelles et des approches modernes.'An exhibition curated by Fleming of contemporary Irish linen. This exhibition drew upon the work previously curated at the Smithsonian Institute - 'Reinventing linen' in 2009 and profiled contemporary cultural considerations in linen artwork in the Musee Regional de Kamouraska - context. The significance to the region was highlighted. This remote stretch along the river Lawrence retains a strongly connection with immigrant ships from Ireland and the region shares a linen and textile heritage. The exhibition co-incided with the Biennale du Lin de Portneuf.


In mouse erythrocytes harbouring the malarial parasite Plasmodium yoelii, three processes contributed to inward fluxes of adenosine, one of which is attributed to the native nucleoside transporter, because of the inhibitory effects of nitrobenzylthioinosine (NBMPR). New (parasite-induced) permeation processes of low NBMPR-sensitivity were (i) saturable fluxes with preference for the D enantiomer (D-Ado) and (ii) apparently unsaturable fluxes that proceeded by a channel-like route without enantiomeric selectivity. Parasite-induced fluxes of L- and D-Ado were similarly inhibited by furosemide [IC50 (concn. causing half-maximal inhibition) 15-17 microM], whereas D-Ado fluxes in uninfected erythrocytes were 10-fold less sensitive.


Amongst developed countries, Italy is unusual in that it has maintained a specialisation in traditional industries such as textiles and clothing (TCI). Explanations of Italy's unusual industrial profile mainly emphasise the role of endogenous economic and cultural resources. Globalisation in the 1990s and 2000s saw slow growth and a significant decline of these formerly resilient industries. Analyses of trade and unit value data support accounts of the lateness of the Italian TCI's movement in the direction of Outward Processing Traffic (OPT) and the subsequent rise of a pan-Euro-Mediterranean system. More recently, however, this system has declined as a result of new competitive challenges from China and other emerging economies that have eroded the position of Italian enterprises on export and domestic markets and adversely affected their Euro-Mediterranean suppliers. As district and value-chain theories show, the geography of industrial activities is a result of enterprise strategies and the environment in which they operate. To embrace recent trends these theories must, however, be extended to give greater weight to exchange rate, trade, market, demand-side and related institutional issues.


The microclimate of plants growing close to the ground is strongly influenced by the orientation of a soil/vegetation surface with respect to the sun's rays (slope and aspect). In chalk grassland in the UK, slopes of contrasting aspect frequently have distinctive patterns of vegetation. A series of climatic and microclimatic measurements were made at field sites indifferent regions on the English chalk (North Dorset and the Yorkshire Wolds) during the period June 2000 to September 2002. Using digital terrain models (DTMs), process-based models of microclimatic variables at different points in the landscape were developed. The mechanisms through which topography may influence vegetation and species distribution were investigated with field experiments and measurements. Both existing vegetation data from Perring (1956) and new data collected from the field sites were analysed using detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and generalised additive models (GAMs), to elucidate the relationships between vegetation and soil, topography and climate. A consistent gradient in chalk grassland vegetation was found across spatial scales, associated with the frequency of species with a "stress tolerant" strategy. This gradient in vegetation is apparently driven by species' responses to several separate, but often correlated, variables including soil moisture, maximum summer temperatures and soil fertility. Over the past 50 years, stress tolerant species have declined in frequency at the North Dorset field site, Ellenberg fertility indices have increased and light indices have decreased. The observed changes are consistent with fertilization from atmospheric N deposition and/or relaxation of rabbit grazing after the myxomatosis outbreak in the 1950s. Plots on sloping ground, and in particular, south-west facing slopes, were least affected by these changes, suggesting that high temperatures, phosphorus and water limitation have acted as a buffer against vegetation change, and that complex topography creates refuges for stress tolerant species in the landscape.


Laura is baking a cake in class tomorrow. There's only one problem: Mrs Large has run out of flour. They try the shop but it's closed. They try driving to Granny's but the car breaks down. On the way to school next morning they meet Sebastian Smart, who's in Laura's class - and he has a big basket of ingredients! If only Mrs Smart would let her son share some flour. But after baby Lucy creates a messy surprise, they resolve to make one cake, together.


Encryption technology keeps the codes for the world's security and communication systems top secret. Deregulating this state-of-the-art technology for export could put a back-door key in the pockets of spies and terrorists around the world. So when American businessman Roger Gordian refuses to put his sophisticated encryption program on the market, he finds his company the object of a corporate takeover--and to say it's hostile doesn't even come close.Only Gordian stands between the nation's military software and political extremists who want to put the leadership of the free world out of business--for good...


Abstract Jointed goatgrass is a troublesome weed in winter wheat with selective control only possible with a herbicide-resistant crop. Even with herbicide-resistant wheat, cultural control is still an important part of jointed goatgrass management. A study was conducted in 1998 and 2000 to determine whether using larger sized seed of a tall wheat variety at an increased seeding rate would reduce the effect of jointed goatgrass on winter wheat. Wheat seed size, seeding rate, and variety height had no effect on jointed goatgrass plant density. Tall (∼130 cm) wheat reduced mature jointed goatgrass biomass 46 and 16% compared with short (∼100 cm) wheat in years 1 and 2 of the experiment, respectively. Spikelet biomass was also reduced approximately 70 and 30% in the same respective years. One thousand–spikelet weight of jointed goatgrass was reduced 37 and 7% in years 1 and 2, respectively, when grown in competition with taller compared with shorter wheat. Moreover, dockage was 80 and 30% less in years 1 and 2, respectively, when grown in competition with taller than shorter wheat. Mature jointed goatgrass height was similar regardless of the competitive wheat height. However, jointed goatgrass was as much as 18% taller than the short wheat and 15% shorter than the tall wheat. Seeding rate had the most consistent effect on wheat yield. Wheat seed yield was about 10% greater with 60 than 40 seed m−1 of row when competing with jointed goatgrass. Results of this study indicate that growers could use a tall winter wheat variety to improve crop competition against jointed goatgrass. Results also indicate that plant breeders should consider plant height because herbicide-resistant varieties are developed for the integrated management of jointed goatgrass. Nomenclature: Jointed goatgrass, Aegilops cylindrica Host. AEGCY; winter wheat, Triticum aestivum L. 'Nugaines'.


Abstract:  The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, an area almost the size of Japan, has a new network of no‐take areas that significantly improves the protection of biodiversity. The new marine park zoning implements, in a quantitative manner, many of the theoretical design principles discussed in the literature. For example, the new network of no‐take areas has at least 20% protection per "bioregion," minimum levels of protection for all known habitats and special or unique features, and minimum sizes for no‐take areas of at least 10 or 20 km across at the smallest diameter. Overall, more than 33% of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is now in no‐take areas (previously 4.5%). The steps taken leading to this outcome were to clarify to the interested public why the existing level of protection was inadequate; detail the conservation objectives of establishing new no‐take areas; work with relevant and independent experts to define, and contribute to, the best scientific process to deliver on the objectives; describe the biodiversity (e.g., map bioregions); define operational principles needed to achieve the objectives; invite community input on all of the above; gather and layer the data gathered in round‐table discussions; report the degree of achievement of principles for various options of no‐take areas; and determine how to address negative impacts. Some of the key success factors in this case have global relevance and include focusing initial communication on the problem to be addressed; applying the precautionary principle; using independent experts; facilitating input to decision making; conducting extensive and participatory consultation; having an existing marine park that encompassed much of the ecosystem; having legislative power under federal law; developing high‐level support; ensuring agency priority and ownership; and being able to address the issue of displaced fishers.


Library consortia in the United States arose from a need for sharing when resources or funding for those resources were scarce. This is as true today as it was over 100 years ago when the first American consortia were formed. Consortia continue to be a growing and important part of the library profession. This article will give an overview of academic library consortia, with special emphasis on the history and modern developments in the United States and provide a general introduction to the concept of library cooperation.


Rapid technological advances in the last decade have sparked educational practitioners' interest in utilizing laptops as an instructional tool to improve student learning. There is substantial evidence that using technology as an instructional tool enhances student learning and educational outcomes. Past research suggests that compared to their non-laptop counterparts, students in classrooms that provide all students with their own laptops spend more time involved in collaborative work, participate in more project-based instruction, produce writing of higher quality and greater length, gain increased access to information, improve research analysis skills, and spend more time doing homework on computers. Research has also shown that these students direct their own learning, report a greater reliance on active learning strategies, readily engage in problem solving and critical thinking, and consistently show deeper and more flexible uses of technology than students without individual laptops. The study presented here examined the impact of participation in a laptop program on student achievement. A total of 259 middle school students were followed via cohorts. The data collection measures included students' overall cumulative grade point averages (GPAs), end-of-course grades, writing test scores, and state-mandated norm- and criterion-referenced standardized test scores. The baseline data for all measures showed that there was no statistically significant difference in English language arts, mathematics, writing, and overall grade point average achievement between laptop and non-laptop students prior to enrollment in the program. However, laptop students showed significantly higher achievement in nearly all measures after one year in the program. Cross-sectional analyses in Year 2 and Year 3 concurred with the results from the Year 1. Longitudinal analysis also proved to be an independent verification of the substantial impact of laptop use on student learning outcomes.


This paper studies how status competition for marriage partners can generate surprising effects on the real exchange rate (RER). In theory, a rise in the sex ratio (increasing relative surplus of men) can generate a decline in the RER. The effect can be quantitatively large if the biological desire for a marriage partner is strong. We also provide within-China and cross-country empirical evidence to support the theory. As an application, our cross-country estimation suggests that sex ratio as well as other factors in the existing literature can account for the recent evolution in Chinese RER almost completely.


Noise effects induced by laser guide star (LGS) elongation have to be considered globally in a multi-LGS tomographic reconstruction analysis. This allows a fine estimation of performance and the comparison of different launching options. We present a modal analysis of the wavefront error with Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensors based on quasi-analytical matrix formalism. Including spot elongation and the Rayleigh fratricide effect, edge launching produces similar performance to central launching and avoids the risk of possible underestimation of fratricide scatter. Performance improves slightly with an optimized centroid estimator and is not affected by a slight field-of-view truncation of the subapertures. Finally we discuss detector characteristics for a LGS Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor.


Alkali-silica reactions (ASR) are one of the causes of chemical degradation of concrete with natural aggregates (CNA) that compromise its durability. The introduction of recycled aggregates (RA) in concrete creates changes in their properties and differences in the results of the evalua-tion tests of ASR. Existing bibliography emphasizes special care in the evaluation of RA and concrete with recycled aggregate (CRA) for ASR and changes are proposed to the existing test methods. There are pro-posals to change the accelerated test of mortar and concrete with RA to accelerate the reactions and recommendations to prevent changes in the characteristics of the RA, during the preparation of samples. Some articles recommend the pre-saturation of the AR, due to its absorption of water, to avoid significant variations in the results of expansion of concrete samples from early ages. This article aims to briefly describe the characteristics of CRA and ASR presenting comments from existing bibliography to the evaluation methods of ASR in CRA and CNA.


Exercise induced muscle damage (EIMD), is usually experienced in i) humans who have been physically inactive for prolonged periods of time and then begin with sudden training trials and ii) athletes who train over their normal limits. EIMD is not so easy to be detected and quantified, by means of commonly measurement tools and methods. Thermography has been used successfully as a research detection tool in medicine for the last 6 decades but very limited work has been reported on EIMD area. The main purpose of this research is to assess and characterize EIMD, using thermography and image processing techniques. The first step towards that goal is to develop a reliable segmentation technique to isolate the region of interest (ROI). A semi-automatic image processing software was designed and regions of the left and right leg based on superpixels were segmented. The image is segmented into a number of regions and the user is able to intervene providing the regions which belong to each of the two legs. In order to validate the image processing software, an extensive experimental investigation was carried out, acquiring thermographic images of the rectus femoris muscle before, immediately post and 24, 48 and 72 hours after an acute bout of eccentric exercise (5 sets of 15 maximum repetitions), on males and females (20-30 year-old). Results indicate that the semi-automated approach provides an excellent bench-mark that can be used as a clinical reliable tool.


Overlapping Schwarz methods are extended to mixed finite element approximations of linear elasticity which use discontinuous pressure spaces. The coarse component of the preconditioner is based on a low-dimensional space previously developed for scalar elliptic problems and a domain decomposition method of iterative substructuring type, i.e., a method based on nonoverlapping decompositions of the domain, while the local components of the preconditioner are based on solvers on a set of overlapping subdomains. A bound is established for the condition number of the algorithm which grows in proportion to the logarithm of the number of degrees of freedom in individual subdomains and, essentially, to the third power of the relative overlap between the overlapping subdomains, and which is independent of the Poisson ratio as well as jumps in the Lame parameters across the interface between the subdomains. A positive definite reformulation of the discrete problem makes the use of the standard preconditioned conjugate gradient method straightforward. Numerical results, which include a comparison with problems of compressible elasticity, illustrate the findings.


In May 2009 the Australian Government asked the Productivity Commission to examine three aspects of the health care system: • the relative performance of public and private hospitals, with particular regard to the cost of performing clinically-similar procedures and the rate of hospital-acquired infections • rates of informed financial consent and out-of-pocket expenses for privately-insured patients in public and private hospitals • the most appropriate factor for indexing the Medicare Levy Surcharge income thresholds. On releasing the Commission's final report in December 2009, Commissioner David Kalisch said: 'Comparing the relative performance of hospitals has been challenging. There are major differences within and between public and private hospital systems that make like-for-like comparisons difficult. There are also data limitations, which the Commission has sought to address by drawing on various data sources and incorporating adjustments to make the data more comparable. Future comparisons will be assisted by enhanced data collections for public hospitals already foreshadowed by governments and would be further improved by expanded reporting for private hospitals.' Based on available data, the Commission's experimental cost estimates indicate that public and private hospitals have similar overall costs, but there are differences in their composition. Medical and diagnostics costs, and prostheses costs are higher in private hospitals; while general hospital costs and capital costs are higher in public hospitals. The limited available evidence suggests that private hospitals have lower infection rates than public hospitals, but private hospitals on average treat patients who have a lower risk of infection.


Many non-Pashtun communities in northern Afghanistan see the continuing conflict in the country as between 'included' Pashtuns and 'excluded' nonPashtuns. How can a better appreciation of this perspective inform more effective peace policies? This article discusses non-Pashtun views of on conflict and peace in northern Afghanistan. Many non-Pashtun communities in the north perceive the current war not as between the Afghan government and an armed opposition, but between Pashtuns and non-Pashtuns. Such an outlook reflects broader ethnic divisions and centre–periphery splits derived from entrenched perceptions of a prolonged, Pashtun-led project of 'Afghanisation' to centralise power in Kabul. Western efforts to support the government in Kabul are understood within the same worldview. If strategies to address violence in Afghanistan are to gain sustainable traction, they need to acknowledge and account for northern resistance to Pashtun influence and its association with both Kabul and external intervention. A priority from this perspective is to revise commitments to centralised authority enshrined in the 2004 constitution in favour of devolved decision-making to regional institutions.


Martyn Coutts & Luke Smiles are in Hobart as part of Mobile States 2011 Mini-Festival. Both artists work collaboratively with theatre, dance,
media & design & could engage in a discussion about interdisciplinary practice.They will be speaking on the role of video in their practice & especially live feed video in performance.

Coutts is an interdisciplinary artist working across Australia & the Asia Pacific.
He creates collaborative performance works which are cross media & cross platform.
He is a founding member of the art collective Field Theory & founder & editor of the online Live Art resource LALA. He is also one half the research & art collaboration Deadpan with Willoh S.Weiland. In 2009 Martyn won a green room award for his video design on the Harry Harlow Project – a solo performance work that explores the life & work of American psychologist Harry Harlow. Written & performed by James Saunders, directed & designed by Brian Lipson, sound composition by Kelly Ryall.
Smiles is the sound designer of I left my shoes on warm concrete & stood in the rain, a performance that harnesses emotion as a physical force. Intricate dance, haunting words & a striking soundtrack take the audience on a journey through struggle & the creative resourcefulness it inspires in humankind. The evocative collaboration between movement, text, sound & light is accentuated by
simple staging & encourages space for the imagination of the audience. The technical elements of the performance are exposed & define the reality of the physical space around the makeshift fantasy world of the performer. The work unfolds over a series of 'chapters' as the performance darts between scenes of fantasy filled darkness & physically charged light. The accompanying narration
awakens images, commands action & guides the audience through the independent elements of a multi-textured experience.


In this paper, we propose a representation and coding method for multiview images. As an alternative to depth-based schemes, we propose a representation that captures the geometry and the dependencies between pixels in different views in the form of connections in a graph. In our approach it is possible to perform compression of the geometry information and to preserve a direct control of the effect of geometry approximation on view reconstruction. This is not possible with classical depth-based representations. As a results, our method leads to more accurate view prediction, when compared to conventional lossy coding of depth maps operating at the same bit rate. We finally show in experiments that our representation adapts the amount of transmitted geometry to the complexity of the predictions that are performed at the decoder.


Each day, the news vividly depicts how social phenomena and dynamics cross, underly, transcend, alter and even transform borders and boundaries (and the structures, dynamics and actors ostensibly contained within them). The destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, one of the most potent symbols of western capitalism, by members of the also Al Qaeda terrorist network is perhaps the most powerful recent examples of the "transnational" nature of the world. Ostensibly novel transnational phenomena and dynamics have clear historical analogues and antecedents. Indeed, human social formations, processes and activities have always been transborder and transboundary to a significant degree. Even contemporary nation-states and the nation-state system have been transnationally constituted and shaped over time and space in powerful ways. These forms and processes of transnationality are the focus of a burgeoning yet fragmented body of scholarship across sub-fields of sociology and closely related social science disciplines. But scholars who produce this work generally treat their efforts as unconnected to each other or work on them isolation. There is thus both tremendous value in and potential for explicating and further consolidating an emergent interdisciplinary field of Transnational Studies. In this paper, we identify five intellectual foundations for this field that offer a heuristically rich and compelling set of empirical, methodological, theoretical, philosophical, and practical ideas and options. We further propose a specific Sociological Transnationalism research program within the field that prioritizes these intellectual foundations in a unique and generative way. We argue that this research program and the field more broadly is likely to cast new light on a range of core sociological and social scientific concerns including power, production, inequality, culture, identity, citizenship, organization and governance among many others.


BACKGROUND
Aging of the baby boomers presents a unique set of challenges for health care workers. Low vision among patients may be a barrier to providing appropriate patient care, may impede communication, and may decrease patients' satisfaction with health care. It is important to train the medical workforce to understand the unique challenges of the aging population.

OBJECTIVE
To test an interactive educational learning model targeting health care workers to improve knowledge and awareness of low vision.

METHODS
Participants completed a survey prior to and after an educational intervention that consisted of 4 components: (1) normal aging, (2) eye-disease of the elderly, (3) experiential learning, and (4) written material with references and further resources.

RESULTS
Three hundred eight-six members of the hospital workforce completed the training. There was statistically significant improvement in 7 of the 8 test questions. One question demonstrated a positive trend but was not statistically significant.

CONCLUSION
An interactive educational model on low vision can improve the knowledge of the health care team. This may lead to improvement in patients' satisfaction and quality of care and help create a vision-friendly hospital.


A two-dimensional electron gas in a tilted magnetic field with Rashba spin-orbit interaction (RSOI) was studied. The RSOI is accredited to the asymmetry of the heterostructure where the two-dimensional electron gas is found. The effects of the disorder-attributed Landau level broadening and the RSOI on the spin splitting were identified by simulating the density of states which was assumed to take a Gaussian shape. Increased Landau level broadening obscures the spin splitting and increases the overlap between spin states resulting to stout Gaussian peaks. On the other hand, stronger RSOI amplifies the splitting and lessens the overlap between spin states of the Landau levels. The splitting, however, results to stouter peaks. The similarity in the RSOI and Landau level broadening effects can be explained by recognizing that the asymmetry of the heterostructure is in itself a form of structural disorder.


Objectives To evaluate the differences in arterial flow after flow diverter placement using quantitative flow measurements based on digital subtraction angiography (DSA). Methods Between November 2013 and November 2015, all patients who had flow diverters placed for distal internal carotid artery (ICA) aneurysms were reviewed. Patients in whom the stent was placed across the ostia of the ophthalmic artery (OphA) and anterior choroidal artery (AChA) were enrolled. Five regions of interest were selected: the proximal ICA (as a reference), terminal ICA, middle cerebral artery (MCA), anterior cerebral artery (ACA), OphA, and AChA. The values of the peak, time-to-peak (TTP), and area under the curve (AUC) were analyzed using a quantitative DSA technique. Results The study enrolled 13 patients. The quantitative flow analysis showed improved flow in the terminal ICA (peak and AUC, p=0.036 and p=0.04, respectively), MCA (AUC, p=0.023), and ACA (AUC, p=0.006), and decreased flow in the OphA (peak and AUC, p=0.013 and p=0.005, respectively) and AChA (peak and subtracted TTP, p=0.023 and p=0.050, respectively) after flow diverter placement. Larger aneurysm volume was significantly correlated with decreased OphA flow after the procedure (peak and AUC, p=0.049 and p=0.037, respectively). Larger aneurysm volume also had a marginal correlation with increased distal ICA flow after the procedure, but this did not reach significance (peak and AUC, p=0.195 and p=0.060, respectively). Conclusions Without using extra contrast medium or radiation dosages, color-coded DSA enables quantitative monitoring of the cerebral circulation after flow-diverting treatment.


The Federal Reserve (Fed) uses a unique auction mechanism to purchase U.S. Treasury securities in implementing its quantitative easing (QE) policy. In this paper, we study the outcomes of QE auctions and participating dealers' bidding behaviors from November 2010 to September 2011, during which the Fed purchased $780 billion Treasury securities. Our data include the transaction prices and quantities of each traded bond in each auction, as well as dealers' identities. We find that: (1) In QE auctions the Fed tends to exclude bonds that are liquid and on special, but among included bonds, purchase volumes gravitate toward more liquid bonds; (2) The auction costs are low on average: the Fed pays around 0.7 cents per $100 par value above the secondary market ask price on auction dates; (3) The heterogeneity of Fed's costs across bonds relates to their liquidity and specialness, suggesting that dealers respond to both valuation and information uncertainties; (4) Dealers exhibit strong heterogeneity in their participation, trading volumes, and profits in QE auctions; (5) Auction bidding variables forecast bond returns only one day after the auction, suggesting that dealers have price-relevant information but the information decays quickly.


Biodiesel is an environmentally friendly alternative diesel fuel consisting of the alkyl esters of fatty acids which are expected to play a significant role in reducing overall CO2 emissions. Biodiesel is produced commercially by a chemical reaction called transesterification which is a chemical process to lower the viscosity of the vegetable oils. Since Biodiesel is an oxygenated, sulfur free fuel, it typically reduces engine out emissions except for the oxides of nitrogen (NOX). The chemical and physical properties of the fatty acids, as well as the effect of molecular structure, determine the overall properties of biodiesel fuel. Investigations into the impact of FAME properties on diesel engines are highly topical, as higher blends of biodiesel are introduced. The aim of this work is to perform a comprehensive study on the use of biodiesel fuel in production diesel engines, and its impact on emissions, performance and fuel consumption. This thesis has shown that the use of biodiesel fuel reduces the engine out emissions of CO, HC and PM (except at sub-zero temperatures), and causes a slight increase in NOX emissions and fuel consumption compared to baseline diesel fuel. However, the lower exhaust gas temperatures seen when using biodiesel blends leads to reduced catalyst conversion efficiency and an adverse effect on tailpipe emissions. The cylinder pressure and rate of heat release profiles of biodiesel blends are very similar to those of baseline diesel fuel when similar torque is demanded from the engine with relatively similar start of combustion for the main charge. Biodiesel blends show a slightly quicker rise in the rate of heat release and higher peak values compared to baseline diesel fuel. In the case of matched pedal positions, the ignition delay time decreases slightly with biodiesel use at lower engine load conditions compared to baseline diesel fuel. The sensitivity of engine performance and emissions with B25 is more pronounced for EGR rate, rail pressure, and main injection timing variations than for baseline diesel fuel. Finally, an adverse thermal impact of using biodiesel fuel on the performance of diesel oxidation catalyst was observed compared to baseline diesel however, no solid evidence of exhaust gas HC speciation effects was found.


The focus of this thesis is two-fold. The first part investigates higher order numerical schemes for one-dimensional fractional-in-space partial differential equations in L1(R). The approximations for the (space) fractional derivative operators are constructed using a shifted Grunwald-Letnikov fractional difference formula. Rigorous error and stability analysis of the Grunwald-type numerical schemes for space-time discretisations of the associated Cauchy problem are carried out using (Fourier) multiplier theory and semigroup theory. The use of a transference principle facilitates the generalisation of the results from the L1-setting to any function space where the translation (semi) group is strongly continuous. Furthermore, the results extend to the case when the fractional derivative operator is replaced by the fractional power of a (semi) group generator on an arbitrary Banach space. The second part is dedicated to the study of certain fractional-in-space partial differential equations associated with (truncated) Riemann-Liouville and first degree Caputo fractional derivative operators on Ω := [(0, 1)]. The boundary conditions encoded in the domains of the fractional derivative operators dictate the inclusion or exclusion of the end points of Ω. Elaborate technical constructions and detailed error analysis are carried out to show convergence of Grunwald-type approximations to fractional derivative operators on X = C0(Ω) and L1[0, 1]. The wellposedness of the associated Cauchy problem on X is established using the approximation theory of semigroups. The culmination of the thesis is the result which shows convergence in the Skorohod topology of the well understood stochastic processes associated with Grunwald-type approximations to the processes governed by the corresponding fractional-in-space partial differential equations.


Abstract Eight to fifteen per cent of lung cancer cases and nearly all mesothelioma cases are caused by asbestos. Problems in compensation issues ensue from strict legal requirements for eligibility and regulations of the statutory accident insurance institution pertaining to eligibility for occupational disease benefits. The latter include the unscientific requirement for set numbers of asbestos bodies or fibers to be found in lung tissue in order to "prove" disease causation if lung specimen are available. Although the validity of such evidence has been discredited by independent scientists, it is still used as evidence by an influential US pathology department. Frequently, epidemiological evidence regarding causal relationships and exposure histories is also often being ignored by insurance-affiliated medical experts. Similar misleading arguments are currently being used in newly industrialized countries where white asbestos – which is carcinogenic and fibrogenic like other asbestos types – is efficiently promoted as being less harmful. As a result, asbestos use is increasing in some of these countries. Behind the worldwide asbestos tragedy, a well-designed strategy orchestrated by certain transnational or multinational industrial interest groups can be perceived. Beyond the asbestos tragedy their covert plan is motivated by economic interests and discounts the ensuing damage to health and the impact of the diseases they create on public health systems.


Objective There are no objective ambulatory studies on the temporal relationship between reflux and cough in children. Commercial pHmetry loggers have slow capture rates (0.25 Hz) that limit objective quantification of reflux and cough. The authors aimed to evaluate if there is a temporal association between cough and acid pH in ambulatory children with chronic cough. Design, setting and patients The authors studied children (aged <14 years) with chronic cough, suspected of acid reflux and considered for pHmetry using a specifically built ambulatory pHmetry–cough logger that enabled the simultaneous ambulatory recording of cough and pH with a fast (10 Hz) capture rate. Main outcome measures Coughs within (before and after) 10, 30, 60 and 120 s of a reflux episode (pH<4 for >0.5 s). Results Analysis of 5628 coughs in 20 children. Most coughs (83.9%) were independent of a reflux event. Cough–reflux (median 19, IQR 3–45) and reflux–cough (24.5, 13–51) sequences were equally likely to occur within 120 s. Within the 10 and 30 s time frame, reflux–cough (10 s=median 2.5, IQR 0–7.25; 30 s=6.5, 1.25–22.25) sequences were significantly less frequent than reflux–no cough (10 s=27, IQR 15–65; 30 s=24.5, 14.5–55.5) sequences, (p=0.0001 and p=0.001, respectively). No differences were found for 60 and 120 s time frame. Cough–reflux sequence (median 1.0, IQR 0–8) within 10 s was significantly less (p=0.0001) than no cough–reflux sequences (median 29.5, 15–67), within 30 s (p=0.006) and 60 s (p=0.048) but not within 120 s (p=0.47). Conclusions In children with chronic cough and suspected of having gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, the temporal relationship between acid reflux and cough is unlikely causal.


Medical area has been benefited by the use of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in recent days. CMIS (Combined Mobile Information System), our proposed model system, is such a system targeted for health care system. IMIS (Integrated Mobile Information System), a system for diabetic healthcare, which is being developed in Blekinge Institute of Technology will be taken as a case study for our proposed system. CMIS is a multi-role system with core service being medical-care related and others like self-monitoring, journal-writing, communicating with fellow patients, relatives, etc. The main reason for not using CMIS could be the security and privacy of the users' information. Any system connected to Internet is always prone to attack, and we think CMIS is no exception. The security and privacy is even more important considering the legal and ethical issues of the sensitive medical data. The CMIS system can be accessed through PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), smart phones or computer via Internet using GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)/UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunication System) and wired-communication respectively. On the other hand, it also increases the burden for security and privacy, related to the use of such communications. This thesis discusses various security and privacy issues arising from the use of mobile communication and wired communication in context of CMIS i.e., issues related to GPRS (mobile) and web application (using wired communication). Along with the threats and vulnerabilities, possible countermeasures are also discussed. This thesis also discusses the prospect of using MP2P (Mobile Peer-to-Peer) as a service for some services (for example, instant messaging system between patients) in CMIS. However, our main concern is to study MP2P feasibility with prospect to privacy. In this thesis, we have tried to identify various security and privacy threats and vulnerabilities CMIS could face, security services required to be achieved and countermeasure against those threats and vulnerabilities. In order to accomplish the goal, a literature survey was carried out to find potential vulnerabilities and threats and their solution for our proposed system. We found out that XSS (cross-site scripting), SQL injection and DoS attack being common for a web application. We also found that attack against mobile communication is relatively complex thus difficult to materialize. In short, we think that an overall planned security approach (routinely testing system for vulnerabilities, applying patches, etc) should be used to keep threats and attacks at bay.


Summary Background A number of studies have evaluated exercise interventions compared with other treatment strategies for subjects with recurrent low back pain (LBP); however, subject pain level and balance were not carefully considered. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of spinal stabilization exercises (SSE) for managing pain and increasing balance strategy changes following unexpected perturbations in patients diagnosed with recurrent LBP. Material/Methods Twenty-one age- and gender-matched patients participated in a supervised SSE or control exercise program 5 times a week over a 4-week period. The Million Visual Analogue Scale (MVAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were used to measure each patient's level of pain and disability. Balance measurements were derived from recordings of the anterior-posterior (A/P) and medio-lateral (M/L) center of pressure (COP) displacements during 3 consecutive, unexpected random perturbations. Results The level of reported pain and disability significantly decreased following treatment for both groups. Although the M/L sway was not significantly different in either group (p=0.86), there was a significant difference between group and measurement time during A/P sway (p=0.04). The A/P displacement of the SSE group significantly decreased compared with the control group. The decreased A/P displacement can be linked to the SSE intervention, which helps prevent further injury by limiting an individual's response rate to external perturbations. Conclusions Clinicians might consider SSE for LBP patients as a possible rehabilitation strategy to reduce A/P displacement.


Aim This study aimed to explore how the views of patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) could inform the design of an information booklet aimed at providing patients and practitioners with a resource to help influence positive health behavioural outcomes. Background Coronary heart disease has major consequences in terms of patient suffering and economic costs, with morbidity and mortality figures in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland among the highest in Europe. Lifestyle behaviours such as smoking, eating an unhealthy diet and a lack of exercise are strongly associated with an increased CHD risk, and practitioners report that health education materials are used in practice to help advise and educate patients about the consequences of their lifestyle. Methods Opinions of patients with CHD were explored concerning their information needs, particularly lifestyle advice, using a qualitative approach in four general practices. This information was used to design a booklet for a pilot study aimed at promoting healthy lifestyle behaviours and medication adherence among people with CHD. Focus group discussions explored patients' opinions about the booklet's 'fitness for purpose'; semi-structured interviews with practitioners examined their views on the booklet's usefulness. Findings In initial focus groups, patients identified gaps in their information provision regarding coping with stress, available local community support and medication purpose. Previously published literature was modified to address these gaps. Patients in the pilot study were satisfied with the re-designed booklet. Practitioners reported that its use in consultations enabled change implementation and facilitated patients' understanding of connections between lifestyle and health outcomes. Acknowledging the opinions of CHD patients in producing health information booklets emphasized a patient-centred approach and therefore supported practitioner–patient partnerships for choosing healthy lifestyle choices.


The occupied and unoccupied states of poly(9,9'-dioctylfluorene) (F8) and poly(9,9'-dioctylfluorene-co-bis-N,N'-(4-butylphenyl)diphenylamine) (TFB) are investigated using ultraviolet photoelectron and inverse photoemission spectroscopies, cyclic voltammetry, and density functional theory calculations. Hole injection barriers are determined for interfaces between substrates with work function ranging from 4.3 to 5.1 eV and these two polymers as well as poly(9,9'-dioctylfluorene-co-bis-N,N'-(4-butylphenyl)-bis-N,N'-phenyl-1,4-phenylenediamine) (PFB). Vacuum level alignment with flat bands away from the interface is found when the interface hole barrier is 0.6 eV or larger. Band bending away from the Fermi level occurs when the hole barrier is smaller than 0.4 eV. This is due to the accumulation of excess interface charges on the polymer when the barrier is small. The resulting field shifts the polymer levels to limit charge penetration in the bulk of the film.


In this paper, we analyze the radiated, reflected, and transmitted power due to an abrupt step discontinuity in a multimode optical waveguide by a numerical technique without any physical approximations other than neglecting the evanescent radiation modes. The amount of power loss depends primarily on the number of modes the portion of the waveguide on each side can support. The range of thickness mismatch for which reasonably low loss occurs depends on the wavelength. The technique can be used to analyze step discontinuities of symmetric or asymmetric, single or multimode optical slab waveguides with arbitrary cross section accurately.


In July 1991, New American Schools (NAS) was established to develop designs for what were termed break-the-mold schools. Its initial goal was to create designs to help schools enable students to reach high educational standards. This simple goal has evolved into something considerably more complex. The notion of a whole-school design remains at the core of the New American Schools mission. Experience made clear, however, that designs by themselves were unlikely to effect change in schools. NAS and its design teams began work to develop design team capabilities to assist schools to implement the designs, terming this design-based assistance. Experience also made clear that the character of the school district influenced a school's success in implementing the designs. Thus, in the last two years, NAS has devoted increasing attention to helping jurisdictions develop what it terms a supportive operating environment. This evolution in the NAS program reflects an awareness that NAS initiative is only one of many factors affecting school performance in participating jurisdictions. For example, building and district leadership, teacher quality, union support, and community support also play major roles in shaping those outcomes. RAND, in its role as evaluator of the NAS initiative, will continue to carry out a variety of studies of the NAS initiative in an effort to understand the effects of many of these factors on student outcomes.