Abstract Three models are evaluated for restoring basement rocks coring tectonic windows (Window-Basement) in the Scandinavian Caledonides; parautochthonous (Model I) and allochthonous (models II/III), with initial imbrication of the Window-Basement post-dating or pre-dating, respectively, that in the external imbricate zone (Lower Allochthon). In Model I, the Window-Basement comes from the eastern margin of the basin now imbricated into the Lower Allochthon, while in models II/III it comes from the western margin. In Model II, the Window-Basement formed a basement-high between Tonian and Cryogenian sediments imbricated into the Middle and Lower allochthons; in Model III deposition of the Lower Allochthon sediments commenced in Ediacaran times. Balanced cross-sections and branch-line restorations of four transects (Finnmark–Troms, Västerbotten–Nordland, Jämtland–Trøndelag, Telemark–Møre og Romsdal) show similar restored lengths for the models in two transects and longer restorations for models II/III in the other transects. Model I can result in c. 280 km wide gaps in the restored Lower Allochthon, evidence for which is not seen in the sedimentology. The presence of <3 km thick alluvial-fan deposits at the base of the Middle Allochthon indicates proximal, rapidly uplifting basement during Tonian–Cryogenian periods, taken as the origin of the Window-Basement during thrusting in models II/III. Model I requires multiple changes in thrusting-direction and predicts major thrusts or back-thrusts, currently unrecognized, separating parts of the Lower Allochthon; neither are required in models II/III. Metamorphic data are consistent with models II/III. Despite considerable along-strike structural variability in the external Scandinavian Caledonides, models II/III are preferred for the restoration of the Window-Basement.


Law of evidence allows a person - who is a witness to state the facts related to either to a fact in issue or to relevant fact, but not his inference. It applies to both criminal law and civil law. The opinion of any person other than the judge by whom the fact has to be decided as to the existence of the facts in issue or relevant facts are as a rule, irrelevant to the decision of the cases to which they relate for the most obvious reasons - for this would invest the person whose opinion was proved with the character of a judge. The rule however, is not without its exceptions. "If matters arise in our law which concern other sciences or faculties, we commonly apply for the aid of that science or faculty which it concerns." The expert witness is, thus, an exception to the exclusionary rule and is permitted to give opinion evidence. The Judge is not expected to be an expert in all the fields - especially where the subject matters involves technical knowledge. He is not capable of drawing inference from the facts which are highly technical. In these circumstances he needs the help of an expert - who is supposed to have superior knowledge or experience in relation to the subject matter. This qualification makes the latter's evidence admissible in that particular case though he is no way related to the case. Because an expert has an advantage of a particular knowledge vis-a-vis a judge who is not equipped with the technical knowledge and hence not capable of drawing an inference from the facts presented before him.


Although many professions and citizen groups are actively working to create practice models and policies that will help people adapt to climate change, the social work profession is not currently engaging with this issue. If the social work profession would join these other groups and create its own practice models based on meeting the physical, psychological, and social needs that result from climate change, then the core social work value of creating a just society and empowering underrepresented populations can be strengthened in climate change adaptation work. This qualitative, exploratory study asked eleven social workers what concerns they have for their clients or community with regards to adapting to a changing climate; what professional actions they would need to take to help with these concerns; what support they would need to successfully complete the action; and how this relates to justice. This sample population of this study formed two distinct groups: social workers who were highly involved in eco-activism over a long period of time; and the general sample. The highly engaged sample engaged in eco-activism outside of the clinical social worker setting and they reported the need for more community support and involvement. The general group worked in a variety of clinical settings and reported the need for more structural support in order to help clients adapt to climate change. CLIMATE CHANGE AND SOCIAL WORK: STEPS TO AN ECO-SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE A project based upon an independent investigation, submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Social Work. Abigail E. Tischler Smith College School for Social Work Northampton, Massachusetts 01063 2011


Accurate electric load forecasting has become the most important issue in energy management; however, electric load demonstrates a seasonal/cyclic tendency from economic activities or the cyclic nature of climate. The applications of the support vector regression (SVR) model to deal with seasonal/cyclic electric load forecasting have not been widely explored. The purpose of this paper is to present a SVR model which combines the seasonal adjustment mechanism and a chaotic immune algorithm (namely SSVRCIA) to forecast monthly electric loads. Based on the operation procedure of the immune algorithm (IA), if the population diversity of an initial population cannot be maintained under selective pressure, then IA could only seek for the solutions in the narrow space and the solution is far from the global optimum (premature convergence). The proposed chaotic immune algorithm (CIA) based on the chaos optimization algorithm and IA, which diversifies the initial definition domain in stochastic optimization procedures, is used to overcome the premature local optimum issue in determining three parameters of a SVR model. A numerical example from an existing reference is used to elucidate the forecasting performance of the proposed SSVRCIA model. The forecasting results indicate that the proposed model yields more accurate forecasting results than the ARIMA and TF-e-SVR-SA models, and therefore the SSVRCIA model is a promising alternative for electric load forecasting.


Music has had a long association with ritual practice, and is used to provide a variety of iconic, indexical and symbolic functions within the ritual framework. In its interactions with other ritual objects and actions, music loses its identity as "music" and – from a semantic viewpoint at least – becomes an indivisible part of the ritual whole. The functional nature of 'ritual' music means that it is almost never considered from an aesthetic-philosophical viewpoint. Conversely, music that is the focus of such analysis (whether it is 'art' or 'popular') has rarely been considered from a ritual standpoint. Given the ubiquity of ritual in human (and possibly animal) behaviour, I argue that the possibility exists for its structures and processes to find expression within musical forms. In this paper, I shall outline some of the necessary conditions for 'ritual thinking' in music, along with the interpretative opportunities this observation gives rise to.


We have isolated and characterized 76 duplications of chromosome I in the genome of Caenorhabditis elegans. The region studied is the 20 map unit left half of the chromosome. Sixty-two duplications were induced with gamma radiation and 14 arose spontaneously. The latter class was apparently the result of spontaneous breaks within the parental duplication. The majority of duplications behave as if they are free. Three duplications are attached to identifiable sequences from other chromosomes. The duplication breakpoints have been mapped by complementation analysis relative to genes on chromosome I. Nineteen duplication breakpoints and seven deficiency breakpoints divide the left half of the chromosome into 24 regions. We have studied the relationship between duplication size and segregational stability. While size is an important determinant of mitotic stability, it is not the only one. We observed clear exceptions to a size-stability correlation. In addition to size, duplication stability may be influenced by specific sequences or chromosome structure. The majority of the duplications were stable enough to be powerful tools for gene mapping. Therefore the duplications described here will be useful in the genetic characterization of chromosome I and the techniques we have developed can be adapted to other regions of the genome.


This paper sets out to evaluate several common theoretical frameworks employed in critical studies of brownfield redevelopment. Specifically, it analyzes the relevance of governmentality, the post-political, and non-essentialist materialism in that context. To do so, it explores how these theoretical frameworks map on to Bridgeport, Connecticut's BGreen 2020, and its approach to the redevelopment of vacant and underutilized land – and brownfields more specifically. It argues that these frameworks come up short when applied to this empirical case because they put forth untenable ontological claims regarding the constitution of the subject and political agency. Going further, it asserts that these frameworks fail to identify a way forward for those seeking emancipatory political interventions in the context of brownfield redevelopment and urban environmental politics. In closing this paper suggests that Jason W. Moore's recent writing on "capitalism as world-ecology" can provide a way forward where these other frameworks fail.


Current management and harvesting practices can compact forest soils and degrade soil health. However, effects of soil compaction on microbial processes and composition are poorly understood. We measured microbial community responses to compaction in a sandy loam and a clay loam soil under laboratory and field conditions. Treatments of no, moderate (approximately 20% increase in bulk density), and severe (approximately 40% increase) compaction were manually applied to intact soil cores. A 67-d laboratory experiment, punctuated by four sampling dates, was used to evaluate microbial indices (biomass, respiration, total and culturable bacteria and fungi, N mineralization, surface CO 2 efflux, C use (Biolog), and phospholipid fatty adds [PLFA]) and their relationship to soil physical properties (bulk density, pore-size distribution, water-holding capacity [WHC], gas diffusion). Macropores (>30 μm diam.) were reduced 50 to 90% in compacted samples. In contrast, habitable-sized pores for microorganisms (0.2-30 μm diam.) increased at least 40% in both soils with compaction. Despite these changes, microbial measures were either unaffected by compaction or showed inconsistent increases (e.g., fungal hyphae, C use, total PLFA) across sampling periods and soil types. Surface CO 2 efflux was reduced 34 to 51% in severe compaction samples. Minimal changes in microbial respiration indicate that reduced efflux was due to restricted gas diffusion. Microbial indifference to compaction also was verified at two mixed-conifer plantations in northern California. Soil strength values, ranging from 75 to 3800 kPa (no to severe compaction), were unrelated to either microbial respiration or biomass. The results show broad tolerance of microbial communities from contrasting soil textures to compaction, and indicate a poor link between physical and biological indices of soil health.


The visibility of graphene is greatly increased by illuminating samples deposited on transparent dielectrics at the substrates' Brewster angle. Using a commercial ellipsometer, the reflectivity of monolayers of chemical vapour deposition (CVD) graphene is found to be up to 33 times higher than that of the substrate, i.e., an optical contrast as high as 3200% is obtained, more than 380 times higher than with standard optical microscopy. Also, with a simpler, homemade, experimental setup, a 1400% optical contrast was measured for a monolayer of CVD graphene and linear features as small as ∼20 μm were visible in a monolayer, while ∼6 × 17 μm2 trilayers could still be imaged in exfoliated samples. It is also shown that the reflectance/transmittance ratio increases quadratically with the number of graphene layers, which may allow for counting layer numbers and identifying wrinkles and folds in transferred samples.


We relax the traditional definition of contact and intercontact times by bringing the notion of vicinity into the game. We propose to analyze disruption-tolerant networks (DTN) under the assumption that nodes are in k-contact when they remain within a few hops from each other and in k-intercontact otherwise (where k is the maximum number of hops characterizing the vicinity). We make interesting observations when analyzing several real-world and synthetic mobility traces. We detect a number of unexpected behaviors when analyzing k-contact distributions; in particular, we observe that in some datasets the average k-contact time decreases as we increase k. In fact, we observe that many nodes spend a non-negligible amount of time in each other's vicinity without coming into direct contact. We also show that a small k (typically between 3 and 4) is sufficient to capture most communication opportunities.


An automatic nonlinear predictive model-construction algorithm is introduced based on forward regression and the predicted-residual-sums-of-squares (PRESS) statistic. The proposed algorithm is based on the fundamental concept of evaluating a model's generalisation capability through crossvalidation. This is achieved by using the PRESS statistic as a cost function to optimise model structure. In particular, the proposed algorithm is developed with the aim of achieving computational efficiency, such that the computational effort, which would usually be extensive in the computation of the PRESS statistic, is reduced or minimised. The computation of PRESS is simplified by avoiding a matrix inversion through the use of the orthogonalisation procedure inherent in forward regression, and is further reduced significantly by the introduction of a forward-recursive formula. Based on the properties of the PRESS statistic, the proposed algorithm can achieve a fully automated procedure without resort to any other validation data set for iterative model evaluation. Numerical examples are used to demonstrate the efficacy of the algorithm.


In this thesis route optimization for snow plowing in Trondheim municipality (Norway) is explored. It is modeled as a node, edge, and arc routing problem, which has been shown to be NP-hard. To generate the routes a memetic algorithm is used, which is a type of genetic algorithm, where instead of mutation a simple local search to improve each genome can be performed. The routes that are generated by this algorithm are optimized for being as short as possible weighted by speed limits, so that longer stretches that can be passed through faster are preferred over shorter ones with a lower speed limit. When working on the routes, map data from the municipality and the Norwegian Public Roads Administration is used. To verify the routes that are generated, they are compared with how the routes that cover the same set of roads are currently being driven by processing both with the algorithms fitness function. The results show that the algorithm is capable of finding better routes than the ones that are currently driven in terms of the used fitness function, but has never found an optimal solution, even in simple constructed test cases. The fitness function however suffers from that it is rather simple, and does not take into account important factors such as the width of the roads and what that means for how many times a given road has to be traversed for it to be sufficiently clean. What that means is that while the routes generated are not good for practical use (even though the drivers seem to like the perspective a third party suggestion gives on their work). The routes show that it is possible to draw up routes with better fitness than what is being driven by humans, and that processing routes for areas with the same amount of roads as the city center in Trondheim is feasible.


We investigate the alignment of international attention of news media organizations within 193 countries with the expressed international interests of the public within those same countries from March 7, 2016 to April 14, 2017. We collect fourteen months of longitudinal data of online news from Unfiltered News and web search volume data from Google Trends and build a multiplex network of media attention and public attention in order to study its structural and dynamic properties. Structurally, the media attention and the public attention are both similar and different depending on the resolution of the analysis. For example, we find that 63.2% of the country-specific media and the public pay attention to different countries, but local attention flow patterns, which are measured by network motifs, are very similar. We also show that there are strong regional similarities with both media and public attention that is only disrupted by significantly major worldwide incidents (e.g., Brexit). Using Granger causality, we show that there are a substantial number of countries where media attention and public attention are dissimilar by topical interest. Our findings show that the media and public attention toward specific countries are often at odds, indicating that the public within these countries may be ignoring their country-specific news outlets and seeking other online sources to address their media needs and desires.


PURPOSE
To identify the cause of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) in UTAD003, a large, six-generation Louisiana family with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa (adRP).

METHODS
A series of strategies, including candidate gene screening, linkage exclusion, genome-wide linkage mapping, and whole-exome next-generation sequencing, was used to identify a mutation in a novel disease gene on chromosome 10q22.1. Probands from an additional 404 retinal degeneration families were subsequently screened for mutations in this gene.

RESULTS
Exome sequencing in UTAD003 led to identification of a single, novel coding variant (c.2539G>A, p.Glu847Lys) in hexokinase 1 (HK1) present in all affected individuals and absent from normal controls. One affected family member carries two copies of the mutation and has an unusually severe form of disease, consistent with homozygosity for this mutation. Screening of additional adRP probands identified four other families (American, Canadian, and Sicilian) with the same mutation and a similar range of phenotypes. The families share a rare 450-kilobase haplotype containing the mutation, suggesting a founder mutation among otherwise unrelated families.

CONCLUSIONS
We identified an HK1 mutation in five adRP families. Hexokinase 1 catalyzes phosphorylation of glucose to glucose-6-phosphate. HK1 is expressed in retina, with two abundant isoforms expressed at similar levels. The Glu847Lys mutation is located at a highly conserved position in the protein, outside the catalytic domains. We hypothesize that the effect of this mutation is limited to the retina, as no systemic abnormalities in glycolysis were detected. Prevalence of the HK1 mutation in our cohort of RP families is 1%.


Showcasing the very latest in the theory, research and practice of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) across a range of clinical applications, including eating disorders, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, PTSD and substance abuse, with contributions from leading ACT practitioners including co-founders Kirk Strosahl, Kelly Wilson and Rob Zettle. Chapters range from detailed treatments of the scientific and theoretical aspects of the ACT model and research program, to detailed discussions of how to apply ACT to a variety of human problems. Divided into two parts, the first section features theoretical treatments of ACT, with the second (and larger) section presenting extended descriptions of how to apply ACT in different contexts. This rich content mix reflects the strengths of the contextual behavioral science (CBS) research program espoused by Michael Levin and Steven Hayes from the University of Nevada. In the end, ACT is an applied treatment model, and as such, it lives and dies by its ability to effectively benefit a wide variety of clients. In order to make the treatment increasingly effective and to maximize understanding about precisely how the treatment works, its tenets must be theoretically coherent, firmly based on empirically tried and true principles, and must have its active psychological processes clearly identified and sufficiently assessed. This book clearly demonstrates such a mix of full application, an appreciation of basic-applied research linkage, clear and behaviorally-consistent conceptualization of specific problem areas, and coherent explication of the ACT model. This book will not only tell you what to do with clients struggling with various problems, it will also tell you how those things work.


Binary m-sequences are maximal length sequences generated by shift registers of length m, that are employed in navigation, radar, and spread-spectrum communications systems, because of their crosscorrelation properties. It is well known that given a pair of distinct m-sequences, the crosscorrelation function must take on at least three values. The article considers crosscorrelation functions that take on exactly three values, and where these values are preferred in that they are small. The main result is a proof of a conjecture made by Sarwate and Pursley in 1980, that if m/spl equiv/0 (mod 4) then there are no preferred pairs of binary m-sequences. The proof makes essential use of a deep theorem of McEliece (1971) that restricts the possible weights that can occur in a binary cyclic code. >


Abstract A new practical and precise method for determining soil aggregate stability is described. Four air-dry aggregate fractions (<0.25, 0.25-0.5, 0.5-1.0 and 1.0-2.0 mm) were added to thoroughly stirred water in a Mastersizer 2000 laser diffractometer. The suspension obtained was passed directly through the measuring system. The dynamics of median (equivalent diameter d50) particle-size distribution decrease (interpolated with a logarithmic function) was assumed to be the measure of soil aggregate stability. In order to show the applicability of the new method, the results obtained (for selected and diverse soils) were compared with those from the wet sieving standard method. The main conclusion is that the proposed method is convenient and can be successfully used for the estimation of soil aggregate stability. Moreover, it has wider application because standard sieving methods are restricted to aggregates >0.25 mm whereas, with the use of the laser diffraction method, smaller aggregates can be measured. The energy delivered to the aggregates in the process of aggregate disintegration is more reproducible in the method described here. The method also provides an opportunity to verify that the soil aggregates are completely destroyed (lack of the changes of the median value shows the end of soil aggregate disintegration).


Strong extended-family fostering traditions and beliefs about "blood" as a substance that not only binds kin but also carries pathogens like HIV and certain character traits make formal adoption of unrelated children rare. Even so, there is strong public sentiment against the increasing number of foreigners seeking to adopt Ugandan children in the wake of other African countries closing adoption programs. Institutionalized orphans are thus in a double "blood bind,"—where, on one hand, they are nobody's children but, on the other, they are Uganda's children—rekindling Ugandan debates about orphan care against the hegemonic, international moral and political economies of adoption. This article examines how the situation is confronting Ugandan conceptions of kinship, belonging, and child protection—the moral and political economies of Ugandan "blood binds."


Educational aims

1. To describe the different aspects of lung biopsy.

2. To discuss the role of lung biopsy in the management of diffuse parenchymal lung disease.

Summary More than 200 entities comprise the diffuse parenchymal lung diseases (DPLDs), which include a wide spectrum of conditions, many uncommon and many of unknown aetiology. Although lung biopsies are considered as an essential tool for diagnosis in most cases of DPLDs, they are not frequently obtained from patients presenting with clinical evidence of DPLDs. Lung biopsy is an essential tool for diagnosis, assessment and determining prognosis in different types of DPLD. The morbidity associated with different types of lung biopsy appears to be relatively low and therefore it should be used early, preferably before starting any empirical treatment.


EU competition appeals typically involve applications by private businesses to annul decisions made by the European Commission. Moreover, these appeals are first assigned at random to a chamber, with a judge then designated as the rapporteur who will be most closely involved with the case. Using hand-collected original data on the background characteristics of EU judges and on competition judgments by the General Court between 1989 and 2015, we test the extent to which the legal origins of judges bear a statistically significant effect on case outcomes and that the rapporteur plays a crucial role in the decision-making process. In particular, if a rapporteur comes from a country whose administrative law has a strong French influence, the decision is more likely to favor the Commission than if he is from any other EU country. These results are robust to alternative political ideology variables, including left–right politics and a preference for European integration.


REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY
There is a lack of well documented studies about muscular lesions in equine atypical myopathy (EAM).

OBJECTIVES
To characterise morphopathological changes of striated muscles and myocardium, to progress understanding of this disease.

METHODS
Thirty-two horses age 0.5-7 years kept on pasture were referred for a sudden ataxia/myoglobinuria syndrome. Clinical examination (stiffness, muscle pain, muscle fasciculations, abnormal gait, recumbency, myoglobinuria, tachycardia, sweating) and plasma CPK, LDH and AST levels were consistent with extensive myonecrosis and, together with anamnestic data, with so-called 'equine atypical myopathy' (EAM), a disease of unknown aetiology reported since 1939. Macroscopic and microscopic (histology, histoenzymology, ultrastructure) lesions were evaluated.

RESULTS
Necropsic examination revealed large areas of muscle necrosis, the extent and severity of which varied between cases and muscles, but which were clearly more constant and severe in respiratory and postural muscles and in the myocardium. Histology highlighted a multifocal and monophasic process compatible with Zenker degeneration/necrosis that mostly and segmentally affected type 1 fibres. Histochemical evaluation revealed a weak and disorganised pattern of NADH tetrazolium reductase staining, the absence of calcium salts precipitates and a dramatic accumulation of lipid droplets. Ultrastructural examination often revealed fibres of which the sole modifications were altered mitochondria and sarcoplasmic lipidosis.

CONCLUSIONS
Taken together, the data suggest that a primary alteration of mitochondria should be considered, although secondary mitochondrial abnormalities have yet to be ruled out.

POTENTIAL RELEVANCE
The morphological features gathered here reveal that EAM shares most of the characteristics of toxic myopathies.


We compared the perception of citizens (C), veterinarians (V), biologists (B) and animal scientists
(A) from Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, regarding sheep welfare and sentience. Knowledge about animal welfare in
C (15.2%) differed from V (0.0%), B (1.1%) and A (0.0%), in terms of respondents who did not know about
the subject (P<0.01). Animal welfare was defined mainly considering terms related to Freedom from fear and
distress, Freedom from hunger, thirst and malnutrition and Freedom from discomfort. C and B differed from
V and A on the perception of farm animal welfare, as C and B believed that welfare is not or less considered
for farm animals (P<0.05). In addition, C and V showed higher perception of association between higher levels
of animal welfare and productivity than B and A (P<0.05). The perception of sheep sentience did not differ
among respondents (P>0.05). When asked about sheep suffering caused by management practices, in general,
V and A attributed lower scores of suffering, when compared to C and B (P<0.05). The results suggest that C
and B, and V and A, have similar perceptions on the consideration of welfare for farm animals and sheep
suffering. The respondents showed similar perceptions of sheep sentience


This article follows the hypothesis that the migration movements of artists, architects and intellectuals in the first half of the twentieth century had a profound and long-term impact on art and architectural production and history. During the first half of the twentieth century artists, architects and intellectuals from Europe sought refuge in global metropolises. As hubs of globalizing modernism these cities were places of entrance, transition and creativity for people fleeing their native countries due to changes in political systems, dictatorships and wars, repression, persecution and violence. In the metropolises new transcultural places of artistic encounter were established. Flight, exile and migration brought artistic and architectural concepts, objects and actors around the world into contact, resulting in transformations that are legible in the topographies and structures of cities, particularly in the "target" cities. Their urban topographies contain neighbourhoods, places and spaces that were populated, frequented and run by migrants. In addition to providing the migrants with income, employment and exposure, urban institutions, academies, associations and museums were crucial settings for interaction and exchange between the local and migrant populations. In the following we discuss preliminary findings on the connections between exile, modernism and the urban environment in Istanbul and Bombay (now Mumbai). The essay draws on ongoing research from the European Research Council funded project Relocating Modernism. Global Metropolises, Modern Art and Exile (Metromod).


Technology watch consists of collecting and analyzing two kinds of information : formal and informal information. One of the most interesting point concerning the management of formal information is the choice of the appropriate bibliometric tool. One of the main points concerning the management of informal information is the identification of staff members of the company which are the most involved in the informal collecting process. The subject of this paper is to present an algorithm which allows automatic drawing of network. It can be used efficiently in both cases, that is as a bibliometric tool or as a way to identify the > through the analysis of the inter-member relationship map. If we focuse on the network as a bibliometric tool, we can find many uses of this technics. It can be used so much to show the map of collaboration between authors if we consider the field > of bibliographic references as a concept network if we consider the field > of bibliographic references. This approach is original for two reasons a) the measure used to evaluate item association and b) the definition of groups. For a), most other methods use distances between members as an aggregation criteria. In that case, a link between two members does not even signify that there exists a relationship between these two members. Therefore the map as a final result does not represent the real relationships between members but a degree of similarity. The starting point of our algorithm is symmetrically square matrix representing co-publishing of authors, co-occurrence of keywords or information flow between actors. The technique does not use metrics and saves the integrity of the information contained in the initial relation matrix between groups members. For b) most methods make the aggregation in groups by studying inter-groups relationships. Those members who are grouped together in the same cluster are not necessarily in relation, but they have a similarity in their relationship with other groups. We consider intra-group relationship as an aggregation criteria. This mean that we are grouping together members with good relationship. The technique used leaps up two successive manipulations. The first one divides up the whole actors into several groups e.g. looking for the strongly connected components of the graph. The second one consists in identifying subgroups, within each strongly connected component, by finding isthmuses : These so-called point isthmuses are those points that, if removed, increase the number of the strongly connected components of the graph. The automatic drawing of network is relevant for many reasons. The visual and synthesis character of the network approach make the information more comprehensive and easier to memorize for the user. Network can make emergent subjects clearer.


Functional synthetic cilia lining solid surfaces could potentially yield a unique approach for regulating transport processes at interfaces. We use computer simulations to probe how non-motile and actuated cilia can be harnessed to control the motion of microscopic particles suspended in a Newtonian fluid. We show that biomimetic cilia can be arranged to create hydrodynamic currents that can either direct particles towards the ciliated surface or expel them away, thereby modifying the effective interactions between solid surfaces and particulates. In addition to revealing new approaches for regulating the microscale particle transport, our findings point to a new strategy for creating functional materials that employ active and responsive synthetic cilia.


In a global climate of increasing complexity and uncertainty, there have been calls for a more responsible form of leadership in business and society. The relationship between kindness and leadership is therefore a topic of fundamental importance for our well-being as individuals, for the success of our organisations, and for the future of our global community.

Kindness in Leadership is one of the first books to explore both the concept and practice of kindness in leadership and consider them in different societal and organisational settings. Its uniqueness lies in combining an innovative mix of personal views from leaders with explorations of organisational philosophies and practices. It opens with a definition of kindness and its contours and underpinnings. It then explores the importance of kindness within different organisations, parts of the world, economic strata, age groups and genders, drawing on research on organisational compassion and neuroscience. In order to support learning, each chapter is supported by a series of questions for consideration and discussion.

This will be a stimulating and thought-provoking read for a wide audience of practicing managers and leaders in organisations of all shapes and sizes, for academics involved in educating for leadership, and for students aspiring to develop their own kind and compassionate leadership style.


A modular neural network architecture for accurate small/large signal microwave MESFET/HEMT modeling is presented. This is achieved by means of an original neural architecture having two main modules. A network captures the nonlinear dynamic Pulsed I/V characteristic of the device, which is mainly responsible of the large signal behavior, while the second network estimates the high order derivatives at the operation point, which are responsible of the IMD behaviour, by means of a neural network and then it locally reconstructs the current function by means of a third order Taylor series around that point. Finally, in order to have a maximum of coherence, the two networks are combined into a global model by means of a simple fuzzy controller. Computer simulations and experimental measurements validate this flexible modeling technique.


Nigeria has embraced the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode of education in order to make education affordable and to reach the teaming population of qualified citizens yearning to have quality education but are left out of it. Most universities in the country run the single mode conventional system of education; some run the dual mode while two institutions run the single mode distance education. The groundswell of interest is how computers can best be used to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the ODL system of education in the country. This led to the assessment of the computer literacy level of the distance learning students who are the beneficiaries of the ODL system in Lagos state. A sample of 858 ODL students from University of Lagos, National Teachers Institute (NTI) and National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) were used for the study. A self- developed questionnaire, made up of 15 items was administered to the respondents. The data collected were used to answer four research questions and test one hypothesis. It was found that 54.20% are computer literate; there exists gender differences in the computer literacy with 23.78% female and 30.42% male. There are also age differences. Some of the problems include lack of access to computers, inadequate electricity supply, slow broadband and high cost of internet access. The research hypothesis that there is no significant difference between the observed and the expected computer literacy level of the ODL students in Lagos state was rejected. Based on the results some conclusions and recommendations were made.


Question: What is the relative importance of local site effects and selected important environmental variables in determining plant species composition? How do species respond to these environmental variables?

Location: Ten mesotrophic grassland sites of high conservation value in southern England.

Methods: Species cover was assessed in between 10 and 25 randomly selected 1-m2 quadrats at each site. At each quadrat degree of waterlogging (W), soil Olsen extractable phosphorus (P) and soil pH were measured. Variation partitioning was used to separate site and soil effects, and HOF (Huisman, Olff & Fresco) modelling was used to produce response curves for the major species on soil gradients, based on coenoclines derived from partial canonical correspondence analysis (pCCA).

Results: Variation partitioning identified Site as the most important environmental variable (34.6%). Only 18.7% was accounted for by the three soil variables together; W (degree of waterlogging), P and pH accounted for 11.1%, 5.7% and 4.3%, respectively in raw form with 2.4% shared. However, when Site and the other soil variables were removed the variation explained reduced to 2.3% for W, 1.1% for P and 1.0% for pH. The species responses to each of these soil environmental factors could be separated into four types on each gradient. Most species were abundant at low W, low soil P and intermediate pH.

Conclusions: Site-based factors were more important than the three soil variables, which were assumed to be directly or indirectly associated with productivity. This implies that each site has unique properties that are more important than the soil variables. The three soil factors were, however, significant and the groups of the most common species, based on significant response curves, can be used as a first approximation of indicators of environmental conditions in British mesotrophic grasslands for conservation. However, W accounted for most variation, and the current reliance on soil available P and soil pH for assessing conservation/restoration potential should be viewed with caution.


The fossil record of slipper lobsters (Scyllaridae) is very poor, even though the earliest species of the modern slipper lobsters (Neoscyllaridae) are known from the Early Cretaceous. Among the clades ('subfamilies') of slipper lobsters, perhaps the most remarkable is Ibacinae (currently monogeneric), which contains species with a very wide carapace (cephalothoracic shield) and very deep incisions. Fossil species assigned to Ibacinae were reported from the Oligocene and Pleistocene. However, a recent reappraisal of Scyllaridae phylogeny revealed that the genus to which these two fossil occurrences belong is not closely allied to Ibacinae. Therefore, Ibacinae was left with no known fossil record until the present study. The present study describes a new species, which can be confidently assigned to Ibacinae (closely allied to Ibacus), from the Ypresian (early Eocene) of the Ghazij Formation in Shaisuro, Dera Ghazi Khan District, Pakistan. This new species, Ibacus? mazariorum sp. nov., corresponds to the oldest recorded occurrence of Ibacinae. The Ghazij Formation was deposited on the north-western margin of the India-Pakistan plate during a critical period, shortly before the collision between the India-Pakistan plate and Asia. Consequently, it is possible that Ibacus and closely allied species may have remained in the same biogeographical area since the Eocene. Considering the extant and fossil distribution of Ibacinae, additional fossil discoveries may be found in existing collections and fossiliferous outcrops from the Neotethys, Indian and Pacific oceans. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:84F54514-AA21-4A9D-91CA-BDCACBA5F4F8


ABSTRACT This paper describes the key results of an empirical study carried out in Finland. The aim of this study was to draw a general picture of the current situation of strategic planning of major corporations and the effects of consultants on these processes. The picture provided by the research is clear: the planning systems still work, even in today's business environment. It was discovered that a typical Finnish corporation formulates its strategy once a year in an explicit planning process that takes 1 - 3 months and proceeds up and down in the organization. However, it could also be seen that the stages of this process are not rigid, but phases of analysis and specification overlap. In addition, the study showed that Finnish corporations use a combination of several different analysis techniques and approaches in their strategic planning processes. The more techniques a corporation used, the more approaches they used, and vice versa. It was also revealed that the number of techniques and approaches is higher in cases where outside experts or consultants have been used in the construction of the process. Therefore, the main conclusion of this paper is that the planning machine still runs smoothly - despite all the criticisms that have been expressed. Furthermore, the research revealed that consultants may have essential roles in the construction and maintenance of strategic planning systems. They can act as cultivators bringing analytical techniques and explicit language into the processes. In addition, they can be discipliners, increasing the number of people attending the planning processes and helping to create reward and control systems connected with planning. INTRODUCTION The prevalent model of strategic planning was created some thirty years ago, by Ansoff (1965) and Andrews (1971) among others. Later, in the 1980s, this model came to serve as the first major phase of a typical strategic management framework. The course and elements of this strategic planning model - in its current form - are well presented in the United States in, for example, the work by Thompson and Strickland (1999) and in Europe in the textbook of Johnson and Scholes (1999). There has been much analysis and many critiques of this model, the most sophisticated obviously coming from Mintzberg (1994a). In recent years more and more criticism has been presented especially concerning the way this model disconnects planning and formulation from the implementation of strategy. An increasing number of researchers are nowadays suggesting that this process should be continuous or perpetual (see e.g.; Kaplan & Norton, 2001; Tyson, 1998; Kippenberger, 1998; Feurer & Chaharbaghi, 1995; Nicholls, 1994), and rather than being created, strategies emerge and evolve (see e.g.; Mintzberg & Lampel, 1999; Mintzberg, 1994b). Continuous strategy processes of this kind have also been successfully put to use in some real-life companies (see e.g.; Feurer, Chaharbaghi & Wargin, 1995). Even so, strategic planning has not faded away. It still exists as a part of the everyday reality of corporations (see e.g.; Heracleous, 2000; Corboy & O'Corrbui, 1999; Taylor, 1997; Finnie, 1997) and, naturally, governmental organizations (see e.g.; Strategic Planning Advisory Committee, 1998). Strategic planning is also alive and well in Finnish corporations as our research will later show. This paper describes the key results of an empirical study carried out in Finland. The aim of this study was to draw a general picture of both the current situation of strategic planning in major corporations as well as consultants' role in these processes. Thus; by "language" in our title we refer to utilized instruments (techniques, approaches, theories) in strategic planning processes and by "actors" and "consultants" we refer to the special roles of external experts in these very processes. The primary target group of the study consisted of the biggest companies in Finland, starting with Nokia and ending with the 600th largest company. …


This book focuses on the increasingly popular phenomenon of veganism, a way of living that attempts to exclude all animal products on ethical grounds. Using data from biographical interviews with vegans, the author untangles the complex topic of veganism to understand vegan identity from a critical and biographical perspective. Shaped by the participants' biographical narratives, the study considers the diverse topics of family, faith, sexuality, gender, music, culture, embodiment and activism and how these influence the lives and identities of vegans. It also highlights the hostility vegans face, and how this hostility functions in the everyday, and intersects with other aspects of their identity and biography, exemplified through 'coming out' and 'queer' narratives of veganism. Understanding Veganism will be of particular interest to those engaged in the fields of biographical research, critical animal studies or more broadly with an interest in animal advocacy.


When home serves as workplace, the interface of domestic and productive spheres has spatial and social effects on various users of the space, scaling at times to the neighbourhood and the city. This study looks at all the ways in which home aids work — spatially and infrastructurally — and illustrates the role of various factors and actors in engaging with and shaping the work-home boundary. Work-homes in the Global South often engage transversally with formal planning. Users of work-homes exercise their agency in complex ways to maneuver the work-home boundary, often making post-facto modifications to the work-home. The study collates a repository of spatial and temporal innovation strategies devised by users to balance domestic and productive spheres in their homes, as a site to derive lessons for planning, housing policy and architecture. It investigates the role of the state in spatially enabling or limiting work-homes, and using the Indian context as an illustrative example, suggests enabling frameworks in planning that address the spatial particularities of work-homes


This article discusses the translatability of communication scholarship in the context of globalized academia and research traditions. The notion of translation is useful to reflect upon the globalization of academic cultures in communication studies. The globalization of academic cultures confronts matters that translation studies have long recognized: the clash between dogmatism and difference, language slips and gaps, and the possibility of (mis)understandings. Although globalization invites scholars to broaden perspectives, it does not necessarily promote the rapprochement of epistemic communities in communication studies or the values of universal, de-Westernized, and cosmopolitan scholarship. We may hope communication research includes a plurality of global voices, but we still lack a clear path to overcome different understandings about quality standards, conceptual languages, and epistemological premises.


Context. The cometary ionosphere is immersed in fast flowing solar wind. A polarisation electric field may arise for comets much smaller than the gyroradius of pickup ions because ions and electrons respond differently to the solar wind electric field.Aims. A situation similar to that found at a low activity comet has been modelled for barium releases in the Earth's ionosphere. We aim to use such a model and apply it to the case of comet 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the target of the Rosetta mission. We aim to explain the significant tailward acceleration of cometary ions through the modelled electric field.Methods. We obtained analytical solutions for the polarisation electric field of the comet ionosphere using a simplified geometry. This geometry is applicable to the comet in the inner part of the coma as the plasma density integrated along the magnetic field line remains rather constant. We studied the range of parameters for which a significant tailward electric field is obtained and compare this with the parameter range observed.Results. Observations of the local plasma density and magnetic field strength show that the parameter range of the observations agree very well with a significant polarisation electric field shielding the inner part of the coma from the solar wind electric field.Conclusions. The same process gives rise to a tailward directed electric field with a strength of the order of 10% of the solar wind electric field. Using a simple cloud model we have shown that the polarisation electric field, which arises because of the small size of the comet ionosphere as compared to the pick up ion gyroradius, can explain the observed significant tailward acceleration of cometary ions and is consistent with the observed lack of influence of the solar wind electric field in the inner coma.


1 Department of Surgery and Obstructers, College of Veterinary Medicine, Baghdad University 2 College of the Science, AL Nahrain University, Iraq Accepted:3 /9 /2012 Summary The present study included 98 bovine ovary collected from AL-Shulla slaughter house immediately after the animal was slaughtered. Ovaries were preserved in physiological saline at 37 C o and transport to the laboratory within 3-4 hrs. Diameters of the follicles were measured and divided into large (6-10 mm) and small (1-5 mm) follicles. Cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were aspirated from large and small follicles using a 18 G needle connected to a 10 ml syringe COCs surrounded by compact and thick cumulus cell were cultured in an integrated culture media RPMI-1640 , than were divided in to two groups , the first group (control media) using integrated culture media only , the second group alcoholic extract of Tribulus terrestris (Tt) plant was added to the culture media RPMI-1640 once a concentration of 50μg/ml , and the other a concentration of 25μ/ml . The results of the current study demonstrated superiority of alcoholic extract of 50μg/ml in the percentage of oocytes maturation which optended or drawn from large and small follicles compared with a concentration of 25μg/ml of the alcoholic extract it was observable the effect of adding alcoholic extract of T. t. plant in two concentrations of 25μg/ml and or 50μg/ml on the percentage of mature oocytes compared to control media (culture media RPMI-1640) .The present results indicated that the oocytes retrieved from larger follicles is better than small follicles in maturing oocytes maturation. In conclusion, alcoholic concentration of 50μg/ml preference extracted first and then the concentration of 25μg/ml T. t. plant extract that was added to culture media RPMI-1640 , superiority in percentage of the mature oocytes compared to control culture media RPMI-1640 , also the large follicle were better than small follicles in terms of equality suitable for mature oocytes.


Up to near time, clinical teaching was wholly performed at bedside in which patients were used as teaching aids. The profound changes in medical education (staff's heavy administrative or research duties, and reduced funding for establishing university hospitals) and health care systems (reduced hospital stay and admission on the day of procedures due to rapid advance in technologies of diagnosis and treatment) had made this teaching method less effective, resulting in a profound decline in standards of acquisition of clinical skills among medical students. A new teaching tool, clinical skill centre, was suggested to solve the problem of inadequacies in bedside teaching. The clinical skills centre is a multidisciplinary educational facility that provides clinical skills training to all health care professionals. The clinical skills centre provides students with the opportunity to initially practice clinical techniques on simulators, in a safe environment, without affecting the quality of patients' care in anyway. Nevertheless, it should be regarded as an extra tool for bedside teaching, and not to replace it.


Abstract In 1756 Adam Smith reviewed Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Discourse on Inequality and claimed that it was indebted to the second volume of Bernard Mandeville's The Fable of the Bees. While much recent scholarship has taken this as the point of departure for studying Smith's engagement with Rousseau, the place of Mandeville in shaping that engagement has been largely neglected. This article brings Mandeville back into the picture and reassesses Smith's engagement with both thinkers in light of the connections he identified between their works. This involves reconstructing Mandeville's historicized account of the development of sociability and government, and showing how Rousseau developed this to articulate his critique of modern society. In evaluating Smith's response to this challenge, it is argued that he only partially succeeded in distancing his own analysis of commercial society from Mandeville's principles.


With the urbanization of eighteenth-century English society, moral philosophers became preoccupied with the difference between individual and crowd behaviour. In so doing, they set the stage for a form of political thought divorced from traditional moral reflection. In "Regulating Confusion" Thomas Reinert places Samuel Johnson in the context of this development and investigates Johnson's relation to an emerging modernity. Ambivalent about the disruption, confusion, perplexity, and boundless variety apparent in the London of his day, Johnson was committed to the conventions of moral reflection but also troubled by the pressure to adopt the perspective of the crowd and the language of social theory. "Regulating Confusion" explores the consequences of his ambivalence and his attempt to order the chaos.It discusses his critique of moral generalizations, concept of moral reflection as a symbolic gesture, and account of what happens to the notion of character when individuals, having lost the support of moral convention, become faces in a crowd. Reflecting generally on the relationship between skepticism and political ideology, Reinert also discusses Johnson's political skepticism and the forms of speculation and action it authorized. Challenging prevalent psychologizing and humanistic interpretations, "Regulating Confusion" leaves behind the re-emergent view of Johnson as a reactionary ideologue and presents him in a theoretically sophisticated context. It offers his style of skepticism as a model of poise in the face of confusion about the nature of political truth and personal responsibility and demonstrates his value as a resource for students of culture struggling with contemporary debates about the relationship between literature and politics.


In the absence of annual laminations, time series generated from lake sediments or other similar stratigraphic sequences are irregularly spaced in time, which complicates formal analysis using classical statistical time series models. In lieu, statistical analyses of trends in palaeoen-vironmental time series, if done at all, have typically used simpler linear regressions or (non-) parametric correlations with little regard for the violation of assumptions that almost surely occurs due to temporal dependencies in the data or that correlations do not provide estimates of the magnitude of change, just whether or not there is a linear or monotonic trend. Alternative approaches have used Loess-estimated trends to justify data interpretations or test hypotheses as to the causal factors without considering the inherent subjectivity of the choice of parameters used to achieve the Loess fit (e.g. span width, degree of polynomial). Generalized additive models (GAMs) are statistical models that can be used to estimate trends as smooth functions of time. Unlike Loess, GAMs use automatic smoothness selection methods to objectively determine the complexity of the fitted trend, and as formal statistical models, GAMs, allow for potentially complex, non-linear trends, a proper accounting of model uncertainty, and the identification of periods of significant temporal change. Here, I present a consistent and modern approach to the estimation of trends in palaeoenvironmental time series using GAMs, illustrating features of the methodology with two example time series of contrasting complexity; a 150-year bulk organic matter δ15N time series from Small Water, UK, and a 3000-year alkenone record from Braya-Sϕ, Greenland. I discuss the underlying mechanics of GAMs that allow them to learn the shape of the trend from the data themselves and how simultaneous confidence intervals and the first derivatives of the trend are used to properly account for model uncertainty and identify periods of change. It is hoped that by using GAMs greater attention is paid to the statistical estimation of trends in palaeoenvironmental time series leading to more a robust and reproducible palaeoscience.


In 2008, the IRS initiated efforts to curb the use of offshore accounts to evade taxes. This paper uses administrative microdata to examine the impact of the enforcement efforts on taxpayers' reporting of offshore accounts and income. Enforcement caused approximately 60,000 individuals to disclose offshore accounts with a combined value of around $120 billion. Most disclosures happened outside offshore voluntary disclosure programs by individuals who never admitted prior noncompliance. The disclosed accounts were concentrated in countries whose institutions facilitate tax evasion. The enforcement-driven disclosures increased annual reported capital income by $2.5-$4 billion corresponding to $0.7-$1.0 billion in additional tax revenue.


Metastasis is the dissemination of a cancer/tumor from one organ to another, and it is the most dangerous stage during cancer progression, causing more than 90% of cancer deaths. Improving the understanding of the complicated cellular mechanisms underlying metastasis requires investigations of the signaling pathways. To this end, we developed a METastasis (MET) network visualization and curation tool to assist metastasis researchers retrieve network information of interest while browsing through the large volume of studies in PubMed. MET can recognize relations among genes, cancers, tissues and organs of metastasis mentioned in the literature through text-mining techniques, and then produce a visualization of all mined relations in a metastasis network. To facilitate the curation process, MET is developed as a browser extension that allows curators to review and edit concepts and relations related to metastasis directly in PubMed. PubMed users can also view the metastatic networks integrated from the large collection of research papers directly through MET. For the BioCreative 2015 interactive track (IAT), a curation task was proposed to curate metastatic networks among PubMed abstracts. Six curators participated in the proposed task and a post-IAT task, curating 963 unique metastatic relations from 174 PubMed abstracts using MET. Database URL: http://btm.tmu.edu.tw/metastasisway


Recent technological advances in systems neuroscience have led to a shift away from using simple tasks with low-dimensional, well-controlled stimuli towards trying to understand neural activity during naturalistic behavior. However, with the increase in number and complexity of task-relevant features, standard analyses such as estimating tuning functions become challenging. Here, we use a Poisson generalized additive model (P-GAM) with spline nonlinearities and an exponential link function to map a large number of task variables (input stimuli, behavioral outputs, and activity of other neurons, modeled as discrete events or continuous variables) into spike counts. We develop efficient procedures for parameter learning by optimizing a generalized cross-validation score and infer marginal confidence bounds for the contribution of each feature to neural responses. This allows us to robustly identify a minimal set of task features that each neuron is responsive to, circumventing computationally demanding model comparison. We show that our estimation procedure outperforms traditional regularized GLMs in terms of both fit quality and computing time. When applied to neural recordings from monkeys performing a virtual reality spatial navigation task, P-GAM reveals mixed selectivity and preferential coupling between neurons with similar tuning.


Gliotoxin, identified from a screen of fungal metabolites, disrupts 7SK snRNP, releases P-TEFb, and reverses HIV-1 latency. A leading pharmacological strategy toward HIV cure requires "shock" or activation of HIV gene expression in latently infected cells with latency reversal agents (LRAs) followed by their subsequent clearance. In a screen for novel LRAs, we used fungal secondary metabolites as a source of bioactive molecules. Using orthogonal mass spectrometry (MS) coupled to latency reversal bioassays, we identified gliotoxin (GTX) as a novel LRA. GTX significantly induced HIV-1 gene expression in latent ex vivo infected primary cells and in CD4+ T cells from all aviremic HIV-1+ participants. RNA sequencing identified 7SK RNA, the scaffold of the positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) inhibitory 7SK small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) complex, to be significantly reduced upon GTX treatment of CD4+ T cells. GTX directly disrupted 7SK snRNP by targeting La-related protein 7 (LARP7), releasing active P-TEFb, which phosphorylated RNA polymerase II (Pol II) C-terminal domain (CTD), inducing HIV transcription.


SUMMARY A common practice in some South American countries consists in moving around Capsicum chinense cultivars between regions where edaphoclimatic conditions differ notably. The purpose of this research was to compare and relate gas exchange responses with assimilate allocation patterns and flower and fruit production dynamics in a cultivar of C. chinense in three locations with different mean temperatures (19, 24 and 28 °C) along a gradient from 140–1855 m. Leaf gas exchange (leaf conductance, CO2 assimilation and transpiration rates) was measured at 60–70, 110–120 and 140–150 days after transplanting (dat) from seed beds. Dry weight per plant of leaves, stems and roots were determined at 50, 73, 96, 114 and 196 dat. Flowering dynamics and fruit production were followed weekly. A marked reduction (50%) in mean Gs was found at the site with the lowest mean temperature in relation to plants grown at the highest temperature site. Mean daily CO2 assimilation rate was higher for plants in the intermediate site and a reduction of 18 and 42% was found for sites with highest and lowest mean temperature, respectively. We report an adverse effect of low temperatures on growth of C. chinense. Flowering initiation and fruit production was delayed at lower temperatures. An increase in temperature (between 26–30 °C) led to an increase in the number of flowers; below this temperature it remained unchanged. Fruit production is drastically reduced at the lower temperature site due to a large number of aborted flowers and small fruits.


Background This study evaluates the influence of socioeconomic position (SEP) over the life course on change in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in older adults. Methods A prospective cohort of 2117 individuals aged 60 years and over. In 2001, SEP was measured over the life course as social class in childhood (approximated by father's occupation), as educational level completed and as adult social class (occupation of household head). HRQoL was measured with the SF-36 health questionnaire. Changes from 2001 to 2003 in the scores for the physical component summary (PCS) and the mental component summary (MCS) of the SF-36 were calculated, and individuals were classified into three categories: decline (decrease of >5 points), no change (change of −5 to +5 points) and improvement (increase of >5 points) in HRQoL. Results After adjustment for baseline HRQoL, lifestyle, chronic illness, educational level and adult social class, low childhood social class was associated with a higher risk of both a decline and an improvement in the SF-36 PCS and MCS. The risk of decline in PCS and MCS and of improvement in MCS increased with the cumulative number of adverse SEP over the life course. Subjects who rose in social class from childhood to adulthood showed the greatest improvement on the SF-36 PCS and MCS. Conclusion These results on the relation between SEP and changes in HRQoL in older adults support the three models proposed to explain health inequalities over the life course: the existence of critical periods, the accumulation of adverse SEP and social mobility.


Porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) is a cutaneous porphyria with sporadic (type 1) and familial (type 2) subtypes, both resulting from decreased hepatic uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase (UROD) activity. Environmental and genetic factors are involved in the development of PCT, and genetic variants in the cytochrome P450(CYP) genes, CYP1A1 and CYP1A2, have been implicated. We investigated the association between PCT and variants in CYP1A1, CYP1A2 and CYP2E1, and the glutathione-S-transferase (GST) genes, GSTM1 and GSTT1. PCT diagnosis was based on urinary or plasma porphyrin profiles. Patients were classified as type 1 or 2 PCT based on UROD mutation analysis. The CYP1A2*1Fpromoter A allele frequency was significantly higher (P< 0.022) and the A/A genotype frequency marginally higher in PCT patients overall (P < 0.057), with the A/A genotype significantly more common in type 1 PCT (P < 0.043). The presence of the wild-type GSTM1 allele also was associated significantly with PCT (P < 0.019). Neither hemochromatosis (HFE) mutations, tobacco smoking, hepatitis C and HIV infection, ethanol consumption, nor estrogen use were associated with these allelic variants. Age at onset was significantly lower in type 2 PCT patients (P< 0.001), as observed previously. Thus, positive associations between PCT and the CYP1A2*1F promoter A allele and A/A genotype and the wild-type GSTM1 allele indicates that these functional hepatic biotransformation enzymes are risk factors for the development of this disease.


A large number of urban surface energy balance models now exist with different assumptions about the important features of the surface and exchange processes that need to be incorporated. To date, no comparison of these models has been conducted; in contrast, models for natural surfaces have been compared extensively as part of the Project for Intercomparison of Land-surface Parameterization Schemes. Here, the methods and first results from an extensive international comparison of 33 models are presented. The aim of the comparison overall is to understand the complexity required to model energy and water exchanges in urban areas. The degree of complexity included in the models is outlined and impacts on model performance are discussed. During the comparison there have been significant developments in the models with resulting improvements in performance (root-mean-square error falling by up to two-thirds). Evaluation is based on a dataset containing net all-wave radiation, sensible heat, and latent heat flux observations for an industrial area in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The aim of the comparison is twofold: to identify those modeling approaches that minimize the errors in the simulated fluxes of the urban energy balance and to determine the degree of model complexity required for accurate simulations. There is evidence that some classes of models perform better for individual fluxes but no model performs best or worst for all fluxes. In general, the simpler models perform as well as the more complex models based on all statistical measures. Generally the schemes have best overall capability to model net all-wave radiation and least capability to model latent heat flux.


Millions of people around the globe are daily interacting with each other and with organizations through social media platforms, which is a very convenient way of communication. Accordingly, public sector organizations around the world realized the importance of social media and thus are increasingly using it for communicating with their citizens. Although social media provides various benefits but risks also exist that are not only related to time, money, and effort losses; but also extends to include risks such as reputation and trust losses. Hence, it is critical for organizations to understand which factors impact the social media adoption most. Based on the literature review, this study initially identifies 20 factors that are important for social media adoption. We short-listed the identified factors to nine, based on the criteria that three or more researchers identified them as important in their studies. Then we asked experts in social media in Oman to rank those factors in the context of their importance. We used the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method to rank those nine factors. Results of the AHP show that some factors such as Social Media Strategy, Training and experience of Staff, Community Influence and Top Management Support are more important in a developing country as compared to developed countries.


The Permo-Carboniferous sedimentary facies development in Thailand reflects the late
Variscan orogeny in S E Asia.
During the Carboniferous and Permian, a N -S trending trough separated the " S h a n Thai
Craton" and the "Indosinia Craton". In this pelagic basin, deposition of ribbon cherts continued
from pre-Asselian to Kubergandian. I n Lower Permian, carbonatic and tuffitic turbidites
were transported from the neighbouring platforms into the basin.
The Middle Permian flysch sedimentation resulted from a strong orogenic activity. T h e
basin was E-vergent, isoclinally folded and pverthrusted. Parts of the basin are metamorphosed
into the greenschist facies.
I n the eastern marginal parts Kubergandina to Midian; molasse was deposited from the
new rising fold belt.
The intensity of folding of the molasse decreases towards the east or the younger strata.
The total width of the basin was probably not greater than 200 km. T h e pelagic sediments,
flysch and molasse represent a thick pile of a coarsening-upwards sequence, typical of
subduction related sutures. Folding affected a marginal marine basin and was caused by a
westward directed subduction (A-subduction) under the volcanic arc.
West of the arc, pebbly mudstones were laid down on the trench slope or the continental
margin of Paleoeurasia. T h e deposition of these mixtites continued through the Carboniferous
to Lower Permian and came to an end contemporary with the relative uplift of the " S h an
Thai Craton" and the onset of the A-subduction under the Petchabun marginal basin. T h e Benioff-
subduction must have been located west of the depositional area of the pebbly mudstones
and directed towards the east.


We examined the nursery role of salt marshes for transient nekton by searching the lit- erature for data on density, growth, and survival of juvenile fishes and decapod crustaceans in marshes and using meta-analyses to test hypotheses. We analyzed density data from 32 studies con- ducted throughout the world. Based on fish density, habitat types could be ranked from highest to lowest as: seagrass > vegetated marsh edge, nonvegetated marsh, open water, macroalgae, oyster reefs > vegetated inner marsh. However, patterns of habitat use varied among the 29 fish species rep- resented. For decapod crustaceans (seven species), habitat types were ranked: seagrass > vegetated marsh edge > nonvegetated marsh, vegetated inner marsh, open water, macroalgae > oyster reef. We identified only 5 comparative studies on transient nekton growth in salt marshes. Fish growth in non- vegetated salt marsh was not significantly different from growth in open water or in macroalgae beds but was significantly lower than in seagrass. Growth of decapod crustaceans was higher in vegetated marsh than in nonvegetated marsh. Nekton survival in salt marsh (11 studies analyzed) was higher than in open water, lower than in oyster reef/cobble and not significantly different from survival in seagrass. When density, growth and survival are all considered, the relative nursery value of salt marshes for nekton appears higher than open water but lower than seagrass. Vegetated marsh appears to have a higher nursery value than nonvegetated marsh; however, tidal dynamics and nek- ton movement among marsh components complicates these comparisons. The available data have a strong geographical bias; most studies originated in the northern Gulf of Mexico or on the Atlantic coast of the United States. This bias may be significant because there is some evidence that salt marsh nursery value is dependent on geography, salinity regimes and tidal amplitude.


The control of financial resources has conferred power to people, ever since the original development of money systems. However the nature and role of this power, relative to other power sources, has been difficult to determine. This paper discusses Susan Strange's theory of financial power, which indicates its function within present capitalist mechanics, and outlines the control of money as the primary (but not exclusive) source of power that determines outcomes and historical transition. The power of productive capitalists is seen as a secondary source to financial power since the trajectory of production is determined by the vagaries of state and market, whereas the control of money is not constrained in the same manner. The paper suggests, therefore, that the notion of finance capital is a false one since although at most times the interests of financial and productive powers converge, centred on wealth creation, this is not always the case. In times of a conflict of interest financial powers will predominate as they seek to retain their relative proportions of power in global order. Financial powers constitute, therefore, the bourgeosie of the modern era.

Using these concepts the paper then investigates the binary economics of Louis Kelso as a vehicle to engender the use of financial power for the purposes of crisis prevention and even development. This involves the state issue of 'interest-free' money and the wider social ownership of capital incomes that would weaken the financial power of private bankers. Redistribution and enhanced multilateral regulatory capacity, in substantial form, are seen as desirable for the present capitalist order although it is recognised that there is neither the political will nor necessary consensus. It also ironically suggests that, at present rates of credit accumulation, debt could ultimately be replaced by redistribution as the only means of sustaining the interests of global capital and neo-liberalism. Much depends upon the agendas of the presiding financial powers.


A Complex-systems Approach to Remove the North-Korean Nuclear Weapons

Hyuk Kihl Kwon

Dept of National Ethics Studies, Chungbuk National Univ.
Gaesin-dong 48, Chongju, Chungbuk. Korea. 361-743
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com

Abstract
Last October (2006. Oct. 9) is a terrible day to South Korean people. North Korean Kim Jong-il tested the nuclear weapons at October.9. And, South Korean felt the fear and anger to North Korean Kim Jong-il regime. It's because that South Korean didn't want to exist nuclear weapons in Korean peninsular. Also, U.S, Japan and China didn't want to accept to have nuclear weapons of North Korea. Korean Rho Moo-hyun government tried to 'Sunshine Policy' to North Korea. It's pouring of material assistance to North Korea because of humanity. And, South Korean government tried to make package tours to Mt. Kumgang and the Kaesong Industrial Complex. It means that South Korean government tried to help North Korean economic difficulty. Nonetheless, North Korean Kim Jong-il regime tested the nuclear weapons last October.9. In a word, North Korean act was the betrayal to South Korean people.
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney had put pressure on China to become more active in resolving the North Korean nuclear crisis, warning if the North has nuclear weapons, Japan may start developing its own, Newsweek reported. Japan, meanwhile, is taking advantage of the North's nuclear test to rearm. Actually, Japan worry about the North Korean nuclear weapon. It means that North-East Asian weapon balance is broken. Also, it will begin to race having nuclear weapon through North Asian countries. To remove North Korean nuclear weapons is an inevitable proposition. I'd like to research to a Complex-systems Approach to Remove the nuclear weapons from North Korea. To remove the nuclear weapons from North Korea is not simple problem. I think it's a seriously complex problem. We'll need to consider various factors to remove the North Korean nuclear weapon. It will be a Complex-systems approach.
Key-words; complex-systems, nuclear weapon, sunshine policy, nuclear armament, weapon balance. to remove


AIMS
Genome-wide association studies have previously identified INSIG2 as a candidate gene for plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). However, we suspect a role for CCDC93 in the same locus because of its involvement in the recycling of the LDL-receptor (LDLR).

METHODS AND RESULTS
Characterization of the INSIG2 locus was followed by studies in over 107 000 individuals from the general population, the Copenhagen General Population Study and the Copenhagen City Heart Study, for associations of genetic variants with plasma lipids levels, with risk of myocardial infarction (MI) and with cardiovascular mortality. CCDC93 was furthermore studied in cells and mice. The lead variant of the INSIG2 locus (rs10490626) is not associated with changes in the expression of nearby genes but is a part of a genetic block, which excludes INSIG2. This block includes a coding variant in CCDC93 p.Pro228Leu, which is in strong linkage disequilibrium with rs10490626 (r2 > 0.96). In the general population, separately and combined, CCDC93 p.Pro228Leu is dose-dependently associated with lower LDL-c (P-trend 2.5 × 10-6 to 8.0 × 10-9), with lower risk of MI (P-trend 0.04-0.002) and lower risk of cardiovascular mortality (P-trend 0.005-0.004). These results were validated for LDL-c, risk of both coronary artery disease and MI in meta-analyses including from 194 000 to >700 000 participants. The variant is shown to increase CCDC93 protein stability, while overexpression of human CCDC93 decreases plasma LDL-c in mice. Conversely, CCDC93 ablation reduces LDL uptake as a result of reduced LDLR levels at the cell membrane.

CONCLUSION
This study provides evidence that a common variant in CCDC93, encoding a protein involved in recycling of the LDLR, is associated with lower LDL-c levels, lower risk of MI and cardiovascular mortality.


The simplicity and versatility of hydrazone crosslinking has made it a strategy of choice for the conjugation of bioactive molecules. However, the labile nature of hydrazone linkages and reversibility of this coupling reaction restricts its full potential. Based on the fundamental understanding of hydrazone stability, this problem is circumvented by resonance‐stabilization of a developing N2 positive charge in a hydrazone bond. A novel chemistry is presented to develop a resilient hydrazone bond that is stable and non‐ reversible under physiological conditions. A carbodihydrazide (CDH) type hydrazide derivative of the biomolecule forms intrinsically stabilized hydrazone‐linkages that are nearly 15‐fold more stable at pH 5 than conventional hydrazone. This chemoselective coupling reaction is catalyst‐free, instantaneous, and virtually non‐cleavable under physiological conditions, therefore can serve as a catalyst‐free alternative to click chemistry. This novel crosslinking reaction is used to tailor a hyaluronan hydrogel, which delivered exceptional hydrolytic stability, mechanical properties, low swelling, and controlled enzymatic degradation. These desired characteristics are achieved without increasing the chemical crosslinking. The in vivo evaluation of this hydrogel revealed neo‐bone with highly ordered collagen matrix mimicking natural bone regeneration. The proximity ligation assay or PLA is used to detect blood vessels, which highlighted the quality of engineered tissue.


Traveller, Nomadic and Migrant Education presents international accounts of approaches to educating mobile communities such as circus and fairground people, herders, hunters, Roma and Travellers. The chapters focus on three key dimensions of educational change: the client group moving from school to school; those schools having their demographics changed and seeking to change the mobile learners; and these learners contributing to fundamental change to the nature of schooling.

The book brings together decades of research into the challenges and opportunities presented by mobile learners interacting with educational systems predicated on fixed residence. It identifies several obstacles to those learners receiving an equitable education, including negative stereotypes and centuries-old prejudice. Yet the book also explores a number of educational innovations that bring mobility and schooling together, ranging from specialised literacy programs and distance and online education to mobile schools and specially trained teachers. These innovations allow us to think differently about how education can and should be, for mobile and non-mobile learners alike.


Digital humanities scholars have made a tradition of problematizing our understanding of textuality through discussions concerning the design of information systems for texts that, in many cases, still look like books. This discussion is concerned with how creating opportunities for studying audio texts further complicates our understanding of "the rationale of a textualized document," defined by Jerome McGann as "the dynamic structure of a document as it is realized in determinate (artisanal) and determinable (reflective) ways". This discussion frames a rationale of audio text within the context of developing information infrastructures for accessing audio texts. I introduce a tool called ARLO that we have been developing in the High Performance Sound Technologies for Access and Scholarship (HiPSTAS) project (http://www.hipstas.org) for accessing and analyzing sound collections alongside new standards being proposed for the development of audio visual (AV) metadata and content models. The discussion concludes by considering what these interventions tell us about how a rationale of audio textuality helps us rethink rationales of text in digital environments.


Introduction: Extracorporeal circulation has been around for more than half a century, but many questions remain regarding how to best achieve anticoagulation in a patient on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Although unfractionated heparin is the predominant agent used for cardiopulmonary bypass, the amount required and how best to monitor its effects are still unresolved. Extracorporeal circulation is associated with the activation of clotting cascade upon contact with a foreign surface of the ECMO circuit; therefore, heparin or a heparin-bonded circuit is used for anticoagulation. Objectives: To describe commonly used tests to monitor anticoagulation status and ways to maintain a clot-free circuit with least damage to circulating platelets. Methods: A literature search was conducted on PubMed for articles published in peer-reviewed medical journals in English in the past 10 years. Results: Various evidence-based facts emerged. Upon initiation of ECMO flow, there is a strong inflammatory response almost similar to systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) with the release of various cytokine mediators such as interleukins and tumor necrosis factor as well as a trigger to arachidonic acid metabolism with the release of prostaglandins and destruction of platelets.1 Monitoring of anticoagulation status requires close monitoring of activated clotting times (ACTs), a close watch of platelet count, looking for evidence of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), and finally, greater use of thromboelastogram (TEG) for precise analysis of coagulation status (Figs. 1 and 2). The ECMO circuit needs to be physically monitored (lines, pump head, oxygenator) for any clots as well as the values of the pre- and post-membrane pressures to detect clots in the membrane oxygenator. In view of a higher duration of ECMO run when compared with cardiopulmonary bypass, it is particularly challenging to achieve an optimal anticoagulation keeping in mind inflammation, disseminated intravascular coagulation, as well as side effects such as HIT.2 Treatment of bleeding/clotting emergencies involves early detection and use of anticoagulation reversal agents with or without transfusion of blood or blood products with full round-the-clock support by blood bank. Although heparin-coated circuits have been safely used for extracorporeal lung assist with little or no systemic anticoagulation,3 prospective studies are clearly needed to determine whether this approach is advantageous, and it would seem appropriate to develop heparin coating for silicone-based membrane oxygenators.Figure 1. TEG report on clot characteristics (http://marylandccproject.org/core-content/utility-teg-blood-component-therapy/). Figure 2. Interpretation of thromboelastogram.4 Conclusion: Various tests are available to monitor the anticoagulation status of a patient on ECMO with bedside availability. It is important to perform physical inspection of the ECMO circuit as well as to monitor pre- and post-membrane pressures frequently, in order to detect clots in the circuit, and to further regulate heparin therapy. Activated clotting time (ACT) by far remains the most commonly used monitoring tool at most ECMO centers.


Abstract The distribution of Codium fragile subsp. fragile and the native canopy-forming alga Fucus serratus was recorded at 51 sites in a 20 km long, sheltered region on the southwest coast of Norway. The purpose of the study was to examine if these species are potentially competing and how their distributions are related to wave-exposure and substrate. Codium fragile subsp. fragile was patchily distributed, a pattern which appears to have been sustained over time since its introduction to this area. It was almost always observed growing below mean low water, in the low intertidal and shallow subtidal. Both substrate type and wave-exposure influenced the vertical distribution of C. fragile subsp. fragile; growth occurred higher on the shore at sheltered sites and deeper in the subtidal on stony substrate. Its vertical range of growth overlapped with that of F. serratus and, when C. fragile subsp. fragile was abundant, F. serratus tended to grow higher on the shore and at lower abundances. This suggests that C. fragile subsp. fragile is affecting F. serratus in this area through competition, but only in the lower portion of the fucoid's vertical range and only at sites favorable for its own growth with regard to shelter and substrate.


Abstract. Observations of tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities over the United States (US) for 2005–2011 are evaluated using the OMI Berkeley High Resolution (BEHR) retrieval algorithm. We assess changes in NO2 on day-of-week and interannual timescales to assess the impact of changes in emissions from mobile and non-mobile sources on the observed trends. We observe consistent decreases in cities across the US, with an average total reduction of 32 ± 7% across the 7 yr. Changes for large power plants have been more variable (−26 ± 12%) due to regionally-specific regulation policies. An increasing trend of 10–20% in background NO2 columns in the northwestern US is observed. We examine the impact of the economic recession on emissions and find that decreases in NO2 column densities over cities were moderate prior to the recession (−6 ± 5% yr−1), larger during the recession (−8 ± 5% yr−1), and then smaller after the recession (−3 ± 4% yr−1). Differences in the trends observed on weekdays and weekends indicate that prior to the economic recession, NO2 reductions were dominated by technological improvements to the light-duty vehicle fleet but that a decrease in diesel truck activity has contributed to emission reductions since the recession. We use the satellite observations to estimate a 34% decrease in NO2 from mobile sources in cities for 2005–2011 and use that value to infer changes in non-mobile sources. We find that reductions in NO2 from non-mobile sources in cities have been both more modest and more variable than NO2 reductions from mobile sources (−10 ± 13%).


The paper examines the traditional function of commercial banks as financial intermediaries between deficit and surplus sectors. Fundamental to this function has been the assumption that banks can intermediate at lower costs than those prevailing with direct financing arrangements, but developments in corporate wholesale financing over the past twenty years or so have significantly undermined this "cost imperative" for large national and international companies . This has resulted in significant disintermediation of commercial banks by large companies and raised the question as to whether this development signals merely another evolutionary phase in modern banking or something far more fundamental. Commercial banks have responded to these changes by becoming more investment bank oriented. Traditional on-balance sheet services for large companies have, therefore, been largely replaced by the off-balance sheet activities of providing investment advice, making placements, the provision of standby facilities, etc. These fundamental changes in business activity have had a marked effect on the commercial banks' principal sources of income and the risks inherent in their business. Just as important, however, is the fact that changes in corporate wholesale banking have far-reaching implications which go far beyond the corporate wholesale market and have fundamentally changed the commercial banks' "business philosophy" and methods of conducting business.


In this study, we investigated if the association between parental divorce and depressive symptoms changes during early adolescence and if developmental patterns are similar for boys and girls. Data were collected in a prospective population cohort of Dutch adolescents (N = 2,149), aged 10 - 15 years. Outcome variables were self-reported and parent-reported depressive symptoms. The effects of divorce were adjusted for parental depression. In both self-reported and parent-reported data, we found a three-way interaction of gender, age, and parental divorce, indicating that with increasing age, parental divorce became more strongly associated with depressive symptoms among girls, but not boys. These results suggest that girls with divorced parents are at particularly high risk to develop depressive symptoms during adolescence.


In this paper, we report on an unsupervised greedy-style process for acquiring phrase translations from sentence-aligned parallel corpora. Thanks to innovative selection strategies, this process can acquire multiple translations without size criteria, i.e. phrases can have several translations, can be of any size, and their size is not considered when selecting their translations. Even though the process is in an early development stage and has much room for improvements, evaluation shows that it yields phrase translations of high precision that are relevant to machine translation but also to a wider set of applications including memory-based translation or multi-word acquisition.


OF DISSERTATION INDIGENISTA HEROES AND FEMMES FATALES: MYTH-MAKING IN LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE AND FILM This dissertation explores myth-making in Latin America by focusing specifically upon four Amerindian and mestizo figures: Doña Bárbara, mestiza protagonist of Rómulo Gallegos' 1929 novel; Anacaona and Hatuey, Taíno caciques who first appeared in Bartolomé de las Casas' Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias (1552); and Andrés Chiliquinga, indigenous protagonist of Jorge Icaza's Huasipungo (1934). The present analysis examines the evolution of these myths from their original appearance to literary and film versions throughout the 19, 20, and 21 centuries in the Caribbean and Andean regions. The project focuses upon the ways in which artists have interpreted these myths, their embedding in society's collective memory, and their mythical functions in antiand postcolonial discourse. By breaking down each myth into its most basic structure, this project identifies the core connotations contained within that reveal each myth's function as a cultural foundation in Latin America. It also examines how the versions of a myth depart from one another, thus underscoring possible critiques of the myth. Finally, it examines the ways in which some of these myths have become commodities, particularly in contemporary popular culture. By examining these figures as cultural myths—bridging past and present—, this research argues that a mythicinterpretive model proves effective as it leads us to a deeper understanding of the universal connotations contained not only within the stories chosen here, but the Latin American narrative as a whole.


The education processes within the knowledge society of the twenty-first century involve a complex analysis and transformation of learning and teaching proposals. The ubiquitous penetration of technology and especially of ICT contributes to new cultural profiles of social, political and economic organizations and of course also has an impact on education. The decentralization, personalization, increased flexibility, technologic convergence, and other effects of telematic networks call for both an extension of educational programs in the framework of lifelong learning programs and also require measures to overcome exclusion in the face of the new social, technologic and economic demands. Strategic learning, the teaching of comprehension, virtual collaborative groups, and teachers as facilitators – both in face to face and remote education – will help to develop autonomy, strengthen communication and technological abilities, and foster problem solving skills in order to make decisions and participate in the improvement of quality of life through flexible structures, open mentalities, and equitable ethical values. Within this framework, learning and teaching in the knowledge society of the twenty-first century will be conceived for personal self regulation and social self sustainable alternative development. The scenarios include creative competencies and flexible attitudes through the practice of comprehensive and critical reading and thinking, emotional education, free expression, contrasted transference into reality, and participation within diversity. The latter implies a respect to local identity to foster the search for universal peace, democratic coexistence and continuous improvement.


In this project, we explore the psychological effect of the state of a playoff series on a sports team. The two leagues, the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) were chosen for this analysis. The team's winning probability was considered as its strength and the effect of desperation was considered as its psychological effect in a particular game. Statistical models were developed and applied to the NBA and NHL data corresponding to the 2003 through 2011 playoffs to estimate the importance of the effect of desperation. The results indicate that primarily, the NHL teams' strength is less affected by the game situation than the NBA. Secondarily, for both NBA and NHL teams, the effect of desperation is high in situations where a team has won zero games in a series. In the NBA, the effect is large when a team is close to elimination in a series. The home team advantage affects desperation in both NBA and NHL sports.