Managing of multiple specialty trades working on a large number of interdependent tasks in complex construction projects can be challenging. There are various types of uncertainty associated with construction processes such as prerequisite work, weather, material and labor availability. One of the key uncertainty sources which have not been gained much attention is the specialty trades' (sub-contractors') interference in the construction jobsite during the project. Although the importance of controlling the trades' interference is acknowledged by the construction managers, applicable methods to visualize and analyze them numerically are limited. This paper uses social network analysis (SNA) to examine how the existing interference potential among the specialty trades is related to their work plan reliability (WPR) over the course of the project. It evaluates the consistency between the trades' WPR and the project network characteristics. A 28-week case study involving 43 specialty trades constructing of a single level, $50 million, 14,000 square meter data center was conducted. Primary results show that there is a moderate correlation between the plan percent complete (PPC) and centrality ratio and network density. The findings of this research can help project managers in managing the probable interferences among the working specialty trades and improving their WPR.


When Women Lead is a fascinating study of the different leadership styles of men and women in American politics. Providing close studies of key state legislatures, Professor Rosenthal provides an original insight into the workings of the largest cohorts of women in institutional leadership roles. Her work marks an important contribution to understanding gender, organizational leadership, and legislatures.


Intellectual exchange between South Asian and Southeast Asian societies before and outside of colonialism is still poorly understood, both because of the lingering cultural essentialism promoted by colonial scholarship and the national and regional politics that have dominated historical perspectives since. Certainly, the role of local literati in the Chindwin river area on the Burma–Manipur frontier as mediators in the movement of ideas and literature between the Indian subcontinent and Burma in the 18th and 19th centuries has been obscured by conventional political and intellectual history. This historiography has both partitioned and incor-porated the local, the transregional and the culturally diverse into national, regional and mono-cultural frameworks. The call by scholars of border-lands to reverse the way we examine border areas, taking a view from the periphery rather than the perspective of the centre, also invites the explora-tion of cultures that can complicate the state-centred narrative of literary history. The present article examines one precolonial scholarly network and the nature of its activities on what is conventionally viewed as the cultural and political periphery to raise questions about the central role attributed to the royal court in literary production, the neglect of the role of important women as patrons of local cultural activity, and the origins of Burma's national literary heritage.


This study has tested the hypotheses that the dietary compositions of the six large and abundant fish species in the 46 km2 basin of a seasonally open estuary (Wilson Inlet) will differ significantly, change with increasing body size and vary with water depth and season. These species comprise four marine species, the sea mullet Mugil cephalus, yellow-eye mullet Aldrichetta forsteri, King George whiting Sillaginodes punctata and Australian herring Arripis georgiana, and populations of two species that are confined to the estuary, the cobbler Cnidoglanis macrocephalus and the southern blue-spotted flathead Platycephalus speculator. Non-metric multidimensional ordination and associated tests showed that, overall, the dietary composition was influenced to a far greater extent by the species of fish than by either water depth or season. At even a relatively broad level of taxonomic discrimination, the dietary compositions of each pair of species were significantly different, except for those of A. georgiana v. P. speculator, and even in that case those of their larger individuals differed. Differences among the diets of the six species, which represented five families, are related to differences in feeding morphology and location within the water column. Mugil cephalus ingested almost exclusively sediment and fine organic material. Although A. forsteri and S. punctata both consumed substantial amounts of polychaetes (including nereids, capitellids and orbiniids), the former ingested relatively larger volumes of small crustaceans (copepods) and relatively lower volumes of large crustaceans (the carid Palaemonetes australis), nemertines and bivalve siphons. The diets of A. georgiana and P. speculator were both typified by the consistent and high contributions of large crustaceans and fishes. Among fish prey, however, A. georgiana focused to a far greater extent on the small clupeid Engraulis australis, whereas P. speculator consumed a wider range of teleosts, which included species of atherinid and goby. Although the diets of A. forsteri and C. macrocephalus both contained substantial amounts of coarse organic material, the latter differed markedly from those of all other species by the frequent presence of mytilids (mainly Xenostrobus spp.) and other bivalves (especially Tellina deltoidalis and Irus crenata). The diets of each species except M. cephalus changed with increasing body size and, for comparable size classes, did not differ between shallow and deeper waters. The partitioning of food resources within and among the six large and abundant fish species found in Wilson Inlet would reduce the potential for competition for these resources and help account for the large numbers of those species in this seasonally open estuary.


Uncertainties in projected future flood risk and challenges of detecting signals of change from observations highlight the need to advance process understanding through linking hydrological extremes to large-scale climate drivers. In Ireland, recent years have highlighted vulnerability to flooding yet little research has been undertaken exploring hydroclimatic signatures of change in extremes at different scales, in part due to a lack of quality assured data for relevant variables. This is an important research gap given Ireland's sentinel position on the Atlantic margin of northwest Europe and is addressed within this thesis. The Island of Ireland (IoI) is classified into 3 Extreme Rainfall Regions (ERRs) reflecting distinct extreme precipitation climatologies, thus furthering understanding of physical flood-producing mechanisms. A comprehensive statistical trend analysis is performed on extreme precipitation and flood indices under a standard statistical framework. Results show a robust increasing trend in extreme precipitation magnitude, frequency, duration, and intensity. Similar results are found for flood indices at longer time-scales but limited station density prohibits stronger conclusions. Atmospheric drivers of flood occurrence are reconstructed back to 1872 using an objective weather classification scheme and used to identify four flood rich periods: 1.) 1870s to 1890s; 2.) late-1900s to mid-1930s, 3.) a short spell in the 1980s, and 4.) late-1990s onwards. The recent flood rich period is not unprecedented at the centennial time-scale. Moving towards attribution, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is found to modulate flood propensity, with strongest influence in the west and northwest. At the catchment scale the utility of an attribution framework based on the method of multiple working hypotheses is posited using the Boyne catchment as an exemplar. Results show the complexity of attributing hydroclimatic change at the catchment scale where the system is influenced by internal and external change. This work advances understanding of hydroclimatic flood processes and establishes new datasets that together will be important for better managing current and future flood risk and opens prospects for new management tools in Ireland, especially seasonal hydrological forecasting.


Commitment, ie, the decision to express a differentiated phenotype and to terminate proliferation irreversibly in the absence of inducer, was investigated in K562 human erythroleukemia cells. Cells were cultured for 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 days with inducer and then plated in medium containing methylcellulose without inducer. Daily after plating, hemoglobin content was scored by benzidine staining, and growth was assessed by estimating the cell number per colony. With all inducers used, three types of colonies were found, those containing only benzidine-positive cells, those containing only benzidine-negative cells, and those containing both cell types (mixed colonies). Thymidine produced a progressive increase in the percentage of positive and mixed colonies and a progressive fall in the percentage of negative colonies. Whereas negative colonies grew at an exponential rate with a generation time of about 20 hours, positive colonies reached an average maximum size of 16 cells, representing a total of four divisions. Butyrate had a similar effect, except that the rise was greater for mixed colonies than for positive colonies, and the plateau in positive colony size was less evident. In contrast, CO2 depletion or hemin treatment induced an increase in the fraction of cells staining benzidine positive that was lost rapidly upon removal of the inducing condition. Thus, of the four conditions, thymidine and butyrate caused commitment, whereas hemin and CO2 depletion did not. Thus K562 cells, like Friend cells, demonstrate commitment, but, unlike Friend cells, demonstrate a significant rate of commitment in the absence of inducer and hence form a significant percentage of mixed colonies with or without inducer.


Flagella and cilia are elaborate cytoskeletal structures conserved from protists to mammals, where they fulfil functions related to motility or sensitivity. Here we demonstrate novel roles for the flagellum in the control of cell size, shape, polarity and division of the protozoan Trypanosoma brucei. To investigate the function of the flagellum, its formation was perturbed by inducible RNA interference silencing of com ponents required for intraflagellar transport, a dynamic process necessary for flagellum assembly. First, we show that down‐regulation of intraflagellar transport leads to assembly of a shorter flagellum. Strikingly, cells with a shorter flagellum are smaller, with a direct correlation between flagellum length and cell size. Detailed morphogenetic analysis reveals that the tip of the new flagellum defines the point where cytokinesis is initiated. Secondly, when new flagellum formation is completely blocked, non‐flagellated cells are very short, lose their normal shape and polarity, and fail to undergo cytokinesis. We show that flagellum elongation controls formation of cytoskeletal structures (present in the cell body) that act as molecular organizers of the cell.


How do students become thoughtful, independent readers who comprehend text at a deep level? To find the answers, authors Keene and Zimmermann embarked on a journey into the thought processes of proficient readers - a journey through poems and essays, classrooms and workshops, humor and reflection. "Mosaic of Thought "chronicles that journey, which ultimately led the authors to elaborate on eight cognitive processes identified in comprehension research and used by successful readers. These serve as models for the strategies offered in this book - strategies intended to help children become more flexible, adaptive, independent, and engaged readers. "Mosaic" proposes a new instructional paradigm focused on in-depth, explicit instruction in the strategies used by proficient readers. The authors take us beyond the traditional classroom into the literature based, workshop-oriented classrooms. Through vivid portraits of these remarkable environments (all participants in the Denver-based Reading Project of the Public Education & Business Coalition), we see how explicit instruction looks in dynamic, literature-rich readers' workshops. As the students connect to background knowledge, create sensory images, ask questions, draw inferences, determine what's important, synthesize ideas, and solve problems at the word and text level, they are able to construct a rich mosaic of meaning. Straightforward and jargon-free, "Mosaic of Thought" has relevance to all literature-based classrooms, regardless of level. It offers practical tools for inservice teachers, as well as essential methods instruction for preservice teachers at both the undergraduate and graduate level. Indeed, anyone interested in literacy will benefit from the authors' challenge to rediscover the thought processes that inform our own comprehension.


CONTEXT
High compliance endotracheal tubes cuffs are used to prevent gas leak and also pulmonary aspiration in mechanically ventilated patients. However, the use of the usual cuff inflation volumes may cause tracheal damage.

OBJECTIVE
We tested the hypothesis that endotracheal tube cuff pressures are routinely high (above 40 cmH2O) in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) or Intensive Care Units (ICU).

DESIGN
Cross-sectional study.

SETTING
Post anesthesia care unit and intensive care unit.

PARTICIPANTS
We measured endotracheal tubes cuff pressure in 85 adult patients, as follows: G1 (n = 31) patients from the ICU; G2 (n = 32) patients from the PACU, after anesthesia with nitrous oxide; G3 (n = 22) patients from the PACU, after anesthesia without nitrous oxide. Intracuff pressure was measured using a manometer (Mallinckrodt, USA). Gas was removed as necessary to adjust cuff pressure to 30 cmH2O.

MAIN MEASUREMENTS
Endotracheal tube cuff pressure.

RESULTS
High cuff pressure (> 40 cmH2O) was observed in 90.6% patients of G2, 54.8% of G1 and 45.4% of G3 (P < 0.001). The volume removed from the cuff in G2 was higher than G3 (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
Endotracheal tubes cuff pressures in ICU and PACU are routinely high and significant higher when nitrous oxide is used. Endotracheal tubes cuff pressure should be routinely measured to minimize tracheal trauma.


The sensitivity of HD antibody in cancer diagnosis/prognosis could be improved by detection of Immune Complex (IC) dissociated antibody. Combined evaluation of native HD and Immune Complex (IC) dissociated antibody was carried out. Presence and titre of these antibodies in cancer patients was investigated in serum samples obtained from 420 patients with various types of tumors. Results were compared with those of 246 age and sex-matched controls. The serum samples were analysed for hemagglutination antibodies by hemagglutination (HA) test and the antibodies quantified by ELISA. Dissociation was achieved by treating the samples with Glycine Hydrochloride (pH 1.8), then neutralised by Tris-HCl (pH 7.4). Mean HA titre was 16.8 in controls and 67.4 in patients (p<0.001). Patients aged between 26-35 years had the highest mean titre of 75.9 (p=0.397) while controls of the same age had the highest mean titres of 19.9 (p=0.043). Carcinomas had a mean titre of 81 compared to 54 for sarcoma and 52 for lymphoma (p=0.117) among histological types. Female patients had a titre of 75.2 compared to 55.7 of males (p<0.05) while the difference by gender in controls was 15.1 for males and 19.3 for females (p=0.199). The mean level of native HD antibody was -0.011 in controls compared to 0.004 in patients (p=0.03). The levels were significantly high in carcinoma (p=0.017) compared to sarcoma and carcinoma type of malignancy. There was no association between HD antibody levels and age. Mean levels were higher in females than males in both study groups (p=0.628) (p=0.601). IC dissociated antibody mean level was -0.06 in the control group compared to 0.014 in test cases (p=0.000). Levels were independent of gender (p=0.984) while they were highest in sarcoma type compared to other types of tumors that were negative for the antibodies (p=0.413). Both native and antigen-bound HD antibodies are significantly increased in cancer disease.


Spreadsheet compiled from various court report documentation that lists all Texas Supreme Court cases between 1840 and 1907 that involved free, enslaved, and formerly-enslaved black Texans. Information for each entry includes the case title and justice, year, type of case, names, county and judge, and the decision or opinion.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE
To examine the between-grader repeatability of height, depth, and cross-sectional area measurements of the lower tear meniscus, using a Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) system.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
A total of 16 patients with dry eye had the lower tear meniscus of the right eye imaged twice in rapid succession. The tear meniscus height, depth, and cross-sectional area were measured by two masked graders using computer calipers. The between-grader variability, calculated using the pooled coefficient of variation (CV%), assessed the repeatability of the measurements.

RESULTS
The between-grader CV% was 12.1%, 15.7%, and 19.5% for height, depth, and area, respectively. The between-image variability was 17.1%, 13.4%, and 35.4% for height, depth, and area, respectively. The overall intraclass correlation was 99%. There was no systematic bias between the two graders.

CONCLUSION
Fourier-domain OCT demonstrates good between-grader and between-image repeatability in measuring the height, depth, and cross-sectional area of the tear meniscus in patients with dry eye. Measurement variability was primarily due to the difference between images rather than graders.


Several studies report urban tree growth and mortality rates as well as species composition, structural dynamics, and other characteristics of urban forests in mostly temperate, inland urban areas. Temporal dynamics of urban forests in subtropical and tropical forest regions are, until now, little explored and represent a new and important direction for study and management of these ecosystems. This study used permanent plots and statistical models incorporating tree and plot-level covariates to analyze mortality, in-growth, diameter growth, and species composition, as well the socioeconomic and urban morphology factors driving change in San Juan, Puerto Rico's subtropical coastal island urban forests over a nine year period. A total of 87 plots contained 482 trees in 2001 and 749 trees in 2010. Between 2001 and 2010 average tree densities increased, and average annual mortality rates were nearly 30%. Mortality was lower for larger, open-grown, non-leguminous trees and in higher income neighborhoods, but higher for street trees and larger population areas. The most widespread tree was invasive Spathodea campanulata, but overall, average mortality was higher for invasive than non-invasive tree species. In-growth of invasive species increased with human population, while higher tree densities corresponded with increased in-growth of native species. Overall mean diameter growth rate was 0.98 cm/yr, but remnant forest patch growth rates were 0.35 cm/yr. Higher diameter growth rates were associated with larger human populations, amounts of duff/mulch cover, and open-grown conditions. This study adds new insights to broaden se em our understanding of the


This thesis describes an investigation into vehicle handling control using active differentials
in the rear axle of a motor vehicle. Such devices are able to transfer torque between the
rear wheels and have traditionally been used to improve traction whilst minimising the
impact on vehicle handling. However, the capacity to generate a lateral torque difference
across an axle also gives them the potential to be used for yaw moment control.
In order to generate a rigorous assessment of this potential, the investigation is carried out
in three distinct phases. Firstly, an analysis of the scope for modifying vehicle handling
given unrestricted control over torque transfer between the rear wheels is carded out in the
simulation environment. For this purpose an idealised yaw sideslip controller is developed.
This is used to show that an ideal active differential can have significant yaw moment
authority in terms of generating both understeer and oversteer and that this can be used to
actively modify a vehicle's handling balance and apply stability control at the limits of
adhesion.
In the second phase, the capabilities of two types of contemporary active differential, the
torque vectoring differential (TVD) and active limited slip differential (ALSID), are then
assessed against the ideal differential and against a brake based yaw moment controller.
TVDs are found to be able to offer very similar performance to both their ideal counterpart
and to the brake based system. They Gan also deliver this performance with a fraction of
the energy loss that is observed in the brakes, thus making TVDs a viable proposition for
applying continuous yaw control below the limits of adhesion. ALSDs, on the other hand do
not offer equivalent functionality to an ideal active differential but are still shown to be very
effective stability control devices.
In the third phase, the ALSID results are validated on a prototype vehicle where it is shown
that they do indeed offer substantial stability improvements both on high and low-P
surfaces. However in order to deliver such benefits and be practical for implementation, it
is also shown that significant redevelopment of the idealised controller is required. Finally,
with the ALSID operating alongside a commercial brake based stability control system, it is
proven that substantial reductions in brake intervention can be achieved without significant controller integration.


A formulation of the maximum a posteriori (MAP) approach to speaker adaptation is presented with use of the trended or nonstationary-state hidden Markov model (HMM), where the Gaussian means in each HMM state are characterized by time-varying polynomial trend functions of the state sojourn time. Assuming uncorrelatedness among the polynomial coefficients in the trend functions, we have obtained analytical results for the MAP estimates of the parameters including time-varying means and time-invariant precisions. We have implemented a speech recognizer based on these results in speaker adaptation experiments using the TI46 corpora. The experimental evaluation demonstrates that the trended HMM, with use of either the linear or the quadratic polynomial trend function, consistently outperforms the conventional, stationary-state HMM. The evaluation also shows that the unadapted, speaker-independent models are outperformed by the models adapted by the MAP procedure under supervision with as few as a single adaptation token. Further, adaptation of polynomial coefficients alone is shown to be better than adapting both polynomial coefficients and precision matrices when fewer than four adaptation tokens are used, while the reverse is found with a greater number of adaptation tokens.


We study the the non-equilibrium ageing behaviour of the +/-J Edwards-Anderson model in three dimensions for samples of size up to N=128^3 and for up to 10^8 Monte Carlo sweeps. In particular we are interested in the change of the ageing when crossing from the spin-glass phase to the ferromagnetic phase. The necessary long simulation times are reached by employing a CUDA-based GPU implementation, which allows for single-spin flip times as small as 8ps. We measure typical spin glass correlation functions in space and time to determine the growing length scale and extract the constituting exponents. We observe a clear signature of the disorder-driven equilibrium transition in the non-equilibrium behavior.


The stable isotope compositions of soil water (δ 2 H and δ 18 O) carry important information about the prevailing soil hydrological conditions and for constraining ecosystem water budgets. However, they are highly dynamic, especially during and after precipitation events. In this study, we present an application of a method based on gas-permeable tubing and isotope-specific infrared laser absorption spectroscopy for in situ determination of soil water δ 2 H and δ 18 O. We conducted a laboratory experiment where a sand column was initially saturated, exposed to evaporation for a period of 290 days, and finally rewatered. Soil water vapor δ 2 H and δ 18 O were measured daily at each of eight available depths. Soil liquid water δ 2 H and δ 18 O were inferred from those of the vapor considering thermodynamic equilibrium between liquid and vapor phases in the soil. The experimental setup allowed for following the evolution of soil water δ 2 H and δ 18 O profiles with a daily temporal resolution. As the soil dried, we could also show for the first time the increasing influence of the isotopically depleted ambient water vapor on the isotopically enriched liquid water close to the soil surface (i.e., atmospheric invasion). Rewatering at the end of the experiment led to instantaneous resetting of the stable isotope profiles, which could be closely followed with the new method. From simple soil δ 2 H and δ 18 O gradients calculations, we showed that the gathered data allowed one to determinate the depth of the evaporation front (EF) and how it receded into the soil over time. It was inferred that after 290 days under the prevailing experimental conditions, the EF had moved down to an approximate depth of −0.06 m. Finally, data were used to calculate the slopes of the evaporation lines and test the formulation for kinetic isotope effects. A very good agreement was found between measured and simulated values (Nash and Sutcliffe efficiency, NSE = 0.92) during the first half of the experiment, i.e., until the EF reached a depth of −0.04 m. From this point, calculated kinetic effects associated with the transport of isotopologues in the soil surface air layer above the EF provided slopes lower than observed. Finally, values of kinetic isotope effects that provided the best model-to-data fit (NSE > 0.9) were obtained from inverse modeling, highlighting uncertainties associated with the determinations of isotope kinetic fractionation and soil relative humidity at the EF.


In a previous study, alcohol problems in perpetrators and their partners contributed directly and indirectly to intimate partner violence (IPV), even after including other correlates of violence in the model (G. L. Stuart et al., 2006). The present study extends these findings by examining the role of illicit drug use. We recruited 271 men and 135 women arrested for IPV and used structural equation modeling to examine the data. Results showed that drug use, as reported by the perpetrators, was a stronger predictor of IPV than were alcohol problems in perpetrators and their partners. Arrested males' marijuana use and stimulant use (i.e., cocaine and amphetamines) were associated with perpetration of IPV, and their report of their female partners' stimulant use was associated with her violence perpetration. In arrested women, specific substances used did not predict violence perpetration beyond other model variables; however, female perpetrators' report of male partners' stimulant use predicted male psychological and physical aggression, after controlling for other variables. These results provide further evidence that drug problems by both partners may be important in the evolution of aggression. Implications for batterer intervention programs are discussed.


Design of universal components that can tolerate technological, environmental, and circumstantial changes over time is a challenge for an architect. In this paper, I would like to propose a scaled prototype of architectural components that can reconfigure themselves into globally functional configurations based on feedback from locally distributed intelligence embedded inside the component. The project aims at demonstrating a design system that can respond to dynamically changing environment over time without imposing a static blueprint of the structure in a top-down manner from the outset of design processes. The control of the subunits are governed by the logic of a distributed system simulated by the use of multiple microcontrollers, and appropriate geometrical configurations will be computationally derived based on physicalenvironmental criteria such as solar radiation from various sensors and social-programmatic issues. The system's goal is to provide qualitatively optimum results through the use of quantified information acquired from surrounding environmental conditions.


A turbulent combustion model based on the Linear Eddy Model for Large Eddy Simulation (LEMLES) is currently proposed to study self-ignition events of rapidly expanding hydrogen jets. The model is a one-dimensional treatment of a diffusion-reaction system within each multi-dimensional LES cell. This reduces the expense of solving a complete multi-dimensional problem while preserving micro-scale hotspots and their effects on ignition. The current approach features a Lagrangian description of fluid particles on the sub-grid for increased accuracy. Also, Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) is implemented for increased computational efficiency. In this paper, the model is validated for various inviscid laminar 1-D mixing and ignition problems, shock tube problems, flames, and detonations.


For the past few decades, there has been a considerable research interest in the area of drug delivery using particulate delivery systems as carriers for small and large molecules. Particulate systems like nanoparticles have been used as a physical approach to alter and improve the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of various types of drug molecules. They have been used in vivo to protect the drug entity in the systemic circulation, restrict access of the drug to the chosen sites and to deliver the drug at a controlled and sustained rate to the site of action. Various polymers have been used in the formulation of nanoparticles for drug delivery research to increase therapeutic benefit, while minimizing side effects. Here, we review various aspects of nanoparticle formulation, characterization, effect of their characteristics and their applications in delivery of drug molecules and therapeutic genes. © 2011 Universal Research Publications. All rights reserved


We explore subtle variations in disk-integrated measurements spanning ≲18 yr of stellar surface magnetism by using a newly developed time-frequency gapped wavelet algorithm. We present results based on analysis of the Mount Wilson Ca II H and K emission fluxes in four, magnetically active stars (HD 1835 [G2 V], HD 82885 [G8 IV-V], HD 149661 [K0 V], and HD 190007 [K4 V]) and sensitivity tests using artificial data. When the wavelet basis is appropriately modified (i.e., when the time-frequency resolution is optimized), the results are consistent with the existence of spatially localized and long-lived Ca II features (assumed here as activity regions that tend to recur in narrowly confined latitude bands), especially in HD 1835 and HD 82885. This interpretation is based on the observed persistence of relatively localized Ca II wavelet power at a narrow range of rotational timescales, enduring as long as ≳10 yr.


Sedimentological, palynological, and micropalaeontological studies carried out throughout the first half of the Holocene, during the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition in the Bay of Brest (i.e. 9200–9000 and 6600–5300 cal. BP) and in the Bay of Douarnenez (i.e. 9200–8400 cal. BP), allowed characterizing coastal environmental changes under the increasing influence of the relative sea-level rise. The gradual flooding of the two studied sites implied a transition from river valleys to oceanic bays as revealed by the gradual retreat of salt marsh environments, as detected through palynological analysis. In addition, these high-resolution studies highlight the regional imprint of the North Atlantic millennial climate variability in north-western coastal environments. Two cold climate events are indeed suggested to have been locally marked by a moisture increase, mainly detected by increases in Lingulodinium machaerophorum, Corylus, and Alnus percentages at 8550 cal. BP in the Bay of Douarnenez and at 6250 cal. BP in the Bay of Brest. Moreover, regarding the Neolithic transition timing in the Bay of Douarnenez, large pollen grains of Poaceae (i.e. Cerealia-type pollen grains) have been detected at around 8600 cal. BP, that is, 1500 years before the general accepted cereal cropping appearance in Western France. These results, consistent with other palynological studies conducted in the French Atlantic coast, could underline a Mesolithic 'proto-agriculture' in Brittany.


The circuit courts established by the Earl of Caledon in 1811 introduced the fundamental features characteristic of proceedings at common law to the Cape and thus constitute an important precursor to the Charters of Justice of 1827 and 1832. They also paved the way for the circuit courts established in 1827 under the First Charter of Justice, the predecessors of the circuit courts which to this day form part of the legal landscape in South Africa. During the nineteenth century, judges of the Cape Supreme Court regularly visited outlying towns and districts to hear both civil and criminal cases. The circuits lasted for weeks and long distances were travelled under primitive and hazardous conditions. The judges and counsel often had to endure great physical hardship. They all stuck to their task with commendable tenacity and perseverance. In the circumstances, the contribution of the Cape judges to the development of South African law and to the survival of the Roman-Dutch law was a remarkable achievement. The circuit courts brought to the outlying districts the administration of justice at the highest level. The sittings of the courts were open to the public, and the community participated in the proceedings by way of jury service. All this contributed to the integration of the administration of justice into the social fabric and "judicial conscience" of the people in the outlying communities. The circuit courts played a major role in entrenching the English procedural and judicial style in the minds of the people, and in bringing home the message that the courts were open to all the people of the colony, and that the protection of the courts extended to all of them.


Patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells reveal treatment strategies for a rare genetic form of arterial calcification. Understanding vascular calcification ACDC is a rare genetic vascular calcification disease caused by loss of CD73, a secreted enzyme that converts adenosine monophosphate (AMP) to adenosine. Cells from ACDC patients have a compensatory increase in the phosphatase TNAP, which primarily catalyzes the conversion of pyrophosphate to inorganic phosphate but can also convert AMP to adenosine. Jin et al. generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from ACDC patients. Although in culture, these cells generated adenosine from AMP, the cells had decreased amounts of pyrophosphate, which inhibits calcification. ACDC patient–derived cells showed increased activation of the mTOR pathway, which promotes calcification. When injected into mice, the ACDC patient–derived iPSCs formed calcified teratomas. Treating mice bearing these teratomas with an adenosine receptor agonist, the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin, or etidronate (a drug that is structurally similar to pyrophosphate) reduced calcification in the teratomas, suggesting multiple potential strategies for treating ectopic calcification in ACDC patients and thereby alleviating the pain and peripheral ischemia associated with the disease. ACDC (arterial calcification due to deficiency of CD73) is an autosomal recessive disease resulting from loss-of-function mutations in NT5E, which encodes CD73, a 5′-ectonucleotidase that converts extracellular adenosine monophosphate to adenosine. ACDC patients display progressive calcification of lower extremity arteries, causing limb ischemia. Tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP), which converts pyrophosphate (PPi) to inorganic phosphate (Pi), and extracellular purine metabolism play important roles in other inherited forms of vascular calcification. Compared to cells from healthy subjects, induced pluripotent stem cell–derived mesenchymal stromal cells (iMSCs) from ACDC patients displayed accelerated calcification and increased TNAP activity when cultured under conditions that promote osteogenesis. TNAP activity generated adenosine in iMSCs derived from ACDC patients but not in iMSCs from control subjects, which have CD73. In response to osteogenic stimulation, ACDC patient–derived iMSCs had decreased amounts of the TNAP substrate PPi, an inhibitor of extracellular matrix calcification, and exhibited increased activation of AKT, mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), and the 70-kDa ribosomal protein S6 kinase (p70S6K), a pathway that promotes calcification. In vivo, teratomas derived from ACDC patient cells showed extensive calcification and increased TNAP activity. Treating mice bearing these teratomas with an A2b adenosine receptor agonist, the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin, or the bisphosphonate etidronate reduced calcification. These results show that an increase of TNAP activity in ACDC contributes to ectopic calcification by disrupting the extracellular balance of PPi and Pi and identify potential therapeutic targets for ACDC.


Abstract The new mineral centennialite (IMA 2013-110), CaCu3(OH)6Cl2·nH2O, was identified from three cotype specimens originating from the Centennial Mine, Houghton County, Michigan, USA, where it occurs as a secondary product, after acidwater action upon supergene Cu mineralization in associationwith, and essentially indivisible from, other copper-containing minerals such as calumetite and atacamite familyminerals. It forms as pale to azure blue encrustations, often taking a botryoidal form.Centennialite is trigonal,P3m1, a = 6.6606(9) Å, c = 5.8004(8) Å, V = 222.85(6) Å3, Z = 1. The strongest powder X-ray diffraction lines are dobs/Å [I%] (hkl), 5.799 [100] (001), 2.583 [75] (201), 2.886 [51] (111), 1.665 [20] (220), 1.605 [17] (023), 1.600 [15] (221), 1.444 [11] (222). The X-ray refined structure forms a kagome net of planar coordinated CuO4 units with Jahn- Teller coordinated Cl apices to form octahedra that edge-share to in-plane adjacent and flattened CaO6 octahedra, which are centred about the lattice origin. All oxygen sites are protonated and shared between one Ca-octahedron and one CuO4 planar unit. Three protonated sites are linked, by hydrogen-bonding to Cl sites, which sit on the triad axis. Each lattice has one Cl above and one below the Ca-Cu polyhedral plane. Consequently, the layers are stacked, along ‹001›, with two Cl sites between layers. In addition to this kapellasite-like topology, an extra c/2 site is identified as being variably water-hosting and extends the coordination of the Ca-site to 8-fold, akin to the body-diagonal Pb-Cu sheet in murdochite. Centennialite conforms to the description of the 'Unidentified Cu-Ca-Cl Mineral' noted in Heinrich's Mineralogy of Michigan and is almost certainly identical to the supposed hexagonal basic calcium-copper hydroxychloride monohydrate of Erdös et al. (1981).We comment upon relationships between calumetite and centennialite and propose a substructure model for a synthetic calumetite-like phase that is related directly to centennialite.


Tumor immune evasion plays a central role in cancer progression and is a major hurdle to effective immunotherapy. In this Thesis, we examine the role of the actin cytoskeleton in breast cancer cell resistance to natural killer (NK) cell-mediated cell lysis. We found that resistant breast cancer cells escape from NK-cell attack through a rapid and prominent accumulation of actin near the immunological synapse, a process we termed the "actin response". Our mechanistic investigations suggest that the actin response drives autophagosome polarization toward the immunological synapse and thereby facilitates the autophagy-mediated degradation of NK cell-derived cytotoxic molecules such as granzyme B. In addition, the actin response was associated with inhibitory ligand clustering at the immunological synapse, suggesting that it is a common driver of different immune evasion mechanisms. Taken together, our data lays the groundwork for therapeutic approaches aimed at interfering with the actin response and restoring an effective anti-tumor immune response.


ABSTRACT  To understand reproductive allocation in a common woody plant of Everglades rockland habitats, we compared vegetative and reproductive traits of Guettarda scabra (L.) Vent. (Rubiaceae), in three habitats of Long Pine Key, Everglades National Park, Florida (pineland, hammock, and hammock edge). Plants in the pineland were shorter, with smaller leaves, and allocated more resources to sexual reproduction; plants in the hammock were taller, had larger leaves, and allocated more resources to vegetative growth. Hammock-edge plants were intermediate in height, had leaves intermediate in size, but had more leaves overall than plants in pineland or hammock. Pineland and hammock-edge plants produced many more fruits than hammock plants, with pineland plants having the largest fruit-to-leaf ratio. We interpret these differences as both a response to increased competition for light in the hammock, as well as to effects of fire in the pineland, with this species displaying greatest flowering, fruiting, and reproductive success in open pineland habitat.


This work proposes and analyzes a Smolyak-type sparse grid stochastic collocation method for the approximation of statistical quantities related to the solution of partial differential equations with random coefficients and forcing terms (input data of the model). To compute solution statistics, the sparse grid stochastic collocation method uses approximate solutions, produced here by finite elements, corresponding to a deterministic set of points in the random input space. This naturally requires solving uncoupled deterministic problems as in the Monte Carlo method. If the number of random variables needed to describe the input data is moderately large, full tensor product spaces are computationally expensive to use due to the curse of dimensionality. In this case the sparse grid approach is still expected to be competitive with the classical Monte Carlo method. Therefore, it is of major practical relevance to understand in which situations the sparse grid stochastic collocation method is more efficient than Monte Carlo. This work provides error estimates for the fully discrete solution using $L^q$ norms and analyzes the computational efficiency of the proposed method. In particular, it demonstrates algebraic convergence with respect to the total number of collocation points and quantifies the effect of the dimension of the problem (number of input random variables) in the final estimates. The derived estimates are then used to compare the method with Monte Carlo, indicating for which problems the former is more efficient than the latter. Computational evidence complements the present theory and shows the effectiveness of the sparse grid stochastic collocation method compared to full tensor and Monte Carlo approaches.


This article presents the first results of a research project which investigates patterns of language use in the Italo-Australian community in Sydney. All three languages spoken by the majority of Italo-Australians are taken into account: Italian, dialect and English. This article focusses on English. Use of English by 202 subjects (of different generations, Italian regions, age groups and socioeconomic backgrounds) is explored in 46 situations in four domains (family, friendship, work/school and transactions), taking into account congruent and incongruent situations with regard to three main factors: interlocutor, topic of conversation and place where it takes place. The data show a widespread shift to English which starts among younger subjects of the first generation and increases dramatically among the second generation. Furthermore, use of English by Italo-Australians depends more on personal characteristics of speakers and addressees (such as age and generation) than on topic or place of conversation.


This paper proposes and studies for the first time the problem of combinatorial multi-armed bandits with linear long-term constraints. Our model generalizes and unifies several prominent lines of work, including bandits with fairness constraints, bandits with knapsacks (BwK), etc. We propose an upper-confidence bound LP-style algorithm for this problem, called UCB-LP, and prove that it achieves a logarithmic problem-dependent regret bound and zero constraint violations in expectation. In the special case of fairness constraints, we further provide a sharper constant regret bound for UCB-LP. Our regret bounds outperform the existing literature on BwK and bandits with fairness constraints simultaneously. We also develop another low-complexity version of UCB-LP and show that it yields ˜ O ( √ T ) problem-independent regret and zero constraint violations with high-probability. Finally, we conduct numerical experiments to validate our theoretical results.


In the last decade, social media platforms have emerged to provide individuals and organizations with unprecedented access to each other and the rest of the world. The potential for influencing positive community change through the use of these platforms is great. However, despite this potential for change, the process of persuasion and behavior change through social media is complex. The purpose of this research was to provide a broad overview of how success in influencing behavior change might be achieved. This was done through an analysis of intensive interviews with individuals who have had extensive experience working with social media platforms and success at creating positive community change through these platforms. Results were combined into eight categories which were broken down in to more specific themes and sub themes to provide a better understanding of success in using social media to generate positive community change.


Background: The rate of mortality from septic shock currently remains high in pediatric intensive care units. In this disease, adrenal insufficiency is a commonly occurring problem that also influences prognosis. Diagnosis and treatment are still controversial. In consideration of these issues, we determined the rate of adrenal insufficiency in children suffering from the condition and the role of blood cortisol levels in prognosis. Materials and Methods: This prospective, descriptive, analytical study involved 74 septic shock cases at the intensive care unit and emergency department of Children's Hospital 1 in Vietnam. The research was conducted from October 2008 to April 2011. Results: Most of the subjects were under 5 years old (81.5%), and 46.8% of them were male. Malnutrition occurred in 14.9% of the patients. The majority were in very serious condition upon admission, all were in decompensated shock, 55.4% had unmeasured blood pressure, 73% were afflicted with disorders of consciousness accompanied by confusion and coma, 46.8% needed to be intubated at admission, and 94.6% exhibited multiorgan dysfunction. The PRISM II of the children averaged at 26.6±10. Adrenal insufficiency rates were 9.5%, 13.5%, and 31.1% at admission, at 6 hours after treatment, and at the 24th hour of intervention, respectively. Such rate was 41.9% overall. Adrenal insufficiency was unrelated to mortality, but the group with blood cortisol levels >340 ng/mL had a higher mortality rate. Among the children, 86.3% had blood cortisol levels >180 ng/mL, and 16.1% children had blood cortisol concentrations <180 ng/mL (p = 0.018)—both suffered additionally from disorders involving three or more organs. Blood cortisol concentrations gradually decreased over three times at certain points in the research. No difference in time and number of vasoactive drugs was found between the groups of patients with and without adrenal insufficiency. The former had higher dopamine concentrations in the body (p = 0.028). Conclusion: The majority of the children were in very serious condition and suffered from decompensated shock, with many of their organs affected. The rate of adrenal insufficiency in the sample was high but unassociated with mortality. Blood cortisol increased at the time of diagnosis and decreased after. The children with adrenal insufficiency had higher levels of dopamine in their system.


INTRODUCTION: Although beneficial, testing and treating for H. pylori in long term PPI users has not been widely adopted [1]. Possible reasons include the limited generalisability of findings and provoking reflux symptoms. Thus, the HELPUP trial (H. pylori eradication in long-term proton pump inhibitor users in primary care) was conducted [2]. After one year follow-up, eradication demonstrated significantly reduced symptom scores. Two year follow-up data are presented from the HELPUP trial quantifying the costs and consequences of detecting and eradicating H pylori in long term PPI users in primary care.

AIMS & METHODS: A within-trial economic analysis of the HELPUP trial was conducted within 13 primary care practices in Hull and East Yorkshire, England. 183 H. pylori positive patients were randomly assigned to true or placebo eradication therapy and provided 2-year primary care and referral resource data.

RESULTS: After two years, resource usage was reduced significantly in patients assigned to eradication therapy. PPI prescriptions (full-dose equivalents) fell by 3.9 (p<0.0001); primary care clinician consultations fell by 2.4 (p=0.0001); upper GI endoscopies fell by 14.8% (p=0.008); clinician GI-related home visits fell by 19.9% (p=0.005); and abdominal ultrasound scans fell by 20.3% (p=0.005). Average net savings per patient were �93 (95%CI: 33 to 153) when costs of detection and eradication had been deducted. At one year, Leeds Dyspepsia Questionnaire symptoms fell by 3.1 (p=0.005) and quality of life measures also favoured eradication (EQ-5D: 0.089, p=0.08; VAS: 5.6, p=0.002).

CONCLUSION: H. pylori detection and eradication in infected, long-term PPI users is an economically dominant strategy, significantly reducing overall healthcare costs and improving symptoms after 2 years.

REFERENCE(S): 1. Moayyedi P, Soo S, Deeks J, Forman D, Mason J et al. Systematic review and economic evaluation of Helicobacter pylori eradication treatment for non-ulcer dyspepsia. Dyspepsia Review Group. BMJ 2000;321:659-664.2. Raghunath AS, Hungin AP, Mason J, Jackson W. Helicobacter pylori eradication in long-term proton pump inhibitor users in primary care: a randomized controlled trial. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2007;25:585-592.


For any graph $G$, let $V(G)$ and $E(G)$ denote the vertex set and the edge set of $G$ respectively. The Boolean function graph $B(G,L(G),\mathop {\mathrm NINC})$ of $G$ is a graph with vertex set $V(G)\cup E(G)$ and two vertices in $B(G,L(G),\mathop {\mathrm NINC})$ are adjacent if and only if they correspond to two adjacent vertices of $G$, two adjacent edges of $G$ or to a vertex and an edge not incident to it in $G$. For brevity, this graph is denoted by $B_1(G)$. In this paper, structural properties of $B_1(G)$ and its complement including traversability and eccentricity properties are studied. In addition, solutions for Boolean function graphs that are total graphs, quasi-total graphs and middle graphs are obtained.


Trees are vital to earth's ecosystem. In many places, loss of trees is faster than their replacement. With particular reference to sub-Saharan Africa, this paper seeks to review in outline the value of trees in order to encourage better understanding, appreciation and practical management response. A treasury is a store of wealth, a treasurer its custodian, and the act of treasuring is a positive response to the value of that wealth. Trees are a multi-faceted source of wealth. Not just foresters and forest communities but especially farmers, and also civil societies, families and individuals at large need to care about and for trees. The paper briefly indicates the global status of forests, their ecological and economic significance, and proposes tree-treasuring strategies and practices together with their integration in agro-ecological systems for global food security. While recognising the excellent work that is being done in some places, it is a wider call for deeper appreciation and fresh endeavours concerning trees and their integral management within farming systems. The paper also reports responses to practical field workshops on trees held in Malawi in 2012. In short, integration of trees is deemed essential for sustainable agriculture within ecosystem security.


This paper considers the tracking problem of nonholonomic wheeled mobile robots with unknown dynamics. A new adaptive robust global dynamic controller is presented based on the canonical form of the wheeled mobile robots. This novel controller has low dimension and no singular points. Simulations show the effectiveness of the control scheme.


Abstract. We report the physical and chemical effects of photochemically aging dilute biomass-burning smoke. A "potential aerosol mass" (PAM) flow reactor was used with analysis by a high-resolution aerosol mass spectrometer and a proton-transfer-reaction ion-trap mass spectrometer during the FLAME-3 campaign. Hydroxyl (OH) radical concentrations in the reactor reached up to ~1000 times average tropospheric levels, producing effective OH exposures equivalent to up to 5 days of aging in the atmosphere, and allowing for us to extend the investigation of smoke aging beyond the oxidation levels achieved in traditional smog chambers. Volatile organic compound (VOC) observations show aromatics and terpenes decrease with aging, while formic acid and other unidentified oxidation products increase. Unidentified gas-phase oxidation products, previously observed in atmospheric and laboratory measurements, were observed here, including evidence of multiple generations of photochemistry. Substantial new organic aerosol (OA) mass ("net SOA"; secondary OA) was observed from aging biomass-burning smoke, resulting in total OA average of 1.42 ± 0.36 times the initial primary OA (POA) after oxidation. This study confirms that the net-SOA-to-POA ratio of biomass-burning smoke is far lower on average than that observed for urban emissions. Although most fuels were very reproducible, significant differences were observed among the biomasses, with some fuels resulting in a doubling of the OA mass, while for others a very small increase or even a decrease was observed. Net SOA formation in the photochemical reactor increased with OH exposure (OH exp ), typically peaking around three days of equivalent atmospheric photochemical age (OH exp ~3.9 × 10 11 molecules cm −3 s), then leveling off at higher exposures. The amount of additional OA mass added from aging is positively correlated with initial POA concentration, but not with the total VOC concentration or the concentration of known SOA precursors. The mass of SOA formed often exceeded the mass of the known VOC precursors, indicating the likely importance of primary semivolatile/intermediate volatility species, and possibly of unidentified VOCs as SOA precursors in biomass burning smoke. Chemical transformations continued even after mass concentration stabilized. Changes in the biomass-burning tracer f 60 ranged from substantially decreasing to remaining constant with increased aging. With increased OH exp , oxidation was always detected (as indicated by f 44 and O/C). POA O/C ranged from 0.15 to 0.5, while aged OA O/C reached up to 0.87. The rate of oxidation and maximum O/C achieved differs for each biomass, and appears to increase with the initial O/C of the POA.


Ghana was the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to implement an official population policy in 1969 in response to the recognition by the government of high fertility and high population growth rate and their potentially detrimental consequences. Knowledge of contraceptive methods in Ghana is almost universal with 98% of all women aged 15-49 reporting knowledge of at least one method. However the overall contraceptive prevalence rate remains relatively low at 20.7% for all women aged 15-49 in 2003. Many studies have used large scale survey data to determine the socio-economic and cultural characteristics which may act as determinants of individuals' contraceptive behavior. Contraceptive side effects have been identified as both a barrier to the adoption of a modern contraceptive method and also as a reason for the discontinuation of methods. This paper analyses data from the Cape Coast Social Learning, Social Influence and Fertility Control Survey. This is a longitudinal survey of women aged 18 to 50 in Southern Ghana which was collected in eight rounds between 1998 and 2003. Specifically this study uses the calendar data which collected monthly data on both contraceptive use status and experience of symptoms of side effects. This equates to around 77,000 women months of data including slightly more than 10,000 women months of modern method use. Using descriptive statistics and a multi-state modelling approach this study examines the pattern, timing and frequency of contraceptive discontinuation and switching and how these relate to the concurrent self-reported experience of side effects


Here is the ideal field guide for data warehousing implementation. This book first teaches you how to build a data warehouse, including defining the architecture, understanding the methodology, gathering the requirements, designing the data models, and creating the databases. Coverage then explains how to populate the data warehouse and explores how to present data to users using reports and multidimensional databases and how to use the data in the data warehouse for business intelligence, customer relationship management, and other purposes. It also details testing and how to administer data warehouse operation.


The Integrated Offender Management (IOM) Cymru partnership commissioned this research to achieve a clearer picture of whether and how 'serial domestic abuse' is being understood, defined and recorded by Police forces, Probation providers and Third Sector partners across Wales. Phase one of the research included a qualitative mapping exercise along with a quantitative analysis of n=6642 anonymised domestic abuse perpetrator records provided by Wales Probation Trust. This report sets out findings from phase two which entailed interrogating agency files to gather more detailed information on a random sample of perpetrators (n=100).
Objectives for this phase of the research included:
1) Estimating the prevalence of serial domestic abuse
2) Evaluating agency information and the overlaps (and gaps) across agencies
3) Identifying any distinguishing characteristics of serial domestic abuse perpetrators
4) Providing new evidence to inform developing policy and practice in this area

Findings
Prevalence estimates varied considerably across the three main sources of information used in this research (Police, Probation and Third Sector), ranging from 4% to 20%. A key finding from this research is that different agencies are identifying different individuals as serial (from the same sample of 100 domestic abuse perpetrators) with only a very small degree of overlap across agencies (at best only 1 out of 100).
Using Probation data, it was difficult to empirically distinguish 'serial domestic abuse perpetrators' from non-serial perpetrators. While serial perpetrators were also likely to be repeat perpetrators, only a fraction could also be considered 'high risk' using Probation risk assessment tools (OASys and SARA). Therefore, in the case of domestic abuse offending, the categories of serial/ repeat/ high-risk should not necessarily be considered interchangeable or synonymous.
Serial perpetrators do, however, differ to some extent in their individual risk profile as assessed by the Spousal Abuse Risk Assessment (SARA) risk factors. For example, serial domestic abuse perpetrators are more likely than non-serial domestic abuse perpetrators to have past assault of family and stranger/acquaintance violence, recent escalation in violence, past use of weapons and denial of spousal assault, amongst others.
A profiling exercise of the 'top ten' serial perpetrators was conducted to identify whether those prioritised by Police forces represent a distinctly different, and more dangerous, group of perpetrators. This exercise revealed that, in addition to each force developing their own definition of what constitutes a serial perpetrator, different methods and processes are utilised across forces to target this group of perpetrators, if this is done at all. Only two of the four Welsh forces (South Wales and Dyfed Powys) routinely target serial perpetrators within their force operational processes, thus highlighting that not all forces necessarily view serial perpetration as synonymous with the highest priority offending. Cross-force comparison showed that the profile of 'top ten' serial perpetrators varied considerably across forces, and whilst all but one perpetrator was 'known' to Probation, only one-third of this group could be identified by Probation as serial perpetrators.

Implications
In conclusion, the evidence derived from this exploratory study does not suggest that 'serial domestic abuse perpetrators' represent a qualitatively different group – one that is distinctive, can be reliably identified, and that has a profile calling for a particular course of action in terms of multi-agency response and risk management. This in turn suggests that the conceptualisation of 'serial domestic abuse perpetrator' should be informed not just by the quantity of victims but also the quality of, and motivations behind, the abusive behaviour. For this reason, we recommend that serial offending be considered alongside repeat and high-risk offending behaviour in the determination of who is a priority perpetrator and that this determination should instigate a more intensive and targeted multi-agency response.


Using three years' data from more than 1,000 employees at a large professional services firm, we find that adopting an expertise search tool improves employee work performance in billable revenue, which results from improvements in network connections and information diversity. More importantly, we also find that adoption does not benefit all employees equally. Two types of employees benefit more from adoption of digital collaboration tools than others. First, junior employees and women benefit more from the adoption of digital collaboration tools than do senior employees and men, respectively. These tools help employees overcome the institutional barriers to resource access faced by these employees in their searches for expertise. Second, employees with greater social capital at the time of adoption also benefit more than others. The tools eliminate natural barriers associated with traditional offline interpersonal networks, enabling employees to network even more strategically than before. We explore the mechanisms for these differential benefits. Digital collaboration tools increase the volume of communication more for junior employees and women, indicating greater access to knowledge and expertise than they had before adoption. The tools also decrease the volume of communication for people with greater social capital, indicating more efficient access to knowledge and expertise. An important implication of our findings is that digital collaboration tools have the potential to overcome some of the demographic institutional biases that organizations have long sought to change. It does so, however, at the expense of potentially creating new biases toward network-based features—a characteristic we call "network-biased technical change."


Nonlinear behavior of vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) diodes is exploited to perform all-optical up-conversion by second- and third-order mixing. We investigate and explain conditions for optimum frequency mixing with a common WLAN IEEE 802.11a signal. Then, we apply these findings to the transmission of an ultra-wideband (UWB) multiband-OFDM ECMA-368 signal over a fiber-optic link. We demonstrate direct modulation with the UWB signal up to 10.3 GHz and perform up-conversion to frequencies as high as 16 GHz, far beyond the cutoff frequency of the VCSEL diode.


Synthesis of molecularly imprinted nanoparticles for tripterine with good selectivity and high adsorption capacity by precipitation polymerization is presented for the first time, in which tripterine, methacrylic acid and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate were used as a template molecule, functional monomer and cross-linker, respectively. The preparation conditions of molecularly imprinted nanoparticles were optimized, and the optimal molar ratio of template to functional monomer to cross-linker was 1 : 3 : 3. And non-imprinted polymers (NIPs) for control experiments were also prepared. The nanoparticles were characterized using a scanning electron microscope, laser particle size analyzer and BET, respectively. The results indicated that the imprinted nanoparticles were spherical in shape and the size was relatively uniform. Selectivity analysis suggested that the obtained imprinted nanoparticles could specifically recognize tripterine. In addition, adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherm of the imprinted nanoparticles were utilized to study the binding characteristics of the imprinted nanoparticles. The results revealed that the imprinted nanoparticles had high adsorption capacity and the maximum adsorption capacity of tripterine on the imprinted particles was up to 145.97 mg g−1. In potential application research, this adsorbent was satisfactorily employed as a solid-phase extraction sorbent to extract TTR in urine samples.


Partial autoionization rates of doubly excited one-dimensional helium in the collinear Zee and eZe configuration are obtained by means of the complex rotation method. The approach presented here relies on a projection of back-rotated resonance wave functions onto singly ionized He + ?> channel wave functions and the computation of the corresponding particle fluxes. In spite of the long-range nature of the Coulomb potential between the electrons and the nucleus, an asymptotic region where the fluxes are stationary is clearly observed. Low-lying doubly excited states are found to decay predomintantly into the nearest single-ionization continuum. This approach paves the way for a systematic analysis of the decay rates observed in higher-dimensional models, and of the role of electronic correlations and atomic structure in recent photoionization experiments.


The aquatic plant Ipomoea aquatica is a popular vegetable in Southeast Asia, often cultivated in nutrient rich and polluted waters. The overall aim of this thesis was to estimate potential risks for human health and reduced plant growth due to accumulation and toxicity of total-Hg, methyl-Hg, Cd and Pb.In plants from cultivations in Thailand, the concentrations of Cd and Pb in the shoots were well beneath recommended maximum values for human consumption, but at some sites the Hg concentrations were high. It was demonstrated that I. aquatica has the capacity to accumulate much higher Cd and Pb concentrations in the shoots than found in field-cultivations, before exhibiting toxic symptoms. The Hg concentrations, however, occasionally reached levels that are toxic for the plant. Up to11% of total-Hg was methyl-Hg, the most toxic Hg species, though at one site it was 50-100%. To study if methyl-Hg is formed in I. aquatica, plants were exposed to inorganic Hg through the roots. Of the Hg that reached the young, metabolically active parts of the shoots, a part was transformed to methyl-Hg. A major proportion of absorbed metals was retained in the roots, which had a high tolerance for high internal metal concentrations. The nutrient level did influence accumulation and effects of Hg, Cd and Pb in I. aquatica. Low external nutrient levels resulted in increased metal accumulation in the shoots and in metal-induced toxic effects in the plant at low external metal levels. A generous supply of sulphur or nitrogen induced formation of thiol-rich peptides in I. aquatica, compounds that have a metal detoxifying effect in plants. To conclude, the levels of Cd and Pb in field cultivated I. aquatica do not pose any apparent threat to human health or risk for reduced plant growth. The levels of Hg however, were high at some sites and could be a health threat, for children and foetuses in particular, and especially considering the presence of methyl-Hg. The use of fertilizers is favourable as it reduces the risk for increased metal concentrations in I. aquatica and for reduced crop yields.


U.S. freight railroad accident and hazardous materials release rates have declined substantially since 1980. Ironically, this trend has made the identification and implementation of further safety improvement options more challenging because less empirical information exists on which accident causes present the greatest risks. Consequently, more sophisticated methods are needed to identify the best options for transportation risk reduction. Of particular interest is identifying the principal causes of accidents that can result in a tank car release of hazardous materials, which can harm people, property, and the environment. Because large hazardous materials release accidents are relatively rare, railroads cannot effectively manage safety improvement efforts solely in response to the causes of specific accidents. Instead, a risk-based approach is needed to better understand predictive factors for conditions that can cause a release. Railroad derailment data were analyzed to identify the conditions most likely to lead to a release accident. The objective was to identify proxy variables that can be used as performance measures. The speed of derailment and number of derailed cars highly correlated with hazardous materials releases. Some accident causes are much more likely to lead to release conditions than others. Accident prevention efforts to reduce these causes are more likely to reduce the risk of major railroad hazardous materials release accidents.


This study was designed the physical signal control system of posture balance for preserving body sway. It was necessary to constantly monitor their physical parameters, especially body balance, to effectively control their health condition and care body moving. There signified body movement by the parameter that was neck moving and eye moving such as forward/backward body moving. This system consist of a data acquisition system, which was responsible for capturing and sending data signal, which was responsible for gathering data signal processing, and to control the received data through feedback system. There were evaluated their body sway through a physical data, and identified to maintain the stability. It was expected to control a body activity and to confirm the physical signal system. Keyword: Physical signal control system, Signal processing, Data acquisition system, body sway


Greedy forwarding is the key mechanism of geographic routing and is one of the protocols used most commonly in wireless sensor networks. Greedy forwarding uses 1-hop local information to forward packets to the destination and does not have to maintain the routing table, and thus it takes small overhead and has excellent scalability. However, the signal intensity reduces exponentially with the distance in realistic wireless sensor network, and greedy forwarding consumes a lot of energy, since it forwards the packets to the neighbor node closest to the destination. Previous proposed greedy forwarding protocols are the sender-based greedy forwarding that a sender selects a neighbor node to forward packets as the forwarding node and hence they cannot guarantee energy efficient forwarding in unpredictable wireless environment. In this paper, we propose the receiver-based greedy forwarding called RGF where one of the neighbor nodes that received the packet forwards it by itself. In RGF, sender selects several energy efficient nodes as candidate forwarding nodes and decides forwarding priority of them in order to prevent unnecessary transmissions. The simulation results show that RGF improves delivery rate up to maximum 66.8% and energy efficiency, 60.9% compared with existing sender-based greedy forwarding.


Hull et al. rightly point out the special character of selection as a causal mode, but ironically they seem to force selection back into traditional causal modes by decomposing it into replication, variation, and environmental interaction. Many processes are selective, and a taxonomy of a broad range of kinds of selection may be preferable to narrowing the applicability of the term.


Industry seismic reflection data, oil test well data, interpretation of gravity and magnetic data, and seismic refraction deep-crustal profiles provide new perspectives on the subsurface geology of San Fernando Valley, home of two of the most recent damaging earthquakes in southern California. Seismic reflection data provide depths to Miocene–Quaternary horizons; beneath the base of the Late Miocene Modelo Formation are largely nonreflective rocks of the Middle Miocene Topanga and older formations. Gravity and seismic reflection data reveal the North Leadwell fault zone, a set of down-to-the-north faults that does not offset the top of the Modelo Formation; the zone strikes northwest across the valley, and may be part of the Oak Ridge fault system to the west. In the southeast part of the valley, the fault zone bounds a concealed basement high that influenced deposition of the Late Miocene Tarzana fan and may have localized damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Gravity and seismic refraction data indicate that the basin underlying San Fernando Valley is asymmetric, the north part of the basin (Sylmar subbasin) reaching depths of 5–8 km. Magnetic data suggest a major boundary at or near the Verdugo fault, which likely started as a Miocene transtensional fault, and show a change in the dip sense of the fault along strike. The northwest projection of the Verdugo fault separates the Sylmar subbasin from the main San Fernando Valley and coincides with the abrupt change in structural style from the Santa Susana fault to the Sierra Madre fault. The Simi Hills bound the basin on the west and, as defined by gravity data, the boundary is linear and strikes ∼N45°E. That northeast-trending gravity gradient follows both the part of the 1971 San Fernando aftershock distribution called the Chatsworth trend and the aftershock trends of the 1994 Northridge earthquake. These data suggest that the 1971 San Fernando and 1994 Northridge earthquakes reactivated portions of Miocene normal faults.


Title of dissertation: The Impact of Employer Premium Contribution Schemes on the Supply and Demand of Health Insurance Yiyan Liu, Doctor of Philosophy, 2013 Directed by: Professor Ginger Zhe Jin Department of Economics This dissertation consists of three essays on health insurance markets, analyzing the impact of employer premium contribution schemes on both the supply and demand sides of the market. The first two essays focus on the supply side, whereas the third essay looks at the demand side. In the first essay, I present an analytical framework to illustrate the effect of employer premium contribution schemes on health plan pricing. I model the employer-sponsored health insurance market as a differentiated-product oligopoly and study the pricing strategies of insurance plans before and after a policy change in employer premium contribution. I find that the employer premium contribution scheme has a differential impact on health plan pricing based on two market incentives: 1) consumers are less price sensitive when they only need to pay part of the premium increase, and 2) each health plan has an incentive to increase the employer's premium contribution to that plan. In the second essay, I confirm the theoretical predictions using 1991-2011 data before and after a premium contribution policy change that occurred in 1999 in the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program. Empirical results suggest that both market incentives mentioned above contribute to premium growth. Furthermore, I perform counterfactual analysis to show that average premium would have been 10% less than observed had the subsidy policy change not occurred in the FEHB program, and the federal government would have incurred 15% less in premium contribution. The third essay looks at how capped employer premium subsidies affect the level of adverse selection among consumers. Previous research suggests that the employer premium contribution scheme can exacerbate or mitigate the level of adverse selection among consumers. Using longitudinal health plan enrollment records of federal civilian employees from years 1997-2000, I present empirical results supporting previous theoretical as well as cross-sectional empirical evidence on the dampening effect of a higher employer premium subsidy cap on adverse selection. The overall level of adverse selection, approximated by the different premium levels enrollees select based on their age, does not change significantly over time in the FEHB program. The Impact of Employer Premium Contribution Schemes on the Supply and Demand of Health Insurance


Baseline ecological studies of Pondicherry mangroves are important for monitoring, management and conservation of mangrove ecosystems. A brachyuran crab faunal assemblage at four stations of Pondicherry mangroves is described and monthly samplings were made during September 2008 – August 2009. Totally 22 species of brachyuran crabs belonging to 12 genera and 5 families were recorded; crabs belonging to the family Portunidae and Ocipodidae are most dominant group represented by total of 16 species. Six species considered are as a commercially important and out of which, on three species Scylla serrata, Thalamitta crenata and Portunus sanguinolentus are catch large quantities from stations 1 and 2. Portunus pelagicus, P. sanguinolentus and T. crenata were totally absent in stations 3 and 4. Population densities of brachyuran fauna ranged from 29 -71 ind. m 2 , the diversity ranged from 0.96 -2.18 bit. ind -1 , the richness varied from 0.42 -0.74, and the evenness varied from 0.41 -.072. Maximum diversity values were recorded during post monsoon. The crab community recorded was analyzed by univariate and multivariate statistical techniques. Crab community structure was correlated with vegetation structure, and environmental factors were positively correlated with surface water pH, salinity, tree dominance, tree diversity and tidal inundation and negatively correlated with sulphide, organic matter, senescent leaves and decaying leaves, suggesting that the mangrove vegetation is important to the crab fauna as a habitat and food supply.


It has previously been shown that macrophages in various types of inflamed tissue proliferate, whereas macrophages on subcutaneously inserted glass cover slips showed little such activity. This discrepancy suggested that macrophage proliferation in inflammation might be a complex and variable process. The present investigation indicates that inflammatory macrophages that have entered them mitotic cycle fall into one of three categories; cells newly arrived from the circulation, cells forming a high turn over pool heavily dependent on recruitment from the bone marrow , and cells forming a self-sufficient population largely independent of marrow recruitment. In reactions provoked by subcutaneous insertion of cover slips, uptake of a pulse of [3H]T by perivascular but haematogenous macrophages begins at 4 h but is not evident in macrophages adhering to the cover slip until 2 to 4 days. Contrary to previous belief, DNA synthesis in multinucleate giant cells does occur but not until the cells are about 14 days old. DNA synthesis is frequently synchronous in the nuclei of a given cell. The percentage of connective tissue and cover-slip macrophages undergoing DNA synthesis becomes equal at 4 to 6 days. Selective X-irradiation of the bone marrow or the reaction site showed that the cells remain in the tissues or on the cover slip for only one or two days and that the lesion is totally dependent on daily recruitment from the marrow . Turnover is highest in the first few days of the lesion. The newly arrived macrophages that monopolize these early lesions have the curious property of resisting removal from the granuloma by dissection, whereas established arrivals are teased out with ease. The presence or absence of DNA synthesis in viable macrophages is determined partly by factors within the cell and partly by its environment. This was shown by transferring coverslip macrophages from early lesions to more mature reactions and vice versa and to tissue culture. Early macrophages unable to enter the mitotic cycle retained this disability under all circumstances. Macrophages from older reactions that normally synthesize DNA continued to do so in tissue culture but ceased this activity on transfer to early inflammatory lesions, indicating the inhibitory effect of this particular environment. Peritoneal macrophages that synthesize DNA very poorly in the normal peritoneum and in tissue culture entered the mitotic cycle in large numbers when transferred to inflammatory reactions old enough to have ceased to inhibit DNA synthesis. Similarly, blood monocytes that show even less proliferation than peritoneal cells in vitro, exhibited intense DNA synthesis 2 days after implantation into inflamed subcutaneous tissue. Since small numbers of monocytes gave rise, within a few days, to large numbers of macrophages, an association was established between incorporation of [3H]T into nuclear DNA and net increase in cell numbers. The technique of selective X -irradiation and dissection were applied to various types of dermal and subcutaneous inflammation. In reactions to bovine fibrinogen all DNA-synthesizing macrophages were found to be of the newly arrived type. More unexpectedly in even long-established reactions to B. pertussis vaccine, almost all the macrophages were again of this type, presumably because of the toxicity of the killed organisms. Granulomata due to incomplete Freund adjuvant were similar to the reactions provoked by subcutaneous cover slips in that once the lesion was established most of the macrophages belonged to a high-turnover pool continuously replenished by fresh recruits from the marrow. Carrageenan granulomata revealed the existence of a third type of macrophage population, largely independent of further marrow recruitment. Presumably the low toxicity of carrageenan permits the expression of macrophage longevity which augmented by occasional mitotic activity maintains a self-sufficient population.


Perfect for the not-so-perfect day, these 50 smart, efficient workouts will help athletes keep their training on track. Given the choice, most endurance athletes would reserve a few hours everyday for training. But the growing ranks of triathletes, runners, and cyclists are proof that most endurance athletes are working professionals, many of them juggling workouts along with family and their jobs. "One-Hour Workouts" is the perfect solution for athletes who are pressed for time. Even endurance athletes can get a quality training session in one hour if the workout is focused. In "One-Hour Workouts", three prominent coaches have teamed up to prove just that. Former professional triathlete Scott Molina ("The Terminator"), Mark Newton, and Michael Jacques give athletes smart workouts that will complement their existing training and keep season goals on track even in the busiest of weeks. Each of the 50 swim, bike, and run workouts is designed to fit into a lunch hour, including warm-up and cool-down. Athletes can choose a base, tempo, or speed workout for according to their training goals for the day. One of the cardinal rules for the committed athlete is 'never miss a workout', and with this book, athletes will greatly improve their chances of making that happen. In fact, when they begin to see positive results, they will undoubtedly reach for the more efficient workout more often.


The main goal of this research is design of an ultraviolet photodetector based on intersubband transitions in III-Nitride multiple quantum well. Due to the abundance of visible light detectors, optically pumped lasers with ability of converting incident ultraviolet radiation to visible light are proposed. In this way, incident wavelength of about 352nm at ultraviolet wavelength band is converted to wavelength of 559nm at visible range using intersubband transitions in III-Nitride multiple quantum well structures.To calculate parameters of the structure, wave functions and energy levels are obtained by solving 1-D Schrodinger– Poisson equation self consistently at 300°K. Responsivity and optical gain for the designed structure are 4.623(mA/w) and 10.28 (1/cm) at 300°K respectively.


In the framework of the JT-60SA project, aiming at upgrading the present JT-60U tokamak, Europe as part of its in-kind contribution within the Broader Approach agreement, will provide the full Toroidal Field (TF) magnet system. For this purpose, Fusion for Energy is committed to procure about 27 km of TF conductor. The TF conductor is cable-in-conduit type and includes 486 strands (2/3 NbTi-1/3 copper) wrapped with a thin stainless steel foil and embedded into a rectangular stainless steel jacket. The procurement is split into two main contracts: one for strand manufacturing and the other for cabling and jacketing. After having successfully passed the qualification stage, strand and conductor are now in mass production stage. In the present paper, we emphasize on the scientific and quality control approaches of both TF strand and TF conductor productions. For the NbTi strand, the focus is on design and measurement of performance critical aspects (CuNi barrier design optimization, AC losses, TCS performance, etc.). For Cu strand the main issue is RRR. For the TF conductor, the topics presented cover hydraulic correlation validation measurements (pressure drop tests), geometrical advanced controls, and electromagnetic behavior (hotspot checks and mainly the experimental results of the TF conductor full-size samples tested in SULTAN facility). The article presents comparisons of numerical simulation and experimental results used to confirm the design and the manufacturing processes.


Education in Saudi Arabia, including the education of children with special needs, is developing rapidly. However, children with emotional and behavioral disorders are neither consistently identified nor adequately served in Saudi Arabia although they are recognized as a distinct category of children who require special education services. The goal of this study was to examine the prevalence of emotional and behavioral disorders among children in Saudi Arabia to assess the need for intervention services to help those children reach their potential. The current research identified the types of behaviors that are most evident in the study sample. Also, the relationship between demographics and emotional and behavioral disorders is studied to identify possible predictors of disruptive forms of behavior. Parents of children aged 4-17 years in Saudi Arabia were surveyed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The findings of the study suggest that children with emotional and behavioral disorders in Saudi Arabia may account for 20% of the population of children between the ages of 4 and 17. The findings also revealed that over 20% of children in Saudi Arabia have difficulties in peer relationship and lack the necessary prosocial behaviors. The parent reporting, child gender, child education type, the geographical region, the father's education level, and the family's socioeconomic status were found to be statistically significant predictors of children difficulties. However, these predictors were only able to explain a small portion of the difficulty scores. Article visualizations:


Labor induction is one of the most common obstetric interventions. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between induction and risk of cesarean section delivery for women with term pregnancies who were admitted to Bessat hospital in Sanandaj from 2012 to2013. This study was a prospective cohort study in which study population were pregnant women who were admitted to Bessat hospital in Sanandaj (Kurdistan province in North Western Iran) from 2012 to2013. Study samples size were 539 cases using convenience sampling among eligible pregnant women admitted to Bessat Hospital for induction. Results of the study showed that a total of 539 women underwent induction. Mean age of the study units were 26.7 ± 5.6 years. In terms of education, 63.3 % were at the elementary level, the majorities (94.6%) were housewives, and 57.4% were nulliparous. The mean gestational age was 39.3 ± 2.6 weeks (Table 1) and post-term pregnancies (40.63%), PROM (24.12%) and non-reactive NST (7.79%) were among the most common causes for induction. Dilatation and birth weight could be factors predicting labor induction success. Furthermore, performing Induction in dilatation 3 cm or less could be associated with an increased risk of cesarean delivery.