Since the theory of metagames is a thoroughly new development, built up from "classical" game theory, the author has taken great care to assess the soundness of its structural parts, proving all assertions and evoking a high degree of mathematical rigor and generality akin to that found in abstract set theory in pure mathematics. However, the aim of his work is to produce a technique that can be used to resolve real-life, real-time conflict situations and to investigate political and social interactions between decision makers. Such applications have in fact already been made, and the book contains, for example, an analysis of the Vietnam conflict.The most primitive ideas of game theory - the extensive and normal forms, and the equilibrium point - are developed in such a way as to create a theory that is not purely formal and is in no way normative but rather is realistic, empirical, and experimental. Moreover, the approach is "nonquantitative". One reason is that numerical utilities usually cannot be estimated in a reliable manner in the real world. Another is that some of the most powerful methods developed by twentieth-century mathematics (those, for example, in topology, modern algebra, and set theory) are nonquantitative, and their application to social science, with its many "unmeasurables," is clearly appropriate and potentially of enormous value.Other features of the approach are that it embraces both cooperative and noncooperative games simultaneously; it embraces both pure-strategy and mixed-strategy games; and it engages generally in "n-person", variable-sum games, of which the common two-person, zero-sum game is only a special case.Metagames are those "derived from a given game by allowing one of the players to choose his strategy (in the given game) after the others in knowledge of their choices." The theory has important comsequences regarding the nature of rational behavior, which is defined here as choosing alternatives that are most likely to achieve a given end. Indeed, the author proves several theorems that assert that in some cases to be rational is to be wrong, that irrationality is sometimes more effective, and, even, "that to be rational in two-person games is usually to be a sucker." He identifies three separate breakdowns of rationality. A consideration of "metarationality" leads to similar conclusions at that higher level of decision making.Of special interest are the sections on the existentialist axiom, the free will argument, and the axiom of choce, and the paradoxes implicit in the use of these concepts.Models based on metagame theory have been tentatively developed elsewhere to deal with urban transportation priorities, the New York school strike, and the Arab-Israeli conflict, as well as the Vietnam struggle.


Perceptual experience results from a complex interplay of bottom-up input and prior knowledge about the world, yet the extent to which knowledge affects perception, the neural mechanisms underlying these effects, and the stages of processing at which these two sources of information converge, are still unclear. In a series of experiments we show that language, in the form of verbal cues, both aids recognition of ambiguous "Mooney" images and improves objective visual discrimination performance. We then used electroencephalography (EEG) to better understand the mechanisms of this effect. The improved discrimination of images previously labeled was accompanied by a larger occipital-parietal P1 evoked response to the meaningful versus meaningless target stimuli. Time-frequency analysis of the interval between the two stimuli (just prior to the target stimulus) revealed increases in the power of posterior alpha-band (8-14 Hz) oscillations when the meaning of the stimuli to be compared was trained. The magnitude of the prestimulus alpha difference and the P1 amplitude difference was positively correlated across individuals. These results suggest that prior knowledge prepares the brain for upcoming perception via the modulation of prestimulus alpha-band oscillations, and that this preparatory state influences early (~120 ms) stages of visual processing.


The solution of quasistationary heat-conduction problems with moving heat sources on the surface of a body is a demanding task and still a topic of ongoing research. The authors have shown in several contributions that an exact analytical solution exists for a constant velocity of the heat source and constant thermal properties of the body. Since also convection at the surface can be treated properly, cooling and quenching problems can be solved, accordingly. The main characteristic of the governing equation is that the partial derivative of the temperature with respect to time must be replaced by the convective term being the velocity of the heat source times the gradient of the temperature. In this contribution it is shown that the quasistationary problem can be transformed into a stationary one, if a modified heat-conduction coefficient is introduced. The application of this concept and its limits are demonstrated in comparison with existing analytical solutions. For this purpose a model is set up which consists of two parts. In the first part the concept of transforming to a stationary problem is employed, whereas in the second part fictitious heat sources are defined. The methodology is shown to be very efficient as it avoids difficulties arising from the necessity to use very dense meshes and proper time integration routines necessary when applying standard fine element codes for a spatially fixed configuration of a body with moving heat sources on its surface.


The move towards same-sex marriage in France and the UK highlights the commitment to the recognition of same-sex families in Europe. In the same way that the recognition of same-sex unions within the EU is recognised as being of fundamental importance, so too is the recognition of the relationships that exist between same-sex parents and their children. LGBT poly-parenting, where same-sex couples (and single people) are conceiving and raising children with a friend of the opposite sex, is becoming increasingly visible in society. Legislatures in Europe are beginning to consider the possibility of legally recognising families created in this way. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the types of legal issues these family arrangements raise and how the law might respond to them.

This paper is based on PhD research, which compares the legal response to poly-parenting in the UK and Canada. UK legislation has recently been reformed to allow both members of a female couple to be legally recognised as the parents of a child born through assisted reproduction. The courts, however, have struggled to interpret this legislation in situations where the child's biological father is an acquaintance or friend of the female couple rather than an anonymous donor. The Canadian courts in Ontario and the Legislative Assemblies of British Columbia and Quebec have similarly struggled with these issues, which are regulated at the provincial, not federal, level in Canada.

This paper discusses the various legal approaches to this issue in each jurisdiction, highlighting the factors that courts and legislatures have identified as particularly significant. These include the role of pre-conception intentions and post-conception parenting in determining who should be recognised as a parent. The paper will largely focus on the recognition of known donors/biological fathers in relation to female couples who have children because this is what the majority of the reported case law deals with. Of particular importance in this regard are the choices the law makes in relation to the recognition of the biological father's parental involvement through the use of parental responsibility rather than as a record of parental status on the birth certificate, which is an approach adopted by the UK courts.

This is an emerging area of family law and policy in Europe, which not only engages tensions within the European Convention on Human Rights but can also have a marked practical impact on the families involved. The comparative analysis presented in this paper raises questions of whether law reform in this area is required in the UK and how such reform could be achieved. Whilst the paper does not purport to answer these questions definitively, these issues deserve to be debated further at national, regional and international levels and this paper hopes to make some contribution to that debate.


Regulatory agencies such as Europol, Frontex, Eurojust, CEPOL as well as bodies such as OLAF, have over the past decade become increasingly active within the institutional architecture constituting the EU's Area of Freedom, Security and Justice and are now placed at the forefront of implementing and developing the EU's internal security model. A prominent feature of agency activity is the large-scale proliferation of 'knowledge' on security threats via the production of policy tools such as threat assessments, risk analyses, periodic and situation reports. These instruments now play a critical role in providing the evidence-base that supports EU policy-making, with agency-generated 'knowledge' feeding political priority setting and decision-making within the EU's new Internal Security Strategy (ISS). This paper examines the nature and purpose of knowledge generated by EU Home Affairs agencies. It asks from where does this knowledge originate? How does it measure against criteria of objectivity, scientific rigour, reliability and accuracy? And how is it processed in order to frame threats, justify actions and set priorities under the ISS?


High stone asphalt surfacing mixes are widely used around the world. Although their high stone content has reduced problems with permanent deformation they pose a problem when they become polished and don't meet minimum requirements for safety. It may be possible to overlay with another thin surfacing, remove and recycle or re-texture. Each process has differing merits in terms of sustainability. This paper considers chip seal as an alternative method. Traditionally, chip seal has been viewed as being noisy and has not been considered for use in urban areas where noise is an important factor in the selection of a new surface. Research at University of Ulster in noise prediction highlighted that small stone size chipseal surfacings can achieve significant noise reduction so offering an additional alternative for resurfacing. A laboratory study of chip embedment has investigated change in texture depth and skid resistance for a range of chip sizes and asphalt mix types. This has developed laboratory techniques that appear to rank the embedment of chip seal aggregates in relation to underlying road material. This study has shown less embedment for high stone mixes and confirms the findings of limited small stone size chip seal road trials where skid resistance and texture depth was monitored. This paper reports the findings to date.


Autophagy, or "self-eating" of the cell, is a tightly regulated "housekeeping" process involved in the degradation and recycling of protein aggregates and damaged organelles. In the failing heart, autophagy has been shown to be an adaptive response. We have previously demonstrated that a common feature of non-ischemic heart failure is lipid accumulation, which in excess can mediate cardiac dysfunction via lipotoxicity. Since autophagy mediates the clearance of lipids through a specific process, known as lipophagy, in hepatocytes, we wondered whether the activation of autophagy in the failing heart protects myocyte from lipotoxicity. To test this hypothesis, L6 myocytes were incubated over a period of 6 days with long chain fatty acids, either 0.5mM or 1.0mM fatty acids (equimolar mixture of oleate and palmitate). On the sixth day of treatment, an autophagic inhibitor (bafilomycin A1, 200nM) or autophagic activator (rapamycin, 1uM) was added to the cell culture medium for 24 hours. Intracellular triglyceride (TG) accumulation was measured in the cells using enzyme quantification assay as well as Oil Red O stain. Immunoblotting was also performed on protein markers to confirm autophagic flux (LC3 and P62) and cell death (Caspase3) in the myocytes. The results indicated that increasing concentrations of fatty acids gradually increased intracellular TG accumulation. Inhibition of autophagy using bafilomycin increased this effect whereas activation of autophagy using rapamycin reduced lipid accumulation in the L6 myocytes. Moreover, fatty acid mediated cell death was increased when autophagy is inhibited. We conclude that autophagy promotes the clearance of lipids from cultured myocytes. These findings suggest that lipophagy may be a protective mechanism in the myocyte through the decrease and reversal of intracellular lipid accumulation.


President George W. Bush was completing his second (and final) term in office and Vice President Dick Cheney decided not to run for president. Thus, the 2008 American presidential primary is the first "open" campaign (with no sitting president or vice president competing) since 1952 with highly competitive primaries for both major political parties. This study uses content analysis to investigate news coverage (national newspapers, network television news, and local newspapers) of the 2008 American presidential primary campaign. Most themes in the news concerned the horse race (66%) with somewhat more emphasis on the candidates' character (18%) than their policy proposals (15%). The most common topics of horse race comments were campaign strategy (24%), campaign events (19%), polls (17%), and predictions (12%). More news comments were positive (62%) than negative (32%) with few comments about the candidate's defenses (7%). Most comments were unattributed (statements by journalists: 66%); candidates were quoted or paraphrased in about one in five comments; the remaining comments were from supporters (8%) or others (7%).


HELLP syndrome is a serious obstetrical complication that tends to occur in the second half of pregnancy that complicates six promiles of pregnancies. The term HELLP syndrome is derived from the beginning letters of the English words indicating laboratory changes, which is occurs as a specific illness in pregnancy. There is hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes and a decreased platelet count. It can present itself with preeclampsia or without it. The most serious complications are disseminated intravascular coagulation, liver rupture or various organ failures. The pathogenesis at the moment is not completely known. The basic approach to care is delivery at the earliest possible term. HELLP syndrome generally arises in the second or third trimester of pregnancy, but can also occur after delivery. It has typical signs, which can also arise due to other liver diseases, but more frequently in diseases of the gall bladder, which in pregnancy given the physiological changes in the body of the pregnant women is also predisposed. In this context, woman with this problem can seek out other physicians than obstetricians. In our case, we wanted to refer to the needs of early diagnosis of this frequently diagnosed illness, since in the case of late diagnosis and a woman not sent to the obstetrical department can lead to a serious life threatening state for the mother and child.


Local government restructuring should no longer be viewed as a simple dichotomy between private and public provision. A 1997 survey of chief elected township and county officials in New York shows that local governments use both private and public sector mechanisms to structure the market, create competition, and attain economies of scale. In addition to privatization and inter-municipal cooperation, two alternative forms of service delivery not previously researched-reverse privatization and governmental entrepreneurship-are analyzed here. Logistic regression on the 201 responding governments differentiates the decision to restructure from the level and complexity of restructuring. Results confirm that local governments are guided primarily by pragmatic concerns with information, monitoring, and service quality. Political factors are not significant in the restructuring process and unionization is only significant in cases of simple restructuring (privatization or cooperation used alone). Fiscal stress is not a primary motivator, but debt limits are associated with more complex forms of restructuring. Restructuring service delivery requires capacity to take risks and is more common among experienced local officials in larger, higher-income communities. Restructuring should be viewed as a complex, pragmatic process where governments combine public and private provision with an active role as service provider and market player. © 2001 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.


Background Difficult and failed tracheal intubation remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality related to anesthesia practice. Videolaryngoscopes were introduced into practice to increase the success rate of intubation in obese patients with difficult airway. Aim The aim of this study was to compare GlideScope and C-MAC videolaryngoscopes in obese patients with anticipated difficult intubation as regards feasibility and outcome. Patients and methods The study was designed as a prospective comparative single-blind study, which was conducted at King Abdullah Hospital, Bisha, KSA, during the period from January 2013 to January 2015. It included 60 obese patients with anticipated difficult intubation. They were randomly divided into two equal groups: the GlideScope group and the C-MAC group. All patients were assessed for demographic characteristics, intubation parameters, and outcome. Results There were no significant differences between the two groups as regards general characteristics and hemodynamics. However, there was a significantly better glottic view in the GlideScope group compared with the C-MAC group. There was a significantly shorter total intubation time and first attempt intubation time in the GlideScope group compared with the C-MAC group (32.43±2.40 and 28.70±2.15 s vs. 40.40±5.07 and 34.80±2.92 s, respectively). The incidence of failure of the first intubation attempt was significantly higher in the C-MAC group compared with the GlideScope group (33.3 vs. 10.0%, respectively). Overall satisfaction was significantly better in the GlideScope group compared with the C-MAC group. Conclusion GlideScope had better glottic view, shorter total intubation and first attempt intubation times, and higher success rate of first intubation attempt compared with C-MAC. These results advocate the use of GlideScope in obese patients with potentially difficult intubation.


Claims of the regressivity of gasoline taxes typically rely on annual surveys of consumer income and expenditures, which show that gasoline expenditures are a larger fraction of income for very low-income households than for middle- or high-income households. This paper argues that annual expenditure provides a more reliable indicator of household well-being than annual income. It uses data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey to reassess the claim that gasoline taxes are regressive by computing the share of total expenditures that high-spending and low-spending households devote to retail gasoline purchases. This alternative approach shows that low-expenditure households devote a smaller share of their budget to gasoline than do their counterparts in the middle of the expenditure distribution. Although households in the top 5% of the total spending distribution spend less on gasoline than those who are less well off, the share of expenditure devoted to gasoline is much more stable across the population than the ratio of gasoline outlays to current income. The gasoline tax thus appears far less regressive than conventional analyses suggest.


The Baram Delta province of NW Borneo is unusual when compared with most other Tertiary deltas, as it has built up upon an active margin. Hence, structures observed in the Baram Delta province are the result of both margin-parallel gravity-driven deltaic tectonics and approximately margin-normal transpressive tectonics associated with the active margin. Image and dipmeter logs have been examined for breakouts and drilling-induced tensile fractures (DITFs) in 47 wells throughout Brunei. Breakouts and DITFs observed in 19 wells suggest that the maximum horizontal stress is oriented margin-normal (NW–SE) in the proximal parts of the basin and margin-parallel (NE–SW) in the outer shelf region. The margin-parallel outer shelf stress field is interpreted as a local 'deltaic' stress field caused by the shape of the clastic wedge. The margin-normal maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf is interpreted to reflect basement stresses associated with the active margin. However, the maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf is approximately perpendicular to the strike of Miocene–Pliocene normal growth faults, suggesting that maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf has rotated from margin-parallel ('deltaic') to margin-normal ('basement-associated') over time. Hence, approximately the same stress rotation has occurred over time in the inner shelf as is currently observed spatially from the outer to inner shelf. The spatial and temporal stress rotations in Brunei are thus interpreted to be the result of 'deltaic' and 'basement-associated' tectonic regimes that are 'prograding' basin-wards. The proximity of the active margin has resulted in progressive uplift and inversion of the hinterland that has 'forced' the delta system to prograde rapidly. The zone of active deltaic growth faulting (and margin-parallel maximum horizontal stress) has shifted basin-wards ('prograded') as the delta system has rapidly prograded across the shelf. After uplift and delta progradation, the old growth faults of the inner shelf ceased being active and have then been successively reactivated by a similarly 'prograding' margin-normal inversion front.


As the size of reconfigurable fabrics increases we can envision entire applications being mapped to a reconfigurable device; not just the code, but also the memory. These larger circuits, unfortunately, will suffer from the problem of a growing memory bottleneck. In this paper we explore how mobile memory techniques, inspired by cache-only memory architectures, can be applied to help solve this problem. The basic idea is to move the memory to the location of the accessor. Using both an analytical model and simulation we investigate several different memory movement algorithms. The results show that mobility can, on average, decrease memory latency 2x; which translates into speedup of about 15%.


In industrialised countries water service providers (WSPs) must provide an appropriate level of service with an acceptable performance at an acceptable cost to customers. In the UK a move towards sustainable development is now also a major goal for WSPs. However, the imposition of institutional systems and regulatory targets still encourage the adoption of less sustainable technologies or solutions by the water industry. It is within this context, that the Sustainable Water industry Asset Resource Decisions (SWARD) project has developed a set of decision support processes that allow WSPs to assess the relative sustainability of water/wastewater system asset development decisions. A Guidebook has been produced that takes the WSP and its stakeholders through the processes essential to incorporating sustainability in asset investment decision‐making. Several case studies that demonstrate the SWARD principles in application are included within the Guidebook, the experience of which is described in this paper.


To the Editor: ''Children and Marathoning: How Young is Too Young'' by Rice and Waniewski outlines the theoretical concerns surrounding the issue of children and adolescents participating in marathon runs. There is little evidence to support the suggested ban on youth participating in marathons and the manuscript offers little advice other than ''just say no.'' When I look at injury in youth sports, I find it difficult to single out long distance running even at the marathon level as a significant risk to long term health and well being compared with baseball, ice hockey, soccer, gymnastics, figure skating, and football, or the extreme sports that children and adolescents choose to escape adult supervision. The injury incidence cited for both boys' and girls' cross country running is most likely due to ill advised training programs that encourage excessive summer running in the 300 to 500 mile range to prepare for the 5 k and 4-5 k competitions, respectively, during the high school season. In some states 11-year-old students are eligible to participate in varsity level high school cross country racing. Although cases and anecdotes do not constitute an evidence base to guarantee the safety of children who choose to run a marathon, my experience with young runners who have entered and completed the Twin Cities Marathon over the past 22 years has not demonstrated any adverse injury patterns. In the mid 80's we were faced with our first 10-year-old to enter the marathon. We were not sure how to proceed and a literature search provided no defensible course of action. In my role as medical director, I called the father who related the following story. His 10-year -old son had been running shorter distances with the father over the past couple of years and both looked forward to the time together. The father chose to up his running to the marathon level and told his son that he could not run with him at that distance. The father increased his training volume while the son continued to run on his own. One day in the early summer the child asked his father how many times around the block was the same as a marathon. The father thought his son was asking for help solving a math problem and together they calculated the distance at 56 times around the block. He was surprised a few weeks later when his son approached him and stated that he was ready to enter the marathon as he had just finished running around the block 56 times. It had taken him several weeks to build up to the distance. The father was leery but entered the child to run with him. They finished together in the 4-5 hour range. The child stopped by the medical tent after the race at my request. He was fine and looked better than many of the adults in the finish area. To date, none of the under 18 entrants have required care in the medical tent at the marathon finish line. So what is the point? We have no objective evidence to either restrict or promote running the marathon or other distances above 5 k in children and adolescents. We are also faced with gross inactivity in our young population. Even though the ''no participation'' expert opinion is well intentioned, given no guidelines people do what they please and often make preventable errors. While I would not encourage children and adolescents to run marathons, the data is not there to prove it any more risky than many of the sports that are promoted for today's youth. The area of greatest concern may not be the race itself, but rather the volume of training required to adequately prepare to run the race as a child or as an adult. I would make the following suggestions for children (and their parents) and road race officials regarding marathon and longer distance road race participation: Races that choose not to allow competitors from the child and adolescent age categories should state the decision is an administrative choice and not couch the decision in a ''medical'' opinion statement. Marathons and other long distance races should not encourage child and adolescent participation. Marathons and other distance races should not keep youth age group records below age 18 years and should not publicize the participation of child or adolescent runners. Self motivated children and adolescents should be allowed to participate, race administration rules permitting, as long as: They follow an acceptable supervised training program with emphasis on fun and participation, not records and fast times. They have no injury or pain during training. They maintain normal growth in height and weight during training. They remain healthy with good nutritional intake and good sleep patterns. They maintain good social interaction and academic performance during training. Girls maintain normal menstrual function. Children should run the race with an adult and should consider not participating in very large events where it is easy to ''get lost in the crowd.'' Children should not enter a marathon that does not start shortly after sunrise to avoid the hottest part of the day. Children should not start a marathon if the ambient temperature is above an arbitrary level of 55(F based on odds ratios of adult medical encounters. Children who choose to train for a marathon should be monitored by a physician who can explain the risks to the child and parents, and who can monitor the physiologic and psychologic parameters. While the concerns outlined by Rice and Waniewski are legitimate and should be discussed with parents and child/adolescent runners, they do not preclude this age group from participation in marathon running. There is no guaranteed safe running distance and any distance race can be injurious for children and adolescents if training is not judicious and the races are run for the wrong reasons. While the exceptional cases do not make the rule, the suggested guidelines for youth participation in long distance running should make the practice safer and give parents some counsel for the rare youth who choose to


Adaptive (path dependent) processes of growth modeled by urn schemes are important for several fields of applications: biology, physics, chemistry, economics.

In this paper the authors continue their previous investigations of generalized urn schemes with balls of different colors and path-dependent increments. They consider processes with random additions of balls at each time. These processes are similar to the branching processes, however the classical theory of branching processes does not consider the case when the composition of added balls depends on the state of the process. These state dependent processes are very important for the applications and are considered in this paper.

The asymptotic behavior of the proportions of balls of each color in the total population is studied. It appears that these proportions can be expressed through the so-called urn functions which define the probabilities of adding the new ball depending on the current composition of urn population. The dynamics of the urn scheme is written in terms of a stochastic finite differential equation. The trajectories defined by this equation are attracted to the urn functions fixed points.

The techniques used to obtain these results have much in common with convergence analysis of the stochastic approximation type procedures for solving systems of nonlinear equations with discontinuous functions and stochastic quasi gradient procedures of stochastic optimization. In the general case the convergence results are formulated through nondifferentiable Lyapunov functions.


Increasing political and social awareness of the importance of protecting the geological heritage is compelling geoscientists to consider new methods for reconciling conservation and exploration of their research sites. Terrestrial Light Detection And Range (LiDAR) imaging is an accurate method of collecting 3D spatial data that has so far been under-utilized in the geological sciences. This aim of this paper is to assess the value of integrated LiDAR and photogrammetric imaging as a tool for synchronizing scientific exploration with conservation of geological heritage sites.   Fumanya (Catalonia) is one of the most important Cretaceous tracksites in Europe, but the nature of exposure of the track-bearing surface has hindered quantitative documentation of the ichnites. Using integrated Light Detection And Range (LiDAR) imaging and photogrammetry it has been possible to construct high-resolution Digital Outcrop Models (DOM) of the tracksites. Photo-textured DOMs are a powerful visualization tool and function as fully 3D interactive databases that preserve information about the site that would otherwise be lost to erosion. LiDAR-derived DOMs have the potential to contribute profoundly to future geoconservation projects, particularly as a tool for documenting and monitoring heritage sites and promoting education and tourism. LiDAR scanning also provides sufficient resolution to perform robust quantitative analysis of dinosaur tracks.


Bio-inspired manganese [Mn(N5Py)(H2O)(CH3OH)](ClO4)2 (1) and iron [Fe(N5Py)(H2O)(ClO4)]ClO4 (2) complexes derived from a pentadentate ligand (N5Py = 2,6-bis((E)-1-phenyl-2-(pyridin-2-ylmethylene)hydrazinyl)pyridine) framework containing a N5 binding motif were synthesized and characterized using different spectroscopic methods. The molecular structures of complexes 1 and 2 were determined by X-ray crystallography. These complexes were found to be stable under physiological conditions and exhibited an excellent superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity. The SOD activity was determined by a xanthine-xanthine oxidase-nitro blue tetrazolium assay and the IC50 values were determined to be 1.53 and 2.09 μM, respectively.


Abstract It remains contested whether peacekeeping works. The impact of peacekeepers' actions at the local subnational level for overall mission success has lately received critical attention. Local peacekeeping is expected to matter because it reassures local actors, deters resumption of armed hostilities, coerces parties to halt fighting, and makes commitment to agreements credible. Thus peacekeepers affect the relations between central and local elites and avoid the emergence of local power vacuums and areas of lawlessness. This study uses new subnational data on the deployment of United Nations peacekeepers. It uses matching and recursive bivariate probit models with exogenous variables for temporal and spatial variation to deal with possible nonrandom assignment of the treatment. We demonstrate that conflict episodes last for shorter periods when peacekeepers are deployed to conflict-prone locations inside a country, even with comparatively modest deployment. The effect of peacekeeping on the onset of local conflict is, however, less clear cut.


Andean plant species are predicted to shift their distributions, or 'migrate,' upslope in response to future warming. The impacts of these shifts on species' population sizes and their abilities to persist in the face of climate change will depend on many factors including the distribution of individuals within species' ranges, the ability of species to migrate and remain at equilibrium with climate, and patterns of human land‐use. Human land‐use may be especially important in the Andes where anthropogenic activities above tree line may create a hard barrier to upward migrations, imperiling high‐elevation Andean biodiversity. In order to better understand how climate change may impact the Andean biodiversity hotspot, we predict the distributional responses of hundreds of plant species to changes in temperature incorporating population density distributions, migration rates, and patterns of human land‐use. We show that plant species from high Andean forests may increase their population sizes if able to migrate onto the expansive land areas above current tree line. However, if the pace of climate change exceeds species' abilities to migrate, all species will experience large population losses and consequently may face high risk of extinction. Using intermediate migration rates consistent with those observed for the region, most species are still predicted to experience population declines. Under a business‐as‐usual land‐use scenario, we find that all species will experience large population losses regardless of migration rate. The effect of human land‐use is most pronounced for high‐elevation species that switch from predicted increases in population sizes to predicted decreases. The overriding influence of land‐use on the predicted responses of Andean species to climate change can be viewed as encouraging since there is still time to initiate conservation programs that limit disturbances and/or facilitate the upward migration and persistence of Andean plant species.


The issue of concussion in sport is a matter of global public interest that is currently under dispute by educational, legal, and medical professionals and scientists. In this article we discuss the problem from philosophical, bioethical, and sports ethical perspectives. We articulate conceptual differences in approaches to definition and therefore diagnosis of concussion. We critically review similarities and differences in the leading consensus statements that guide the treatment of concussion diagnosis and treatment in sports. We then present a series of ethical problems including issues that relate to paternalistic intervention in the lives of athletes in order to prevent harm to athletes, conflicting and competing interests, and confidentiality.


This study analyses relative sectoral investment patterns in EU regions. In an exploratory spatial data analysis, spatial clusters of high relative investments can be identified for some sectors. In the econometric analysis, we control for heteroscedasticity and potential endogeneity and find that investments in manufacturing sectors are attracted by central regions, investments in services sectors, instead, by administrative centres as well as regions far away from their national administrative centre. A higher local level of sectoral economies of scale and of productivity strongly increases investments in manufacturing sectors. Labour cost differentials, however, are insignificant in explaining the location of relative sectoral investments.


The idea of using robots to assist a therapist with a rehabilitation exercise has led to the development of several rehabilitation robotic devices. The scope of robotic devices in rehabilitation is rapidly advancing based on the developments in robotics, haptic interfaces and virtual reality. GENTLE/S was a rehabilitation system that utilized haptic and virtual reality technologies to deliver challenging and meaningful therapies to upper limb impaired stroke subjects. The current research is working towards designing the GENTLE/A system with a better adaptive human-robot interface. This paper presents the results from an exploratory study conducted with twenty healthy subjects. The aim of the study was to identify the contribution by subject/robot during different human-robot interaction modes. Our results show that it is possible to identify the leading or lagging role of a subject during a human-robot interaction session where a reference trajectory is used to drive the arm along a path. The final goal is to use these observations to probe various ways in which the adaptability of the GENTLE/A system can be improved as a therapeutic device and an assessment tool.


Previous studies have suggested a link between flavonoid intake and better cognitive function in later life but have not been able to control for possible confounding by prior intelligence quotient (IQ). The aim of the present study was to address this issue in a cross-sectional survey of 1091 men and women born in 1936, in whom IQ was measured at age 11 years. At the age of 70 years, participants carried out various neuropsychological tests and completed a FFQ. Associations between test scores and nutrient intake were assessed by linear regression with adjustment for potentially confounding variables. Total fruit, citrus fruits, apple and tea intakes were initially found to be associated with better scores in a variety of cognitive tests, but the associations were no longer statistically significant after adjusting for confounding factors, including childhood IQ. Flavanone intake was initially found to be associated with better scores in verbal fluency (P = 0·003, with standardised regression coefficient 0·10), but, again, the association was no longer statistically significant after adjusting for confounding factors. These findings do not support a role for flavonoids in the prevention of cognitive decline in later life. Studies of diet and cognitive function should include measurement of potential confounding variables, including prior IQ wherever possible.


The SOLDIERS' AND SAILORS' MONUMENT, situated on the southeast quadrant of Cleveland's PUBLIC SQUARE, is the city's major CIVIL WAR memorial. Designed by LEVI T. SCOFIELD, the monument was dedicated on 4 July 1894 after nearly 15 years of planning. Soldiers' and Sailors' MonumentThe initial drive to build a local monument began on 30 Oct. 1879, when a group of Civil War veterans met at CASE HALL in Cleveland to advocate such a project. Actual planning and funding of the monument were handled by a 3-man commission appointed under an act of the state legislature, passed on 16 Apr. 1888. The monument consists of an elevated base containing a tablet room. The base is surmounted by a column capped with a 15' high Statue of Liberty, bringing the total height of the structure to 125'. Surrounding the exterior of the base are 4 groupings of bronze sculpture (cast approx. one-third larger than life) depicting various battle scenes. These groupings represent the 4 main armed services: Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, and Navy. The tablet room contains lists of Cuyahoga County residents who served in the CIVIL WAR, as well as 4 bronze reliefs representing the "Emancipation of the Slave," "Beginning of the War in Ohio," members of the various soldiers' relief organizations, and "The End of the War--The Peacemakers at City Point." The total cost of the monument was $280,000, all but $10,000 of which was raised through public taxes. Scofield donated all of his architectural services to the project. The monument celebrated its centennial on 2 July 1994; Civil War historian James McPherson spoke at the ceremony.


Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate, intracellular eukaryotic apicomplexan protozoan parasite that can cause fetal damage and abortion in both animals and humans. Sphingolipids are essential and ubiquitous components of eukaryotic membranes that are both synthesized and scavenged by the Apicomplexa. Here we report the identification, isolation, and analyses of the Toxoplasma serine palmitoyltransferase, an enzyme catalyzing the first and rate-limiting step in sphingolipid biosynthesis: the condensation of serine and palmitoyl-CoA. In all eukaryotes analyzed to date, serine palmitoyltransferase is a highly conserved heterodimeric enzyme complex. However, biochemical and structural analyses demonstrated the apicomplexan orthologue to be a functional, homodimeric serine palmitoyltransferase localized to the endoplasmic reticulum. Furthermore, phylogenetic studies indicated that it was evolutionarily related to the prokaryotic serine palmitoyltransferase, identified in the Sphingomonadaceae as a soluble homodimeric enzyme. Therefore this enzyme, conserved throughout the Apicomplexa, is likely to have been obtained via lateral gene transfer from a prokaryote.


How likely is it that a population escapes extinction through adaptive evolution? The answer to this question is of great relevance in conservation biology, where we aim at species' rescue and the maintenance of biodiversity, and in agriculture and medicine, where we seek to hamper the emergence of pesticide or drug resistance. By reshuffling the genome, recombination has two antagonistic effects on the probability of evolutionary rescue: it generates and it breaks up favorable gene combinations. Which of the two effects prevails depends on the fitness effects of mutations and on the impact of stochasticity on the allele frequencies. In this article, we analyze a mathematical model for rescue after a sudden environmental change when adaptation is contingent on mutations at two loci. The analysis reveals a complex nonlinear dependence of population survival on recombination. We moreover find that, counterintuitively, a fast eradication of the wild type can promote rescue in the presence of recombination. The model also shows that two-step rescue is not unlikely to happen and can even be more likely than single-step rescue (where adaptation relies on a single mutation), depending on the circumstances.


Backgrounds: Immunohistochemical studies have revealed that connexin 26 (Cx26) exists not only in the cochlea but also in the vestibular organs. K+ cycling involving gap junction protein Cx26 in the vestibular labyrinth, which is similar to that in the cochlea, is thought to play a fundamental role in endolymph homeostasis and sensory transduction.
Methods: We analyzed the morphological and functional development of the vestibular organ in Cx26 transgenic mice between 0 days after birth (P0) and P140, which was compared with that of littermate control mice (non-Tg).
Results: The gross structure of the inner ear in non-transgenic and transgenic mice revealed no hydrops, no defects, no degeneration in either the cochlea or the vestibule throughout the postnatal period. Light microscopic observations in the sensory epithelium revealed normally developed and matured utricula macula, saccular macula, and ampulla in the transgenic mice, which were very similar to those of the nontransgenic mouse.
Conclusions: The present study clearly demonstrated that postnatal development and maturation in the vestibular organ were morphologically and functionally completed in Cx26 transgenic mice.


As I watch the infamous scene in Tom Six's 2009 release, when Katsuro, the front segment of the centipede, defecates into the mouth of the second, my body rocks back and forth in a futile attempt at self-soothing. I hear the distant whine of a voice uttering, 'I don't want, I don't want to', before I realise it is my own. Finally, in a mixture of horror and relish, my back arches, my shoulders hunch forward and my chest heaves as I retch once, twice, three times. The Human Centipede belongs to a large and varied group of films released in recent years that have become notorious for eliciting intensely physical responses, from anxiety and nausea, to the fear of, desire to or even act of vomiting. In this paper, I build on current research into the embodied spectator by creating a detailed analysis of how physicality is constructed and manipulated by representations of faeces in this scene. Engaging with Richard Rushton's theories of spectatorship, Vivian Sobchack's studies of phenomenology and film, and Elizabeth Wilson's work on neuroscience, I explore the concept of physical spectatorship - the idea that embodied responses to film are textual constructions that return the viewer to a sense of their own corporeality. The notion of physical spectatorship challenges the dichotomy of film as object/viewer as subject, as well as the language we use to theorise the film-viewer relationship. By acknowledging the disgust this film generates, I question the extent to which notions of the viewer are strained against the concept of spectator as textual construction. Finally, I aim to theorise that which often escapes analysis in relation to film spectatorship: those body parts that make up the gastrointestinal tract, or the gut, that are brought into play in films designed to revolt.


Rationale Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most rapidly progressive and fatal of all fibrotic conditions with no curative therapies. Common pathomechanisms between IPF and cancer are increasingly recognised, including dysfunctional pan-PI3 kinase (PI3K) signalling as a driver of aberrant proliferative responses. GSK2126458 is a novel, potent, PI3K/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor which has recently completed phase I trials in the oncology setting. Our aim was to establish a scientific and dosing framework for PI3K inhibition with this agent in IPF at a clinically developable dose. Methods We explored evidence for pathway signalling in IPF lung tissue and examined the potency of GSK2126458 in fibroblast functional assays and precision-cut IPF lung tissue. We further explored the potential of IPF patient-derived bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells to serve as pharmacodynamic biosensors to monitor GSK2126458 target engagement within the lung. Results We provide evidence for PI3K pathway activation in fibrotic foci, the cardinal lesions in IPF. GSK2126458 inhibited PI3K signalling and functional responses in IPF-derived lung fibroblasts, inhibiting Akt phosphorylation in IPF lung tissue and BAL derived cells with comparable potency. Integration of these data with GSK2126458 pharmacokinetic data from clinical trials in cancer enabled modelling of an optimal dosing regimen for patients with IPF. Conclusions Our data define PI3K as a promising therapeutic target in IPF and provide a scientific and dosing framework for progressing GSK2126458 to clinical testing in this disease setting. A proof-of-mechanism trial of this agent is currently underway. Trial registration number NCT01725139, pre-clinical.


An experiment was performed in which a single ring from a Fabry–Perot transmission fringe pattern was used to create a nondiffracting beam. The transverse and axial intensity distributions of this beam were measured and found to be in good agreement with previously existing and newly derived theoretical expressions. The diffraction-free range was found from calculation to be proportional to the cavity finesse and length, and the central-spot radius of the beam was theoretically shown to be proportional to the square root of the wavelength and cavity length.


Ultrasonic echo testing is widely used in non-destructive testing in civil engineering to investigate
concrete structures, to measure thickness, and to locate and characterise built-in components or
inhomogeneities. Currently, synthetic aperture focusing techniques are mostly used for imaging.
These algorithms are highly developed but have some limitations. For example, it is not possible to
image the lower boundary of built-in components like tendon ducts or vertical reflectors. We
adopted reverse time migration for non-destructive testing in civil engineering in order to improve
the imaging of complicated structures in concrete. By using the entire wavefield, including waves
reflected more than once, there are fewer limitations compared to synthetic aperture focusing technique
algorithms. As a drawback, the required computation is significantly higher than that for the
techniques currently used.
Simulations for polyamide and concrete structures showed the potential for non-destructive testing.
The simulations were followed by experiments at a polyamide specimen. Here, having acquired
almost noise-free measurement data to test the algorithm, we were able to determine the shape and
size of boreholes with sufficient accuracy. After these successful tests, we performed experiments
at a reinforced concrete foundation slab. We obtained information from the data by reverse time
migration, which was not accessible by traditional imaging. The imaging of the location and structure
of the lower boundary of the concrete foundation slab was improved. Furthermore, vertical
reflectors inside the slab were imaged clearly, and more flaws were found. It has been shown that
reverse time migration is a step forward in ultrasonic testing in civil engineering.


Background: Severe septal deformations require adequate treatment to restore shape and function using extracorporeal septoplasty. Because it has been criticized for being technically demanding to execute and has increased risk for aesthetic complications, the authors have developed two new suture techniques for refixation of the neoseptum. Methods: A retrospective analysis of multisurgeon consecutive extracorporeal septoplasties performed from January of 2014 to December of 2014 was conducted at a single institution using the criss-cross or transcutaneous transosseous cerclage suture (group 1) compared with fixation at the upper lateral cartilages only (group 2). Results: One hundred ten extracorporeal septoplasties were performed in 110 patients over 12 months. Group 1 consisted of 58 patients (53 percent), whether receiving the criss-cross [12 patients (21 percent)] or the transcutaneous transosseous cerclage suture [46 patients (79 percent)], and group 2 consisted of 52 patients (47 percent). The median follow-up was 11 months (range, 6 to 16 months). Operative revision because of complications at the dorsum or the keystone area had to be performed in no case in group 1 and in five cases (9.6 percent) in group 2, resulting in a statistically significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.0212). There were no complications such as bleeding or infection observed in any of the 110 cases. Conclusions: To facilitate and to reduce the complication rate after extracorporeal septoplasty, the authors have developed the criss-cross and transcutaneous transosseous cerclage suture to overcome the important and technically demanding reimplantation of the neoseptum. Thus, the authors believe that these new operative techniques are safe and reproducible procedures that may take a permanent place among extracorporeal septoplasty procedures. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, III.


Background The spectrum of interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) have mainly been reported from the developed countries; data from developing countries is sparse and conflicting. The aim of this study is to describe the distribution of various ILDs from a developing country. Methods This is an analysis of prospectively collected clinical, radiological and histological data of consecutive subjects (age >12 years) with ILDs from a single tertiary care medical center. The diagnosis of the specific subtype of ILD was made according to standard criteria for various ILDs. Results A total of 803 subjects (mean age, 50.6 years; 50.2% women) were enrolled between March 2015 to February 2017 of which 566 (70.5%) were diagnosed during the study period (incident cases). Sarcoidosis (42.2%), idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF, 21.2%), connective tissue disease (CTD)-related ILDs (12.7%), hypersensitivity pneumonitis (10.7%), and non-IPF idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (9.2%) were the most common ILDs. The spectrum of ILDs was not significantly different (p = 0.87) between incident and prevalent cases. A histopathological specimen was obtained in 49.9% of the subjects yielding a histologically confirmed diagnosis in 40.6%. A diagnostic procedure was not performed in 402 subjects; the most common reasons were presence of definite usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on high resolution computed tomography and patients' unwillingness to undergo the procedure. Conclusion Sarcoidosis, IPF and CTD-ILDs were the most common ILDs seen at a tertiary center in northern India similar to the spectrum reported from developed countries. More studies are required from developing countries to ascertain the spectrum of ILDs in different geographic locales.


One of the most important socio-economic changes over the course of the last few decades has been the massive influx of women into the workforce. While men still maintain a higher participation rate in paid work, the gap has diminished over time. Women's headway in the workforce is closely linked to the remarkable progress they have made in education. But women's advantage in education does not translate into the wages they receive. While, on average, the gender pay gap has diminished over the last 25 years, women continue to earn less than men, even among younger and better-educated generations. Why is this the case? This synthesis examines the contribution of numerous statistical studies using Statistics Canada's microdata and shedding light on the relative merits of four hypotheses that have been posited to explain the presence and evolution of the gender wage gap. This synthesis is also available in English on the CRDCN website at www.rdc-cdr.ca.


Objective: The authors assessed gender differences in the proportion of clinical visits spent depressed, manic, or euthymic in patients with bipolar disorder. Method: Data were analyzed from 711 patients with bipolar I or II disorder who were followed prospectively over 7 years (13,191 visits). The main outcome measures were the presence of symptoms of depression or of hypomania or mania, measured by the Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology and the Young Mania Rating Scale. Data were analyzed using three separate repeated-measures regressions with a logistic link function to model the probability that an individual was depressed, manic, or euthymic. The models controlled for bipolar I or bipolar II diagnosis, rapid cycling, age, time in the study, comorbid anxiety disorders, and comorbid substance use disorders. Results: In approximately half of visits, patients had depressive, manic, or hypomanic symptoms. The likelihood of having depressive symptoms was signifi cantly greater for women than for men. This was accounted for by higher rates in women of rapid cycling and anxiety disorders, each of which was associated with increased rates of depression. All patient groups showed an increase in number of euthymic visits and a decrease in number of visits with depressive and manic symptoms with increased time in study. Conclusions: Bipolar patients spend a substantial proportion of their time ill. Significant gender differences exist, with women spending a greater proportion of their visits in the depressive pole. This finding appears to be related to the cor responding differences in rates of rapid cycling and anxiety disorders.


Methods are described for determining the refractive indices of dielectric films and substrates and the thickness of the film. The determination makes use of a single measured distribution of monochromatic, specular reflectance as a function of incidence angle. The methods are based on certain properties of the reflectance maxima and minima, which properties are deduced from electromagnetic theory. Either perpendicular-polarized or parallel-polarized light may be employed; the latter has some advantage, in that it provides a cross check on one of the results and also facilitates the treatment of very thin films.


Business performance measurement has been the subject of considerable research
over the past fifteen years. Most of this research has been triggered by the inadequacy
of financial indicators and the increasing use of non-financial indicators.
Consequently, companies have to choose from many available frameworks / methods
to monitor their business performance such as the Balanced Scorecard, Excellence
Models and industry key performance indicators (KPI). The choice of one framework
/ method over the others might omit important performance information, and the use
of more than one simultaneously can cause confusion and the use of valuable time
and resources. This paper describes the PhD research underway to develop a
comprehensive business performance measurement framework for construction
organizations. The research adopts a hypothetico-deductive approach that comprises
two main stages. First, the framework is formulated from existing well-established
frameworks in literature. The second stage is the empirical testing of the framework
that uses triangulated methods for collecting and analysing data. The paper further
discusses the scope of the research within the industry, and finally the use of the
framework in measuring business performance and its interface with the construction
KPI.


Title of Dissertation: IDENTIFYING THE SUPPORTS AND CHALLENGES OF HIGH SCHOOL LATINO ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS. Alison Hanks-Sloan, Doctor of Education, 2016 Directed by: Dr. David Imig, Professor of Practice, College of Education, Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership Two out of three English Language Learners (ELLs) graduate from secondary schools nationwide. Of the nearly five million ELLs in public schools, more than 70% of these students' first language is Spanish. In order to understand and resolve this phenomena and in an effort to increase the number of graduates, this research examined what high school Latino ELLs identified as the major external and internal factors that support or challenge them on the graduation pathway. The study utilized a 32 quantitative and qualitative question student survey, as well as student focus groups. Both the survey and the focus groups were conducted in English and Spanish. The questions considered the following factors: 1) value of education; 2) expectations in achieving their long-term goals; 3) current education levels; 4) expectations before coming to the United States; 5) family obligations; and 6) future aspirations. The survey was administered to 159 Latino ELLs enrolled in grades 9-12. Research took place at three high schools that provide English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes in a large school system in the Mid-Atlantic region. The three schools involved in the study have more than 1,500 ELLs. Two of the schools had large ESOL instructional programs, and one school had a comparatively smaller ESOL program. The majority of students surveyed were from El Salvador (72%) and Guatemala (12.6%). Using Qualtrics, an independent facilitator and a bilingual translator administered the online survey tool to the students during their ESOL classes. Two weeks later, the researcher hosted three follow-up focus groups, totaling 37 students from those students who took the survey. Each focus group was conducted at the three schools by the lead researcher and the translator. The purpose of the focus group was to obtain deeper insight on how secondary age Latino ELLs defined success in school, what they identified to be their support factors, and how previous and present experiences helped or hindered their goals. From the research findings, ten recommendations range from suggested policy updates to cross-cultural/equity training for students and staff; they were developed, stemming from the findings and what the students identified. IDENTIFYING THE SUPPORTS AND CHALLENGES OF HIGH SCHOOL LATINO ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS


A large number of nongenotoxic chemicals have been shown to increase the incidence of liver tumours in rats and/or mice by a mode of action (MOA) involving activation of the constitutive androstane receptor (CAR). Studies with the model CAR activator phenobarbital (PB) and its sodium salt (sodium phenobarbital; NaPB) have demonstrated that the key and associative events for rat and mouse liver tumour formation include CAR activation, increased hepatocyte replicative DNA synthesis (RDS), induction of cytochrome P450 CYP2B subfamily enzymes, liver hypertrophy, increased altered hepatic foci and hepatocellular adenomas/carcinomas. The key species difference between the rat and mouse compared to humans, is that human hepatocytes are refractory to the mitogenic effects of PB/NaPB and other CAR activators. While PB/NaPB and other CAR activators stimulate RDS in rat and mouse hepatocytes in both in vitro and in vivo studies, such compounds do not stimulate RDS in cultured human hepatocytes and in in vivo studies performed in chimeric mice with humanised livers. In terms of species differences in RDS, unlike the rat and mouse, humans are similar to other species such as the Syrian hamster and guinea pig in being nonresponsive to the mitogenic effects of CAR activators. Overall, the MOA for rat and mouse liver tumour formation by PB/NaPB and other CAR activators is considered qualitatively not plausible for humans. This conclusion is supported by data from a number of epidemiological studies, which demonstrate that chronic treatment with PB does not increase the incidence of liver cancer in humans.


Most recent semi-supervised deep learning (deep SSL) methods used a similar paradigm: use network predictions to update pseudo-labels and use pseudo-labels to update network parameters iteratively. However, they lack theoretical support and cannot explain why predictions are good candidates for pseudo-labels in the deep learning paradigm. In this paper, we propose a principled end-to-end framework named deep decipher (D2) for SSL. Within the D2 framework, we prove that pseudo-labels are related to network predictions by an exponential link function, which gives a theoretical support for using predictions as pseudo-labels. Furthermore, we demonstrate that updating pseudo-labels by network predictions will make them uncertain. To mitigate this problem, we propose a training strategy called repetitive reprediction (R2). Finally, the proposed R2-D2 method is tested on the large-scale ImageNet dataset and outperforms state-of-the-art methods by 5 percentage points.


Abstract The Web is often characterized as a universal information space, in the sense that the provision of and access to Web content is open to all. It is well known, however, that the majority of Web content originates from a small group of English-speaking countries, chiefly the United States. This paper examines trends in the internationalization of Web content, and in particular, whether the Web is becoming increasingly globalized as it matures, and to what segment of the world's countries and languages it currently extends. Sample data from 1998 and 1999 suggests that the Web's content is still far from a true global cross-section, but is slowly expanding both in terms of its geographical origins and the languages in which it is made available.


About the Editors. About the Contributors. Foreword. Part One: Introduction and Theoretical Position. 1 Intervening and changing. Looking for meaning in interactions. Jaap J. Boonstra en Leon de Caluwe. 2 Methodology of the evidential. Research and sense giving in processes of organizational development. Adriaan Bekman. Part Two: Telling Stories and Investigation Realties. 3 Storytelling as interactive intervention. Applying the narrative approach in organizational change. Francois Breuer. 4 Working with stories. Narrative and dialogue as methods for learning, understanding and practice improvement. Tineke Abma. Part Three: Investigating History and Making History. 5 Learning histories in learning and change projects. Making history with a passion. Gerhard Smid in discussion with Godfried den Boer, Vittorio Busato, Liesbeth Halbertsma and Tonnie van der Zouwen. 6 Making History Together. The Learning-history method in theory and practice. Leen van Driel. Part Four: Appreciation Inquiry and Realizing Innovations. 7 Future Search. Inspiring, discovering, learning, seeing, imagining and doing combined. Gemma van der Ploeg and Annemieke Stoppelenburg. 8 An organizational change project based on an appreciative approach. A large group intervention in a chemical company. Luk Dewulf and Luc Verheijen. 9 Learning and changing in an open space. The dynamics of and in an open space event. Carla Vliex. Part Five: Looking for Patterns and Possibilities for Innovation. 10 Working interactively with causal loop diagrams. Intervention choices and paradoxes in practical applications. Hans Vermaak. 11 Intervening in processes of sensemaking. A method for breaking through the closeness of organizational processes. Hans de Sonnaville. 12 Interaction at work. Interactive interventions in social interactions. Dick van Ginkel and Mariette Thijssen. Part Six: Learning to Reflect and Change. 13 Organizing in-dept learning. Change as reflective sensemaking. Brechtje Kessener and Katrien Termeer. 14 Methodology for increasing collective competence. A context for co-creative change. Andre Wierdsma. 15 Shaping a learning process and realizing change. Reflection, interaction and cooperation through survey feedback. Kilian Bennebroek Gravenhorst. Part Seven: Reflecting on Acting and the Pursuit of Beauty. 16 Free conduct as a method of intervention. 'Void leadership isn't leading anywhere'. Julien Haffmans. 17 Aesthetics in work processes in organizations. A perspective for intervention. Mathieu Weggeman and Irene Lammers. Part Eight: Critical Reflection and a Look Ahead. 18 Intervention through interaction. A comparative review. Jac Geurts, Jurriaan Altena and Bart Geluk. Index.


The objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between milk and calcium intake with body height and bone density of adolescent. The study applied a cross sectional design to 246 senior high school students in Bogor. The subject aged 16-17 years old were selected purposively. Milk and calsium intake was derived from the food intake data collected by applying a semi-FFQ method for a week. Bone density (stiffness index) was measured by densitometer of achilles insight. The results of the study showed that the mean intake of milk was 170.7±136.3 ml/day with average frequency 6 times/week, and mean intake of calcium was 250.0±212.6 mg/day with contribution of milk was 44.0%. The mean stiffness index of subjects was 97.5±18.3; and the mean stiffness index of boys (104.4±18.9) wa s significantly higher than girls (92.9±16.3). The calcium intake of milk and calcium intake of calsium-rich foods of non milk wa s not correlated with the bone density and body height; but milk intake,  frequency and  length of milk intake were correlated with body height and bone density. This implies the important of milk intake in bone density and  linear growth of adolescent.


In this study, we have developed a navigation scheme for a swarm of satellites equipped with both electrostatic and conventional actuators. The main features of two new concepts for formation flying control i.e. electrostatic actuation, used for active control of spacecraft charging for relative position control and equilibrium shaping, which is a behavior based swarm navigation technique are highlighted in this study. The work described in this report is divided into two main sections. In the first section, the propulsion system is investigated. The GEO region is selected for this study since, the Debye length is sufficiently high in this region and a model of the interaction between plasma and a charged spacecraft is derived. On the basis of this result the requirements for the hybrid propulsion system are defined and a new charge control strategy with two currents i.e. charging and stabilizing current is proposed. The stabilizing current Ist counteracts the natural environmental currents and drive the spacecraft potential toward zero and charging current is emitted with the acceleration voltage of desired potential level and drives the spacecraft to desired potential level in certain range. The candidate propulsion system consists of a radio frequency ion thruster engine (RIT) and an electron gun for emission of charges from the spacecraft. In the second phase of the study the applicability of the electrostatic actuation for formation keeping and reconfiguration of swarms of satellites is considered. The recently developed equilibrium shaping navigation technique has been selected to control the maneuvers of the swarm. There is a specified set of formations that can be acquired in an autonomous way by means of the ES technique and a specified set of formation can be maintained only relying upon the EA concept. The compatible formations are those that can be acquired autonomously relying upon the ES path planning scheme and maintained using only the EA. These formations enjoy both a high level of autonomy, ensured by the equilibrium shaping, and high fuel efficiency, provided by the electrostatic actuation. Exploiting the results on the compatibility, the electrostatic interaction between the SC has been considered to increase the efficiency of acquisition or reconfiguration maneuvers. In particular it has been demonstrated that the electrostatic force can be used to reduce the fuel expenditure of the whole swarm.


HISTORIANS HAVE PAID A GREAT DEAL OF ATTENTION OVER THE PAST TWO decades to the so-called slave, internal, or informal economy, studying slaves' independent activities as producers and consumers. In the rice-growing Lowcountry of South Carolina and Georgia, where the task system predominated, slaves who rapidly completed their day's assigned labor had the opportunity to use their free time toward the end of the day as they saw fit, within certain constraints that their masters imposed. Many slaves diligently worked their own garden plots, raised and sold their own crops, and tended horses and livestock. As records of the Southern Claims Commission make clear, some slaves amassed impressive amounts of property. Outside the Lowcountry, various forces circumscribed slaves' ability to produce for themselves, market their goods, and accumulate wealth. Limited availability of land in the piedmont and in the upcountry precluded masters from supplying slaves with personal provision grounds. Moreover, slaveholders in those regions tended to organize their slave labor forces according to the gang system. Under the gang system, slaves labored under close supervision from sunup to sundown, leaving them time to work for themselves only at night and on Sundays. Across the South, however, internal economies proliferated. Slaves sometimes earned payments in money, perhaps for performing additional chores on the plantation or extra work in industry. Armed with the money and commodities they earned from or through the largesse of their masters, slaves were no strangers to the antebellum marketplace. (1) Running parallel to slaves' economic activities sanctioned by the master were those that lacked such authorization. Several historians have recognized that an illicit, underground slave economy--rooted largely in theft and consequently anathema to slaveholders--flourished throughout the antebellum South. Slaves' surreptitious dealings often brought them into contact not only with other bondpeople and with free blacks but also with "unscrupulous" whites who ignored racial distinctions and eagerly traded with slaves without the masters' consent. (2) But while scholars acknowledge the existence of this interracial, underground trade, they have devoted surprisingly little energy to its study. Timothy J. Lockley has uncovered evidence of a thriving clandestine network of exchange between slaves and white shopkeepers in the city of Savannah, but the preponderance of southerners lived not in urban but in rural areas. (3) It must have been much more difficult for slaves to sustain systems of underground trade with whites in the countryside. In the rural South the white population was more isolated and scattered across a wide geographical area. Small, close-knit communities in which everyone knew one another and closely watched their neighbors supplanted the anonymity of the bustling city. Furthermore, the relatively few foreigners who settled in the South--and who were among the whites most likely to collaborate and trade clandestinely with slaves--tended to congregate in the region's urban centers. (4) This study calls attention to the underground economy of the rural South through an investigation of slaves' unlawful trade with poor whites in the antebellum Carolinas. Lockley's work has examined the economic exchanges between slaves and a broad and diverse group of non-elite white shopkeepers, but the involvement of such merchants notwithstanding, there existed an inverse relationship between a white person's wealth and his or her likelihood of engaging in the unlawful trade with slaves. The whites with whom slaves traded most frequently were the poor-white farmers, laborers, and other marginal members of white society who composed between 30 and 50 percent of the southern white population, depending on the locality. (5) This study explores in depth the important place that these poor whites occupied within slaves' underground trading networks and argues that while anxious slaveholders found such economic cooperation inimical to a society stratified on the basis of race, the calculated, rational nature of slave-poor white exchange blunted its potentially subversive character. …


This thesis explores body image distortion in anorexia nervosa spectrum disorders (ANSD), using 3D computer generated (CGI) stimuli together with psychophysical and behavioural methods. Experiments 1-3 on healthy controls show that not only does participants' psychological state influence the perception of their body size, but so does their actual body size, indexed by Body Mass Index (BMI). Healthy controls whose BMI is closest to the population average estimate body size accurately, those with lower than average BMIs over-estimate and those with higher than average BMIs under-estimate, demonstrating contraction bias for body size estimations. Furthermore, control participants' sensitivity to changes in body size follows Weber's law: larger bodies require proportionately bigger differences between them to be discriminated. In marked contrast, ANSD individuals with the lowest BMI are the most accurate and most sensitive at body size estimation. As these participants' BMI increases, sensitivity reduces dramatically, and participants rapidly start to overestimate their body size. Experiment 4 mapped the relationship between participants' behavioural judgements of body size and where they look during the task. This study showed that (i) accurate body size estimators tended to look more in the waist region, and this was independent of clinical diagnosis; (ii) there is a pattern of looking at images of bodies, particularly viewing the upper parts of the torso, which is specific to participants with ANSD but which is independent of accuracy in body size estimation. Experiment 5 is an adaptation based training program for ANSD participants. It succeeded in raising individuals' perceptual boundary for thin versus fat body sizes. This resulted in reduced psychological concerns about ANSD participants' own body shape. In conclusion, this thesis brings novel insight into the phenomenon of distorted body image in ANSD. Implications for the treatment of eating disorders are discussed based on these new data.


Increasing human population and reliance on aquaculture for seafood will lead to expansion of the industry in the open ocean. To guide environmentally sustainable expansion, coastal stakeholders require tools to evaluate the risks that marine aquaculture poses and to craft science-based policies and practices which safeguard marine ecosystems. We summarized cur- rent knowledge regarding dissolved nutrient loading from marine fish farms around the world, direct impacts on water quality and secondary impacts on primary production, including forma- tion of harmful algal blooms. We found that modern operating conditions have minimized impacts of individual fish farms on marine water quality. Effects on dissolved oxygen and turbidity are largely eliminated through better management. Nutrient enrichment of the near-field water col- umn is not detectable beyond 100 m of a farm when formulated feeds are used, and feed waste is minimized. We highlight the role of siting fish farms in deep waters with sufficient current to dis- perse nutrients and prevent water quality impacts. We extensively discuss the potential for advances in integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) to assimilate waste nutrients. Although modern farm management practices have decreased environmental effects of marine fish farms, we conclude that questions remain about the additive impacts of discharge from multiple farms potentially leading to increased primary production and eutrophication. Research results on sec- ondary effects upon primary production are highly variable. In some locations, nutrient loading has little or no trophic impact, while at others there is evidence that nutrients are assimilated by primary producers. Research on far-field and regional processes, especially in intensively farmed areas and over longer time scales, will refine understanding of the full ecological role of fish farms in marine environments.


This paper is a synthesis of the author's Ph.D. dissertation. It studies the relationship between income inequality and the development process, understood as the combination of economic, social and political changes produced over time based on the case of Chile between 1850 and 2009. It aims to describe and explain the tendencies in income distribution over time signaling their causes and some of their consequences. In the empirical area, the main contributions of the dissertation are the estimates of historical series of salaries, wages, and different measures of income distribution –Gini index, Theil, labor share and the income of the top 1%. These estimates relied on the methodology of 'social tables', which aggregates income earners in categories such as occupation, having estimated the number and earnings for each category every year between 1860 and 1970. In spite of the problems arising from the use of assumptions to obtain an annual estimate, which implies an immeasurable but undoubtedly large margin of error for each year, this methodology allows us to analyze medium-term trends with relative confidence. In the fields of theory and methodology, the paper makes two major contributions. First, it shows the potential of in-depth case studies as a means to analyze the relationship between development and inequality. Second, its focus on the political economy of inequality overcomes the problem of oversimplification. Most studies tend to focus on a single factor –usually either on the market or institutions- and analyze the impact on inequality in a timeless or ahistorical manner. But, as this work shows, trends in inequality are always the consequence of a set of factors -economic, social, political and institutional- which interact, so that each one reinforces or overrides the influence of the other. The combination of these factors, which is an outcome of the historical process, is what determines the trends in inequality over time.


The cough reflex becomes hyperresponsive in acute and chronic respiratory diseases, but understanding the underlying mechanism is hampered by difficulty accessing human tissue containing both nerve endings and neuronal cell bodies. We refined an adult stem cell sensory neuronal model to overcome the limited availability of human neurones and applied the model to study transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) channel expression and activation. Human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) were differentiated towards a neuronal phenotype, termed peripheral neuronal equivalents (PNEs). Using molecular and immunohistochemical techniques, together with Ca2+ microfluorimetry and whole cell patch clamping, we investigated roles for nerve growth factor (NGF) and the viral mimic poly I:C in TRPA1 activation. PNEs exhibited morphological, molecular and functional characteristics of sensory neurons and expressed functional TRPA1 channels. PNE treatment with NGF for 20 min generated significantly larger inward and outward currents compared to untreated PNEs in response to the TRPA1 agonist cinnamaldehyde (p<0.05). PNE treatment with poly I:C caused similar transient heightened responses to TRPA1 activation compared to untreated cells. Using the PNE neuronal model we observed both NGF and poly I:C mediated sensory neuronal hyperresponsiveness, representing potential neuro-inflammatory mechanisms associated with heightened nociceptive responses recognised in cough hypersensitivity syndrome. Development of a novel human adult stem cell neuronal model to investigate neural hyperresponsiveness in cough http://ow.ly/Ilvb30eokUC


The demand on mobile and real-time database application and service in distributed environment is becoming increasingly extensive, since the workload cannot be precisely predicted so that they can become overloaded possibly. Low bandwidth in mobile environment will lead to aborting or restarting for transactions because of competing for the limited system resources severely. In this paper, we propose a novel performance metric for example deadline miss ratio of transactions and data freshness based on the relationship of data items in the DAG (directed acyclic graph) to ensure the QoS (quality of service ) in mobile and real-time database systems. Feedback control architecture and MODDFT (modifying on-demand breath-first traversal algorithm) are proposed in our system to decrease miss ratio of transactions and improve data freshness. The MODDFT algorithm can guarantee the QoS performance will not be beyond the reference by database administrator through simulation experiments.


Spin excitations due to the next-nearest-neighbour interactions are investigated for a ferromagnetic lattice with a body-centred cubic (bcc) crystal structure. Using the three-dimensional Heisenberg spin model in a uniform external magnetic field, both the nearest-neighbour (NN) and next-nearest-neighbour (NNN) exchange interactions are considered. The spin wave energies at low temperatures are calculated for which the system is close to its ground state. From the dispersion plots, the additional exchange interactions by the NNN cause an increase in the spin excitation energies. Furthermore, there is a critical NNN/NN exchange ratio for which the effect of the NNN interactions becomes evident as characterized by the presence of two maximum energy peaks in the energy spectra.


Former government officials have many different opportunities to cash in on their public service, but most academic research and government ethics regulations focus on lobbying. We argue that this focus understates the extent and diversity of employment opportunities available to former officials. Using a new data set of officeholders in American government (members of Congress, governors, members of the cabinet, executive branch officials, and ambassadors), we show that, with the exception of members of the House, former officials are more likely to join boards of public companies than they are to work as registered lobbyists. Furthermore, former officials join boards more quickly and face fewer ethics regulations compared to lobbyists. Increasing restrictions on lobbying also appears to push former officials toward alternative employment such as board service. Our findings demonstrate the breadth of the labor market for former politicians and suggest fruitful new avenues for research on political careers.


In this thesis we have given a general introduction to the process NN → NN, surveyed the literature on experimental measurements with special emphasis on the experiments at intersecting storage ring energies and critically reviewed some of the important theoretical models used for fitting the experimental data. Each theoretical model is described in detail and the strong and weak points of each model are lucidly delineated so that the path along which one has to move forward may be clearly visible. Finally, the simple Regge pole model with phenomenological residue functions has been used to fit the various characteristics of pp elastic scattering for P∟ > 100 GeV/c. Our study of this reaction is confined to incident beam laboratory momenta PL > 100 GeV/c as the total cross section decisively starts rising and the dip in the differential cross section starts developing at PL=l00 GeV/c indicating that we are at the threshold of a new domain in pp elastic scattering. The predictions of the model regarding the structure in differential cross section, the inward movement of the dip position, the emergence of the first and the absence of second dip, the unexpected rise in total cross section, the magnitude and change in sign of the ratio of the real and imaginary parts of the scattering amplitude, and the polarisation parameter agree with experiment. The data for the processes np →np, pp → pp and pn → pn which are related to the process pp → pp, as under p↔n the odd-isospin exchanged trajectories and under particle ↔antiparticle the odd-Cn exchanged trajectories change sign, are also fitted without introducing any new parameter. It is for, the first time that a simultaneous comprehensive explanation of the data for all these reactions has been given.


Relational learning is concerned with learning from data where information is primarily represented in form of relations between entities. In recent years, this branch of machine learning has become increasingly important, as relational data is generated in an unprecedented amount and has become ubiquitous in many fields of application such as bioinformatics, artificial intelligence and social network analysis. However, relational learning is a very challenging task, due to the network structure and the high dimensionality of relational data. In this thesis we propose that tensor factorization can be the basis for scalable solutions for learning from relational data and present novel tensor factorization algorithms that are particularly suited for this task.

In the first part of the thesis, we present the RESCAL model -- a novel tensor factorization for relational learning -- and discuss its capabilities for exploiting the idiosyncratic properties of relational data. In particular, we show that, unlike existing tensor factorizations, our proposed method is capable of exploiting contextual information that is more distant in the relational graph. Furthermore, we present an efficient algorithm for computing the factorization. We show that our method achieves better or on-par results on common benchmark data sets, when compared to current state-of-the-art relational learning methods, while being significantly faster to compute.

In the second part of the thesis, we focus on large-scale relational learning and its applications to Linked Data. By exploiting the inherent sparsity of relational data, an efficient computation of RESCAL can scale up to the size of large knowledge bases, consisting of millions of entities, hundreds of relations and billions of known facts. We show this analytically via a thorough analysis of the runtime and memory complexity of the algorithm as well as experimentally via the factorization of the YAGO2 core ontology and the prediction of relationships in this large knowledge base on a single desktop computer. Furthermore, we derive a new procedure to reduce the runtime complexity for regularized factorizations from O(r^5) to O(r^3) -- where r denotes the number of latent components of the factorization -- by exploiting special properties of the factorization. We also present an efficient method for including attributes of entities in the factorization through a novel coupled tensor-matrix factorization. Experimentally, we show that RESCAL allows us to approach several relational learning tasks that are important to Linked Data.

In the third part of this thesis, we focus on the theoretical analysis of learning with tensor factorizations. Although tensor factorizations have become increasingly popular for solving machine learning tasks on various forms of structured data, there exist only very few theoretical results on the generalization abilities of these methods. Here, we present the first known generalization error bounds for tensor factorizations. To derive these bounds, we extend known bounds for matrix factorizations to the tensor case. Furthermore, we analyze how these bounds behave for learning on over- and understructured representations, for instance, when matrix factorizations are applied to tensor data. In the course of deriving generalization bounds, we also discuss the tensor product as a principled way to represent structured data in vector spaces for machine learning tasks. In addition, we evaluate our theoretical discussion with experiments on synthetic data, which support our analysis.


Social attitudes toward women vary significantly across societies. This chapter reviews recent empirical research on various historical determinants of contemporary differences in gender roles and gender gaps across societies, and how these differences are transmitted from parents to children and therefore persist until today. We review work on the historical origin of differences in female labor-force participation, fertility, education, marriage arrangements, competitive attitudes, domestic violence, and other forms of difference in gender norms. Most of the research illustrates that differences in cultural norms regarding gender roles emerge in response to specific historical situations, but tend to persist even after the historical conditions have changed. We also discuss the conditions under which gender norms either tend to be stable or change more quickly.


The Great Depression in the United States was largely the result of changes in economic institutions that lowered the normal or steady-state market hours per person over 16. The difference in steady-state hours in 1929 and 1939 is over 20 percent. This is a large number, but differences of this size currently exist across the rich industrial countries. The somewhat depressed Japanese economy of the 1990s could very well be the result of workweek length constraints that were adopted in the early 1990s. These constraints lowered steady-state market hours. The failure of the Japanese people to display concern with the performance of their economy suggests that this reduction is what the Japanese people wanted. This is in sharp contrast with the United States in the 1930s when the American people wanted to work more.


This study explores whether and how people with a negative biotechnology-related perception can change their attitudes when they are exposed to a positive message in two different frames. The two frames differ in terms of the medium, the language used, and the general tone. A frame is thus conceptualized as unified symbolic entities, rather than just words or positioning in terms of valence (positive/negative). An exploratory stage was conducted through in-depth interviews, which resulted in three audience categories. Results of the experimental study indicated that it is, in fact, possible to turn negative attitudes into positive attitudes for people with intuitive perceptions. People with analytical and ideological perceptions change their attitudes only when the frame is scientific.


As more and more antibiotic-resistant organisms are emerging continuously, the development of new antibiotics falls behind the evolution of antibiotic-resistance. Thus there is an urgent need to search for alternative antibacterial drugs. Nowadays, antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (APDT) has emerged as an efficacious modality to treat various kinds of microbial infections. Meanwhile, liposomes are shown to be an attractive drug delivery system in the treatment of infections and may improve the APDT efficiency. Therefore, the aims of this study are to develop bacteria-targeting liposomes to further improve APDT, and to develop a high-throughput method for screening a large number of photosensitizer-loaded liposomal formulations. In publication 1 and 2, a generation II photosensitizer (PS), temoporfin, was incorporated into liposomes for APDT, afterwards two bacteria-targeting ligands, the antimicrobial peptide WLBU2 and the lectin Wheat Germ Agglutinin (WGA) were successfully coupled to the surface of temoporfin-loaded liposomes, respectively, using an aminogroup-reactive functional lipid: NHS-PEG2000-DSPE. The delivery of temoporfin to Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) was confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry, thus demonstrating that more temoporfin was delivered to bacteria by the modified liposomes than by unmodified liposomes. Consequently, both of the two bacteria-targeting liposomes eradicated all MRSA and enhanced the photodynamic inactivation of P. aeruginosa in the in vitro photodynamic inactivation test. In particular, WLBU2 seems to be a better bacteria-targeting ligand than WGA. These results demonstrate that the strategy of using bacteria-targeting liposomes is promising for improving the APDT efficiency against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria in the local infections. To speed up the screening process of liposomal formulations and develop a method suitable for large-scale production of liposomes, a novel strategy for the fast and convenient high-throughput screening of liposomal formulations was developed in Publication 3, utilizing the automation of the ethanol injection method. This strategy was illustrated by the preparation and screening of the liposomal formulation library of temoporfin. To optimize the formulations, different parameters were investigated, including lipid types, lipid concentration, the ratio of ethanol to aqueous solution, the ratio of drug to lipid and the addition of functional phospholipids. Numerous formulations (261 samples) were screened quickly in a high-throughput way. The factors affecting the properties of liposomes were investigated step-by-step, where liposomes were prepared and characterized automatically, making it easy and fast to optimize the liposomal formulations of temoporfin. The obtained optimized liposomes were unilamellar spheres with a diameter of about 50 nm, and were very stable for over 20 weeks. What's more, this high-throughput method is also applicable for preparing bacteria-targeting liposomes of different compositions, showing many advantages over the conventional methods. All the results demonstrate that this high-throughput screening strategy is fast, automated, materially efficient, labor-saving, time-saving, economic, facile, and highly reproducible. This approach is promising for the development of new formulations to enhance APDT; due to the nature of the process, the approach is readily amenable to scale-up of production. In conclusion, bacteria-targeting liposomes are useful drug delivery system for APDT, and the high-throughput method will facilitate the search for more suitable liposomal formulations. These PS-loaded liposomal formulations have potential clinical applications for the treatment of microbial infections.


We investigate the tolerance of the variation of average dispersion in a 40-Gb/s dispersion-managed soliton (DMS) transmission system. It is theoretically shown that dispersion tolerance is governed by pulse broadening and soliton interaction, and that the largest dispersion tolerance can be achieved by optimizing the pulse energy depending on the transmission distance. We construct a 40-Gb/s recirculating loop transmission system and show that the dispersion tolerance of over 180 ps/nm, which is much larger than that of a linear nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) format system, can be realized by the optimization of the pulse energy at a transmission distance of more than 1000 km.