We developed a hierarchically assembled hybrid counter electrode (CE) based on copper sulfide (CuS) nanoplatelets grown on polymer nanofibers. The resulting CE was used in a quantum dot (QD)-based photoelectrochemical (PEC) system for H2 generation in the presence of sacrificial agents (S2−/SO32−). The concept is to increase the specific surface area of the CE, aiming at maximizing charge exchange at the electrode, which boosts efficient generation of H2 and to obtain a stable structure for long-term operation of the device. Structural and morphological characterization indicated the presence of a covellite crystalline phase (CuS). PEC tests showed that the CuS nanoplatelets grown in the CEs could replace Pt CEs in either visible-active or near infrared (NIR)-active QD-based PEC systems. Specifically, saturation of the photocurrent density (∼7.5 mA cm−2) occurred at ∼0.6 V versus the RHE, when using a NIR QD-based TiO2 photoanode and a nanofiber-supported CuS as the CE. Stability tests of the nanofiber-supported CuS CE showed that 85% of the initial photocurrent density was maintained after ∼1 h, which is similar to that obtained with the Pt foil CE (86%). In contrast, CuS nanostructures directly deposited on FTO glass without nanofibers (CuS/FTO CE) exhibited poor stability. CuS/FTO CE degraded quickly, showing a 90% drop in the initial photocurrent within 200 s testing whereas a 14% drop in the initial photocurrent was observed for the CuxS on brass within 10 min of testing. Our new nanofiber supported-CuS CE stands out due to its higher performance compared to brass and its similar stability compared to Pt during long term PEC operation. Additionally, our hybrid CE showed a better catalytic performance than the Pt CE and good stability in cyclic voltammetry tests. These results demonstrate that the nanofiber-supported CuS is a promising cost effective alternative to Pt as a highly efficient CE for PEC H2 generation.


Both associative and dissociative H(2)O adsorption on SnO(2)(110), TiO(2)(110), and Ti-enriched Sn(1-x)Ti(x)O(2)(110) surfaces have been investigated at low ((1)/(12) monolayer (ML)) and high coverage (1 ML) by density functional theory calculations using the Gaussian and plane waves formalism. The use of a large supercell allowed the simulation at low symmetry levels. On SnO(2)(110), dissociative adsorption was favored at all coverages and was accompanied by stable associative H(2)O configurations. Increasing the coverage from (1)/(12) to 1 ML stabilized the (associatively or dissociatively) adsorbed H(2)O on SnO(2)(110) because of the formation of intermolecular H bonds. In contrast, on TiO(2)(110), the adsorption of isolated H(2)O groups ((1)/(12) ML) was more stable than at high coverage, and the favored adsorption changed from dissociative to associative with increasing coverage. For dissociative H(2)O adsorption on Ti-enriched Sn(1-x)Ti(x)O(2)(110) surfaces with Ti atoms preferably located on 6-fold-coordinated surface sites, the analysis of the Wannier centers showed a polarization of electrons surrounding bridging O atoms that were bound simultaneously to 6-fold-coordinated Sn and Ti surface atoms. This polarization suggested the formation of an additional bond between the 6-fold-coordinated Ti(6c) and bridging O atoms that had to be broken upon H(2)O adsorption. As a result, the H(2)O adsorption energy initially decreased, with increasing surface Ti content reaching a minimum at 25% Ti for (1)/(12) ML. This behavior was even more accentuated at high H(2)O coverage (1 ML) with the adsorption energy decreasing rapidly from 145.2 to 101.6 kJ/mol with the surface Ti content increasing from 0 to 33%. A global minimum of binding energies at both low and high coverage was found between 25 and 33% surface Ti content, which may explain the minimal cross-sensitivity to humidity previously reported for Sn(1-x)Ti(x)O(2) gas sensors. Above 12.5% surface Ti content, the binding energy decreased with increasing coverage, suggesting that the partial desorption of H(2)O is facilitated at a high fractional coverage.


The objectives of the study were 1) to investigate the effect of pH (pH 6 and 7) on bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of germinated colored rice, and 2) to study the effect of adding various ratios of germinated colored rice (0, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50%) on physicochemical property and sensory evaluation of fresh rice noodles. Two species of colored rice, namely Riceberry (RB) and Hom-Nil (HN) were employed as samples for germination. The results indicated that total phenolic content, total anthocyanin content, GABA content and antioxidant activity (FRAP and DPPH assay) were considerably higher when colored rice was soaked at pH 6 compared to pH 7 (P < 0.05). The bioactive compounds and proximate compositions of fresh rice noodles were significantly enhanced when addition of Germinated Colored Rice (GCR) increased (P < 0.05). However, texture profile analysis of the fresh GCR noodle had remarkable decrease in terms of cohesiveness, springiness and chewiness which had lowest values at 50% supplement of GCR. Lightness (L*) of the noodle reduced whereas redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) incresed significantly (P < 0.05) when GCR addition increased. Additionally, there was no distinct difference in sensory evaluation scores from thirty untrained panelists by adding 10 and 20% GCR in the fresh noodle (P > 0.05). This study concluded that the incorporation of GCR up to 20% into the formulation could be used to increase nutritional value of the fresh germinated colored rice noodle.


The proliferation of online communities has attracted much attention to modelling user behaviour in terms of social interaction, language adoption and contribution activity. Nevertheless, when applied to large-scale and cross-platform behavioural data, existing approaches generally suffer from expressiveness, scalability and generality issues. This paper proposes trans-dimensional von Mises-Fisher (TvMF) mixture models for L2 normalised behavioural data, which encapsulate: (1) a Bayesian framework for vMF mixtures that enables prior knowledge and information sharing among clusters, (2) an extended version of reversible jump MCMC algorithm that allows adaptive changes in the number of clusters for vMF mixtures when the model parameters are updated, and (3) an online TvMF mixture model that accommodates the dynamics of clusters for time-varying user behavioural data. We develop efficient collapsed Gibbs sampling techniques for posterior inference, which facilitates parallelism for parameter updates. Empirical results on simulated and real-world data show that the proposed TvMF mixture models can discover more interpretable and intuitive clusters than other widely-used models, such as k-means, non-negative matrix factorization (NMF), Dirichlet process Gaussian mixture models (DP-GMM), and dynamic topic models (DTM). We further evaluate the performance of proposed models in real-world applications, such as the churn prediction task, that shows the usefulness of the features generated.


A new strategy for the synthesis of aryl trifluoromethyl ethers (ArOCF3) by combining O-carboxydifluoromethylation of phenols and subsequent decarboxylative fluorination is reported. This protocol allows easy construction of functionalized trifluoromethoxybenzenes and trifluoromethylthiolated arenes (ArSCF3) in moderate to good yields. Moreover, it utilizes accessible and inexpensive reagents sodium bromodifluoroacetate and SelectFluor II and, thus, is practical for O-trifluoromethylation of phenols. The potential application of this method is demonstrated with the preparation of a plant-growth regulator, Flurprimidol.


The development of complex products, characterized by long lifecycles and deep supply chains, requires enhanced capabilities to assess, in an early design stage, the value of a solution not merely from a requirement fulfillment perspective. The paper proposes a conceptual scenario, described in terms of activities, inputs, outputs, actors and mechanisms, which details how aircraft components can be developed and assessed with a focus on their value contribution at system level. The scenario proposes a set of methodological and technological tools needed to enable value assessment in preliminary design, and has been created and preliminary validated together with major European aerospace manufacturers. The importance of being able to communicate the lifecycle value contribution of design solutions during the development work emerged clearly from the study. In this spirit, an approach to visualize such contribution directly in a 3D CAD model (across a set of value criteria, dimensions and drivers) has been proposed and it is currently under development.


Inspired by the huge droplets attached on cypress tree leaf tips after rain, we find that a bent fibre can hold significantly more water in the corner than a horizontally placed fibre (typically up to three times or more). The maximum volume of the liquid that can be trapped is remarkably affected by the bending angle of the fibre and surface tension of the liquid. We experimentally find the optimal included angle (∼36°) that holds the most water. Analytical and semi-empirical models are developed to explain these counter-intuitive experimental observations and predict the optimal angle. The data and models could be useful for designing microfluidic and fog harvesting devices.

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In 1999 an independent school in South Australia took the courageous step of introducing coeducation into their single sex boys' school. Mixed sex education was phased in over two years, with girls admitted to Years 7 to 12 in 1999 and Years 3 to 6 in 2000. Progress and perceptions of school climate were measured in all primary and secondary level boys in the school in the inaugural year of coeducation and then annually over the next two years. Hierarchical Linear Modelling analyses revealed an interesting pattern of interrelationships between boys' progress and cohort and grade level group perceptions of satisfaction, cohesiveness and competition within the school. Perceptions of the difficulty of schoolwork were also significantly related to boys' progress during the restructuring period.


Demographic changes of enormous magnitude have altered the ethnic and racial composition of large cities and metropolitan suburbs across the nation over the past thirty years, especially in California. Many cities and suburbs that were once home to large majorities of whites are now places where ethnic and racial minorities form the majority. "Minority-majority" cities in California have emerged as a new frontier in ethnic and race relations, where African Americans, Latinos, and other non-white groups now fi nd themselves, many for the fi rst time, living together and struggling to coexist. Although confl ict, tension, and misunderstanding characterize this new racial frontier, historians and other scholars must look deeper to fi nd examples of cooperation and collaboration in these new "cities of color." This article considers three cities in California-Compton, East Palo Alto, and Seaside-as examples of the historical and contemporary forces that have shaped "minority-majority" cities and the relations between African Americans and Latinos in particular.


Based on the spatial and land price data of innovation cities and their periphery areas in Korea, this study examines the degree and timing of changes in land price in relation to projects concerning innovation city. The study result confirms that the current system is inconsistent with the principle of restitution of development gain and therefore, this study attempts to seek improvement measures so that the current system can better fit the principle. The analysis reveals that most innovation cities, excluding Sinseo-dong of Daegu and Ujeong-dong of Ulsan, recorded a statistically significant increase in land prices since 2005, compared to those of their neighboring areas. It can be said that the information related to projects concerning innovation city was reflected in the land price since 2005. However, the standard land price pursuant to Article 70 of the Land Compensation Act is the officially assessed land price released on 1st of January 2007, and this official land price was actually applied to the compensation process. Therefore, estimating the compensation amount for land expropriation based on this land price will contradict the principle of restitution of development gain. In other words, despite the fact that development-related information was already reflected in land prices of innovation cities from 2005 to the end of 2006, the compensation process were carried out without institutional arrangements or efforts to exclude such reflection. To solve this problem, this study makes two suggestions. First, it is necessary to cast aside the limitations of the official land price that can be retroactively applied in accordance with Paragraph 5 of Article 70 of the Land Compensation Act, and instead apply the land price which is the most latest but deemed to have no reflection of development gains. Based on this revised standard land price, if the compensation amount is corrected by the average inflation rate and the average rate of increase in land price during the period until the time of the recognized land price, the amount would better satisfy the principle of restitution of development gain. Second, it is necessary to clearly stipulate the standards of development gains being reflected on the land price by including it in the secondary legislation. Under the current system, it is highly likely that appraiser"s arbitrary interpretation on development gains is included in the process of calculating the amount of compensation for land expropriation. In this regard, it is necessary to improve the standards on determining whether development gains are reflected based on the results of this academic research and the existing guidelines for appraisal of compensation for land expropriation published by the Korea Association of Property Appraisers.


This latest report in the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre's Focus on Western Australia series, the thirteenth in this series, looks to add to our understanding of the lives of young children in Australia, the environment within which they live and learn, and the services provided to families to enable their children to thrive. The importance of the early years in influencing outcomes in later life has been well considered. What happens to a child in their first five years of life, their physical health, the connections they form, the resources they have access to and the early education and care they receive can have lasting impacts on their future outcomes. Despite this children are still entering the world and growing up in circumstances where they face significant disadvantage. The report's findings offer a deeper understanding of the breadth, depth and drivers of disadvantage in the early years of a child's life, the impact of disadvantage on child outcomes, and the reinforcing effects of inequities in access to financial, developmental and learning resources, with a new BCEC Early Learning Disadvantage Index highlighting the extent of inequality of early learning opportunities across Western Australia and Australia.


Different approaches to enterprise resource planning systems development are often mentioned in the IS literature. However, they are not usually explained thoroughly. The aims of this interpretive case study are thus to introduce two different approaches for developing tailored ERP systems and to explain how they function, i.e., how the information about different kinds of requests flows through the network of actors, from business needs to production. In addition, the challenges in development caused by these development approaches are considered. As a result, we have identified two different models for ERP development: centralized and distributed decision making. The most significant challenges are related to communication channels, transfer of domain knowledge, and the role of key individuals in the development activities. Both approaches are considered successful overall, yet distinctive strengths and defects can be identified from each.


The identification of significant process parameters during injection moulding of feedstock in Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) is essential because fine control is required for these parameters. A small change in these parameters can cause large variation in the impact toughness of the parts produced by MIM. The controlled parameters used for optimization in this work include injection pressure, injection temperature, mould temperature, holding pressure, injection speed, powder loading, holding time, and cooling time. These parameters have been optimized using analysis of variance (ANOVA) for signal to noise ratios obtained in experiment performed by following Taguchi L 27 orthogonal array. The ANOVA also provides the contribution of significant process parameters to impact toughness. Results show that the injection pressure, mould temperature and powder loading are highly significant factors to the impact toughness, while the injection temperature, holding pressure, injection speed, holding time, cooling time, the interaction of injection pressure and injection temperature and interaction of injection pressure and mould temperature do not show significant effect at 95% confidence level.


Restoring America's Commitment to Consumers Act of 2012 - Amends the Truth in Lending Act to prohibit the annual percentage rate (APR) applicable to an extension of credit on a credit card account under an open end consumer credit plan from exceeding 16%. Includes in an APR any compensation fee (including a membership fee or an annual fee) for: (1) opening or maintaining the account; (2) granting an extension of credit; or (3) making available a line of credit. Authorizes the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) to make adjustments to the maximum APR limitation; but creates the presumption that any increase by the Board to the maximum limitation is not in the public interest unless severe economic conditions justify the increase. Prohibits construction of this Act as an endorsement by Congress of a 16% APR. Declares the intention of Congress that: (1) such maximum APR limitation should merely serve as a ceiling on consumer credit cards and few, if any, consumer credit card accounts would ever bear the maximum rate; and (2) consumer credit card issuers should strive to maintain APRs most advantageous to borrowers. Treats as an unfair or deceptive act or practice a credit card account which, as of February 8, 2012, bears an APR that is less than 16%, and subsequently increases it between February 8, 2012, and 60 days after enactment of this Act. Imposes a $15 cap upon certain credit card account fees, including fees (such as late fees, overdraft fees, or over-the-limit transaction fees) for borrower default or breach of any condition upon which credit was extended.


Gaussian mixtures-based learning algorithms are suitable strategies for trajectory learning and skill acquisition, in the context of programming by demonstration (PbD). Input streams other than visual information, as used in most applications up to date, reveal themselves as quite useful in trajectory learning experiments where visual sources are not available. In this work we have used force/torque feedback through a haptic device for teaching a teleoperated robot to empty a rigid container. Structure vibrations and container inertia appeared to considerably disrupt the sensing process, so a filtering algorithm had to be devised. Moreover, some input variables seemed much more relevant to the particular task to be learned than others, which lead us to analyze the training data in order to select those relevant features through principal
component analysis and a mutual information criterion. Then, a batch version of GMM/GMR [1], [2] was implemented using different training datasets (original, pre-processed data through PCA and MI). Tests where the teacher was instructed to follow a strategy compared to others where he was not lead to useful conclusions that permit devising the new research stages.


This project seeks to catalogue the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approaches practiced in rose gardens throughout the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. and beyond. It will begin with a section explaining the history of IPM at Morris Arboretum and the theory and practices currently surrounding IPM in a public rose garden setting. Then, priority issues in the Morris Arboretum Rose Garden are examined one at a time by synthesizing research garnered from interviews with other rosarians and academic sources. This information will be interpreted, at the end of the paper, to suggest a renewed IPM program for the Morris Arboretum Rose Garden. Suggestions will include templates for establishing thresholds, keeping records, and early identification and treatment of issues. Appendix A contains the survey tool I created to conduct the research for this project, with a list of all of the respondents. This network of gardeners and IPM specialists should be a future resource as we move forward with new approaches to managing pest and disease issues in the Morris rose garden. Appendix B contains a sample monitoring tool for recording rose performance, as well as threshold guidelines for fungal disease. Disciplines Horticulture Comments An independent study project report by The Charles C. Holman Endowed Rose and Flower Garden Intern (2014-2015) This report is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/morrisarboretum_internreports/22 TITLE: Creating an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program for the Marion Rivinus Rose Garden at the Morris Arboretum AUTHOR: Jennifer J. Lauer The Charles S. Holman Rose and Flower Garden Intern


Genetic variability and correlation in onion was studied during rabi seasons involving 16 genotypes showing wider variations for all traits. Results revealed that the genotype Pusa Madhvi, AOSDRB-0919 and AOSDRB-0913 performed better in terms of yield and yield contributing traits and these lines may be use for breeding program. The highest phenotypic and genotypic coefficient of variations were noted for yield per plot (16.96-15.81%), yield per ha (14.86-14.07%), bulb size (12.34-11.65%), plant height (12.00-11.57%) and bulb weight (14.27-11.57%). The high heritability and genetic advance were recorded in yield per plot (86.9 and 0.60%), yield per ha (89.6 and 7.30%), plant height (93.0 and 11.38%), bulb size (89.2 and 6.16%), and bulb weight (65.7 and 18.80%), suggesting the major role of genetic constitution in the expression of the character. Yield per ha had positive and highly significant correlation with yield per plot, TSS and bulb size both at phenotypic and genotypic level, respectively.


Background A limited number of studies on long-term effects of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter < 2.5 μm (PM2.5) on health suggest it can be an important cause of morbidity and mortality. In Asia where air quality is poor and deteriorating, local data on long-term effects of PM2.5 to support policy on air quality management are scarce. Objectives We assessed long-term effects of PM2.5 on the mortality in a single Asian city. Methods For 10–13 years, we followed up a cohort of 66,820 participants ≥ 65 years of age who were enrolled and interviewed in all 18 Elderly Health Centres of the Department of Health, Hong Kong, in 1998–2001. Their residential addresses were geocoded into x- and y-coordinates, and their proxy exposures to PM2.5 at their addresses in 1 × 1 km grids were estimated from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) satellite data. We used Cox regression models to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) of mortality associated with PM2.5. Results Mortality HRs per 10-μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 were 1.14 (95% CI: 1.07, 1.22) for all natural causes, 1.22 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.39) for cardiovascular causes, 1.42 (95% CI: 1.16, 1.73) for ischemic heart disease, 1.24 (95% CI: 1.00, 1.53) for cerebrovascular disease, and 1.05 (95% CI: 0.90, 1.22) for respiratory causes. Conclusions Our methods in using NASA satellite data provide a readily accessible and affordable approach to estimation of a sufficient range of individual PM2.5 exposures in a single city. This approach can expand the capacity to conduct environmental accountability studies in areas with few measurements of fine particles. Citation Wong CM, Lai HK, Tsang H, Thach TQ, Thomas GN, Lam KB, Chan KP, Yang L, Lau AK, Ayres JG, Lee SY, Chan WM, Hedley AJ, Lam TH. 2015. Satellite-based estimates of long-term exposure to fine particles and association with mortality in elderly Hong Kong residents. Environ Health Perspect 123:1167–1172; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1408264


In this note we suggest a new approach to mesh smoothing, based on a combination of Laplacian smoothing and Winslow's method. Using our approach, we can avoid mesh folding and maintain/produce element stretch. We also make a comparison with a method due to Giuliani and show that the latter method cannot ensure that folding is avoided.


This dissertation engages in a critical analysis of the poetry of Emily Dickinson which, to me, suggests that the poet suffered from a type of manic-depression known specifically in psychiatric parlance as bipolar disorder. I argue that although Dickinson experienced much pain and suffering she learnt, through time, to address, understand and contain adversity that ultimately, she transformed these experiences into the raw materials for poetic creation. Dickinson's poetic achievements are often obscured by a misunderstanding of her mental and emotional constitution. This thesis provides an alternative to the views of those commentators who maintain that Emily Dickinson was insane, neurotic or delusional. I intend, ultimately, to offer the reader a fresh insight into Emily Dickinson's poetry by reading it from the assumption that she suffered from bipolar disorder.


Mobile devices offer much potential to support older adults (age 65+). However, older adults have been relatively slow to adopt mobile devices. Although much ongoing HCI research has examined usability problems to address this issue, little work has looked at whether existing graphical icons are harder to use for this population compared with younger adults. We conducted a qualitative exploratory study and a follow-up experimental study to determine which icon characteristics help initial icon usability for older adults. We found that our older participants did have more problems using existing mobile device icons, but that particular icon characteristics – semantically close meaning (i.e. natural, close link between depicted objects and associated function), familiar, labelled and concrete (i.e. those depicting real-world objects) – improved icon usability for them. We discuss how these findings can help icon designers to create mobile device icons that are more suited to the abilities and technology experience of older adults.


This article investigates the complex interrelation between ethnic and gender diversity, process and performance among groups of business students. The article is based on an empirical survey of business students working on a complex assignment in groups of two to five in a small Swedish university. The results indicate that gender diversity leads to positive group outcomes, while ethnic diversity appears to create negative group outcomes. Intervening process variables, such as group communication, conflict and effectiveness in problem solving, were not found to be influenced by diversity, or to influence group outcomes. While the non‐influence of intervening variables can probably be explained by methodological difficulties, the negative outcome for ethnic diversity indicates a need to help students better manage ethnic diversity in order to reap its benefits.


Abstract Along the eastern coast of Mallorca, many littoral caves partly filled with brackish waters occur. The most peculiar aspect of these caves is the presence of abundant phreatic overgrowths formed on pre-existing supports located at the underground pools' water table, which corresponds to the present sea level. Besides a specific geomorphological interest, these subaqueous speleothems provide an excellent record of Quaternary sea level stands. The clear relation between phreatic speleothem growth and the contemporary sea level allows the control of the tectonic evolution of an area, by comparing speleothems' ages and heights with the regionally established eustatic curves. In the studied region different altimetric positions of coeval phreatic speleothems suggest the existence of a recent tectonic activity. The characteristics and chronology of this tectonic event are the objectives of this paper, pointing out at the same time the potential of phreatic speleothems in structural geology investigations. Along the coastline of the studied area, alignments of phreatic speleothems attributed to high sea stands 5a, 5c and 5e are recorded at increasing elevations northwards. This is an evidence of a significant tectonic tilting that took place, at least partially, after substage 5a because phreatic speleothems of this substage are now located at different altitudes. Considering that tectonic tilting has been continuous from post-substage 5a (approximately 85 ka) until now, and that normal displacement is approximately of 1.5 m, the average minimum velocity of the tilting can be estimated about 0.02 mm/year in the southern part with respect to the north end. Data obtained from phreatic speleothems have been compared with other regional, stratigraphical, geomorphological and tectonic evidence that all together point to the same existence of the postulated tectonic tilting. Consequently, phreatic speleothem investigation results in a new method that allows the quantification of average velocities of tilting as well as other tectonic movements with high precision. This methodology can be extended to any littoral karstic landscape where phreatic speleothems are present. © 2002 Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.


The microstructural evolution and grain-boundary influence on electrical properties of Ce 0.90 Gd 0.10 O 1.95 were studied. The nanoscale powders synthesized from a semibatch reactor exhibited 50% green density and 92% sintering density at 1200°C (∼200°C lower than previous studies). Impedance spectra as a function of temperature and grain size were analyzed. The Ce 0.90 Gd 0.10 O 1.95 with finest grain size possessed highest overall grain-boundary resistance; this contribution was eliminated at temperatures >600°C, regardless of grain size. The grain conductivity was independent of grain size and was dependent on temperature with two distinct regimes, indicative of the presence of Gd' Ce -V o complexes that dissociated at a critical temperature of ∼580°C. The activation energy for complex dissociation was ∼0.1 eV; the value for the grain-boundary was ∼1.2eV, which was size independent.


In anticipation of the development of a new fishery for the ommastrephid squid Martialia hyadesi in the Scotia Sea, this paper presents a revision of annual consumption of the species by higher predators and provides a brief review of information about the life cycle and distribution of the species obtained from research fishing and commercial catches. This species is eaten by seals, whales and seabirds, the latter being the most reliable source of consumption data because comprehensive sampling can be carried out during their breeding seasons. A conservative estimate for total annual consumption of M. hyadesi by higher predators in the Scotia Sea is 245 000 tonnes, with an upper estimate of 550 000 tonnes if less reliable data are included. M. hyadesi spawns between autumn and mid-summer with peak hatching in winter/spring. Its life span has not been established. Data from the CCAMLR Convention Area suggest that M. hyadesi may live for two years, but this may vary. In common with other ommastrephids, the species is probably semelparous. It is proposed that the timing and catches of the fishery should be highly conservative and set taking into account the timing of breeding and consumption rates of the most sensitive of the dependent species. Most Antarctic predators which have been studied consume relatively small and immature specimens of M. hyadesi. Fishing for M. hyadesi after the chick-rearing period of the most sensitive predator (grey-headed albatross) would minimise competition locally and ensure that the fishery only exploited the stock after escapement from most higher predator species. It would also allow seabird predation of the stock to be monitored prior to the fishing season as a way of assessing numbers of pre-recruits. Closing the fishery before recruitment of the next generation of squid would ensure availability of prey to higher predators during the following chick-rearing period. Preliminary data from a squid jigger which undertook research fishing around South Georgia in June 1996 provided the basis for determining realistic potential catch rates.


COVID-19 containment measures have left adolescent girls in Nairobi, Kenya vulnerable to negative educational, economic, and secondary health outcomes that threaten their safe transitions into adulthood. In June 2020, the Population Council conducted phone-based surveys with 856 girls aged between 10 and 19 in 5 informal settlements who had been surveyed prior to COVID-19 as part of five longitudinal studies. We performed bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses to assess the relationship between COVID-19 outcomes and potential protective or risk factors. We found that younger girls are experiencing high levels of food insecurity and difficulty learning from home during school closures, while many older girls face the immediate risk of dropping out of school permanently and have been forgoing needed health services.


Introduction. Datura species, especially Datura stramonium (e.g., jimsonweed), are the focus of scores of case reports that chronicle the toxidrome of anticholinergic toxicity. Mechanisms of toxicity. Toxicity occurs because of the presence of up to 28 belladonna alkaloids, predominated by atropine and scopolamine. There are significant interspecies differences in the ratio of the belladonna alkaloids, atropine to scopolamine, and the presence of at least 26 other related alkaloids will vary, even between and among specimens of the same species. The differences may account for unexpected dose–response effects that are observed in some patients and even different profiles of toxicity. All parts of the Datura species contain belladonna alkaloids; in decreasing order, the belladonna alkaloid content is generally the greatest in the petioles (flowers), stem, fruit (seeds), leaves, and roots. Features. The most prominent symptoms are due to the blockade of peripheral muscarinic receptors that innervate exocrine glands, smooth muscle, and cardiac tissue. Therefore, the primary toxic manifestations include mydriasis, which is due to the blockade of papillary sphincter muscle and iris muscle; dry mouth, secondary to parasympathetic blockade of salivary secretion; tachycardia, caused by competition at muscarinic receptors in postganglionic parasympathetic neurons and blockade of receptors in the SA node; and fever and erythema, because of vasodilation and inhibition of sweating. Direct ocular exposure. Well known to produce mydriasis after ingestion, Datura is also notorious for producing maladies such as "gardeners eye" and "cornpickers eye," which is a testament to the high concentrations of belladonna alkaloids in the entire plant. When the sap or dried plant material from a member of the Datura species enters the eye directly, the papillary sphincter and ciliary muscles are affected resulting in mydriasis and cycloplegia. Pupil dilation is sudden in onset and often profound. In a dose–response fashion, the mydriasis and its persistence will be dependent on the alkaloidal content and quantity of the sap. The mydriasis can be bilateral, but most commonly it is unilateral, which is frightening to the victim and to the clinician and suggestive of significant cerebral pathology. Management. As with any toxic exposure, the foundation of patient management is supportive care and patient reassurance. Because of the central nervous system effects of the belladonna alkaloids, the patient may be agitated, combative, confused, and disoriented. Initial intervention focuses on addressing those issues that protect the patient and their caregivers. In severe cases, physostigmine, a cholinesterase inhibitor, should be used to reverse anticholinergic toxicity. Physostigmine should be given intravenously to an adult in a dose of 0.5–2.0 mg at a rate of no more than 1 mg/min; a second dose may be administered if necessary. Children should receive 0.02 mg/kg intravenously and the rate should not exceed 0.5 mg/min. Extracorporeal elimination and forced diuresis of the belladonna alkaloids are not viable options. Conclusions. Members of the Datura species contain abundant amounts of belladonna alkaloids that can produce both local and systemic anticholinergic toxicity. Fatalities because of Datura species exposure are rare, but adverse effects are very common. Treatment is supportive with the use of physostigmine in more severe cases of poisoning.


Background: The worldwide prevalence of eczema ranges from 15% to 20%. The exact cause of eczema is unknown. The modern dermatology employs systemic and local administration of steroid for the management of eczema. Despite an initial response, maintenance therapies with the small dose of systemic and topical glucocorticoid usually produce hazardous ill effect. This study evaluates and compares the effect of both the systems of medicine to get safe and cost-effective treatment. Aim: The purpose of this study was to compare the therapeutic efficacy of Pama-Dadru-Vicharchikahar Lepa (PDVL) to mometasone furoate 0.1% in the treatment of Vicharchika. Materials and Methods: Patients who arrived to the OPD and IPD of the Department of Kayachikita, DMM Ayurved College, Yavatmal, possess Vicharchika's classical signs and symptoms. In this study, 60 patients enrolled in two groups: 30 patients of group A treated with the local application of PDVL and similarly 30 patients of group B treated with the local application of mometasone furoate 0.1% ointment for 45 days with follow-up of 45 days. The data were compared: Wilcoxon signed rank test was used within each group, whereas the Mann–Whitney test was used between groups. Result: After 90 days of treatment with follow-up, it was found that in the trial group, PDVL, average % relief was 83.86%. In the control group, mometasone furoate 0.1%, average % relief was 79.69%. PDVL was found effective on % relief, safe, easy to administer, and cost-effective. Conclusion: The local application of PDVL is effective than mometasone furoate 0.1% in the management of Vicharchika to reduce Shyava Varna, whereas the local application of PDVL is not effective than mometasone furoate 0.1% topically in the management of Vicharchika to reduce Kandu, Pidika, Rukshata, Strava, Rajyo, Lohit Varna, Ruja, and Eczema Area And Severity Index score. CTRI Number: CTRI/2020/06/025982


This issue of Library Technology Reports (vol. 55, no. 8), "Blockchain in Libraries," examines the application of blockchain in libraries. Blockchain technology has the ability to transform how libraries provide services and organize information. To date, most of these applications are still in the conceptual stage. However, sooner or later, development and implementation will follow. This report is intended to provide a primer on the technology and some thought starters. In chapter 2, the concept of blockchain is explained. Chapter 3 provides eight thought and conversation starters that look at how blockchain could be applied in libraries. Chapter 4 looks at the barriers and challenges of implementing blockchain in libraries. Chapter 5 raises some questions around ethical issues that librarians should consider with respect to blockchain implementation.


Contemporary reconfigurable hardware devices have the capability to achieve high performance, power efficiency, and adaptability required to meet a wide range of design goals. With scaling challenges facing current complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), new concepts and methodologies supporting efficient adaptation to handle reliability issues are becoming increasingly prominent. Reconfigurable hardware and their ability to realize selforganization features are expected to play a key role in designing future dependable hardware architectures. However, the exponential increase in density and complexity of current commercial SRAM-based field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) has escalated the overhead associated with dynamic runtime design adaptation. Traditionally, static modular redundancy techniques are considered to surmount this limitation; however, they can incur substantial overheads in both area and power requirements. To achieve a better trade-off among performance, area, power, and reliability, this research presents design-time approaches that enable fine selection of redundancy level based on target reliability goals and autonomous adaptation to runtime demands. To achieve this goal, three studies were conducted: First, a graph and set theoretic approach, named Hypergraph-Cover Diversity (HCD), is introduced as a preemptive design technique to shift the dominant costs of resiliency to design-time. In particular, union-free hypergraphs are exploited to partition the reconfigurable resources pool into highly separable subsets of resources, each of which can be utilized by the same synthesized application netlist. The diverse implementations provide reconfiguration-based resilience throughout the system lifetime while avoiding the significant overheads associated with runtime placement and routing phases. Evaluation on a MotionJPEG image compression core using a Xilinx 7-series-based FPGA hardware platform has demonstrated the potential of the proposed FT method to achieve 37.5% area saving and iii up to 66% reduction in power consumption compared to the frequently-used TMR scheme while providing superior fault tolerance. Second, Design Disjunction based on non-adaptive group testing is developed to realize a low-overhead fault tolerant system capable of handling self-testing and self-recovery using runtime partial reconfiguration. Reconfiguration is guided by resource grouping procedures which employ non-linear measurements given by the constructive property of f -disjunctness to extend runtime resilience to a large fault space and realize a favorable range of tradeoffs. Disjunct designs are created using the mosaic convergence algorithm developed such that at least one configuration in the library evades any occurrence of up to d resource faults, where d is lower-bounded by f . Experimental results for a set of MCNC and ISCAS benchmarks have demonstrated f-diagnosability at the individual slice level with average isolation resolution of 96.4% (94.4%) for f=1 (f=2) while incurring an average critical path delay impact of only 1.49% and area cost roughly comparable to conventional 2-MR approaches. Finally, the proposed Design Disjunction method is evaluated as a design-time method to improve timing yield in the presence of large random within-die (WID) process variations for application with a moderately high production capacity. Results for a set of benchmarks show an average gain in timing yield of up to 39.42%, 36.91%, and 57.45% for total variations of 25%, 15%, and 5%, respectively. The enhanced timing yield is attained while achieving reductions in mean delay of 9.96% 6.85%, and 3.58% for the same variability levels.


Between its defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and the outbreak of World War I, France experienced a tremendous rise in populist nationalism, the aftershocks of which can still be felt today. In examining the forces that shaped the arts of this period--from the academy to the avant-garde, and from the museum to public spaces--this volume explores the relationship between the arts and political conflict and the impact of nationalism during the early modern period in France. Fifteen distinguished contributors provide a comprehensive overview of a range of artistic media over five decades. Generously illustrated with works by artists including Georges Braque, Maurice Denis, Edouard Manet, and Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, as well as with images from the popular press, the book addresses such topics as how artists memorialized the Franco-Prussian War and connections between nationalism and artistic styles. Collectively, the essays represent a new approach in treating nationalism as a common thread among political and philosophical movements generally seen in terms of their ideological differences.


The regions of north-eastern Ethiopia are known for their high levels of sorghum genetic diversity, and for being drought prone. For centuries, sorghum has been developed and maintained by farmers for its adaptation to the marginal and heterogeneous environment of these regions. The objective of this study was to examine the genetic diversity and population structure of 200 sorghum landraces collected from seven lowland districts, using 30 microsatellite markers sampled from all linkage groups of the sorghum genome. Both distance-based and model-based analytical approaches were used to analyse the data. The data analysis revealed that there was a large variation among all the markers under study. The values of polymorphic information content ranged from 0.26 to 0.88, with a mean value of 0.61, reflecting the high discriminating ability of the markers studied. The mean value of total gene diversity was 0.69, which partitioned 86% among the landraces and 14% within the landraces. Gene diversity among the landraces was largely due to the variation among the genotypes within the geographic origins. Landraces sampled from different collection sites appeared to cluster together, indicating the existence of a high level of gene flow among the sites of collection. This indicates that a relatively small, random collection of landraces would capture the bulk of genetic diversity in the target area. A moderately high level of genetic differentiation and a relatively low level of gene flow were observed between sorghum races and maturity groups. Given that the target area is marginal, drought prone and heterogeneous, the study of genetic diversity among sorghum landraces could serve as an important indicator of valuable alleles for drought tolerance in future sorghum improvement programmes.


Harriet Mathew and her husband, the Reverend Anthony Stephen Mathew, are well known as patrons of William Blake and John Flaxman. As J. T. Smith wrote, about 1784 the house of "Mrs. Mathew, … No. 27, in Rathbone-place, was then frequented by most of the literary and talented people of the day," and Flaxman's sister-in-law Maria Denman wrote that A. S. Mathew's wife "was the intimate associate of Mrs. Montague, Mrs. Barbauld, Mrs. Chapone, Mrs. Brooke, &c." However, a search over fifty years revealed no clear reference to A. S. Mathew or to his wife in the records of Anna Letitia Barbauld, James Boswell, Fanny Burney, Mrs. Chapone, Benjamin Robert Haydon, Angelica Kauffman, Mrs. Montagu, George Romney, Hester Thrale, or Horace Walpole, many of them notorious gossips.


Over the recent years, a considerable growth in the number of vehicles on the roads has been observed. This increases importance of vehicle safety and of minimization of fuel consumption, subsequently prompting manufacturers of cars to equip their products, with more advanced features such as Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) and Collision Avoidance and Collision Warning System (CWS). In this thesis we concentrate on new methods for ACC. This work will include: Design of the simulation models suitable for this application, Investigation and design of suitable hybrid control algorithm by using classical and advanced control algorithm's consisting of the gain scheduling PI and Linear Quadratic (LQ) controllers, Design of the Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) and the nonlinear Balance-Based Adaptive Control (B-BAC), Real-time implementation and tests of the algorithms by using NI Lab View Starter Kit Robot from National Instruments, Implementation and tests of the models and the controllers in MA TLAB/Simulink(R).

The applications of the different control methods in the ACC are tested and compared against different traffic scenarios considering both velocity tracking (CC) and distance tracking
(ACC) modes. Judging about the performance of ACC by utilizing the two advanced control methods; B-BAC and NMPC includes trade-offs between tracking-distance and velocity
and the vehicle acceleration. However, both the B-BAC and the NMPC has demonstrated significantly smoother responses in controlling the throttle and the brake compared to PI control and linear MPC which in tum could improve the vehicle acceleration and fuel efficiency. The methods in order of producing better performance in terms of the values of
control errors and their influences on fuel saving; NMPC, B-BAC, linear MPC and PI control.

Improvement of fuel efficiency is investigated in this thesis through two approaches; first, by calculating the optimal control actions corresponding to the throttle and the brake
signals through utilising the advanced control methods, second, by reducing the engine speed to idle speed during coast phase of the vehicle which causes the engine friction to be reduced. The engine speed can be reduced through transition between locked and unlocked states of the torque convertor. Possibility of achieving fuel efficiency through coasting in the vehicle has been investigated in the simulation and it has been demonstrated that longer coasting duration could be achieved i.e. more distance can be covered, and the fuel efficiency could be improved.


The naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace (1823–1913) has for many years been standing in the shadow of his more famed co-discoverer of the principle of natural selection, Charles Darwin. Despite outward similarities between the two men's formulation of the principle, Wallace had fit his appreciation of natural selection into views on evolution that were quite different from Darwin's. A closer examination of what Wallace had in mind suggests a model of process in which natural selection per se acts as the negative feedback mechanism (actually, a 'state-space') in the relation between population and environment, and environmental engagement as made possible by the resulting selection of traits acts as the positive feedback part of the cycle. Thus, it may be better to contextualize adaptive structures as entropy-relaying biogeochemical facilitators that only 'generate a potential for evolution' than to portray them as the end results of evolution. This systems point of view better lends itself to appreciations of the biogeographical context of evolution than does the tree-thinking of a more conventional style of speciation-focused Darwinism, which sometimes confuses process with result.


Abstract. ISPRS Technical Commission II focuses, at various scales, on geometric, radiometric and multi-temporal aspects of image- and range-based 3D surveying and modeling. Specifically, Commission II deals with image orientation, point cloud generation and processing, 3D feature extraction, dynamic and static scene analysis, sensor and data fusion, and machine learning for geospatial data analysis and big data techniques for massive data processing. Applications in the fields of mapping, infrastructure monitoring, heritage studies, space exploration, underwater photogrammetry and environmental engineering are also considered.The Volume related to Commission II contains 108 papers published in the ISPRS Archives and 20 published in the ISPRS Annals. The papers in Archives were accepted from among 111 abstract submissions and 59 full papers. Of the 108 Archives papers, 32 were full paper submissions and 76 were abstract submissions. The 20 papers in the Annals were selected from among 59 full paper submissions after going through a peer review process.In the aforementioned areas of research, the papers in this volume discuss the challenges and needs, and introduce novel photogrammetric solutions that depict the latest developments in the field.There has been a wide range of coverage of these topics and point cloud generation and processing has been the most active coverage with close to 38% of the accepted papers. This is followed by machine/deep learning methods with 31.8% that provide solutions to the semantic enrichment of images and 3D data. Research in heritage and underwater studies is represented with 9% and 6%, respectively, of the accepted papers.We believe these volumes nicely recap the state-of-the-art, current trends and possible applications of photogrammetry on a wide range of topics with a nice overview of the future research directions.On behalf of Technical Commission II, we would like to thank the local organizers of the 2021 ISPRS Congress, the members of the international program committee, all Working Group officers and all reviewers for their hard organizational work and efforts in the paper reviewing process.


Carboxylesterase-mediated insecticide resistance was studied in Spodoptera litura Fab with three different populations from Varanasi, Delhi and Sonepat. The level of susceptibility to pyrethroid insecticides (cypermethrin and bifenthrin), activity of carboxylesterase (CarE) and amino acid substitutions in esterase gene of each population were investigated. Insecticide bioassay revealed that Sonepat and Delhi populations of S. litura were 2.2- and 2.1-fold resistant to cypermethrin and bifenthrin, respectively. Delhi and Sonepat populations had elevated activity of enzyme level of 26.47±0.21 and 28.02±0.05, respectively. The Varanasi population (10.09 ± 0.10 μmol/min/mg of protein) exhibited lowest CarE activity. The CarE gene of 500 bp fragment that encodes 167 amino acid residues was characterised in all populations. Cluster analysis of gene sequences revealed that all three populations were 92 to 95% identity and were closely related to other Spodoptera spp. Among the 167 amino acid residues, 27 were identical in all Spodoptera species and seven substitutions were observed. Sequence alignment confirmed no substitution at conserved position and one semiconserved substitution. In the characterised region, the substitution W224S which is responsible for CarE activity reduction in insecticide resistant Culex pipiens was not observed in any of the Spodoptera populations. A strong positive relation (r = 0.99) was observed between the CarE activity and determined LC50. Thus, elevated CarE activity in Delhi and Sonepat field populations was attributed to pyrethroid resistance. Metabolic detoxification mainly appears to be due to overproduction of CarE enzyme in respective populations and not because of amino acid residue changes.


A sample of 221 11th grade students and their parents were asked to complete the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI; M. H. Davis, 1980), which is comprised of 4 subscales: empathic concern, perspective taking, fantasy, and personal distress; and a global-item measure containing 4 items, 1 for each subscale. The factorial structure that emerged in a previous study (C. Cliffordson, 2000) involving the students was tested on ratings provided by their parents. The results from the IRI scale were also compared to results from the global-item measure. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the structure of empathy and the agreement of self/other judgments. The results support the conclusions from the previous study that the concept of empathy can be considered to be identical to empathic concern, which also explains a great deal of perspective taking and fantasy. The agreement between the students' and their parents' judgments was substantial, and there are several reasons to believe that the interjudge agreement obtained is accurate.


Pharmacokinetics of Dexamethasone Delivered via Iontophoresis Justin H. Rigby Department of Exercise Sciences, BYU Doctor of Philosophy Study Design: Controlled laboratory study. Objectives: To determine the time course of dexamethasone sodium phosphate (Dex-P) iontophoresis delivery to underlying tissues using microdialysis. Background: The efficacy of iontophoresis at delivering Dex-P through the skin is unknown in humans because of the lack of minimally invasive measurement techniques. Methods: Sixty-four healthy male participants (age = 24.4 ± 3.3 yrs, height = 71.8 ± 2.5 in, weight = 181.8 ± 26.1 lbs) were randomly assigned into one of six groups: 1) 1 mA current, 1 mm probes depth; 2) 1 mA current, 4 mm probes depth; 3) 2 mA current, 1 mm probes depth; 4) 2 mA current, 4 mm probes depth; 5) in vivo retrodialysis; and 6) skin perfusion flowmetry. Microdialysis probes assess the combined recovery (Dextotal) of Dex-P, dexamethasone (Dex) and its metabolite. In vivo calibration of the microdialysis probes occurred via retrodialysis. Laser Doppler flowmetry assessed skin perfusion. Results: There was no difference of Dextotal between current intensities (P = 0.99) but a greater amount of Dextotal was recovered by the 1 mm probe (P < 0.0001) compared to the 4 mm probe. Peak means for the 1 and 2 mA at 1 mm were 10.8 ± 8.1 and 7.7 ± 5.5 μg/ml and at 4mm being 2.0 ± 0.8 and 1.3 ± 0.9 μg/ml, respectively. Skin perfusion rapidly increased during both current intensity treatments, but significantly decreased before the conclusion of the 1 mA treatment (P < 0.0001). Peak skin perfusion was 741.4 ± 408.7% and 711.6 ± 260.8% baseline for 1 and 2 mA intensities, respectively. Conclusion: Iontophoresis delivery of Dex-P was successful measured in vivo through human skin. Significant concentrations of Dextotal were found regardless of current intensity. Though current induced vasodilation occurred, it did not significantly affect the tissue accumulation of Dextotal.


Every software developer, from the individual amateur to the largest enterprise, dreams of giving rise to a "killer application (commonly shortened to killer app) that is so useful or desirable that it proves the value of some under-lying technology"1. Whether the 'killer app' provides financial benefits either to the developer or the hardware platform vendor is beside the point. The important thing is the professional or social component: a true 'killer app' radically alters some form of human activity, either by creating an activity that did not exist before, or by im-proving the performance of an activity so dramatically that its practitioners view it as a revolutionary change. The first set of 'killer apps' so named, the early spread-sheet programs VisiCalc and Lotus 1-2-3, certainly revo-lutionized finance, accounting, engineering and many other professional disciplines. These programs, in fact, engendered the pursuit of the dream referred to above.
The title of the talk is not "How to create a killer app in Civil Engineering" but "What makes and doesn't make a killer app in Civil Engineering." Forecasting is always a tough art. Given the wide range of human activities, it is even tougher to predict what tool will radically alter one such activity. Retrospective appraisal is much easier: you just need to evaluate what happened and attempt to trace from causes to consequences. Furthermore, because of the rarity of 'killer apps' generally, and in civil engineering particularly, it is not possible to treat the subject in any generic way; it can only be treated by evaluating exam-ples and attempting to generalize from them.


[1] In this paper, the temporal and spatial variability of the sea surface salinity (SSS) in the Nordic Seas is investigated. The data include a Russian hydrographical database for the Nordic Seas and daily to weekly observations of salinity at Ocean Weather Station Mike (OWSM) (located at 66°N, 2°E in the Norwegian Sea). In addition, output from a medium-resolution version of the Miami Isopycnic Coordinate Ocean Model (MICOM), forced with daily National Center for Environmental Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) reanalysis data, is used to complement the analysis of the temporal and spatial fields constructed from the observational data sets. The Nordic Seas show a strong seasonal variability in the vertical density stratification and the mixed layer (ML) depth, with a weak stratification and a several hundred meters deep ML during winter and a well-defined shallow ML confined to the upper few tens of meters during summer. The seasonal variability strongly influences the strength of the high-frequency variability and to what extent subsurface anomalies are isolated from the surface. High-frequency variability has been investigated in terms of standard deviation of daily SSS, calculated for the different months of the year. From observations at OWSM, typical winter values range from 0.03 to 0.04 psu and summer values range from 0.06 to 0.07 psu. Results from the model simulation show that highest variability is found in frontal areas and in areas with strong stratification and lowest variability in the less stratified areas in the central Norwegian Sea and south of Iceland. Investigation of the interannual variability over the last 50 years shows a marked freshening of the Atlantic Water in the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. Moreover, the strength of the southern sector of the Polar front, as defined by the 34.8–35.0 psu isohalines along the western boundary of the inflowing Atlantic Water, undergoes significant interannual variability with gradient stretching reaching up to 300 km. In comparison, the variability in the strength of the eastern front and northern sector of the Polar front, seemingly controlled by the shelf break off Norway and the ridge between the Norwegian and the Greenland Seas, typically undergoes stretching only between 60 and 80 km. The investigation also demonstrates that the low-frequency variability in the upper ocean density field in the Greenland Sea, a key factor for the deep water convection, is governed by the variability in the sea surface field. Since the early 1960s, there has been a negative trend in the salinity, probably contributing to the observed decrease in the deep water production in that period.


Contrary to the previous belief that any presence of supraglottic activity indicates presence of hyperfunctional vocal pathology, Stager et al. (2000, 2002) found out that supraglottic compressions do occur in normal subjects. In fact, dynamic false vocal fold compressions during production of phrases with a great number of glottal stops were noted. The present study hypothesized that a similar pattern s would be observed at sentence level, where at least 50% or higher incidence of dynamic FVF compressions would be observed at aurally perceived glottal stops and other linguistic markers, such as vowel-initial words, /t/ final words, punctuations and phrase boundaries, where glottal stops were likely to occur. Nasendoscopic recordings were obtained from 8 healthy subjects (2M; 6F) during production of selected sentence stimuli. Their audio recordings were rated by two judges to detect the location of glottal stops. Then, the video images were analyzed to categorize the presence and absence of dynamic and static false vocal folds (FVF) or anterior posterior (AP) compressions. Results indicated that the incidence of dynamic FVF compressions was 30%. Nevertheless, the average incidence was elevated at aurally perceived glottal stops and at the linguistic contexts that are known to be associated with glottal stops compared to other contexts. ABSTRACT The false vocal folds (FVF), which are situated above our true vocal folds within the larynx or "voice box," come together during swallowing or coughing to protect the airway. At one time, FVF compression while voicing was considered as signs of hyperfunctional voice disorders or maladaptive compensations to vocal fold paralysis. However, Stager et al. (2000, 2002) found frequent brief compressions of the FVF during production of glottal stops (specifically, vowel initiated words) by normal subjects when they recited short phrases. Glottal stops are brief audible cessation of airflow, which can often be heard during phrases such as "We eat eels every Easter." The present study was designed to further investigate the relationship between FVF compressions and glottal stops and specific linguistic contexts where glottal stops have been known to occur. Eight healthy subjects were recruited. Video images of true and false vocal folds movement and the audio recordings were collected via flexible nasendoscope while they read a set of longer, complex sentences. The incidence of brief or dynamic FVF compressions at aurally perceived glottal stops were only 30%, which was lower than Stager et al.'s results. Nevertheless, elevated frequencies of FVF compressions were noted at words ending with vowels or ending with "T" which were known to be associated with an increased number of glottal stops. This study further elucidated the pattern of normal FVF compressions at certain linguistic contexts. This result will further assist in differentiating normal FVF activity patterns from abnormal patterns and in accurate diagnosis of hyperfunctional voice disorder in clinic settings.


From the Publisher:
Perl Developer's Dictionary is a complete, well-organized reference to the Perl language and environment, including core syntax as well as Perl modules. Designed specifically for the experienced developer who needs a reference readily available on his or her desk to refer to on a daily basis, the book is extensively cross-referenced and indexed for optimal usability. In addition to providing a complete syntax reference for all core Perl functions, the book also provides quick access to language syntax, constructs, and other language issues. Each major section of the book is prefaced with a short introduction to provide background material on the subject at hand, and then is followed by a series of "dictionary" entries that cover exactly one topic, carefully cross-referenced and indexed with the rest of the book.


Using plant-level data from the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) for the fiscal years from 1998-99 through 2007-08, this study provides plant-level cross-state/time-series evidence of the impact of employment protection legislation (EPL) on total factor productivity (TFP) and labor productivity in India. Identification of the effect of EPL follows from a difference-in-differences estimator inspired by Rajan and Zingales (1998) that takes advantage of the state-level variation in labor regulation and heterogeneous industry characteristics. The fundamental identification assumption is that EPL is more likely to restrict firms operating in industries with higher labor intensity and/or higher sales volatility. Our results show that firms in labor intensive or more volatile industries benefited the most from labor reforms in their states. Our point estimates indicate that, on average, firms in labor intensive industries and in flexible labor markets have TFP residuals 14% higher than those registered for their counterparts in states with more stringent labor laws. However, no important differences are identified among plants in industries with low labor intensity when comparing states with high and low levels of EPL reform. Similarly, the TFP of plants in volatile industries and in states that experienced more pro-employer reforms is 11% higher than that of firms in volatile industries and in more restrictive states; however, the TFP residuals of plants in industries with low labor intensity are 11% lower in high EPL reform states than in states with lower levels of EPL reform. In sum, the evidence presented here suggests that the high labor costs and rigidities imposed through Indian federal labor laws are lessened by labor market reforms at the state level.


Computation of High-Dimensional Multivariate Normal and Student-t Probabilities Based on Matrix Compression Schemes Jian Cao The first half of the thesis focuses on the computation of high-dimensional multivariate normal (MVN) and multivariate Student-t (MVT) probabilities. Chapter 2 generalizes the bivariate conditioning method to a d-dimensional conditioning method and combines it with a hierarchical representation of the n × n covariance matrix. The resulting two-level hierarchical-block conditioning method requires Monte Carlo simulations to be performed only in d dimensions, with d≪ n, and allows the dominant complexity term of the algorithm to be O(n log n). Chapter 3 improves the block reordering scheme from Chapter 2 and integrates it into the Quasi-Monte Carlo simulation under the tile-low-rank representation of the covariance matrix. Simulations up to dimension 65,536 suggest that this method can improve the run time by one order of magnitude compared with the hierarchical Monte Carlo method. The second half of the thesis discusses a novel matrix compression scheme with Kronecker products, an R package that implements the methods described in Chapter 3, and an application study with the probit Gaussian random field. Chapter 4 studies the potential of using the sum of Kronecker products (SKP) as a compressed covariance matrix representation. Experiments show that this new SKP representation can save the memory footprint by one order of magnitude compared with the hierarchical representation for covariance matrices from large grids and the Cholesky factorization in one million dimensions can be achieved within 600 seconds. In Chapter 5, an R package is introduced that implements the methods in Chapter 3 and show how the 5 package improves the accuracy of the computed excursion sets. Chapter 6 derives the posterior properties of the probit Gaussian random field, based on which model selection and posterior prediction are performed. With the tlrmvnmvt package, the computation becomes feasible in tens of thousands of dimensions, where the prediction errors are significantly reduced.


Commit messages are a valuable resource in comprehension of software evolution, since they provide a record of changes such as feature additions and bug repairs. Unfortunately, programmers often neglect to write good commit messages. Different techniques have been proposed to help programmers by automatically writing these messages. These techniques are effective at describing what changed, but are often verbose and lack context for understanding the rationale behind a change. In contrast, humans write messages that are short and summarize the high level rationale. In this paper, we adapt Neural Machine Translation (NMT) to automatically "translate" diffs into commit messages. We trained an NMT algorithm using a corpus of diffs and human-written commit messages from the top 1k Github projects. We designed a filter to help ensure that we only trained the algorithm on higher-quality commit messages. Our evaluation uncovered a pattern in which the messages we generate tend to be either very high or very low quality. Therefore, we created a quality-assurance filter to detect cases in which we are unable to produce good messages, and return a warning instead.


Understanding the thermo-rheological regime and physical character of lava while it is flowing is crucial if we are to adequately model lava flow emplacement dynamics. We present measurements from simultaneous sampling and thermal imaging across the full width of an active channel at Piton de la Fournaise (La Réunion, France). Our data set involves measurements of flow dynamics at three sites down-channel from the vent. Quantification of flow velocities, cooling rates, sample texture, and rheology allows all thermo-rheological parameters to be linked, and down-as well as cross-channel variations to be examined. Within 150 m from the vent, we recorded an unexpected velocity increase (from 0.07 to 0.1 m/s), in spite of cooling rates of 0.19–0.29 °C/m and constant slope. This change requires a switch from a Newtonian-dominated regime to a Bingham plug–dominated regime. Sample analysis revealed that the plug consists of foam-like lava, and the shear zones involve vesicle-poor (low-viscosity) lava. With distance from the vent, shear zones develop, carrying the vesicular plug between them. This causes flow to initially accelerate, helped by bubble shearing in narrow lateral shear zones, until cooling takes over as the main driver for viscosity increase and, hence, velocity decrease.


The TPACK model serves as an important role in fostering pedagogical improvement of education in the twenty- first century learning. The use of ICT and technology in twenty first century classroom is an important element that requires a level of knowledge and expertise of teachers in achieving the learning objectives. This study is a systematic literature review about TPACK of 12 journal articles, published between 2011 and 2016. The purpose of the review was to investigate the integration of TPACK among ESL/EFL pre-service teachers in teacher education programs. Expected finding shall serve as an improvised integrated model that covers the gap and enhance the TPACK Curriculum framework. This study provides a number of integral suggestions on for the betterment TPACK Curriculum Framework for pre–service teachers in teacher education programs.


Abstract. Western culture grew out of conviction about the social nature of man. It is based on the assumption that man is a social being, that he is a resident of the city. The most unpleasant image for an ancient man was the prospect of living outside the city, being excluded from its borders. The city is like a way of being, an expression of our social way of existence. Aristotle spoke of human nature, that its embodiment is a polis. This community life builds human identity. Such an image of a human being, as a creature entangled in the city space, is still valid today. Until recently Hannah Arendt wrote that our human condition is to participate in public space, that human life is humanized in our community, it defines our being as human. Today, however, the concept of the city has changed and the concept of space has taken on a different meaning. The city is not something stable and unchanging, on the contrary – today it is in constant motion, its feature is its liquidity. The feature of city residents is mobility and absolute freedom of movement. Our imaginations of space and boundaries, the understanding of what is local and global have changed. The world of borders has been replaced with our idea of the transparency of the city – nowadays one can not hide anymore. Under the influence of many socio-economic changes, the emergence of new forms of communication, the city has changed not only its physical form, but – above all – our human condition. It ceased to provide us with a sense of security and the ability to identify, but threw into an area of boundless possibilities. This dynamics of changes also reflects the way of describing the city: a map that served premoderns to describe the geographical city, in the modern world it has to be a grid that imposes itself on the city plan. This physical distribution of the city is now to be subordinated and adapted to the spatial plan of the city – this is the vision of a perfect, utopian and happy modern city. Modernity, says Zygmunt Bauman, does not just want to describe what is, but to map and impose space on the map. Today, we have got rid of this utopian idea of ordering according to our own plan. Under the influence of changes, we have become residents of space without borders. Bauman, this our way of being today, describes as liquidity. Does this mean, however, that we have lost the foundations of our human lives that have defined us as people? Is this shrinkaging of the city space and the lack of a city street an embodiment of our new contemporary condition? Perhaps today's city no longer belongs to the inhabitants of polis, but to the invaders? Perhaps the city's inhabitants will be permanently accompanied by the urban fear of lack of domicile. The aim of my speech is to show what changes accompany the city and us as residents of the city as well as to present the cultural consequences of these changes.


A nondestructive measurement method that makes possible the measurement of a three-dimensional refractive-index distribution of any shape plastic lens is presented. In this method, a Mach-Zehnder interferometer and shearing interferometer are combined into a single optical system and are used selectively. Interference fringes of a test object that is immersed in matching liquid are detected at various rotation angles. And transmitted wave fronts are calculated with these interference fringes. Finally, the refractive-index distribution is obtained by computed tomography analysis. In addition, accurate control of the matching liquid temperature makes it possible to measure the absolute refractive index of the test object. This system has good performance with a measurement accuracy of 10(-4) or better peak to valley.


Book description: Pragmatics is the study of human communication: the choices speakers make to express their intended meaning and the kinds of inferences that hearers draw from an utterance in the context of its use. This Handbook surveys pragmatics from different perspectives, presenting the main theories in pragmatic research, incorporating seminal research as well as cutting-edge solutions. It addresses questions of rational and empirical research methods, what counts as an adequate and successful pragmatic theory, and how to go about answering problems raised in pragmatic theory. In the fast-developing field of pragmatics, this Handbook fills the gap in the market for a one-stop resource to the wide scope of today's research and the intricacy of the many theoretical debates. It is an authoritative guide for graduate students and researchers with its focus on the areas and theories that will mark progress in pragmatic research in the future.


The world is undergoing rapid change from increasing human pressure. The scale and intensity of this change are deeply worrying from a conservation perspective. For example, we see severe threats to species, habitat and ecosystems from poaching (Maisels et al ., 2013), the illegal use of poison (Ogada, 2014), overharvesting (Pinsky and Palumbi, 2014) and agricultural expansion (Laurance et al ., 2014). In this book we have focused on how those who represent conservation arguments (conservationists) can respond to these types of challenges. These conservation conflicts arise because one side is passionate about the need to conserve biological diversity, whether for moral, intrinsic or anthropocentric reasons, and the other side may be more focused on different objectives related to human livelihoods and well-being. That is not to say that those arguing for human livelihoods do not recognise the need to conserve biodiversity, and vice versa, but each side may question the relative importance of the arguments, or the specific objectives, or the methods used to achieve those objectives. What is clear is that conservationists are antagonists in these conflicts, and this realisation is important because in order to navigate a path out of destructive conflict, conservationists will need to recognise their role in these issues, address the roots of the problem and be clear about their objectives and about how they engage with the other parties (Redpath et al ., 2014). Throughout the book, we have presented a range of richly complex and multilayered examples. Each has its own idiosyncrasies, but together they expose general principles and highlight what is needed to map and manage conservation conflicts. In this final chapter we build on these perspectives and draw out the principles and steps towards collaborative conflict management. While we recognise that conflicts may be a force for good (Coser, 1956), the conflicts presented here are more often damaging and costly both to humans and biodiversity.


The contentious battle between web services and miscreants involved in blackhat search engine optimization and malicious advertisements has driven the underground to develop increasingly sophisticated techniques that hide the true nature of malicious sites. These web cloaking techniques hinder the effectiveness of security crawlers and potentially expose Internet users to harmful content. In this work, we study the spectrum of blackhat cloaking techniques that target browser, network, or contextual cues to detect organic visitors. As a starting point, we investigate the capabilities of ten prominent cloaking services marketed within the underground. This includes a first look at multiple IP blacklists that contain over 50 million addresses tied to the top five search engines and tens of anti-virus and security crawlers. We use our findings to develop an anti-cloaking system that detects split-view content returned to two or more distinct browsing profiles with an accuracy of 95.5% and a false positive rate of 0.9% when tested on a labeled dataset of 94,946 URLs. We apply our system to an unlabeled set of 135,577 search and advertisement URLs keyed on high-risk terms (e.g., luxury products, weight loss supplements) to characterize the prevalence of threats in the wild and expose variations in cloaking techniques across traffic sources. Our study provides the first broad perspective of cloaking as it affects Google Search and Google Ads and underscores the minimum capabilities necessary of security crawlers to bypass the state of the art in mobile, rDNS, and IP cloaking.


Imagine a student presenting a poster at a scientific meeting, thrilled when a senior scientist stops by to view the work. Chances are good, given the continuing underrepresentation of women at senior levels of academia, that the senior scientist is male. If the student is also male, he likely has no doubt that the senior scientist wants to learn more about the research. If the student is female, she may wonder: Does he want to get acquainted with my work, or me? This is the scenario that Meg Urry of Yale University, current president of the American Astronomical Society, posed during a session on "Forward Focused Ethics—What is the Role of Scientific Societies in Responding to Harassment and Other Workplace Climate Issues?" at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union in December 2015.


An in vitro tissue culture experiments were carried out to investigate the effects of supplementary potassium and calcium nitrate applied to basal media on morphogenesis of saline stressed tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. Cv. Omdurman). Shoot tip explants were cultured on MS media salinized with NaCl and supplemented with KNO3 and Ca (NO3)2. Treatments consist of four NaCl concentrations (0.0, 50, 75 and 100 mM) in combination with either KNO3 ( 0.0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 mM) or Ca (NO3)2 (0.0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 mM). Salinity significantly reduced the root growth, shoot growth and whole plant growth. Root growth was more reduced by the presence of NaCl in growth media than shoot growth. Application of supplemental calcium nitrate (20 mM) and potassium nitrate (15 mM) resulted in mitigation of the harmful effect of NaCl on tomato growth. However Ca (NO3)2 at 20 mM has negative effect on tomato shoot tip rooting %. In non salinized media, the best root and shoot growth was observed at 10 mM Ca (NO3)2. These findings suggest that the additions of potassium and calcium nitrate can ameliorate the negative effect of salinity on the growth of tomato.


PURPOSE
To evaluate the evolution of glycemic levels in newborns of hypertensive mothers according to maternal treatment.

METHODS
Prospective randomized study, including 93 newborns of mothers treated with isradipine (n = 39), atenolol (n = 40), or low sodium diet (control group - n=14). Glycemia was determined at birth (mother and newborn by the oxidase glucose method) and in the 1st, 3rd, 6th, 12th, and 24th hours after birth (newborn by a test strip method). The evolution of glycemia was analyzed in each group (Friedman test). The groups were compared regarding glycemia (Kruskall-Wallis test), and linear regression models were constructed for the analyses (independent variable = maternal glycemia; dependent variables = umbilical cord, 3rd, and 6th hour glycemia).

RESULTS
There were no statistically significant differences among the mean blood glucose levels of the 3 groups in any of the assessments. There was a correlation between maternal and umbilical cord blood glucose in the isradipine (r = 0.61; P <.05) and control (r = 0.84; P <.05) groups. Regarding glycemia levels of the mothers and newborns in the third and sixth hours postpartum, this correlation was present only in the control group (maternal x third hour: r = 0.65; P <.05; maternal x sixth hour: r = 0.68; P <.05). There were no correlations in the atenolol group. Hypoglycemia was detected in 51.3% of the isradipine group, 60% of the atenolol group, and 35.7% of the control group, and it was more frequent in the first hour postpartum in all groups.

CONCLUSIONS
The results suggest a similar effect of the 3 types of treatment upon newborn glycemia. The correlation analysis suggests that isradipine could have effects upon newborn glycemia only after birth (correlation only in umbilical cord blood), whereas atenolol could act earlier (there was no correlation at any moment). The results also point to the need for glycemic control from the first hour postpartum of newborns of hypertensive mothers whether they have or have not undergone treatment with antihypertensive drugs.


In "Testing the Kin Selection Theory: Who Controls the Investments?" Bert Hölldobler and Edward Osborne Wilson discussed the predictive power of kin selection theory, a theory about the evolution [3] of social behaviors. As part of Hölldobler and Wilson's 1990 book titled The Ants, Hölldobler and Wilson compared predictions about the reproductive practices of ants to data about the reproductive practices of ants. They showed that the data generally supported the expected behaviors proposed by kin selection theory. Later in their careers, both Hölldobler and Wilson argued that kin selection theory provided an insufficient explanation for the evolution [3] of social behavior. Hölldobler and Wilsons' efforts were emblematic of a larger trend among ant researchers and sociobiologists to explain the evolution [3] of social behavior by focusing on the reproductive dynamics of social organisms.


Rates of child behaviour problems are increasing both in the UK and globally. Numerous risk factors for the development of child behaviour problems have been identified but a key risk factor is dysfunctional parenting practices. Parenting programmes are the most effective treatment for child behaviour problems, however barriers to treatment prevent some families, particularly disadvantaged families, from accessing programmes delivered in a group format. Individually delivered programmes eliminate some of the barriers associated with group-based programmes and may be more accessible and therefore appropriate for disadvantaged families (Chapter 1).
The Enhancing Parenting Skills (EPaS) 2014 programme is an individually delivered behavioural parenting intervention for parents of young children with behaviour problems. This thesis reports on the first rigorous evaluation of the EPaS 2014 programme. Chapter two gives an overview of the origins and background of the EPaS 2014 programme followed by the first study, a systematic review of the evidence for individually delivered parenting intervention for parents of young children displaying behaviour problems (Chapter 3). Chapter four is the published protocol for the main evaluation study providing details of the methodology. Chapter five describes the baseline characteristics of a sample of families recruited for the main study. Children had high levels of co-occurring hyperactivity symptoms and parents were generally low educated, unemployed, living in poverty and had high levels of depressive symptoms. The next two chapters report the findings of the evaluation study. The EPaS 2014 programme was effective in reducing levels of child behaviour problems, especially for families who completed the intervention (Chapter 6) and feedback from health visitors was positive with all reporting they would continue to use the methods taught (Chapter 7). The final chapter of the thesis provides a summary of the research findings and discusses their implications, limitations, and future directions (Chapter 8)


Purpose: To present the state-of-the-art of subthreshold diode laser micropulse photocoagulation (SDM) as invisible retinal phototherapy for diabetic macular edema (DME). Method: To review the role and evolution of retinal laser treatment for DME. Results: Thermal laser retinal photocoagulation has been the cornerstone of treatment for diabetic macular edema for over four decades. Throughout, laser induced retinal damage produced by conventional photocoagulation has been universally accepted as necessary to produce a therapeutic benefit, despite the inherent risks, adverse effects and limitations of thermally destructive treatment. Recently, SDM, performed as invisible retinal phototherapy for DME, has been found to be effective in the absence of any retinal damage or adverse effect, fundamentally altering our understanding of laser treatment for retinal disease. Summary: The discovery of clinically effective and harmless SDM treatment for DME offers exciting new information that will improve our understanding of laser treatment for retinal disease, expand treatment indications, and improve patient outcomes.


The predominant asset for any organization is human resource, allowing remaining competitive in this fast-forward condition. The most difficult challenge experienced by banks in Pakistan is the acquisition and retention of right workforce. In this regard, this study aims to examine the association between the job performance and incentives of Pakistani banking employees. A quantitative research design is incorporated to collect primary data from six leading banks in Pakistan. A total of 180 employees were included from these banks based on random sampling technique. Pearson correlation and regression analysis are employed to examine the primary data using SPSS software. The findings have shown a positive association of financial and non-financial incentives to enhance the job satisfaction and task performance of employees. The consequences also show impact of high perks, supportive management and career growth opportunities on the employees' performance. It has been concluded that managers should endow rewards to current and active employees. Similarly, managers should engage employees in decision-making process to increase their loyalty and morale toward the organizational development.


The integration of variable and intermittent renewable energy generation into the power system is a grand challenge to our efforts to achieve a sustainable future. Flexible demand is one solution to this challenge, where the demand can be controlled to follow energy supply, rather than the conventional way of controlling energy supply to follow demand. Recent research has shown that electric building climate control systems like heat pumps can provide this demand fl exibility by effectively storing energy as heat in the thermal mass of the building. While some forms of heat pump demand fl exibility have been implemented in the form of peak pricing and utility demand response programs, con- trolling heat pumps to provide ancillary services like frequency regulation, load following, and reserve have yet to be widely implemented. In this paper, we review the recent advances and remaining challenges in controlling heat pumps to provide these grid services. This analysis includes heat pump and building modeling, control methods both for isolated heat pumps and heat pumps in aggregate, and the potential implications that this concept has on the power system. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4045819]


From the American Marketing Association, the world's largest and most comprehensive professional association of marketers, comes the "AMA Marketing Toolbox" series, a unique source of information, ideas and direction for anyone building an effective marketing program or who is interested in improving current marketing activities. "The AMA Marketing Toolbox" series will guide you through every critical marketing task and provide the tools you need - model formats, checklists, and boilerplate documents - to implement those tasks quickly, accurately and effectively into your business. Auditing Marketing, Products and Marketing Plans is Step 1 in the Marketing Toolbox program. You'll learn how to identify your target markets, select the rights products for those markets and then plan how to reach them most effectively. Filled with worksheets, forms and tables for you to complete, "Auditing Marketing, Products and Marketing Plans" is, step- and action-oriented, perfect for beginning marketers, students of marketing, small business owners, and entrepreneurs.


Background: Our main aim was to investigate whether the employment condition modifies the use patterns of the screening mammography in workers insured by the Mexican government (Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado, ISSSTE; medical facilities of the Mexican government). Methods: A case–control study age-matched was done in women insured by the Mexican government, aged 40–69 years, attending a general hospital (ISSSTE). All subjects were submitted to an interview and anthropometric data registry. In the interview were obtained: demographic data, of schooling, breast cancer family history, and reproductive history; besides, mammography history during the past 2 years and place of performance (in or outside of the ISSSTE). Finally, it was evaluated whether the mammography use in the ISSSTE was related to their employment condition: Active workers (cases) vs. dependents or retired workers (controls). Results: The sample was of 252 women: 126 cases and 126 controls. Cases obtained less mammograms in the ISSSTE (P = 0.03, odds ratio = 0.54, 95% confidence interval, CI 0.30–0.96), than their dependents or the retired workers. Furthermore, cases with high education (university or higher) also obtained fewer mammograms in the ISSSTE (P = 0.03, odds ratio = 0.26, 95% CI 0.05–0.93). Conclusions: Women active workers with higher education are obtaining less screening mammograms in the ISSSTE than their dependents or the retired workers.


In the present study, a new series of quinoline-lawsone hybrid compounds were synthesized and evaluated in vitro for their antimalarial effectiveness. Several aliphatic and aromatic/heteroaromatic diamines were used as connecting/bridge moiety between the 7-chloro-4-aminoquinoline and 3-amino-1, 4-naphthoquinone pharmacophoric scaffolds. The molecular properties of hybrid compounds were also studied in silico for drug-likeness assessment based on Lipinski's rule of five. Results of antimalarial activity reveal that all the tested compounds showed activity against both chloroquine sensitive (RKL-2) and chloroquine resistant (RKL-9) strains of Plasmodium falciparum which was considerably less as compared to the standard drug, chloroquine. All the compounds exhibited same degree of activity at the tested dose against sensitive strain with IC50 values 0.391-1.033 µg/ml. Furthermore, four compounds which were additionally tested against resistant strain also showed activity with IC50 values from 0.684-1.778 µg/ml at the same dose. The IC50 values for CQ against sensitive and resistant strains of P. falciparum were found to be 0.0391 µg/ml and 0.305 µg/ml, respectively. From results it is apparent that the compound with a small alkyl bridge moiety diaminoethyl possesses better activity profile against both sensitive and resistant strains (IC50=0.391 and 0.684 µg/ml, respectively) than rest of the synthesized analogues. The results of drug-likeness studies showed that all newly designed quinoline-lawsone hybrids possess good drug-like properties, indicating their drug-likeness behaviour is favourable for optimal antimalarial action. Assessment of drug-likeness score further implies the suitability of hybrid derivatives as drug-like molecules.


We use a temporary ban on inter-province shipping of live hogs induced by the 2018 outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in China as a natural experiment to study spatial mechanisms behind the dynamics of market integration. With a unique dataset of weekly provincial hog prices, we employ a novel spatial network model to estimate the strength of price co-movement across provinces pre and post the ban. Results indicate that, in the highly integrated national market prior to the ban, longer geographical distances between two provinces did not weaken the strength of their price linkage. The ban broken down spatial integration. Longer distances became a significant obstacle to spatial price linkage in the post-ban periods, implying faster re-integration of hog prices between proximate provinces than remote ones. The negative effect of distance can be rationalized by the interplay between arbitrage opportunities and imperfect information. Our findings highlight information transparency as a key to market integration post shipping bans used to curb animal pandemics like ASF.


Inflation expectations have an important influence on wage growth and price inflation. Expectations differ across agents and time and, accordingly, the Reserve Bank monitors a range of measures. This article discusses why inflation expectations are important for inflation and economic activity, the measures that exist in Australia and various issues affecting their interpretation. The financial markets that are used to calculate some measures of inflation expectations are not particularly liquid in Australia, and the financial measures also include an inflation risk premium; these issues can affect the interpretation of movements in the series.