A robust method for U-Pb dating of zircon by laser ablation ICP-MS was established using a Thermo-Finnigan Element2 sector field ICP-MS coupled to a New Wave UP193HE ArF Excimer laser system. This included the construction of a low-volume sample cell and the establishment of a data reduction routine. A detailed systematic approach for determining optimal ablation settings and ICP-MS parameters is presented, which is also applicable to other instrument set-ups. Laser induced time-dependent elemental fractionation is corrected using the intercept method, whereas instrument drift, mass bias and elemental fractionation caused by ionisation differences are corrected by applying external standardisation using the matrix-matched reference zircon GJ-1. The isobaric interference of 204Hg on 204Pb is reduced by using a gold trap enabling the application of an accurate common Pb correction. Typical laser craters are 12, 25 or 35 μm in diameter and ca . 20 μm deep. A single analysis takes 65 s and the automated analysis of a measurement sequence ensures optimal efficiency.

The performance of the established procedure was assessed by analysing zircon ranging in age from Mesoproterozoic to Miocene. Concordia ages obtained from multiple analyses on the various well-characterised zircons are all within uncertainty of the accepted values, demonstrating the high accuracy of the method. The uncertainty on the individual ages ranges from 1 to 4 % (2σ), depending on the absolute age, Pb content and homogeneity of the analysed zircon. These results indicate that the precision and accuracy obtained using the technique presented in this study are similar to those of other LA-ICP-MS laboratories and SIMS analyses.


Tylenchorhynchus ewingi, a stunt nematode, causes severe injury to slash pine seedlings and has been recently associated with stunting and chlorosis of loblolly pine seedlings at some forest tree nurseries in southern USA. Experiments confirmed that loblolly pine is a host for T. ewingi, and that the nematode is capable of causing severe damage to root systems. Initial population densities as low as 60 nematodes (100 cm3 soil)−1 were sufficient to damage the root systems of loblolly pine seedlings. Populations of T. ewingi increased on pine from two- to 16-fold, depending on the initial population density. Evaluations of various cover crops used in southern forest tree nurseries indicated that legumes, rye and several varieties of sorghum were excellent hosts for T. ewingi. Other small grains such as ryegrass, oats and wheat were poorer hosts. A cultivar of pearl millet was a non-host for T. ewingi, and a cultivar of brown top millet appeared to be either a very poor host or a non-host. Nurseries that have seedling production losses caused by T. ewingi should consider rotating with non-host cover crops such as pearl millet or leaving fields fallow as part of their pest management programme.


Desert fishes are some of the most imperiled vertebrates worldwide due to their low economic worth and because they compete with humans for water. An ecological complex of fishes, 2 suckers (Catostomus latipinnis, Catostomus discobolus) and a chub (Gila robusta) (collectively managed as the so‐called three species) are endemic to the U.S. Colorado River Basin, are affected by multiple stressors, and have allegedly declined dramatically. We built a series of occupancy models to determine relationships between trends in occupancy, local extinction, and local colonization rates, identify potential limiting factors, and evaluate the suitability of managing the 3 species collectively. For a historical period (1889–2011), top performing models (AICc) included a positive time trend in local extinction probability and a negative trend in local colonization probability. As flood frequency decreased post‐development local extinction probability increased. By the end of the time series, 47% (95% CI 34‐61) and 15% (95% CI 6‐33) of sites remained occupied by the suckers and the chub, respectively, and models with the 2 species of sucker as one group and the chub as the other performed best. For a contemporary period (2001−2011), top performing (based on AICc) models included peak annual discharge. As peak discharge increased, local extinction probability decreased and local colonization probability increased. For the contemporary period, results of models that split all 3 species into separate groups were similar to results of models that combined the 2 suckers but not the chub. Collectively, these results confirmed that declines in these fishes were strongly associated with water development and that relative to their historic distribution all 3 species have declined dramatically. Further, the chub was distinct in that it declined the most dramatically and therefore may need to be managed separately. Our modeling approach may be useful in other situations in which targeted data are sparse and conservation status and best management approach for multiple species are uncertain.


Purpose of review Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) is a useful adjunct in the management of antibody-mediated disorders. The indications for TPE now include the perioperative setting. This review updates the anesthesiologist on the relevant clinical indications and precautions of plasma exchange. Recent findings Although still considered experimental, TPE for heparin-induced thrombocytopenia for urgent cardiac surgery is the most promising recent advance. Summary Plasmapheresis, or TPE, removes monoclonal antibodies, immune complexes and paraproteins. The utility of TPE in the perioperative period has recently become more apparent. Antibody-mediated disorders are associated with postoperative morbidity and mortality and are treated with TPE. Indications for TPE for cardiac surgery include heparin-induced thrombocytopenia, thrombotic thrombocytopenia purpura and antiphospholipid syndrome. Other indications for perioperative TPE are typically related to immunomodulation during solid-organ transplant. Immunomodulation, primarily with immunosuppressive medications and TPE, of a previously allosensitized recipient pretransplant increases the likelihood of a successful match. TPE is also useful in the management of intentional and inadvertent ABO incompatible recipients and is essential in the treatment of hyperacute rejection. TPE will likely be more utilized in the future and understanding the essentials of the procedure will facilitate the perioperative management of antibody-mediated disorders.


A complex challenge facing those involved in crisis management relates to how to manage cascading effects in crisis situations. This paper provides a practice-based insight into the use of General Morphological Analysis (GMA), a non-quantified modelling method that can enable a shared understanding of the various interdependencies involved in cascading crises, by creating a conceptual model of a problem space. This insight paper provides an understanding of the nature of the method, and to reveal the project-related experiences of the facilitator and researchers, thereby contributing to an understanding of the benefits and challenges associated with GMA. Authors find that GMA provided a useful means of a multidisciplinary group developing an initial conceptual model for a complex problem. Whilst a challenging experience, the method will be used for conducting gap analyses at a later stage in the project, thus providing benefits to understanding and managing cascading effects in crises.


The strategic justification for supporting scientific activities has largely depending on the understanding that research provided both national security in a time of global hostility involving the improvement of the economy, greater social equity, better health, better race relations, and enhancement of environmental quality, and widespread health benefits. In terms of curriculum in the Earth Sciences, the important point here is that study courses must evolve to accommodate the changing, enlarging body of knowledge as well as the ultimate career needs of the future degree holders. Growing subdisciplines needed in America include hydrology, hydrogeology, neotectonics, continental margin oceanography, engineering geology, geologic hazards, environmental science, aqueous geochemistry, and material sciences. Metamorphic petrologists are especially well-equipped with the fundamental knowledge from physics and chemistry as well as geology to treat the problems society wishes to address and solve. The situation provides us with a natural advantage, but to realize it, we must move our emphasis away from the traditional topics of metamorphic petrology.


User research in mental health should be seen as a separate specialism in a "hierarchy of emergence" and this is argued for with reference to the metaphor of a car crash that has a multiplicity of perspectives. Technical language and approaches are not always sufficient: proximity to our conditions may increase the accuracy of interpretation. The piece then describes the quest to establish user research at the Humber Mental Health Teaching Trust and points out the importance of determination by Trusts to provide resources and facilitation. In the process of this, quality criteria for assessing user research projects are briefly presented.
Service user research in the mental health field presents a challenge to traditional, reductionist methodologies that are often unable to acknowledge the validity of multiple, competing versions of understandings of the same phenomenon. After establishing a case for such an approach, I will describe aspects of our experiences in attempting to establish research by the Humber Mental Health Teaching NHS Trust.


Construction planning is performed in a multi-disciplinary environment in which it is crucial to explore interdependencies, manage the uncertainty of the information exchange and the understanding of the context. Current construction planning often works on a "throw over the wall" basis - plans are developed only or mainly for control purpose, and ignore the "how" aspect. Construction method planning is treated as a linear process and isolated from information and logistics management. Planners are often puzzled by information; they usually receive a large amounts of formal and informal communications with different formats, some of which are not relevant to their role. The quality of the information received is also often poor (i.e. incomplete design information). In order to deal with the uncertainty caused by insufficient information, guesses are frequently made in the planning process, which neither the initial planner, nor the downstream planner will later check. They are usually ignored and left until execution of the plan, when the problems reveal themselves. This paper argues the importance of effective management of information flow in a planning process and the need to improve the management and planning of construction planning. A collaborative planning process model using a dependency structure matrix tool to manage and optimize the construction planning process is presented.


Existing techniques for garbage collection and machine code optimizations can interfere with each other. The inability to fully optimize code in a garbage-collected system is a hidden cost of garbage collection. One solution to this problem is proposed; an inexpensive protocol that permits most optimizations and garbage collection to coexist.
A second approach to this problem and a separate problem in its own right is to reduce the need for garbage collection. This requires analysis of storage lifetime. Inferring storage lifetime is difficult in a language with nested and recursive data structures, but it is precisely these languages in which garbage collection is most useful. An improved analysis for "storage containment" is described.
Containment information can be represented in a directed graph. The derivation of this graph falls into a monotone data-flow analysis framework; in addition, the derivation has the Church-Rosser property. The graphs produced in the analysis of a value-assignment language have the property that they can be replaced with a single graph without losing any information. These properties also assist in the generation of graphs for side-effect languages.
A different approach to avoiding obtaining memory from the garbage collector is also proposed. Existing techniques are either not general or run the risk of consuming all of a bounded memory. A general, low overhead technique that does not consume excessive amounts of memory is described.


A series of novel phosphinate-based dyes displaying near-infrared fluorescence (NIR) are reported. These dyes exhibit remarkable photostability and brightness. The phosphinate functionality is leveraged as an additional reactive handle in order to tune cell permeability as well as provide a proof-of-principle for a self-reporting small molecule delivery vehicle.


Abstract. This study presents a new concept for estimating the pollutant emission rates of a site and its main facilities using a series of atmospheric measurements across the pollutant plumes. This concept combines the tracer release method, local-scale atmospheric transport modelling and a statistical atmospheric inversion approach. The conversion between the controlled emission and the measured atmospheric concentrations of the released tracer across the plume places valuable constraints on the atmospheric transport. This is used to optimise the configuration of the transport model parameters and the model uncertainty statistics in the inversion system. The emission rates of all sources are then inverted to optimise the match between the concentrations simulated with the transport model and the pollutants' measured atmospheric concentrations, accounting for the transport model uncertainty. In principle, by using atmospheric transport modelling, this concept does not strongly rely on the good colocation between the tracer and pollutant sources and can be used to monitor multiple sources within a single site, unlike the classical tracer release technique. The statistical inversion framework and the use of the tracer data for the configuration of the transport and inversion modelling systems should ensure that the transport modelling errors are correctly handled in the source estimation. The potential of this new concept is evaluated with a relatively simple practical implementation based on a Gaussian plume model and a series of inversions of controlled methane point sources using acetylene as a tracer gas. The experimental conditions are chosen so that they are suitable for the use of a Gaussian plume model to simulate the atmospheric transport. In these experiments, different configurations of methane and acetylene point source locations are tested to assess the efficiency of the method in comparison to the classic tracer release technique in coping with the distances between the different methane and acetylene sources. The results from these controlled experiments demonstrate that, when the targeted and tracer gases are not well collocated, this new approach provides a better estimate of the emission rates than the tracer release technique. As an example, the relative error between the estimated and actual emission rates is reduced from 32 % with the tracer release technique to 16 % with the combined approach in the case of a tracer located 60 m upwind of a single methane source. Further studies and more complex implementations with more advanced transport models and more advanced optimisations of their configuration will be required to generalise the applicability of the approach and strengthen its robustness.


Information asymmetries can severely limit the cross-border border expansion of banks, if entering banks can only obtain incomplete information about potential new clients. Such asymmetries are reduced by credit registers, which distribute financial data on bank clients. This ECRI research report investigates the interaction of credit registers and bank entry modes (in the form of branching as well as mergers and acquisitions) by using a new set of time-series cross-section data for the EU-27 countries. We study how the presence of public and private credit registers and the kind of information exchanged affected the modes of bank entries during the period 1990–2007. Our analysis shows that the existence of both types of registers increases the share of branching among the overall bank entries. Additionally, the establishment of public registers reduces concentration ratios and some banking competition indicators (such as overhead costs/assets). The introduction of a private credit bureau, on the other hand, has no effect on concentration ratios, but positively contributes to competition (by cutting interest rate margins). These findings suggest that credit registers facilitate the direct entry of banks through a reduction of information asymmetries, which in turn intensifies competition.


Identity theft through phishing attacks has become a major concern for Internet users. Typically, phishing attacks aim at luring the user to a faked web site to disclose personal information. Various solutions have been proposed against this kind of attack. However, these solutions can hardly counter the new generation of sophisticated malware phishing attacks, e.g., pharming trojans, designed to target certain services. This paper aims at making the first steps towards the design and implementation of an open source and interoperable security architecture that prevents both classical and malware phishing attacks. Our approach is based on the ideas of compartmentalization for separating applications domains of different trust level, and a trusted wallet for storing credentials and authenticating sensitive services. Once the wallet has been setup in an initial step, our solution requires no special care from users for identifying the right web sites while the disclosure of credentials is strictly controlled. Moreover, a prototype of the basic platform exists and we briefly describe its implementation.


This paper summarizes the several of the studies in the Environmental Science Program being sponsored by DOE's Office of Heavy Vehicle Technologies (OHVT) through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The goal of the Environmental Science Program is to understand atmospheric impacts and potential health effects that may be caused by the use of petroleum-based fuels and alternative transportation fuels from mobile sources. The Program is regulatory-driven, and focuses on ozone, airborne particles, visibility and regional haze, air toxics, and health effects of air pollutants. Each project in the Program is designed to address policy-relevant objectives. Current projects in the Environmental Science Program have four areas of focus: improving technology for emissions measurements; vehicle emissions measurements; emission inventory development/improvement; ambient impacts, including health effects.


In this work, biodegradable films based on poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and corn thermoplastic starch (TPS), additivated with epoxidized cardoon oil plasticizer (ECO) at 3% by weight with respect to PLA mass fraction, were prepared by melt extrusion process and compression molding. The effect of ECO on structural, thermal, mechanical, barrier, and spectral optical properties of the films was investigated. Spectroscopic analysis evidenced the development of physical interaction between oil and polymers, mainly PLA. In addition, no oil migration occurrence was detected after six months of film preparation, as evidenced by oil mass evaluation by precipitation as well as by 1H-NMR methods, thus highlighting the good inclusion of oil inside the polymeric network. The plasticizing action of the oil induced a lean improvement of the interfacial adhesion between hydrophobic PLA and hydrophilic TPS, particularly accentuated in PLA80_ECO composition, as evidenced by morphological analysis of blend fracture surfaces. TGA data underlined that, differently from TPS-based films, PLA-based systems followed one degradative thermal profile suggesting a slight compatibilization effect of epoxidized oil in these films. The shifting of Tg values, by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, indicated a weak miscibility at molecular level. Generally, in the investigated blends, the phase separation between PLA and TPS polymers was responsible for the mechanical properties failing; in particular, the tensile strength evidenced a negative deviation from the rule of mixtures, particularly marked in TPS-based blends, where no physical entanglements occurred between the polymers since their immiscibility even in presence of ECO. The epoxidized oil strongly improved the barrier properties (water vapor permeability (WVP) and oxygen permeability (O2P)) of all the films, likely developing a physical barrier to water and oxygen diffusion and solubilization. With respect to neat PLA, PL80 and PL80_ECO films evidenced the improvement of surface wettability, due to the presence of polar groups both in TPS (hydroxyl residues) and in epoxidized oil (oxirane rings). Finally, following to the conditioning in climatic chamber at T = 25 ◦C and RH = 50%, PLA80 film became opaque due to TPS water absorption, causing a light transmittance decreasing, as evidenced by spectral optical analysis. Coatings 2019, 9, 574; doi:10.3390/coatings9090574 www.mdpi.com/journal/coatings Coatings 2019, 9, 574 2 of 21


International investors poured vast sums of money into East Asian and Latin American countries during the mid-1990s, when the emerging market boom was at its peak. Then Thailand stumbled and panic seized the markets, and boom gave way to bust. Investors suffered large financial losses, while Asian countries suddenly experienced large capital outflows and the macroeconomic pressures these wrought plunged countries that had been growing rapidly ("miraculously") into crisis. Much the same had happened in Latin America when the debt crisis broke in 1982. This book investigates what can be done to make the international capital market a constructive force in promoting development in emerging markets. The author concludes that the problem of cyclicality that has undermined the value of international borrowing cannot be tackled just, or even mainly, from the supply side, but will require actions on the part of both creditors and debtors.


General Aviation (GA) is the foundation of most
flying activities and the training ground for civilian pilots, both
recreational and professional. However, the safety record for GA is lacking
compared to that of commercial aviation. Approximately 75% of accidents each
year involve personnel factors, that is, even if the pilot was not the cause of
the accident, they could have done something to either prevent it or improve
the outcome.

In this research, I aim to improve GA safety
through safety-driven post-flight debrief that encourages pilots to consider
the risk in their flights and identify behavioral changes that could make their
flying safer. Providing pilots with a debrief tool that they can use with or
without a flight instructor requires that we know both what to communicate, and
how to communicate it. Risk communication heuristics and biases have not been
researched in the context of aviation and flight training and we therefore do
not know how pilots understand or respond to debrief.

To achieve the goals of this work, I used a
three-step process: (1) identify events that may put the safe outcome of a
flight at risk, (2) detect those events in flight data, and (3) inform the
pilot in a way that helps them improve in their future flights. I use a
state-based representation of historical aviation accidents to define a list of
events or behaviors that need to be communicated to the pilots, in the form of
states and triggers. I use flight data to retrospectively detect these
behaviors upon completion of the flight, by mapping parameters or combinations
of parameters that can be calculated and tracked in the flight data to the
hazardous states and triggers defined. To present these events to pilots, I created
a prototype interactive debrief tool with risk information that I use in a
survey to evaluate the effectiveness of feedback in different representation
formats. Specifically, I evaluate the impact of three factors: representation
method (graphical and numerical), parameter type (safety and performance
parameters), and framing language (risk-centric and safety-centric).

I disseminated the survey via aviation mailing
lists, type groups, flying clubs, and flight training providers, end received
268 responses. The survey analysis showed that the feedback representation does
affect its effectiveness in terms of risk perception, but not when it comes to
pilots' motivation to change. The lessons learnt from this survey can be used
in creating additional surveys that delve further into risk communication
biases and our understanding of how pilots perceive risk and feedback.


What accounts for the growth of US top income inequality? This paper proposes a hierarchical redistribution hypothesis. The idea is that US firms have systematically redistributed income to the top of the corporate hierarchy. I test this hypothesis using a large-scale hierarchy model of the US private sector. My method is to vary the rate that income scales with hierarchical rank within modeled firms. I find that this model is able to reproduce four intercorrelated US trends: (1) the growth of the top 1% income share; (2) the growth of the CEO pay ratio; (3) the growth of the dividends share of national income; and (4) the 'fattening' of the entire income distribution tail. This result supports the hierarchical redistribution hypothesis. It is also consistent with the available empirical evidence on within-firm income redistribution.


Microfluidic devices find many applications in biotechnologies. Here, we introduce a flexible and biocompatible microfluidic ice-based platform with tunable parameters and configuration of microfluidic patterns that can be changed multiple times during experiments. Freezing and melting of cavities, channels and complex relief structures created and maintained in the bulk of ice by continuous scanning of an infrared laser beam are used as a valve action in microfluidic systems. We demonstrate that pre-concentration of samples and transport of ions and dyes through the open channels created can be achieved in ice microfluidic patterns by IR laser-assisted zone melting. The proposed approach can be useful for performing separation and sensing processes in flexible reconfigurable microfluidic devices.


In this paper we examine the time series evolution of the log-CPI series in South Africa disaggregating the data by sectors. We examine the time period 1990m1-20008m12, that is, focussing on the post-apartheid period. The results indicate that the (total) inflation rate in South Africa is long memory, with an order of integration in the range (0, 0.5). The same happens with most of the data disaggregated by sectors with values of d above 1 in the log-prices. Evidence of I(0) inflation is obtained in some cases for "fruits and nuts", "vegetables" and "sugar", and evidence of mean reversion in the log-prices is only obtained in the case of "fish and oather seafood". Policy implications are derived.


Water Network Sectorization (WNS) consists of dividing a water system into sectors with an independent water supply. When each district is supplied by its only water source the districts can be defined as i-DMAs (isolated District Meter Areas) because they are completely cut off from the rest of the water network. This isolation of the i-DMAs may decrease hydraulic performance of the water system reducing its topologic (network loops) and hydraulic (diameter sections) redundancy. Traditionally the design of WNS is carried out by empirical or simulation assisted trial-and-error approaches that are difficult to apply to large water distribution systems. In this paper an original methodology for automatic sectorization of water networks is proposed. The methodology is based on Shortest Path techniques that allow defining a tree graph of the network with dissipated power used as weight of the pipes (or links). Once the districts are found, a swapping phase follows which is achieved by using a genetic algorithm (GA) that allows refining the choice of nodes that belong to each district. The objective function of the GA is based on network mean pressure. The methodology was tested, using different performance indices, on two real water supply systems.


Tumours of the brainstem account for approximately 10% to 15% of all central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms in children, with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) being the most common type. Affected patients with DIPG are mostly children at the age of 5 to 10-years-old. While brainstem gliomas may arise in other parts of the brainstem including the midbrain and medulla oblongata with a more favourable prognosis, pontine location is very frequent with a typically aggressive disease cause leading to a limited lifespan for the affected patients. Patients with DIPG may present with cranial nerve symptoms due to compression and dysfunction of nuclei and tracts located in the pons. A wide spectrum of symptoms may occur including impaired vision and diplopia, nausea and vomiting, headache, impaired alignment of the eyes, gait disturbances, dysarthria, facial asymmetry or weakness, impaired communication with altered levels of consciousness, changes in behaviour, impaired mobility, spasticity, weakness in legs and arms. Brainstem gliomas located at the pons with diffuse and extensive infiltration are typically not amenable for complete surgical resection. In this context, radiation therapy (RT) has traditionally been the mainstay of treatment for DIPG. Optimal radiation dose and fractionation and combined modality management with RT and chemotherapy has been the focus of extensive research over several decades. Herein, we assess the utility of RT for DIPG management in light of the literature.


Sensing single proteins with diamonds Nuclear magnetic resonance is a powerful technique for medical imaging and the structural analysis of materials, but is usually associated with large-volume samples. Lovchinsky et al. exploited the magnetic properties of a single spin associated with a defect in diamond and manipulated it with a quantum-logic protocol. They demonstrated the magnetic resonance detection and spectroscopy of multiple nuclear species within individual ubiquitin proteins attached to a specially treated diamond surface at room temperature. Science, this issue p. 836 The quantum properties of diamond are used for magnetic resonance spectroscopy of single proteins. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy is a powerful tool for the structural analysis of organic compounds and biomolecules but typically requires macroscopic sample quantities. We use a sensor, which consists of two quantum bits corresponding to an electronic spin and an ancillary nuclear spin, to demonstrate room temperature magnetic resonance detection and spectroscopy of multiple nuclear species within individual ubiquitin proteins attached to the diamond surface. Using quantum logic to improve readout fidelity and a surface-treatment technique to extend the spin coherence time of shallow nitrogen-vacancy centers, we demonstrate magnetic field sensitivity sufficient to detect individual proton spins within 1 second of integration. This gain in sensitivity enables high-confidence detection of individual proteins and allows us to observe spectral features that reveal information about their chemical composition.


Non-structural protein 2 (NS2) plays an important role in hepatitis C virus (HCV) assembly, but neither the exact contribution of this protein to the assembly process nor its complete structure are known. In this study we used a combination of genetic, biochemical and structural methods to decipher the role of NS2 in infectious virus particle formation. A large panel of NS2 mutations targeting the N-terminal membrane binding region was generated. They were selected based on a membrane topology model that we established by determining the NMR structures of N-terminal NS2 transmembrane segments. Mutants affected in virion assembly, but not RNA replication, were selected for pseudoreversion in cell culture. Rescue mutations restoring virus assembly to various degrees emerged in E2, p7, NS3 and NS2 itself arguing for an interaction between these proteins. To confirm this assumption we developed a fully functional JFH1 genome expressing an N-terminally tagged NS2 demonstrating efficient pull-down of NS2 with p7, E2 and NS3 and, to a lower extent, NS5A. Several of the mutations blocking virus assembly disrupted some of these interactions that were restored to various degrees by those pseudoreversions that also restored assembly. Immunofluorescence analyses revealed a time-dependent NS2 colocalization with E2 at sites close to lipid droplets (LDs) together with NS3 and NS5A. Importantly, NS2 of a mutant defective in assembly abrogates NS2 colocalization around LDs with E2 and NS3, which is restored by a pseudoreversion in p7, whereas NS5A is recruited to LDs in an NS2-independent manner. In conclusion, our results suggest that NS2 orchestrates HCV particle formation by participation in multiple protein-protein interactions required for their recruitment to assembly sites in close proximity of LDs.


Carbon nanotube devices offer intrinsic advan- tages for high-performance logic device applications. The ultrasmall body of a carbon nanotubeVthe tube diameterVis the key feature that should allow aggressive channel length scaling, while the intrinsic transport properties of the nanotube ensure at the same time high on-currents. In addition, the narrowness of the tube is critical to implementation of novel device concepts like the tunneling transistor. By understanding the unique capabilities of carbon nanotubes and using them in unconventionaldesigns,novelnanoelectronic applications may become feasible. However, much better control of materials quality must be obtained, and new fabrication processes must be developed before such applications can be realized.


ABSTRACT Typhoid fever remains a major health problem in developing countries. Young children are at high risk, and a vaccine effective for this age group is urgently needed. Purified capsular polysaccharide from Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (Vi) is licensed as a vaccine, providing 50 to 70% protection in individuals older than 5 years. However, this vaccine is ineffective in infants. Vi conjugated to a carrier protein (i.e., an exoprotein A mutant from Pseudomonas aeruginosa [rEPA]) is highly immunogenic, provides long-term protection, and shows more than 90% protective efficacy in children 2 to 5 years old. Here, we describe an alternative glycoconjugate vaccine for S. Typhi, Vi-CRM197, where Vi was obtained from Citrobacter freundii WR7011 and CRM197, the mutant diphtheria toxin protein, was used as the carrier. We investigated the optimization of growth conditions for Vi production from C. freundii WR7011 and the immunogenicity of Vi-CRM197 conjugates in mice. The optimal saccharide/protein ratio of the glycoconjugates was identified for the best antibody production. We also demonstrated the ability of this new vaccine to protect mice against challenge with Vi-positive Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium.


The dynamic structure of profit rates for 156 US manufacturing companies is analysed by means of fractional integration techniques as an alternative to the commonly used ARIMA models with respect to the 'persistence of profits'. Thereby the pseudo-spectral density aproach of Velasco and Robinson together with model selection criteria is applied. The results show–despite the short lengths of the series and tests for the integer degrees of integration (d = 0, 1)–that 35.5% of the series may be well-approximated by long-range dependent processes, and 54% are nonstationary. This is a confirmation of the strong challenge to the competitive environment hypothesis obtained by previous studies.


This study investigated the role of Telegram, a mobile messenger app, in mastering word stress patterns of English by Iranian EFL learners. In addition, it was intended to survey EFL learners' attitude about using Telegram to learn word stress patterns. Thus, 60 students were selected from a language institute in Isfahan, Iran. To homogenize the participants, Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) was administered and the participants were divided into two groups accordingly, a Telegram group and a control group. At the beginning of the study, a word stress pattern pre-test was given to the participants. Then, during the study, the experimental group received the treatment (teaching word stress patterns via Telegram). However, the control group received explanation on stress patterns traditionally. After 10 sessions, 20 minutes each, a post-test was administered to the groups. The results of independent samples t-test revealed a statistically significant difference. Moreover, the participants had positive attitude about using Telegram to learn word stress patterns. The findings of this study may inspire teachers to use mobile applications and also course developers to modify and improve not only the curriculum, but also the methodology of teaching pronunciation.


Cortinarius orellanus (Fries) and C. rubellus (Cooke),which were formerly also known as C. speciosissimus, are poisonous mushrooms containing the toxin orellanine and several degradation products of orellanine,includingorelline and orellinine. Mass intoxication by poisonous mushrooms was observed in Poland in 1952-1957 [1]. In 1957, the cause of these outbreaks was described by Grzymala as poisoning by a member of the Cortinarius family. The toxin orellanine was first isolated from C. orellanusby Grzymala in 1962; the chemical structure of orellanine was later determined to be 3,3',4,4'-tetrahydroxy-2,2'-bipyridine-N,N'-dioxide. Poisoning with C. orellanus and C. rubellus has a very specific character. The first symptoms of intoxication usually do not appear until 2-3 days after ingestion, but in some cases intoxication appears after three weeks. The target organ for the toxin is the kidney. Histologically, it is easy to record the specific damage. The presence of degradation products of orellanine in kidney can be confirmed chromatographically, suggesting that the cause of poisoning is orellanine. However, the presence of orellanine in the blood of intoxicated persons has not been directly detected. A specific model was developed by Brondz et al. for the detection of orellanine, orelline, and orellininein animal stomach fluids [2-4]. The hypothesis that the fungal toxin orellanine as a diglucoside can be transported from the digestive system by the blood to the kidney could not be supported. The toxin orellanine as a diglucoside is very unstable in an aqueous acidic environment.[i1] However, in the present study, it was possible to record an additional substance in animal stomach fluids using GC-MSafter ingestion ofC. rubellus. This substance, which has been namedrubelline, is part of a toxic mixture inC. orellanusandC. rubellusand is closely related to orellanine. The structure of rubelline is more suitable than orellanine for absorptionfromthe digestive tract and for transport in the blood. The presented hypothesis is that rubellineis absorbed in the digestive tract and transportedin the blood to the kidney, where it is biotransformed to orellanine and accumulatedto toxic levels. The process of biotransformationis in itself also damaging for the kidney and liver.[i2] GC-MS instrumentation enables the separation of substances in biological samples and in the extract fromC. rubellus. The GC-MS with SMB technique was used to record the mass ion and to record a detailed fragmentation picture.


Abstract This article provides new evidence on the patent trading flows of small and large firms. We document aggregate patterns of patent sales and acquisitions of small and large firms. We also examine the extent to which the initial innovator's and the potential buyers' prior knowledge stocks in the same technology area and in geographical proximity with a patented invention are associated with the likelihood that the patent is sold, and whether the patent sold is bought by a small or large firm. To do so, we develop a dataset that matches patent sales and information on whether transacted patents are owned by small or large firms following a patent sale.


Water is a stress multiplier in Africa. Climate change and development decisions manifest in stressed water resources, while poor governance further undermines water security. Many of Africa's water resources are shared by two or more countries, adding further complexity – not least because of the consequent pressure on states to invest in and govern water resources jointly. The current level of transboundary cooperation is inadequate, with riparian countries often seeing problems rather than opportunities in governing the watercourse as a single unit. Thus there is a tension between obligations regarding international waters and national territorial sovereignty. There is also an increasing need for financed solutions, which include resilient infrastructure, and for greater water benefit increases in accordance with the cumulative impacts of stresses on water resultant from population, climate and development. This further highlights the need for cooperative governance. A measure of the strength of transboundary cooperation is the extent of regional integration. Effective multi-country water resource development relies heavily on strong regional integration, but there is little such integration in Africa. Sharing the benefits derived from shared watercourses through transboundary cooperation is an important outcome of regional integration, but the mechanisms for doing so still need to be adequately understood, defined and measured. The lack of clarity on basin-wide costs and benefits is, of itself, a threat. It has the potential to seriously curtail possibilities for cooperation and may lead to increased water disputes. On the other hand, water, as a 'high-pressure' sector, can also yield socio-economic opportunities throughout the wider system with co-benefits such as job creation and improved equity. Shared solutions arise from shared economic benefits, and in Southern Africa many of these benefits are closely related to effective water governance, as water-dependent sectors such as energy and food production enable economic growth and job creation. By building on the shared benefits of water use, riparian countries could unlock a much wider range of co-benefits than those currently prioritised. Shifting the focus to positive-sum outcomes requires knowledge of and transparent economic benefits, and the means to share and trade these.


Tuesday, August 8, 2019

PRESENTER: Sam Voegeli, M.Sc., RESPEC

HOST: John Jackson, Enbridge

MODERATOR: Laurie Perry, PRCI

CLICK BUY/DOWNLOAD TO ACCESS WEBINAR REGISTRATION LINK

The PRCI Underground Storage Technical Committee invites you to join them as they present the results from a research project that evaluated the accuracy of downhole wireline temperature logging, and the related calculation methods, to estimate gas inventory in storage caverns.

Expected Benefits/Learning Outcomes:

� Gain an understanding of how inaccurate wireline temperature logging impacts the estimated gas inventory in storage caverns;

� Find out what factors have the greatest influence on the accuracy of wireline temperature logging and

� Learn how suitable wireline temperature logging is for estimating gas inventories.

Who Should Attend?

� Gas Storage Personnel

� Field Engineers

� Integrity Engineers

New regulations enacted by the Pipeline and Hazardous Safety Administration (PHMSA) require gas cavern operators to calculate gas inventories to ensure continuance of cavern integrity; therefore, PRCI members initiated research to evaluate the accuracy of conventional inventory and calculation methods currently used.

The study presents an initial computational fluid dynamic investigation into the appropriateness of wireline temperature logging for gas inventory calculations.

Recommended pre-reading:

Project final report: PR-317-1770-R01 Accuracy of Temperature Logging for Calculating Gas Inventory in Storage Caverns


A t any given time, over 2 million people are incarcerated in prisons and jails in the U.S (1). It is estimated that nearly 80,000 of these inmates have diabetes, a prevalence of 4.8% (2). In addition, many more people pass through the corrections system in a given year. In 1998 alone, over 11 million people were released from prison to the community (1). The current estimated prevalence of diabetes in correctional institutions is somewhat lower than the overall U.S. prevalence of diabetes, perhaps because the incarcerated population is younger than the general population. The prevalence of diabetes and its related comorbidities and complications, however, will continue to increase in the prison population as current sentencing guidelines continue to increase the number of aging prisoners and the incidence of diabetes in young people continues to increase. People with diabetes in correctional facilities should receive care that meets national standards. Correctional institutions have unique circumstances that need to be considered so that all standards of care may be achieved (3). Correctional institutions should have written policies and procedures for the management of diabetes and for training of medical and correctional staff in diabetes care practices. These policies must take into consideration issues such as security needs, transfer from one facility to another, and access to medical personnel and equipment, so that all appropriate levels of care are provided. Ideally, these policies should encourage or at least allow patients to self-manage their diabetes. Ultimate ly , d iabetes management i s dependent upon having access to needed medical personnel and equipment. Ongoing diabetes therapy is important in order to reduce the risk of later complications, including cardiovascular events, visual loss, renal failure, and amputation. Early identification and intervention for people with diabetes is also likely to reduce short-term risks for acute complications requiring transfer out of the facility, thus improving security. This document provides a general set of guidelines for diabetes care in correctional institutions. It is not designed to be a diabetes management manual. More detailed information on the management of diabetes and related disorders can be found in the American Diabetes Association (ADA) Clinical Practice Recommendations, published each year in January as the first supplement to Diabetes Care, as well as the "Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes" (4) contained therein. This discussion will focus on those areas where the care of people with diabetes in correctional facilities may differ, and specific recommendations are made at the end of each section.


This empirical–experimental study focuses on the processing of metaphorical expressions in sight translation (STR), a particular branch of interpreting. In order to test whether linguistic metaphors pose cognitive challenges for sight translators, we designed a within-subject experiment with 30 undergraduate taking an intermediate-level interpreting course at a Chinese university. Three streams of data, namely processing times, translation quality assessments, questionnaires and retrospective interviews, were collected and analysed for triangulation purposes. The results showed that metaphorical expressions took more time to process, and their presence resulted in more translation failures. In other words, the inclusion of linguistic metaphors slowed down the speed of production and compromised the quality of translation, meaning that the STR of metaphors requires more effort than for their literal counterparts. The results also suggested that the extra effort was mainly invested in the reading phase, rather than in the production phase. The data revealed that mistranslations resulting from incomplete understanding, and the ensuing imbalance in the allocation of processing capacity between the reading and production tasks, far outnumbered those resulting from the failure to find appropriate target-language terms. By adopting STR as the vehicle for examining metaphorical expressions, this study also shed some light on how metaphors are processed in a bilingual environment.


Fishing is very likely to create selective pressures inducing adaptive changes in the life histories of harvested stocks. Using field data and adequate statistical methods, such alterations can be demonstrated. However, in order to understand underlying causes and to evaluate alternative management practices, past selective pressures must be quantified and predictions of future evolutionary changes are needed. In this respect, modelling the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of exploited stocks is a critical challenge. To illustrate this point, we studied the evolution of age and size at maturation induced by fishing using adaptive dynamics theory – a framework that allows modelling long-term evolution of quantitative traits under density- and frequency-dependent selection. Specifically, we investigated the evolutionary implications of alternative management policies. As a novel contribution to the discussion of fisheries-induced adaptive change, we showed that frequency-dependent selection, arising from fishing mortality under some particular management policies, can not only reduce the age and size at maturation and thus stock biomass, but can ultimately even induce the extinction of entire stocks. The potential for such phenomena of 'evolutionary suicide' is overlooked in models that do not incorporate life history evolution. Our findings thus highlight the importance of considering evolutionary trends in the management of exploited stocks.


This paper is concerned with analysing the role of rhetoric and literary criticism in research and scholarship. It is argued that critical debate and dialogue are the hub of the process of research and scholarship and that social science and literature have more in common than is normally recognized. Most of these debates are carried out in writing and involve elaborate writing and reading of texts – or literature as we prefer to call it. We argue the case that management researchers may have something to learn from literary criticism. A model of literary criticism comprising four different modes of criticism – mimetic, expressive, pragmatic and objective – is described and the implications for management research are suggested. The paper concludes with a number of reflections on what can be gained from this type of analysis and on the role of reflexivity in the research process.


A conceptual agronomic model EPIC was extended to consider the effects of salinity in alfalfa production under optimal and water stress irrigation conditions. The extended model was calibrated and validated with observed lysimeter data. The model parameters that affected alfalfa yield and soil salinity the most were wilting point, field capacity, hydraulic conductivity, nitrate concentration, biomass energy ratio, seeding rate, average soil salinity \IEC\N\De\N at which crop yield is reduced by 50% (\IEC\N\D50\N), and initial soil gypsum concentration. The calibrated and validated model was then applied to an alfalfa deficit irrigation study. The four irrigation treatments included optimum check, minimum stress, short stress, and long stress each of which produced differential alfalfa yields. The purpose of summer deficit irrigation was to ascertain how much agricultural water at what cost could be made available for urban water uses during water shortfalls. The results of model simulation were found to be satisfactory under all irrigation treatments though the model slightly overestimated the yields and underestimated the soil \IEC\N\De\N at the end of short and long stress treatments. An economic component is included to determine the appropriate compensation for farmers undergoing a range of deficit irrigations.


The study investigated the use of blogs and social networking sites especially the school library blogs by the students of Kendriya Vidyalaya(KV), Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. The study reviewed the characteristics and evaluated the effectiveness of various blogs maintained by the library- the primary library blog, LibZine, Homework and Assignment online, My dear Book and Library junction. Questionnaire method was employed to collect data from a representative sample of 110 respondents to study the use of library blogs. Most of the students were aware of their school library blog and it was found that 37% of the students learned to use it by trial and error method. It was found that about 32% of the high school and higher secondary students have their own personal blog. More than 74 % of the students used it for interacting with each other. In general, the findings indicated that the school library blogs have an impact on the academic and other activities of the student community.


By simultaneously standing on the entrepreneurship, institutions and social influences literatures, this paper explores the use of socio-psychological mechanisms to stimulate entrepreneurial ecosystems. While past research has studied the effects of institutions that use normative, cognitive, regulative and economic mechanisms, this paper assesses the causal relationship between an exogenous treatment that leverages social influences, and subsequent changes in entrepreneurial behaviors. We do this by conducting an in-depth examination of Start-Up Chile, a recent and unorthodox policy that forces a social interaction between domestic and foreign entrepreneurs. We provide evidence about the behavioral differences between two social groups from distinct geographical regions, as well as the assimilation of useful entrepreneurial behaviors as a consequence of the exogenously induced social interaction between these groups. Moreover, we find that entrepreneurial self-efficacy acts as an inverse amplifier in the assimilation of the studied behaviors. Our results shed light on an unexplored landscape in the design of entrepreneurship policies. By challenging current wisdom about the use of conventional mechanisms of influence, we uncover the effectiveness of socio-psychological mechanisms to cause change where the former may fail to do so.


A new algorithm for extracting features from images for object recognition is described. The algorithm uses higher order spectra to provide desirable invariance properties, to provide noise immunity, and to incorporate nonlinearity into the feature extraction procedure thereby allowing the use of simple classifiers. An image can be reduced to a set of 1D functions via the Radon transform, or alternatively, the Fourier transform of each 1D projection can be obtained from a radial slice of the 2D Fourier transform of the image according to the Fourier slice theorem. A triple product of Fourier coefficients, referred to as the deterministic bispectrum, is computed for each 1D function and is integrated along radial lines in bifrequency space. Phases of the integrated bispectra are shown to be translation- and scale-invariant. Rotation invariance is achieved by a regrouping of these invariants at a constant radius followed by a second stage of invariant extraction. Rotation invariance is thus converted to translation invariance in the second step. Results using synthetic and actual images show that isolated, compact clusters are formed in feature space. These clusters are linearly separable, indicating that the nonlinearity required in the mapping from the input space to the classification space is incorporated well into the feature extraction stage. The use of higher order spectra results in good noise immunity, as verified with synthetic and real images. Classification of images using the higher order spectra-based algorithm compares favorably to classification using the method of moment invariants.


This talk will be an amalgamation of aspects of scientific computing – development, verification, and interpretation – with application to the VlasovPoisson (VP) system, an important nonlinear partial differential equation containing the essential difficulties of collisionless kinetic theories. I will describe our development of a discontinuous Galerkin (DG) algorithm,1,2 its verification via convergence studies and comparison to known Vlasov results, and our interpretation of computational results in terms of dynamical systems ideas. The DG method was invented for solving a neutron transport model, successfully adapted to fluid motion including shock propagation, applied to the Boltzmann equation, and developed in the general context of conservation laws, and elliptic and parabolic equations. Our development for the VP system required the simultaneous approximation of the hyperbolic Vlasov equation with the elliptic Poisson equation, which created new challenges. I will briefly discuss advantages of the method and describe our error estimates and recurrence calculations for polynomial bases. Then, I will show results from a collection of benchmark computations of electron plasma dynamics, including i) convergence studies of high resolution linear and nonlinear Landau damping with a comparison to theoretical parameter dependencies ii) the nonlinear two-stream instability integrated out to (weak) saturation into an apparently stable equilibrium (BGK) state with detailed modeling of this state, and iii) an electric field driven (dynamically accessible) example that appears to saturate into various periodic solutions. I will interpret such final states, in analogy to finite-dimensional Hamiltonian theory, as Moser-Weinstein periodic orbits, and suggest a possible variational path for proof of their existence. Finally, I will comment briefly on recent progress on extensions to the Maxwell-Vlasov system, including estimates and computational results.3


"Moments of Vision "recounts Harold Edgerton's remarkable achievements in stroboscopy and electronic flash photography. It contains nearly two hundred photographs, including twelve pages in color, of many of the pioneer and classic images first published by Edgerton and Killian in "Flash "(1938) as well as numerous recent works by Edgerton and others using his stroboscopic inventions. Here are the famous milk drops, athletes and dancers in motion, bullets in transit, and hummingbird in flight--all made possible by the MIT scientist-engineer who pioneered the methods now widely used in stop-motion, night, and underwater photography.


A description of physical reality in which wholeness is the foundation is discussed along with the motivation for such an attempt. As a possible mathematical framework within which a physical theory based on wholeness may be expressed, elementary embeddings along with the Wholeness Axiom are suggested. It is shown how features of wholeness such as wholeness being indescribable, more than the sum of parts, locally accessible and giving rise to a self-similar, or holographic, type of order are reflected in the mathematics. It is also shown how all the sets in the mathematical universe may be expressed as emerging from the dynamics of wholeness. Moreover, it is indicated how the mathematics may be further developed so as to connect up with a physical interpretation.


Zeolites can act as hosts for supramolecular organization of molecules and complexes. A key objective in supramolecular chemistry is the development of donor acceptor systems capable of controlled photoinduced electron and energy transfer. This thesis focuses on a fundamental study of the capacity of zeolite materials to accommodate dipolar communication between metal complex guest species as well as exploring the effect of zeolite materials on the photophysical properties of guest molecules.
Chapter 1 and 2 outline the current state of zeolite host-guest chemistry and the experimental procedures and instrumentation ultilised in this work.
Chapter 3 investigates the ability of Y-zeolite to accommodate energy transfer processes between co-doped donors and acceptors. A series of [Ru(bpy)3]2+ (where bpy is 2,2'-bipyridine) doped Zeolite Y materials co-doped with iron polypyridyl complexes [Fe(bpy)3]2+ and [Fe(tpy)2]2+ were prepared via the 'ship in a bottle' syntesis. The co-encapsulated [Ru(bpy)3]2+ complex undergoes efficient energy transfer to both iron polypyridyl complexes over distances of between of 32 A and 27 A.
Chapter 4 examines the influence of zeolite-Y entrapment upon the photophysical properties of the Iridium (III) polypyridyl complexes [Ir(bpy)3]3+ and [Ir(tpy)2]3+. Their preparation and photophysical characterization is described. Dramatic changes in the emission spectra of the complexes were observed due to both the polarity of the zeolite interior as well as distortions caused by tight steric confinement.
Chapter 5 quantifies the extent of the excited state distortion of guest molecules entrapped within the pores of zeolite-Y by Huang-Rhys analysis. It was found that the zeolite environment impacts on the excited state geometry of the complexes generally limiting the amount of structural distortion the complex can undergo.
In Chapter 6, iridium polypyridyl complexes in a zeolite-Y matrix were codoped with europium bis-bipyridine. The photophysical properties of these materials were studied and indicated that sensitisation of the zeolite included europium acceptor by a co-included iridium polypyridyl energy donor complex occurred.
Chapter 7 offers conclusions on this thesis and outlines future work.


Discrimination is a problem for both minority groups and the societies in which they live. Perceived group discrimination reflects the direct experiences of immigrants but is also an indicator of reception context and social cohesion in the host country. This paper examines perceptions of group discrimination among recently migrated Polish immigrants to four Western European countries, and specifically focuses on changes over time in these individual perceptions, using a new longitudinal survey of immigrants. Are there cross-national differences in (changes in) perceived group discrimination, and how is discrimination related to exposure to and experiences in the host country? By employing a panel design we find that perceived discrimination is higher among Polish migrants in the Netherlands in Wave 1 than in the other three countries; perceptions of discrimination also increase more there between waves of the survey, as well as in the UK. Perceptions of group discrimination are related to some aspects of exposure to the host country, but most strongly associated with negative experiences in the host country. Differences in country contexts – attitudinal climate and national discourses – seem to play a role in understanding perceived group discrimination among new Polish immigrants in Western Europe.


For nearly three decades, the academic community has clearly recognized that many primate populations are severely threatened by human activities. In 1983, Wolfheim estimated that more than 50% of all primate species faced some form of threat. Over a decade later, the Primate Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission of the World Conservation Union5 estimated that half of the world's 250 species of primates were of serious conservation concern. In a recent review of the current status of primate communities, Wright and Jernvall commented that it was an achievement for primate conservationists that we had not lost any species in the last millennium. It is ironic that the first documented extinction of a widely recognized primate taxon occurred just as we entered the new millennium. Based on surveys in Ghana and Cote d'lvoire, Oates and colleagues have failed to find any surviving populations of Miss Waldron's red colobus (Procolobus badius waldroni), a primate taxon endemic to this region and one that some authorities consider worthy of species status. Because 96 primate species are now considered to be critically endangered or endangered, much must be done in the near future to ensure that extinction curves do not lag behind tropical deforestation and high levels of commercial and subsistence hunting.


Results of preliminary data collection indicate an increase of electromyography (EMG) amplitude in fatiguing isokinetic contractions of the knee extensors. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if the EMG/Torque relationship of vastus lateralis changes as a result of fatigue. The second purpose of this study was to determine if tests of functional ability are affected by fatigue. Twenty-two subjects (13 males and 9 females) were sampled from two populations with different types of training (strength versus endurance) experience. The procedures included a five-minute self-selected warmup on a cycle ergometer, pre-fatigue functional ability tests, fatigue protocol and postfatigue functional ability tests. The functional ability test protocol included four singleleg hopping drills to assess the functional performance of the knee joint. Torque was measured on an isokinetic dynamometer at 60 degrees per second through a functional range of motion until acute fatigue was reached during the fatigue protocol. Surface EMG electrodes were placed over the vastus lateralis to develop an EMG/Torque ratio during the dynamic contractions. The results indicate training type did not significantly affect torque production (p = 0.373) or the EMG/Torque ratio (p = 0.744) during isokinetic knee extensions in response to acute muscular fatigue. The strength-trained sample tended to have a greater increase of the EMG/Torque ratio during the fatigue protocol. The results did indicate that there were two significantly different types of response to acute muscular fatigue (p < 0.001). There were significant differences between the preand post-fatigue functional ability tests for the M/L (p < 0.001) and Up/Down (p = 0.011) but not for 3-Forward (p = 0.408) or Figure-8 (p = 0.286). One group doubled their activation magnitude during the fatigue protocol, while another group did not increase their activation magnitude during the fatigue protocol. It is possible that the increase of activation magnitude seen during the fatigue protocol is a result of transition of fiber type utilization. Further study is needed to determine what is the primary cause of the muscle's response to acute muscular fatigue.


An electro-conjugate fluid (ECF) is a kind of functional fluid, which produces a jet flow (ECF jet) when subjected to high DC voltage. It is known that a strong ECF jet is generated under nonuniform electric field, for example, the field with a pair of needle and ring electrodes. This study introduces the ECF jet to develop a novel inchworm like in-pipe mobile robot which mainly consists of two clamping units (a clamping actuator, an ECF jet generator and an ECF tank) and a propelling unit (a propelling actuator, an ECF jet generator and an ECF tank). First, we characterize the actuators composed of a silicone rubber tube and aramid fibers. Next, we characterize the ECF jet generator which could be a micro fluid pressure source of the actuators, and confirm the effect of the number of electrode pairs on its performance. Finally we develop the ECF in-pipe mobile robot and demonstrate that the robot can move in a φ14 mm acrylic pipe with 0.043 mm/s. The robot is 200mm long with the diameter of 10mm.


Abstract This paper examines how students in a third year management unit at a university of technology in Australia evaluate the usefulness of film as a tool for developing a deeper understanding of the theoretical leadership effectiveness model developed by Robbins (1997). The study reviews the range of studies describing the use of films in teaching leadership, playing into a perceivable gap in empirical studies demonstrating how students engage in applying the concepts of leadership. This study specifically considers whether films are effective interventions for achieving engagement in an assessment task aimed at identifying applications of theory to cases of leadership in action. As part of an action research cycle, thirty students (30) participated in three different focus groups. Transcriptions subsequently produced thick descriptions on which thematic analysis was conducted to extract key themes (Ryan & Bernard, 2003). The results suggest that films can communicate, embody and articulate the effectiveness of behaviours of leadership Robbins conveyed. The results also indicate that students value films as a medium for contextualising actions that demonstrate different leadership styles. It is perceived as a way of catering to diverse learning styles and as a way of building autonomy. We conclude that while films can be motivating and lend authenticity to assessment tasks, students need clear direction in making links between theoretical concepts and narrative filmic constructions of leaders and leadership behaviour. This leads to the next stage of our action research cycle.


Europium doped alkaline earth fluoride [Eu:AEF2 (AE = Ca, Sr, Ba)] nanoparticles were synthesized and systematically incorporated into the core of modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD)-derived silica-based preforms by solution doping. The resulting preforms were examined to determine the impact of the nanoparticles chemistry on the spectroscopic behavior of the glass. The dominant existence of Eu3+ was demonstrated in all preforms, which is in contrast to conventional solution doped preforms employing dissolved europium salts where Eu2+ is primarily observed. Raman spectroscopy and fluorescence lifetime measurements indicated that the nanoparticles composition is effective in controlling, at a local chemical and structural level, the spectroscopic properties of active dopants in optical fiber glasses. Further, there is a systematic and marked increase in radiative lifetime, τ, of the Eu3+ emission that follows the cationic mass; τCa < τSr < τBa with the BaF2-derived sample yielding a 37% lengthening of the lifetime over the CaF2-derived one. Such nanoscale control of what otherwise is silica glass could be useful for realizing property-enhanced and tailored spectroscopic performance from otherwise "standard" materials, e.g., vapor-derived silica, in next generation optical fibers.


Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is currently the only major breast tumor subtype without effective targeted therapy and, as a consequence, in general has a poor outcome. To identify new therapeutic targets in TNBC, we performed a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) screen for protein kinases commonly amplified and overexpressed in breast cancer. Using this approach, we identified AKT3 as a gene preferentially required for the growth of TNBCs. Downregulation of Akt3 significantly inhibits the growth of TNBC lines in three-dimensional (3D) spheroid cultures and in mouse xenograft models, whereas loss of Akt1 or Akt2 have more modest effects. Akt3 silencing markedly upregulates the p27 cell-cycle inhibitor and this is critical for the ability of Akt3 to inhibit spheroid growth. In contrast with Akt1, Akt3 silencing results in only a minor enhancement of migration and does not promote invasion. Depletion of Akt3 in TNBC sensitizes cells to the pan-Akt inhibitor GSK690693. These results imply that Akt3 has a specific function in TNBCs; thus, its therapeutic targeting may provide a new treatment option for this tumor subtype.


The human polycore minisatellite probes 33.6 and 33.15 developed by Prof. Alec Jeffreys and colleagues have been shown to detect hypervariable minisatellites in many taxonomically dispersed species. The mRNA derivatives of these two probes, pSPT19.6 and pSPT18.15, have here been used to probe the genomes of four species currently maintained in captivity. The wild populations of these species, Rothschild's mynah, the Rodrigues fruit bat, the British Merlin and the New Zealand falcon, are threatened with extinction to varying degrees. By using the technique of DNA fingerprinting, it has been possible to assess the levels of minisatellite variation remaining in these stocks, to confirm or refute the parent/offspring allocations made within, and in the case of Rothschild's mynah, to demonstrate that at least two of the founders of the stock were closely related. In addition, it has been possible to show that there is a significant positive relationship between the similarity coefficient calculated between two adults and the inbreeding coefficient calculated for their offspring.


Background: Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), a marker of arterial stiffness (AS), is a well-known non-invasive marker of cardiovascular morbidity but its implication for the cardiac surgery patients has been rarely studied. This study investigated the association between baPWV and post-cardiac surgery renal and left ventricular (LV) diastolic functions. Methods: Among 62 patients prospectively enrolled at a single center, 60 (mean age: 66.8 ± 9.1 years, 53.3% males) completed the whole measurements including baPWV and postoperative morbidity variables. Results: In total, 38 patients (63.3%) underwent non-valvular operations (NV), of which 32 underwent isolated coronary artery bypass grafting. Postoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was significantly and inversely associated with baPWV, in both univariable and multivariable analyses (P=0.024, regression coefficient (B)=-1.535 and P=0.031, B=-1.190, respectively). In ROC curve analysis of patients undergoing NV for detection of postoperative eGFR <50 mL/min/1.73m2, the cut-off value of baPWV was 18.0m/s with 64.3% sensitivity and 75.0% specificity (AUC, 0.783; 95% CI: 0.631–0.934, P=0.004). For the association with postoperative LV diastolic function which was investigated with tissue Doppler echocardiography in a subgroup of patients undergoing NV, there was a significant trend of decreasing postoperative e′ velocity with increasing quartiles of baPWV: Q1, 6.8 ± 1.2; Q2, 6.3 ± 2.2; Q3, 5.0 ± 1.0; Q4, 5.2 ± 1.5 cm/s (P for trend=0.005). Conclusions: There was a significant inverse association between baPWV and post-cardiac surgery renal and LV diastolic functions. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT 02014012).


Compost can suppress soilborne plant pathogens that cause significant damage on globally important food crops. However, reports of plant pathogen suppression are inconsistent likely because there are no established standards for feedstock material, application rate, and maturity age upon application. Excellent results can be achieved in greenhouse trials, but field applications are much less reliable. Disease suppression occurs through the activity of biocontrol organisms (direct antagonism), and general microbial competition. Biocontrol species are hypothesized to colonize the pile during the curing phase, but single species may not be as important as microbial consortia. Substrate composition during maturation may give rise to a suppressive microbial community. More research is needed to understand the relationships between feedstock, maturity, and production process on compost microbial ecology. The thesis had two main objectives: 1) identify biological indicators in compost that could (a) characterize maturity, process, and feedstock, and (b) predict disease suppression against R. solani, and 2) identify bacterial and fungal community composition and/or structure that is associated with suppression of soilborne disease. Rhizoctonia solani is a facultative saprophytic fungus and soilborne plant pathogen that attacks many globally important food crops and turfgrass. Prior research suggests that managing carbon quality and compost maturity will alter relative competition between biological control microbes and the R. solani pathogen. The pathogen is responsible for economic losses to organic vegetable production in Vermont and there are no available methods to manage the disease that meet organic certification. R. solani on radish was chosen as a model system given its global importance, competitiveness affected by carbon quality, and lack of disease management options for organic production. Compost samples were most abundant in the bacterial phyla Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes, and known biocontrol species were not detected in abundance. Compost samples did not differ significantly in fungal community composition, suggesting a dominance effect from the native soil fungal community. Overall, anaerobic digestate and vermicompost were most suppressive against R. solani. Thermophilic composts were not very suppressive overall, though a specially made hardwood bark compost was comparable to the suppressiveness of vermicompost application. Ecoenzyme analysis was able to integrate information on environmental substrate composition, microbial nutrient acquisition, and microbial community metabolism, offering the best view of current ecological conditions in compost. Ecoenzyme analysis showed that the most suppressive composts, anaerobic digestate and vermicompost, were most nutrient limited. All compost samples were severely nitrogen (N) limited, and anaerobic digestate and vermicompost were severely limited in both N and phosphorus (P). The additional P limitation may support non-pathogenic species to outcompete R. solani. The key to disease suppression may lie in matching up the ecology of the plant pathogen with the ecology of biocontrol, which may be engineered in compost.


Critical Thinking in School: Considered Through Radical Aesthetics. Metiatization and a Poetic Performance by Athena Farrokhzad Over the last decade, the Swedish school system has been discussing the intersection between aesthetics and learning with much enthusiasm. The aim of this article is to show how this discussion can be invigorated by contemporary poetic practice, and how focus thus can be shifted from what Jan Thavenius has labelled »market aesthetics« and »modest aesthetics«, to what he labels »radical aesthetics«, i.e. an overriding aesthetics which is critical by nature, and therefore able to permeate the school system. Much contemporary poetry looks upon itself as a critical art form, at least as much as a creative one. The example used in the article – a controversial radio program, and poetic performance from 2014, by Athena Farrokhzad – uses poetry to highlight the ideological and religious discourses of con- temporary – »mediatized« – society. Appropriating the poetic methods she uses, and employing them meta-critically within the classroom, could bring the school system closer to Thavenius's ideal »radical aesthetics


Shadow education vouchers, which beneficiaries flexibly use for any pre-registered institutions such as cram schools and one-to-one tutoring, might be an effective method to support disadvantaged children. In this paper, we estimate empirically the effects of shadow education vouchers provided in the area affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake on mainly cognitive skills by utilizing regression discontinuity design. Our results show a positive impact on academic achievements and study hours during holidays. In addition, the impact is much larger for children living in poverty.


This essay examines Carlos Bulosan's autobiography America Is in the Heart (1943) as it engages Henry Luce's influential editorial "The American Century" (1941). To begin, it studies how Luce envisioned the mobile, American-style education of a professional class as the distinguishing feature of the postwar era. Luce's emphasis on postwar professionals as celebrated citizens of a U.S. trained professional class created the conditions of possibility for Bulosan to paradoxically construct Filipinos and Filipino Americans as experts on processes of Americanization. Departing from dominant readings of America Is in the Heart as setting the limits by which Filipinos are excluded by discourses of race in the U.S. national polity, this essay argues that Luce's definition of U.S. expertise as patriotic work resonated deeply with Filipino American writers, including Bulosan, in their attempts to position themselves as included subjects. The article examines the ways Bulosan revises Luce's arguments in order to study the implications of benevolent assimilation, the colonial policy of tutelage for Filipinos. Although the notion of a model minority discourse is conventionally understood as the result of 1965 immigration policy and a reaction to the intensification of black civil rights and protest movements, the concluding sections of the essay suggest that Bulosan provides a glimpse of the emergence of a model minority discourse as it takes shape in the shadow of black pathologization, the transformation of the U.S.-Philippines colonial relationship, and U.S. immigration narratives during World War II.


Morphology development of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) caused by applied flow history in molten isotactic polypropylene (PP) is investigated, employing a cone-and-plate rheometer and a capillary rheometer as mixing devices. Since the flow history is applied at 190 °C, PTFE is in the solid state whereas PP is in the molten state. It is found that primary PTFE particles tend to be agglomerated together by mechanical interlocking. Then they are fragmented into fibers by hydrodynamic force with reorganization process of crystalline phase. The diameter of the fragmented fibers is the same as that of the original ellipsoidal particles. Further, fine fibers whose diameter is in the range from 50 to 100 nm are also generated by yielding behavior of the particles. The prolonged shearing leads to a large number of fibers, although the diameter and length are hardly affected by the exposure time of shearing and shear stress. Moreover, the flow type (i.e., drag or pressure flow) does not affect the morphology to a great extent, although the drag flow is not efficient to reduce large agglomerated particles. The fibers form an interdigitated network structure, which is responsible for the marked melt elasticity.


The Big Fix: How the Pharmaceutical Industry Rips Off American Consumers, by Katharine Greider. New York: Public Affairs; 2003. 189 pp. The Big Fix is, as Greider describes, "the utter folly of allowing a profit-driven industry to name its price, while quietly making over our public-health agenda in its own image"—the theme of the book. Written in an easy-to-understand, conversational manner targeted to the American consumer, The Big Fix is a comprehensive description of the commonly held views of critics of the pharmaceutical industry, although most of the points made are not novel. In eight chapters, each given a catchy descriptive title, Greider does a good job of detailing the issues and citing well-known experts and critics of the industry, such as Marcia Angel and Thomas Bodenheimer, even though she does not always provide the exact sources of these citations for those academic types who may want to know more.


Australia is falling behind the international trend towards low carbon transport to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. For instance, in 2012 the Australian Government forecasts that road transport emissions will continue to increase to 2020 and then slow to 2030 because of higher oil prices and the introduction of mandatory CO2 emissions standards. The forecast assumes vehicle efficiencies of petrol and diesel engines will improve, and there will be a gradual shift to alternative technologies. However, in 2007 the European Union found that while advances in vehicle technology had delivered most of the carbon reductions, these advances were offset by new cars that had become significantly more powerful, larger, and heavier. This is the case in Australia. The paper shows how Australia can accelerate the uptake of low carbon technology through reforming existing vehicle taxes into an environmental related tax. The reform will require basing the tax on CO2 emissions from previously being based on the vehicles technical characteristics such as cylinder capacity, engine size and fuel type. The literature supports the reform of vehicle taxes into an environmental tax, which was found to be a powerful instrument in influencing the purchase decisions of consumers. Specifically, the paper examines the literature and reviews the ex post evidence on the successful reform of vehicles taxes. In the case study of Ireland, it was found that the reformed vehicle taxes based on CO2 emissions provided a strong price signal, and consumer response was greater than anticipated. As a result, Ireland's ambitious targets in reducing its GHG emissions were met. The paper provides evidence to Australia's policy makers, consultants and car manufacturers that reforming existing vehicle taxes into an environmental related tax is an effective measure in transitioning Australia into a low carbon transport and reducing road transport emissions.


Women's preferences for putative cues of genetic quality in men's voices, faces, bodies, and behavioral displays are stronger during the fertile phase of the ovulatory cycle. Here we show that ovulatory cycle-related changes in women's attractiveness perceptions of male features are also found with dance movements, especially those perceived as highly masculine. Dance movements of 79 British men were recorded with an optical motion-capture system whilst dancing to a basic rhythm. Virtual humanoid characters (avatars) were created and converted into 15-second video clips and rated by 37 women on masculinity. Another 23 women judged the attractiveness of the 10 dancers who scored highest and those 10 who scored lowest on masculinity once in days of high fertility and once in days of low fertility of their ovulatory cycle. High-masculine dancers were judged higher on attractiveness around ovulation than on other cycle days, whilst no such perceptual difference was found for low-masculine dancers. We suggest that women may gain fitness benefits from evolved preferences for masculinity cues they obtain from male dance movements.


We report on the active stabilization of a Michelson interferometer at an arbitrary phase angle with a precision better than one degree at λ = 632.8 nm, which corresponds to an optical path difference between the two arms of less than 1 nm. The stabilization method is ditherless and the error signal is computed from the spatial shift of the interference pattern of a reference laser, measured in real-time with a CCD array detector. We discuss the usefulness of this method for nanopositioning, optical interferometry and quantum optical experiments. c © 2013 Optical Society of America


Morgellons disease (MD) is a skin condition characterized by the presence of multicolored filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin. Although the condition may have a longer history, disease matching the above description was first reported in the US in 2002. Since that time, the condition that we know as MD has become a polemic topic. Because individuals afflicted with the disease may have crawling or stinging sensations and sometimes believe they have an insect or parasite infestation, most medical practitioners consider MD a purely delusional disorder. Clinical studies supporting the hypothesis that MD is exclusively delusional in origin have considerable methodological flaws and often neglect the fact that mental disorders can result from underlying somatic illness. In contrast, rigorous experimental investigations show that this skin affliction results from a physiological response to the presence of an infectious agent. Recent studies from that point of view show an association between MD and spirochetal infection in humans, cattle, and dogs. These investigations have determined that the cutaneous filaments are not implanted textile fibers, but are composed of the cellular proteins keratin and collagen and result from overproduction of these filaments in response to spirochetal infection. Further studies of the genetics, pathogenesis, and treatment of MD are warranted.


CXCR7 mediates ligand-induced β-arrestin signaling in the absence of G protein signaling. Association of seven-transmembrane receptors (7TMRs) with heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide–binding proteins (G proteins) is so common and so well established that the term "G protein–coupled receptor" (GPCR) is often used interchangeably with 7TMR to refer to this class of proteins. Ligand binding to 7TMRs also stimulates recruitment of β-arrestins, which terminate 7TMR signaling through G proteins and also mediate distinct signaling pathways. Some 7TMR fail to activate G protein signaling pathways; these are thought to act as co-receptors or as decoy receptors that scavenge ligand. Noting that ligand elicits β-arrestin binding for one such "decoy" receptor, CXCR7, Rajagopal et al. explored the possibility that CXCR7 might signal through β-arrestin despite its inability to mediate G protein signaling. Treatment of human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cells transiently transfected with plasmids encoding CXCR7 and fluorescently labeled β-arrestin2 with the CXCR7 ligands stromal-derived factor 1α (SDF-1α) or interferon-inducible T cell α chemoattractant (ITAC) stimulated β-arrestin2 recruitment to the plasma membrane. The two ligands elicited distinct spatiotemporal patterns of β-arrestin2 recruitment, with β-arrestin2 localizing to cytoplasmic vesicles 10 minutes after treatment of cells with SDF-1α but remaining associated with the membrane in cells treated with ITAC, patterns echoed by ligand-dependent extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK1/2) phosphorylation. In rat vascular smooth muscle cells (rVSMCs), which express CXCR7 mRNA and protein, the radioligand binding profile was characteristic of chemokine binding to CXCR7, and ITAC failed to activate Gαi or to elicit increases in intracellular calcium associated with Gαq activation. ITAC promoted rVSMC migration; migration was markedly reduced by β-arrestin2 knockdown and was inhibited by a CXCR7 antagonist. The authors thus conclude that CXCR7 mediates ligand-induced signaling through β-arrestin even in the absence of G protein signaling. S. Rajagopal, J. Kim, S. Ahn, S. Craig, C. M. Lam, N. P. Gerard, C. Gerard, R. J. Lefkowitz, β-arrestin- but not G protein-mediated signaling by the "decoy" receptor CXCR7. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 107, 628–632 (2010). [Abstract] [Full Text]


In this paper we discuss various methods for clustering in order to determine estimates of the cluster mass, focusing on the cluster A3581. Using virtual observatory (VO) tools, possible galaxy cluster candidates are selected. Using the Kayes Mixture Model (KMM) algorithm and the Gaussian Mixing Model (GMM), we determine the most likely cluster member candidates. We then compare the results obtained to SIMBADs method of hierarchy. The mass of A 3581 was calculated and checked with literature values. We discuss the sensitivity of the mass determination and show that the GMM provides a very robust method to determine member candidates for cluster A 3581. (© 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


This article analyses the Weimar Republic's cultural relations with Latin America. Based on diplomatic correspondence and the writings of Latin American intellectuals who visited Weimar Germany, the article combines an exploration of the goals and methods of Germany's official foreign cultural policy towards the region with a brief examination of the varied ways in which the supposed recipients of these policies approached German culture. The key argument is that the limited capacities of official cultural policy created space for a large number of actors who pursued divergent interests when appropriating or trying to spread German ideas in Latin America.


A three-dimensional mesoscale meteorological model was used to study the interplay between the dynamical (turbulent mixing and advection) and physico-chemical (sea-air flux and photochemical sink by OH) processes that control dimethylsulfide DMS concentrations and their distribution in the marine boundary layer (MBL) during the First Aerosol Characterization Experiment ACE 1. Atmospheric DMS concentrations were constrained using observed seawater DMS concentrations and box model derived OH concentrations. Lateral boundary values of dynamical parameters were derived from the 6-hourly meteorological analysis of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. Calculated DMS concentrations, wind speed and direction, and cloud cover were compared with measurements made aboard the R/V Discoverer and on the three NCAR/C130 aircraft flights during the LagB experiment. Model-generated atmospheric DMS concentrations agreed with the DMS observations from the NCAR/C130 aircraft flights during the LagB experiment (R 2 = 0.69) assuming OH is the only oxidant and DMS flux parameterization based on Liss and Merlivat [1986]. Comparison with Eulerian measurements made aboard the R/V Discoverer showed that the model simulated the range of observed values but not the hour-to-hour variation observed in the atmospheric DMS concentrations. Part of the discrepancy was attributed to uncertainties in DMS sea-to-air transfer velocity, small scale features of seawater DMS that are beyond the model resolution, and uncertainties in the venting of the boundary layer by shallow clouds. A quantitative budget at the ship location revealed a strong impact of advection processes in determining DMS levels and temporal evolution. The three-dimensional mesoscale meteorological model was also used to estimate the effect of the low spatial resolution used in global models on seawater DMS concentrations and atmospheric OH concentrations.


In the critical zone of the upland Boulder Creek (Colorado) catchment, a weathered mantle consisting of 3 to 10 m of oxidized bedrock, saprolite, and mobile regolith (grus and soil) overlies fresh and locally hydrothermally altered bedrock that is exposed beneath a low‐relief surface. Saprolite forms from isovolumetric alteration of primary rock materials to secondary minerals by percolating water; mobile regolith includes rock materials in transport downslope, mixed by a variety of biologic and physical processes. Analysis of vadose zone samples by petrographic, inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP–MS) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) techniques demonstrates that weathering of Precambrian Boulder Creek Granodiorite and Silver Plume Granite has formed small amounts of clay and iron oxides. Bulk geochemical changes during alteration are minor except in the transformation of saprolite to regolith, which is enriched in neoformed minerals. In saprolite, the alteration sequence is: plagioclase > biotite > microcline > quartz. Quantitative XRD analysis shows that smectite and kaolinite form <10% of the rock in weathered samples and that smectite is absent and kaolinite and illite comprise >15% of the rock at several hydrothermally altered sites. Iron oxide and hydroxide minerals, such as goethite and hematite, have formed by weathering and by hydrothermal alteration. Hydrothermal alteration of granodiorite to saprolite at the Hurricane Hill site resulted in substantial losses of CaO, MgO and Na2O, Sr and metals such as Cd and Pb, and enrichment in K2O and the trace elements Cs, Sb, and W. At four critical‐zone profiles studied in detail: (i) increases in kaolinite, smectite, and Fe oxides and decreases in magnetite concentration due to weathering are significant if fresh rock is compared to regolith; (ii) illite is enriched in soil; (iii) minor amounts of clay minerals are inherited from fresh rock; and (iv) clay minerals and Fe oxides are abundant only in hydrothermally altered saprolite. Some of the apparent enrichment of secondary minerals in weathered profiles likely results from dustfall and from material mixed into mobile regolith from heterogeneous bedrock sources. If some portion of the clay minerals in regolith and some fraction of dissolved material leaving Boulder Creek catchments are exotic, rates of clay and Fe oxide formation in the Boulder Creek area must be slow, and the alteration of granitic rocks during the conversion of saprolite to regolith may be driven mainly by volume expansion in this cool, continental climate.


Indonesia is widely regarded as a moderate Muslim country, yet over the past decade sharia-supporting Muslim groups have gained broad, popular support. LGBT people are among those groups who have faced growing intolerance. In this article I discuss the factors behind Indonesia's creeping criminalisation of homosexuality. From late 2015 onwards, homophobic hate speech and attacks were launched, not only by conservative Muslim groups but also by Indonesian authorities. I discuss this campaign in the context of the national and international legal situation, focusing on constitutional interpretation, the promulgation of homophobic regional regulations and the role of major civil society actors, notably MUI (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, Indonesian Council of Religious Scholars) and AILA (Aliansi Cinta Keluarga, Family Love Alliance). The ongoing discussions in the legislature on the revisions of the Criminal Code will also be examined. I argue that the intermingling of religious authority, political power and conservative religious groups is undermining Indonesia's democratic constitutional framework and the rights and freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution.