Reports from the European Commission point out a difficult financial landscape and competitive mar-ket for textile companies. Increased competition from low-wage countries is one cause. This has forced changes to both the companies' structure and the supply chain, like off-shoring and outsourcing of manufacturing activities. The new structure means that companies have to address efficiency in areas like support processes and development. To address this, other industry sectors, such as automo-tive, have explored and implemented lean. Research confirms that organizations can increase perfor-mance by introducing lean. However both in the textile sector and generally in settings outside manu-facturing several researchers have identified research gaps, both in terms of administrative applications and how employees are affected. These gaps are explored in three different research questions support-ing the following main purpose:To explore how lean principles and methods, from a textile management perspective, can benefit tex-tile companiesThe research methodology aligns to an abductive research approach, merging theory and real-life ob-servation throughout the project. This approach also supports a close connection between theory-building and practice development. The empirical data, from which the analysis and conclusions are made, is gathered in four appended papers. Two of them use a case study methodology, one a single case study approach and one a multiple-case study approach, respectively. The two other papers use an action research approach. The research quality has been demonstrated mainly by addressing issues related to research bias and reactivity, two key areas in qualitative research.Concluding the results shows that lean can serve as an enabler for the textile sector, applied in a textile management context. The research provides useful insights of effects due to lean intervention and also adds to the lean research body beyond a manufacturing context. From a managerial implications stand-point the research supports companies regarding both how to apply lean outside production and what effects that it can result in. It can also serve as a guideline at a strategy level on how to achieve busi-ness improvement. Future research is needed at system level with a scope of an entire company, since this research has explored lean at a minor scale. Also conflicting findings connected to changed work-related stress levels were found regarding the employee perspective. This needs to be explored further to understand how possibly increased stress can be reduced or eliminated.


Assessment of the potential environmental impact of heavy metals (HM) mobilized by coal-fired power plants showed that water leaching of HM from pulverized fuel ash may for certain HM constitute an important pathway to the aquatic environment. This process was therefore investigated in more detail by laboratory experiments. Batch experiments were performed in order to simulate ash pond conditions, whereas column experiments were carried out to represent water leaching from fly ash deposits. Using highly sensitive radiochemical techniques such as radioactive tracers and neutron activation of fly ash the fate of a single HM could be easily followed even in very low concentration experiments. Employing radioisotopic tracers the distribution coefficients of simple ionic forms of As, Sb, Bi, Se, Te, Cr, Mo, W, Ni, Cd in a coal fly ash/water system could be determined as a function of pH. Results obtained on the adsorption and desorption behaviour of HM on coal fly ash can be explained in part on the basis of the surface predominance and the aqueous chemistry of single ionic, mainly anionic, forms of the relative elements. But ion exchange and coprecipitation phenomena also seem to be important processes. The nature and concentration of ions contained originally in the water used (distilled water, fly ash leachate and seawater) were found to have a strong influence on the sorptive behaviour of HM on coal ashes. The high degree of applicability of radiochemical and nuclear techniques to coal ash water leaching problems has been demonstrated and further points for subsequent research in this field possibly using nuclear techniques are indicated.


This article is based on a roundtable discussion of how venture capital and private equity investments create value for their portfolio companies. Value creation happens in all three stages of investment process—identification, investment, and monitoring. In the Indian context, high levels of investor involvement in the investee companies play a significant role in value creation. In some instances, venture investors give credibility to not just the investee company but to the sector as whole. Venture investors have de-risked IPO investments by reducing both immature business models and fly-by-night operators. Over the years, interesting investment models such as "Entrepreneur in Residence," shareholding in exchange for incubation, and mentoring services have evolved.


Size fractionated mesozooplankton biomass, abundance and copepod grazing were investigated over an annual cycle (1998) at two stations off Cudillero (central Cantabrian Sea). Mesozooplankton biomass was higher in summer/early autumn, reaching ~3000 mg dw m -2 in September. Copepods were the most abundant taxonomic group, representing 91 and 81% of the total mesozooplankton abundance in the coastal and shelf-break station respectively. Copepod gut contents were higher in summer at the coastal station, while the shelf-break station showed maximum gut contents in April. Gut contents were linearly related to integrated chlorophyll, except in the case of large animals at the shelf break station. Copepod community carbon ingestion was higher from June to September at both stations, reaching a maximum value of ~165 mg C m -2 day -1 . Calculated grazing rates translates into an average daily consumption values of 8.7% (coast) and 5.25% (shelf-break) of total chlorophyll stock, or 20% (shelf-break) of total primary production.


Sparse representation has been widely studied in visual tracking, which has shown promising tracking performance. Despite a lot of progress, the visual tracking problem is still a challenging task due to appearance variations over time. In this paper, we propose a novel sparse tracking algorithm that well addresses temporal appearance changes, by enforcing template representability and temporal consistency (TRAC). By modeling temporal consistency, our algorithm addresses the issue of drifting away from a tracking target. By exploring the templates' long-term-short-term representability, the proposed method adaptively updates the dictionary using the most descriptive templates, which significantly improves the robustness to target appearance changes. We compare our TRAC algorithm against the state-of-the-art approaches on 12 challenging benchmark image sequences. Both qualitative and quantitative results demonstrate that our algorithm significantly outperforms previous state-of-the-art trackers.


Sorghum, like other cereals, is an excellent source of starch and protein. While considering the properties of sorghum proteins it could be an important food alternative for gluten intolerant and diabetic persons. Processing of sorghum flour into products has several limitations and very little information is available on sorghum as compared to wheat and other cereals. So, following study was undertaken to device a protocol for studying the rheological properties of sorghum with the help of Mixograph. After standardizing the protocol, rheological properties of six sorghum varieties were studied and compared with the properties of wheat flour and wheat whole mill. In six sorghum varieties, peak time varied from minimum of 4.91 min (CSV 15) to maximum 11.4 min (W 117). Peak height which represents dough strength ranged 15.9 to 36.4, which is very low as compared to wheat 69.6. Weakening angle is also higher in sorghum (0.21 to -4.27), as compared to wheat (-8.05).


Mangrove ecosystem of Segara Anakan Cilacap has specific vegetation, function, and benefit. It was dominated by Rhizophora, Bruguiera, Avicennia and associate vegetation such as Nypa frutican. Stability of mangrove ecosystem can be seen by community structure, zonation and diversity of mangrove vegetation. This research aimed to analyze community structure, zonnation and diversity of mangrove vegetation in Segara Anakan Lagoon. This research used survey method with cluster sampling by stratified analysis. The Analyze of data used association analysis, zonation analysis, richnes index, and Shanon Wiener index. This Research showed that (1) Association index of seedling was dominated by index < 0.22 (lowest association) with scored 46,67 % - 66.66 %, (2) Association index of sapling also was dominated by index < 0.22 (lowest association) with scored 58,33% - 71.43 %, (3) Association index of tress also was dominated by index < 0.22 (lowest association) with scored 67,27 % % (4) Overlaping indeks showed Aegiceras corniculatum has high overlap toward Nypa frutican (71 %) (seedling stage) and Rhizophora apiculata to Avicennia spp (0,49) (sapling stage). (5) Zonation of mangrove showed that Zone 1 as direct connecting zone with sea which were dominated by Avicennia marina and Avicennia oficinallis. Zone 2 as the middle zone which were dominated by Rhizophora mucronata, Rhizophora apiculata, and Ceriops tagal. Zone 3 as direct connecting zone with island which were dominated by Nypa fruticans, Acanthus ilicifolius, and Sonneratia casseolaris (6) diversity index between 0.48 – 1.83 (low – middle). Keywords :  mangrove vegetation, acosiation index, zonation, community structure and diversity


This paper introduces a new benchmark designed to test database management system (DBMS) performance on a mix of data management tasks (joins, filters, etc.) and complex analytics (regression, singular value decomposition, etc.) Such mixed workloads are prevalent in a number of application areas including most science workloads and web analytics. As a specific use case, we have chosen genomics data for our benchmark and have constructed a collection of typical tasks in this domain. In addition to being representative of a mixed data management and analytics workload, this benchmark is also meant to scale to large dataset sizes and multiple nodes across a cluster. Besides presenting this benchmark, we have run it on a variety of storage systems including traditional row stores, newer column stores, Hadoop, and an array DBMS. We present performance numbers on all systems on single and multiple nodes, and show that performance differs by orders of magnitude between the various solutions. In addition, we demonstrate that most platforms have scalability issues. We also test offloading the analytics onto a coprocessor. The intent of this benchmark is to focus research interest in this area; to this end, all of our data, data generators, and scripts are available on our web site.


Purpose - The literature on the topic has evolved exponentially since eight years ago. Relaying on a review of studies published in recent years, this article proposes and discusses a framework which incorporates a set of virtual teams involved in a new product development initiative. Design/methodology/approach – A range of academic and practitioner literature related to virtual teams and virtual new product development is reviewed. What is Virtual New Product Development and what determines its development in manufacturing firms? These two questions are answered. Findings - The decision to use a virtual team is often a necessity and not a choice; being 'virtual' is in most cases not an alternative but a requirement. Enterprise may benefit from building and maintain the virtual teams in a number of ways such as achieving higher quality, accessing and capturing dispersed knowledge and skills regarding the multifunctional and multi-use components and modules, electronically unite experts in highly specialized fields, collaborating more productivity at a distance, achieving tight schedules and start quickly, reducing travel time and cost, enabling the recruitment of talented employees, builds diverse teams, promoting proactive employment and finally reducing discrimination in enterprises. Originality/value - The results of an academic literature review were employed to the literature so far has not paid adequate attention to the virtual team activities in NPD. The results highlight several avenues which would help managers and policy makers to better foster cyber new product development and designers to better channel of their efforts in the design and manufacturing domain.


We examine the impact of business cycle variation on intimate partner violence using representative data from thirty one developing countries, through 2005 to 2016. We distinguish male from female unemployment rates, identifying the influence of each conditional upon the other. We find that a one percent increase in the male unemployment rate increases the incidence of physical violence against women by 0.50 percentage points, or 2.75 percent. This is consistent with the financial and psychological stress generated by unemployment. Increases in female unemployment rates (corresponding to decreases in women's employment opportunities), conditional upon rates of male unemployment reduce the incidence of violence; a one percent increase being associated with a decrease in the probability of victimization of 0.52 percentage points, or 2.87 percent. This is consistent with 'male backlash'. These patterns of behaviour are stronger among better educated women and weaker among women who have had at least one son.


This study explains the quality of life among the elderly in rural Murshidabad. A community-based cross-sectional design was adopted for it. Descriptive statistics, boxplot, t-test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and linear regression were used for the analysis of data. The overall score of quality of life (QOL) was 41.92±7.69 where 38.53±9.12 for the physical domain; 40.28±8.12 for the psychological domain; 40.11±10.98 for the social relationship domain; and 47.59±7.69 for the environmental domain. The findings revealed that OQOL had a strong negative association with age of the elderly. Wealth status also had a significant negative association with all the domains of quality of life. Further, unemployed elderly had a lower QOL in each domain.


The European honey bee, Apis mellifera, is a vital species for agriculture, providing pollination for crops all around the world. Recent declines in honey bee health have been concerning, and the spread of the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor is thought to be one of the leading causes of this decline. Examining how Varroa destructor finds its larval host for reproduction is important for understanding how Varroa destructor can ultimately lead to the death of the colony. Investigating the factors that guide Varroa destructor host seeking is also an important step for developing tools to control Varroa destructor within the Apis mellifera hive without the use of toxic acaricides. While early studies showed promising results of identifying Varroa attractants, an adequate in-hive trap has not been developed. I investigated the influences of three factors on Varroa destructor host selection of Apis mellifera larvae in two sets of experiments: caste, nurse bee visitation rate, and larval weight. I also investigated gene expression and virus titers as possible consequences to mite invasion. Overall, we found complex interaction among the tested factors. My comparison among worker and drone cells showed that with increasing nurse bee visitation rates there is an increased chance of cell invasion by Varroa. However, drone larvae did not have a significantly higher chance of invasion compared to worker larvae, despite higher visitation rates. Worker larvae manipulated through starving and feeding did not exhibit altered nurse bee visitation rates, although some weight changes were observed. Larvae with increased weight did not to have a higher chance of cell invasion. Interactions between visitation rates and molecular variables, such as immune activity and virus titers were studied. The immune gene Dicer-Like and deformed wing virus-A were both associated with Varroa cell invasion. These results provide insight into how physical, behavioral, and chemical factors influence Varroa destructor. This study shows how Varroa destructor acts and interacts within Apis mellifera hives, that can be used to develop methods of control in the future.


The present paper justifies the application of the temperature-dependent potential to themolecular dynamicsmethod through the example of uranium dioxide. Substantiation of the temperature dependence of interatomic potential is carried out based on the Newton quantum equation.Mean force can be represented as a sum of derivative of potential at the average atomic coordinate and the summand that depends on square dispersion of the coordinate depending on the temperature of the crystal. The selection of parameters of potential was done at three temperature values: the initial temperature and temperatures of phase transitions – 2670 and 3120K, parameters of potentials for all other temperatures were found by approximation. The paper calculated temperature dependencies for the lattice constant, enthalpy, heat capacity. Our data are good agreement with experimental data.


Economic theory provides the econometrician with substantial structure and restrictions necessary to give economic interpretation to empirical findings. In many settings, such as those in consumer demand and production studies, these restrictions often take the form of monotonicity and curvature constraints. Although such restrictions may be imposed in certain parametric empirical settings in a relatively straightforward fashion by utilizing parametric restrictions or particular parametric functional forms (Cobb-Douglas, CES, etc.), imposing such restrictions in semiparametric models is often problematic. Our paper provides one solution to this problem by incorporating penalized splines, where monotonicity and curvature constraints are maintained via integral transformations of spline basis expansions. We derive the estimator, algorithms for its solution, and its large sample properties. Inferential procedures are discussed as well as methods for selecting the smoothing parameter. We also consider multiple regressions under the framework of additive models. We conduct a series of Monte Carlo simulations to illustrate the finite sample properties of the estimator. We apply the proposed methods to estimate two canonical relationships, one in consumer behavior and one in producer behavior. These two empirical settings examine the relationship between individuals' degree of optimism and risk tolerance and a production function with multiple inputs. ∗Department of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University; email: email@example.com †Department of Economics, Rice University; email: firstname.lastname@example.com


Introduction Water is a resource that triggers profound conflicts and close collaboration, a source of deep injustices, and fierce struggles for life. In many regions of the world, rising demand and declining availability of adequate-quality water foster severe competition and ferocious clashes among different water uses and users. People also suffer from flooding; contamination caused by industry and mining; privatization of public water utilities; corruption; and displacement by large dam projects. Climate change intensifies most human-made water problems. In struggles for water security, the poor tend to lose (e.g. Crow et al., 2014; Escobar, 2006; Harvey, 1996; Perreault et al., 2011). Through exemplary cases, the chapters in this book show how new competitors - including megacities, mining, forestry, and agribusiness companies - demand and usurp a mounting share of available surface and groundwater resources (e.g., Donahue and Johnston, 1998; GRAIN, 2012). Water deprivation and water insecurity affect marginalized urban households, and rural smallholder families and communities. In many regions, this poses profound threats to environmental sustainability and local and national food security (e.g., Escobar, 2008; Mehta et al., 2012; Mena et al., 2016). Such proliferating problems of material and social "water injustices" provide the backdrop for this book. Distribution of access water rights and water-related decision-making is extremely skewed. Smallholder communities' water-based livelihoods and rights in many countries of the global South are constantly threatened by bureaucratic administrations, market-driven policies, and top-down project intervention practices. Despite the fact that water injustices have existed throughout human history, water justice problems and related policy interventions have changed rapidly over recent decades (Zwarteveen and Boelens, 2014). For instance, rather than focusing on simply enlarging water flows through new hydraulic engineering projects, new perspectives focus on water saving and conservation (Vos and Marshall, 2017; Zwarteveen, 2015). New scientific fields and water professionals have entered the water policy-making and intervention worlds to accompany (increasingly high-tech) hydraulic engineering (Buscher and Fletcher, 2015; Goldman, 2007, 2011). Also, climate change threats and water-related disasters have changed science and policy debates and water funding projects related to issues such as "mitigation and adaptation," flood control and drought prevention (Heynen et al., 2007; Lynch, 2012; Martinez-Alier, 2002). Further, global neoliberalism has assured that water development and governance are no longer seen as the exclusive realm of the state, with water knowledge and authority concentrated in powerful public agencies (Hommes et al., 2016; Loftus, 2009; Zwarteveen, 2015).


Drugs currently used to treat neuropathic pain caused by damage in the nervous system typically cause side effects such as drowsiness and dizziness. Therefore, drugs directed at targets outside the central nervous system (CNS) could avoid such problems. Ibrahim et al. suggest that activating the CB2 cannabinoid receptor with a selective agonist could be an alternative treatment. The CB2 receptor is not found in the CNS but is expressed primarily on mast and immune cells. An aminoalkylindole called AM1241 was shown to be a selective CB2 agonist. Administration of the drug reversed sensory hypersensitivity observed in a rat model of neuropathic pain. In this rat model, spinal nerve ligation increases sensitivity to tactile and thermal stimuli, two characteristics of human neuropathic pain that can result from injury or disease of primary afferent neurons. In mice lacking the CB1 receptor, AM1241 was still able to block pain, indicating specificity of the effect through CB2 receptors. The authors propose that AM1241 could have an anti-inflammatory effect on mast and immune cells that would normally release mediators that sensitize primary afferent neurons. M. M. Ibrahim, H. Deng, A. Zvonok, D. A. Cockayne, J. Kwan, H. P. Mata, T. W. Vanderah, J. Laai, F. Porreca, A. Makriyannis, T. P. Malan Jr., Activation of CB2 cannabinoid receptors by AM1241 inhibits experimental neuropathic pain: Pain inhibition by receptors not present in the CNS. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 100, 10529-10533 (2003). [Abstract] [Full Text]


In data integration applications, a join matches elements that are common to two data sources. Often, however, elements are represented slightly different in each source, so an approximate join must be used. For XML data, most approximate join strategies are based on some ordered tree matching technique. But in data-centric XML the order is irrelevant: two elements should match even if their subelement order varies. In this paper we give a solution for the approximate join of unordered trees. Our solution is based on windowed pq-grams. We develop an efficient technique to systematically generate windowed pq-grams in a three-step process: sorting the unordered tree, extending the sorted tree with dummy nodes, and computing the windowed pq-grams on the extended tree. The windowed pq-gram distance between two sorted trees approximates the tree edit distance between the respective unordered trees. The approximate join algorithm based on windowed pq-grams is implemented as an equality join on strings which avoids the costly computation of the distance between every pair of input trees. Our experiments with synthetic and real world data confirm the analytic results and suggest that our technique is both useful and scalable.


The purpose of this study was to examine fidelity of peer mediation and its role in improving students' oral English communication skills at Debre Communicative English Skills class was randomly selected as a study group. From this class, highand medium together with low communication skills were identified as peer mediators (N=15) and mediatees (N=61), respectively. The mediatees were categorized into medium and low achieving peer groups, each of which comprised five members, including one peer mediator assigned randomly to the group. During a three-week teacher trained in the peer mediation procedur enhancing such aspects of oral abilities as organization of related bits of information, succession of events and description of individual qualities in personal introduction. The findings revealed that there was an acceptable level of agreement between both the peer mediators and the mediatees on fidelity of the peer mediation as they rated the fidelity checklist. Pre-to post-test oral communication scores significantly improved for low and medium achievers as a result of the peer mediation. Based on the findings, recommendations were made for purposes of examining sustained practicality of peer mediation toward improving students' learning and performance in oral English communication skills. Copyright@2015 STAR Journal


Retrieval can render memories labile, allowing them to be modified or erased by behavioral or pharmacological intervention. This phenomenon, known as reconsolidation, defies explanation in terms of classical associative learning theories, prompting a reconsideration of basic learning mechanisms in the brain. We propose that two mechanisms interact to produce reconsolidation: an associative learning mechanism of the form posited by classical theories, and a structure learning mechanism that discovers the units of association by segmenting the stream of experience into statistically distinct clusters (latent causes). We derive this framework from statistical principles, and present a mechanistic implementation. Simulations demonstrate that it can reproduce the major experimental findings from studies of reconsolidation, including dependence on the strength and age of memories, the interval between memory retrieval and extinction, and prediction errors following retrieval. In addition, we present new experimental data confirming the theory's prediction that performing part of extinction prior to retrieval attenuates reconsolidation.


Copper, a native metal found in ores, is the principal metal in bronze and brass. It is a reddish metal with a density of 8920 kg m−3. All of copper's compounds tend to be brightly colored: for example, copper in hemocyanin imparts a blue color to blood of mollusks and crustaceans. Copper has three oxidation states, with electronic configurations of Cu([Ar]3 d 104 s 1), Cu+([Ar]3 d 10), and Cu2+([Ar]3 d 9). Cu does not react with aqueous hydrochloric or sulfuric acids, but is soluble in concentrated nitric acid due to its lesser tendency to be oxidized. Cu(I) exists as the colorless cuprous ion, Cu+. Cu(II) is found as the sky-blue cupric ion, Cu2+. The Cu+ ion is unstable, and tends to disproportionate to Cu and Cu2+. Nevertheless, Cu(I) forms compounds such as Cu2O. Cu(I) bonds more readily to carbon than Cu(II), hence Cu(I) has an extensive chemistry with organic compounds.

In aqueous solutions, Cu2+ ion occurs as an aquacomplex. There is no clearly predominant structure among the four-, five-, and six-fold coordinated Cu(II) species (Chaboy et al. 2006). Hydrated Cu(II) ion has been represented as the hexaaqua complex Cu(H2O)62+, which shows the Jahn–Teller distortion effect (Sherman 2001; Bersuker 2006), whereby the two Cu–O distances of the vertical axial bond (Cu–Oax) are longer than four Cu–O distances in the equatorial plane (Cu–Oeq). The Jahn–Teller effect lowers the symmetry of Cu(H2O)62+ from octahedral Th to D2h. The sixfold coordination of hydrated Cu(II) species is questioned by a finding of fivefold coordination (Pasquarello et al. 2001; Chaboy et al. 2006; Little et al. 2014b …


The third thrilling adventure thriller featuring archaeologist Nina Wilde, in which Nina must find Excalibur, King Arthur's beloved sword. Said to make whoever holds it unstoppable in battle, the sword Excalibur has been coveted across the ages, and thought lost for over a thousand years. With a cryptic message to archaeologist Nina Wilde, this may be about to change. Historian Bernd Rust believes he can locate Excalibur...and that the sword is the key to harnessing an incredible source of energy. Nina is sceptical - until she and Rust are attacked by mercenaries determined to steal his research. Nina and her boyfriend, ex-SAS soldier Eddie Chase, are soon propelled into a deadly race to find Excalibur. From the deserts of Syria to the arctic wastes of Russia, Nina and Chase must battle a merciless enemy who plans to use the sword's powers to plunge the world into a new era of war...


Factors such as fertilization, allelochemicals, trichomes, weather, and natural enemies can influence pest populations. Thus, it is necessary to understand the factors that predispose vegetable species to pests and the role of polyculture, crop rotation, and neighboring plants. The objective of this research was to study the hosting capacity for pests of Abelmoschus esculentus (L.), Brassica oleracea L. vars. acephala and capitata , Capsicum annuum L., Cucurbita moschata (Duchesne), Cucurbita maxima Duchesne and Cucumis sativus L., Lycopersicon esculentum Mill., Solanum gilo Raddi and Solanum melongena L., and Phaseolus vulgaris L. The higher density of Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) adults on C. sativus can be due to the higher amount of pentacosane and octacosane in this plant. The occurrence of Brevicoryne brassicae (L.) only in Brassica spp. can be accounted for by the nonacosane of these plants. The low trichome density and greater palmitic acid level can explain the greatest damage by Aphis gossypii Glover in A . esculentum . Empoasca sp. was more frequent in P. vulgaris followed by A. esculentum , which are plants with lower K content. Solanum melongena was attacked more by Hydrangea similis (Walker) and Epitrix sp. perhaps because of higher palmitic acid and 11,14,17-eicosatrienoic methyl ester concentrations in their leaves. Frankliniella sp. exhibited more damage in C. sativus probably owing to higher pentacosane and octacosane in its leaves. Sistena sp. was more frequent in C. maxima and had higher octadecane levels and trichome density. The presence of ∞-humulene and hexacosane can explain the damage by Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) on L. esculentum .


Health microinsurance (HMI) has been used around the globe since the early 1990s for financial risk protection against health shocks in poverty-stricken rural populations in low-income countries. However, there is much debate in the literature on its impact on financial risk protection. There is also no clear answer to the critical policy question about whether HMI is a viable route to provide healthcare to the people of the informal economy, especially in the rural areas. Findings show that HMI schemes are concentrated widely in the low-income countries, especially in South Asia (about 43%) and East Africa (about 25.4%). India accounts for 30% of HMI schemes. Bangladesh and Kenya also possess a good number of schemes. There is some evidence that HMI increases access to healthcare or utilization of healthcare. One set of the literature shows that HMI provides financial protection against the costs of illness to its enrollees by reducing out-of-pocket payments and/or catastrophic spending. On the contrary, a large body of literature with strong methodological rigor shows that HMI fails to provide financial protection against health shocks to its clients. Some of the studies in the latter group rather find that HMI contributes to the decline of financial risk protection. These findings seem to be logical as there is a high copayment and a lack of continuum of care in most cases. The findings also show that scale and dependence on subsidy are the major concerns. Low enrollment and low renewal are common concerns of the voluntary HMI schemes in South Asian countries. In addition, the declining trend of donor subsidies makes the HMI schemes supported by external donors more vulnerable. These challenges and constraints restrict the scale and profitability of HMI initiatives, especially those that are voluntary. Consequently, the existing organizations may cease HMI activities.
 Overall, although HMI can increase access to healthcare, it fails to provide financial risk protection against health shocks. The existing HMI practices in South Asia, especially in the HMIs owned by nongovernmental organizations and microfinance institutions, are not a viable route to provide healthcare to the rural population of the informal economy. However, HMI schemes may play some supportive role in implementation of a nationalized scheme, if there is one. There is also concern about the institutional viability of the HMI organizations (e.g., ownership and management efficiency). Future research may address this issue.


INTRODUCTION
Since 1970, lengthening of the rectosigmoid has been suspected to be a solitary manifestation of Chagas colopathy.

METHODS
To test this hypothesis, opaque enema was administered on 210 seropositive and 63 seronegative patients, and radiographs in the anteroposterior and posteroanterior positions were examined blind to the serological and clinical findings. The distal colon was measured using a flexible ruler along the central axis of the image from the anus to the iliac crest.

RESULTS
Dolichocolon was diagnosed in 31 (14.8%) seropositive and 3 (4.8%) seronegative patients. The mean length was 57.2 (±12.2)cm in seropositive patients and 52.1 (±8.8)cm in the seronegative patients (p = 0.000), that is, the distal colon in Chagas patients was, on average, 5.1cm longer. Seropositive female patients presented a mean length of 58.8 (±12.3)cm, and seronegative female patients presented 53.2 (±9.1)cm (p = 0.002). Seropositive male patients had a mean length of 55 (±11.6)cm, and seronegative male patients had 49.9 (±7.8)cm (p = 0.02). Among 191 patients without megacolon and suspected megacolon, the mean length was 56.3 (±11.6)cm in seropositive individuals and 52 (±8.8)cm in seronegative patients (p = 0.003). Among individuals with distal colon >70cm, there were 31 Chagas patients with mean length of 77.9 (±7.1)cm and three seronegative with 71.3 (±1.1)cm (p = 0.000). Among 179 with distal colon <70cm, seropositive individuals had a mean length of 53.6 (±8.8)cm, and seronegative patients had 51.2 (±7.8)cm (p = 0.059). Serological positive women had longer distal colon than men (p = 0.02), whereas the mean length were the same among seronegative individuals (p = 0.16).

CONCLUSIONS
In endemic areas of Brazil Central, solitary dolichocolon is a radiological Chagas disease signal.


This research examines whether married low-income renters are more likely to become home owners than comparable single, low-income renters. To do so, it employs data from the Community Advantage Panel Study and discrete-time survival analysis with propensity-score matching. Results suggest that married couples buy homes at higher rates, and buy them more quickly, than do their unmarried counterparts. Estimates in models that use propensity-score matching are robust to the control of selection bias between the married and the unmarried groups. The findings suggest that efforts to encourage marriage among low-income couples may be associated with subsequent economic mobility through home ownership.


Using a balanced panel drawn from Turkstat's Survey of Income and Living Conditions (SILC), we aim to identify the main determinants of Turkish households' entry into and exit from poverty. During the 4 year period (2007-2010) examined, the relative income poverty rate declined moderately, implying that households were more likely to exit than enter poverty. In addition to a descriptive analysis where poor, non-poor, entrant, and exitor households are compared in terms of basic household and household head characteristics, the empirical work involves the estimation of binary choice models that analyze the relative importance of these factors. Our models reveal that the employment status and schooling of the household head and household size are closely associated with poverty status changes. The probability of entry into poverty, for instance, is higher for larger households with many inactive/dependent members. However, model specifications that produce the best fit are the ones that take into account the changes in household composition and the amounts of income types received.


Apples or false fruits from early dwarf cashew clones CCP-76, END-157, END-183 and END-189 were stored for 25 days under refrigeration associated to modified atmosphere with the aim of evaluating the effect of the conditions presently adopted (5oC and 85-90% RH) for conservation, storage and commercialization of fresh cashew apples. The cashew apples were evaluated every 5 days for the following characteristics: weight loss, pulp firmness, color (anthocyannins), acidity, pH, soluble solids, vitamin C and phenolic contents. With the use of refrigeration and modified atmosphere it was possible to attain postharvest storage life of 10 days for clone END 189, 15 days for clone END 157 and up to 25 days for clones CCP 76 and END 183. It was found that 5oC was not an adequate temperature to store cashew apples with deeper color (END 157 and END 189) than the control (CCP 76), as it caused loss of anthocyannins starting from the 10th day of storage. Weight loss was significantly reduced by the use of modified atmosphere, favoring the appearance of the cashew apples for market, independently of the clone.


Background: The State of Qatar experienced a sandstorm on 1 April 2015, lasting approximately 12 hours, with winds blowing at more than 100 km/hr and average particulate matter of approximately 10 μm in diameter. The Emergency Department of the main tertiary hospital in Qatar managed 62% of the total emergency calls. The peak load of patients during the event manifested approximately 6 hours after the onset. Methods: A retrospective review of patient mix and case load was performed for patients presenting to Emergency Department during and after the sandstorm. Results: A total of 254 cases with respiratory illness presented to the Emergency Department within 12 hours of sandstorm onset. Of these cases, 42 had respiratory failure, of which 19 required intubation and 23 were managed conservatively. Of the remaining 212 cases, 28 with severe respiratory exacerbation of asthma, 15 with COPD exacerbation and 169 with minor asthma exacerbation were managed conservatively. In addition, a total of 26 patients presented with ophthalmological complaints. Of these, 12 had foreign body removed from the eye under slit lamp and took topical medication and antibiotics. The remaining 14 patients with anterior eye chamber emergencies were managed conservatively. Conclusions: Patients presented mainly with exacerbations of asthma and respiratory distress, ophthalmic emergencies and vehicular trauma. Surprisingly, incidence of pedestrian injuries did not vary. With the outline of adaptations and specific areas for improvement identified in this review, we hope that future sandstorm emergencies will be better positioned to respond with optimum efficiency and effectiveness.


Background The introduction of sophisticated treatment of bladder dysfunction and hydrocephalus allows the majority of SB patients to survive into adulthood. However, no systematic review on urological outcome in adult SB patients is available and no follow-up schemes exist. Objectives To systematically summarize the evidence on outcome of urinary tract functioning in adult SB patients. Methods A literature search in PubMed and Embase databases was done. Only papers published in the last 25 years describing patients with open SB with a mean age >18 years were included. We focused on finding differences in the treatment strategies, e.g., clean intermittent catheterization and antimuscarinic drugs versus early urinary diversion, with regard to long-term renal and bladder outcomes. Results A total of 13 articles and 5 meeting abstracts on urinary tract status of adult SB patients were found describing a total of 1564 patients with a mean age of 26.1 years (range 3–74 years, with a few patients <18 years). All were retrospective cohort studies with relatively small and heterogeneous samples with inconsistent reporting of outcome; this precluded the pooling of data and meta-analysis. Total continence was achieved in 449/1192 (37.7%; range 8–85%) patients. Neurological level of the lesion and hydrocephalus were associated with incontinence. Renal function was studied in 1128 adult patients. In 290/1128 (25.7%; range 3–81.8%) patients some degree of renal damage was found and end-stage renal disease was seen in 12/958 (1.3%) patients. Detrusor-sphincter dyssynergy and detrusor-overactivity acted as adverse prognostic factors for the development of renal damage. Conclusions These findings should outline follow-up schedules for SB patients, which do not yet exist. Since renal and bladder deterioration continues beyond adolescence, follow-up of these individuals is needed. We recommend standardization in reporting the outcome of urinary tract function in adult SB patients.


The End of the Euro begins with an overview of the birth of the euro itself. Understanding this history is essential to understand the anomalies built into the project from the beginning. These anomalies form the subject of chapter two, along with how they led to the situation that turned Greece, Portugal, and Spain into euro-destroying economic disaster areas. Chapter three shows how this was not an unforeseeable situation, as Europe's history is filled with earlier failed attempts to build monetary unions. Chapter four is focused on Germany, by far the most important country within EMU, and why the chances of Germany leaving the union are much higher than is generally assumed. The book concludes with an analysis of what lies in wait for the remains of the monetary union -- and for a deeply divided and troubled continent in general. Either the EMU transforms itself fundamentally or it disintegrates.


Understanding particle transport physics is of great importance for magnetically confined plasma devices and for the development of thermonuclear fusion power for energy production. From the beginnings of fusion research, more than half a century ago, the problem of heat transport in tokamaks attracted the attention of researchers, but the particle transport phenomena were largely neglected until fairly recently. As tokamak physics advanced to its present level, the physics community realized that there are many hurdles to the development of fusion power beyond the energy confinement. Particle transport is one of the outstanding issues. The aim of this thesis work is to study the anomalous (turbulence driven) particle transport in tokamaks on the basis of experiments on two different devices: JET (Joint European Torus) and TCV (Tokamak a Configuration Variable). In particular the physics of particle inward convection (pinch), which causes formation of peaked density profiles, is addressed in this work. Density profile peaking has a direct, favorable effect on fusion power in a reactor, we therefore also propose an extrapolation to the international experimental reactor ITER, which is currently under construction. To complete the thesis research, a comprehensive experimental database was created on the basis of data collected from on JET and TCV during the duration of the thesis. Improvements of the density profile measurements techniques and careful analysis of the experimental data allowed us to derive the dependencies of density profile shape on the relevant plasma parameters. These improved techniques also allowed us to dispel any doubts that had been voiced about previous results. The major conclusions from previous work on JET and other tokamaks were generally confirmed, with some minor supplements. The main novelty of the thesis resides in systematic tests of the predictions of linear gyrokinetic simulations of the ITG (Ion Temperature Gradient) mode against the experimental observations. The simulations were performed with the GS2 code. The parameter dependencies of plasma density gradient, as observed on JET, are a good agreement with those from the simulations over a wide range. The simulations done for the TCV case, which are in a different physics parameter domain, are also in partial agreement with the experiment. Complete agreement is not out of the question, but will remain a goal for the future, when measurements of one of the most important parameters will be available. The good agreement between the experiment and the simulations suggests that the ITG instability may be responsible for the majority of the anomalous inward particle convection observed in tokamaks. Both the simulations and the empirical data extrapolations predicting a peaked density profile in ITER plasma conditions, instead of a flat one, as was assumed during the concept design period.


Nanoparticles at quantum dot level are considered to be larger than individual atoms and molecules but smaller than their bulk solid. In such a condition, they are believed to obey neither absolute quantum chemistry nor laws of classical physics. Therefore they have properties that differ significantly from those expected experimentally. Therefore, there are two major phenomena observed that are responsible for these differences. The first one is the high dispersity of nanocrystalline systems or quantum dots. Its acceptable that as the size of a quantum dot is reduced, the number of dots at the surface of the crystal compared to the number of atoms in the crystal itself, increases and therefore the properties, which are usually determined by the molecular structure of the bulk lattice, now become increasingly dominated by the defect structure of the surface. The main objective of this study was to use synthetic method to prepare certain types of nanoparticles and study the difference in properties between bulk and nanosize semiconducting nanoparticles. Absorbance measurements were collected from the UV-Vis spectrum and used in conjunction with Beer-Lambert's Law to calculate concentrations of solutions or the absorbance coefficient . Equation required the band gap energy of the nanoparticles were obtained from the UV-Vis results and used to calculate the energy absorbed by a quantum dot.


Wiki systems, such as Wikipedia, provide a multitude of opportunities for large-scale online knowledge collaboration. Despite Wikipedia's successes with the open editing model, dissenting voices give rise to unreliable content due to conflicts amongst contributors. From our perspective, the conflict issue results from presenting the same knowledge to all readers, without regard for the importance of the underlying social context, which both reveals the bias of contributors and influences the knowledge perception of readers. Motivated by the insufficiency of the existing knowledge presentation model for Wiki systems, this paper presents Trust Wiki, a new Wiki model which leverages social context, including social background and relationship information, to present readers with personalized and credible knowledge. Our experiment shows, with reliable social context information, Trust Wiki can efficiently assign readers to their compatible editor community and present credible knowledge derived from that community. Although this new Wiki model focuses on reinforcing the neutrality policy of Wikipedia, it also casts light on the other content reliability problems in Wiki systems, such as vandalism and minority opinion suppression.


Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks typically originate from exploited endhosts controlled by a remote attacker. Current network-based DDoS defenses can only filter out malicious traffic based on the traffic's inherent properties; they cannot filter based on properties of the endhost that generated the traffic. We observe that the identity of the code that has generated a packet offers powerful predicates for filtering, and we develop a secure, general architecture, Assayer, for in-network filtering based on endhost properties. Our proposed Assayer architecture leverages hardwarebased attestation mechanisms to enable legitimate endhosts to embed secure proofs of code identity in packets. Receivers can specify traffic policies, which are enforced by on-path prioritizers. We design Assayer to achieve scalability, efficiency, and incremental deployability. We implement and evaluate a basic Assayer prototype and find that the perceived application overhead, felt only during periods of significant network congestion, is less than 12%. Our simulations indicate that our architecture, even when deployed only at the victim's ISP, provides excellent protection against a botnet of 100,000 attacking hosts.


We consider lamellar gratings made of dielectric or lossy materials used in classical diffraction mounts. We show how the modal diffraction formulation may be generalized to deal with slanted lamellar gratings and illustrate the accuracy and versatility of the new method through study of highly slanted gratings in a homogenization limit. We also comment on the completeness of the eigenmode basis and present tests enabling this completeness to be verified numerically.


Evaluating the Design of Service-Dominant Business Models: A Qualitative Method Rick Gilsing, Eindhoven University of TechnologyFollow Oktay Turetken, Eindhoven University of TechnologyFollow Baris Ozkan, Eindhoven University of TechnologyFollow Paul Grefen, Eindhoven University of TechnologyFollow Onat Ege Adali, Eindhoven University of TechnologyFollow Anna Wilbik, Maastricht UniversityFollow Frank Berkers, TNOFollow Abstract Background: Driven by factors such as digitization and rapid technological change, many contemporary organizations adopt a service orientation to sustain competitiveness and to improve their value propositions to customers. In doing so, organizations typically engage in collaborative service ecosystems to co-create value and exchange services, and conceptualize such collaborations using business models. The resulting models should be evaluated to support the development of service ecosystems and their long- term viability. Despite academic efforts on the evaluation of traditional, organization- centric business models, limited research is present supporting the evaluation of service- dominant business models, taking into account their key characteristics, such as service exchange and value co-creation in business networks. Method: Following a design science research methodology, we have iteratively designed a method addressing the qualitative evaluation of service-dominant business models, building on and integrating the theory on service-dominant logic, business model design and business model evaluation. To structure the steps of the design process, we leverage a situational method engineering approach, following a paradigm-based strategy. To evaluate the validity and utility our method, we have applied it to a real-life business case in the mobility domain, involving eight industry stakeholders in the process. Results: The method constitutes a set of guiding questions and a procedural description of their use, addressing the evaluation concerns of feasibility, viability, structural validity and robustness with respect to the service-dominant business model. The results of the evaluation demonstrate that the use of the method facilitates users to reflect qualitatively on design decision with respect the business model design and offers insights on its expected performance. Conclusions: This work contributes to extant research on service systems engineering and the instantiation of service-dominant logic, clarifying how service ecosystems can be evaluated through the business model concept and explicating how business models are impacted through service-dominant logic.


Outside of the urinary tract, foreign bodies that are implanted (such as pacemakers, central nervous system shunts, heart valves, and joints) usually remain uninfected. Urinary tract infection is the most common nosocomial infection in the United States, and the vast majority of such cases are the result of bladder catheterization. Other less common foreign-body infections in the urinary tract involve prosthetic devices such as stents, bladder sphincters, and penile implants. The diagnosis of catheter-related urinary tract infection is based on both clinical and laboratory information. Bladder catheterization is by far the most common situation in which infection associated with a foreign body occurs in the urinary tract. Complications of bladder catheterization are relatively frequent and may be serious. Urinary tract stones are a common problem in patients with chronic indwelling catheters and may occur in part as a result of chronic or repeated infections with urease-splitting organisms such as Proteus species. The frequency of symptomatic urinary tract infections in patients with ureteral stents varies greatly.


The study reported in this article aimed at exploring what teachers know and do about fostering higher‐order thinking skills in teaching science, and how they see themselves involved in achieving this end. Data were collected through semi‐structured interviews with 11 teachers experienced in teaching high school physics, which is considered a relatively difficult but well‐established discipline. The findings highlighted a diversity among the teachers in four areas: meta‐strategic knowledge of the concept of higher‐order thinking; practical utilization of instructional strategies related to fostering higher‐order thinking in the classroom; beliefs about students' abilities to acquire higher‐order thinking skills; and self‐perception regarding teaching towards higher‐order thinking. Regarding the second area, for example, some of the teachers reported using teaching strategies in class that could impede the development of students as autonomous thinkers; others occasionally try to foster higher‐order thinking among their students but regard this as a way of conveying subject content better; only a minority of the teachers see the fostering of higher‐order thinking as an important objective of teaching physics. In summary, teachers are frequently puzzled or uncertain about the entire issue of fostering higher‐order thinking in school. Introducing elements of constructivist pedagogy combined with the specific steps aimed at fostering higher‐order thinking into the science class is required to make the development of higher‐order thinking a regular ingredient in science teaching within the current schooling.


Resource usage of production workloads running on shared compute clusters often fluctuate significantly across time. While simultaneous spike in the resource usage between two workloads running on the same machine can create performance degradation, unused resources in a machine results in wastage and undesirable operational characteristics for a compute cluster. Prior works did not consider such temporal resource fluctuations or their alignment for scheduling decisions. Due to the variety of time-varying workloads, their complex resource usage characteristics, it is challenging to design well-defined heuristics for scheduling them optimally across different machines in a cluster. In this paper, we propose a Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) based approach to exploit various temporal resource usage patterns of time varying workloads as well as a technique for creating equivalence classes among a large number of production workloads to improve scalability of our method. Validations with real production traces from Google and Alibaba show that our technique can significantly improve metrics for operational excellence (e.g. utilization, fragmentation, resource exhaustion etc.) for a cluster, compared to the baselines.


Background: Male contraceptive options are limited to condoms or vasectomy and have lacked significant developments for about a century, suggesting the value of exploring male hormonal contraceptives (MHC). In October 2018, a transdermal gel method entered Phase 2 clinical trials, indicating MHC may soon be available. However, eventual uptake of potentially contentious innovations, like MHC, requires informed marketing and promotional strategy. Consumer behavior research methodologies can aid in determining consumer perspectives, providing a framework for effective marketing to encourage MHC adoption upon market introduction. Methods: Phases 1 & 2. Focus groups (n=29) and individual, in-depth interviews (n=20) among college-aged men and women aged 18-26 years were conducted using a semi-structured approach. Techniques from expanded grounded theory were used, allowing for a constant comparative approach to data contextualization and theme identification. Ads were created based on focus group results and tested in the interviews. Content analysis served as the data analysis strategy, allowing for a constant comparative approach to data contextualization and theme identification. Phase 3. College-aged men and women (n=1,997) aged 18-26 years participated in a web-based survey. Multiple linear regression was used to examine significant predictors of attitudes toward, interest in, and intention to use or encourage use of MHC. A conjoint analysis procedure was also used to assess the relative importance of attributes on ad effectiveness and preference. Results: Phase 1. Three primary themes emerged from focus group discussions: 1) openness to MHC; 2) resistance to MHC; and 3) MHC gel innovation characteristics. Men and women were generally interested in the idea of an MHC method. Hesitance about MHC surrounded the social acceptance of a novel contraceptive product, resistance to changing current contraceptive routines, and fear of health consequences. Participants shared insights about promotional strategies which fell within the diffusion of innovations (DOI) characteristics of relative advantage, complexity, compatibility, and observability. Phase 2. In-depth interviews offered insight into perceptions of message development for MHC. Four themes emerged: 1) humor, 2) information, 3) relatability, and 4) credibility. Message testing in interviews yielded an understanding of elements participants responded most strongly to, including: 1) ad sentiment, 2) trustworthiness, and 3) visual appeal. Phase 3. Regression analyses revealed being sexually active (p=0.001) and having prior knowledge of potential MHC methods (p=0.031) aligned with positive MHC attitudes, interest, and intention. Conservative political views (p=0.002) and being satisfied with current male birth control offerings (p=0.000) were associated with negative MHC attitudes. Conjoint analysis identified informational messages as most important (56.62%). Informational (p=0.000) and aspirational messages (p=0.003) paired with relatable characters were the most highly preferred ads. Conclusions: Findings revealed college-aged men and women express a general interest in the idea of MHC, with hesitance stemming from social acceptance of a novel contraceptive product, resistance to changing current contraceptive routines, and fear of potential side effects and long-term health consequences. Promotional strategy for MHC, or similar novel health products, must focus on stratifying consumers based on their readiness to accept a potential innovation and use tactics like aspirational marketing, social norms marketing, and informational marketing to confirm benefits and address concerns. Qualitative formative research also illuminated salient concepts for MHC advertising. Message testing revealed informational ads with elements of credibility may be most useful for promoting MHC, along with ad concepts audiences feel they can relate to or trust, and practical messaging or imagery meant to increase agency in use. The quantitative survey further supported these findings among a broader, university audience, indicating informational messages or aspirational messages paired with trustworthy, relatable characters are the most effective ad attributes to incorporate into marketing strategy when promoting a novel contraceptive product, like MHC.


The First Amendment guarantees some of the most fundamental rights provided to Americans under the Constitution. The right to free expression is a foundational tenet of American values. In fact, it was the First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and the press that provided much of the basis for the revolution that led to America's founding. The First Amendment provides broad protection from government censure of speech, although limitations on some forms of published or broadcast speech, such as obscenity and hate speech, have been allowed.

As the traditional public square governed and protected by federal regulation moves online to spaces governed by private corporations, the rules for how speech is both expressed and censored are also changing. How should legal protections for speech adapt to these new tech-powered, private forums? This chapter will explore the current landscape of free speech and the associated information landscape as well as the threats that they face.


We present herein a technique to calibrate fisheye lenses using cross diffractive optical elements. The setup generated a robust and accurate virtual calibration grid, and the calibration was performed by rotating the camera around two axes. We propose a comparison of three fisheye mathematical models and an evaluation of the number of images in the calibration process. The comparison of our experimental data according to the 3D calibration object results showed that our technique is efficient and reliable.


ABSTRACT Despite the ecological and economic importance of pines (Pinus) in the southeastern United States, there exist no taxonomic keys or resources that facilitate the comprehensive identification of pine seedlings. The objectives of this study were to analyze select aspects of seedling morphology for the three primary pines associated with Piedmont upland grassland systems of conservation concern (Pinus echinata, P. taeda, and P. virginiana) and subsequently to develop a resource, traditional or probabilistic, depending on the outcome, to facilitate species-level determination. Two characters—the number of primary needles in the first whorl post-germination and needle apical curvature relative to the stem—were assessed through analysis of 3,200 seedlings under field conditions. The mean number of primary needles in the first whorl was 5.9 (s.d.=0.56) for P. echinata, 7.3 (s.d.= 0.79) for P. taeda, and 5.3 (s.d.=0.63) for P. virginiana. Predominant needle apical curvature was away from the stem in P. echinata (90.5%) and P. virginiana (91.5%), but toward the stem in P. taeda (97.5%). Based on these data, a probabilistic diagnostic framework that takes into consideration both morphology and stand composition is presented, including supplemental appendices of calculated posterior probabilities.


Humanitarian professionals are on the front lines of today's internal armed conflicts, negotiating access through physical and diplomatic roadblocks to reach imperiled civilians. They frequent the corridors of power, interceding with politicians and diplomats in countries wracked by violence, in capitals of donor governments that underwrite humanitarian work, and at the United Nations Security Council. They provide the media with authoritative and catalytic information about situations of humanitarian extremity. Humanitarian Diplomacy offers a compendium of humanitarian operations in settings as diverse as the Balkans, Nepal, Somalia, and East Timor, from the 1970s in Cambodia and 1980s in Lebanon to more recent engagements in Colombia and Iraq. These unique experiences and insights from the field are framed by context-setting essays on the theory and practice of humanitarian diplomacy. This volume provides a unique resource for practitioners, policy communities, and students of humanitarian action, as well as for the concerned public.


After a 17-year transformation process from a centralized economy to a functional market economy, Romania joined the European Union on January 1, 2007. Today, 11 years after the EU accession, Romania is still looking forward to achieve many of the real convergence conditions and also to join the euro zone. Independent of these, as an upper medium income country is now the time to evaluate its role, benefits and obligations as a shareholder in various international financial institutions – multilateral development banks and multilateral regional banks – as a first step in assuming an active and positive role in the development international community. At the EU level, international development is slowly but constant evolving to a coherent and common approach. However, individual member states still have a lot of space to maneuver to use specific individual approaches in pursuing their own interests. The objective of this paper is to signal that for Romania the right time has come to change its passive and reactive approach of its membership in various international financial institutions for a new dynamic and active approach. In terms of financial resources that can be mobilized and used for international development Romania cannot realistically aspire to stay along with the big traditional donors. However, its relatively small contribution can be leveraged by its membership in such multilateral and/or regional institutions so to maximize the benefits both for the international community and for the Romanian taxpayer.


Purpose: To explore the relationships between smoking dependence behavior, depression, anger, and, anxiety in pregnant adolescents. Research hypotheses were: 1. Depression, anger, anxiety, and are mood states that are present in pregnant adolescents who smoke. 2. Depression, anger, and, anxiety are inter-related. 3. Depression, anger, and anxiety affect smoking dependent behavior of pregnant teens who began smoking prior to pregnancy. 4. Depression, anger, and, anxiety affect smoking consumption of pregnant teens who smoke. Methods: Secondary data analysis of baseline data from a longitudinal study, "Nursing Intervention for Young Pregnant Smokers" (PI: S. Albrecht, RO1 NR 03233) was performed. Of 224 eligible adolescents, 142 pregnant, smoker, adolescents signed an informed consent. One-hundred, eight complete and valid cases were analyzed for their responses to the following instruments: Modified State/Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Modified Center for Studies of Depression (CES-D), Confidence and Temptation Scale, Fagerstrom Tolerance Nicotine Dependence Test (FTND). Results: Descriptive and exploratory data analyses were used to identify outliers, assess missing data, and verify assumptions. In the correlational analysis, anger, anxiety, and depression are correlated (p = .000). In additional analysis, self-efficacy was correlated with anger (p = .007), anxiety (p = .001), and FTND score (p= .002). Hierarchial Multiple Regression, controlling for covariates, revealed that self-efficacy significantly predicted smoking dependence behavior (p = .006). Depression, anger, and, anxiety were not realized as predictors in this sample. However, an exploratory analysis of self-efficacy, the confidence that the adolescent express that smoking cessation could be achieved, revealed an inverse relationship to smoking dependence behavior. Conclusions and Implications: Self-efficacy was inversely associated with smoking dependence behavior in this sample, while altered mood states did not influence smoking dependence behavior or smoking consumption. This analysis suggests that enhancing self-efficacy should be tested as a part of the intervention for smoking prevention and cessation programs in adolescents.


Despite the increased research interest in coach education there has been little consensus on how novice sports coaches should best be educated. For the coach developer this becomes problematic when trying to design quality-learning activities for novice coaches that provide a foundation for current and future learning. While the research available has focused on specific areas of best practice curriculum for coaches (e.g., planning; communication; coach-athlete relationships; leadership), there has been less interest in pedagogical practice of novice coach education. Signature pedagogies have been recognised as characteristic methods of teaching used by disciplines to organize the learning process into common elements to prepare future practitioners for their professional roles. For Shulman signature pedagogies scaffold the discipline's habits of 'head' (content); habits of the 'hand' (skills); and habits of 'heart' (values). This suggests that deep understanding of the disciplines' habits is necessary for the development of appropriate signature pedagogies that support novice learning. The purpose of this Insight paper is to explore the current literature for potential signature pedagogies that support novice coach learning and the coach developer in teaching. A reflective conclusion summarises the main points and considers the direction for future research.


ABSTRACT In addition to wildlife conservation, Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) programmes aim to foster regional development. To achieve this, communal areas couple to tourism Global Production Networks (GPN). In this paper, we conceptualise Namibian communal Conservancies as Social-Ecological Systems (SES) and combine the SES and GPN approaches to benefit from the SESF's explanatory power for ecological and social relationships at a local level as well as from the GPN grasp of global linkages. We analyse the impact of trophy hunting on three communal conservancies in Namibia: King Nehale, Nyae Nyae, and Ehi-Rovipuka. Although wildlife numbers in these conservancies have increased, positive economic impacts are often insufficient, unevenly distributed across regions, and parts of the population are excluded. At the same time, findings indicate that in some areas, where revenues are larger and population is smaller, benefits from hunting can be significant and can contribute to SES sustainability.


It is well known that even slight changes in nonuniform illumination lead to a large image variability and are crucial for many visual tasks. This paper presents a new ICA related probabilistic model where the number of sources exceeds the number of sensors to perform an image segmentation and illumination removal, simultaneously. We model illumination and reflectance in log space by a generalized autoregressive process and Hidden Gaussian Markov random field, respectively.The model ability to deal with segmentation of illuminated images is compared with a Canny edge detector and homomorphic filtering. We apply the model to two problems: synthetic image segmentation and sea surface pollution detection from intensity images.


Two papers in this issue demonstrate novel proteomic approaches that enhance genetic analysis. Matsuoka et al. investigated how diet-regulated........ Elevated levels of human chitinase-like proteins (CLPs) are associated with numerous chronic inflammatory diseases and several cancers, often correlating with poor prognosis. Nevertheless, there is scant knowledge of their function. The CLPs normally mediate immune responses and wound healing and, when upregulated, they can promote disease progression by remodeling tissue, activating signaling cascades, stimulating proliferation and migration, and by regulating adhesion. We identified Imaginal disc growth factors (Idgfs), orthologs of human CLPs CHI3L1, CHI3L2, and OVGP1, in a proteomics analysis designed to discover factors that regulate tube morphogenesis in a Drosophila melanogaster model of tube formation. We implemented a novel approach that uses magnetic beads to isolate a small population of specialized ovarian cells, cells that nonautonomously regulate morphogenesis of epithelial tubes that form and secrete eggshell structures called dorsal appendages (DAs). Differential mass spectrometry analysis of these cells detected elevated levels of four of the six Idgf family members (Idgf1, Idgf2, Idgf4, and Idgf6) in flies mutant for bullwinkle (bwk), which encodes a transcription factor and is a known regulator of DA-tube morphogenesis. We show that, during oogenesis, dysregulation of Idgfs (either gain or loss of function) disrupts the formation of the DA tubes. Previous studies demonstrate roles for Drosophila Idgfs in innate immunity, wound healing, and cell proliferation and motility in cell culture. Here, we identify a novel role for Idgfs in both normal and aberrant tubulogenesis processes.


The morphology and histology of the ovary is investigated in four species representing the four genera of the family Costaceae. Only one species of Costus has been investigated prior to this study. The present study identifies new characters and confirms or corrects those previously reported for all four genera. Aspects of ovary structure studied include the general topography and histology of the ovary, paths of the stylar canals, the prolongation of the ovary above the locules, the presence of a vascular plexus at the top of the ovary, and the position and structure of the floral nectary. These characters contribute to a broader data base for phylogenetic analysis of the Zingiberales.


Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) offers insight into screw compressor designs beyond the capabilities of other conventional methods. It allows evaluation of local flow patterns which influence performance but are difficult or impossible to investigate experimentally. Implementation of CFD in these machines is challenging due to the physics of the flow, the properties of the working fluids and the complexity of flow passages which change size and position. This is additionally challenged by a lack of methodologies available to generate the meshes required for the full three dimensional transient simulations. Commercially available CFD solvers need to fully interact with customized grid generators to enable resolution of grid deformation during a flow solution. However, the factors that influence flow predictions are not only related to grids but also to the approach which CFD solvers use to calculate distribution of parameters such as pressure, velocities, temperatures, etc. In this paper, two approaches most commonly used in commercial CFD software are compared and analysed. The first is a segregated cell-centre based solver and the second is a coupled vertex-centre based solver. Both are pressure based finite volume solvers. Customized grid generation software is used for meshing of moving rotors and flow domains around the rotors in an oil free air screw compressor with 'N' rotor profile of 3/5 lobe combination. The deforming rotor grid is maintained as identical in both solvers. The performance predictions obtained by calculations with these two CFD models are compared with measurements obtained on the test compressor in the City University London test rig. The comparison includes pressure in the compressor chamber, mass flow rate, indicated power and the volumetric efficiency. The study reveals differences between the results obtained by two different solvers and the experimental results. Analysis presented in this paper provides a good basis for further consideration of differencing schemes and other characteristics and settings for different CFD solvers in order to achieve accurate predictions of flows in positive displacement machines.


In line with the commitment of the Philippine government to adopt the Millennium Declaration, there have been efforts geared towards the achievement of the millennium development goals (MDGs) particularly the specific targets set for each of the eight MDGs. The MDGs include eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; universal primary education; gender equality and women empowerment; reduction of child mortality; improvement of maternal health; control of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; environmental sustainability; and global partnership for development. Maintaining the countrys current rate of progress in achieving the MDGs for the reduction of poverty incidence, the reduction of the infant mortality rate and the under-5 mortality rate, the reduction in HIV/AIDS prevalence, and the increase in access to sanitary toilet facilities is sufficient to meet the targets set in 2015. Such is not the case for the MDG targets with respect to the under-5 malnutrition rate, the per capita dietary energy intake requirement, malaria morbidity, access to safe drinking water, the elementary participation rate, the elementary cohort survival rate, gender equality in education, the maternal mortality rate and the contraceptive prevalence rate. The country has to do better in certain aspects of all of the seven quantifiable goals, namely : Goal 1 (poverty and hunger), Goal 2 (education), Goal 3 (gender equality), Goal 5 (maternal health), Goal 6 (control of communicable diseases), and Goal 7 (environmental sustainability). In this regard, it is critical that Philippines exercises greater vigilance and exerts increased effort in addressing the requirements of achieving the millennium development goals (MDGs). The study aims to support this initiative by tracking and analyzing the trend in MDG expenditures of both the central and local governments. It specifically attempts to analyze trends on MDG expenditures of the national and local governments, including ODA commitments for the period 2000-2005; relate the trends in MDG expenditures with human development outcomes and related outputs/ services and recommend policy actions on how to a) increase government revenues in the aggregate; b) increase the allocation of resources for MDG related programs and projects by improving both intersectoral and intrasectoral allocation, and c) identify ways of increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the delivery of MDG-related programs.


In this paper, we show that tracking multiple people whose paths may intersect can be formulated as a convex global optimization problem. Our proposed framework is designed to exploit image appearance clues to prevent identity switches. Our method is effective even when such clues are only available at distant time intervals. This is unlike many current approaches that depend on appearance being exploitable from frame to frame. We validate our approach on three multi-camera sport and pedestrian datasets that contain long and complex sequences and demonstrate better performance than state-of-the-art algorithms.


Hand-drawn schematized maps traditionally make extensive use of curves. However, there are few automated approaches for curved schematization most previous work focuses on straight lines. We present a new algorithm for area-preserving curved schematization of geographic outlines. Our algorithm converts a simple polygon into a schematic crossing-free representation using circular arcs. We use two basic operations to iteratively replace consecutive arcs until the desired complexity is reached. Our results are not restricted to arcs ending at input vertices. The method can be steered towards different degrees of 'curviness': we can encourage or discourage the use of arcs with a large central angle via a single parameter. Our method creates visually pleasing results even for very low output complexities. We conducted an online user study investigating the effectiveness of the curved schematizations compared to straight-line schematizations of equivalent complexity. While the visual complexity of the curved shapes was judged higher than those using straight lines, users generally preferred curved schematizations. We observed that curves significantly improved the ability of users to match schematized shapes of moderate complexity to their unschematized equivalents.


Material Supplemental http://learnmem.cshlp.org/content/suppl/2014/01/10/21.2.82.DC1.html References http://learnmem.cshlp.org/content/21/2/82.full.html#ref-list-1 This article cites 57 articles, 12 of which can be accessed free at: License Commons Creative . http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/ described at under a Creative Commons License (Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported), as ). After 12 months, it is available http://learnmem.cshlp.org/site/misc/terms.xhtml first 12 months after the full-issue publication date (see This article is distributed exclusively by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press for the


Although much work has been completed in Australia to examine the effects on aboveground ecology of environmental plantings using mixed species of native trees, only limited attention has been focused on their effects on soils and soil microbial population. A study was conducted to determine the spatial distribution of microbial activity, total soil organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN) and extractable phosphorus (P) in soils under Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Acacia pendula. A 13-year-old environmental planting with mixed native tree species at Gunnedah, New South Wales, was used as a study site. Soil samples were taken from both inside and outside the tree canopy at each of the four compass points (N, S, E and W) at depths of 0–5, 5–10, 10–20, 20–30 and 30–50 cm. The soil was tested for heterotrophic respiration (MicroRespTM), TOC and TN (LECO) and P (Colwell). Microbes were more active inside compared with outside the tree canopy in both A. pendula and E. camaldulensis. The basal respiration rate was significantly higher under A. pendula canopy compared with E. camaldulensis canopy. The relative activity of the microbes and concentrations of TOC, TN and P declined with soil depth. Further, TOC, TN and P contents under the canopy of A. pendula were higher than those of E. camaldulensis and showed a significant positive correlation with basal respiration. However, no difference was detected in the various soil properties measured and microbial activity at four compass points around trees. Changes in soil TOC, TN and extractable P due to the tree plantings were significant only for the 0–5 cm soil depth and changes in microbial activity were mostly confined to the upper 20 cm depth. The improved levels of soil microbial activity and soil nutrients under the tree canopy could be used to measure restoration success of environmental plantings.


Germany has been reluctant to adapt its education systems to the growing number of minority ethnic students, and politicians and policy makers have only recently officially acknowledged that Germany is an immigration country despite decades of mass immigration. This article first provides a socio-historical analysis of the German responses to migration-related cultural and religious diversity by tracing the development of educational policies from assimilationist notions of 'foreigner pedagogy' in the 1960s and 1970s to intercultural education, which slowly emerged in schools in the 1980s and 1990s. However, unlike European education, intercultural education still lacks official support in some German federal states. Drawing upon qualitative data collected in two Stuttgart secondary schools, the article then discusses the ways in which schools and students have mediated such macro-level policies. Goethe Gymnasium (a university-track school) promoted European values alongside multicultural values whereas Tannberg Hauptschule (a vocational-track school) was close to being Eurocentric and positioned minority ethnic students as the 'Other'. The findings suggest that Germany still has some way to go to overcome cultural insensitivities, to increase minority ethnic representation amongst teachers and to promote both diversity and civic cohesion.


Diagnosis and management of posterior cruciate ligament tears has advanced over the past 2 decades due to improved understanding of the natural history of injury and basic science principles. Despite the current advances, our understanding of posterior cruciate ligament injury and treatment continues to lag behind that of the anterior cruciate ligament. In addition, there is still controversy regarding indications for surgical intervention, use of 1 vs 2 reconstructive graft bundles, location of the femoral tunnels, and the ideal degree of graft tensioning. The purpose of this article is to present our diagnostic and surgical preferences.


This paper is a critical reflection on the teaching of the new Philosophy and Ethics course in a low socioeconomic context in Perth, Western Australia. It charts the successes and failures of the Philosophy and Ethics course, leading to the eventual demise of the subject at the end of 2010. We frame this reflection within Deleuzean notions of geophilosophy to advocate for a Philosophy and Ethics that is informed by nomadic thought as this offers potential for students to become innovative and creative of their selves – the critical freedom we see as potentially transformative for contemporary society. We see the strange death as being influenced by many factors, but that it is best considered as a 'missed opportunity' because it has so much potential to be transformative of student subjectivities in schools. We see that this critical reflection could be invaluable in a reconsideration of the scope and focus of the subject often viewed as elitist and impractical.


In South Africa, very few standard-setting exercises are carried out in education and, if they are, teachers are not involved in their execution. As a result, there is no clear understanding of what the standard is and how it was arrived at. This situation is compounded when teachers are held accountable when learners do not meet the prescribed standards. The aim of this paper is to explore how teachers experienced a standard-setting process and if any reflection on teaching and learning practices took place. The research question addressed is: How was the SAMP standard-setting exercise experienced by teachers? Standard setting is an important component in monitoring systems whether national or school-based monitoring systems. The South African Monitoring system for Primary Schools (SAMP) is a school-based monitoring system. The Grade 1 SAMP assessment is administered in English, Afrikaans and Sepedi. As part of SAMP, a standard-setting exercise was undertaken for the Grade 1 assessment to better inform the dissemination of performance results to schools. As part of a bigger research project, a participatory qualitative approach was followed in which 27 participants were asked to partake in a modified Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA) process. Several themes were identified by the teachers, namely reflections on practice; emotions before and during the standard setting workshop; benefits of working in a group; and improvements in the process. In this article, these themes are explored and their relevance for standard setting within school contexts discussed.


Sport, physical activity and play are key constituents of social life, impacting such diverse fields as healthcare, education and criminal justice. Over the past decade, governments around the world have begun to place physical activity at the heart of social policy, providing increased opportunities for participation for young people. This groundbreaking text explores the various ways in which young people experience sport, physical activity and play as part of their everyday lives, and the interventions and outcomes that shape and define those experiences.

The book covers a range of different sporting and physical activities across an array of social contexts, providing insight into the way in which sport, physical activity and play are interpreted by young people and how these interpretations relate to broader policy objectives set by governments, sporting organisations and other NGOs. In the process, it attempts to answer a series of key questions including:

How has sport policy developed over the last decade?
How do such policy developments reflect changes at the broader political level?
How have young people experienced these changes in and through their sporting lives?
By firmly locating sport, physical activity and play within the context of recent policy developments, and exploring the moral and ethical dimensions of sports participation, the book fills a significant gap in the sport studies literature. It is an important reference for students and scholars from a wide-range of sub-disciplines, including sports pedagogy, sports development, sport and leisure management, sports coaching, physical education, play and playwork, and health studies.


This article offers a reading of Susan Philipsz's sound work Study for Strings (2012) informed by two notions proposed by Stephen Greenblatt: resonance and wonder . In considering resonance, I present the strong historical influences identified in the location the artwork was first commissioned for — Kassel Hauptbahnhof, during dOCUMENTA 13. I also present the traumatic events that led to the composition of Pavel Haas's Study for Strings Orchestra in Theresienstadt, and its appropriation by Philipsz. The use of silence, or absence, in a sound piece features as a fundamental element in the understanding of the work as a certificate of disappearance. Nevertheless, viewed through the lens of John Cage's 4'33'' (1952), Study for Strings will also be examined as a musical composition in its own right. It is here, and in the spectator's first encounter with the work, that the presence of wonder will surface.


The presence of misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is sensed by cells and initiates a stress response. In yeast, the transmembrane protein IRE1p senses misfolded proteins and produces signals that lead to appropriate changes in gene expression. Mammalian cells have related transmembrane proteins known as IRE1α and IRE1β that also appear to act as receptors for improperly folded proteins. Urano et al. report that IRE1 appears to activate the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (Jnk) in much the same way as do tumor necrosis factor α receptors on the cell surface--that is, IRE1 appears to bind to a TRAF (TNF receptor-associated factors) protein. Such interaction with TRAF2 appears to initiate a cascade of activation of protein kinases that leads to activation of Jnk. Cells can apparently use similar signaling mechanisms to sense and transmit both intracellular and extracellular signals. Urano, F., Wang, X.Z., Bertolotti, A., Zhang, Y., Chung, P., Harding, H.P., and Ron, D. (2000) Coupling of stress in the ER to activation of JNK protein kinases by transmembrane protein kinase IRE1. Science 287: 664-666. [Abstract] [Full Text]


A number of molecular genetic maps of the soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] have been developed over the past 10 yr. These maps are primarily based on restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) markers. Parental surveys have shown that most RFLP loci have only two known alleles. However, because the soybean is an ancient polyploid, RFLP probes typically hybridize and map to more than one position in the genome. Thus, the polymorphic potential of an RFLP probe is primarily a function of the frequency of the two alleles at each locus the probe detects. In contrast, simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers are single locus markers with multiple alleles. The polymorphic potential of an SSR marker is dependent on the number of alleles and their frequencies. Single locus markers provide an unambiguous means of defining linkage group homology across mapping populations. The objective of the work reported here was to develop and map a large set of SSR markers. A total of 606 SSR loci were mapped in one or more of three populations: the USDA/Iowa State G. max × G. soja F 2 population, the Univ. of Utah Minsoy × Noir 1 recombinant inbred population, and the Univ. of Nebraska Clark × Harosoy F 2 population. Each SSR mapped to a single locus in the genome, with a map order that was essentially identical in all three populations. Many SSR loci were segregating in two or all three populations. Thus, it was relatively simple to align the 20+ linkage groups derived from each of the three populations into a consensus set of 20 homologous linkage groups presumed to correspond to the 20 pairs of soybean chromosomes. On the basis of in situ segregation or linkage reports in the literature all but one of the classical linkage groups can now be assigned to a corresponding molecular linkage group.


This paper explores the optimal design of personal pensions based on the economic theory of the life cycle. It assumes that individuals derive utility from consumption of goods and leisure and that at some date they retire and stop earning income from labor. The existence of this retirement phase of the life cycle has a profound impact on optimal consumption and portfolio policy. We describe the properties of the optimal pension contract and derive the dynamic trading strategy that hedges the contract. In view of the popularity of age-based strategies — like target date funds — as default options in 401k and other defined contribution retirement plans, some of our results are particularly noteworthy. All target date funds start with a high proportion in equities at a young age and reduce it as a person ages. We identify conditions where the fraction of wealth optimally invested in equities increases or decreases over time as an individual ages. We also analyze the dynamics of pension plans, wealth and optimal policies. Distributional properties of endogenous variables are examined and the robustness of patterns to variations in parameters such as risk aversion and mortality risk is examined.


In this study, we investigate ordering patterns of different types of market participants in Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) by examining order records of the listed stocks. Firstly, we categorize the virtual servers in the trading system of TSE, each of which is linked to a single trading participant, by the ratio of cancellation and execution in the order placement as well as the number of executions at the opening of the afternoon session. Then, we analyze ordering patterns of the servers in the categories in short intervals for the top 10 highest trading volume stocks. By classifying the intervals into four cases by returns, we observe how different types of market participants submit or execute orders in the market situations. Moreover, we investigate the shares of the executed volumes for the different types of servers in the swings and roundabouts of the Nikkei 225 index, which were observed in September in 2015. The main findings of this study are as follows: Server type A, which supposedly includes non-market making proprietary traders with high-speed algorithmic strategies, executes and places orders along with the direction of the market. The shares of the execution and order volumes along with the market direction increase when the stock price moves sharply. Server type B, which presumably includes servers employing a market making strategy with high cancellation and low execution ratio, shifts its market making price ranges in the rapid price movements. We observe that passive servers in Server type B have a large share and buy at low levels in the price falls. Also, Server type B, as well as Server type A, makes profit in the price falling days and particularly, the aggressive servers in the server type make most of the profit. Server type C, which is assumed to include servers receiving orders from small investors, constantly has a large share of execution and order volume.


The ever increasing antibiotic resistance levels in pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria have boosted the search for effective controlling methods of bacterial infections. In this context, we prepared colloidal silica–lysozyme composites to evaluate the interaction between these structures and bacteria. Lysozyme was chosen since it is a protein that holds bactericidal properties and that, in the reaction process, acts as a catalyst which favors silica hydrolysis and condensation. The high entrapment yield of lysozyme in the silica cage (approximately 95%) does not change the secondary structure of the protein resulting in a material with superior bactericidal properties. The antimicrobial differences when silica–lysozyme composites are tested against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus are used to propose an interaction mechanism between colloids and bacteria. Bactericidal properties of the composites are attributed to the ultra-structural organization of the composite which, due to the positive surface charge, is attracted by the negative bacterial cell wall while lysozyme is delivered.


The application of remote sensing technology to water quality monitoring has special significance for lake management at regional scale. Water clarity expressed in terms of Secchi disk transparency (SDT) is a highly useful indicator of trophic status and ecosystem health. In this study, we related Landsat TM and ETM+ data with ground observations to develop a model for the estimation of SDT which can be used as a standardized procedure for regional-scale lake clarity assessment in the central region of Argentina. Samples were taken from two reservoirs of the region. Pearson correlation coefficients and step-wise multiple regression analysis were used to evaluate correlation between Landsat bands and measured SDT. Results suggested that Landsat band 3 plus the ratio 1/3 was a consistent and reliable predictor of SDT ( R 2 = 0.80). The algorithm was validated ( R 2 = 0.81) and applied to the November 10, 2010 ETM+ image obtaining a map that characterized water clarity of reservoirs within the study area. The procedure presented here could become a low cost measurement tool for water management authorities and decision-makers, obtaining simpler and practical results for regional water clarity monitoring.