Aujeszky's disease virus (ADV) belongs to Herpesviridae family and is an important etiological agent which infects pigs causing economic losses in swine producing countries worldwide and international trade restrictions to products of swine origin. An eradication program for ADV was established in Santa Catarina State since 2001. The last outbreak was reported in July 2004 and since then none has been reported. The disease has been controlled with the use of a genetic modified vaccine and elimination of seropositives. Aiming the characterization of ADV isolated in the South of Brazil in the last twenty years (1983-2003), a retrospective study based on the genomic analysis of the isolates through a digestion of viral genomic DNA with restriction enzyme Bam HI was done. Thirty-seven ADV samples isolated from swine from the States of Santa Catarina, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul were analyzed. These isolates were compared to the reference strains NIA-4, Bartha and Begonia. The most predominant genomic arrangement was type II found in 33 samples isolated in Santa Catarina State and in one isolate from Rio Grande do Sul State. Genomic arrangement type I, characteristic of vaccine strains was identified in 2 isolates from Parana State and in 1 isolate from Rio Grande do Sul State.


Over 13,000 patients have been randomized in 35 long-term trials of the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors in patients with heart failure or left ventricular dysfunction. Overall, there is a clear reduction in mortality and hospitalizations for heart failure and myocardial infarction with a trend toward fewer sudden deaths. Furthermore, there is a significant reduction in myocardial infarction in three of the larger trials. These benefits have been demonstrated with several different agents and are consistently seen in various subgroups of patients defined by symptomatic status, etiology of left ventricular dysfunction, age, and gender. However, benefits were greatest among patients with the lowest ejection fraction. In conclusion, ACE inhibitors are of established value in patients with heart failure and/or left ventricular dysfunction.


The primary purpose of this study was to determine the contributions Louisiana 4-H teens and Non 4-H teens make to volunteer organizations and the principal factors influencing the decision of Louisiana teens to volunteer. A random sample of 2,281 teens, ages 14-19 years (9th-12th graders), enrolled in Louisiana public secondary schools of education were the participants of this study. The data collection instrument was pre-tested for reliability and yielded a .95 Cronbach's Alpha internal consistency coefficient for 32 scale items. A total of 3,853 surveys were mailed or hand delivered in October and 2,281 usable responses returned for a response rate of 59%. Data were collected from late October December 2000. The findings of this study protiled the greatest percentage of Louisiana 4-H teens as a white female enrolled in the 9* grade in the 14-15 years age range. The greatest percentage of Non 4-H teens was a white female enrolled in the 10* grade in the 16-17 years age range. Louisiana 4-H teens volunteer in greater numbers in selected organizations and for a greater number of organizations than do Non 4-H teens. Major areas in which both volunteer aie informal volunteering, youth development, religious organizations, and education. Although, for both groups, significant relationships between underlying reasons for volunteering and the nature and level of volunteering exist, Louisiana 4-H teens are more influenced to volunteer for both personal and altruistic reasons than Louisiana Non 4-H teens.


Numerous recent studies have found that overweight adults experience lower overall mortality than those who are underweight, normal-weight, or obese. These highly publicized findings imply that overweight may be the optimal weight category for overall health via its association with longevity-a conclusion with important public health implications. In this study, the authors examined the association between body mass index (BMI; (weight (kg)/height (m)(2))) and 3 markers of health risks using a nationally representative sample of US adults aged 20-80 years (n = 9,255) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005-2008). Generalized additive models, a type of semiparametric regression model, were used to examine the relations between BMI and biomarkers of inflammation, metabolic function, and cardiovascular function (C-reactive protein, hemoglobin A(1c), and high density lipoprotein cholesterol, respectively). The association between BMI and each biomarker was monotonic, with higher BMI being consistently associated with worse health risk profiles at all ages, in contrast to the U-shaped relation between BMI and mortality. Prior results suggesting that the overweight BMI category corresponds to the lowest risk of mortality may not be generalizable to indicators of health risk.


The world wide economic crisis since 2007 is followed by a wave of protests, revolts, riots and movements. In many parts of the world strikes, expecially general strikes or political mass strikes, are part of these movements. But is this already an indication for a global strike wave? In a first step, the article describes the various statistical problems that are associated with this question. Beyond the quantitative question it also has to be asked if and how the different strikes and social movements are related to each other. The article differentiates economic strikes, political mass strikes and strikes with direct influence on the political and democratical protests. In conclusion, the article suggests to see a renewed relation between social and political protest claiming the traditions of labor movement and the new social movements since the 1970s that shows a new quality in the actual uprising against the consequences of the crisis.


This paper presents an analytic narrative of three decades of oil and violence in Nigeria, assuming rational choice by all the actors. It argues that, in the 1980s and 1990s, the government had to choose between spending money on preventing pollution and terrorizing the population away from the Niger Delta states, where oil extraction is concentrated. Because of the uncertain outcome of out-migration, the latter solution seemed more efficient and was implemented by the military governments. However, xenophobic responses by the population in destination cities, where a lot of ethnic violence took place, proved out-migration to be much less attractive than expected. Niger Delta states' populations ended up being trapped in their polluted environment where "oil bunkering" and racketeering oil firms turned out to be the only viable sources of income for many people. The implied dynamics of violence sheds some light on the switch to civilian rule that occurred in 1999.


Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Web Services (WS) are becoming a widely accepted device for designing and implementing distributed systems. SOAs have given an important contribution to software engineering providing
a model where applications are defined by assembling together certain functionalities, called services, possibly provided by remote suppliers. The characterizing issue of SOAs consists of defining common principles to make services accessible and usable regardless their execution context. Nevertheless, the architectural specification is far from giving a complete reference application model on which systems should rely on. The specification just includes principles for achieving interoperability and reusability of services; other aspects are left to the implementing platforms. As a consequence, it is understood how services are specified in isolation and how their functionalities are made available to the requesters, but the definition of languages for describing service composition are far from being widely accepted and reveals to be an impelling challenge. In the last years, several solutions have been proposed for describing aggregated
services. However, they often lack a formally defined semantics. Moreover, these solutions are often specific for a platform (e.g. WSs) and are difficult to adapt to other platforms since they rely on low level assumptions that are out of the SOA specifications. This thesis aims at providing new methodologies for implementing the coordination of services. Our framework proposes to be flexible enough to support high level languages and to provide reliable tools for testing correctness of implementation. Our approach relies on a formal model that takes the form of a process calculus specifically designed to deal with services and their coordination. The process calculus has been the main tool driving the specification issues as well the implementation issues. Indeed, it acts as a bridge between the high level specification language and the run-time environment. A distinguished feature of our proposal is that our formal model, i.e. the process calculus, describes distributed processes relying on an event notification mechanism as machinery for interactions. Services are represented by certain components that embody local computations and react to changes of the overall
environment in which they are involved. The adoption of event notification results particularly fashionable for tackling service coordination. The principles studied
at specification level are from one side understood within a theoretical framework that provides instruments for checking correctness of interaction policies and from the other side offers the core model for implementing and experimenting a programming middleware.


W hen working on biotherapeutic process development, the analysis of spent cell culture media is often a daily practice during the optimization of bioreactor conditions and media composition. The introduction of parallel microbioreactor systems has decreased the complexity and costs of process development by allowing for concurrent studies of multiple bioreactor and media variables. However, the bioreactors' small volumes (typically less than 250 mL) limit the volume of media one can extract for daily sampling. We describe a means to analyze spent media with an integrated microchip capillary electrophoresis mass spectrometer (CE-MS) analyzer with minimal sample volume requirements and rapid analysis time. The platform was evaluated with a parallel microbioreactor system (ambr® 250) culturing a Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line stressed by varying levels of ammonia (NH3). The spent media analysis identified net increases in the levels of the amino acids (AA) Ala, Arg, Asp, Glu, Gly, His, Ile, Leu, Lys, Phe, Thr, Trp, Tyr, and Val in all bioreactors, with Gly levels showing increases in excess of 8-fold initial levels in all bioreactors. Other media components either steadily decreased in concentration or were completely depleted by the end of culture. For example, Asn was depleted in all of the unstressed and 10 mM NH3-stressed bioreactors, but was approximately twice as high as the initial levels in the 30 mM NH3-stressed bioreactors at the end of the culture periods. Also, the 30 mM NH3-stressed condition may have caused either complete degradation or rapid consumption of choline, since it was no longer present starting at the t = 36 h sampling. Overall, the monitored media components were observed to have independent trajectories based on feeding and consumption by the cells, and depending on the stressed condition. The capability to have more frequent spent media analyses would allow for real-time observation of these process changes and associated control strategies. Spent Media Analysis with an Integrated CE-MS Analyzer of Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells Grown in an Ammonia-Stressed Parallel Microbioreactor Platform


In Guests and Aliens (1999: 151), Saskia Sassen posits that the denationalization of capital and workforce flows has led to a fundamental convergence among highly developed nations regarding immigration. Her work concurs with Jacobson's (1996: 85) analysis underscoring the impact of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) on the trend toward isomorphism in European states' immigrant protection initiatives. Signed in 1950, the ECHR originally stressed the role of states in assuring the human rights of minorities, but "individual petitions have gained increased importance since the 1970s and 1980s." The Convention has thus been instrumental in the shift of national policy in signatory states toward "harmonization" of the laws relating to migrants and minorities. Transnational human rights norms have emerged as primary criteria for the development of policies on asylum, immigration and aliens' status, Jacobson contends (1996: 93, also citing Soysal, 1993). Although states have willingly bound themselves to such norms, it is arguable that these permit individuals to circumvent state sovereignty in making immigration and human rights demands. Immigration and refugee policy-making in the United States has increasingly been influenced by transnational agreements interpreted as imposing significant limits on the autonomy of the state (although in many cases the U.S. Constitution has been judged to be in agreement with these documents making reliance on the latter unnecessary). Jacobson (1996: 98-101) asserted that the shift from the dominance of state sovereignty to international human rights in the U.S. became evident in the 1970s and 80s, and is most clearly seen in federal court cases filed in the 1980s. James Hollifield (1992: 181-2) also pointed out the significance of these decisions, but cited appropriate cautions concerning their future implications. He warned, "while trends in administrative and constitutional law have been in the direction of a greater rights-based politics, there have been some reversals of liberal policy, especially in the power and willingness of immigration authorities in the United States to incarcerate aliens, pending a decision of their petition to remain." Hollifield's caveat highlights the fact that the convergence in immigration patterns is not only attributable to the judicial dynamics and processes of denationalization that have challenged national executives' capacity to control migration. There are also striking commonalities between national executives' responses to such pressures. These can be seen to 'renationalize' migration--in other words they concern efforts to reassert control over international migration flows. The 'securitization' (Huysmans 2000; Tirman 2004 a,b; Balzacq 2005) of migration policy-making describes the way in which migration flows have been conceived as a threat to a state's internal, social and economic security and are restricted as such. In some cases, states have cooperated together, thus giving up a certain degree of national sovereignty in order to regain de facto control over migration flows. Analysis suggests that the framing of migration as a threat to security in much of current European (and specifically EU) immigration and asylum policy-making is disproportionate to the reality of the threat posed. This can be put down in large part to the fact that sections of the national bureaucracy have been able to extend their competencies and resources by reconceiving of social, economic and foreign policy issues as questions of security (Clutterbuck 1990; Guiraudon 1998; Bigo 1994). It is also the case, however, that this reconceptualisation of migration has empowered national executives to bring in restrictive immigration measures which might otherwise have been rejected by those parliamentary and judicial actors that uphold international and national norms to the benefit of immigrants. The United States has not been immune to this trend. …


Parameters thought to reflect nutritional status were assessed in 25 critically ill postoperative patients who had been acutely injured. Results were compared with those fom a group of 28 critically ill postoperative patients who had not sustained trauma. The anthropometric measures were significantly better preserved in the previously healthy and presumably well-nourished trauma patients, but striking abnormalities were observed in both groups in albumin and transferrin levels, in the lymphocyte count, and in skin test reactivity. The latter findings suggest the influence of non-nutritional factors at least in the acutely injured patient. Anergy, although frequently observed in both groups of patients, was not predictive of mortality nor did the 44 surviving patients differ significantly in any of the other measured parameters from the nine patients who died. We conclude that, at present, the need for nutrition therapy for the acutely injured patient is best determined on traditional clinical grounds.


For untold generations, the view of the starry night sky has sparked the human imagination, but already today, the experience of a clear night sky full of stars is restricted to rural and remote areas with little light pollution and children growing up in urban areas today might not be aware of the wonders of the night sky. Light pollution as a problem has often been considered a regional issue and a necessary byproduct of urbanization and economic and technological development. In recent months, though, a new threat has emerged, which already affects ground-based astronomy. Large-scale satellite constellations threaten to make ground-based astronomy difficult, especially the search for moving objects such as small near-Earth objects. Currently, space activities are a growing concern for the Arctic academic community and large-scale satellite constellations can also affect scientific research in the Nordic region. It is argued by some that the disturbance might only be temporary, but this appears to be far from clear and the question nevertheless requires a clear solution. The currently prevailing legal opinion appears to be that there is very little in international space law which might prevent private actors from launching a large number of satellites in low earth orbits, despite the impact it has on astronomy, and that space-based observatories are the future. n this presentation the problem of decreased observability of the night sky is discussed from the perspective of international law, in particular international space law and the right to conduct scientific research with the aim of reconciling the interests of New Space enterprises with the interest of future generations to be able to see the stars.


In the United States, archival institutions have prioritized the preservation of commercial and Hollywood cinema overlooking small-scale media production by non-professionals and independent media artists. Media arts centers, however, have played a pivotal role in the continued access, use, and preservation of materials produced by the communities that they serve. These non-profit media collectives were imagined as a distributed network of organizations supporting the production, exhibition and study of media; serving as information centers about media resources; and supporting regional preservation efforts. However, media arts centers have remained over-looked and unexplored by the archival field. This dissertation seeks to shift this balance, including these artist-run organizations as part of the network of archives and collecting institutions preserving independent media.
Using case study methodologies this study investigated the practices at three media arts centers, Pittsburgh Filmmakers, Paper Tiger Television, and the Termite Television Collective, seeking to understand the role of these organizations in the collection and preservation of independent media and the development of archival practices in non-profit media organizations. The study places each of these organizations in the wider history of media arts center movement in the United States and looks broadly at the development of archives and archival practices within these organizations. Framing media arts centers as maker-spaces and archival spaces, this dissertation argues for a critique of professional archival practices and a redefinition of the standards for preservation of audiovisual materials.


This is the book that started the hemp revolution. More than 600,000 copies have been sold to date. The print version of The Emperor Wears No Clothes is available in Jack's Hemporium. Jack wants this information to be available to everyone, so he has published the text of the book here on the internet for free. This is only half of what is actually in the book. If you want all the source material and graphics, please buy a copy of the book. By selling his books, tapes, c.d.s, and movies, Jack has been able to help support the hemp movement for the last 20 years.


We present two architectures for multi-task learning with neural sequence models. Our approach allows the relationships between different tasks to be learned dynamically, rather than using an ad-hoc pre-defined structure as in previous work. We adopt the idea from message-passing graph neural networks, and propose a general graph multi-task learning framework in which different tasks can communicate with each other in an effective and interpretable way. We conduct extensive experiments in text classification and sequence labelling to evaluate our approach on multi-task learning and transfer learning. The empirical results show that our models not only outperform competitive baselines, but also learn interpretable and transferable patterns across tasks.


It is well known that the widely popular mean regression model could be inadequate if the probability distribution of the observed responses do not follow a symmetric distribution. To deal with this situation, the quantile regression turns to be a more robust alternative for accommodating outliers and the misspecification of the error distribution since it characterizes the entire conditional distribution of the outcome variable. This paper presents a likelihoodbased approach for the estimation of the regression quantiles based on a new family of skewed distributions introduced by Wichitaksorn et al. (2014). This family includes the skewed version of Normal, Student-t, Laplace, contaminated Normal and slash distribution, all with the zero quantile property for the error term, and with a convenient and novel stochastic representation which facilitates the implementation of the EM algorithm for maximum-likelihood estimation of the pth quantile regression parameters. We evaluate the performance of the proposed EM algorithm and the asymptotic properties of the maximum-likelihood estimates through empirical experiments and application to a real life dataset. The algorithm is implemented in the R package lqr(), providing full estimation and inference for the parameters as well as simulation envelopes plots useful for assessing the goodness-of-fit.


In this paper, we develop a theoretical explanation of first-order and second-order responses to enterprise system (ES) implementations, highlighting how these responses are influenced by pluralistic institutional logics in combination with the relative power of organizational actors. Enterprise systems span entire organizations and are congruent with some institutional logics and incongruent with others. Existing research emphasizes various elements of congruence or power in understanding local reactions to an enterprise system, and this existing research generally focuses on immediate post-implementation dynamics. We develop a framework that integrates and extends this work and highlights how congruence, combined with the pressures brought to bear, influence user responses to the ES implementation such as resistance, loose coupling, faithful appropriation, or co-opting. We validate the framework through a qualitative meta-analysis of 26 case studies of ES implementations, and further extend the initial framework to explain both initial responses to an enterprise system implementation (first-order responses) and responses over time to ongoing activity (second-order responses). We distinguish between two forms of resistance: congruent resistance and institutional resistance. Congruent resistance can be overcome to attain eventual faithful appropriation by training the users or refining the system. Institutional resistance, in contrast, is borne out of incongruent logics and will likely result in sustained loose coupling or eventual abandonment. The framework highlights the institutional pressure brought to bear during ES implementation, and the relative power of organizational actors involved in the back-and-forth of first-order and second-order responses.


Abstract. Global cloud climatologies have been built from 13 years of Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) and 8 years of Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) observations, using an updated Clouds from Infrared Sounders (CIRS) retrieval. The CIRS software can handle any infrared (IR) sounder data. Compared to the original retrieval, it uses improved radiative transfer modelling, accounts for atmospheric spectral transmissivity changes associated with CO2 concentration and incorporates the latest ancillary data (atmospheric profiles, surface temperature and emissivities). The global cloud amount is estimated to be 0.67–0.70, for clouds with IR optical depth larger than about 0.1. The spread of 0.03 is associated with ancillary data. Cloud amount is partitioned into about 40 % high-level clouds, 40 % low-level clouds and 20 % mid-level clouds. The latter two categories are only detected in the absence of upper clouds. The A-Train active instruments, lidar and radar of the CALIPSO and CloudSat missions, provide a unique opportunity to evaluate the retrieved AIRS cloud properties. CIRS cloud height can be approximated either by the mean layer height (for optically thin clouds) or by the mean between cloud top and the height at which the cloud reaches opacity. This is valid for high-level as well as for low-level clouds identified by CIRS. IR sounders are particularly advantageous to retrieve upper-tropospheric cloud properties, with a reliable cirrus identification, day and night. These clouds are most abundant in the tropics, where high opaque clouds make up 7.5 %, thick cirrus 27.5 % and thin cirrus about 21.5 % of all clouds. The 5 % annual mean excess in high-level cloud amount in the Northern compared to the Southern Hemisphere has a pronounced seasonal cycle with a maximum of 25 % in boreal summer, in accordance with the moving of the ITCZ peak latitude, with annual mean of 4° N, to a maximum of 12° N. This suggests that this excess is mainly determined by the position of the ITCZ. Considering interannual variability, tropical cirrus are more frequent relative to all clouds when the global (or tropical) mean surface gets warmer. Changes in relative amount of tropical high opaque and thin cirrus with respect to mean surface temperature show different geographical patterns, suggesting that their response to climate change might differ.


Postglacial deposits of the Rhone shelf have been studied from high-resolution seismic data and Kullenberg piston cores. They are organised into a set of transgressive units or parasequences backstepping from the outer shelf to the subaerial deltaic plain. On the deltaic plain, they are overlain by the prograding deltaic parasequences deposited at the end of the Holocene sea level rise. At regional scale, given the short time span covered by the late Quaternary deposits, tectonic subsidence has played a minor role and sediment deposition on the Rhone shelf was chiefly controlled by glacio-eustatic sea level changes (120 m between the maximum lowstand and present highstand). Progradational phases correspond to periods of reduced rate of eustatic sea level rise while the flooding surfaces bounding the regressive units form during periods of increasing rate of sea level rise and landward shoreline migration. At local scale, location, geometry, nature of deposits, and lateral variations of the stratigraphic pattern are controlled by the interaction between eustasy and local factors as sediment supply, antecedent morphology and ocean dynamics. Seaward of the Rhone river, terrigenous input was important during deglaciation and transgressive deposits extend continuously from the outer shelf to the inner shelf along the retreating path of the paleo-Rhone river mouth. Laterally, on either side of the Rhone incised valley, because of the reduced sediment supply, parasequences only develop on the outer shelf and inner shelf : the combination of the very low inherited gradient of the mid/outer shelf and a very high rate of sea level rise favoured a very rapid migration of the shoreline from outer to inner shelf. Ocean dynamics has been controlled, as in present time, by the E to SE prevailing waves that are the only ones which can develop on an extended fetch. The westward alongshore drift accounted for the development of parasequences west of the incised valley. The sandy material needed for the construction of the outershelf parasequence was supplied by wave-reworking and westward long-shore drift of deposits from the Rhone delta front and the uppermost forced regressive unit. The decreasing sand content of parasequences from outer shelf to inner shelf results from flattening of the equilibrium river profile that led to a decrease in competence and a change in the character of the sediment caliber (relative increase of suspension load). The underlying Pleistocene depositional sequences comprise both lowstand prograding units, that characterize most of the Mediterranean shelves, and intercalated units which are analogs of the postglacial transgressive deposits here presented.


Cannabidiol (CBD), a major nonpsychoactive constituent of cannabis, is considered an antineoplastic agent on the basis of its in vitro and in vivo activity against tumor cells. However, the exact molecular mechanism through which CBD mediates this activity is yet to be elucidated. Here, we have shown CBD-induced cell death of breast cancer cells, independent of cannabinoid and vallinoid receptor activation. Electron microscopy revealed morphologies consistent with the coexistence of autophagy and apoptosis. Western blot analysis confirmed these findings. We showed that CBD induces endoplasmic reticulum stress and, subsequently, inhibits AKT and mTOR signaling as shown by decreased levels of phosphorylated mTOR and 4EBP1, and cyclin D1. Analyzing further the cross-talk between the autophagic and apoptotic signaling pathways, we found that beclin1 plays a central role in the induction of CBD-mediated apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Although CBD enhances the interaction between beclin1 and Vps34, it inhibits the association between beclin1 and Bcl-2. In addition, we showed that CBD reduces mitochondrial membrane potential, triggers the translocation of BID to the mitochondria, the release of cytochrome c to the cytosol, and, ultimately, the activation of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway in breast cancer cells. CBD increased the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and ROS inhibition blocked the induction of apoptosis and autophagy. Our study revealed an intricate interplay between apoptosis and autophagy in CBD-treated breast cancer cells and highlighted the value of continued investigation into the potential use of CBD as an antineoplastic agent. Mol Cancer Ther; 10(7); 1161–72. ©2011 AACR.


Two controlled-environment greenhouse experiments evaluated (1) plant growth and morphology of basil (Omicum basilicum L.) grown in three different hydroponic and soilless substrate systems and (2) seedling tray cell-count and transplant date into hydroponic culture effects on basil growth and yield at harvest. For the first experiment, four basil cultivars ('Genovese', 'Mrs. Burns Lemon', 'Sweet Thai', and 'Cinnamon') were grown in deep flow technique (DFT) hydroponics, nutrient film technique (NFT) hydroponics, and a novel shallow aggregate ebb-and-flood (SAEF) soilless substrate system and were harvested after 21 d. Plant yield and morphological characteristics measured at harvest included shoot fresh mass, shoot dry mass, leaf SPAD chlorophyll content, total leaf area per plant, plant height, node number, and internode length. For the second experiment, seedlings of 'Genovese' basil were germinated in a soilless peat-based substrate and grown in trays with cell-counts of 32, 50, 72, 105, and 162 and corresponding root volumes of (in cm3) of 98.1, 50.2, 38.5, 19.6, and 16.3, respectively. Basil seedlings for each tray type were transplanted in NFT hydroponic systems at 14 d, 21 d, and 28 d after sowing seed. Plants were harvested from NFT systems 35 d after sowing seed, and collected data at harvest included shoot fresh mass, shoot dry mass, plant height, and substrate pH and electrical conductivity (EC). Plant growth and morphology of basil cultivars differed between hydroponic and soilless culture systems, and harvested yields were overall greater for basil produced in DFT hydroponics compared to NFT hydroponics and SAEF soilless substrate systems. Basil seedlings grown in low cell-count trays and transplanted at earlier dates into NFT systems had greater yields compared to basil grown in high cell-count trays and transplanted at later dates. The combination of growing seedlings in trays with low cell-counts and early transplant into hydroponics likely increased yield by reducing potential for root restriction, increasing nutrient and water availability per plant, and increasing individual plant spacing for greater accumulation of photosynthetic light.


In October 2013, a group of indigenous women from the southeastern Ecuadorian Amazon started the "March of Life". This 250-km long march – organized and led entirely by female representatives from the Achuar, Shuar, Zapara, Kichwa, Shiwiar, Andoa, and Waorani indigenous organizations – proceeded from the Amazonian city of Puyo to the capital city of Quito and was a response to the 11th oil licensing round in their territories. After this symbolic and arduous march, Amazonian women have continued to organize as a network and as active members of their indigenous organizations against renewed attempts by the government of licensing their territories to extractive companies, making their voices heard in the national media and their proposals more visible within the broader spectrum of environmental, anti-extractive and popular feminist struggles in Ecuador. This is the case of their proposal to declare the Amazon a "Living Forest," publicly presented to the Ecuadorian National Assembly in 2013. Departing from my colabor ethnography with five leaders and members from this network – Elvia Dagua, Zoila Castillo, Rosa Gualinga, Nancy Santi, and Salomé Aranda –, and decolonial, feminist and Latin American indigenous thought, this paper reflects about the role of Amazonian women's concrete practices that make the Amazon a "living forest" and that sustain their territorial struggle. Practices like cultivating the land, weaving clay pottery, sharing dreams in the mornings, or singing "with a purpose" are practices that not only build affective relations between the human and non-human, but that constantly recognize, relate to and even make the forest into a living entity. At the same time, these practices of forest-making nurture Amazonian women's organizational strategies – e.g. when they sing at meetings with representatives from the government – and political discourse when confronting the state and oil companies. With this analysis, I hope to shed light on how Amazonian women's territorial struggle is decolonizing environmental imaginaries about the Amazon as an untouched territory to be preserved, makes evident the continuum between resistance strategies and the reproduction of human and non-human life in the rainforest, and is transforming the anti-extractive struggle at large.


In railway, when a disruption occurs, the traffic may be perturbed, as a result, conflicts and delays may emerge. Modifying trains route and schedule to limit delay propagation in the network is the focus of the real-time Railway Traffic Management Problem (rtRTMP). In this work, we addressed the solution of the rtRTMP using a Benders decomposition approach. The decomposition algorithm is applyed to the mixed integer linear programming formulation of the problem. We test the algorithm to instances representing traffic in the junction of Gonesse, in France. The results are promising.


Tail-anchored proteins are a special class of transmembrane proteins, consisting of a cytosolic domain anchored to the phospholipid bilayer by a single hydrophobic segment adjacent to their most C-terminus. Because of their particular topology, the C-terminal anchor must be inserted into membranes post-translationally by mechanisms that differ from the well-known targeting/translocation co-translational pathway. Recently, several advances have created a new understanding of the tail-anchored protein insertion machinery. Because of the essential cellular roles carried out by tail-anchored proteins, including vesicle fusion, regulation of apoptosis and formation of interorganellar contact sites, uncovering the machinery responsible for their biogenesis should further our ability to understand a wide variety of diseases such as forms of cancer caused by activation of the tail-anchored protein oncogene BCL2.

Key Concepts

Tail-anchored proteins have C-terminal hydrophobic domains.
Tail-anchored proteins are inserted post-translationally into the membrane.
The GET complex inserts tail-anchored proteins into the endoplasmic reticulum membrane in yeast.
The TRC complex chaperones tail-anchored proteins into endoplasmic reticulum membranes in mammals.
The mitochondrial outer membrane appears to be the preferred destination of tail-anchored proteins that fail to engage the GET/TRC complex.
Functions of the GET/TRC pathway additional to tail-anchored protein targeting are presently under intense investigation.

Keywords:

tail-anchored proteins;
membrane insertion;
GET/TRC;
ATPase;
endoplasmic reticulum;
mitochondria


1. We have investigated the effects of the non-renin-mediated actions of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors on the progression of chronic renal failure accelerated by hypertension. For this purpose, we studied the effects of captopril (a thiol-containing angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor), enalapril (an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor without a thiol group) and cysteine (a thiol-containing amino acid which has no angiotensin converting enzyme-inhibitory action) in adriamycin-treated rats with deoxycorticosterone acetate-salt hypertension, in which the renin-angiotensin system was suppressed. 2. There were no significant differences in blood pressure between these groups and the control group [adriamycin-treated group with deoxycorticosterone acetate-salt loading, 206 +/- 7 mmHg (27.4 +/- 0.9 kPa) at week 10]. 3. Massive proteinuria occurred in all groups. At the end of the experiment (at week 10), urinary protein excretion was significantly reduced in the captopril and cysteine groups compared with the control group. No manifest improvements appeared in the enalapril group. 4. Levels of serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen increased progressively. At week 10, the increases in the serum levels of creatinine were less in the captopril (87 +/- 16 mmol/l) and cysteine (80 +/- 19 mmol/l) groups than in the control group (124 +/- 27 mmol/l) (P less than 0.01). No marked differences were found between the control and enalapril groups. 5. Captopril and cysteine caused more than a three-fold reduction in the focal glomerulosclerosis score when compared with that in the control group, but enalapril did not decrease the score. The extent of tubulointerstitial change was parallel with the focal glomerulosclerosis score. 6. We conclude that the thiol group is possibly involved in the mechanism of the beneficial effects of some angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors on the progression of chronic renal failure exacerbated by hypertension.


Introduction: A stronger correlation of physical traits among monozygotic (MZ) twins than dizygotic (DZ) twins indicates predominant contribution by genetic factors than environmental factors. Exploring the degree of resemblance in tooth morphometry and the pattern of rugae among twins shall aid in forensic identification. Aim and Objective: To find out the degree of correlation in tooth morphometry and the palatal rugae pattern among MZ and DZ twins. Materials and Methods: The maximum coronal mesiodistal and buccolingual dimensions of the maxillary teeth excluding the second and third molars in 21 pairs of MZ and 12 pairs of DZ twins along with a MZ triplet were recorded using digital calipers calibrated to 0.01 mm. The dimensions of the teeth based on the number, shape, size, and the unification palatal rugae pattern among twin pairs were analyzed and recorded. Results: Our results suggest a stronger correlation of tooth dimension among MZ than DZ twins, which differs for individual maxillary tooth. There may be a separate set of genes responsible for controlling the mesiodistal and buccolingual tooth dimensions. The maxillary canine and maxillary premolars do show the least amount of genetic variability. The results in our study provide remarkable evidence regarding the existence of mirror imaging in tooth dimension as well as the number and shape of the palatal rugae. Conclusion: This first of its kind study in the Indian population suggests a remarkable similarity with regard to the tooth's size and uniqueness of the palatal rugae pattern among MZ and DZ twins, which suggests their strong inheritability potential. This may be useful as additional tools for zygosity determination along with other dental traits. The significant evidence of mirror imaging of tooth dimension and rugae shall definitely contribute to the concept of development of human body.


Objective(s) To determine the potential toxic effects of manual soldering flux cored solder wire on lung of the rat as an experimental model. Materials and Methods A total number of 48 adult male rats were divided into experimental (n= 30) and control (n= 18) groups. Based on exposure time to solder fume, each group was further subdivided into 2, 4 and 6 week subgroups. Rats of experimental groups were exposed to fume in exposure chamber for 1 hour/day (Research Center of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, 12 Apr 2005 to 14 May 2005). The amount of fumes were measured daily by standard methods. At the end of experiment, lung specimens were collected from each experimental and control subgroups. Tissue samples were processed routinely and thickness of epithelium in bronchioles and interalveolar septas were measured in stained microscopic slides. Obtained data were analyzed by SPSS. Results Statistical analysis of data for thickness of epithelium in bronchioles showed that there was only a significant difference between 4 week experimental and control subgroups (P< 0.001). Analysis of data for thickness of interalveolar septa showed statistically significant differences between experimental and control subgroups of 4 and 6 weeks (P< 0.001). Histological examination was also revealed an inflammatory process in bronchioles and disorganized architecture in alveoli of lung in experimental subgroups. Conclusion The result showed that solder fume can change the normal architectures of epithelium in bronchioles and alveoli of the lung and it seems that the severities of changes were dependent on the exposure time.


This report is the result of a network project which was established to discuss the potential for collaboration on development of systemic approaches to pest management without pesticides between Chinese and Danish researchers. The focus is on systemic approaches rather than input substitution of synthetic chemicals with agents of natural origin, however, the latter is considered as an integrated tool for the development and design of systemic approaches. The discussions were, furthermore, limited to management of invertebrate pests as well as diseases, while other pests such as weeds have not been included in the discussions. The discussions took place at two workshops and were based on presentations of research from the two countries and field visits in China and Denmark.

After the first workshop that took place in China, it was agreed that Chinese and Danish researchers in this particular field had mutual interests and priorities and that there was a potential for creating collaboration that could yield results beneficial for the agricultural/horticultural sectors in both countries. It was also agreed that in spite of the many differences between variation in climate and ecosystems, as well as in farming systems and their organization in China and Denmark, there were many similarities in the production of high-value crops in the two countries, such as vegetables, fruit and berries and, therefore, an obvious focus for joint research efforts. It was also agreed that joint research efforts could aim at specific crops as well as aiming at the development of specific research approaches.

Based on the observations and the agreements of the first workshop, the second workshop, which took place in Denmark, focused more specifically on the development of a research framework with specified research questions/topics. Two groups were formed – one working with vegetables and one with fruit and berries working in parallel – both looking into what kind of research is needed for development of systemic approaches to pesticide-free pest management should include both well-known practices and new practices.

Although the discussions in the two groups took separate routes and unfolded and described the research topics in each their way, there was a clear consistency between the outputs of the work of the two groups. Each had identified three main research themes that more or less followed the same line and has been merged into three specific recommendations on themes for collaboration, namely:
1) 'Research to provide the biological foundation and understanding of mechanisms and interactions for development of non-chemical solutions and to improve efficiency of new and existing control methods for severe pest problems'.
2) Research in 'How best to integrate multifunctional plants (and crops) and use diversification to create a more healthy and productive farming system which is resilient to pests?'
3) Research in 'How to design and integrate pest management in eco-functional cropping systems at field and farm/landscape level?'


Since the late Qing, probably no phrase has seized the imagination of legal reformers in China more than 'rule the country by law 以法治国,' and no group has occupied a more central place in their designs than the judiciary. Yet, the judiciary registers only weakly in the large and growing literature on courts and judicial practice in China. This study explores the dynamics of judicial recruitment, selection and training in republican China, and the impact these had in determining the shape of the modern Chinese legal system. For historians, the study illuminates the rise of a novel professional community that spearheaded the pursuit of modernization in China, and the concomitant reconstitution of the state, learned elites, knowledge and power. For legal scholars, this study furnishes background against which to read the challenges, policies, debates and values that animate judicial reform today, particularly with respect to the relationship between authoritarianism, the rule of law, professionalization and the soaring technical sophistication of the Chinese judiciary. Finally, this study aims to contribute to the historiographical reformulation of contemporary China's connection to the past by retexturing our image of the republican era and its role in producing the PRC.


Over the last 30 years, the speed and scale of China's economic rise have stunned the world. Now its government has mapped out bold plans for the next phase of the nation's development: transforming it into an innovation powerhouse that occupies a leading, and ultimately dominant, global position in a range of science-based industries of the future. China's ambitions and the government's central role in formulating strategies and mobilising resources for fulfilling them have evoked mixed responses elsewhere. Some foreign policymakers and businesses complain that the country's dirigiste approach and subsidies distort competition and flout trade rules. Others, in contrast, argue that other countries should be inspired by China's example to embrace more active industrial policies aimed at promoting successful high-technology champions. This paper examines China's policies and its current level of industrial development. It finds that many of its efforts so far to stimulate innovation are less impressive than they seem and questions whether the country's ambitions are attainable. It concludes that, while there is a role for the right kind of industrial policy, China's version is deeply flawed and that policy makers elsewhere would be unwise to try to emulate it. SUMMARY China's miracle growth story may be losing its allure, as the country's economic model increasingly shows signs of stress in the face of stiffening headwinds and ballooning debt. But Beijing's determination to force the pace of China's industrial development and to transform the nation in the next few years into a – even the global pace-setter across a broad swathe of science and advanced technologies continues to inspire shock and awe abroad.


Derrida has denied that he has taken an ethical turn in the 80's and 90's. This article argues, however, that Derrida's deconstruction of the ethical implications of major moral, social or political issues, such as law and justice, friendship, hospitality, forgiveness, the death penalty and most recently global terrorism, does result in an ethical turn. This turn leads Derrida to articulate an ethics of difference which focuses on diversity and the other, and America as compared to Europe stands for greater diversity and looms as Derrida's and Europe's "other." In contrast to Derrida's America is Habermas's Europe, his Kantian ethics of identity and his clear place in modernism and the project of the Enlightenment. Many, including Habermas, have accused Derrida of having repudiated the legacy of the Enlightenment - a serious charge which would make Derrida's unequivocal condemnation of global terrorism appear as theoretically unfounded. Derrida has rejected this charge and claimed to be a true heir of the Enlightenment taken in its full historical dimension replete with internal contradictions. Moreover, Derrida's ethical assessment of global terrorism lead him to turn away from America and to return for good shortly before his death to Europe. The article examines Derrida's claim, traces his intellectual return to Europe, and asseses how his ethics of difference fares as compared to an ethics of identity in dealing persuasively with the ethical issues raised by global terrorism.


Network reliability has become a major issue, due to increasing traffic congestion and the adverse impact on road users, especially those who have embraced the just-in-time philosophy. Traffic incidents (e.g. accidents) are a major contributor to a lack of reliability, and there is thus an increasing interest in improved incident management. This paper describes a study involving linking a microsimulation model (S-Paramics) with the SCATS traffic signal control software, to assess the benefits of adjusting traffic signal timings to mitigate the effects of incidents. While a case study indicates that the benefits of using SCATS as an incident management tool are not large, it is concluded that linking traffic signal control and microsimulation software appears to be a promising approach for developing incident management plans to improve network reliability.


Water demand strains supply capacity in the Mediterranean coastal
areas, affecting negatively the maintenance of natural and cultural heritage.
Tackling this subject, the "Coastal areas sustainable tourism water management
in the Mediterranean - CASTWATER" project aims to support sustainable tourism
water management in Mediterranean (MED) coastal areas, by improving the
monitoring and assessment of the water sustainability performance of tourism.
To this end, the elaboration of an online tool to monitor and assess
sustainable tourism water management was envisaged and developed, primarily
addressed to tourism sector small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The
CASTWATER online tool was designed to so as to provide two different
functionalities. On the one hand, SMEs can self-evaluate their performance in
sustainable water management and efficiently acknowledge possible actions that
promote water efficiency in their tourism establishments. On the other hand,
the tool measures, at both regional and local level, the levels of good
governance and the effectiveness of water-tourism policies in order to improve
sustainable water management. The approach presented in this work is heavily
based on the initial technical specifications and end-user feedback, aiding
SMEs in understanding, comparing, assessing and rating their performance
regarding water efficiency and sustainable water management.


Three schools of thought on enterprise architecture exist, each with its own belief system (definitions, concerns, assumptions, and limitations). A novel taxonomy of these schools creates a starting point for resolving terminological challenges to help establish enterprise architecture as a discipline.


Multi-frame algorithms for single-microphone speech enhancement, e.g., the multi-frame minimum variance distortionless response (MFMVDR) filter, are able to exploit speech correlation across adjacent time frames in the short-time Fourier transform (STFT) domain. Provided that accurate estimates of the required speech interframe correlation vector and the noise correlation matrix are available, it has been shown that the MFMVDR filter yields a substantial noise reduction while hardly introducing any speech distortion. Aiming at merging the speech enhancement potential of the MFMVDR filter and the estimation capability of temporal convolutional networks (TCNs), in this paper we propose to embed the MFMVDR filter within a deep learning framework. The TCNs are trained to map the noisy speech STFT coefficients to the required quantities by minimizing the scale-invariant signal-to-distortion ratio loss function at the MFMVDR filter output. Experimental results show that the proposed deep MFMVDR filter achieves a competitive speech enhancement performance on the Deep Noise Suppression Challenge dataset. In particular, the results show that estimating the parameters of an MFMVDR filter yields a higher performance in terms of PESQ and STOI than directly estimating the multi-frame filter or single-frame masks and than Conv-TasNet.


This article provides a brief biography of Thurgood Marshall, primarily profiling Marshall as a writer. In his roles as a lawyer and civil rights activist, a legal scholar, and a Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall mastered writing techniques that informed and persuaded his audiences throughout his life-long endeavor to achieve equality for all. This examination of Marshall's legal, scholarly, and judicial writings can help lawyers, academics, and students increase their knowledge of how the written word profoundly impacts society. The article first studies Marshall's arguments and legal strategy in two early civil rights cases, University of Maryland v. Murray and Smith v. Allwright. It goes on to examine several letters Marshall wrote while he was working on Lyons v. Oklahoma, a murder trial in which the prosecution sought the death penalty. The article explains how Marshall's creativity as a legal strategist was fashioned of necessity as a young African-American lawyer representing African-American clients in a still-segregated society. The second profile explores the ethical dilemma that Marshall faced when drafting the appellate brief for Brown v. Board of Education and how the dilemma combined with the social context of 1954 to influence his use of persuasive writing techniques. The article explains how Marshall's choices as a writer proved to be an effective strategy that was simultaneously principled and practical. The article then considers Thurgood Marshall the moral activist by examining the speech he wrote for the Constitution's Bicentennial Celebration in 1987. In that Bicentennial speech, Marshall famously refused to applaud the United States Constitution. The article compares the contemporaneous reaction to Marshall's speech with the controversy that arose during the 2010 Senate confirmation hearings of Marshall's most famous clerk, Elena Kagan. Finally, the article explores Justice Marshall the writer by examining his dissent in Payne v. Tennessee, a capital sentencing case. The article demonstrates that by choosing to attack the assumptions underlying the majority's argument, Marshall was able to craft a broad and powerful writing in which he not only advocated his opposition to the death penalty, but also defended a panoply of individual rights that he believed essential to attaining and maintaining equality for everyone.


Author(s): Connolly, Guy E.; Burns, Richard J. | Abstract: Efficacy of Compound 1080 LP Collars was studied under pen and field conditions. Coyotes poisoned themselves by attacking collared sheep and biting the collars. In 54 pen tests where 1 or 2 captive coyotes had opportunity to attack 1 collared lamb, 41 lambs were attacked and 26 collars were punctured. Of 25 different coyotes offered lambs with collars containing 5 or 10 mg sodium fluoroacetate (FAC)/ml, 23 coyotes attacked and 21 died after collars were punctured in their first (n = 17), second (n = 3), or fifth (n = 1) test. For 11 captive coyotes that punctured rubber collars, the average time to death was 217 min (range 115 to 436 min). Collars were placed on approximately 3 percent of the sheep on 4 Idaho and 7 Montana sheep ranches. Coyotes attacked 67 uncollared and 68 collared sheep, punctured 32 collars, and may have punctured 2 other collars that were not found. Documented rates of collar puncture were 48% for all attacks on collared sheep and 64% for neck-throat attacks. Eight collars were punctured on fences, thorns or brush. All coyotes that punctured collars probably died, but only 3 dead coyotes were found. Adverse impacts on humans, domestic animals, and nontarget wildlife were not seen. The LP Collar is a safe, effective, and selective technique for removing coyotes that attack sheep.


LensKit is an open-source toolkit for building, researching, and learning about recommender systems. First released in 2010 as a Java framework, it has supported diverse published research, small-scale production deployments, and education in both MOOC and traditional classroom settings. In this paper, I present the next generation of the LensKit project, re-envisioning the original tool's objectives as flexible Python package for supporting recommender systems research and development. LensKit for Python (LKPY) enables researchers and students to build robust, flexible, and reproducible experiments that make use of the large and growing PyData and Scientific Python ecosystem, including scikit-learn, and TensorFlow. To that end, it provides classical collaborative filtering implementations, recommender system evaluation metrics, data preparation routines, and tools for efficiently batch running recommendation algorithms, all usable in any combination with each other or with other Python software. This paper describes the design goals, use cases, and capabilities of LKPY, contextualized in a reflection on the successes and failures of the original LensKit for Java software.


Recent developments in computing technology have opened new prospects for computationally intensive numerical methods such as the finite element method. More complex and refined problems can be solved, for example increased number and order of the elements improving accuracy. The power of Computer Algebra systems and parallel processing techniques is expected to bring significant improvement in such methods. The main objective of this work has been to assess the use of these techniques in the finite element method. The generation of interpolation functions and element matrices has been investigated using Computer Algebra. Symbolic expressions were obtained automatically and efficiently converted into FORTRAN routines. Shape functions based on Lagrange polynomials and mapping functions for infinite elements were considered. One and two dimensional element matrices for bending problems based on Hermite polynomials were also derived. Parallel solvers for systems of linear equations have been developed since such systems often arise in numerical methods. Both symmetric and asymmetric solvers have been considered. The implementation was on Transputer-based machines. The speed-ups obtained are good. An analysis by finite element method of a free surface flow over a spillway has been carried out. Computer Algebra was used to derive the integrand of the element matrices and their numerical evaluation was done in parallel on a Transputer-based machine. A graphical interface was developed to enable the visualisation of the free surface and the influence of the parameters. The speed- ups obtained were good. Convergence of the iterative solution method used was good for gated spillways. Some problems experienced with the non-gated spillways have lead to a discussion and tests of the potential factors of instability.


Space-borne imaging radar is a suitable tool for the detection of thaw and freeze processes, as the backscattering of radar waves is highly dependent on the dielectric properties of the surface. The backscattered intensity from frozen and unfrozen wet soils in Siberia differed by 3 to 4 dB using C-band radar. The timing of ice formation and melt on lakes and rivers has successfully been determined from space-borne SAR data.
The study site is located in the southern central part of the Lena River Delta, Northern Siberia, Russia, at 72°N, 126°E. The area is a polygonal arctic tundra landscape, located in a zone of continuous permafrost and covered by ponds, lakes (15 m2 to 1.3 km2) and river arms.
A time series of twelve TerraSAR-X images (Stripmap mode) and six RADARSAT-2 (Fine quad-pol) images acquired during spring 2011 and nine RADARSAT-2 images recorded during fall 2011 were analyzed for this study. The dates of snow-melt, lake- and river-ice decay and onset, and soil thaw / refreeze obtained from the SAR-based study were compared to meteorological data from Samoylov Island, located in the investigation area, and Tiksi, located about 110 km southeast of the study site.
Soil thaw and refreeze was investigated in regions with different soil properties and vegetation cover. Temporal variations of the mean backscattered radar intensity were analyzed for the different land units. The results show that snow-melt events are clearly displayed in the mean backscatter values of the ROIs within the time series. The thaw of the active layer could not be observed in the X-band data, in which the mean backscatter values are mainly the same for both, the frozen and the thawed landscape. The backscatter values of the C-band data are about 3 dB higher during the thaw period than during the freezing period, and vice versa for the refreeze of the soils.
Lake- and river-ice decay and refreeze was monitored in the frame of this study as well. Ice-decay could be observed in both, the TerraSAR-X and the RADARSAT-2 data. Classification methods were applied to distinguish between ice and open water surfaces of lakes and river arms. The results show that lake-ice decay is not only dependent on lake size and location, as the timing of lake-ice decay of neighboring lakes of the same size was different in some cases. Thus it is assumed that lake depths are different, but this needs confirmation from other data sources.
A very high spatial image resolution is useful to distinguish land surfaces and water bodies. The ice cover on lakes remains in spring several weeks after the active layer thaw has started. In fall, the ice-onset in the water bodies is later than the refreeze of the soils. As snow-melt, refreeze, thaw processes, and ice-decay on water bodies happen quite quickly, it is necessary to acquire an image series with a high temporal resolution.


The traditional approach to pharmacodynamic modelling relies on knowledge about the pharmacokinetics. A prerequisite for obtaining kinetic information is reliable exposure data. However, in several therapeutic areas, exposure data are unavailable including when the drug response precedes the systemic exposure (for example pulmonary drug administration) and when the drug is locally administered (for example ophthalmics).

Dose-response-time (DRT) data analysis provides an alternative to exposure-driven pharmacodynamic modelling when exposure data are sparse or lacking. In DRT modelling, the response data are assumed to contain enough information about the drug kinetics, whereby a biophase model can be developed and act as the driver of the pharmacological response.

The following work presents the fundamental principles of DRT modelling. This include the entire procedure of identifying a DRT model, encompassing the assessment of the biophase function and the pharmacodynamic model, extensions to cover population variations, identifiability analysis, parameter estimation, and model validation. To demonstrate the utility of the technique, two extensive pre-clinical DRT studies of the interaction between nicotinic acid (NiAc) and free fatty acids (FFA) are presented. The first study covered the response behaviour following intravenous and oral NiAc dosing in both normal (lean) and diseased (obese) rats. The second study extended the models of the first study to incorporate insulin as a driver of the FFA response. Moreover, data from chronic trials were analysed with the aim to quantitatively understand the adaptive behaviours associated with long-term NiAc treatments.

The aim of this work is to answer the questions of when and how to use DRT data analysis, and what the limitations of the method are.

The DRT models of the first study were successfully fitted to all response-time courses in lean rats, with high precision in the parameter estimates (relative standard errors (RSE) < 25%), visual predictive check (VPC) and individual plots that captured the population and subject trends, and "-shrinkages of less than 10%. The model for the obese rats were less precise, with specific parameters being practically non-identifiable (with, for example, RSE 250%). The results for both lean and obese rats were generally consistent with those of an exposure-driven reference model, albeit with less precision and accuracy in the parameter estimates. Finally, the model was able to describe non-linear biophase kinetics, present at high oral dosages of NiAc.

The DRT models of the second study were able to capture the response-time courses for insulin and FFA on a population and individual level, and for both lean and obese rats. However, many parameters were uncertain (with RSE of, for example, 30-50%) and some were practically non-identifiable (with RSE of > 100%). The estimates were generally less precise and more inaccurate than those obtained in an exposure-driven reference model. Yet, most parameter estimates of the DRT models were within one standard deviation from those of the exposure-driven model. The final model was used to predict steady-state FFA exposures following repeated NiAc dosing for a range of different infusion protocols. The optimal dosing regimens consisted of infusions and wash-out periods were the wash-outs were 2h longer than the infusions. These predictions were consistent with those made by the exposure-driven model. Albeit, the DRT model predicted a slightly lower optimal reduction of FFA exposure.

It is important to recognise that DRT analyses introduce bias and variability in the parameter estimates. To obtain reliable results, it is advisable to have rich pharmacodynamic data, covering drug administration at different routes, rates, and schedules. With these issues taken into account, the technique still performed well in the two extensive studies presented in this work.

In conclusion, DRT data analysis is a modelling technique used in situations when exposure data are unavailable. The method is versatile and can describe a range of different pharmacological behaviours. Precision and accuracy is lost when comparing to an exposure driven pharmacodynamic modelling approach. Thus, DRT modelling is not to be considered as a replacement of the gold-standard pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic framework, but rather as a compliment when exposure data are unavailable.


The uniformly minimum variance unbiased (UMVU), maximum likelihood, percentile (PC), least squares (LS) and weighted least squares (WLS) estimators of the probability density function (pdf) and cumulative distribution function are derived for the generalized Rayleigh distribution. This model can be used quite effectively in modelling strength data and also modelling general lifetime data. It has been shown that MLE is better than UMVUE and UMVUE is better than the others. An application to waiting times (min) of 100 bank customers.


Biometric smart cards help to reduce corruption in cash transfer programs in India More than 1.9 billion individuals in the developing world benefit from social safety net programs: noncontributory transfer programs that distribute cash or basic in-kind products to the poor. But despite their importance, high levels of corruption often stifle the effectiveness of these programs. If cash transfer programs are particularly prone to graft, then in-kind programs should be preferred in practice. In a recent paper, Muralidharan et al. report evidence to the contrary by showing that use of a modern banking technology—biometric smart cards—can help to drastically reduce corruption in cash transfer programs (1).


Abstract Two silicon drift detectors combine with the new and nonconventional software pulse-height analyzer (SPHA) to measure the time evolution of soft-X-ray spectra, the thermal electron and superthermal electron temperatures. The high-quality soft-X-ray spectral distributions are easily obtained by the new SPHA. Therefore, the measurement accuracies and the time resolutions of thermal electron and superthermal electron temperatures are also improved. The enhancement phenomenon of superthermal electron avalanche during electron cyclotron resonance heating and the pronounced change for the time evolution of soft-X-ray spectra during supersonic molecular beam injection are observed by this system.


The Climate Change is one of the major problems in the entire world. The limiting influence of harmful factors as climate and other environmental changes, it will be crucial to breed new varieties for improved resistance to abiotic and biotic stresses. Climate Change can be tackled through plant breeding and better use of Plant Genetic Resources. Generally, plant breeding is the art and science of genetically improving plants for the benefit of humankind. It is important to mention potential contribution of organically managed systems to climate change mitigation is identified in the careful management of nutrients and, hence, the reduction of N2O emissions from soils. The application of biotechnological approaches, developing and implementation of new "omics" technologies and infrastructure construction on a high scientific level will help in building a strategy to overcome the damage of Climate Change. Key words: Climate Change, plant breeding, organic agriculture, plant biotechnology, "OMICS" technologies.


ABSTRACT The purpose of this article is to consider the development of research in loyalty programs and relationship marketing in international retailing and review their application in specific retail stores in Malaysia, namely, AEON, Parkson, the Store Corporation, and Metrojaya. The article reviews the development of the relationship marketing and loyalty programs literature and its application in Malaysia and suggests how relationship marketing and loyalty programs have emerged over the years and their significance to retailing in Malaysia. The article also emphasizes the importance of relationship marketing and loyalty programs in retailing and discusses where research needs to go with respect to loyalty programs to enable them to continue to offer a competitive advantage to retailers. At the moment most loyalty programs are too similar to provide any real differentiation advantage to the retailer. Furthermore, the article highlights the loyalty programs that have been successful in Malaysia, why they have been successful, and their contribution to the success of the respective retail outlet. Finally, it explores the current understanding of relationship marketing and loyalty program activities and processes within the international retail firm in a developing country context. The achievements and limitations of loyalty programs in the area of international retailing are examined over the past 20 years and issues are addressed surrounding the future of loyalty programs in retailing that require further research.


Food-baited dishes were used to monitor the impact of ground-sprayed DDT (4% WP @ approx. 200 g/ha) and deltamethrin (0.05% SC @ 2.6 g/ha) for tsetse fly ( Glossina spp.) control, on epigeal ants in mopane woodland in north-western Zimbabwe. Twenty species of ants were recorded at dishes baited with various types of food. Pheidole spp. and Monomorium opacum Forel (Formicidae: Myrmicinae) were predominant, both in the number of baits attended and in the number of workers present at individual baits. Season apparently had a greater effect on the composition and activity of the ground foraging ant assemblage than did either pesticide. There was a decline in the rate at which baits were found and in species richness of the ant assemblage as the dry season progressed and several species also showed changes in their ability to locate baits. There was no major pesticide induced disruption of the species richness or food finding ability of the diurnal ground foraging ant assemblage sampled. However, foraging success by Platythyrea cribrinodis (Gerstaecker) (Formicidae: Ponerinae) was reduced immediately after spraying with deltamethrin. Subtle effects of either insecticide on rarer species cannot be discounted from the results of this study.


Interest in global engagement among schools and colleges of pharmacy in the United States and Asian countries is growing. To develop fruitful relationships and engage in mutually enriching experiences, the cultural aspects of these countries need to be understood and respected. The aim of this paper is to facilitate culturally sensitive interactions between practitioners, faculty members, and students in the United States and those in Asian countries when they engage in health care practice and/or education. This paper introduces general information about China (including Macau and Hong Kong), Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Unique characteristics of the health care system and pharmacy education are described for each country. Stereotypes and misconceptions are discussed. Recommendations are included for initiating interactions and developing learning programs and scholarly collaborations while promoting culturally sensitive engagement. These recommendations are provided for US scholars, health care professionals, and students traveling to these countries as well as for those hosting visitors from these countries in the United States.


From July to October, 2008, Laura Crossett, Joseph Kraus and Steve Lawson organized the Library Camp of the West (http://librarycampwest.pbwiki.com/). This was an unconference that took place on October 10, 2008 at the University of Denver. The authors used many technology tools to organize the event, such as email, wikis, blogs, two tools from Google, the Doodle scheduling Website, Flickr and more. This article will explain how they used those tools to prepare for the unconference.


The Library of Unfinished Texts is a digital library that gathers writing on and about performance, in collaboration with Something Other, a space for writing from, around and about performance. These are: texts that have not yet found their ending, forgotten paragraphs that drifted off, drafts never sent, and notebook scribbles with no home. The Library of Unfinished Texts draws a link between criticism as a mode of thinking, and the library as a site of investigation. In Against Interpretation (1964), writer and critic Susan Sontag argues for a rethinking of the project of interpretation that allows the appearance, rather than usurping, of a work of art. Appearance, to Sontag, means 'experiencing the luminousness of the thing in itself' (1964: 10). Elsewhere, in The Life of the Mind (1971), philosopher Hannah Arendt speaks of thinking as an essential activity of criticism. Sontag and Arendt both offer reflections on two fundamental processes of criticism: thought and interpretation. Where Sontag acknowledges the aesthetic, subjective and material possibilities of interpretation, Arendt examines the blurred boundaries between public and private inherent in our articulation of thought. Library of Unfinished Texts stems from the proposition that, by exposing and unmasking critical writing in-process, we may better understand the relationship between criticism, subjectivity and publicness. In the same manner in which Sontag argues for an unmasking of the work of art within criticism, Library of Unfinished Texts seeks to expose the incomplete, the fractured and the disoriented nature of thought in critical process. The article positions these reflections alongside extracts and samples of unfinished drafts that led to its making, and from the project itself. The Institute has no home per se, but it is a London-based project.


Introduction & Objective: Pupils have efficient potential to increase community awareness and promoting community health through participating in the health education programs. Child to family health education program is one of the communicative strategies that was applied in this field trial study. Because of high prevalence of brucellosis in Hamadan province, Iran, the aim of this study was promoting families' knowledge and preventive behaviors about brucellosis in the rural areas by using child to family health education method.
Materials & Methods: In this nonequivalent control group design three rural schools were chosen (one as intervention and two others as control). At first knowledge and behavior of families about brucellosis were determined using a designed questionnaire. Then the families were educated through "child to family" procedure. At this stage the students gained information. Then they were instructed to teach their parents what they had learned. After 3 months following the last session of education, the level of knowledge and behavior changes of the families about brucellosis were determined and analyzed by paired t-test.
Results: The results showed significant improvement in the knowledge of the mothers. The knowledge of the mothers about the signs of brucellosis disease in human increased from 1.81 to 3.79 (t:-21.64, ig:0.000), and also the knowledge on the signs of brucellosis in animals increased from 1.48 to 2.82 (t:-10.60, sig:0.000).
Conclusion: Child to family health education program is one of the effective and available methods, which would be useful and effective in most communities, and also the students potential would be effective for applying in the health promotion programs.


The limits of administrative law are undergoing a seismic shift in the immigration arena. Chevron divides interpretive and decision-making authority between the federal courts and agencies in each of two steps. The Supreme Court may now be transforming this division in largely unrecognized ways. These shifts, currently playing out in the immigration context, may threaten to reshape deference jurisprudence by handing more power to the immigration agency just when the agency may be least able to handle that power effectively. An unprecedented surge in immigration cases — now approximately 90% of the federal administrative docket — has arrived just as the Court is whittling away the judicial role while expanding agency authority, significantly transforming traditional deference doctrine. In its immigration docket, the Court is shifting the judicial role away from questions of statutory interpretation and towards a mere evaluation of when the agency's interpretation should be granted deference. Assessment of the "reasonableness" of the agency's action has given way to marking the outer boundaries of agency action, merging the court's traditional oversight analysis into a form of "arbitrary and capriciousness" review. The costs of the Court's reformulation of Chevron are particularly visible in immigration law because recent legislation and structural changes at the immigration agency have already constrained judicial review. However, the reformulation of Chevron occurring in immigration law may threaten to remake administrative law generally. Unfortunately, these developments have received little scholarly attention. Understanding this transformation is imperative as ultimately we may be heading towards "Chevron without the Courts" — wherein the judicial interpretive role is being constrained in the very instances where agencies are least able to function effectively.


The interaction of the solar wind and the Earth's magnetosphere is complex and the phenomenology of the interaction is very different for solar wind dominated by interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) compared to solar wind dominated by corotating interaction regions (CIRs). We perform a superposed epoch study of the effects of ICME- and CIR-dominated solar wind upon the storm-time plasma at geosynchronous orbit using data from the magnetospheric plasma analyzer (MPA) instruments on board seven Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) satellites. Using 78 ICME events and 32 CIR events, we examine the electron and ion plasma sheets that are formed during each type of solar wind driver, at energy-per-charge between ∼0.1 and 45 keV/q. The results demonstrate that CIR events produce a more significant modulation in the plasma sheet temperature than ICME events, whilst ICME events produce a more significant modulation in the plasma sheet density than CIR events. We attribute these differences to the average speed in the solar wind and a combination of the density of the solar wind and the ionospheric component of the plasma sheet, respectively. We also show that for CIR events, the magnitude of the spacecraft potential is, on average, significantly greater than during ICME-events, with consequent effects upon the performance of instrumentation within this environment.


A scheme to generate tunable dual-wavelength picosecond pulses by harmonic and rational-harmonic mode locking of a 1.5-µm Fabry–Perot grating-lens external-cavity laser has been proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The external cavity consists of a weak Fabry–Perot filter, a diffraction grating, a converging lens, and a totally reflecting mirror. Active mode locking has been achieved simultaneously at two different wavelengths in the semiconductor laser over a range of 65 nm. Dual-wavelength pulses with a spectral separation of 0.9 nm, a side-mode suppression ratio greater than 24 dB, and a pulse width of ∼30 ps have been generated. The relative intensity variation between the two lasing wavelengths is smaller than 1.2 dB, without any observable mode hopping. Frequency multiplication of the dual-wavelength pulse train with rational-harmonic mode locking has also been demonstrated. With a 2.5-GHz modulation frequency applied to the semiconductor laser, the pulse repetition rate was multiplied to 5.0 GHz. A total of 10.0 GHz (5.0 GHz×two wavelength channels) optical pulses was obtained. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of multiple-wavelength rational-harmonic mode locking of a semiconductor laser.


Author(s): Eckman, Tom; Schwartz, Lisa C; Leventis, Greg | Abstract: This report focuses on ways current methods and practices that establish the value to electric utility systems of distributed energy resource (DER) investments can be enhanced to determine the value of demand flexibility in grid-interactive efficient buildings that can provide grid services. The report introduces key valuation concepts that are applicable to demand flexibility that these buildings can provide and links to other documents that describe these concepts and their implementation in more detail.The scope of this report is limited to the valuation of economic benefits to the utility system. These are the foundational values on which other benefits (and costs) can be built. Establishing the economic value to the grid of demand flexibility provides the information needed to design programs, market rules, and rates that align the economic interest of utility customers with building owners and occupants. By nature, DERs directly impact customers and provide societal benefits external to the utility system. Jurisdictions can use utility system benefits and costs as the foundation of their economic analysis but align their primary cost-effectiveness metric with all applicable policy objectives, which may include customer and societal (non-utility system) impacts.This report suggests enhancements to current methods and practices that state and local policymakers, public utility commissions, state energy offices, utilities, state utility consumer representatives, and other stakeholders might support. These enhancements can improve the consistency and robustness of economic valuation of demand flexibility for grid services. The report concludes with a discussion of considerations for prioritizing implementation of these improvements.


This field report offers some examples of donor related, and management induced, stress among local humanitarian staff in northern Sri Lanka. These examples were identified during staff care interventions held with a dozen nongovernmental organisations in the region. In this report, the authors discuss approaches to staff care. They conclude that individual, stress management focussed training does not adequately answer the needs of staff members (partially) burdened by unnecessary, work related stress. Concrete action may be based on staff members making and carrying out their own action plans for improving staff care, through using mechanisms of social support that are common within their own cultural environment.


A kidney exchange is an organized barter market where patients in need of a kidney swap willing but incompatible donors. Determining an optimal set of exchanges is theoretically and empirically hard. Traditionally, exchanges took place in cycles, with each participating patient-donor pair both giving and receiving a kidney. The recent introduction of chains, where a donor without a paired patient triggers a sequence of donations without requiring a kidney in return, increased the efficacy of fielded kidney exchanges---while also dramatically raising the empirical computational hardness of clearing the market in practice. While chains can be quite long, unbounded-length chains are not desirable: planned donations can fail before transplant for a variety of reasons, and the failure of a single donation causes the rest of that chain to fail, so parallel shorter chains are better in practice. In this paper, we address the tractable clearing of kidney exchanges with short cycles and chains that are long but bounded. This corresponds to the practice at most modern fielded kidney exchanges. We introduce three new integer programming formulations, two of which are compact. Furthermore, one of these models has a linear programming relaxation that is exactly as tight as the previous tightest formulation (which was not compact) for instances in which each donor has a paired patient. On real data from the UNOS nationwide exchange in the United States and the NLDKSS nationwide exchange in the United Kingdom, as well as on generated realistic large-scale data, we show that our new models are competitive with all existing solvers---in many cases outperforming all other solvers by orders of magnitude. Finally, we note that our position-indexed chain-edge formulation can be modified in a straightforward way to take post-match edge failure into account, under the restriction that edges have equal probabilities of failure. Post-match edge failure is a primary source of inefficiency in presently-fielded kidney exchanges. We show how to implement such failure-aware matching in our model, and also extend the state-of-the-art general branch-and-price-based non-compact formulation for the failure-aware problem to run its pricing problem in polynomial time.


Rapid solidification experiment on Fe-Cr-Mo-Mn-Si-C alloy was performed to investigate metastable phases formed during the solidification. A wide range of cooling rate was used to analyse the sample from melt spinning technique (~107 K/s) to water quenching method (~102 K/s). A single phase featureless structure was obtaind initially in the melt spinning experiment for 77Fe-8Cr-6Mn-5Si-4C alloy. Reduction of C and addition of Mo led to form a complete featureless structure for 2.85 mm rod for 72.8Fe-8Cr-5Mo-6Mn-5Si-3.2C. Subsequent investigation of influence of Mo, Cr and Mn on the single phase featureless structure concludes that 7.5 mm thick complete featureless phase could be formed at 63.8Fe-15Cr-7Mo-6Mn-5Si-3.2C alloy composition. In a separate attempt, powder samples of 40 μm dia. size complete featureless powders were produced for three slightly different compostions for the same alloy system. Characterisation of the featureless phases reveals that it could be a single phase metastable structure of e phase or austenitic solid solution with high amount of alloying element dissolved in it. Subsequent heat treatment of this featureless phase of the rod and the powder at different temperatures formed bainitic ferrite with fine carbides dispersed in the austenitic matrix. Hardness values measured on featureless phase found to have influenced by the alloying element specially Mo, Cr and Mn. In an attempet to improve clean melting condition to extend the featureless phase and to form amorphous, an elliptic short arc lamp vaccum furnace was designed with 10 kW lamp power. Around 30 g of iron based alloy system was melted and cast as a 7 mm rod sample in a copper mould. Design details of new mirror and the lamp furnace are presented. In a separate study, influence of the melt temperature on Al-Y and Al-Si alloys were investigated by levitaion casting in a silver mould at around 2000 K/s cooling rate. Plate like structure of Al8Y3 primary phase was observed at low melt temperature with small percentage of peritectic transformation of Al8Y3 and liquid melt into Al9Y2. A pre-dentritic star like crystal of Al3Y was observed in a fine eutectic matrix at very high melt temperature. Amount and number of primary Si crystals formed in a unit area during the solidification increases as the melt temperature increases.


For Web-based systems accessible from the Internet, it is difficult to estimate workloads precisely. Precise estimation of resources necessary for the system is important for effective utilization of resources in a datacenter. Therefore, capacity planning to forecast the amount of IT resources necessary for a system is important. In capacity planning, the amount of resources necessary for a system is calculated based upon numbers determined by the architecture and business requirements of the system. An example of a number determined by the architecture is the amount of memory required by a single user. An example of a number determined by business requirements is the estimated maximum number of simultaneous users. By multiplying these two numbers, a maximum memory requirement can be calculated. Usually, system memory consumption and the number of simultaneous users are monitored during operation, and if either value exceeds a threshold, an alarm is sent to operators. The authors propose a method to monitor memory consumption per user from memory consumption data and the number of users, and perform statistical significance testing in real time by applying a stream database. The window size used in a CQL statement for the test affects the precision of the test and memory consumption of the stream database. Through experimentation, the authors propose an optimal window size.


This volume showcases the most exciting new voices in the fields of business and political history. While the media frequently warns of the newfound power of business in the world of politics, the authors in this book demonstrate that business has mobilized to shape public policy and government institutions, as well as electoral outcomes, for decades. Rather than assuming that business influence is inevitable, the chapters explore the complex evolution of this relationship in a wide range of different arenas--from attempts to create a corporate-friendly tax policy and regulations that would work in the interests of particular industries, to local boosterism as a weapon against New Deal liberalism, to the nexus between evangelical Christianity and the oil industry, to the frustrations that business people felt in struggles with public interest groups. The history that emerges show business actors organizing themselves to affect government in myriad ways, sometimes successfully but other times with outcomes far different than they hoped for. The result in an image of American politics that is more complex and contested than it is often thought to be. The essays represent a new trend in scholarship on political economy, one that seeks to break down the barriers that once separated old subfields to offer a vision of the economy as shaped by politics and political life influenced by economic relationships.


As the Covid-19 pandemic hits economic activity, the vulnerabilities of longer and more geographically extended trade credit chains are coming to the fore, especially those related to international trade. While risk mitigation is available from financial intermediaries, the bulk of the exposures associated with supply chains is borne by the participating firms themselves, through inter-firm credit. Given the prevalence of the US dollar in trade financing, measures such as central bank swap lines that ease global dollar credit conditions may cushion the impact of the pandemic on global value chains.


Internet technologies have fundamentally changed the way we obtain access to legal documents and information about the law. However, for judgments of courts and tribunals, copyright management and licensing practices have not kept pace with the digital and online technologies which are now ubiquitous in the web 2.0 era. Under the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 and the licensing statements on the Australian courts' websites, judgments may generally be read online, downloaded, reproduced and printed out for personal, non-commercial use or "in house" use by an organisation. However, beyond these permitted acts, the extent to which judgments can be copied and distributed in digital form online remains unclear. Open content licences (in particular, the Creative Commons (CC) licences) offer an effective mechanism for managing copyright in judgments in a manner that supports their wide public dissemination and reuse while also protecting their integrity and accuracy.