Hierarchical architectures are critical to the scalability of reinforcement learning methods. Current hierarchical frameworks execute actions serially, with macro-actions comprising sequences of primitive actions. We propose a novel alternative to these control hierarchies based on concurrent execution of many actions in parallel. Our scheme uses the concurrent compositionality provided by the linearly solvable Markov decision process (LMDP) framework, which naturally enables a learning agent to draw on several macro-actions simultaneously to solve new tasks. We introduce the Multitask LMDP module, which maintains a parallel distributed representation of tasks and may be stacked to form deep hierarchies abstracted in space and time.


Optical microfibers and nanofibers are currently being widely used in a vast number of applications ranging from quantum and ultra-cold atom optics to optical sensing. However, most existing methods for characterizing these tiny photonic wires are either destructive or rather complex to implement. Here, we describe a new easy-to-implement technique that allows for a complete experimental characterization of subwavelength-diameter tapered optical fibers, including both the uniform and transition sections. Our method is based on a direct and fast numerical analysis of the backward Brillouin scattering spectrum measured using highly sensitive heterodyne coherent detection. It can be performed in situ without any manipulation or optical alignment of optical nanofibers. Sensitivity as high as a few nanometers for fiber diameters ranging from 500 nm to 1.2 μm is reported. This new technique may also help with the design and characterization of micro- and nanoscale photonic chips.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review available literature targeting the assessment and management of individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) admitted to high secure psychiatric care (HSPC). Key areas of examination include the prevalence of ASD in HSPC, how individuals with an ASD differ from other patient groups in clinical and cognitive characteristics, the views of staff regarding patients with an ASD, an exploration of the experiences and quality of life of patients with an ASD, as well as treatment and interventions.

Design/methodology/approach
A review of the published literature.

Findings
Although individuals with an ASD comprise a relatively small proportion of the total HSPC cohort, they appear to be over represented relative to the general population prevalence. Several research projects suggest that individuals with an ASD present with difficulties and needs different to other patient groups, as well as being viewed by staff as potentially vulnerable and requiring a different care approach. Individuals with an ASD report both positive and negative aspects to life in HSPC.

Practical implications
Suggestions are made with regard to how individuals with an ASD might be better managed in HSPC. Following the spirit of various pieces of government legislation such as the Autism Act (2009) and the Equalities Act (2010) the role of a specialist ASD HSPC service is proposed.

Originality/value
This paper provides a detailed review of the research to date exploring the assessment and management of individuals with an ASD detained in HSPC. It outlines key research findings, highlights limitations with it and provides a personal perspective on future research and clinical targets.


This paper explores statistically the implications of the shift from communal to individualized tenure on the distribution of land and schooling between sons and daughters in Western Sumatra. The inheritance system is evolving from a strictly matrilineal system to a more egalitarian system in which sons and daughters inherit the type of land which is more intensive in their own work effort. While gender bias is either non-existent or small in land inheritance, daughters tend to be disadvantaged with respect to schooling. The gender gap in schooling, however, appears to be closing for the generation of younger children.


Treatment of hypertension with conventional dosage forms is not effective as the drugs do not reach the site of action in appropriate concentration and it is also requiring dosing. Thus, an effective and safe therapy of hypertension disorder using specific drug delivery system is a challenging task to the pharmaceutical technologists. Most commonly used method of modulating the drug release is to include it in a matrix system, because of their flexibility, hydrophilic polymer matrix system is widely used in oral controlled drug delivery to obtain a desirable drug release profile, cost effectiveness and broad regulatory acceptance. In present study we have prepared matrix tablet formulations using Prazosin as model drug and Ethyl Cellulose, Two grades of Hydroxy propyl methyl celluloseHPMC-K4M &HPMC-K100M as polymers in different ratios. The developed matrix tablets were evaluated for different physical chemical evaluations like drug content, hardness, friability, swelling index etc. All the formulations had shown the results within prescribed limits. The In vitro drug release study indicates that formulation F7 containing EC, HPMC K100M in 1:2 ratio shown good release pattern for 14 hours compare to other formulations. The short-term stability study proven no change in the formulation upon ageing and it indicates good stability.


The corporate entrepreneurship (CE) literature suggests that companies operating in turbulent, hostile and dynamic environments, will exhibit higher levels of entrepreneurial behaviour than their counterparts in more stable environments. Even though the South African business environment has been characterised by turbulence over the past few decades, limited research has been done to empirically test this assertion because of the absence of contextually-validated measurement instruments. This study is an exploratory study reporting on the initial phases to develop a validated instrument to measure managers' perceptions of the enacted environmental antecedents for CE in the South African context. Managers enact their environment, meaning that their entrepreneurial actions are based on perceptions of the business environment shaped by their own interests, and not an objective reality. Based on the empirical results and the assessment of reliability and validity, it is suggested that the 21-item scale offers an initial basis for further refinement of the measurement instrument. The proposed instrument should be useful to researchers and e-business managers to assess managerial perceptions of the enacted corporate entrepreneurship environment.


During the steelmaking and hot rolling processes, various defects and cracks appear throughout the steel product. These cracks may initiate and grow throughout the hot rolling process and result in a lower quality of the product than is acceptable. The most energy-intensive part of the hot rolling process is the reheating furnace, where slabs are heated up to a target rolling temperature largely through radiant heat transfer. In the reheat furnace, large stresses may develop due to the thermal gradients within the steel product.
 A thermal-stress analysis is proposed based on finite element method (FEM) to study the impacts of charging temperature, slab velocity, and heating rate on stress development as the steel slab travels through an industrial pusher-type reheat furnace. Furnace zone information is taken from a previously validated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model and applied as thermal boundaries and constraints within the thermal-stress FEM models.
 Temperature and stress results were taken at the core, top, bottom, top quarter, and the bottom quarter of the steel slab at different residence times. Moreover, temperature lines and contour plots taken along the length of the slab allow visualization of the gradual development of temperature and identification of the locations corresponding to temperature variations as the slabs move in the furnace. The slab temperature predicted by the FEM model was found valid when compared with industrial data. Stress predictions found similar trends with previously published works as well as evidence of thermal shock in the sub-surface near the beginning of the residence time.


This essay argues that what most characterizes the late twentieth century is not, as is often assumed, the threat posed to the human by technology but rather that imposed by technology's failure. The essay does so by tracking the development of a postwar literalism that is neither modernist nor postmodernist. This literalism emerges as an aesthetic in the earthworks and writings of Michael Heizer and Robert Smithson and is isolated as a cultural logic by Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow (1973). Backed by the rise of cybernetics, this literalism reconfigures the Aristotelian conception of the artifact. Through the lines in the dirt they feature, the works discussed in this essay bracket off the axes of the subject, the human, and the machine. To that end, they generate "failed artifacts" by isolating the exposures of human-made things to their environments as junctures for rendering the empirical limits of technology and putting its conceptual coherence into question. Here, then, technology fails not only in fact but in principle.


Caveolin-3 is a muscle specific scaffolding protein with both structural and signaling roles. Lack of caveolin-3 expression has been implicated in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, along with distal myopathy and rippling muscle disease. These diseases are characterized by progressive muscle weakness and muscle wasting. Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) clustering and localization are important for efficient nerve to muscle contractile signal transmission. It is hypothesized that muscle weakness could originate through disrupted nAChR clustering, disrupting the efficiency of signaling from the motorneuron to the muscle. While the molecular mechanisms involved in nAChR clustering remain to be fully defined, we hypothesize caveolin-3 is important for nAChR clustering and overall neuromuscular junction function.Caveolin-3 and the nAChR co-localize and associate evidenced by immunofluorescence and immunoprecipitation. These results were replicated in differentiated wildtype myotubes treated with the nAChR clustering agent, neural agrin. In differentiated caveolin-3 null myotubes, agrin treatment yields a 60% reduction in nAChR clusters as compared to agrin treated wildtype myotubes. Agrin induces nAChR clustering, through activation of muscle specific kinase (MuSK) and downstream through Rac-1 activation. In differentiated wildtype myotubes, Rac-1 activation peaks at 1 hour of agrin treatment, while in differentiated caveolin-3 null myotubes there is dramatically reduced Rac-1 activation upon agrin treatment. Immunoprecipitation of MuSK shows that caveolin-3 and MuSK association peaks at 1 hour of agrin treatment in wildtype cells. This corresponds to the peak of MuSK phosphorylation which also occurs at 1 hour. Agrin induced MuSK phosphorylation was decreased more significantly than the overall decrease in MuSK expression in the caveolin-3 null cells as compared to the wildtype results. These results indicate a role for caveolin-3 in efficient nAChR clustering.Electromyography studies in anesthetized mice indicated lengthened latencies of the muscle action potential in the caveolin-3 null mice as compared to wildtype mice. There were also decreased overall electromyography (EMG) amplitude and EMG area under the curve in caveolin-3 null mice. Comparison of contractile strength in wildtype and caveolin-3 null animals indicated tetanic contractions to be less stable in the caveolin-3 null animals, though there was late potentiation in actual contractile strength.Lack of caveolin-3 affects the neuromuscular junction formation and transmission without affecting overall contractile strength. This research opens a novel view, that correct neuromuscular junction formation and neuromuscular transmission is important in the development of muscular dystrophies.


Background We wished to establish whether the occurrence of schizophrenia among twins is the same as among the general population. Method Through record linkage between the New Danish Twin Register and the Danish Psychiatric Case Register, the twins who have ever received a diagnosis of schizophrenia were identified. Through indirect standardisation for age, sex and dates of admission, the rate of first admission with diagnosis schizophrenia among twins is compared to the same rate in the general population. Results A 28% increase in the rate of first admissions for schizophrenia in twins compared to the general population was found. This is statistically significant and does not seem to be caused by any known methodological problems. Twins also had an increased first-admission rate of any psychiatric disorders. Conclusion This increased risk does not seem to be explained by known methodological problems, but does differ from earlier studies.


Light-dependent phosphorylation of the auxin efflux carrier PIN3 determines its trafficking pattern in the hypocotyl endodermis. Growth of plants toward light, a response known as phototropism, is primarily mediated in Arabidopsis thaliana by perception of blue light by phototropin family receptors such as PHOT1. In plants undergoing a phototropic response, the distribution and transport of the hormone auxin is asymmetric, such that auxin preferentially accumulates on the shaded side to promote growth toward the light (phototrophic bending). The auxin efflux carrier PIN3 also shows a polarized distribution during phototrophic bending, leading Ding et al. (see also the commentary by Grebe) to determine the mechanisms that mediate the polarized distributions of auxin and PIN3. In Arabidopsis expressing a reporter with activity that correlates with auxin concentrations, increased reporter activity was detected on the shaded side of hypocotyls in unilateral light, which was not observed in phot1 or pin3 mutants. In the dark, PIN3 tagged with green fluorescent protein (PIN3-GFP) had a nonpolarized distribution in endodermal cells of hypocotyls. When these plants were moved into the light, PIN3-GFP was no longer present at the outer lateral membrane (which is closest to the outside of the plant) but remained at the inner membrane that faced the vasculature. In unilateral light, PIN3-GFP redistribution occurred only at the illuminated side, such that PIN3-GFP was found predominantly opposite the light source, a distribution that would enable the directed transport of auxin to the shaded side. The sensitivity of PIN3-GFP redistribution and phototrophic bending to brefeldin A (BFA) suggested a role for endocytic vesicle trafficking. Plants expressing a BFA-insensitive form of the ARF guanine exchange factor GNOM, which regulates vesicle budding, showed phototropic bending and PIN3-GFP redistribution when treated with BFA. In vitro assays indicated that the serine-threonine kinase PINOID (PID) phosphorylated PIN3. Light repressed the transcription of PID, a process that showed a partial dependence on the phototropins PHOT1 and PHOT2, implying that PID is primarily active in cells in the shaded side. Thus, light-dependent phosphorylation of PIN3 by PID determines whether PIN3 undergoes nonpolar or polar trafficking in the hypocotyl epidermis. Z. Ding, C. S. Galván-Ampudia, E. Demarsy, Ł. Łangowski, J. Kleine-Vehn, Y. Fan, M. T. Morita, M. Tasaka, C. Fankhauser, R. Offringa, J. Friml, Light-mediated polarization of the PIN3 auxin transporter for the phototropic response in Arabidopsis. Nat. Cell Biol. 13, 447–452 (2011). [PubMed] M. Grebe, Out of the shade and into the light. Nat. Cell Biol. 13, 347–349 (2011). [PubMed]


A lot of efforts have been devoted to investigating how agents can learn effectively and achieve coordination in multiagent systems. However, it is still challenging in large-scale multiagent settings due to the complex dynamics between the environment and agents and the explosion of state-action space. In this paper, we design a novel Dynamic Multiagent Curriculum Learning (DyMA-CL) to solve large-scale problems by starting from learning on a multiagent scenario with a small size and progressively increasing the number of agents. We propose three transfer mechanisms across curricula to accelerate the learning process. Moreover, due to the fact that the state dimension varies across curricula, and existing network structures cannot be applied in such a transfer setting since their network input sizes are fixed. Therefore, we design a novel network structure called Dynamic Agent-number Network (DyAN) to handle the dynamic size of the network input. Experimental results show that DyMA-CL using DyAN greatly improves the performance of large-scale multiagent learning compared with state-of-the-art deep reinforcement learning approaches. We also investigate the influence of three transfer mechanisms across curricula through extensive simulations.


In 2003, a community based psychosocial programme for children in Iraq was started. Psychosocial activities were implemented in primary schools and in primary health care settings aimed at child mental health protection. This field report describes the programme and some of the difficulties that were encountered. It concludes that even in circumstances as difficult as they are in Iraq it is possible to run psychosocial programmes – if reliable partners are involved.


Although Australia's coal mining industry is currently experiencing a pleasing period of price relief, long-term trends toward lower real prices will surely continue. Higher price levels attract expansion by existing operators and market entrance by new operators. History clearly demonstrates the relentless long-term march toward ever lower real prices. Therefore, the need for economic returns applies constant pressure to improve productivity. To be sustained, high productivity requires a systematic response based on a solid understanding of critical productivity determinants. The most powerful determinant of productivity is now widely understood to be workplace culture. Culture largely comprises a combination of behaviours, symbols and attitudes. This paper will examine and review science's latest discoveries in human behaviour. It will provide a proven, practical framework for understanding behaviour and applying this knowledge. Significantly, it will highlight why conventional approaches toward improving productivity often provide disappointing economic returns. The modern understanding of behaviour factors will cover coal face operations. More importantly, because executive and managerial levels in coal mining have significantly greater impact on industry and mine productivity the paper will concentrate on leadership. Particular emphasis will be placed on use of modern systems and in particular use of what are by far the most powerful drivers of behaviours – measurement, analysis and reporting systems. The paper and presentation will show how conventional systems rooted in antiquated American legislation from the early 1900s stifle productivity improvement and drive suboptimal and even counterproductive behaviours. These commonly used systems will be compared with accurate and effective modern methods for assessing performance to improve productivity. These principles are proven in all industries and effective application in mining will be highlighted. Actual results will be used to demonstrate practical approaches successfully applied in both metal and coal mining in Australia and overseas.


The Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire (ATQ) assesses negative thoughts that are associated with depression among adults. In this study, the scale was extended to children. Internal consistency and validity of the ATQ were evaluated with 250 child psychiatric inpatient children (ages 6 to 13). Validity was evaluated by examining whether depressed and nondepressed children differed on the scale, whether performance was related to other measures of cognitive attributional processes, and whether the measure was more closely related to depression and cognitive processes than to other constructs predicted to be less central to negative thoughts. The ATQ showed high internal consistency and yielded moderate to high item-total score correlations. Convergent validity was supported by the finding that the ATQ correlated positively with severity of depression, hopelessness, and external locus of control and negatively with self-esteem. Discriminant validity was suggested, but not strongly supported, by higher correlations between ATQ and measures of depression and other cognitive processes than between the ATQ and severity of impairment, prosocial behavior, and positive affective experience. The findings in relation to psychometric properties and concurrent validity of the ATQ with children parallel those evident in the study of depression among adults. Further work is needed to examine the relation of the ATQ to other measures of cognitive processes and diagnoses other than depression.


Due to limited remote triage monitoring capabilities, combat medics cannot currently distinguish bleeding soldiers from those engaged in combat unless they have physical access to them. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that low-level physiological signals can be used to develop a machine-learning algorithm for tracking changes in central blood volume that will subsequently distinguish central hypovolemia from physical activity. Twenty-four subjects underwent central hypovolemia via lower body negative pressure (LBNP), and a supine-cycle exercise protocol. Exercise workloads were determined by matching heart rate responses from each LBNP level. Heart rate and stroke volume (SV) were measured via Finometer. ECG, heat flux, skin temperature, galvanic skin response, and two-axis acceleration were obtained from an armband (SenseWear Pro2) and used to develop a machine-learning algorithm to predict changes in SV as an index of central blood volume under both conditions. The algorithm SV was retrospectively compared against Finometer SV. A model was developed to determine whether unknown data points could be correctly classified into these two conditions using leave-one-out cross-validation. Algorithm vs. Finometer SV values were strongly correlated for LBNP in individual subjects (mean r = 0.92; range 0.75-0.98), but only moderately correlated for exercise (mean r = 0.50; range -0.23-0.87). From the first level of LBNP/exercise, the machine-learning algorithm was able to distinguish between LBNP and exercise with high accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity (all ≥90%). In conclusion, a machine-learning algorithm developed from low-level physiological signals could reliably distinguish central hypovolemia from exercise, indicating that this device could provide battlefield remote triage capabilities.


Significance We characterize the channel properties, distribution, and behavioral function of hyperpolarization-activated, cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels in the mollusc Aplysia. Aplysia has one HCN gene, which has overall similarities to HCN homologs from other species. The acHCN channel also has functional properties that closely resemble vertebrate homologs and is expressed in neurons including siphon motor neurons. HCN channels contribute to an associative form of learning (classical conditioning) but not to two nonassociative forms of learning (intermediate-term sensitization and unpaired training) of the siphon withdrawal reflex. The HCN current is enhanced by NO and in turn enhances the NMDA-like current in the motor neurons, suggesting that HCN channels contribute to conditioning through this pathway. Hyperpolarization-activated, cyclic nucleotide-gated cation (HCN) channels are critical regulators of neuronal excitability, but less is known about their possible roles in synaptic plasticity and memory circuits. Here, we characterized the HCN gene organization, channel properties, distribution, and involvement in associative and nonassociative forms of learning in Aplysia californica. Aplysia has only one HCN gene, which codes for a channel that has many similarities to the mammalian HCN channel. The cloned acHCN gene was expressed in Xenopus oocytes, which displayed a hyperpolarization-induced inward current that was enhanced by cGMP as well as cAMP. Similarly to its homologs in other animals, acHCN is permeable to K+ and Na+ ions, and is selectively blocked by Cs+ and ZD7288. We found that acHCN is predominantly expressed in inter- and motor neurons, including LFS siphon motor neurons, and therefore tested whether HCN channels are involved in simple forms of learning of the siphon-withdrawal reflex in a semiintact preparation. ZD7288 (100 μM) significantly reduced an associative form of learning (classical conditioning) but had no effect on two nonassociative forms of learning (intermediate-term sensitization and unpaired training) or baseline responses. The HCN current is enhanced by nitric oxide (NO), which may explain the postsynaptic role of NO during conditioning. HCN current in turn enhances the NMDA-like current in the motor neurons, suggesting that HCN channels contribute to conditioning through this pathway.


Self-play methods based on regret minimization have become the state of the art for computing Nash equilibria in large two-players zero-sum extensive-form games. These methods fundamentally rely on the hierarchical structure of the players' sequential strategy spaces to construct a regret minimizer that recursively minimizes regret at each decision point in the game tree. In this paper, we introduce the first efficient regret minimization algorithm for computing extensive-form correlated equilibria in large two-player general-sum games with no chance moves. Designing such an algorithm is significantly more challenging than designing one for the Nash equilibrium counterpart, as the constraints that define the space of correlation plans lack the hierarchical structure and might even form cycles. We show that some of the constraints are redundant and can be excluded from consideration, and present an efficient algorithm that generates the space of extensive-form correlation plans incrementally from the remaining constraints. This structural decomposition is achieved via a special convexity-preserving operation that we coin scaled extension. We show that a regret minimizer can be designed for a scaled extension of any two convex sets, and that from the decomposition we then obtain a global regret minimizer. Our algorithm produces feasible iterates. Experiments show that it significantly outperforms prior approaches and for larger problems it is the only viable option.


In Maryland v. King, 133 S. Ct. 1958 (2013), the Supreme Court held that Maryland's statute requiring DNA samples from individuals arrested for crimes of violence or burglary did not violate the Fourth Amendment. One factor in the Court's analysis is the extent to which the forensic DNA profiles invade medical privacy. The majority stated that "[t]he argument that the testing at issue in this case reveals any private medical information at all is open to dispute." With respect to this dispute, eight scientists and two law professors filed a brief in support of neither party seeking to explain what current science tells us about the information conveyed by the thirteen short tandem repeats known as "CODIS markers," the variations in DNA generally used in the United States for forensic identification. This publication consists of the core of the brief along with a foreword about the continuing legal significance of the issue.


In the natural sciences, researchers use a variety of techniques that rely on extensive man-hours and can therefore be difficult to scale. This obviously limits questions that concern large spatial scales or that involve large numbers of animals. Here, we describe the design and deployment of a wireless sensor network that delivers high resolution sensor data while monitoring seabirds on a UK National Nature Reserve. We describe some of the problems encountered and the solutions we have used. In general, the network has successfully demonstrated its utility in a real world scenario and will be extended and enhanced for the coming field season.


Abstract Past research on designing for behavioural change mostly concerned linear design processes, whereas in practice, Agile design methods are increasingly popular. This paper evaluates the possibilities and limitations of using Agile design methods in theory-driven design for behavioural change. We performed a design case study, consisting of a student design team working on improving waiting experiences at Schiphol Airport security and check-in. Our study showed that Agile design methods are usable when designing for behavioural change. Moreover, the Behavioural Lenses toolkit used in the design process is beneficial in facilitating theory-driven Agile design. The combination of an Agile design process and tools to evidentially inform the design enabled the design team to formulate viable and interesting concepts for improving waiting-line experiences. However, limitations also occurred: a mismatch between the rate at which the Scream method proceeded and the time and momentum needed to conduct in-depth research.


In view of the fact that, the world is not stabile and most of the things change very rapidly. In spite of this, women's place and rights in some fields seem still the same. This paper seeks to explore whether women have any choice to construct their world in their life. This research focuses on analyzing the political economy and the cultural studies perspective to find out some answers for the research questions. Also Berger, Douglas, Foucault and Habermas perspectives have been analyzed to understand better if women have a choice to construct their world. The result points out that, the world can change but to make some changes, awareness of the problem is important. The importance of this paper is to make society aware of inequality rights among genders.


A stability analysis is made of a long flat rectangular plate subjected to a uniform longitudinal compressive stress and supported along its longitudinal edges and along one or more longitudinal lines by elastic line supports. The elastic supports possess deflectional and rotational stiffness. Such configuration is an idealization of the compression cover skin and internal structure of a wing and tail surfaces. The results of the analysis are presented in the form of charts in which the buckling-stress coefficient is plotted against the buckle length of the plate for a wide range of support stiffnesses. The charts make possible the determination of the compressive buckling stress of plates supported by members whose stiffness may or may not be defined by elementary beam bending and twisting theory but yet whose effective restraint is amenable to evaluation. The deflectional and rotational stiffness provided by longitudinal stiffeners and full-depth webs is discussed and numerical examples are given to illustrate the application of the charts to the design of wing structures.


Importance Postoperative readmission data are used to measure hospital performance, yet the extent to which these readmissions reflect surgical quality is unknown. Objective To establish expert consensus on whether reasons for postoperative readmission are associated with the quality of surgery in the index admission. Design, Setting, and Participants In a modified Delphi process, a panel of 14 experts in medical and surgical readmissions comprising physicians and nonphysicians from Veterans Affairs (VA) and private-sector institutions reviewed 30-day postoperative readmissions from fiscal years 2008 through 2014 associated with inpatient surgical procedures performed at a VA medical center between October 1, 2007, and September 30, 2014. The consensus process was conducted from January through May 2017. Reasons for readmission were grouped into categories based on International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) diagnosis codes. Panelists were given the proportion of readmissions coded by each reason and median (interquartile range) days to readmission. They answered the question, "Does the readmission reason reflect possible surgical quality of care problems in the index admission?" on a scale of 1 (never related) to 5 (directly related) in 3 rounds of consensus building. The consensus process was completed in May 2017 and data were analyzed in June 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures Consensus on proportion of ICD-9–coded readmission reasons that reflected quality of surgical procedure. Results In 3 Delphi rounds, the 14 panelists achieved consensus on 50 reasons for readmission; 12 panelists also completed group telephone calls between rounds 1 and 2. Readmissions with diagnoses of infection, sepsis, pneumonia, hemorrhage/hematoma, anemia, ostomy complications, acute renal failure, fluid/electrolyte disorders, or venous thromboembolism were considered associated with surgical quality and accounted for 25 521 of 39 664 readmissions (64% of readmissions; 7.5% of 340 858 index surgical procedures). The proportion of readmissions considered to be not associated with surgical quality varied by procedure, ranging from to 21% (613 of 2331) of readmissions after lower-extremity amputations to 47% (745 of 1598) of readmissions after cholecystectomy. Conclusions and Relevance One-third of postoperative readmissions are unlikely to reflect problems with surgical quality. Future studies should test whether restricting readmissions to those with specific ICD-9 codes might yield a more useful quality measure.


This paper is concerned with technology management in the kind of small and medium-sized enterprises which traditionally have taken a passive attitude towards technological change. Based on data collected in a survey study on technological networking in a European border region, the paper shows that enterprises of this type differ significantly from small technology-intensive enterprises in the ways in which they acquire knowledge about new technologies. Small "technology-contingent" enterprises appear to be less well networked to the outside world than technologically more active enterprises. Some conclusions are drawn on the use of technology transfer infrastructures for these enterprises.


Several poorly known Afrotropical Anthophoridae are considered. Tetrahmidltt ptdverosa Friese is synonymized with Thtraloniella sjoestedti Friese, Xylocopa obscuritarsis Friese is synonymized with Xylocopa lugubris Gerstaecker, and both Xylocopa carinata var. fulvopilosa Friese and Xylocopa tarsata var. namutonensis Strand are synonymized with Xylocopa hottentotta Smith. Males of Anthophora glaucopis Friese and Xylocopa pilosa Friese are redescriptionbed while the male of Nomada whiteheadi Eardley & Schwarz is descriptionbed for the first time.


If Mrs Tischbein had known the amazing adventures her son Emil would have in Berlin, she'd never have let him go. Unfortunately, when his seven pounds goes missing on the train, Emil is determined to get it back - and when he teams up with the detectives he meets in Berlin, it's just the start of a marvellous money-retrieving adventure ...A classic and influential story, Emil and the Detectives remains an enthralling read.


We propose the first system for live dynamic augmentation of human faces. Using projector‐based illumination, we alter the appearance of human performers during novel performances. The key challenge of live augmentation is latency — an image is generated according to a specific pose, but is displayed on a different facial configuration by the time it is projected. Therefore, our system aims at reducing latency during every step of the process, from capture, through processing, to projection. Using infrared illumination, an optically and computationally aligned high‐speed camera detects facial orientation as well as expression. The estimated expression blendshapes are mapped onto a lower dimensional space, and the facial motion and non‐rigid deformation are estimated, smoothed and predicted through adaptive Kalman filtering. Finally, the desired appearance is generated interpolating precomputed offset textures according to time, global position, and expression. We have evaluated our system through an optimized CPU and GPU prototype, and demonstrated successful low latency augmentation for different performers and performances with varying facial play and motion speed. In contrast to existing methods, the presented system is the first method which fully supports dynamic facial projection mapping without the requirement of any physical tracking markers and incorporates facial expressions.


Carbon nanoparticles (C-NPs) are novel and competitive luminescent materials both in academic research and practical applications owing to their environment-friendly behavior and high abundance on Earth. Despite the successes in preparing strongly luminescent C-NPs, preserving the luminescence in solid materials is still challenging. With the aim to produce C-NP-based white-light-emitting diodes (WLEDs), in this work, solvent-dispersible C-NPs are embedded into commercial silica gel via a dual solvent evaporation route. The basic idea is to lower the evaporation rate of the solvents, thus leading to a good dispersion of the C-NPs in the silica gel. This method avoids the aggregation-induced emission quenching of C-NPs in solid materials, and therefore preserves the strong luminescence in the C-NPs/silica gel composites. The composites are further blended with polydimethylsiloxane and act as the color conversion layer on InGaN UV-blue emitting chips, which produces LEDs with a bright white emission.


BACKGROUND
'Candidatus Mycoplasma turicensis' (CMtc) is a hemotrophic bacterial species that can, alone or in combination, induce anemia in cats. The diagnostic test of choice for hemoplasma infections is PCR. Conventional PCR assays have been developed for the detection of Mycoplasma haemofelis (Mhf) and 'Candidatus M. haemominutum' (CMhm) but not for CMtc. Although real-time PCR assays have been reported for all of the feline hemoplasmas, the expense of necessary instrumentation precludes its use in Brazil and many other countries.

OBJECTIVES
The goals of this study were to develop and optimize a conventional PCR assay to diagnose CMtc using an internal control to detect false-negative results, and to evaluate the occurrence of CMtc infection in domestic cats from Brazil.

METHODS
Species-specific primers were designed and a PCR assay was developed for the detection of CMtc 16S rDNA in cat blood. Sensitivity was determined by serial 10-fold dilutions of plasmid and DNA extracted from blood from an experimentally infected cat. EDTA blood samples from 373 cats were collected. DNA was extracted using a silica-based protocol and tested using the PCR assay.

RESULTS
Primer concentration, annealing temperature, and MgCl(2) concentration were optimized in the presence and absence of the internal control. Two samples negative for the internal control were excluded. Of the remaining 371 samples (117 healthy and 254 unhealthy cats), 17 (4.6%) were positive for CMtc.

CONCLUSION
These results demonstrate the utility of an optimized PCR assay to detect CMtc in feline blood samples. We also report for the first time the prevalence of CMtc infection in domestic cats in Brazil.


In the South, one can find any number of bronze monuments to the Confederacy featuring heroic images of Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, J. E. B. Stuart, and many lesser commanders. But while the tarnish on such statues has done nothing to color the reputation of those great leaders, there remains one Confederate commander whose tarnished image has nothing to do with bronze monuments. Nowhere in the South does a memorial stand to Lee's intimate friend and second-in-command James Longstreet.In "Lee's Tarnished Lieutenant," William Garrett Piston examines the life of James Longstreet and explains how a man so revered during the course of the war could fall from grace so swiftly and completely. Unlike other generals in gray whose deeds are familiar to southerners and northerners alike, Longstreet has the image not of a hero but of an incompetent who lost the Battle of Gettysburg and, by extension, the war itself. Piston's reappraisal of the general's military record establishes Longstreet as an energetic corps commander with an unsurpassed ability to direct troops in combat, as a trustworthy subordinate willing to place the war effort above personal ambition. He made mistakes, but Piston shows that he did not commit the grave errors at Gettysburg and elsewhere of which he was so often accused after the war.In discussing Longstreet's postwar fate, Piston analyzes the literature and public events of the time to show how the southern people, in reaction to defeat, evolved an image of themselves which bore little resemblance to reality. As a product of the Georgia backwoods, Longstreet failed to meet the popular cavalier image embodied by Lee, Stuart, and other Confederate heroes. When he joined the Republican party during Reconstruction, Longstreet forfeited his wartime reputation and quickly became a convenient target for those anxious to explain how a "superior people" could have lost the war. His new role as the villain of the Lost Cause was solidified by his own postwar writings. Embittered by years of social ostracism resulting from his Republican affiliation, resentful of the orchestrated deification of Lee and Stonewall Jackson, Longstreet exaggerated his own accomplishments and displayed a vanity that further alienated an already offended southern populace.Beneath the layers of invective and vilification remains a general whose military record has been badly maligned. "Lee's Tarnished Lieutenant" explains how this reputation developed--how James Longstreet became, in the years after Appomattox, the scapegoat for the South's defeat, a Judas for the new religion of the Lost Cause.


Climate change is likely to trigger abrupt and potentially persistent changes in the structure and function of marine ecosystems. Such 'regime shifts' threaten the livelihoods of millions of people reliant on small-scale fisheries. Yet, it is largely unknown how resource users cope with regime shifts, their uncertainty, and impacts. Here, we assess the potential for local collective action to avert uncertain, yet catastrophic, regime shifts. We conducted behavioural economic experiments with small-scale fishers (n=256) using a framed, dynamic common-pool resource game to test the effect of different degrees of uncertainty about the presence of climate-induced thresholds on exploitation patterns. Results from four communities in the Colombian Caribbean show that groups facing uncertain thresholds are likely to adapt in the sense that they sustain higher stock levels in order to avoid a regime shift. However, catch inequalities in the game, and community-level attributes appear to mitigate or even eliminate this effect; illustrating the critical role contexts play for behaviour. Our results suggest a more positive outlook regarding the inherent uncertainties of climate change compared to experimental evidence overwhelmingly proposing a negative relationship between uncertainty, collective action, and sustainable resource use. Instead, we conclude that in certain circumstances uncertainty can help protect the commons.


STAGE AND SCREEN Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical. By Stacy Wolf. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. [306 p. ISBN 9780195378238 (hardcover), $99; ISBN 9780195378245 (paperback), $24.95.] Photographs, bibliography, index. As academics, we occasionally have those precious moments when we encounter scholarly works that inspire us toward new thoughts and research directions. We experience an "Aha!" moment as we read a book or article that brings to light observations we ourselves have sensed, yet never fully formulated, ideas that resonate with the impulses and motivations rooted in our minds. As a young graduate student drawn to intersections between queer histories and musical theater studies, one of those rare instances occurred when I first picked up Stacy Wolf's A Problem Like Maria: Gender and Sexuality in the American Musical (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2002). A Problem Like Maria presents multi-layered interpretations of iconic female performers and characters from American musicals, interpretations that demonstrate how these performances subvert conventional gender roles and thus reach queer audiences. With her newest publication, Changed for Good, Wolf continues this project begun in A Problem Like Maria, in which she traces female characters' and performers' importance in musical theater. Wolf's history is impressively broad in scope; it chronicles roughly sixty years of American musical theater history (from the 1950s to today), and discusses about twenty shows in depth. Each chapter focuses on theatrical or musical conventions (e.g., female duets, the "eleven o'clock number"), "that bubbled to the surface at [a specific moment in] time" (p. 19). Detailed readings of shows elucidate the convention and its significance to American musical theater history. Additionally, Wolf grounds chapters in historical moments by considering cultural issues relevant to each period (such as the backlash to feminism in the 1980s). Through this combination of feminist American and musical theater histories, Wolf demonstrates how "changes in the genre of the musical are intertwined with changes in women's roles and activities in U.S. culture" (p. 19). In other words, we can read the Broadway musical as a cultural product directly influenced by the historical trajectory of American women. Wolf's chronicle begins with the 1950s, thus opening this feminist history in an era distinctly lacking in organized feminist movements. Within 1950s musicals such as Wonderful Town and Guys and Dolls, she categorizes the female duet as either "collaborative" or "pedagogical." She elaborates how these duets effectively disrupt the musicals' "heterosexual project," which prizes heterosexual relationships/unions in their narrative and structure (p. 27). Her reading of West Side Story and Anita and Maria's duet "A Boy Like That / I Have a Love" illustrates the transformative, homosocial power of the female duet. Following this reinterpretation of 1950s musicals, Wolf launches into the 1960s, focusing on mid-decade musicals like Mame and Cabaret. Wolf explains that these musicals' protagonists can be seen as variations on the 1960s "single girl," an employed, independent, sexually active woman who- despite her current single-hood-looks towards an ultimate marriage (p. 59). This section of Changed for Good stands out in musical theater scholarship for its blend of evidence. Wolf merges musical and dramatic readings with accounts of characters' physicality to demonstrate how these musicals, which, though they may narratively punish women, still present female characters whom audiences may view as powerful through the performances of the character/ actor (a duality that she parses well). For example, while the title character of Sweet Charity is quite literally thrown into a lake (twice!) by men, her character nonetheless emerges as powerful through the actor's impressive singing and dancing throughout the show. …


The present study focuses on the role of information technology in blood safety policies. In order to reach to higher levels of blood safety we have to put our maximum force in the recruitment of safe blood donors via public education. Innovative use of mass media in recruitment of blood donors especially the youth and those of higher education level and disseminating the basic information about blood donation can be our success key. There is an urgent need to find new ways of recruiting blood donors rather than traditional methods of donor education. Effectiveness of internet based educational intervention in other disciplines of health has already been proven; however, few researches exist concerning internet application for online recruitment of safe blood donors. Finally, internet users' population and blood donors are similar in many aspects of their socio-demographic determinants and it is reasonable to deduce that online education and dissemination of knowledge of safe blood donation can be considered an efficient modus of recruitment of voluntary non-remunerated blood donors.


This study compared the mathematics performance of 434 second-, third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade students to previously reported fluency and accuracy criteria using three categories of performance (frustration, instructional, and mastery). Psychometric properties of the fluency and accuracy criteria were explored and new criteria for the instructional level were empirically derived. Two sets of mathematics probes were administered to the students and delayed alternate-form reliability coefficients were obtained from multiskill probes. Results suggested that fluency data were significantly more reliable than accuracy data. Slopes from the single-skill probes were used to categorize students as high responders, and the mean fluency scores from that group's multiskill probes were used to suggest an alternative instructional level of 14-31 digits correct per minute for second- and third-graders and 24-49 digits correct per minute for fourth- and fifth-graders. Implications for practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.


This study presents the peculiarities that occur during the hydrothermal synthesis of 1.13 nm tobermorite from granite sawing powder waste and CaO. The molar ratios of the primary mixtures were CaO/SiO2 = 0.83 and 1.0; a hydrothermal curing temperature of 180 and 200 °C; a duration of 4, 8, 12, 24, 72 h. The instrumental analyses (XRD, STA, SEM, TMA) data showed that this industrial by-product is a suitable material to synthesise of 1.13 nm tobermorite. Traces of the aforementioned mineral together with semi-amorphous C–S–H(I) were detected after 4 h at 180 °C. The crystallinity of the target mineral in the products grows steadily throughout the entire duration of the synthesis (up to 72 h at 180 °C). By increasing the temperature of the hydrothermal curing to 200 °C, the highest crystallinity of the 1.13 nm tobermorite was identified after 8 h of isothermal curing. Due to the chemical composition of the granite sawing powder waste, the 1.13 nm tobermorite remains stable and does not recrystallise into xonotlite even after 72 h at 200 °C in mixtures with CaO/SiO2 = 1.0.


Software defined networking (SDN) provides a centralized control framework with real-time control of network components, residential customer routers in particular, that allows automated per-user bandwidth allocation. However, employing dynamic traffic shaping for efficient bandwidth utilization among residential users is a challenging task. In this context, understanding application usage requirements for each individual user and translating them into network policies requires expertise beyond most residential users. This paper proposes a user-centric traffic optimization scheme by profiling users based on their application trends recorded using generic NetFlow records, in order to provide a better view of per user utilization. We also propose an SDN traffic monitoring and management application for implementing Linux-based hierarchical token bucket (HTB) queues customized for individual user profiles in real-time, according to user-defined priorities. The traffic management scheme scales well under both upstream and downstream network congestion by dynamically allocating dedicated bandwidth to users based on their profile priority, resulting in a decreased packet loss and latency for a selected set of high priority users.


Unicef Innocenti's latest comparative overview of child well-being in rich countries looks like good news for the UK. We have risen up the ranks, now reaching 16th place among 29 countries.1 This mediocre position is worthy of celebration because Unicef's previous report in 2007 was shocking: our overall position was lowest among 21 rich countries.2 We shared this lamentable place with the USA. Indeed many newspaper headlines reflected the recent progress, albeit with one or two examples of scepticism about the notion of measuring child well-being. Children's health policy and systems research has not yet proven its worth to all in the health community, which is trained to believe that the randomised controlled trial is the gold standard of evidence. So it is good to see arguments around this new and important research field, still defining new methods and standards, reaching beyond medical journals to the mainstream press.3

Although ranking countries by health system performance, or any other outcome, can be controversial and often stimulates heated arguments, it effectively focuses attention onto important issues. Indeed the 2007 report provoked debate about important problems for children and families, and crucially prompted investment and research. Unicef UK, for example, enquired further into why children in this country experience such strikingly low well-being, while some children from countries with less economic security have a greater sense of well-being.4 One explanation to this finding lies in the damaging effects of inequality.5 Governments can act to reduce poverty and inequalities directly through redistributive fiscal policy, benefitting those who are most at-risk. However, there is even more that could be done to help children. The harsh effects of poverty can be softened through social protection. For example, Sweden has lower child deprivation rates than other countries of similar wealth (as measured …


This paper aims to unravel the interlacing of learning theories and media theories in order to map out how the link between digital culture and open education has been argued in related research and scholarship. Taking into account evolving trends and trajectories in the fields of digital networked technology and education since the 1990s, it argues for the multiple articulations of mediation as a core component in competing discourses about competence formation. These are centred on three evolving and interrelated trends: a) the increased emphasis on computer mediated communication and collaboration as shapers of meaning and improvement; b) the introduction of media logics in particular fields and domains of education; and c) datafication and metrics as means of both self-organization or management and cross-promotional strategies. While several scholars within critical media literacy traditions and critical educational technology have dealt with evolving trends in technology and competing discourses as writing passage from the information to data-driven society, developing a fuller sense of these trajectories can enable us to chart out interconnected threads of power, conflict and subversion that frame learning as a competitive endeavour and reconfigure the expansion of education in broader areas of society.


This revealing and challenging study of the impact of famine on North Korea not only significantly enlarges our understanding of that hermetic country but also urges us to reassess how we deal with it.Drawing on impressive scholarship and extensive firsthand knowledge of humanitarian relief efforts in North Korea, Hazel Smith provides an eye-opening account of the famine that devastated the country in the 1990s and of the international rescue program that Pyongyang requested and received. Together, she explains, the famine and the humanitarian response have wrought subtle but profound changes in North Korea's economy, society, and security outlook. She makes a compelling argument that the regime has been prodded into accepting some international norms, allowed markets to develop, and has included some human security concerns alongside military-political interests in its negotiations with the West.The famine and its consequences, the author contends, have made North Korea much more "knowable" and predictable than most Western experts choose to believe. Treating North Korea as a rational actor, albeit one with an idiosyncratic mindset, will enhance long-term regional peace and cooperation; isolating and demonizing it will only perpetuate the anxieties that fuel Pyongyang's belligerence.


The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of participation in a school-to-work transition program on self-determination of young adults diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Five young adults between the ages of 18 and 22 with a diagnosis of ASD were the focus of the study. The young adults participated in a university-based Project SEARCH (PS) school-to-work transition program. The program provided the students with internship opportunities in custodial service, food service, laundry service, computer and technology lab, and office administration. A basic qualitative research design was used to examine the experiences of the five students in PS. Field observations, interviews, and archival program documents were used as data sources for the study. PS staff members, internship supervisors and mentors, and parents/guardians of the young adults and the students were interviewed. Grounded theory techniques were employed to develop four major categories from the data. The categories covered the data in exhaustive ways that describe and explain changes in self-determination and factors that influence it. Results of the study showed evidence of positive changes in specific aspects of selfdetermination. Self-determination was supported by environmental contexts and deliberate efforts that aimed to enhance student capacity to act self-determined. Self-determination was undermined by factors that hindered opportunities for students to maximize learning of new skills. Unique to this study, findings suggest that, changes in routines and setting undermined the students' capacity to demonstrate autonomy or behavior and emotional regulation. Limitations and suggestions for future research are also presented. SELF-DETERMINATION OF YOUNG ADULTS WITH ASD 2


A beneficial "microenvironment effect" on the efficiency of confined electrocatalysts is predicted by theory. However, examples of its experimental confirmation are scarce for catalysts based on polyoxometalates for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). For this purpose, the cyclic 48-tungsto-8-phosphate [H7P8W48O184](33) (P8W48) was fixed in a 3D configuration on reduced graphene oxide sheets (rGO) to boost its HER activity. The HRTEM imaging and the solid state P-31 NMR spectrum of P8W48/rGO reveal a strong interaction between individual P8W48 and transparent rGO sheets. The calculation of the interaction between P8W48 and graphene (G) sheets is difficult to perform within a reasonable period of time because of the large size and very high overall negative charge of P8W48. However, as P8W48 is symmetrical, a quarter of its structure [H2P2W12O48](12-) (P2W12) was extracted as a DFT calculation model. As P8W48 in P8W48/rGO is neutral, due to surrounding counter cations, the calculation model P2W12 is neutral with protons considering the affordable computational time. The adsorption energy for P2W12 on G (-1.55 eV) and the charge transfer between P2W12 and G (0.66 vertical bar e vertical bar) indicate that a strong interaction between P2W12 and G sheets exists. Kinetic studies show that the P8W48/rGO hybrids display excellent HER activity in acid, further confirmed by reproducible generation of hydrogen with quantitative faradaic yield and a high turnover frequency (11 s(-1) at 295 mV overpotential) for a noble metal-free electrocatalyst. Importantly, the overpotentials required for the HER compare well with those of the commercial Pt/C (20 wt% Pt), which indicates that P8W48/rGO is a promising cheap HER electrocatalyst. We demonstrate here the most convincing experimental evidence of the "microenvironment effect" on HER electrocatalysis by a polyoxometalate.


This Article on "intrapreneurship" has several goals. First, it points out that while much of the legal literature on innovation is concerned with startups (entrepreneurship), the innovation that takes place inside our largest corporations (intrapreneurship) is substantial, important, and understudied. Second, the piece observes that while large technology corporations that used to be startups may remain intrapreneurial in culture, intrapreneurship is less common in the aggregate than we might expect. Reasons include organizational bureaucracy, laws favoring entrepreneurship, and what Clayton Christensen (Harvard Business School) calls "the innovator's dilemma." The innovator's dilemma is, put simply, that good management causes large corporations to please existing customers with new and improved products at the expense of cultivating disruptive innovations that could replace those products altogether. Third, the Article detours to corporate law, which might, as a descriptive matter, play at the margins of the innovator's dilemma and the entrepreneurial/intrapreneurial balance. Finally, the Article explores a hybrid approach — corporate venture capital — that combines entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial advantages. In corporate venture capital, a large corporation's venture arm can invest in promising startups, and thus share in disruptive gains, without having to overcome obstacles to developing those projects internally.


Flavonoid consumption is often correlated with a wide range of health effects, such as the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, and diabetes. These effects are usually ascribed to the activity of the parent flavonoid aglycones, even though these forms of the flavonoids generally have a low systemic bioavailability. During uptake, flavonoids undergo phase II metabolism and are present in the systemic circulation nearly exclusively as conjugated metabolites. The aim of this thesis was to study the effect of conjugation on the biological activity of selected flavonoids towards different endpoints relevant for human health. To this end, conjugation with glucuronic acid was taken as the model type of conjugation because this modification is generally observed to be the most important metabolic conjugation reaction for flavonoids in man. A review of scientific literature published until early 2012 reveals that metabolic conjugation can affect the biological activity of flavonoids in different ways. Conjugation can increase, decrease, inverse or not affect the biological activity, depending on the flavonoid, the type and position of conjugation, the endpoint studied, and the assay system used. Based on the literature reviewed it is concluded that the effect of conjugation has to be studied on a case-by-case basis. As the research on the biological activity of biologically relevant flavonoid conjugates is often hampered by the generally low commercial availability and high prices of these conjugates, a simple and versatile method for the biosynthesis of metabolically relevant flavonoid conjugates is described. Using this method, relevant conjugates can be prepared from different flavonoid substrates in sufficient quantities for in vitro bioassays. Further, an efficient strategy for the identification of these flavonoid conjugates by LC-MS and 1H-NMR using MetIDB (Metabolite Identification Database), a publicly accessible database of predicted and experimental 1H-NMR spectra of flavonoids, is presented. To study the effect of conjugation on the biological activities of flavonoids, several different assay systems and endpoints were used to study the activity of different flavonoids and their conjugates. The effects of quercetin, kaempferol, and their main plasma conjugates quercetin-3-O-glucuronide and kaempferol-3-O-glucuronide (K-3G) on different endpoints related to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-γ were studied. PPAR-γ activation is reported to have positive health effects related to adipogenesis, insulin resistance and inflammation. The presented results show that the flavonoid aglycones increased PPAR-γ mediated gene expression in a stably transfected reporter gene cell line, and that glucuronidation diminished this effect. These observed increases in reporter gene expression were accompanied by increased PPAR-γ receptor-mRNA expression upon exposure to kaempferol, an effect that was also reduced by glucuronidation. Using the cell-free Microarray Assay for Real-time Coregulator-Nuclear receptor Interaction (MARCoNI) it was demonstrated that, unlike the known PPAR-γ agonist rosiglitazone, neither the flavonoid aglycones nor the conjugates are agonistic ligands of the PPAR-γ receptor. Supporting the hypothesis that the tested compounds have a different mode of action from normal LBD agonism, quercetin appeared to synergistically increase the effect of rosiglitazone in the reporter gene assay. The modes of action behind the observed effects remain to be elucidated and might include effects on protein kinase activities affecting expression of the PPAR-γ receptor, or posttranscriptional modifications of PPAR-γ. Another type of nuclear receptor known to be targeted by certain flavonoids are the estrogen receptor (ER)α- and ERβ. ERs are the main targets of estrogenic compounds, and upon their activation different transcriptional responses with opposite effects on cell proliferation and apoptosis are elicited; ERα activation stimulates cell proliferation, while ERβ activation causes apoptosis and reduces ERα mediated induction of cell proliferation. Using the MARCoNI assay, the intrinsic estrogenic effects of the two main dietary isoflavones daidzein and genistein, and their plasma conjugates daidzein-7-O-glucuronide and genistein-7-O-glucuronide on the ligand induced coregulator binding of ERα- and ERβ-LBD were studied and compared to the effect of the positive control 17β-estradiol (E2). The results show that the tested isoflavone compounds are less potent agonists of ERα- and ERβ-LBD than E2, although they modulate the LBD-coregulator interactions in a manner similar to E2. Genistein is shown to be a more potent agonist than daidzein for both receptor subtypes. While in the MARCoNI assay genistein had a strong preference for ERβ-LBD activation over ERα-LBD activation, daidzein had a slight preference for ERα-LBD activation over ERβ-LBD activation. Glucuronidation reduced the intrinsic agonistic activities of both daidzein and genistein to induce ERα-LBD and ERβ-LBD - coregulator interactions and increased their average half maximal effective concentrations (EC50s) by 8 to 4,400 times. The results presented further show that glucuronidation changed the preferential activation of genistein from ERβ-LBD to ERα-LBD and increased the preferential activation of daidzein for ERα-LBD; this is of special interest given that ERβ activation, which is counteracting the possible adverse effects of ERα activation, is considered one of the supposedly beneficial modes of action of isoflavones. Many flavonoids are reported to be inhibitors of protein kinases. To study the effect of conjugation on the inhibition of serine/threonine protein kinases by flavonoids, kaempferol and its main plasma conjugate K-3G were selected as model compounds. Protein kinases are involved in a wide range of physiological processes by controlling signaling cascades and regulating protein functions; modulation of their activities can have a wide range of biological effects. The inhibitory effects of kaempferol, K-3G, and the broad-specificity protein kinase inhibitor staurosporine on the phosphorylation activity of recombinant protein kinase A (PKA) and of a lysate prepared from the hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2 were studied using a microarray platform that determines the phosphorylation of 141 putative serine/threonine phosphorylation sites derived from human proteins. The results reveal that glucuronidation reduces the intrinsic potency of kaempferol to inhibit the phosphorylation activity of PKA and HepG2 lysate on average about 16 and 3.5 times, respectively. It is shown that the inhibitory activity of K-3G in the experiments conducted was not caused by deconjugation to the aglycone. Furthermore, the results show that kaempferol and K-3G, unlike the broad-specificity protein kinase inhibitor staurosporine, did not appear to inhibit all protein kinases present in the HepG2 lysate to a similar extent, indicating that kaempferol selectively targets protein kinases, a characteristic that appeared not to be affected by glucuronidation. The fact that K-3G appeared to be only a few times less potent than kaempferol implies that K-3G does not necessarily need to be deconjugated to the aglycone to exert potential inhibitory effects on protein kinases. The results obtained in the present thesis support the conclusion that glucuronidation of flavonoids does not necessarily abolish their activity and that flavonoid glucuronides may be biologically active themselves, albeit at higher concentrations than the parent aglycones. In line with the conclusions from the earlier literature review, an updated literature review on the effect of conjugation on the biological activity of flavonoids concludes that that the effect of conjugation on the biological activity of flavonoids depends on the type and position of conjugation, the endpoint studied and the assay system used. Based on the results described and the literature reviewed in this thesis, several recommendations and perspectives for future research are formulated. Several methodological considerations are formulated that need to be taken into account when studying the biological activity of flavonoids and their conjugates to avoid confounding results. Further, the relevance of the gut microbiome for flavonoid bioactivity is highlighted, and considerations regarding the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of flavonoids in vivo are formulated. Altogether, it can be concluded that circulating flavonoid conjugates may exert biological activities themselves, and that understanding these is a prerequisite to successfully elucidate the mechanisms of action behind the biological activities linked to flavonoid consumption.


The Harnessing Opportunities for Productivity Enhancement (HOPE) project was based on a market-led Theory of Change in which farmers adopted new technology for sorghum and millets in response to market demand. This Theory of Change was tested using panel survey data for 360 farm households in central Tanzania covering the crop seasons 2009/10 and 2011/12. Because improved varieties of finger millet were unavailable in 2009, the analysis focused primarily on sorghum. Propensity score matching was used to obtain a matched sample of treatment and control households, which were compared to estimate the unconditional impact of the project, augmented by regression analysis using the matched samples to obtain robust results. HOPE significantly increased the probability of knowing at least one improved sorghum variety by 9.5 %, and the share of farmers adopting improved varieties of sorghum by 13.2 %. However, HOPE had no significant positive impact on the area, yield, and output of sorghum, or improve farmers' technical efficiency in producing sorghum. HOPE did not increase the use of commercial channels for the supply of improved seed. Finally, HOPE increased neither the commercialization of sorghum, which remained primarily a food crop, nor of finger millet, which was already a cash crop before the start of the project. These findings show that enhancing productivity for dryland cereals requires not just improved varieties but also improved crop management, and that adoption of improved varieties is not driven exclusively by market demand but by the need for household food security. These findings also challenge the relevance of a universal Theory of Change for dryland cereals in Eastern and Southern Africa. Finally, they highlight the need for a revised Theory of Change that reflects the diversity of farmers' objectives in growing these crops and of market opportunities within the region.


In 1983, the excavation of the ancient city of Caere near Rome, which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, led to the unearthing of an underground sanctuary dating from the early third century bc. Known as the 'Hypogaeum of Clepsina', it consists of an underground room decorated with frescoes, drawings and inscriptions. The initiation of a new excavation campaign at Caere in 2012 provided the opportunity to study this rare example of Etruscan wall paintings of a non-sepulchral nature from the Hellenistic era. The paintings were documented, photographed and samples were removed for analysis using a combination of scientific techniques. The observation that at least some of the painting was done on wet plaster supports the conclusion that the frescos are contemporaneous to the plastering of the walls in the hypogaeum in approximately 273 bc. The plaster is lime-based and aggregate materials include potassium feldspar, clinopyroxene, quartz, hematite and magnetite. No organic binding medium was identified in the paint, suggesting a lime water binder. Paint materials identified are Egyptian blue, red iron oxide (hematite), yellow iron oxide (goethite), charcoal black, quartz, silicates and calcite. All the paint samples show a mineral accretion layer at the upper surface, caused by recrystallization of salts.


The phase shifts of the extinction and refractive index gratings to the illumination pattern are revealed in doped polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). The dynamic process of these shifts is studied via two-wave coupling at 351 nm. It is shown that these shifts are from the strain and the shrinkage inside the sample and accompanied with the photo-repolymerization process during the building process of the holographic grating. Such shifts will cause obvious energy exchange between the two recording beams and enough attention should be paid to the nonlocal property of the holographic gratings of the material in the application.


A complete thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) life prediction methodology is developed for predicting the TMF life of cast iron cylinder heads for efficient heavy duty internal combustion engines. The methodology uses transient temperature fields as thermal loads for the non-linear structural finite-element analysis (FEA). To obtain reliable stress and strain histories in the FEA for cast iron materials, a time and temperature dependent plasticity model which accounts for viscous effects, non-linear kinematic hardening and tensioncompression asymmetry is required. For this purpose a unified elasto-viscoplastic Chaboche model coupled with damage is developed and implemented as a user material model (USERMAT) in the general purpose FEA program ANSYS. In addition, the mechanismbased DTMF model for TMF life prediction developed in Part I of the paper is extended to three-dimensional stress states under transient non-proportional loading conditions. The material properties of the plasticity model are determined for lamellar graphite cast iron GJL250 and vermicular graphite cast iron GJV450 from isothermal and non-isothermal uniaxial tests. The methodology is applied to obtain a TMF life prediction on two cast iron cylinder heads for heavy duty diesel engine applications made from both cast iron materials. It is shown that the life predictions using the developed methodology correlate very well with observed lives from two bench tests in terms of location as well as number of cycles to failure.


A major function of respiratory tract (RT) epithelial cells is the maintenance of unobstructed airways, a goal achieved by mucociliary clearance. Ciliary activity provides the driving force for mucus propulsion, but the nature of the stimulus-response coupling that regulates ciliary beat frequency is not well understood. The possibility that mechanical interaction between the mucus and ciliated cell may act as a specific control signal was evaluated by examining the effect of mechanical stimulation on cultured RT cells while monitoring ciliary beat frequency with a photoelectronic technique.1 Mechanical stimulation of the apical surface of a single ciliated cell in culture with a glass microprobe elevated the ciliary beat frequency, not only of the stimulated cell, but also of adjacent cells. This resulted in a wave of increased beat frequency spreading across the culture.2,3 The increase in beat frequency of each cell occurred after a lag-phase that was proportional to the distance of the cell from the stimulated cell. Stimulation of a nonciliated cell also initiated an increase in beat frequency of adjacent ciliated cells. Preliminary evidence suggested that these responses were mediated by elevations in [Ca2+]i.2 Consequendy, video imaging techniques were used to monitor the fluorescence of the Ca2+-specific dye fura-2 to quantitate the spatial-temporal changes in [Ca2+]i.4 A single mechanical stimulus to either a ciliated or nonciliated cell immediately induced an increase in [Ca2+]i at the site of contact that then spread throughout the cell. After a short delay of about 0.5 s, a wave of increasing [Ca2+]i occurred in adjacent cells, spreading from one end of the cell to the other. This increase in [Ca2+], or Ca2+ wave, continued to spread through the cell culture in a cell-by-cell manner travelling across 4 to 7 cells in all directions (Fig 1, a). The increase in [Ca2+]i was correlated with, but always preceded, the increase in ciliary beat frequency.


As the growth in complexity of avionic systems continues, development costs and schedules have correspondingly increased dramatically. Systems engineering tools and methods have not sufficiently adapted to the demands of today's complex systems and as a result avionic systems typically field late, over budget, and often with reduced capabilities. The status quo for systems and software engineering tools, methods and processes is no longer affordable. Architecture-Driven Assurance is model-based systems engineering (MBSE) development approach for constructing reliable and secure systems using engineering models. The objective of the architecture-driven assurance methodology is to ensure that cyber-resilient, functionally correct, verifiably safe components can be rapidly developed, integrated and verified. The approach integrates compositional reasoning into the engineering workflow utilizing system models and formalized descriptions of system behaviors. The models are translated into a form that can be interpreted by powerful formal methods based general-purpose analysis engines. Rockwell Collins has created an integrated development environment that supports the architecture-driven assurance concepts integrated into a systems engineering workflow.


When male rats were injected four times (once every 2 hr) with 5 mg/kg methamphetamine (METH) at an environmental temperature of 23 degrees C, transient changes occurred in the levels of striatal dopamine (DA) and the regulation of striatal DA release. Striatal DA levels were minimally affected 1 day after METH treatment, but 3 days after METH treatment, striatal DA levels decreased to approximately 40% of control. DA levels returned to 70% of control 2 weeks after METH. Similarly, striatal tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity decreased to approximately 50% of control activity 3 days after METH treatment at 23 degrees C, but did not differ from controls at 1 or 14 days after METH treatment. No changes in striatal DA levels were observed in rats treated with four doses of 5 mg/kg METH at an environmental temperature of 4 degrees C. Striatal DA levels decreased modestly to approximately 70% of controls 3 days after treatment with four doses of 10 mg/kg METH at 4 degrees C, but DA levels returned to control levels 14 days after METH treatment. Furthermore, striatal TH activity was not affected by 10 mg/kg METH at 4 degrees C. Thus, a cold environmental temperature (4 degrees C) reduced the effects of METH on striatal DA levels and striatal TH activity. Changes in the presynaptic regulation of DA release after either 5 mg/kg (23 degrees C) or 10 mg/kg (4 degrees C) METH treatment were determined in vitro using striatal slices.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


A detailed study of the cuticular structures of the oesophagus, crop, proventriculus, stomodaeal valve, first proctodaeal segment, enteric valve, paunch, colon, rectal valve and rectum of the lower termite genera belonging to the families Mastotermitidae, Kalotermitidae, Termopsidae, Hodotermitidae and Rhinotermitidae has been made.

The cuticular structures lining the alimentary canal of termites provide a highly reliable character in identifying termite genera and higher taxa and in establishing their phylo genetic relationships. In some cases it is possible to identify even species. No single character has hitherto proved as useful as the cuticular ornamentation of the alimentary canal in the generic recognition of termites. The imago worker mandibles used by Ahmad (1950) for study of termite Phylogeny do not show such a wide array of size, shape, type and arrangement as do the cuticular structures of the alimentary canal. While it is possible to identify many genera on the basis of imago-worker mandibles, in some cases, however, only generic grouping can be done using this character (Ahmad, 1950). On the other hand all the genera included in the present study are recognizable on the basis of the cuticular structures lining the alimentary canal.

The comparative study of the cuticular structures present in the oesophagus, crop, proventriculus, first proctodaeal segment, enteric valve and rectal valve shows that the ornamentation in each part of the alimentary canal has its own level of importance in termite taxonomy. The armature of the oesophagus, crop, proventriculus and rectal valve is of value in the recognition of families although in some cases it can also help in the identificat ion of lower taxa.

The armature of the first proctodaeal segment and enteric valve is much important than the ornamentation of any other portion of the alimentary canal for study of taxonomy and phylogeny of termites. It provides a set of characters demarkating each genus and, in some cases, species also. On the basis of which a key to the families and genera is produced.

The cuticular structures lining the alimentary canal of termites, particularly in the region of the first proctodaeal segment and enteric value, has been found to be very helpful in unstanding termite phylogeny (Grasse and Noirot, 1954; Ahmad,1976. 1963,Sands,1972; Ahmad and Akhter, 1981). Their conservative nature is further revealed by the present study.

The phylogenetic relationships of lower termites established as a result of the present study generally lend support to most of the studies made by earlier workers. In some cases, however, new relationships are indicated.

The position of the family Mastotermitidae in the Isoptera as determined by earlier workers is supported by the present study also. The phylogenetic scheme of the family Kalotermitidae worked out on the basis of the cuticular ornamentation of the alimentary canal, however, shows several important differences from the phylogenetic study of Krishna (1961).

The findings of the present study are more in agreement with Grasse (1949) in regard to the status of the genera Hodotermes, Microhodotermes, Anacanthetermes, Archotermopsis, Zootermopsis, Porotermes and Stolotermes. Based on the cuticular ornamentation of the alimentary canal, these genera fall in two distinct groups, one represented by Archotermopsis, Zootermopsis, Stolotermes and Porotermes and the other by Hodotermes, Microhodotermes and Anacantho termes. According to the present study also, the two groups should have the status of families, Termopsidae and Hodotermitidae, as suggested by Grasse (1949).

The origin of Rhinotermitidae from a stock which had imago worker mandibles conforming to Archotermopsis-Stolotermes type as suggested by Ahmad (1950), Emerson (1968, 1971) and Emerson and Krishna (1975) is also supported by the present study. According to the characteristics of the cuticular ornamentation of the alimentary canal also, the rhinotermitid genera can be put into two groups, representing the two main branches of the phylogenetic tree as suggested by Ahmad (1950), First group includes the genera of the Rhinotermitinae and the second the genera belonging to other subfamilies of Rhinotermitidae.

The assignment of the genus Prorhinotermes to its proper place is still prob1ematic. The earlier worker (Ahmad 1950, Emerson 1971), Emerson and Krishna 1975 also reported that Prorhinotermes shared characters of the both groups but on the basis of then existing knowledge, they preferred to treat it as a member of the subfamily Rhinotermitinae. The present study, however, indicates its greater affinity with the second group, I am therefore putting it on the second main branch and assign to a new subfamily, Prorhinotermitinae. The present comparative study of the cuticular ornamentation lining the alimentary canal of termites shows that some of the characters have regressed while some have more advanced during the course of evolution.


ABSTRACT Networks of organizations involved in public policy implementation require strong interaction, concerted action and high degrees of collaboration to be effective. However, little is known about how different types of organizations involved in implementation of multi-sectoral social policies interact in these networks. In this article the relationship between organizational characteristics and network position is explored, as well as how the intensity of collaborations can also determine organizations' involvement in networks. The nature of funding (public/private) and the remit of activity of organizations are found to determine their influence and importance in social policy networks. Furthermore, the network position of the organizations also depends on the level of intensity of their interactions. These results can guide public administrators when developing and promoting networks to involve a particular type of actor and also policymakers as to which types of ties are more aligned with the implementation of a particular policy.


Knowledge and innovations are the most significant source of changes and constitute the basis for the establishment of a modern, knowledge-based society. A knowledge-based economy ensures an efficient transfer and creation of new knowledge, and provides favourable conditions for an effective commercialization of innovations, which altogether alters the nature and the speed of knowledge and innovation development.
Innovativeness makes a profound impact on the level of development and the future development of enterprises, economy, and a society in general. Innovative SME are the most dynamic, flexible, and efficient segment of a modern economy; they propel the growth of competitiveness, new employment, and overall economic development. New as well as already operating innovative SME take the place of less efficient enterprises and boost productivity and competitiveness of economy. These enterprises act as a major source of knowledge that is the most important factor in development of innovations. Within the SME sector there is a comparatively small number of highly innovative SME that boast considerable potential for growth and innovation, and a prevalent number of SME which are not innovation-oriented and do not boast serious innovation potential.
Republic of Serbia belongs to the group of less developed European countries whose development is not driven by knowledge and innovations. The role and significance of knowledge and innovation in the development of Serbian economy are small, innovativeness of domestic SME is at a relatively low level, and only a small number of SME tend to innovate. The rise in the number of SME is not coupled with the rise in innovativeness that would yield a sustainable competitive advantage for these enterprises both on the national and on the global market.
The institutional framework in Republic of Serbia is not efficient and complete, and the business environment is not adequately adapted to the development of innovations and innovative SME. Most elements of the innovation system are in the early development stage and have limited capacities, while mechanisms and methods that serve to facilitate the development of the doing business and innovations are limited, insufficient, and inefficient. Domestic SME are faced with major obstacles to the development of innovations (funding, the transfer and application of knowledge, engagement of professional staff, etc.) that seriously restrict opportunities for innovation and dynamic development. Therefore it is necessary that the economic development model used so far should be altered through the formulation of a new, systemically well-crafted policy of development of innovative SME, and by undertaking specific programmes of support for SME so that they would rely more on their development and innovation potential as a major factor in economic development of Republic of Serbia.


This guide presents a practical planning model for bicycle transportation in cities, suburbs and small towns. It focuses on the use of networks of specialized bicycle facilities and bicycle friendly zones to support and promote the use of bicycles for transportation. The potential of using bicycle roadway networks in relationship to land use is discussed in terms of using them to make a civic contribution to the form of the city beyond transportation function. A model classification system for bicycle facilities is presented that is similar to the "functional classification of streets" for motor vehicle roadways. Bicycle Expressways, Bicycle Boulevards and Bicycle Byways are introduced and discussed as specific types of bicycle roadways. Detailed planning parameters are recommended for assembling the different types of bicycle facilities into integrated systems to support bicycle use for utilitarian transportation. Planning guidelines for bicycle friendly zones are presented, along with a step-by-step process that describes how communities can plan for bicycle transportation. Planning and design considerations that are important to the success of a bicycle transportation system are also discussed. These considerations include the needs of cyclists, skill levels, personal safety issues, system legibility and traffic calming techniques. This guidebook is intended for use by professional planners, designers and engineers, neighborhood groups, bicycle advocates and community decision makers.


That the mid-Tudor Crisis was also a demographic crisis seems to have escaped general notice, partly because of E. A. Wrigley and Roger Schofield's belief that England's population fell by no more than 5.5 to 6.0 percent in the later 1550s, partly because non-economic historians have viewed it mainly in political and religious terms. Yet a fall in population of 16 to 20 percent has been argued by economic historians using probate records. This study employs a different method, comparing estimated English populations in 1546–48 (based on chantry certificates) with those of 1563 (based on an ecclesiastical census). This has required a preliminary evaluation of the evidence and of the "multipliers" needed to produce the estimated population totals. This comparison suggests a fall in the English national population of around 18 percent, with declines in individual counties ranging between 12 and 27 percent. There was indeed a demographic crisis in England between 1556 and 1560.


This article reexamines the argument that targeted programs increase pro-incumbent voting by persuading beneficiaries to cast ballots against their first partisan choice. The evidence comes from the randomized component of Progresa, the pioneering Mexican conditional cash transfer (CCT) program. Experimental data show that early enrollment in the program led to substantive increases in voter turnout and in the incumbent's vote share in the 2000 presidential election. The experiment also reveals that opposition parties' vote shares were unaffected by the program. Thus, the electoral bonus generated by CCTs may be best explained by a mobilizing rather than persuasive mechanism. These findings are difficult to reconcile with the notion that the electoral effects of CCTs are a result of prospective concerns triggered by threats of program discontinuation or endogenous program enrollment. Instead, the evidence in this article suggests that CCTs' mobilizing effects are compatible with programmatic politics.


Geographically and Temporally weighted regression (GTWR) modeling has been developed to evaluate spatial heterogeneity and temporal heterogeneity in factors influencing the spread of dengue fever in Malang city. By using the monthly data in 2012-2015 as the temporal unit of each urban village in Malang and village is considered as a spatial unit. GTWR model is compared with the GWR model using several statistical criteria. GTWR model shows that the relationship between dengue incidence with population density and monthly average temperature significantly affects each Village in Malang.


As models for possible heme-iron-H2O2 enzymatic intermediates, tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP)-gallium chemistry has been explored in CD2Cl2. (TPP)GaOTf (1) and (TPP)Ga(ClO4) (2) have been prepared from (TPP)GaCl and AgOTf or AgClO4. Trace water reacts with 2 to give [(TPP)Ga(OH2)](ClO4) (5) and with (TPP)GaOOtBu to give (TPP)GaOH (3). These complexes were fully characterized including X-ray structures for 1, 3, the bis(aquo) analogue of 5, and the methyl derivative (TPP)GaMe (4). A convenient procedure for preparing anhydrous dilute solutions of H2O2 in methylene chloride is described. All of these gallium complexes, however, are unreactive with this anhydrous H2O2 in CD2Cl2. H2O2 does not displace even the weakly coordinating perchlorate or triflate anions, or coordinated water, indicating that H2O2 is a very weak ligand.


The priming of immune T cells by their interaction with dendritic cells (DCs) in lymph nodes (LN), one of the early events in productive adaptive immune responses, occurs on a scaffold of lymphoid stromal cells, which have largely been seen as support cells or sources of chemokines and homeostatic growth factors. Here we show that murine fibroblastic reticular cells (FRCs), isolated from LN of B6 mice, play a more direct role in the immune response by sensing and modulating T cell activation through their upregulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in response to early T cell IFNγ production. Stromal iNOS, which only functions in very close proximity, attenuates responses to inflammatory DC immunization but not to other priming regimens and preferentially affects Th1 cells rather than Th2. The resultant nitric oxide production does not affect T cell-DC coupling or initial calcium signaling, but restricts homotypic T cell clustering, cell cycle progression, and proliferation. Stromal feedback inhibition thus provides basal attenuation of T cell responses, particularly those characterized by strong local inflammatory cues.


This study investigated the relationship between Iraqi English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) and vocabulary size (VS). Participants included 118 EFL learners at Sulaymaniyah University in Iraq, all of whom were studying in the School of Basic-Education English Department. Two instruments were employed to collect data: a VLS questionnaire designed by Schmitt (1997) was administered in order to determine the range and frequency of VLS use, and a four-level (2000, 3000, 5000 and academic word list) vocabulary learning test (VLT) designed by Schmitt, et al. (2001) was used to measure learners' receptive vocabulary size. The aim of this study was to determine the kinds of strategies learners utilized as well as their relationship to students' VS. The results demonstrated that students utilized consolidation more frequently than discovery strategies. Moreover, the most frequently utilized VLS was studying the sounds of new words, while the least frequent one was working in groups to discover the meanings of new words. In terms of total VLS, the students can be considered as moderate VLS users (M= 3.003). The results of correlation analysis revealed that there exist positive, negative and sometimes no relationships between learners' VLS and VS. Finally, the findings of multiple regression analysis concluded the R Square value to be (0.284), which means that the predicted variables could account for 28.4% of the participants' levels of receptive VS.This study concluded that systematic and appropriate strategies support learners to increase their VS.


Purpose: It has been reported that individuals with higher levels of macular pigment optical density (MPOD) are less affected by disability glare, have a faster photostress recovery time and suffer less visual discomfort. Such findings add weight to the theory that the macular pigment may play a role in improving visual performance in glare. The aim of this study was to further examine this theory by examining the relationship between macular pigment optical density and estimates of retinal straylight using the Oculus Cataract Quantifier (C-Quant).Methods: 36 individuals (aged 19-40 yrs) with good visual acuity, free from ocular disease and with clear ocular media participated. MPOD was measured at 0.5 degrees eccentricity from the foveal centre using a heterochromatic flicker photometry based densitometer instrument from MacularMetrics. Retinal straylight was estimated using the Oculus C-Quant, a commercially available device which uses a psychophysical compensation comparison method. Results: Mean MPOD was 0.38 (±0.18) log units (range 0 to 0.77). Mean straylight parameter (S) was 1.05 (±0.13) log units (range 0.86 to 1.48). There was no statistically significant association between age and MPOD (r=0.03, p=0.86), age and retinal straylight (r=0.01, p=0.94) and MPOD and retinal straylight (r=0.04, p= 0.83). There was no statistically significant difference in retinal straylight levels between those individuals with MPOD levels above the average (>0.38 log units) at 0.5 degrees eccentricity and below the average (t=0.37, df=34, p=0.72).Conclusions: Retinal straylight, estimated by the Oculus C-Quant, was not significantly associated with macular pigment optical density. Further investigation on the role of macular pigment in improving visual performance in glare in the human eye is required.