In an era when government seems remote and difficult to approach, participatory democracy may seem a hopelessly romantic notion. Yet nothing is more crucial to the future of American democracy than to develop some way of spurring greater citizen participation. In this important book, Jeffrey Berry, Ken Portney, and Ken Thompson examine cities that have created systems of neighborhood government and incorporated citizens in public policymaking. Through careful research and analysis, the authors find that neighborhood based participation is the key to revitalizing American democracy. The Rebirth of Urban Democracy provides a thorough examination of five cities with strong citizen participation programs--Birmingham, Dayton, Portland, St. Paul, and San Antonio. In each city, the authors explore whether neighborhood associations encourage more people to participate; whether these associations are able to promote policy responsiveness on the art of local governments; and whether participation in these associations increases the capacity of people to take part in government. Finally, the authors outline the steps that can be taken to increase political participation in urban America. Berry, Portney, and Thomson show that citizens in participatory programs are able to get their issues on the public agenda and develop a stronger sense of community, greater trust in government officials, and more confidence in the political system. From a rigorous evaluation of surveys and interviews with thousands of citizens and policymakers, the authors also find that central governments in these cities are highly responsive to their neighborhoods and that less conflict exists among citizens and policymakers. The authors assert that these programs can provide a blueprint for major reform in cities across the country. They outline the components for successful participation programs and offer recommendations for those who want to get involved. They demonstrate that participation systems can influence citizens to become more knowledgeable, more productive, and more confident in government; and can provide more governments with a mechanism for being more responsive in setting priorities and formulating polices that closely approximate the true preferences of the people.


Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are very common in people with dementia-related disorders, and are responsible for a large share of the suffering of patients and caregivers. Current evidence suggests that non-pharmacological treatments are promising solutions to NPS. However, a critical factor in the treatment success is represented by the involvement of professional and family caregivers. Here we briefly present "No panic in the nursing home", an educational "serious game" designed for healthcare professionals working in nursing homes. Based on an educational program previously designed by our group, "No Panic in the Nursing Home"  teaches professional caregivers how to deal with NPS of dementia. The player takes the role of a nursing home nurse, and is confronted with practical situations in which he/she needs to decide how to behave. Results collected in three nursing homes suggest that the game is considered as very interesting by nursing home healthcare professionals, even by persons with no previous experience with videogames.


Historical longline catch per unit effort (CPUE) constitutes the major time series used in tuna stock assessment to follow the trend in abundance since the beginning of the large-scale tuna fisheries. The efficiency and species composition of a longline fishing operations essentially depends on the overlap in the vertical and spatial distribution between hooks and species habitat. Longline catchability depends on the vertical distribution of hooks and the aim of our paper was to analyse principal factors affecting the deviation of observed longline hook depths from predicted values. Since observed hook depth is usually shallower than predicted, this deviation is called longline shoaling. We evaluate the accuracy of hook depth distribution estimated from a theoretical catenary model commonly used in longline CPUE standardizations. Temperature-depth recorders (TDRs) were deployed on baskets of a monitored longline. Mainline shapes and maximum fishing depths were similar to gear configurations commonly used to target both yellowfin and bigeye tuna by commercial longliners in the central part of the South Pacific Ocean. Our working hypothesis assumes that the maximum fishing depth reached by the mainline depends on the gear configuration (sag ratio, mainline length per basket), the fishing tactics (bearing of the setting) and environmental variables characterizing water mass dynamics (wind stress, current velocity and shear). Based on generalized additive models (GAMs) simple transformations are proposed to account for the non-linearity between the shoaling and explanatory variables. Then, generalized linear models (GLMs) were fit to model the effects of explanatory variables on the longline shoaling. Results indicated that the shoaling (absolute as well as relative) was significantly influenced by (1) the shape of the mainline (i.e., the tangential angle), which is the strongest predictor, and (2) the current shear and the direction of setting. Geometric forcing (i.e. transverse versus in-line) between the environment and the longline set is shown for the first time from in situ experimental fishing data. Results suggest that a catenary model that does not take these factors into consideration provides a biased estimate of the vertical distribution of hooks and must be used with caution in CPUEs standardization methods. Since catchability varies in time and space we discuss how suitable data could be routinely collected onboard commercial fishing vessels in catch c q d a b order to estimate longline


Logistics, Supply Chain and Operations Management Case Study Collection is a rich and varied compilation of relevant case studies from across logistics, supply chain management and operations. It contains real life scenarios from leading companies including Volvo, Vortex, Honda of America, Green Cargo and Swedish Transport Administration. It includes a foreword by Martin Christopher. Comprehensive in scope and scrupulous in detail, Logistics, Supply Chain and Operations Management Case Study Collection includes actual events experienced by businesses of every size, from SMB's to some of the most successful corporations in manufacturing, transportation, hospitality and other industries. In these pages readers will discover proven tactics and innovative solutions for handling uncertainties, solving problems and circumventing risk, plus a wealth of information to guide strategy and decision making. Readers who are involved in logistics and supply chain management will find the collection extremely helpful. Directors and managers will find immediate application of strategies and tactics to their own situations and challenges and learn to identify potential pitfalls before they become chronic issues. Training professionals will have a valuable tool for testing management proficiency in crisis mitigation and resolution, and particularly useful in academic curriculum, independent learning modules and professional training programs. Academics and professional trainers will benefit from expanded question and answer sections designed to measure knowledge transfer and lessons learned. Students will learn from engaging, topical situations that are highly relevant to the fields of logistics, supply chain management and operations, and both students and prospective managers will learn crucial skills to meet current challenges, qualify for professional advancement and achieve success.


In this study, we calculated the night-noise mean (SonBase 2014, compatible with the EU Environmental Noise Directive) for the 5 classes obtained after computation of Local Indicators of Spatial Association (LISA; Anselin et al 1995) on the BMI of the participants in the Bus Sante study, a cohort managed by the Geneva University Hospitals (N=15'544; Guessous et al 2014). We expected the mean of dBs to be significantly higher in the group showing spatial dependence of high BMI values (high-high class). We ran an ANOVA and multiple T-tests to compare the dB means between LISA clusters. The approach was applied to the participants of the whole State Geneva cohort, and to a reduced set of individuals living in the urban environment of the municipality of Geneva only.


The Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") (1) "was enacted in 1925 in response to widespread judicial hostility to arbitration agreements." (2) It is evident from a number of decisions issuing out of Florida courts that this judicial hostility endures. A frequently stated goal of arbitration is the fast and efficient resolution of disputes, (3) but decisions that refuse to enforce such agreements undermine predictability and embroil the litigants in court proceedings that delay and drive up the cost of deciding disputes. During the last two years, the arbitration profession has gained five staunch supporters. They also comprise a majority of the United States Supreme Court: Chief Justice John G. Roberts, along with Justices Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel A. Alito. With the latest trilogy of cases, (4) the Court has emphatically promoted the use of arbitration and undermined attempts to invalidate contractual commitments that obligate the parties to arbitrate their disputes. This article will examine this trilogy of cases, (5) and will contrast how courts in Florida have reacted, ignored, or interpreted federal decisions to spurn the U.S. Supreme Court's efforts to streamline this alternative to courtroom litigation. I. BACKGROUND The FAA was enacted to "revers[e] centuries of judicial hostility to arbitration agreements," (6) and was designed to allow parties to avoid "the costliness and delays of litigation" and to place arbitration agreements "upon the same footing as other contracts[.]" (7) The Act provides that arbitration agreements "shall be valid, irrevocable, and enforceable, save upon such grounds as exist at law or in equity for the revocation of any contract." (8) "English courts [had] traditionally considered irrevocable arbitration agreements as 'ousting' the courts of jurisdiction, and [have thus] refused to enforce such agreements." (9) Until the adoption of the FAA, American courts uncritically adopted this view as part of the common law. (10) As the U.S. Supreme Court stated in Dean Witter Reynolds, Inc. v. Byrd, (11) "[t]he preeminent concern of Congress in passing the Act was to enforce private agreements into which parties had entered," (12) a concern which "requires that we rigorously enforce agreements to arbitrate[.]" (13) The first trilogy is known as the Steelworkers Trilogy, (14) whose continuing validity was reaffirmed by Justice Byron White in ATT (16) second, the question of arbitrability is an issue for judicial determination; (17) and third, where the contract contains an arbitration clause, there is a presumption of arbitrability. (18) To appreciate the latest trilogy of cases from the U.S. Supreme Court, we need to examine the second trilogy of cases, (19) which were decided in the mid-1980s, because these cases established the FAA as a source of "federal substantive law of arbitrability." (20) In Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital v. Mercury Construction Corp., (21) the Court stated: Section 2 is a congressional declaration of a liberal federal policy favoring arbitration agreements, notwithstanding any state substantive or procedural policies to the contrary. The effect of the section is to create a body of federal substantive law of arbitrability, applicable to any arbitration agreement within the coverage of the Act. (22) The significance of this is that it allowed the Court to make the FAA applicable to the states as well as federal courts. (23) Thus, in Southland Corp. v. Keating, (24) the Court held that the California Franchise Investment Law, which invalidated certain arbitration agreements covered by the FAA, violated the Supremacy Clause. …


Using a psychosociocultural framework, this study examined the educational experiences of 85 Hmong American undergraduates attending a predominantly-White university. Differences in class standing indicated that upper-division students reported higher confidence in college-related tasks than their lower-division counterparts, yet the upperdivision students perceived a less-welcoming university environment that was incongruent with their cultural values than the lower-division undergraduates. Peer support, college self-efficacy and cultural congruity were salient variables in understanding Hmong American undergraduate's educational experiences. The study's limitations, future research directions, and implications for college administrators and faculty are discussed.


This paper analyses developments in the growth and configuration of the institutional savings markets within the European Union. The paper discusses the changing socio-economic context in which investment services within the EU are being delivered. The is followed by an examination of drivers of market integration such as the growth and consolidation of the fund management industry, the demographic and fiscal pressures for reform of pensions markets and the process and effects of the deregulation of investment services markets. There is a review of outstanding sources of market segmentation. The projections for future growth in pensions are outlined and implications for real estate investment assessed. It is concluded that, although numerous imponderables render reliable quantitative projections problematic, growth and restructuring of the institutional savings market is likely to increase cross-border capital flows to real estate markets.


The deeper we go into the Earth, the higher the pressure. At the pressures found within the center of our planet, minerals do not simply compress. Pressure dramatically alters all materials properties, in the process creating numerous novel phases not found on the surface. This lecture will describe how we simulate the conditions found in planetary interiors in the lab, what kinds of new behavior we find, and how these observations can explain what is going on within the Earth. High pressure explorations also lead to discoveries of novel materials with potential for practical applications in our low-pressure, environment.


We are living through an unprecedented moment of multiple crises. Tens of millions more people are facing hunger. Hundreds of millions more face impossible rises in the cost of basic goods or heating their homes. Poverty has increased for the first time in 25 years. At the same time, these multiple crises all have winners. The very richest have become dramatically richer and corporate profits have hit record highs, driving an explosion of inequality. This report focuses on how taxing the rich is vital to addressing this unprecedented polycrisis and skyrocketing inequality. The report explores how, in recent history, taxation of the richest was far higher; how talk of taxing the rich and making billionaires pay their fair share is hugely popular; and how taxing the rich claws back elite power and reduces not just economic inequality, but racial, gender and colonial inequalities, too. The report lays out how much tax the richest should pay, and the practical, tried and tested ways in which governments can raise such taxation. It shows us how taxing the rich can set us clearly on a path to a more equal, sustainable world free from poverty.


As a contribution to the continuing debate among trade and
development economists as to the role of industrial strategies
in the pattern of economic development, this study analyses the
experience of one developing country, Nigeria, with an import
substitution strategy. The performance of the industrial sector
is critically assessed and related to the trade policy adopted.
Using published data, the study covers 24 industries and a period
of 16 years, beginning 1963 and extending to 1978.
An analysis of the structure of protection reveals a considerably
high and wide ranging levels of effective protection,
in favour of consumer-goods oriented sectors. The relationship
between these rates of effective protection on the one hand and
import substitution and sectoral growth on the other was examined
using various parametric and non-parametric tests of association.
The evidence, which is only suggestive in nature, indicates that
the structure of protection does play a role, albeit a minimal
one, in stimulating industrial growth.
Using Input-Output techniques, the employment, foreign exchange
and output implications of the present strategy of Import-
Substitution and of a hypothetical strategy of export promotion
are analysed. There is a general absence of 'key' employment
sectors and, paradoxically, an export promotion strategy is found
to be less employment generating and more capital using but less
foreign exchangeusing than the existing strategy.
Although there is a considerable scope for capital-labour
substitution in many industries, it was found that the often
recommended policy of getting prices 'right' will not be sufficient
to bring about an appreciable improvement in the employment
situation.
The development of factor productivity between 1963 and 1978
for each of the 24 industries was analysed; and three possible
determinants of productivity are investigated: capital intensity
and technical progress, output growth (the Verdoorn's Law) and
trade policy. With regards to the latter, it was found that
periods of especially slack productivity growth roughly correspond
to those in which there was especially restrictive trade policy
as quantified by high erps. The economic efficiency of the
manufacturing sector was appraised using the criteria of net social
profitability, social rate of return and Domestic Resources Costs
(DRCs). Evidence was found in support of the hypothesis that the
resource pull of protection to the protected industries is
accompanied by higher rates of private, but lower rates of social
profitability for the more heavily protected sectors.
The overall conclusion of the thesis is that the policies of
protection should have been more rationally applied and the IS
strategy more rationally executed in line with the country's
enunciated objectives.


ABSTRACT We develop a nanosecond grating imaging (NGI) technique to measure in-plane thermal transport properties in bulk and thin-film samples. Based on nanosecond time-domain thermoreflectance (ns-TDTR), NGI incorporates a photomask with periodic metal strips patterned on a transparent dielectric substrate to generate grating images of pump and probe lasers on the sample surface, which induces heat conduction along both cross- and in-plane directions. Analytical and numerical models have been developed to extract thermal conductivities in both bulk and thin-film samples from NGI measurements. This newly developed technique is used to determine thickness-dependent in-plane thermal conductivities (κx) in Cu nano-films, which agree well with the electron thermal conductivity values converted from four-point electrical conductivity measurements using the Wiedemamn–Franz law, as well as previously reported experimental values. The κx measured with NGI in an 8 nm x 8 nm GaAs/AlAs superlattice (SL) is about 10.2 W/m⋅K, larger than the cross-plane thermal conductivity (8.8 W/m⋅K), indicating the anisotropic thermal transport in the SL structure. The uncertainty of the measured κx is about 25% in the Cu film and less than 5% in SL. Sensitivity analysis suggests that, with the careful selection of proper substrate and interface resistance, the uncertainty of κx in Cu nano-films can be as low as 5%, showing the potential of the NGI technique to determine κx in thin films with improved accuracy. By simply installing a photomask into ns-TDTR, NGI provides a convenient, fast, and cost-effective method to measure the in-plane thermal conductivities in a wide range of structures and materials.


Downsizing and Turbo Charging (TC) and Direct Injection (DI) may be combined with Variable Valve Actuation (VVA) to better deal with the challenges of fuel economy enhancement. VVA may control the load without throttle; control the valve directly and quickly; optimize combustion, produce large volumetric efficiency. Benefits lower fuel consumption, lower emissions and better performance and fun to drive. The paper presents an engine model of a 1.6 litre TDI VVA engine specifically designed to run pure ethanol, with computed engine maps for brake specific fuel consumption and efficiency. The paper also presents driving cycle results obtained with a vehicle model for a passenger car powered by this engine and a traditional naturally aspirated gasoline engine. Preliminary results of the VVA system coupled with downsizing, turbo charging and Direct Injection permits significant driving cycle fuel economies.


A high quality benchmark for small variants encompassing 88 to 90% of the reference genome has been developed for seven Genome in a Bottle (GIAB) reference samples. However a reliable benchmark for large indels and structural variants (SVs) is yet to be defined. In this study, we manually curated 1235 SVs which can ultimately be used to evaluate SV callers or train machine learning models. We developed a crowdsourcing app – SVCurator – to help curators manually review large indels and SVs within the human genome, and report their genotype and size accuracy. SVCurator is a Python Flask-based web platform that displays images from short, long, and linked read sequencing data from the GIAB Ashkenazi Jewish Trio son [NIST RM 8391/HG002], We asked curators to assign labels describing SV type (deletion or insertion), size accuracy, and genotype for 1235 putative insertions and deletions sampled from different size bins between 20 and 892,149 bp. The crowdsourced results were highly concordant with 37 out of the 61 curators having at least 78% concordance with a set of 'expert' curators, where there was 93% concordance amongst 'expert' curators. This produced high confidence labels for 935 events. When compared to the heuristic-based draft benchmark SV callset from GIAB, the SVCurator crowdsourced labels were 94.5% concordant with the benchmark set. We found that curators can successfully evaluate putative SVs when given evidence from multiple sequencing technologies.


Dr P. M. Allen writes: I appreciated Culver & Williams' up-to-date interpretation of the geology of Sierra Leone, but I take issue with their reinterpretation of the stratigraphic position of the Taban Formation. Whereas I consider it to be younger than the Rokel River Group, they contend that it should be divided into the Taban and Tibai members and designated part of the Tabe Formation, which is at the base of the Rokel River Group. Their justification is that the member 'exhibits greenschist metamorphism and folding consistent with other pre-orogenic Rokel River Group strata. The main difficulty in determining the stratigraphic position of the Taban Formation, as I defined it, is that there is no physical continuity between it and the Rokel River Group. However, I did a careful survey of the different lithologies among pebbles and cobbles in the formation and found rock types throughout it identical to those from within the Rokel River Group. In parts, nearly all the pebbles and cobbles were attributable to this source. Among the rock types are distinctive volcanic and sedimentary rocks, some of the latter displaying cleavage. On this evidence I interpreted the Taban Formation as being post-orogenic molasse younger than the Rokel River Group. I am unaware of any other volcano-sedimentary succession in that part of West Africa which serves better as a source for the detritus in the Taban Formation than the Rokel River Group, and I cannot accept that the evidence presented by Culver & Williams invalidates my conclusion.


OBJECTIVE
Previous attempts to explain the presence of focal hyperintensities in the cerebral white matter on MR images have focused on the patient's age and cardiovascular risk factors. The purpose of this study was to survey many variables in subjects' social, medical, and surgical histories to identify those factors associated with focal hyperintensities in asymptomatic persons.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS
Asymptomatic volunteers were examined with MR imaging of the head and questioned concerning smoking history; chemical dependence; alcohol consumption; medical history (e.g., high blood pressure, kidney disease); surgical history (e.g., for appendix, gallbladder); medications (e.g., antihypertensives, analgesics); and other historical family and social variables. Vital signs were recorded. Focal hyperintensities were counted by observers who were not provided any information about the subjects other than that they were either volunteers or patients. Each of the variables in the history was tested for an association with the number of focal hyperintensities seen on MR images.

RESULTS
A statistically significant positive association was found between both age and the use of antihypertensive medications and the number of focal hyperintensities. Associations were also found between the number of focal hyperintensities and diastolic and systolic blood pressures at the time of MR imaging, but these associations did not reach statistical significance. No other variables in the medical, surgical, or social histories were found to be significantly related to the number of focal hyperintensities.

CONCLUSION
Age and the use of antihypertensive medications were the only significant risk factors identified in respect to focal hyperintensities of the cerebral white matter.


Our previous study has shown that there is a good correlation between the number of charges of DNA (from trimer to 50-mer) and the number of binding sites B in electrostatic interaction chromatography (ion-exchange chromatography, IEC). It was also found that high salt (NaCl) concentration is needed to elute large DNAs (>0.6 M). In this paper we further performed experiments with large DNAs (up to 95-mer polyT and polyA) and charged liposome particles of different sizes (ca. 30, 50 and 100 nm) with a monolithic anion-exchange disk in order to understand the binding and elution mechanism of very inding strength onolith large charged biomolecules or particles. The peak salt (NaCl) concentration increased with increasing DNA length. However, above 50-mer DNAs the value did not increase significantly with DNA length (ca. 0.65–0.70 M). For liposome particles of different sizes the peak salt concentration (ca. 0.62 M) was similar and slightly lower than that for large DNAs (ca. 0.65–0.70 M). The binding site values (ca. 25–30) are smaller than those for large DNAs. When arginine was used as a mobile phase modulator, the elution position of polyA and polyT became very close whereas in NaCl gradient elution polyT appeared after polyA eluted. This was mainly due to suppression of hydrophobic interaction by arginine.


The promoters of the large groundwater developments implemented in the 1970's paid little attention to the effects of pumping on soil moisture. A field study, conducted in 1979 in the Tern Area of the Shropshire Groundwater Scheme, revealed that significant quantities of the available moisture could be removed from the root zone of vegetation when drawdown of shallow watertables occurred. Arguments to this effect, supported by the field study evidence, were successfully presented at the Shropshire Groundwater Scheme public inquiry. The aim of this study has been to expand the work which was undertaken in connection with the Shropshire Groundwater Scheme, and to develop a method whereby the effects of groundwater pumping on vegetation can be assessed, and hence the impacts minimised. Two concepts, the critical height and the soil sensitivity depth, formulated during the initial work are at the core of the Environmental Impact Assessment method whose development is described. A programme of laboratory experiments on soil columns is described, as is the derivation of relationships for determining critical heights and field capacity moisture profiles. These relationships are subsequently employed in evaluating the effects of groundwater drawdown. In employing the environmental assessment technique, digitised maps of relevant features of the Tern Area are combined to produce composite maps delineating the extent of the areas which are potentially sensitive to groundwater drawdown. A series of crop yield/moisture loss functions are then employed to estimate the impact of simulated pumping events on the agricultural community of the Tern Area. Finally, guidelines, based on experience gained through evaluation of the Tern Area case study, are presented for use in the design of soil moisture monitoring systems and in the siting of boreholes. In addition recommendations are made for development of the EIA technique, and further research needs are identified.


Summary

Many low and middle-income countries have pluralistic health systems with a variety of providers of health-related goods and services in terms of their level of training, their ownership (public or private) and their relationship with the regulatory system. The development of institutional arrangements to influence their performance has lagged behind the spread of these markets. This paper presents a framework for analysing a pluralistic health system. The relationships between private providers of health services and government, or other organisations that represent the public interest, strongly influence their performance in meeting the needs of the poor. Their impact on the pattern of service delivery depends on how the relationships are managed and the degree to which they respond to the interests of the population. Many governments of low and middle-income countries are under pressure to increase access to safe, effective and affordable health services. In a context of economic growth, it should be possible to improve access by the poor to health services substantially. Innovations in information technologies and in low cost diagnostics are creating important new opportunities for achieving this. It will be important to mobilise both public and private providers of health-related goods and services. This will involve big changes in the roles and responsibilities of all health sector actors. Governments, businesses and civil society organizations will need to learn how to make pluralist health systems work better through experimentation and systematic learning about what works and why.


We have investigated the effect of polymeric dispersants on the rheological properties and consolidation behavior of concentrated cemented carbide (WC–Co) and magnesia (MgO) suspensions. The relatively novel types of comb-type anionic polymers with grafted non-ionic side chains are effective dispersants also in multi-component powder mixtures with a complex solution and surface chemistry and result in more robust suspensions at significantly higher solids loading compared with e.g., a traditional cationic polyelectrolyte. Direct force measurements on comb-type dispersants with different lengths of the grafted ethylene oxide side chains showed that the dispersants adsorb onto a MgO surface and infer a repulsion where the range scales with the length of the poly ethylene oxide side chains. The compressibility and the consolidation behavior of MgO particle networks in response to a centrifugal force field could be related to the estimated thickness of the adsorbed comb-type dispersants.


Molecular surveys of marine picoeukaryotes have revealed a large number of sequences unrelated to cultured organisms, such as those forming the marine stramenopile (MAST)-4 clade. Recent FISH (fluorescent in situ hybridization) data have shown that MAST-4 cells are uncultured heterotrophic flagellates of 2-3 microm in size that have a global distribution in non-polar marine waters. However, FISH is time-consuming and hard to apply to the many samples generated during oceanographic cruises, so we developed a real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) protocol to determine rapidly the abundance of this group using environmental DNA. We designed a primer set targeting the 18S rRNA genes (rDNA) of MAST-4 and optimized and calibrated the Q-PCR protocol using a plasmid with the target sequence as insert. The Q-PCR was then applied to quantify MAST-4 rDNA molecules along three marine transects, longitudinal in the Indian Ocean, latitudinal in the Drake Passage and coastal-offshore in the Mediterranean Sea, and to a temporal study in a Mediterranean Sea coastal station. MAST-4 was detected in all samples processed (averaged abundances between 500 and 1000 rDNA molecules ml(-1)) except in mesopelagic and Antarctic samples, where it was virtually absent. In general, it was more abundant in the coast than offshore and in the deep chlorophyll maximum than at surface. A comparison of Q-PCR and FISH signals in well-controlled microbial incubations indicated that MAST-4 cells have around 30 copies of the rDNA operon. This Q-PCR assay quickly yielded quantitative data of uncultured MAST-4 cells and confirmed their wide distribution and putative ecological importance.


BACKGROUND & AIMS: High doses of radiation induce severe DNA damage in intestinal epithelial cells, especially crypt cells, and cause intestinal injury, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Krüppel-like factor 5 (KLF5), a zinc finger-containing transcription factor, is induced by various stress stimuli and is involved in cell proliferation and survival. The role of KLF5 in radiation-induced intestinal injury was investigated here. METHODS: Wild type mice were treated with 8 or 15 Gy total body irradiation (TBI). KLF5 content and cellular localization in the small intestines of irradiated mice were detected by Western blot and immunohistochemical analysis. Mice with intestinal-specific knockdown of KLF5 (Vil-Cre; Klf5fl/+ mice) were generated and their response to radiation was compared with controls. Morphological changes were determined by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Proliferation was examined by Ki67 immunostaining. The molecular response of the small intestine after KLF5 knockdown was investigated using microarrays. RESULTS: KLF5 expression correlated with the progression of intestinal damage. Decreased levels of KLF5 in the gut were associated with increased damage to the intestinal mucosa and reduced epithelial proliferation after TBI. Our microarray data disclosed that KLF5 knockdown down-regulated genes related to DNA damage repair pathways such as nucleotide excision repair, mismatch repair, non-homologous end joining and the Fanconi anemia pathway, which may suggest a novel function of KLF5. CONCLUSIONS: Our study illustrates that KLF5 may modulate DNA repair pathways to prevent intestinal injury induced by TBI. KLF5 signaling provides a novel field for identification of potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of radiation-induced intestinal damage.


Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a cause of many environmental problems worldwide. To address these problems, THERMOX, a two‐dimensional (2‐D) finite element program, was developed. THERMOX simulates physical and geochemical processes in waste rock with variable sulfide content and water saturation. The program includes pyrite oxidation kinetics, equilibrium precipitation and dissolution reactions, heat transfer by conduction and convection, and oxygen transport by diffusion and convection. The program was applied to data from a waste rock pile at the Doyon Mine site in Québec, Canada. Simulations were performed for two end‐member scenarios: a nonconvective mode with diffusion as the only oxygen transport process, and a convective mode with both diffusion and convection as oxygen transport processes. Simulations confirmed previous findings from the Doyon Mine site about the development of high temperatures and high pore‐water concentrations close to the slope of a highly permeable waste rock pile with high pyrite content, linked to rapid oxygen convection. When only diffusion of oxygen was considered, the rate of pyrite oxidation was lower and the oxidation front was relatively continuous, with lower maximum dissolved species concentrations close to the slope. Calculated temperatures compared well with the Doyon Mine field data. The match for pH was reasonable, while calculated sulfate concentrations were lower. This can be explained by the high friability of the sericite schist rock at the site, which accelerates the pyrite oxidation rate, and temporal changes in recharge (most recharge occurs during spring snow melt). The program can be used for predicting various remediation scenarios (e.g., change in the slope of a rock pile or the use of an impermeable cover). Kinetically constrained dissolution of silicates should be included to simulate conditions during late stages of neutralization.


Background Acupuncture as a therapy, and acupressure as self-treatment, are increasingly widely used for gynaecological conditions, and this study aims to review the scientific literature on their effectiveness. Method A systematic review of controlled trials of acupuncture or acupressure for gynaecological conditions, published in a European language. Synthesis No studies in mastalgia, menorrhagia, pelvic pain, premenstrual syndrome or vulvodynia met the inclusion criteria. Four studies, two of which were patient-blinded, of acupuncture or acupressure for dysmenorrhoea suggest that it may have an effect. Three studies of acupuncture given at various stages of infertility treatment are promising, but none was patient-blind. Two studies of acupuncture for menopausal symptoms showed no effect during the treatment period when compared with sham acupuncture, and a third study showed no effect on hypertension in postmenopausal women, though some improvement in symptoms was noted. Conclusion In view of the small number of studies and their variable quality, doubt remains about the effectiveness of acupuncture for gynaecological conditions. Acupuncture and acupressure appear promising for dysmenorrhoea, and acupuncture for infertility, and further studies are justified.


OBJECTIVES
To study the acute and long-term outcomes of preterm infants treated with an intravenous (IV) fish oil-based lipid emulsion (FishLE) for parenteral nutrition-associated liver disease (PNALD).

METHODS
Preterm infants 14 days to 24 months of age with anatomic short gut or severe intestinal dysmotility, serum direct bilirubin ≥4 mg/dL, and requiring >60% calories from PN were eligible. Enrolled infants received 1 g/kg/day of FishLE until resolution of direct hyperbilirubinemia or return of enteral nutrition. Acute clinical effects and biochemical markers of liver function were monitored. Growth and developmental scores at 6 and 12 months postmenstrual age (PMA) were assessed and compared to controls matched by gestational age (GA).

RESULTS
Thirteen patients with mean GA of 28 ± 4 weeks were treated and compared to 119 GA matched controls. Their mean direct bilirubin was 9.8 ± 6.4 mg/dL at enrollment. All infants had resolution of cholestasis after study completion. There were no acute adverse events, deaths, or liver/intestinal transplants. Weight and head circumference were similar between FishLE treated patients and controls at 6 and12 month PMA. Cognitive and motor scores were decreased at 6 and 12 months PMA in FishLE treated infants. Logistic regression analysis showed that prolonged hospitalization was detrimental to cognitive and motor development, while treatment was not.

CONCLUSIONS
The use of IV fish oil-based lipid emulsions in premature infants appears to be safe and reverses PNALD despite significant liver disease and intestinal failure. This therapy should be utilized in preterm infants with PNALD and followed long term to evaluate development.


We present the Comprehensible Video Thumbnail; an automatically generated visual précis that summarizes salient objects and their dynamics within a video clip. Salient moving objects are detected within clips using a novel stochastic sampling technique that identifies, clusters and then tracks regions exhibiting affine motion coherence within the clip. Tracks are analyzed to determine salient instants at which motion and/or appearance changes significantly, and the resulting objects arranged in a stylized composition optimized to reduce visual clutter and enhance understanding of scene content through classification and depiction of motion type and trajectory. The result is an object‐level visual gist of the clip, obtained with full automation and depicting content and motion with greater descriptive power that prior approaches. We demonstrate these benefits through a user study in which the comprehension of our video thumbnails is compared to the state of the art over a wide variety of sports footage.


Motion verbs are "exceptions" to the Russian aspect system because: (1) they have two stems (determinate and indeterminate); and (2) prefixation of indeterminate stems yields imperfective verbs (cf., uxodit'i 'leave'). Furthermore, as an exception to (2), there are some prefixed perfective verbs derived from indeterminate stems, such as poxodit'p 'walk for a while' and iznosit'p 'wear out'. This article addresses these "exceptions to the exceptions" from the perspective of the "cluster" model of Russian aspect (Janda 2007), using a database extracted from the Russian National Corpus. I argue that the motion verbs are prototypical in their aspectual behavior and that a single distinction, that of Completability, can account for the aspectual behavior of both motion and non-motion verbs.


Plastics fuel tanks have been used successfully abroad ;
metal counterparts are still predominant in this country
plastics tanks have to satisfy stringent performance
regulations : low temperature impact tests ; permeability ;
and fire resistance.
Blow moulded high density polyethylene (HDPE) fuel tanks
have superior strength to mass ratio compared with metal
equivalents (the density of steel is about 8000 kg/m3
compared with HDPE, which has a density of under 1000
kg/m3 ). HDPE will tend to drip in a fire situation, thus
reducing explosion risk. HDPE is the chosen material
because it possesses inherent properties suitable for the
blow moulding process : it has a high viscosity at low
stresses ; and is highly inert.
Rotational moulded HDPE fuel tanks can also be considered.
However, these are shown to have inferior properties when
compared with blow moulded tanks ; attraction of rotational
moulding is the cheapness of equipment.
Petrol immersion was found to enhance impact properties of
HDPE, although yield stresses were lowered slightly.
The thickness distributions of blow moulded fuel tanks were
found to vary ; this is because of the present difficulty of
predicting parison behaviour with respect to time.
Thickness is important because of impact strength and
permeation considerations.
Impact properties of fuel tanks were assessed ; peak force
of impact was found to be heavily dependent on thickness
(raised to the power 1.1) and temperature of mould in the
blow moulding process (a low mould temperature led to
inferior properties). Pinch-offs were found to be
particularly detrimental to impact properties.
Cooling behaviour was investigated. With the aid of a
cooling model for blow mouldings, it was found that a warm
mould (40·C) could be used with internal air circulation to
obtain a cooling time the same as that with a cold mould and
no air circulation. Thus optimising mechanical strength and
maintaining economic viability.
Welding of injection moulded fittings to the main blow
moulded body of the fuel tank was found to be faulty, in all
of the tanks examined ; many weld failures have been
reported in use. This work determines optimum welding
conditions for HDPE grades, these are Rigidex H060-45P and
Lupolen 426l-A.


Mergers of competitors are conventionally challenged under the federal antitrust laws when they threaten to lessen competition in some product or service market in which the merging firms sell. Mergers can also injure competition in markets where the firms purchase. Although that principle is widely recognized, very few litigated cases have applied merger law to buyers. This article concerns an even more rarefied subset, and one that has barely been mentioned. Nevertheless, its implications are staggering. Some mergers may be unlawful because they injure competition in the labor market by enabling the post-merger firm anticompetitively to suppress wages or salaries. To the best of our knowledge no court has ever condemned a merger for this reason.

This paper examines a number of issues that are relevant to merger challenges in employment markets, focusing on the traditional rationale for challenging horizontal mergers – namely, that increased market concentration in labor markets threatens to facilitate coordinated interaction among employers that could lead to lower output and wage suppression in employment markets. Because most mergers are challenged prior to their occurrence, the threat is not of observed coordinated interaction, but rather of an "appreciable danger" that it may occur if the merger is permitted to proceed. We outline the major issues that enforcers are likely to encounter in assessing mergers threatening competitive harm in labor markets.

Mergers affecting the labor market require some rethinking of merger policy, although not any altering of its fundamentals. For example, mergers that threaten wage suppression are horizontal when the merging firms compete in the labor market, and this may be true even if they are not competitors in any product market. One useful way to think of the extent of horizontal competition in the market for employees is to look at the participants in the several "anti-poaching" cases that involve agreements among firms not to hire one another's employees. This is quite consistent with the general principle of market definition in merger cases that a market consists of a grouping of firms that, if unified by a cartel, would have market power, or more specifically, an ideal collusive group.

Horizontal mergers threatening labor market competition present a significant competition problem but also unique legal issues. On significance, labor market concentration – measured by a small number of employers – is very high, perhaps as high or higher than product market concentration. This suggests that a mature policy of pursuing mergers because of harmful effects in labor markets could yield many cases, although prima facie we cannot predict how many. Also significant is that some of these mergers might be horizontal in the labor market but not in the product market in which the merging firms sell their goods or services. Once again, we do not predict the extent to which this is true, but it does suggest that those reviewing mergers cannot simply assume that lack of competition in the product market entails the same for the labor market. So to say that merger analysis focusing on labor will take evaluators into uncharted territory seems clear, and perhaps even more clearly for courts.


In 1908 Prof. E. Dubois cited and very briefly diagnosed a new species of emydine turtle, Hardella isoclina, from the Trinil Beds in Java. The very fine unique type shell has never been figured or fully described, the generic assignment appears to be incorrect, and the original diagnosis is insufficient. Prof. Boschma and Dr. Brongersma of the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie in Leiden have, as custodians of the Dubois Collection, very generously offered me the opportunity of redescribing this form. The fossil is a very distinct species and a very noteworthy component of the Trinil fauna but even after much study and comparison it proves impossible to refer it with confidence to any known genus, and in the absence of any knowledge of the characters of the skull no new genus can be satisfactorily defined. The Trinil form appears to resemble most closely the living species mutica from southern China, Formosa, Hainan, and Japan, and since mutica is currently though questionably assigned to the genus Clemmys it will be convenient for the present to refer the Dubois species to Clemmys with a query: Clemmys? isoclina (Dubois) Diagnosis: an emydine resembling "Clemmys" mutica but differing in greater size, in having the posterior margin of the carapace not at all serrate, in having the gular region not produced and the inguinal scute larger. Type: Dubois Collection No. 2722, an almost perfect shell, lacking only the anal region of the plastron. Type locality: Kedoeng Panas, Java. Horizon: Pleistocene, Trinil Beds.


Influenza is a highly contagious, acute respiratory viral infection responsible for annual epidemics causing severe morbidity and mortality Vaccination remains the most effective, live-saving preventative strategy, especially amongst populations at high risk of developing influenza-related complications The inactivated trivalent seasonal influenza vaccine contains two World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended influenza A and one influenza B strains, while the quadrivalent vaccine contains an additional B strain, providing broader protection against co-circulating influenza B lineages Healthcare workers are instrumental in ensuring effective communication about the benefits of influenza vaccination to achieve optimal seasonal influenza vaccination coverage This article provides an updated overview of the influenza vaccines with special consideration of the current COVID-19 pandemic


Although contrasting evidence exists in the literature as to the economy of head-loading, there is a notion that head-loading is an extremely economical method of load carriage. This has become known as the 'free ride' hypothesis and, although untested, it is widely accepted. The purpose of this study was to test the 'free ride' hypothesis for head-load carriage among African women by comparing the relative economy of head-loading and back-loading. Twenty-four Xhosa women walked on a level treadmill, attempting to carry loads of between 10% and 70% of their body mass (BM) using both a backpack and a head basket. All 24 women carried at least 25% of their BM in both conditions. The relative economy of load carriage was calculated for loads of 10% to 25% of BM. Results indicated that the 'free ride' was not a generalisable phenomenon, with both methods realising economy scores close to unity (1.04 ± 0.19 and 0.97 ± 0.15 for head-loading and back-loading, respectively). The results did, however, reveal significant individual differences in economy scores and it is suggested that analysis of such individual differences in future may well be instructive in understanding mechanisms associated with greater economy in load carriage.


In a recent study, Hough and Page (2015) presented several lines of evidence suggesting that most of the significant earthquakes in Oklahoma during the twentieth century, including the Mw 5.7 El Reno earthquake of 9 April 1952, were likely induced by wastewater injection and possibly secondary oil recovery operations. We undertook an archival search for accounts of this event, which unearthed a newspaper article published immediately following the El Reno earthquake regarding a prominent petroleum geologist in the area who took out a rare earthquake insurance policy less than 60 days before the earthquake struck. In this study we present a historical context for this intriguing coincidence. We present a retrospective of oil industry practices in the early- to mid-twentieth century, gleaned from court records and other industry reports, that potentially bear on the interplay between oil exploration activities and earthquakes, focusing on the Oklahoma City region. We describe events of the day that could plausibly have alerted a geologist to the possibility of induced earthquakes, although there is no indication that the potential for induced earthquakes was widely recognized within the industry at that time.


BACKGROUND
A clinically significant patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality in premature newborns. Symptomatic PDAs are often treated with prostaglandin synthesis inhibitors (PSI), but controversy remains if PSIs should also be used to manage early, asymptomatic PDAs.

OBJECTIVE
To systematically identify, critically appraise, and evaluate the efficacy and safety of pharmacological management of pre-symptomatic PDA in preterm newborns after confirmed patency by echocardiography.

STUDY DESIGN
Systematic review and meta-analysis.

SEARCH METHODS
We searched MEDLINE (Ovid), EMBASE (Ovid), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (Wiley), from date of inception to February 2017. Supplemental searching was performed in Scopus and Web of Science to identify additional relevant citations. We also searched conference proceedings, reference lists of relevant articles and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP).

SELECTION CRITERIA
We included only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared the use of indomethacin or ibuprofen to placebo for treatment of pre-symptomatic PDA in preterm newborns (<32 weeks gestational age and <1500gms).

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
Two reviewers independently selected trials, assessed risk of bias and extracted trial-level data. Outcomes are reported as risk ratios from random-effects models. Absolute risk reduction (ARR) is additionally reported for significant outcomes.We included seven trials (466 newborns). Targeted medical treatment did not significantly reduce mortality rates (RR 0.85, 95% CI 0.50 to 1.43; ARR -2.38%, 95% CI -8.04% to 3.29%; I2 0% 6 studies; 442 newborns), but it did significantly reduce the overall incidence of developing symptomatic PDA (RR 0.39, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.73; ARR -34.3%, 95% CI -50.8% to -17.8%; I2 0%; 3 studies; 97 newborns) compared to placebo. Other efficacy or safety outcomes were not significantly different.

CONCLUSIONS
Targeted medical treatment of pre-symptomatic PDA decreases the incidence of developing symptomatic PDA, but not neonatal mortality. Further studies are essential to confirm these results.


Abstract. The scattered light by various dielectric particles in atmosphere give information about the type of molecules and particles and their location, which are important to definition of propagation limitations through atmospheric and space weather variations, crisis communications, etc. Although these investigations explain far field properties of disturbed radiations, the solution of the physical problem requires simulations of the interactions in near-field. It has been shown that strongly localized EM field near the surface of single dielectric particle may be form by non-spherical and non-symmetrical mesoscale particles both as in transmitting as in reflection mode. It was also shown that the main lobe is narrower in case of 3 cube chain than single cube in far field, but there are many side-scattering lobes. It was mentioned that unique advantages provided by mesoscale dielectric photonic crystal based particles with three spatial dimensions of arbitrary shape allow developing a new types of micro/nano-probes with subwavelength resolution for ultra compact spectrometer-free sensor for on board a spacecraft or a plane.


In the coming decades the trend of liberalising energy markets will have to be combined with ambitious environmental goals within the European Union. Currently prevailing incentive schemes for renewable energy might not be in line with liberalisation of international energy markets. A new policy scheme that has been developed recently is the system of green certificates. In such a system producers of green electricity receive a certificate for each pre-defined unit of electricity produced. These certificates can be traded at a certificate market and adds to the revenue that the producer can get for the electricity itself. This report studies the way such a system could work. Issues are the sources of demand for green certificates, the functions that have to be performed in a certificate market, supply and demand conditions to ensure a stable system, the first experiences with such a system in the Netherlands and the influence of a green certificate market on the way renewable electricity targets can be distributed over Member State countries.


Communalism and its cognates continue to exercise a vise grip on the African intellectual imaginary. Whether the discussion is in ethics or social philosophy, in metaphysics or even, on occasion, epistemology, the play of communalism, a concept expounded in the next section, is so strong that it is difficult to escape its ubiquity. In spite of this, there is little serious analysis of the concept and its implications in the contemporary context. Yet, at no other time than now can a long-suffering continent use some robust debates on its multiple inheritances regarding how to organize life and thought in order to deliver a better future for its population. Given the continual resort to communalism as, among others, the standard of ethical behavior, the blueprint for restoring Africans to wholeness and organizing our social life, as well as a template for political reorganization across the continent, one cannot overemphasize the importance of contributing some illumination to the discourse surrounding the idea. This essay seeks to offer a little illumination in this respect. Additionally, it offers a criticism of what all—proponents and antagonists alike—take to be a defensible version of communalism: moderate communalism. I shall be arguing that communalism, generally, has a problem with the individual. And the African variant of it, mostly subscribed to by the African scholars discussed below and defended by them as something either peculiar to or special in Africa, has an even harder time accommodating the individual. Yet, as history shows , until the modern age in which individualism is the principle of social ordering and mode of social living, a situation that privileges the individual, above all, various forms of communalism never really accorded the individual the recognition and forbearances that we now commonly associate with the idea. T he strongest variants of moderate communalism discuss ed here have a difficult time taking the individual seriously. I am not aware of anyone else ever having made such a case. These arguments are offer ed to show that (1) Africa and Africans need to take individualism seriously and (2) such have been the historical transformation that our diverse societies have undergone in the course of the last half a millennium that the types of communalism that are on offer do not appear to take this fact of radical change with the necessary urgency.


Abstract Saccadic eye movements remain spatially accurate even when the target becomes invisible and the initial eye position is perturbed. The brain accomplishes this in part by remapping the remembered target location in retinal coordinates. The computation that underlies this visual remapping is approximated by vector subtraction: the original saccade vector is updated by subtracting the vector corresponding to the intervening eye movement. The neural mechanism by which vector subtraction is implemented is not fully understood. Here, we investigate vector subtraction within a framework in which eye position and retinal target position signals interact multiplicatively (gain field). When the eyes move, they induce a spatial modulation of the firing rates across a retinotopic map of neurons. The updated saccade metric can be read from the shift of the peak of the population activity across the map. This model uses a quasi-linear (half-rectified) dependence on the eye position and requires the slope of the eye position input to be negatively proportional to the preferred retinal position of each neuron. We derive analytically this constraint and study its range of validity. We discuss how this mechanism relates to experimental results reported in the frontal eye fields of macaque monkeys.


Service learning, and specifically the work of organizations such as Engineers Without Borders USA, have become popular with universities looking to provide their students with applied educational opportunities which blend technical skills with a broader social mission and help the institution demonstrate its global impact. However, questions remain regarding the truly realized outcomes for students, as well as the unintended consequences that may be experienced by the partnering communities. This paper describes early results results from a four-year, mixed-method study which collected data through a combination of interviews and focus groups with members of the Engineers Without Borders USA organization, analysis and coding of completed project documentation, and observations and notes collected during a field visit to a project site. We conclude from our early data that students who are able (given sufficient resources) to fully participate in these type of projects do see positive benefits. However, barriers may prevent all students from having this opportunity. Further, the nature of student service learning projects inherently creates challenges for the communities that partner on these projects. Ongoing revisions to the Engineers Without Borders USA operating procedures may remedy some of the deficiencies, while researchers, participants, and institutions should continue to critically evaluate the impacts and outcomes of their work.


This monograph is intended as a practical guide to business applications of the theory of discrimination information statistics as developed by Kullback (1959) and Charnes and Cooper (1975 et seq.). A guide to modeling and computation methods is presented, with references to published applications and a discussion of their implications for business and planning. These implications are developed by means of detailed examples showing MDI to be a practically workable unifying principle for the analysis of demand and market structure. Some applications in other management areas are also noted.


Document Type Instructional Material Publication Date 7-2-2008 Abstract In this unit students will read a variety of informative and literary nonfiction texts focusing on the tragedy and discovery of the Titanic. The readings will provide them with the opportunity to uncover the understandings that discovery is the illumination of information, discovery leads us to understand the truth, and discovering types and features of nonfiction makes us more effective readers. Through discussion with their classmates and creation of several graphic organizers, students will answer the question "what is discovery and what is it not?" As students read the nonfiction books 882 1⁄2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions About the Titanic and Exploring the Titanic accompanied by various newspaper articles, biographies, autobiographies and essays, they will explore the questions "how does discovery affect our understanding?" and "to what extent is reading nonfiction different from reading fiction and to what extent is it the same?" The unit will conclude with a project in which students will apply what they have learned to create an informational and a literary nonfiction text. The texts will be intended for a time capsule to help people in the future discover the people and place of the student's middle school in the current year. Repository Citation Grant, Allison, "Discovery Through Nonfiction [6th grade]" (2008). Understanding by Design: Complete Collection. 69. https://digitalcommons.trinity.edu/educ_understandings/69 Creative Commons License


Keeping individuals safe from harm and exploitation is a clearly articulated goal within both the health and social care sectors. Two key concepts associated with achieving this common aim are safety and safeguarding. The purpose of this paper is to critically appraise the differences in safety terminology used in health and social care, including opportunities and challenges for greater integration of safety systems across health and social care in England.,This paper presents the authors' viewpoint based on personal, professional and research experience.,In healthcare, safety is usually conceptualised as the management of error, with risk considered on a universal level. In social care, the safeguarding process balances choice and control with individualised approaches to keeping adults safe, but lacks the established reporting pathways to capture safety incidents. Efforts to safely integrate health and social care services are currently constrained by a lack of shared understanding of the concepts of safety and safeguarding without further consideration of how these approaches to keeping people safe can be better aligned. As such, there is a need for a single, unified discourse of patient safety that cuts across the patient safety and safeguarding concepts and their associated frameworks in health and social care settings.,A single unified concept of safety in health and social care could coincide with an integrated approach to the delivery of health and social care, improving the care of patients transitioning between services.


How political dynasties affect economic development in the context of poor countries is a moot question. Theoretical predictions do not yield a clear answer and empirical studies, albeit recently on the increase, remain few. In this paper, we estimate the impact of dynastic families on local development in Pakistan's largest province, Punjab. Toward this purpose, we compile an original database on political genealogies, which includes information about the personal and family characteristics of both elected representatives and the main contenders in elections for the last one hundred years covering both elections held under colonial rule and Pakistan's modern political existence. Using a close elections regression discontinuity design, we obtain several results. First, entrenched dynasts operating under conditions of competitive clientelism show worse development performance than non-dynasts. This conclusion also holds when the effect of entrenched personal power, which measures the incumbency advantage of the individual election winners, is controlled for. Yet, it does not hold any more when the dynastic politician has won an election comfortably rather than by a close margin. Second, the behavior of traditional elites, which are overwhelmingly represented among dynasts, does not erase the effect of dynasticism per se. Where it occurs, it is the conjunction of entrenched political power with a traditional family setup characterized by strongly hierarchical relationships that accounts for poor development . An interpretative story is offered that is inspired by the political theory of economic backwardness of Acemoglu and Robinson as well as by a rich socio-anthropological literature.


Central to this study is the subject of community participation and local governance in Malaysia. It is acknowledged that the community and local authority play an important role in the local decision making process. Stakeholder participation has become an important part of the decision making process. It can empower and significantly influence the decision making process as well as the project design. How effective has participation been historically? Does it actually influence the decision making process in Local Agenda 21 (LA21)? It has been noted that participation practices have increased over the last three decades and is now practised in the planning and development process. However, the constant debates over stakeholder participation and citizen control have not resulted in the ability to identify its real issues and problems. Planning and participation of stakeholder at local level is the process of incorporating into the plan consideration of stakeholder needs, preferences and values attributable to each proposal before the decision making body. The determination of effective planning and decision in LA21 takes into account diverse perspectives and impact allowing the decision makers the opportunity to find solutions and empower stakeholder and local citizen in the LA21 process. This thesis examines the roles of the stakeholders i.e. community residents, local authority staffs and community organizations in LA21 process in Malaysia. The objectives of this research are to identify the level of participation of local authorities in LA21 and to investigate factors influencing the participation of the local authorities in LA21 in Malaysia. Furthermore, the research examines the way in which the participatory principles of LA21 are being carried out in Malaysia, using Petaling Jaya as a case study. The research uses a model of public participation to analyse the Petaling Jaya case study showing the level of participation among community in the LA21 process. The research uses several methods to collect the data which includes self administered questionnaire, interviews and participated observation. The
investigation includes an examination of the problems faced by the stakeholder in the participation process of LA21 and the reasons for the low level of adoption of LA21 by local authorities in Malaysia. However, as this research will illustrate through survey and case study analysis, there are several factors and limitations contributing to the
success of stakeholder participation in Local agenda 21 process. By highlighting these factors and limitations, the researcher's goal is to mobilize research and policy efforts
to overcome those limitations and to foster widespread stakeholder participation in the implementation of LA21 among local authorities in Malaysia.The results show that there is low level of participation among local authorities in LA21 in Malaysia. In the case study of Petaling Jaya, the level of participation among community is also low ranging from 'non-participation' to 'tokenism' level and not at the 'partnership' level as it should be in a LA21 process. In the case study it was found that the local authority try to emphasise a listening and open approach to decisionmaking process, but despite their commitment to participation, there has been limited success in securing widespread involvement and trust of people into the process. Key issues to emerge are the importance of the commitment of key individual and politicians, the readiness of the authorities to the outcomes of the participatory methods (responsive, transparent and consensus decision) and the need for participation to be an ongoing commitment by the authorities themselves rather than just one off exercise. The implications are that change is needed in the way local authorities relate to the communities they serve, but this will place considerable demand on already stretched
local authority resource, particularly where positive action is needed to build capacity.


This contribution to the Australian Year Book of International Law's agora on the South China Sea case assesses its treatment of fisheries and environmental issues. These matters might seem only second or third order concerns given the sovereignty and security issues also at stake. However, the South China Sea is one of the world's most ecologically diverse marine bioregions and sustains an array of coral reef systems and highly productive and valuable fisheries. Contrary to popular perceptions access to these fisheries is more central to the disputes between the littoral states of the region than control over oil and gas resources. The arbitral Tribunal's merits award clearly recognises this and addresses environmental protection and living resource questions in great length and detail.


BACKGROUND
The pain that women experience during labour is affected by multiple physiological and psychosocial factors and its intensity can vary greatly.  Most women in labour require pain relief. Pain management strategies include non-pharmacological interventions (that aim to help women cope with pain in labour) and pharmacological interventions (that aim to relieve the pain of labour).

OBJECTIVES
To summarise the evidence from Cochrane systematic reviews on the efficacy and safety of non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions to manage pain in labour. We considered findings from non-Cochrane systematic reviews if there was no relevant Cochrane review.

METHODS
We searched the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (The Cochrane Library 2011, Issue 5), The Cochrane Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (The Cochrane Library 2011, Issue 2 of 4), MEDLINE (1966 to 31 May 2011) and EMBASE (1974 to 31 May 2011) to identify all relevant systematic reviews of randomised controlled trials of pain management in labour. Each of the contributing Cochrane reviews (nine new, six updated) followed a generic protocol with 13 common primary efficacy and safety outcomes. Each Cochrane review included comparisons with placebo, standard care or with a different intervention according to a predefined hierarchy of interventions. Two review authors extracted data and assessed methodological quality, and data were checked by a third author. This overview is a narrative summary of the results obtained from individual reviews.

MAIN RESULTS
We identified 15 Cochrane reviews (255 included trials) and three non-Cochrane reviews (55 included trials) for inclusion within this overview. For all interventions, with available data, results are presented as comparisons of: 1. Intervention versus placebo or standard care; 2. Different forms of the same intervention (e.g. one opioid versus another opioid); 3. One type of intervention versus a different type of intervention (e.g. TENS versus opioid). Not all reviews included results for all comparisons. Most reviews compared the intervention with placebo or standard care, but with the exception of opioids and epidural analgesia, there were few direct comparisons between different forms of the same intervention, and even fewer comparisons between different interventions. Based on these three comparisons, we have categorised interventions into: " What works" ,"What may work", and "Insufficient evidence to make a judgement".WHAT WORKSEvidence suggests that epidural, combined spinal epidural (CSE) and inhaled analgesia effectively manage pain in labour, but may give rise to adverse effects. Epidural, and inhaled analgesia effectively relieve pain when compared with placebo or a different type of intervention (epidural versus opioids). Combined-spinal epidurals relieve pain more quickly than traditional or low dose epidurals. Women receiving inhaled analgesia were more likely to experience vomiting, nausea and dizziness.When compared with placebo or opioids, women receiving epidural analgesia had more instrumental vaginal births and caesarean sections for fetal distress, although there was no difference in the rates of caesarean section overall. Women receiving epidural analgesia were more likely to experience hypotension, motor blockade, fever or urinary retention. Less urinary retention was observed in women receiving CSE than in women receiving traditional epidurals. More women receiving CSE than low-dose epidural experienced pruritus.  WHAT MAY WORKThere is some evidence to suggest that immersion in water, relaxation, acupuncture, massage and local anaesthetic nerve blocks or non-opioid drugs may improve management of labour pain, with few adverse effects.  Evidence was mainly limited to single trials. These interventions relieved pain and improved satisfaction with pain relief (immersion, relaxation, acupuncture, local anaesthetic nerve blocks, non-opioids) and childbirth experience (immersion, relaxation, non-opioids) when compared with placebo or standard care. Relaxation was associated with fewer assisted vaginal births and acupuncture was associated with fewer assisted vaginal births and caesarean sections.INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCEThere is insufficient evidence to make judgements on whether or not hypnosis, biofeedback, sterile water injection, aromatherapy, TENS, or parenteral opioids are more effective than placebo or other interventions for pain management in labour. In comparison with other opioids more women receiving pethidine experienced adverse effects including drowsiness and nausea.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
Most methods of non-pharmacological pain management are non-invasive and appear to be safe for mother and baby, however, their efficacy is unclear, due to limited high quality evidence. In many reviews, only one or two trials provided outcome data for analysis and the overall methodological quality of the trials was low. High quality trials are needed.There is more evidence to support the efficacy of pharmacological methods, but these have more adverse effects. Thus, epidural analgesia provides effective pain relief but at the cost of increased instrumental vaginal birth.It remains important to tailor methods used to each woman's wishes, needs and circumstances, such as anticipated duration of labour, the infant's condition, and any augmentation or induction of labour.A major challenge in compiling this overview, and the individual systematic reviews on which it is based, has been the variation in use of different process and outcome measures in different trials, particularly assessment of pain and its relief, and effects on the neonate after birth. This made it difficult to pool results from otherwise similar studies, and to derive conclusions from the totality of evidence. Other important outcomes have simply not been assessed in trials; thus, despite concerns for 30 years or more about the effects of maternal opioid administration during labour on subsequent neonatal behaviour and its influence on breastfeeding, only two out of 57 trials of opioids reported breastfeeding as an outcome. We therefore strongly recommend that the outcome measures, agreed through wide consultation for this project, are used in all future trials of methods of pain management.


On August 7, 2003 the Cluster spacecraft moved through the dayside magnetosphere. The energetic particle spectrometer on board Cluster provided measurements of an extensive range of energy. Besides, satellite measurements of geomagnetic field showed a gradient magnetic field. It is known that an inhomogeneity of the magnetic field leads to a drift of charged particles. In this paper, the drift velocities including gradient drift and curvature drift have been calculated for an energy range from 0.1 to 300 keV via various pitch angles (about 6 to 9 UT). The pitch angles in the magnetic equator via the magnetic mirror location have been calculated near the magnetopause. Besides, the ratio of perpendicular particle energy over total particle energy as a function of equatorial pitch angle has been calculated. The drift velocities depending on the pitch angle for the low energy (0.1 kev) is about 0.01-0.07 km/s and for the higher energies of the particles (300 kev) is about 50-200 km/s between L ≈ 4 to L ≈ 6. The results show that particles with higher energies penetrate the deeper areas of the magnetosphere.


We report Chandra observations of GW170817, the first neutron star–neutron star merger discovered by the joint LIGO-Virgo Collaboration, and the first direct detection of gravitational radiation associated with an electromagnetic counterpart, Fermi short γ-ray burst GRB 170817A. The event occurred on 2017 August 17 and subsequent observations identified an optical counterpart, SSS17a, coincident with NGC 4993 (∼10″ separation). Early Chandra ( days) and Swift ( days) observations yielded non-detections at the optical position, but ∼9 days post-trigger Chandra monitoring revealed an X-ray point source coincident with SSS17a. We present two deep Chandra observations totaling ∼95 ks, collected on 2017 September 01–02 ( days). We detect X-ray emission from SSS17a with erg s−1, and a power law spectrum of . We find that the X-ray light curve from a binary NS coalescence associated with this source is consistent with the afterglow from an off-axis short γ-ray burst, with a jet angled ≳23° from the line of sight. This event marks both the first electromagnetic counterpart to a LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave source and the first identification of an off-axis short GRB. We also confirm extended X-ray emission from NGC 4993 ( erg s−1) consistent with its E/S0 galaxy classification, and report two new Chandra point sources in this field, CXOU J130948 and CXOU J130946.


Minimalist footwear is a current trend that has many purported benefits and advantages to running. These claims arise from the idea that this type of footwear is designed to mimic barefoot running by featuring low cushion and negligible arch support. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether this type of footwear could be beneficial in other ballistic activities such as landing. The study included ten participants with an inclusion of five males and five females of various movement backgrounds. The participants conducted twelve trials in two footwear conditions on a force platform. The first condition was a self-selected athletic footwear and the other was the minimalist footwear. The force variable results were inconclusive but statistical significance was found from kinematic analysis in three areas (ankle angle, foot inclination, and ankle ROM) at two contact points (heel contact and maximum knee flexion) during the landings. Ultimately, this complex activity is dependent on many variables and more future studies are needed in order to state whether minimalist footwear can be beneficial in the reduction of injuries during ballistic activities.


EuroPLOT resources [http://resources.3bmoodle.dk] is a unique collection of close to 5000 images of people, places and customs related to the world of the Bible. Pictures selected for the database are high resolution images of 10 megapixels or more (except for images of historical interest). All pictures are tagged with information on the picture's motif, relevant historical period(s), the name of the photographer, the date when the picture was taken, and Biblical references. The core vision is to use historical-archaeological pictures from primarily Israel-Palestine, but also the broader Biblical scene (Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Egypt) for visualization of textual worlds. The database is constructed to illustrate how a corpus-driven persuasive technology is able to make learning more effective and efficient through scaffolding. The database is integrated with the teaching tool Bible Online Learner, which is a tutor for the study of Hebrew and Greek based on the original Biblical texts, and relevant resources in the database are displayed as links in the Biblical text. The Flood account in Genesis 6-9 will be used as a case to demonstrate the potential of the database. The programmer of Bible Online Learner, Claus Tondering will develop the automated search learning objects. The resource database will be enhanced with a mechanism that allows a resource (that is, a picture, a sound, a video, or a piece of text) to be associated with an entry in a Hebrew or Greek dictionary. Bible Online Learner will then be able to provide a link to that resource when the associated word occurs in the biblical text. We will furthermore for the project explore to what extent we can use internationally established standards for reference to location on the internet, i.e. a "Uniform Resource Name" and explore to what extent this will enable Bible OL to associate our dictionary entries with other digital library formats (e.g., Bible Odyssey, Wikimedia Commons, etc.) for canonical citation. The high resolution resources are made freely available for non-commercial uses, and therefore an important resource for Majority World researchers, teachers and learners. All resources will be tested in the classrooms in Copenhagen, Oslo, Mongolia, Madagascar, Kenya and elsewhere over the next years.


The problems of language planning in multilingual countries cannot be viewed from the monolingual perspective which is available from the developed countries. Every multicultural, multilingual country must find its own unique solution keeping in view the sociolinguistic and psychological contexts of its language use. Language is one of the most debated topics in Indian education. Being a democratic, multilingual country, India and its educators are constantly grappling with the issue of what languages should be the media of instruction, particularly with reference to speakers of minority languages, some of which lack standardized written forms. India has vast majority of speakers of over 1,600 mother tongues dominated by only 15 scheduled languages. Unfortunately, the social policy planners have failed to take adequate notice of the fact that the social and psychological consequences of neglect of its multicultural and multilingual reality. The language problems in India must be viewed within a holistic framework and that, apart from the emotional and intuitive arguments often advanced in favour of mother tongue maintenance, there is a need for promotion of mother tongues through their educational sue and through other means. The present study contains the background and conceptual knowledge about acculturation and the problem of ethnic minorities and the reason behind selecting such area as study for research. This study would help to understand the issues associated with the disproportional representation of culturally and linguistically diverse learners in Education in West Bengal, India. Here the researcher also focused on the present curriculum of secondary level in the state of West Bengal, India and tried to locate the identity crisis of the linguistic minorities through several qualitative work related to the topic.


Shape-changing User Interfaces (UIs) are maturing in application and complexity, and therefore are becoming a tangible reality with regards to commercialization and design in a wider context. Current prototypes support a variety of bespoke interactions and are extensively tested, but applications for these constructs are often limited to the research scenario, and within the limitations of academic institutions. Engaging with a wider audience to develop novel UIs and applications is a valuable addition to the early design process, and can elicit new directions for research. Additionally, focusing on the user fulfils a requirement for developing a User-Centred Design methodology for shape-change, as it presents novel challenges for interaction design. This position paper calls for early adoption of such processes to support the emerging technology of shape-change, and for the formation of a collaborative UCD working group in this field.


The current EU sugar regime is drawing to a close. Soon ACP sugar exporters such as Fiji will face substantial cuts in the preferential prices they currently receive. For the Fijian sugar industry, this is a worrying prospect. Europe has defined the shape of the Fijian sugar export sector since its inception. The EU now has a clear obligation to assist the industry to adjust to a new era of trading. Investment in sustainable technology (bagasse electricity generation and sugar-based fuel ethanol) offers a way to revitalise the sugar sector and restore its profitability. Through investing in technology, the EU can give lasting assistance for a sector that remains vitally important for Fiji, and for the wellbeing of all its citizens.


This analysis establishes a conceptual framework, empirical criteria, and measures for deciding when technology-equipped crowd networks such as Occupy Wall Street behave as organizations. The framework is based on three principles that underlie most organizations: (1) resource mobilization; (2) responsiveness to short-term external conditions; and (3) coordinated long-term change, adaptation, or decline. We argue that Twitter played a coordinating role in Occupy as a connector and dynamic switching mechanism linking various networks. We develop methods for tracking how users embedded and shared links to resource locations. Using a database of some 60 million tweets, we examine different types of links distributed through different hashtags across time, showing how Occupy operated along each theoretical dimension as a networked organization.


We consider the fundamental problem of charged particles moving along and around a curved magnetic field line, revising the synchro-curvature radiation formulae introduced by Cheng and Zhang (1996). We provide more compact expressions to evaluate the spectrum emitted by a single particle, identifying the key parameter that controls the transition between the curvature-dominated and the synchrotron-dominated regime. This parameter depends on the local radius of curvature of the magnetic field line, the gyration radius, and the pitch angle. We numerically solve the equations of motion for the emitting particle by considering self-consistently the radiative losses, and provide the radiated spectrum produced by a particle when an electric acceleration is balanced by its radiative losses, as it is assumed to happen in the outer gaps of pulsar's magnetospheres. We compute the average spectrum radiated throughout the particle trajectory finding that the slope of the spectrum before the peak depends on the location and size of the emission region. We show how this effect could then lead to a variety of synchro-curvature spectra. Our results reinforce the idea that the purely synchrotron or curvature losses are, in general, inadequate to describe the radiative reaction on the particle motion, and the spectrum of emitted photons. Finally, we discuss the applicability of these calculations to different astrophysical scenarios.


Blockchains are publicly viewable and theoretically unalterable records of bitcoin transactions. They are thus crucial to the functionality of cryptocurrencies. Through the blockchain, bitcoin algorithmically decentralizes the maintenance of the transaction ledger and delegates the task to users on its network. Blockchain technology shows promise beyond cryptocurrency: banking and financial institutions have established partnerships with fintech firms to explore the applicability of blockchains in capital markets. Blockchains, used in conjunction with self-executing smartcontracts, present particularly compelling opportunities in derivatives markets, which are typically beset by numerous intermediaries. The blockchain could radically reinvent the existing market infrastructure. Certain intermediaries like central counterparties could become redundant or see abbreviated functionality. If this happens, the current body of derivatives laws and regulations would need to be amended to reflect these changes. This Note examines the blockchain's functionality and its applicability to derivatives markets. It discusses the current state of derivatives regulation, including the mandatory clearing mandate imposed by Title VII of Dodd-Frank. This Note argues that the current regulatory scheme is underpinned by a need to reduce the systemic risks posed by derivatives and that the new regulatory blueprint for blockchain derivatives markets should consequently be motivated by a reduction of the systemic risks inherent in the technology itself.


Integration of nanowire structures in more complex platforms combining microfluidics and multiplexing aspects may complex the electrical readout process. In the present work, fabrication of Aluminium (Al) lines for electrical connections is attempted followed by their integration to nanofabricated Memristive Biosensors that target at the label-free detection of cancer biomarkers. In addition a computational study is carried out investigating the impact of the resistance introduced by the additional Al connections to the electrical response of the Memristive Biosensors. Overall, the present study explores the restrictions and the possibilities of the Memristive Biosensors' integration with additional elements that would allow effective readout in more complex configurations.


This paper offers a conceptual analysis of the Portuguese inflected (or personal) infinitive. The analysis makes use of a few concepts of Cognitive Grammar. The inflected infinitive is described as an objective construal of the main participant of a process type. This conceptual import is consistent with the grammatical behavior of the inflected infinitive. After giving an overview of the structural properties of the inflected infinitive in modern Portuguese, the paper will describe the continuum of event asymmetry in which the inflected infinitival clause holds an intermediate position between the subordinate finite clause and the infinitival clause. The meaning of the inflected infinitive is therefore characterized by imagery dimensions that are specific to subordinate constructions, namely independence, specificity, grounding, prominence and objectivity/subjectivity. Finally, some aspects relating to the distribution of inflected infinitival (complement, adverbial and subject) clauses will be analyzed in terms of semantic compatibility.


Barley "Ardhaoui" ( Hordeum vulgare L.) is a local landraces cropped in southern Tunisia characterized by its resistance to drought and salinity. Salt tolerance of barley changes according to the growth stages. In order to study the salinity tolerance of ( Hordeum vulgare L.), fourteen barely accessions, were grown in soil and exposed to four salinity levels (5, 7, 13 and 20 dS/m). To evaluate its salt tolerance using multiple parameters, fourteen barley accessions from two regions in the southern Tunisia (costal and mountainous regions) were grown in soil and exposed to four salinity levels (5, 7, 13 and 20 dS/m). Plant growth parameter, total biomass at final harvest, straw yield and yield compound associated with salt tolerance during the different growth stages were determined. The results showed negative effects of salinity on the growth and the development of the barley. However, the salt sensitive accessions showed a greater reduction in tiller number (e.g. by about 80 %) than tolerant ones (e.g. by about 57 %) at 20 dS/m. These decrease on the growth of leaves, tillers and the aerial part constitute a strategy developed by the barely in vegetative phase to reduce the salt stress. Tiller and spikelet numbers were more affected by the salinity at 13 and 20 dS/m the different results showed significant correlation between the spikes numbers and the tiller number (r = 0.872). The salinity affected negatively these two parameters, which both initiate during early growth stages. So, the salinity has a greater influence on final grain yield than on yield components in the later stages. The studied parameters showed significant differences (p<0.05) between the barely accessions. The cluster analysis using agronomic parameters at all growth stage showed that the accessions "Ettalah" and "Elhezma" were ranked as the most tolerant to salinity. However, "Boughrara" and "Edwiret Elgdima" accessions were ranked as moderate and presented a change of their degree of tolerance with the different growth stage. The remaining accessions showed the lowest tolerance to salinity. A highest tolerance was observed on the accessions from plain zones compared at those of mountainous zones. The response differences between accessions of local population of barley "Ardhaoui" reflecting an important internal genetic variability against the salinity. This variability could be more explored and used for the barley breeding program.


Narrative reasoning is an inductive cognitive strategy used to understand patients' experiences with illness within the biosocial context of their lives. The purpose of this study is to examine the meaning of the patient's illness experience to physical therapist students and propose a theory of narrative reasoning development in these novice clinicians.The data collected from twenty-one first year physical therapy students consisted of narratives written during their clinical internships describing a patient's experience with illness and post-internship interviews telling the patient's story. Data were analyzed in a process of constant comparison, evolving codes, and researcher memoing using both grounded theory and narrative analyses. Themes that emerged in open coding and core categories were validated in selective coding. In the final stage of theoretical coding, relationships between the saturated core categories and relevance to current theory were established. The final result was a model of the development of narrative reasoning, illustrating contributions to current theory. The main themes that emerged from the data related to the novice therapist's development of narrative reasoning were in four areas: perspective, clinical narrative focus, reflective skills, and therapeutic alliance. The theoretical model advanced by this study is a recursive, spiraling developmental process of narrative reasoning through phases that are influenced by drivers and/or barriers. The process includes co-construction of narrative reasoning through encounters with patients, families, clinical instructors and other team members. Establishing a therapeutic alliance is a pivotal point in the development of narrative reasoning and is based on an empathic perspective and strengthened through a reflective approach. In conclusion, this study contributes to the understanding of the development of narrative reasoning. This model of narrative reasoning in student physical therapists has implications for educational interventions aimed at providing learning experiences that parallel the development of narrative reasoning.