When angiotensin II or AT1 receptor is experimentally inhibited during the perinatal period, either by pharmacological intervention or genetic manipulation, the kidney develops with profound structural abnormalities. Most prominent are hypertrophy of arterial vasculatures and atrophy of the papilla. Although the mechanism by which the vascular hypertrophy occurs remains unknown, study of the atrophic papilla gives us a new clue for understanding the physiological role of angiotensin. Mutant mice completely devoid of AT1 receptor fail to develop the renal pelvis and the ureteral peristaltic movement. Normally, angiotensin and AT1 receptor are transiently up-regulated around the renal outlet at birth. Thus angiotensin II induces the peristaltic machinery during the perinatal period in a timely fashion to accommodate the dramatic increase in urine production that occurs during the transition from intra- to extra-uterine life. Further studies revealed that in adult animals angiotensin augments the peristaltic movement when the urinary tract is partially obstructed, thereby protecting the kidney from hydronephrosis. This newly discovered function of angiotensin to protect kidney architecture at the time of urine outflow obstruction is reminiscent of its similar kidney structure-protecting function that is active during arterial blood flow obstruction.


The aim of this thesis was to study potential breeding strategies for indigenous livestock in Eastern and Southern Africa under low input production systems. The thesis covered a study of the status of supportive infrastructure for use of animal genetic resources. The case of Red Maasai sheep was studied as a model for design of strategies for improvement of an indigenous breed under threat. Studies [I-II] were performed through participatory approaches by use of structured interviews, while [III] comprised analyses of data collected at a research station, and [IV] was based on simulations.

The infrastructure in the countries studied was weak and organizations needed more farmer involvement [I]. Countries with least university training in animal breeding also had least developed activities for animal genetic resources.

A significant genotype by environment interaction was shown for Red Maasai and Dorper sheep in two different environments in Kenya [II]. Dorper was superior to Red Maasai for live weight in the less harsh environment, whereas breed differences were small in the harsh environment. Body size and milk production were highly ranked for both breeds. Red Maasai was appreciated for reproduction and adaptive traits and Dorper mainly for its larger body size. Dorper ram lambs were heavier live but did not have heavier carcasses than Red Maasai [III]. When basing their payment on assessed live weight, evaluators substantially undervalued Red Maasai lambs economically compared to Dorper.

Opportunities for substantial genetic gain in live weight and carcass weight of Red Maasai sheep were shown in [IV]. When conditions are harsh, purebreeding of Red Maasai was superior to crossbreeding. The use of Dorper as a terminal sire breed to produce crossbred lambs for slaughter may be practised if environmental conditions are favourable and survival rates are high. It was shown that a nucleus breeding programme could sustainably improve the productivity of an indigenous breed, while contributing to biological diversity.


The macro-physical and optical properties of cirrus clouds and its temperature dependencies have been investigated at the National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL; 13.5° N, 79.2° E), Gadanki, Andhra Pradesh, India; an inland tropical station during the period of observation January to December 2009 using a ground based pulsed monostatic lidar system data and radiosonde measurements. Based on the analysis of measurements the cirrus macrophysical properties such as occurrence height, mid cloud temperature, cloud geometrical thickness, and optical properties such as extinction coefficient, optical depth, depolarization ratio and lidar ratio have been determined. The variation of cirrus macrophysical and optical properties with mid cloud temperature have also been studied. The cirrus clouds mean height has been generally observed in the range of 9-17 km with a peak occurrence at 13-14 km. The cirrus mid cloud temperatures were in the range from -81 °C to -46 °C. The cirrus geometrical thickness ranges from 0.9-4.5 km and 56% of cirrus occurrences have thickness 1.0 -2.7 km. The monthly cirrus optical depth ranges from 0.01-0.47, but most (>80%) of the cirrus have values less than 0.1. The monthly mean cirrus extinction ranges from 2.8E-06 to 8E-05 and depolarization ratio and lidar ratio varies from 0.13 to 0.77 and 2 to 52 respectively. The temperature and thickness dependencies on cirrus optical properties have also been studied. A maximum cirrus geometrical thickness of 4.5 km is found at temperatures around – 46 °C with an indication that optical depth increases with increasing thickness and mid cloud temperature. The cloud radiative properties such as outgoing long-wave radiation (OLR) flux and cirrus IR forcing are studied. OLR flux during the cirrus occurrence days ranged from 348-456 W/m 2 with a low value in the monsoon period. The cirrus IR forcing varied from 3.13 – 110.54 W/m 2 and shows a peak at monsoon period.


This thesis explores the phenomenon of workforce modernisation through the reconfiguration of professional roles, which represents a policy priority in healthcare systems in the United Kingdom (UK) and globally. Heavily informed by conflict or power accounts of professionalism, the literature presents attempts to reconfigure professional roles as opportunities for the reallocation of professional knowledge and expertise and therefore power and status. Existing work emphasises the strategic, competitive activity of professionals to establish, extend and defend jurisdiction in the face of such change. Utilising an organisational neoinstitutional approach this thesis provides a novel theoretical interpretation of the opportunities and threats that the renegotiation of roles presents to the professional groups involved, adding complexity to the accounts that dominate the literature. The thesis draws upon work that describes the evolving nature and function of professionalism to demonstrate that in the contemporary organisational environment, focussed on accountability and risk management, attempts to reconfigure professional roles are understood not only in terms of the transfer of professional knowledge and expertise but the concurrent transfer of accountability for the management of risk. This represents a more complex commodity potentially associated with professional risk in the event of untoward incidents. Using the case of changes to the roles of consultant psychiatrists in the UK National Health Service (NHS) that propose the redistribution of clinical activity and responsibility from psychiatrists across the wider mental health workforce, the thesis demonstrates that rather than competing for jurisdiction associated with the management of significant risk, professionals carefully renegotiate their roles in a manner that ensures the protection, not just of their clients, but of the professionals involved. In this case, despite institutional work from professionals and managers to create change in established practice, concern with accountability for the management of risk drove adherence to traditional, readily accepted and organisationally sanctioned interprofessional boundaries, limiting the degree of change enacted. These findings have important practical implications for those involved in the management of change as well as theoretical implications for our understandings of professional role reconfiguration attempts and the nature of contemporary professionalism more broadly.


Mẻn Brayut text is one of Balinese texts develops in Balinese communities. The text is represented in spoken and written text held by Balinese communities. Even more, the text is supported with the statue of Mẻn Brayut found in number of temples in Bali. However, the message conveyed through the text has not been understood yet by most Balinese people. This phenomenon makes the text be interpreted differently. This is because the text has social semiotic conveyed through nonverbal language. Therefore, this research focused on social context embedded in the text of Mẻn Brayut to solve the differences interpretation. The theory used to explore used to analyze the problems is Systemic Functional Linguistics proposed by Halliday. The data were taken from written text (Suwija, 2019). The research used qualitative method since the theory is used as guidance of data collection. The data were collected based on field, tenor, and mode. The result of the result showed that the text described seriousness and sincerity of mother develops the children without having profit orientation, but she emphasizes in profound love. More abstractly, text of Mẻn Brayut represented in statue accompanied by many children placed in number of temples in Bali is interpreted as the propound God's love for all human.


Justice Jackson's seminal framework in Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer has provided the Supreme Court with a taxonomy to analyze separation-of-powers issues since its creation over fifty years ago. However, recent national security cases such as Rasul v. Bush and Hamdi v. Rumsfeld reveal a glaring lacuna in the post-9/11 Youngstown cases and literature. When examining national security and separation-of-powers cases that have employed the Youngstown framework since its inception in 1952, a curious and previously unidentified revelation emerges. This Article addresses the irregularity in the contemporary application and analysis of national security cases that employ the Youngstown framework and seeks to explain how, as a result of vexing separation- of-powers cases like Rasul and Hamdi, the Supreme Court has adopted an implied fourth tier of Youngstown. This Article contends that the Court has implicitly recognized and employed a fourth tier in the traditional Youngstown framework in contemporary national security-related separation of- powers cases. The thrust of the original Youngstown framework - and most subsequent judicial application of the framework and resulting precedent - focuses on determining the balance of power between Congress and the executive. As prescient as Justice Jackson's original framework is, however, it does not provide any judicial tools to assist in determining the balance of power when the struggle is between the executive and the judiciary - where the President declares he is rightly acting within his "own independent powers." In such a scenario, courts cannot look to congressional sources to define the limits of executive power but rather must look to Article II of the Constitution. Contemporary application of the Youngstown framework has illustrated that beyond the "zone of twilight" lies a "zone of insight." The zone of insight can be defined as a judicially pragmatic tool employed by the Court when the particular facts of a separation-of-powers issue do not fit neatly within one of Jackson's original three Youngstown tiers. Rather than residing in a Tier Two zone of twilight, Tier Four is the Court's zone of insight. While the zone of twilight reflects issues where the Court must determine the constitutional balance of power between Congress and the President, the zone of insight reflects those cases where the Court must assess the limits of the President's unenumerated Article II authority. In certain national security cases, the Court consistently chooses a functionalist approach to resolve such constitutional questions. This zone of insight reflects the contemporary Court's desire to perceive and penetrate the President's unenumerated Article II powers in an intuitive manner. Defining the scope of the President's unenumerated Article II powers, however, especially those powers that touch upon national security and war-time issues, could potentially hamper the President's powers during future conflicts. Therefore, rather than adhering to formalist notions of the separation of powers between Congress and the President, this zone of insight focuses exclusively on probing the contours of what the President can do, and more importantly, what he cannot do. This methodology embodies the pinnacle of judicial functionalism. This Article explores this fourth tier and explains how the Supreme Court balances formalist methods with functionalist needs.


Evaluated were changes of temperature and relative air humidity inside a free-stall barn affecting the welfare of cows of three technological groups during a hot summer. The effects of selected microclimate parameters of the barn have been assessed based on the THI (temperature-humidity index) in relation to milk production. The research revealed that the animals suffered from thermal stress which resulted in decreased milk production in particular groups. The paper presents information about percentage values of this decrease and time needed to regain the original state. It also points out the need to determine THI not only for the entire barn but also for its various zones occupied by particular technological groups of cows with different levels of milk production. The authors highlight that the THI index is quite a useful tool for predicting thermal stress in particular sections of the barn. Yet, it is necessary to improve the methodology of THI calculation in order to include more microclimate elements, mainly air movement.


Foreword Preface Acknowledgement Dedication Chapter summaries Contributor biographies Chapter 1 Conceptual development in sports coaching Chris Cushion and John Lyle Chapter 2 Complex practice in coaching: studying the chaotic nature of coach-athlete interactions Robyn L. Jones, Imornefe Bowes and Kieran Kingston Chapter 3 Coaches' decision making: a Naturalistic Decision Making analysis John Lyle Chapter 4 Coach behaviour Chris Cushion Chapter 5 Athlete development and coaching Jean C^ote', Mark Bruner, Karl Erickson, Leisha Strachan and Jessica Fraser-Thomas Chapter 6 Planning for team sports John Lyle Chapter 7 The professionalisation of sports coaching: definitions, challenges and critique Bill Taylor and Dean Garratt Chapter 8 Becoming a high-performance coach: pathways and communities Clifford J. Mallett Chapter 9 Coach education effectiveness Pierre Trudel, Wade Gilbert and Penny Werthner Chapter 10 The learning coach...the learning approach: professional development for sports coach professionals Kathleen M. Armour Chapter 11 Towards a socio- Chapter 12 Understanding athlete learning and coaching practice: utilising 'practice theories' and 'theories of practice' Tania Cassidy Chapter 13 Coaching workforce development Alan Lynn and John Lyle Chapter 14 Coaching practice and practice ethics Hamish Telfer Chapter 15 Coaches' expertise Paul G. Schempp and Bryan McCullick Chapter 16 Coaching philosophy Simon Jenkins Chapter 17 Narrowing the field: some key questions about sports coaching John Lyle and Chris Cushion


Players of video games often find themselves at a set location, in a room or a game hall, playing alone, with family or friends, even both, or maybe with strangers over the Internet. The game becomes intense when the player reaches a crucial moment or event. Such moments might be when the player has reached a new level, received a new piece of equipment, found the last hidden key or is about to kill the last "boss" in the game to win a war. The emotional state of the player changes as the game proceeds, where excitement can be closely followed by frustration or surprise. Studying players of such games has become easier when new technology give us the opportunity to study them closely. By the use of biosensors, cameras and close observations, observers can collect a rich amount of quantitative and qualitative data. But the complexity increases when the players are players of a pervasive game. Pervasive games are games that expand socially, spatially and temporally. They are lived experiences, where players might experience the more (or less) intense moments in the game when they e.g. find themselves in a dark alley chasing a fictional character in the streets of Sheffield (UK), on a bike recording memories and thoughts in a "hidden" location outside central London (UK) or running around downtown, trying to map places of interference on the Internet in Düsseldorf (Germany). The players are more or less on the loose, which minimizes the chances to carry out close observations. In this thesis I will report on a design project focusing on finding new concepts in capturing different aspects of the game experiences. By focusing on game play experience, I have chosen to go beyond the traditional usability evaluation methods used in present CHI practice and focus on representations for different aspects of the game experience. I will describe the design rationale and process in choosing concepts as well as presenting the resulting design proposals for two hand-held tools for self-reporting. The designs for the tools will be based on findings from a conducted user study, where representations for game play experiences will be tested by potential users. At the end of this thesis I will discuss the results from my design process as well as lessons learnt from the project.


For a number of years my activities have included: determining exactly how to produce nanometer sized silver clusters in an aqueous medium using physics and photonic light at 420 nm. This wavelength is known to be absorbed by silver and has proven successful, resulting in producing atomic silver clusters in a narrow band distribution just 6.5 nm wide (3.6 to 10.1 nm). However soon after, it came to realization that an even bigger challenge was waiting to be explained: How to properly test the properties of water?
So-called colloidal silver as a potential biocide can only exist in water and in particular uncontaminated water. For that reason water, in addition to the silver used, requires to be very pure indeed. Water itself is a dielectric and thus an insulator. It does not conduct electric current. Any conduction of current or charge carrying that does occur is done exclusively by the ionic matter contained in the water. For that reason it is a prudent decision to use the purest possible water. Deionized water was chosen. In comparison, distilled water, containing much foreign matter, does allow too much current to flow and is not suitable. For example, when testing the properties of distilled water, the lowest conduction ever measured is only 100, 000 Ohm. More often than not the conduction is even higher at 56, 000 Ohm. This is well short of the expected quality of distilled water at 1 million Ohm. According to the Science of Conductance, 1 micro Siemens/cm should provide an equivalent reciprocal or inverse proportionality of 1 million Ohm resistivity/cm for any type of water and that should include distilled water. It is clear that in the case of distilled water, this is not true. In comparison, good quality deionized water of a purity of between 0.01 and 0.022 Micro Siemens/cm will have a closer resemblance to its Ohmic reciprocals although not exactly. However, the values are close enough in Ohmic resistance to allow current to flow between electrodes at a set voltage of either 300 or 600 Volts DC for a current of 500 and 1, 500 micro ampere/h respectively. It has been noted after numerous batch productions, a steadily increasing carbonation due to carbon dioxide (CO2) entering the water seems to have no serious side effects. However nothing is ever that simple! In this manuscript we will present our findings that conventional water purity testing using the concept of Siemens or its reciprocal in resistivity are flawed, inadequate and confusing by not embracing proper science and Ohm's law and especially ignoring the voltage potential, as if irrelevant.


As U.S. counterterrorism activities continue to engage the armed forces in profound legal and policy debates over detention, interrogation, targeting and the use of force, recent legal scholarship has painted a grim picture of the vitality of civilian control over the U.S. military. Prominent generals leverage their outsized political influence to manipulate the civilian political branches into pursuing their preferred course of action. Bureaucratically sophisticated officers secure the adoption of their policy judgments in the Executive Branch and Congress contrary to civilian preferences. And misplaced judicial deference to military expertise on what is necessary to regulate the special community of the armed forces exacerbates the growing social separation between the military and the society it serves. The question of how to distinguish expert advice from undemocratic influence that has long surrounded the work of administrative agencies is made especially complex by the unique constitutional role of the military. Before one can tell whether civilian control is threatened, one must first have some understanding of what it is. Yet for all the intense focus in recent years on the legality of what the military does, where the modern military fits in our constitutional democracy has remained remarkably under-theorized in legal scholarship. Moreover, prevailing theories of civilian control in the more developed social and political theory literature of civil-military affairs view the Constitution's separation of powers – in particular, the allocation of authority over the military to more than one branch of government – as a fundamental impediment to the maintenance of civilian control as they take it to be defined. As a result, there remains a significant gap in the development of a constitutional understanding of the meaning of civilian control. This Article is an effort to begin filling that gap, by examining whether and how the constraining advice of military professionals may be consistent with our modern separation of powers scheme.


This paper addresses the role of the 'good, average man' or the 'man at the door' in marketing life assurance and industrial life assurance in particular. While older commercial life assurance companies struggled to establish and expand their markets in the nineteenth century, the industrial life offices saw exponential growth selling a form of life assurance targeted at the poor. The paper explores the role of door to door agents in securing this growth. Almost by accident, industrial assurance agents emerged as the salve to widespread concerns about the complexity, propriety and safety of life assurance. As the familiar 'man at the door', agents helped foster the trust at a distance that large financial institutions depended upon and they also helped, through their weekly visits, to impose the discipline of thrift on the often precarious cash economies of working class households. It was through entanglement in the social lives of their policyholders that agents helped establish and reproduce industrial assurance markets.
But the social ties that linked agents to their policyholders were a delicate matter. Industrial assurance offices had sprung up initially as a means of providing death benefits and came increasingly to provide life, endowment and other forms of cover to poorer communities. It was thus by definition a business transacted on intimate personal and social turf. But this social entanglement just added to the controversies aroused by a product reliant on an expensive business model of weekly door to door collection. Government and regulatory bodies feared that industrial assurance not only offered low financial returns but that it might damage traditional social bonds in sometimes dramatic ways – by for instance giving poor parents a pecuniary motive for neglecting their offspring or even hastening their deaths. The offices and their customers meanwhile defended agents on the grounds of their ties and their value to their communities. While offices may have sometimes exaggerated the goodwill customers felt towards their agents as 'philosophers, guides and friends'; these agents were profoundly linked to their communities and policyholders through a variety of overlapping market, social and personal relations. The chapter will explore the way these varied ties arise as an inevitable component of the commerce or traffic of everyday life


Pachyonychia congenita is a rare, autosomal dominant genetic disease characterized by painful palmoplantar keratoderma and hypertrophic nail dystrophy. This disorder is caused by mutations in any one of five cytoskeletal keratin proteins, K6a, K6b, K6c, K16 and K17. Here, we describe a new p.Leu421Pro (c.1262T>C) mutation in the highly conserved helix termination motif of K16 in a large Spanish family. Bioinformatic analyses as well as previous descriptions in the literature of homologous mutations in other keratin‐coding genes show that this mutation is probably causative of the disease.


Today, numerous models and metrics are available to capture and characterize static properties of online social networks. When it comes to understanding their dynamics and evolution, however, research offers little interms of metrics or models. Current metrics are limited to logical time clocks, and unable to capture interactions with external factors that rely on physical time clocks. In this paper, our goal is to take initial steps towards building a set of metrics for characterizing social network dynamics based on physical time. We focus our attention on two metrics that capture the "eagerness" of users in building social structure. More specifically, we propose metrics of link delay and triadic closure delay, two metrics that capture the time delay between when a link or triadic closure is possible,and when they actually instantiate in the trace. Considered over time or across traces, the value of these metrics can provide insight on the speed at which users act in building and extending their social neighborhoods. We apply these metrics to two real traces of social network dynamics from the Renren and Facebook networks. We show that these metrics are generally consistent across networks, but their differences reveal interesting properties of each system. We argue that they can be attributed to factors such as network maturity, environmental and social contexts, and services offered by network provider, all factors independent of the network topology and captured by our proposed metrics. Finally, we find that triadic closure delays capture the ease of neighbor discovery in social networks, and can be strongly influenced by friend recommendation systems.


Ingested glucose powerfully stimulates the secretion of appetite‐ and metabolism‐regulating peptide hormones from the gut – including glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1), neurotensin (NT), and polypeptide YY (PYY). However, the regional origin of these secretions after glucose stimulation is not well characterized, and it remains uncertain how their secretion is related to glucose absorption. We isolated and perfused either the upper (USI) or the lower (LSI) small intestine or the colon from rats and investigated concomitant glucose absorption and secretory profiles of GLP‐1, NT, and PYY. In the USI and LSI luminal glucose (20%, w/v) increased GLP‐1 and NT secretion five to eightfold compared to basal secretion. Compared to the USI, basal and stimulated GLP‐1 secretion from the colon was 8–10 times lower and no NT secretion was detected. Luminal glucose stimulated secretion of PYY four to fivefold from the LSI and from the USI and colon, but the responses in the USI and colon were 5‐ to 15‐fold lower than in the LSI. Glucose was absorbed to a comparable extent in the USI and LSI by mechanisms that partly depended on both SGLT1 and GLUT2 activity, whereas the absorption in the colon was 80–90% lower. The absorption rates were, however, similar when adjusted for segmental length. Glucose absorption rates and NT, PYY and in particular GLP‐1 secretion were strongly correlated (P < 0.05). Our results indicate that the rate of secretion of GLP‐1, NT, and PYY in response to glucose, regardless of the involved molecular machinery, is predominantly regulated by the rate of glucose absorption.


The US dollar is widely used in international trade and finance. It is the currency of choice for cross-border bank lending and international debt issuance, particularly for emerging market firms. It is also the dominant invoicing currency for trade transactions between non-US countries. Its global acceptance means that it has achieved 'reserve currency' status, which means that it is widely used as a store of wealth, accounting for more than half of the foreign exchange reserves of central banks and about half of the external assets of non-US countries. These global roles of the US dollar form channels through which changes in its value can have consequences outside US borders. These go beyond the standard effect on bilateral trade flows with the United States. The traditional external trade channel would imply that when the US dollar appreciates against another country's currency, the products of that country become more competitive relative to US products, boosting its exports and output. But if its exports are invoiced in dollars, that gain in competitiveness may not materialise. And if companies have borrowed in dollars, the amount of domestic currency needed to repay that debt will have increased, raising the burden of the debt, and acting as a drag on growth. By contrast, those who hold dollar assets, for example governments with large US dollar reserves, will experience a gain in wealth, which might support spending and hence growth. These various channels mean that it is not straightforward to estimate the impact of an appreciation of the dollar on the output growth of the rest of the world. Excluding the direct effects of what is causing the appreciation in the first place, such as tighter US monetary policy or shifts in investors' risk sentiment, we find empirically that periods of US dollar appreciation are associated with lower real output growth in the rest of the world, both in advanced and emerging market economies. This result is in contrast to the boost that might be expected from the traditional external trade channel. The size of this effect is significant: a 10% US dollar appreciation on average takes 1.5 percentage points off emerging market economies' real output growth.


The yellows disease of cole crops, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans, can be very damaging to collard. Growers in the southeastern United States frequently produce collard in hot, summer months when conditions for yellows development are favorable, and thus, incidence of this disease is increasing. A collection of essentially all U.S. commercial cultivars of collard, various landraces of collard, and other representative cole crops was evaluated for response to artificial inoculation with F. oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans under controlled-temperature conditions. In addition, the same collection was evaluated following transplanting for response to naturally infested soil in the field during summer 1997 and 1998. In all trials, genotype had the most significant effect on percentage of diseased plants, and genotype responses ranged from resistant (0 to 20% diseased) to susceptible (61 to 100% diseased). There was a significant temperature effect on percentage of diseased plants in one growth chamber experiment with five genotypes that resulted primarily from an increase in disease incidence for the cultivar Blue Max at 30°C compared with 25°C. Temperature was not significant in a second experiment with 20 genotypes. In the field, although significant differences were observed among genotypes and between years, a significant genotype × year interaction was not detected for percentage of diseased plants, indicating a similar ranking of genotypes for resistance between years. There was a significant correlation between results from controlled-environment studies and the field. A resistant response to F. oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans was expressed in certain cultivars of collard, including Flash, Heavicrop, and Morris Heading, and also in specific landraces. This resistance was stable in relatively high temperature environments used in evaluations. Results of this research indicate that choice of cultivar is a critical factor in producing collard where conditions favor infection by F. oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans. This information will aid in development of new yellows-resistant cultivars.


OBJECTIVE
This study aims to address difficulties reported by the nursing team during the process of changing the management model in a public hospital in Brazil.

METHODS
This qualitative study used thematic content analysis as proposed by Bardin, and data were analyzed using the theoretical framework of Bolman and Deal.

RESULTS
The vertical implementation of Participatory Management contradicted its underlying philosophy and thereby negatively influenced employee acceptance of the change. The decentralized structure of the Participatory Management Model was implemented but shared decision-making was only partially utilized. Despite facilitation of the communication process within the unit, more significant difficulties arose from lack of communication inter-unit. Values and principals need to be shared by teams, however, that will happens only if managers restructure accountabilities changing job descriptions of all team members.

CONCLUSION
Innovative management models that depart from the premise of decentralized decision-making and increased communication encourage accountability, increased motivation and satisfaction, and contribute to improving the quality of care. The contribution of the study is that it describes the complexity of implementing an innovative management model, examines dissent and intentionally acknowledges the difficulties faced by employees in the organization.


Archives, museums and libraries are part of our cultural and natural heritage. Acquiring, processing and providing access to recorded information are some of the reasons why cultural heritage institutions exist. The functions of the African Heritage Research Library and Cultural Centre (AHRLC), Adeyipo, the National Archive, Abeokuta branch and the Ife Museum of Natural History are no different. They are cultural heritage instituitions with collections of African historical antecedents, repositories of natural objects and African heritage research library dating back to 1950, 1992 and 1971 respectively. That this heritage is worth preserving is the theme of this study. Although, some current preservation methods in place are indigenous, they are lacking in many instances the risk management expertise, focus and coordinated planning. A lot more needs to be done by way of providing the necessary resources, and the appropriate facilities supported by comprehensive institutional polices. Face-to-face interview and observation were the instruments used for the study. The strategies adopted for managing risks and preventing disasters, by the selected cultural heritage institutions in South-West, Nigeria was the focus. The efforts of three heritage institutions (1 library, 1 archive and 1 museum) to prevent disasters and manage their collections with as little risk as possible, even in the face of shoestring budgets are described. The disaster management strategies of the Heritage Library, Adeyipo, The National Archive, Abeokuta branch and the Ife Museum of Natural History are detailed. The advantages and disadvantages of the strategies chosen are highlighted and suggestions proferred for improvement.


We model a decentralized, dynamic auction market platform in which a continuum of buyers and sellers participate in simultaneous, single-unit auctions each period. Our model accounts for the endogenous entry of agents and the impact of intertemporal optimization on bids. We estimate the structural primitives of our model using Kindle sales on eBay. We find that just over one-third of Kindle auctions on eBay result in an inefficient allocation with deadweight loss amounting to 14% of total possible market surplus. We also find that partial centralization—for example, running half as many 2-unit, uniform-price auctions each day—would eliminate a large fraction of the inefficiency, but yield lower seller revenues. Our results also highlight the importance of understanding platform composition effects—selection of agents into the market—in assessing the implications of market redesign. We also prove that the equilibrium of our model with a continuum of buyers and sellers is an approximate equilibrium of the analogous model with a finite number of agents.


Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. REVELATION 3:20 (RSV) FOR EDITH STEIN (1891-1942), human vocation is comprised of a call and a response. The call is issued from the Divine, and the human response is enabled by Divine assistance. Human vocation is not simply a matter concerning choice of occupation, but rather concerns the ultimate Gestalt or "shape" of one's life. She writes the following to a former student of hers, Rose Magold, in a letter dated August 30, 1931: "The question of vocation cannot be solved merely through self-examination plus a scrutiny of the various possibilities. One must pray for the answer--you know that--and, in many cases, it must be sought by way of obedience. I have given this same advice several times, and those involved have arrived at peace and clarity by following it." (1) Stein argues that to be shaped within demands pliability to formation by external sources. As will be further demonstrated, human vocation is a matter of intersubjective existence--a living in community--that awakens one to possibility and development. To awaken from vocational slumber is to heed the personal Divine summons to travel eastward toward the Son of glory. (2) This article will trace the contours of Stein's understanding of universal human vocation. First, I will analyze the Aristotelian and Thomistic potency-act hermeneutic as developed by Stein. The relationship between potency and act serves as the lynchpin of Stein's entire philosophical project, which attempts to answer the question of being through a synthesis of Thomistic sacra doctrina and Husserlian phenomenological idealism. Second, I will take an inventory of the components of what Stein calls "intersubjectivity." For Stein, personal vocation is not a matter of turning inward in solipsistic inquiry, but rather one of turning outward and opening to the agency of the other. Third and finally, I will assess the notion and function of grace in Stein's vision. In presenting a teleological vision wherein finite being stretches toward infinite being, Stein frames the question of human vocation as an integral dimension of the question of being itself. By proceeding according to these three systematic checkpoints of Stein's work, a concentrated appraisal will be submitted that will contribute to comprehending the notion of human vocation. In addition, this sketch will also aid in understanding the way in which Stein herself fulfilled a definite sense of vocation in her life. I. The Revelatory Dialectic of Potency Act Stein embarks on her philosophical project confident that she draws from the immutable riches of philosophia perennis (perennial philosophy): "Above and beyond the limitations of historical epochs and peoples there is something in which all those share who honestly search for truth." (3) As it was with her forebearers, so it remains for Stein: the question of being lies at the core of philosophical inquiry. Stein's lifelong philosophical project is marked by the struggle to understand, as fully as possible, the meaning and constitution of being (Sein). She finds Aristotle to be a helpful guide as he broaches the question within the heart of his Metaphysics. And we think we know each thing most fully, when we know what it is, e.g. what man is or what fire is, rather than when we know its quality, its quantity, or where it is; since we know each of these things also, only when we know what the quantity or quality is. And indeed the question which, both now and of old, has always been raised, and always been the subject of doubt, viz. what being is, is just the question, what is substance (ousia)? (4) Stein suggests that her culminating work, Finite and Eternal Being, "may have grown out of this question as out of a living seed." (5) Likewise, Stein finds Aristotle's hermeneutic for being, namely, potency and act, as the primary way to understand the mystery of being. …


In this scene, the Alutiiq Indians are dwarfed by the landscape and sky. Not only are they subjected to the surveillance/discovery of Captain Vancouver, but their smallness of scale, and the absence of any mention of human presence in the short title, perhaps hints at their merely temporary occupation of the scene. Several questions arise: does their exoticism enhance or undermine the sublime? Moreover, is this a Kantian sublime that highlights mind over nature or a Burkean one that insists upon the physiological experience of pain and pleasure?


Abstract. We established a multi-proxy time series comprising analyses of major elements in bulk sediments, Sr and Nd isotopes, grain size of terrigenous fraction, and δ18O and δ13C in tests of Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (sinistral) from a marine sediment sequence recovered off the Orange River. The records reveal coherent patterns of variability that reflect changes in wind strength, precipitation over the river catchments, and upwelling of cold and nutrient-rich coastal waters off western South Africa. The wettest episode of the Holocene in the winter rainfall zone (WRZ) of South Africa occurred during the "Little Ice Age" (700–100 cal years BP) most likely in response to a northward shift of the austral westerlies. Wet phases and strengthened coastal water upwellings are companied by a decrease of Agulhas water leakage into the South Atlantic and a reduced dust incursion over Antarctica, as indicated in previous studies. A continuous aridification trend in the WRZ and a weakening of the southern Benguela Upwelling System (BUS) between 9000 and 5500 cal years BP parallel with increase of dust deposition over Antarctica and an enhanced leakage of warm Agulhas water into the eastern South Atlantic. The temporal relationship between precipitation changes in the WRZ, the thermal state of the coastal surface water, and leakage of warm water in the South Atlantic, and variation of dust incursion over Antarctica suggests a causal link that most likely was related to latitudinal shifts of the Southern Hemisphere westerlies. Our results of the mid-Holocene time interval may serve as an analogue to a possible long-term consequence of the current and future southward shift of the westerlies. Furthermore, warming of the coastal surface water as a result of warm Agulhas water incursion into the southern BUS may affect coastal fog formation.


Abstract. Because of the importance of access to sunlight, shadow analysis is a common consideration in urban design, especially for dense urban developments. As shadow computation is computationally expensive, most urban shadow analysis tools have to date circumvented the high computational costs by representing urban complexity only through simplified geometric models. The simplification process removes details and adversely affects the level of realism of the ultimate results. In this paper, an alternative approach is presented by utilizing the highest level of detail and resolution captured in the geometric input data source, which is an extremely high-resolution airborne laser scanning point cloud (300 points/m2). To cope with the high computational demand caused by the use of this dense and detailed input data set, the Comprehensive Urban Shadow algorithm is introduced to distribute the computation for parallel processing on a Hadoop cluster. The proposed comprehensive urban shadow analysis solution is scalable, reasonably fast, and capable of preserving the original resolution and geometric detail of the original point cloud data.


The oil crash of 2014 is expected to have a moderate impact on the global economy with oil importers seeing a boost in growth. The long-term impacts on climate change are difficult to predict but it is very likely that these might even be beneficial to the process of decarbonising the global energy economy. Most countries, including India, could use the opportunity to reduce fossil fuel subsidies and invest in renewable energy instead.


Although a substantial amount of research has examined the constructs of warmth and competence, far less has examined how these constructs develop and what benefits may accrue when warmth and competence are cultivated. Yet there are positive consequences, both emotional and behavioral, that are likely to occur when brands hold perceptions of both. In this paper, we shed light on when and how warmth and competence are jointly promoted in brands, and why these reputations matter.


FVMany different dosage schedules of antisecretory drugs for the treatment of duodenal ulcer are recommended. The relationship between degree of acid suppression and therapeutic efficacy has not been precisely defined for these drugs. We have examined the association between suppression of intragastric acidity and duodenal ulcer healing rates for a number of therapeutic regimens. For the H2 receptor antagonists alone, the most significant correlation with healing rates was with suppression of intragastric acidity at night (r = 0.926; p = 0.0001). When other classes of drug: high dose antacid, omeprazole and a synthetic prostaglandin (enprostil) were included in the analysis, the closest correlation was with suppression of total 24 hour intragastric acidity (r = 0.911; p less than F0.0001). Stepwise linear regression analysis was used to investigate the relative contributions to healing of suppression of acidity during the day and night. Suppression of nocturnal acidity was found to be the single most important factor in explaining healing rates. No further benefit was obtained with daytime suppression for H2 receptor antagonists; suppression of acidity at night accounted for 86.1% of the observed variation in healing rates among different regimens of H2 receptor antagonists. When all classes of drugs were analysed, inclusion of daytime suppression produced a significant improvement in correlation over nocturnal suppression alone. Drug regimens providing potent suppression of nocturnal acidity produce the highest healing rates in controlled clinical trials. The healing rate for any dose regimen of an antisecretory drug can be predicted from a knowledge of its effect on intragastric acidity. For the H2 receptor antagonists, suppression of nocturnal acidity is the most relevant in this context. Moderate suppression of acidity achieves ulcer healing rates at four to eight weeks which are comparable with those seen with potent suppression at two to four weeks. Increasing degrees of suppression merely accelerate healing.


Phytophthora ramorum, Phytophthora alni, and Phytophthora kernoviae present significant threats to biosecurity. As zoosporic oomycetes, these plant pathogens may spread through natural waterways and irrigation systems. However, survival of these pathogens in aquatic systems in response to water quality is not well understood. In this study, we investigated their zoospore survival at pH 3-11 in a 10% Hoagland's solution over a 14-day period. The results showed that all three pathogens were most stable at pH 7, although the populations declined overnight irrespective of pH. Extended survival of these species depended on the tolerance of pH of their germinants. Germinants of P. alni ssp. alni and P. ramorum were more basic tolerant (pH 5-11), while those of P. kernoviae were more acidic tolerant (pH 3-9). These tolerant germinants formed compact hyphae or secondary sporangia to allow longer survival of these pathogens. Long-term survival at a broad pH range suggests that these pathogens, especially P. ramorum, are adapted to an aquatic environment and pose a threat to new production areas through water dispersal.


By capturing and sequencing the RNA fragments protected by translating ribosomes, ribosome profiling sketches the landscape of translation at subcodon resolution. We developed a new method, RiboCode, which uses ribosome profiling data to assess the translation of each RNA transcript genome-wide. As shown by multiple tests with simulated data and cell type-specific QTI-seq and mass spectrometry data, RiboCode exhibits superior efficiency, sensitivity, and accuracy for de novo annotation of the translatome, which covers various types of novel ORFs in the previously annotated coding and non-coding regions and overlapping ORFs. Finally, to showcase its application, we applied RiboCode on a published ribosome profiling dataset and assembled the context-dependent translatomes of yeast under normal condition, heat shock, and oxidative stress. Comparisons among these translatomes revealed stress-activated novel upstream and downstream ORFs, some of which are associated with potential translational dysregulations of the main protein coding ORFs in response to the stress signals.


With the aim of contributing to the development of decision support tools for migratory beekeepers in their planning for hive movements to heathlands in time and space, models were developed from analyses of heather flowering, nectar secretion, sugar concentration, and weight of bee hives in relation to meteorological parameters across two seasons in Denmark. The number of heather flowers was significantly lower in 2013 compared with 2012, reflecting the very long-lasting winter combined with the very dry spring period of 2013. The analyses showed that the initial number of flowers is determined by the amount of accumulated day-degree in early May, as well as the total rainfall prior to flowering and that subsequent changes in the number of flowers is governed by daily temperature and rainfall. The amount of sugar secreted per heather flower was constant throughout the observation period in 2012 and significantly higher than in 2013 when sugar secretion rate decreased in the course of the observation period. The analyses revealed that total rainfall prior to flowering, in addition to both the relative humidity and the difference between night and day temperatures in the period of secretion, is of importance for the sugar secretion rate. Fewer honey bees foraged in heather in 2013 compared with 2012, reflecting the poorer heather quality and translating directly into similar differences in weight gains of hives. Our results are useful for beekeepers in their evaluation of expected heather honey yield and thus the profitability in relocating bee colonies to heathland areas.


This report presents a study of the effect of reusing experience in the Hazards and Operability Analysis method (HazOp method) with regards to how the effectiveness of the method is affected. The study was conducted by first creating a software tool for experience reuse in HazOp, then testing that tool in a student experiment in which the participants used the tool when conducting a HazOp.During the experiment it was found that students using the tool found 21% more hazards in the system under study than their counterparts. After conducting the experiment it was found that there was a 94% certainty that this improvement was not due to random effects.


In the time series analysis of asset prices, the stochastic volatility models have recently attracted attentions of many researchers since it clearly describes time-varying variance of asset returns. However, it is difficult to evaluate the likelihood and obtain the maximum likelihood estimators of parameters for such models. We take Bayesian approach and use Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method to overcome such a problem. We first describe MCMC method and conduct a survey of the literature for its application to the stochastic volatility model. The empirical analysis of stock returns data is also given.


The relationships among phytoplankton taxon‐specific phosphorus‐status, phytoplankton community composition, and nutrient levels were assessed over three seasons in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. During summer and fall, stratified surface waters were depleted of nutrients, and picophytoplankton populations comprised the majority of cells (80% and 88%, respectively). In winter, surface nutrient concentrations were higher and larger phytoplankton were more abundant (63%). Cell‐specific alkaline phosphatase activity (APA) derived from enzyme‐labeled fluorescence was consistently low (<5%) in the picophytoplankton population throughout the year, whereas larger cells expressed increased APA (up to 68% labeling in some taxa) during the summer and fall but less in the winter. A nutrient addition bioassay during the fall showed that after addition of orthophosphate along with a nitrogen source, APA in larger cells was reduced by half relative to the control, whereas the APA of picophytoplankton groups remained low (<1%) across all treatments. These results indicate that the most abundant phytoplankton in the gulf are not limited by orthophosphate, and only some subpopulations (particularly of larger cells) exhibit orthophosphate limitation throughout the year, and more so in the summer and fall. Our results indicate that orthophosphate availability influences phytoplankton ecology, correlating with shifts in phytoplankton community structure and the nutrient status of individual cells. The role of dissolved organic phosphorus as an important phosphorus source for marine phytoplankton in oligotrophic settings and the need for evaluating nutrient limitation at the taxa and/or single cell level (rather than inferring it from nutrient concentrations and ratios or bulk enzyme activity measurements) are highlighted.


This study focuses on the application of infra-red thermography to visualise the heat transfer dynamics of diabatic flows in multi-microchannels etched into silicon wafers. The 100 parallel channels were 50 micron wide, 100 microns deep, and with a pitch of 50 microns. The length of the channels was 10mm, and was limited by transverse inlet and outlet slits. A copper manifold was used to provide and remove fluid from the test section. This manifold was also designed to provide optical access to both the top and bottom surfaces of the test section. With the use of a temperature controlled water bath, a novel in-situ 'pixel by pixel' technique has been developed to calibrate the raw infra-red images thus converting them into accurate two-dimensional temperature fields of the test section surface. Preliminary tests, involving pumping hot water through the test section, have shown that this technique is able to provide detailed spatio-temporal information on the surface temperature field.


Abstract. The high computational resources and the time-consuming IO (input/output) are major issues in offline ensemble-based high-dimensional data assimilation systems. Bearing these in mind, this study proposes a sophisticated dynamically running job scheme as well as an innovative parallel IO algorithm to reduce the time to solution of an offline framework for high-dimensional ensemble Kalman filters. The dynamically running job scheme runs as many tasks as possible within a single job to reduce the queuing time and minimize the overhead of starting and/or ending a job. The parallel IO algorithm reads or writes non-overlapping segments of multiple files with an identical structure to reduce the IO times by minimizing the IO competitions and maximizing the overlapping of the MPI (Message Passing Interface) communications with the IO operations. Results based on sensitive experiments show that the proposed parallel IO algorithm can significantly reduce the IO times and have a very good scalability, too. Based on these two advanced techniques, the offline and online modes of ensemble Kalman filters are built based on PDAF (Parallel Data Assimilation Framework) to comprehensively assess their efficiencies. It can be seen from the comparisons between the offline and online modes that the IO time only accounts for a small fraction of the total time with the proposed parallel IO algorithm. The queuing time might be less than the running time in a low-loaded supercomputer such as in an operational context, but the offline mode can be nearly as fast as, if not faster than, the online mode in terms of time to solution. However, the queuing time is dominant and several times larger than the running time in a high-loaded supercomputer. Thus, the offline mode is substantially faster than the online mode in terms of time to solution, especially for large-scale assimilation problems. From this point of view, results suggest that an offline ensemble Kalman filter with an efficient implementation and a high-performance parallel file system should be preferred over its online counterpart for intermittent data assimilation in many situations.


Schistosomiasis (SCH) is one of the neglected tropical diseases, and it is endemic over 78 resource-constrained countries. It is one the indicator of poverty as it is often ubiquitous among the poorest of the poor. A total of 172 potential articles were identified through premier academic-scientific databases, and 86 were chosen. Human beings (permanent-host) are often exposed to infested water (urine/stools of infected persons) that harbor susceptible snails during their routine domestic and occupational activities. The cercaria (released by snails [intermediate-host]) infects people by penetrating into their skin. Currently, several multi-faceted interventions are underway to combat the SCH, namely, (a) potable water, (b) environmental diagnostics, (c) prophylactic chemotherapy with praziquantel, and (d) scaling up of snail control. Although in the recent decades tremendous strides have been made to minimize the disease burden, they are so feeble to eliminate the infection in several poverty-stricken settings. Female genital-SCH is also one of the key parasitic cofactors of HIV transmission. However, it remains neglected in terms of priority in allocating sufficient resources to develop next-generation tools, i.e., vaccine. Therefore, there are challenges lying ahead in achieving our ambitious goal of global elimination. Nevertheless, it can be attained through the recent medical-technological advancements as well as by strengthening the ongoing multi-pronged interventions such as (1) generating awareness, (2) continual surveillance, (3) early case-detection, (4) mass deworming, (5) increasing the research funds, (6) developing sensitive diagnostic tools, (7) prophylactic vaccines, and (8) therapeutic agents. Besides, the improved disease surveillance and response systems could pave the way to build an SCH-free world in the near future.


At each of five fixed locations along the ground tracks of JASON-1 and ENVISAT, a repeat-track analysis of 1-Hz sea surface height (SSH) data has been conducted to assess the performance of waveform retrackers over Lake Baikal in Siberia, Russia. This simple analysis of time series at each point location is needed to minimize the effect of the range correction artifacts in current Geophysical Data Record (GDR) data products of radar altimeters in in-land areas. Using the retracked data available in the GDRs as the baseline, two retrackers are evaluated in terms of the number of valid data points produced and the degree of agreement with in-situ data of water level record. The threshold retrackers that are based on the amplitude of the robust OCOG algorithm (Offset Center of Gravity) are found to perform the best in Lake Baikal.


Patients with cyanotic congenital heart disease (CCHD), with or without the presence of Eisenmenger physiology, are quite susceptible to the development of thrombosis.1 Cerebrovascular events as well as pulmonary thrombosis are two of the most common clinical manifestations in this group of patients with detrimental effects on quality of life and overall prognosis.2–4 Prevention of these episodes is challenging, as a number of different pathogenetical mechanisms of cerebral or pulmonary thrombosis have been previously proposed. Administration of antithrombotic therapy especially in patients with Eisenmenger physiology is controversial due to the increased risk of bleeding complications, which sometimes can be fatal in this population. Thus, the use of antithrombotic therapy in patients with Eisenmenger syndrome is under debate with still no existence of official recommendations.5 Early diagnosis of thrombosis based on the available imaging modalities may lead to a more effective therapeutic management of these patients.

Four possible mechanisms of thrombi formation in the pulmonary arteries of patients with Eisenmenger syndrome have been proposed.6 These include the existence of local vascular injury secondary to pulmonary hypertension, platelet dysfunction or factor deficiencies leading to hypercoagulopathy, cell aggregation due to decreased blood flow in the pulmonary arteries and embolic sources. On the other hand, systemic emboli secondary to atrial …


Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a progressive debilitating autoimmune disease, affecting 1% of the world population, leading to cartilage and bone destruction caused by insufficient apoptosis in the inflamed RA synovium. Survivin is a proto-oncogene biomarker known for its anti-apoptotic and cell cycle-regulating properties. Overexpression of survivin in non-cancerous processes has been linked to inflammation, presumably contributing to the decreased apoptosis in the T cells of the cerebrospinal fluid in multiple sclerosis, in skin lesions of patients with psoriasis and in synovial tissue of patients with RA. Aim of the work The aim of this study is to measure the serum and synovial levels of survivin and clarify their relations to disease activity, functional capacity, and radiographic damage in patients with RA. Patients and methods This study was carried out on 50 patients with RA who had a mean age of 46.4±10.94 years. They were 39 females and 11 males. The control group was of matched age and sex, with a mean age of 46.03±10.53 years and female : male ratio of 23 : 7. All patients were subjected to full history taking, thorough clinical examination, assessment of disease activity by disease activity score 28 activity score, and assessment of functional capacity and disability using Health Assessment Questionnaire. Plain radiographs of both hands of feet were done, scored and graded by Larsen score. Serum survivin from all the studied participants and survivin levels in the synovial fluid aspirated from 18 patients with RA who presented with knee effusion at the time of examination were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, using a pair of matched anti bodies (R&D systems, Abingdon, Uk). Results The mean serum survivin level was highly statistically significantly elevated (P<0.001) in the sera of patients with RA than in the controls, being 239.1±115.15 and 77.03±30.20 pg/ml, respectively. Synovial survivin levels ranged between 420 and 575 pg/ml, with a mean of 479.61±52.68 pg/ml, which was statistically significantly higher than the mean serum survivin level in patients with RA (P<0.001). Patients were divided into survivin −ve group, which included 21 (42%) of 50 patients with serum survivin less than 167.63 pg/ml, and survivin +ve group, which included 29 (58%) of 50 patients with RA with serum survivin more than or equal to 167.63 pg/ml. Survivin +ve RA patients group had significantly longer mean disease duration (P<0.001), Higher Health Assessment Questionnaire SCORE, and higher mean Larsen score (P<0.001) than survivin −ve RA patients group. Overall, nine (69.2%) of 13 RA patients with Sjogren's syndrome, eight (80%) of 10 of the patients with pleural effusion, three (50%) of six patients with Raynaud's phenomenon, and all patients with SC nodules (five, 100%), episcleritis (two, 100%), and vasculitis (one, 100%) were survivin +ve. Larsen score in the patients with RA ranged from 0 to 65, with a mean of 23.6±18.98. Patients with RA who had Larsen score grading more than or equal to 2 (27/50, 52%) were considered to have an erosive RA disease. There were no statistically significant differences between patients with RA according to the presence of erosion regarding age, sex, visual analog scale values, disease activity score values, the presence of rheumatoid factor antibodies or anti-cyclic citrullinated peptides antibodies, the mean of hemoglobin %, white blood cells count, platelets count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate first hour value, or the C-reactive protein level. All patients with RA with erosive disease were survivin +ve and had statistically significantly elevated mean serum and synovial survivin levels than those patients with non erosive disease (337.37±55.19 vs. 126.78±24.33 pg/ml and 422.5±3.53 vs. 486.75±51.52 pg/ml, respectively). Conclusions High levels of survivin are detected in the sera and synovial fluid of patients with RA and are associated with erosive joint damage and poor functional outcomes. Our findings support the role of survivin in the pathogenesis of RA. Further studies are needed on a larger group of RA patients follow-up to ascertain the erosive effect of survivin. Conduction of studies on survivin antagonist to evaluate their effect on ameliorating RA disease progression is recommended.


What is Soviet-American competition all about? Is the Soviet Union a security problem that the United States must solve? Or is it an insecurity condition with which the U.S. must learn to live -- and if so, on what terms? What kind of a player is the United States in the great game of power politics? In "The Geopolitics of Super Power," one of our most respected strategic theorists answers these and other questions.In geopolitical terms, Colin Gray sees the Soviet-American antagonism as an enduring contest between a continental empire and a maritime coalition, each with its distinctive character and purposes. Gray explores the roots of the American style in foreign policy and strategy, and how that style relates to defense options.He identifies four broad alternatives for U.S. national security policy: passive and active means of containment, disengagement from foreign security commitments, and the "rollback" of the Soviet empire. Gray argues vigorously for active containment, for the systematic deemphasis of nuclear weapons, and for the intelligent use, for deterrence and defense purposes, of the West's great competitive strengths in the political, economic, and technological spheres.


The Semantic Web today is mainly a read-only Web of Data. Many of the data sets that contribute to the Semantic Web are not stored as native RDF, but generated on demand via wrappers. Despite the fact that user contribution is the key success factor in the Web 2.0, current wrapper approaches and standardization efforts still focus on read-only data access. In this paper, we argue that the Semantic Web should learn from the evolution of the Web 2.0 and consider write-enabled semantic data wrappers.


We investigated the antagonism of indigenous bacteria isolated from stressed mussels and their extracellular metabolites on the adult zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha. Selective bacterial isolates including Aeromonas media, A. salmonicida, A. veronii, and Shewanella putrefaciens, showed strong lethality against adult mussels and 100% mortality was observed within 5 days of incubation. Bacterial metabolites, fractionated and concentrated from stationary-phase culture supernatants of these bacterial isolates, displayed varying degrees of antagonistic effects on zebra mussels. Among the three size fractions examined, 10 kDa, the most lethal fraction seems to be >10 kDa for three of the four isolates tested. Further chemical analyses of these size fractions revealed that the predominant constituents were polysaccharides and proteins. No 2-keto-3-deoxyoctanoic acid (2-KDO), deoxyribonucleic acids (DNA) or uronic acid were detectable. Extraction of supernatants of two antagonistic isolates with polar solvent suggested that polar molecules are present in the active fraction. Our data suggest that extracellular metabolites produced by antagonistic bacteria are also involved in disease development in zebra mussels and elucidation of the mechanisms involved may offer a novel strategy for control of biofouling invertebrates.


We investigated and analysed the factors that women teachers consider as barriers to their advancement to headship positions in Zimbabwean primary schools. Specifically, we sought to identify the factors perceived by women school heads to be causes of persistent under-representation of women in school headship positions. Data were collected through structured face-to-face interviews and focus group discussions with 13 experienced women school heads. The findings revealed that although the majority of the women teachers in the study sample were qualified for promotion to school headship positions, they had not attempted to apply for them. The majority of the women teachers in the study sample were adequately qualified for promotion to school headship positions. Indeed, a large number of them either had a university degree or were pursuing degree studies and also had extensive experience. But most of them had not attempted to apply for school headship and hence were still class teachers. Gender stereotypes were shown to be one of the major causes of persistent under-representation of women in primary school headship. The influence of gender role stereotypes was found to manifest in the form of low self esteem; lack of confidence; women's perception that their role in the family overrides all other roles; and lack of support from the home and the workplace.


Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is used to detect catecholamines—viz., dopamine, norepinephrine, epinine, and isoproterenol—using a new substrate prepared with sol-gel technology. Catecholamines are complexed at the surface by iron(III) ions, which were introduced during the reduction of the silver ions embedded inside the sol-gel matrix. With the use of a He-Ne laser at a power of only 12 mW, it is possible to measure dopamine in the micromolar concentration range. A single-fiber SERS probe system was also introduced that has great potential for sampling in microenvironment applications such as in vivo measurements of dopamine. In this microprobe design both excitation and SERS signals are transmitted through the same fiber simultaneously. The tips of tapered fibers were coated with a polyvinyl alcohol polymer doped with metallic silver particles. The potential of the SERS method and microprobes for medical diagnostics is discussed.


The uptake and subcellular partitioning of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) were examined in a rat-liver cell line (Clone 9) using confocal and multiphoton microscopy. Following a 16-h treatment, intracellular accumulation of BaP increased with increasing concentration, and cytoplasmic BaP fluorescence reached saturation at 10 microM. Analysis of the kinetics of BaP uptake at this concentration indicated that BaP is rapidly partitioned into all cytoplasmic membranes within several min, although saturation was not reached until 4 h. Based upon the rapid uptake of BaP into membranes, the chronology of changes in gap junction-mediated intercellular communication (GJIC), plasma membrane potential (PMP), and steady state levels of intracellular Ca2+ in relation to the time-course for induction of microsomal ethoxyresorufin-0-deethylase (EROD) activity were examined. EROD activity in Clone 9 cells treated for 16 h increased with increasing concentrations of BaP and reached the highest levels at 40 microM BaP. In addition, kinetic analysis of EROD activity in Clone 9 cells treated with 10 microM BaP indicated that significant induction of EROD activity was not detected before 3 h, and it reached maximal levels by 16 h of treatment at this concentration. Both GJIC and PMP were directly affected by the partitioning of BaP into cellular membranes. The most sensitive index of BaP-induced changes in membrane function was GJIC which revealed a 25% suppression in cells exposed to 0.4 microM BaP for 16 h. Kinetic analysis revealed that suppression of GJIC occurred within 15 min of exposure of cells to 10 microM BaP, whereas significant suppression of PMP was not detected prior to 30-min exposure at this concentration. Elevation of basal Ca2+ level was also detected simultaneously with PMP at this dose. These data suggest that early changes in cellular membrane functions occur prior to detectable induction of EROD activity, although basal metabolic activation of BaP may contribute to these changes.


In the years before the Financial Crisis, banks got to pick their regulators, engaging in a form of regulatory arbitrage that we now know was a race to the bottom. We propose to turn the tables on the banks by allowing regulators, specifically, bank examiners, to choose the banks they regulate. We call this "reverse regulatory arbitrage," and we think it can help improve regulatory outcomes. Building on our prior work that proposes to pay bank examiners for performance — by giving them financial incentives to avoid bank failures — we argue that bank supervisory assignments should be set through an auction among examiners. Examiner bidding would generate information about examiners' skills, experience and preferences, as well as information about each bank. Provided examiners bear the upside and downside of their regulatory behavior, a bidding system for regulatory assignments could improve the fit between examiners and the banks they supervise, thereby enhancing regulatory efficiency.


The rapid diffusion of mobile Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) such as laptops, mobile phones and to some extent Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) has along with the uptake of email, instant messaging and other networking services (Sorensen et al., 2002; Mathiassen and Sorensen, 2003) rapidly fueled the mobilisation of interaction (Kakihara and Sorensen, 2001). Since technological innovations easily serve the purpose as focal points for ICT research, the wide-spread diffusion of "mobile" technologies has subsequently led to the emergence of research addressing sociotechnical aspects of the use of these technologies. This research has characterized the technology use as ubiquitous computing (Weiser, 1991), nomadic pervasive computing (Lyytinen and Yoo, 2002), or mobile informatics (Dahlbom and Ljungberg, 1998). Lyytinen & Yoo (2002) characterize these as applications using common infrastructures based the combination of mass scale diffusion, mobility and technological convergence. Intuitively, it seems quite straightforward for us to attempt making sense of the rapid technological developments we observe and place the technical characteristics of the emerging phenomena at the center and make it the most important. Hence, we can


This thesis concerns face recognition in uncontrolled environments in which the images used for training and test are collected from the real world instead of laboratories. Compared with controlled environments, images from uncontrolled environments contain more variation in pose, lighting, expression, occlusion, background, image quality, scale, and makeup. Therefore, face recognition in uncontrolled environments is much more challenging than in controlled conditions. Moreover, many real world applications require good recognition performance in uncontrolled environments. Example applications include social networking, human-computer interaction and electronic entertainment. Therefore, researchers and companies have shifted their interest from controlled environments to uncontrolled environments over the past seven years. In this thesis, we divide the history of face recognition into four stages and list the main problems and algorithms at each stage. We find that face recognition in unconstrained environments is still an unsolved problem although many face recognition algorithms have been proposed in the last decade. Existing approaches have two major limitations. First, many methods do not perform well when tested in uncontrolled databases even when all the faces are close to frontal. Second, most current algorithms cannot handle large pose variation, which has become a bottleneck for improving performance. In this thesis, we investigate Bayesian models for face recognition. Our contributions extend Probabilistic Linear Discriminant Analysis (PLDA) [Prince and Elder 2007]. In PLDA, images are described as a sum of signal and noise components. Each component is a weighted combination of basis functions. We firstly investigate the effect of degree of the localization of these basis functions and find better performance is obtained when the signal is treated more locally and the noise more globally. We call this new algorithm multi-scale PLDA and our experiments show it can handle lighting variation better than PLDA but fails for pose variation. We then analyze three existing Bayesian face recognition algorithms and combine the advantages of PLDA and the Joint Bayesian Face algorithm [Chen et al. 2012] to propose Joint PLDA. We find that our new algorithm improves performance compared to existing Bayesian face recognition algorithms. Finally, we propose Tied Joint Bayesian Face algorithm and Tied Joint PLDA to address large pose variations in the data, which drastically decreases performance in most existing face recognition algorithms. To provide sufficient training images with large pose difference, we introduce a new database called the UCL Multi-pose database. We demonstrate that our Bayesian models improve face recognition performance when the pose of the face images varies.


The Porcupine Mining Camp located in the southwestend of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt has been mined extensively for its prolific precious and base metal enrichment. This study targeted Bristol and Northern Thorneloe, fifteen kilometers southwest of Timmins, ON, an area that is of economic interest for its gold mineralization. Rock samples were collected (drill- core and outcrop) throughout both townships and analyzed for their major and trace element composition, These were used to determine hydrothermal alteration signatures as well as specific elemental enrichment that relate to gold mineralization in Bristol-Thorneloe Township. Quartz-carbonate and quartz-carbonate-tourmaline vein samples were also collected near rock samples to determine δ18O and δ13C isotopic concentrations. These values were used to determine the fluid temperature and isotopic signatures for gold mineralization in the study area. After evaluation barium, strontium, phosphorus, and CO2 enrichment was found in anomalous gold (>25 ppb) enrichment zones. These elements demonstrated evidence that supports of mobilization in auriferous fluids in Bristol-Thorneloe Township. The isotopic analysis determined the gold bearing fluids in the study area to 303° to 403°C with δ18Oqtz values of 13.5 /, similar to other mesothermal gold in and outside the Porcupine Camp.


Safety in educational settings is a barrier to equality for women and girls. This article highlights four key areas that perpetuate inequality in education for women and girls, and that contribute to a worldwide lack of safety in educational settings for women and girls: cultural norms, societal norms, sexual assault and sexual harassment. All four areas form part of a social–structural condition that underpins a world in which women and girls experience violence and an economic and social inequality that contributes to their lack of safety in educational settings. Several solutions are proposed to combat this. To improve the life outcomes of women and girls, we must invest in approaches that empower and educate them in safe environments. In doing so, we must also ensure that such approaches are holistic and


The rising cost of U.S. health care has reduced the share of compensation that is taxable by Social Security. Between 1960 and 2010, non-taxable employer premiums for worker health plans increased from 1 percent of employee compensation to 7 percent. We use international data to examine the determinants of trends in health care spending and the reasons that the U.S. experience has differed from that of other high-income countries. In 2010, the share of U.S. gross domestic product devoted to health care was 7.2 percentage points higher than the share in other rich countries. We document the growth of this gap in the past five decades. Much of it developed between 1980 and the mid-1990s, though we also find another episode of outsized growth in the early 2000s. We identify six countries, including most of Scandinavia, which have seen a slowdown in health spending growth. These were also countries that had higher-than expected health spending, given their average incomes, in the 1960s and 1970s. The slowdown in health expenditure growth may simply reflect a reversion of their spending toward the OECD mean. We find no mean reversion in U.S. health spending growth. Our review of other literature suggests that the current excess in U.S. health costs is mainly traceable to higher prices for health care goods and services. Compared with other OECD countries, the United States has been slow to develop institutions or global budget constraints that restrain the pace of growth in health costs.


Learning from past experience allows a problem solver to increase its solvability horizon from simple to complex problems. For planners, learning involves a training phase during which knowledge is extracted from simple problems. But how are these simple problems constructed? All current learning and problem solving systems require the user to provide the training set. However it is rarely easy to identify problems that are both simple and useful for learning, especially in complex applications. In this paper, we present our initial research towards the automated or semiautomated identification of these simple problems. From a difficult problem and a corresponding partially completed search episode, we extract auxiliary problems with which to train the learner. We motivate this overlooked issue, describe our approach, and illustrate it with examples.


Privacy-preserving routing protocols in wireless networks frequently utilize additional artificial traffic to hide the identities of communicating source-destination pairs. Usually, the addition of artificial traffic is done heuristically with no guarantees that the transmission cost, latency, and so on, are optimized in every network topology. In this paper, we explicitly examine the privacy-utility tradeoff problem for wireless networks and develop a novel privacy-preserving routing algorithm called optimal privacy enhancing routing algorithm (OPERA). OPERA uses a statistical decision-making framework to optimize the privacy of the routing protocol given a utility (or cost) constraint. We consider global adversaries with both lossless and lossy observations that use the Bayesian maximum-a-posteriori (MAP) estimation strategy. We formulate the privacy-utility tradeoff problem as a linear program, which can be efficiently solved. Our simulation results demonstrate that OPERA reduces the adversary's detection probability by up to 50% compared to the random Uniform and Greedy heuristics, and up to five times compared to a baseline scheme. In addition, OPERA also outperforms the conventional information-theoretic mutual information approach.


Trustworthy measurement is essential to make inferences about people and events, as well as to make scientific inquiries and comprehend human behaviors. Measurement is used for validating and building theories, substantiating research endeavors, contributing to science, and supporting a variety of applications. Sport and exercise psychology is a theoretical and practical domain derived from two domains: psychology and kinesiology. As such, the measurement methods used by scientists and practitioners relate to the acquisition of motor skills (i.e., genetics and environment-deliberate practice), physiological measures (e.g., heart rate pulse, heart rate variability, breathing amplitude and frequency, galvanic skin response, and electrocardiogram), and psychological measures including introspective instruments in the form of questionnaires, interviews, and observations. Sport and exercise psychology entails the measurement of motor performance (e.g., time-trials, one repetition maximum tests), cognitive development (e.g., knowledge base and structure, deliberate practice, perception-cognition, attention, memory), social aspects (e.g., team dynamics, cohesion, leadership, shared mental models, coach-performer interaction), the self (e.g., self-esteem, self-concept, physical self), affective and emotional states (e.g., mood, burnout), and psychological skills (e.g. imagery, goal-setting, relaxation, emotion regulation, stress management, self-talk, relaxation, and pre-performance routine). Sport and exercise psychologists are also interested in measuring the affective domain (e.g., quality of life, affect/emotions, perceived effort), psychopathological states (e.g., anxiety, depression), cognitive domain (e.g., executive functioning, information processing, decision making, attention, academic achievements, cognition and aging), social-cognitive concepts (e.g., self-efficacy, self-control, motivation), and biochemical markers of human functioning (e.g., genetic factors, hormonal changes). The emergence of neuroscientific methods have ushered in new methodological tools (e.g., electroencephalogram; fMRI) to assess central markers (brain systems) linked to performance, learning, and well-being in sport and exercise settings. Altogether, the measures in the sport and exercise domain are used to establish linkages among the emotional, cognitive, and motor systems.


Background : One of the barriers on implementation of Tuberculosis-Human Immunodeficiency Virus (TB-HIV) collaboration is lack of health care workers' knowledge to this program. This study aimed to measure level of knowledge, attitude, and practice among inpatient nurses in Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital toward TB-HIV collaboration program and to measure their correlation. Methods : This was a cross-sectional study with total sampling method which started on May–October 2013 at Internal Medicine Department ward in Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital. Knowledge, attitude, and practice of research subjects were measured using modified questionnaire about TB-HIV collaboration program, based on guidelines from WHO and National Ministry of Health. Results : Of 88 respondents, there were no respondent had high level, 33 respondents (38%) had moderate level, and 55 respondents (63%) had low level of knowledge toward collaboration. For attitude, 53 respondents (60%) had positive attitude and 35 respondents (40%) had negative attitude. The study also showed 48 respondents (55%) had positive practice and 40 respondents (46%) had negative practice. The correlation between knowledge and attitude, knowledge and practice, and attitude and practice were not statistically significant (p>0.05). Conclusions : The level of knowledge among inpatient nurses in Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital toward TB-HIV collaboration program was low but they showed positive attitude toward the collaboration itself. There was no correlation between knowledge, attitude, and practice among inpatient nurses toward collaboration. Further efforts were needed to improve nurses' knowledge, attitude, and practice on TB-HIV collaboration.[AMJ.2016;3(1):85–92] DOI:  10.15850/amj.v3n1.715


It is necessary not only to develop information and communication infrastructures and algorithms for distributed and cloud processing of data
 coming from all kinds of sensors and sensors, but also to design new materials that enable the production of safe, effective and accessible
 to the general public test systems when creating digital health saving systems as part of the development of modern electronic medical
 monitoring technologies. An analysis of the market for consumables intended for use in rapid diagnostic devices shows that disposable
 test strips on a flexible polymer base with high biological resistance to the effects of blood components are most in demand. It has been shown
 that surface modification of polyethylene by fluorination, sulfonation and plasmification methods provides a significant reduction
 in platelet adhesion to processed polymer films. It was also suggested that the surface energy of the modified material has a determining effect
 on its hemocompatibility.This work is devoted to the formation of an analytical model of the surface morphology of fluorinated polyethylene,
 as well as a quantitative analysis of the structural and functional relationships between the parameters of the morphological model and
 the resistance of the material to platelet adhesion. The widespread use of the discussed approach to increasing the thromboresistance
 of polymeric materials will increase the reliability of glycemic analyzes performed by patients on their own using portable express diagnostic
 systems (glucometers).


To harness the full spectrum of solar energy, Fresnel reflection at the surface of a solar cell must be eliminated over the entire solar spectrum and at all angles. Here, we show that a multilayer nanostructure having a graded-index profile, as predicted by theory [J. Opt. Soc. Am. 66, 515 (1976); Appl. Opt. 46, 6533 (2007)], can accomplish a near-perfect transmission of all-color of sunlight. An ultralow total reflectance of 1%-6% has been achieved over a broad spectrum, lambda = 400 to 1600 nm, and a wide range of angles of incidence, theta = 0 degrees-60 degrees . The measured angle- and wavelength-averaged total reflectance of 3.79% is the smallest ever reported in the literature, to our knowledge.


Tully River flood plume monitoring data for 11 events (1994–2008) were used to determine what physical characteristics of the floods (size of flood, direction of plume movement, shape of hydrograph) most influence the flood plume water quality and areal extent. During some events, the maximum area influenced by the Tully flood plumes extended into the Coral Sea. Areal extents depended on wind direction and discharge volume, with large extents more likely during light or northerly winds. Strong gradients in water quality existed away from the Tully mouth during the wet season and the adjacent marine ecosystems were regularly exposed to land-derived material. Flood plumes were grouped into three plume types: primary, secondary and tertiary plumes, based on water-quality characteristics (suspended solids, coloured dissolved organic matter and chlorophyll). The number of reefs and seagrasses exposed to plume waters varied from year to year, and was dependent on the characteristics of the event. Over the 11 years, out of the major 37 reefs and 13 seagrass meadows identified in the Tully marine area, between 11 (30%) and 37 coral reefs (100%) and most of the seagrass meadows were inundated by either a primary or secondary plume every year.


Background:
 Childhood AIS affects 2-6/100,000 children per year and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Although previous reports have demonstrated lower IQ's in children following AIS as compared to healthy children, understanding of cognitive function more broadly in childhood AIS remains limited.

 Methods:
 In order to address this gap in knowledge, we collected data on demographics, stroke type, stroke size, stroke location, and long-term neuropsychological outcome, (defined as testing that occurred at least 10 months after stroke diagnosis). Patients were enrolled in an institution-based prospective cohort study of childhood AIS, comprising 63 children diagnosed with AIS from March 2006-August 2011. Neuropsychological assessment employed age-appropriate measures. In addition to IQ, other cognitive domains were tested, including academics, visual-motor skills, memory, and language. Single-tailed one-sample t-tests were performed to compare the childhood AIS group to the normative mean for neuropsychological exams. Furthermore, ANOVA analyses were used to compare neuropsychological outcome among subgroups of interest.

 Results:
 42 patients in our cohort had neuropsychological testing available at least 10 months after stroke diagnosis: 21 males and 21 females, with a mean age of 7 years at time of stroke (SD= +/-5.43). Mean neuropsychological testing was at 36 months after AIS (SD= +/- 30.72). Mean IQ for childhood AIS patients was 93.8 (SD= +/-17.75) and was significantly lower than the population mean (p < .05). Cognitive profile testing revealed significantly decreased functioning in the visual-motor (mean standard score = 84.1 [SD = +/-17.32], p <.001) and language domains (mean standard score = 82.9 [SD= +/-25.15], p = .002). By contrast, academic and memory profiles were not significantly reduced (standard score means of 95.1 and 97.0, respectively). In sensitivity analyses that excluded patients known to have pre-morbid (i.e., pre-AIS) neuropsychological abnormalities, visual-motor and language domains remained significantly reduced as compared to the population mean (p < 0.001, and p= 0.04, respectively). Stroke type, stroke size, stroke location and arteriopathy were not significant predictors of long-term neuropsychological outcome.

 Conclusions:
 Long-term neuropsychological outcome in this cohort confirms that childhood AIS patients have lower IQ's than healthy children; in addition, results indicate that specific visual-motor and language skills are even more significantly affected. We recommend that children with AIS be comprehensively evaluated for the need for targeted interventions to improve visual-motor and language skills, and that the effectiveness of these interventions be evaluated in future studies.


Six concentrations of ethephon were applied to plants of Donation' and Anticipation' Camellia (L.) at two times (late summer and autumn) and three times (late summer, autumn, and midwinter) of the year, respectively. Abscission of leaves and floral and vegetative buds was determined. Sensitivity to ethephon varied markedly among plant organs. Greater sensitivity of floral buds indicated that ethephon could be used to selectively remove these with minimal abscission of other plant organs (...)


BIBLE WOMEN: EVANGELISM AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION IN THE EARLY KOREAN CHURCH Yeong Woo Liptak, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2014 Chair: Dr. James D. Chancellor When Protestant missionaries first arrived on the Korean peninsula in the 1880s they encountered religious syncretism being practiced in a socio-cultural environment which prohibited all interaction between the predominantly male missionaries and the local females. To remedy this situation, the women missionaries converted and recruited a small number of indigenous women to augment evangelical outreach to other women. In addition to serving as the catalysts of an unprecedented Christian transformation, these "Bible Women" laid the foundation of a cultural transformation that enlightened Korean women from an oppressive social structure that totally marginalized them. Through a detailed literature review, this dissertation examines the major religions actively being practiced during the Chosŏn Dynasty and how they affected women. It details the challenges faced by the early missionaries that led them to employ the Bible Women method. Several case studies detail the process of converting, recruiting, and training indigenous women to serve as female evangelists, including the persecution that they suffered for choosing to follow Christ and the enormous impact that they made both spreading the gospel and breaking down social barriers. Finally, a proposal is provided for how this same approach may be employed in evangelical outreach in similar cultural contexts.


Abstract The overall aim with the study was to describe the knowledge building that was developed in a group of students who were trained nurses enrolled in a Swedish higher education programme. With a point of departure in an interactive research approach, the authors applied the dialogue seminar as method and pedagogical model. When the students in close to practice talks, shared their thoughts about how gender and gender equality could be experienced and understood, the dialogue seminar became useable. At the analysis of the stories which the students shared at the dialogue seminars, it became clear that most of the students had an ambivalent approach to gender equality. When they reflected on gender relations, they brought out the hierarchical and separate gender relations which they experienced as existing within healthcare. Furthermore, their professional lives seemed to be embedded in gender-related practices. An important conclusion is that the students' reflections oscillated between critical reflection on conditions and critical reflection on processes within their own practice in healthcare. Another finding was that the students' reflections in dialogue form became important in a learning process, not least in the light of that gender relations and gender equality only to a limited degree had been included in their nurse's education at the basic level.


Personalized, or genomic, medicine entails tailoring pharmacological therapies according to individual genetic variation at genomic loci encoding proteins in drug-response pathways. It has been previously shown that steady-state mRNA expression can be used to predict the drug response (i.e., sensitivity or resistance) of non-genotyped mammalian cancer cell lines to chemotherapeutic agents. In a real-world setting, clinicians would have access to both steady-state expression levels of patient tissue(s) and a patient's genotypic profile, and yet the predictive power of transcripts versus markers is not well understood. We have previously shown that a collection of genotyped and expression-profiled yeast strains can provide a model for personalized medicine. Here we compare the predictive power of 6,229 steady-state mRNA transcript levels and 2,894 genotyped markers using a pattern recognition algorithm. We were able to predict with over 70% accuracy the drug sensitivity of 104 individual genotyped yeast strains derived from a cross between a laboratory strain and a wild isolate. We observe that, independently of drug mechanism of action, both transcripts and markers can accurately predict drug response. Marker-based prediction is usually more accurate than transcript-based prediction, likely reflecting the genetic determination of gene expression in this cross.