Ripple marked surfaces with the same surface expression as rib-and-furrow marks are found in the Chugwater Formation of Wyoming, but the paleocurrent directions obtained from these two current direction indicators are mutually perpendicular. These pseudo rib-and-furrow marks are apparently the result of truncation of ripple marks in which the crests of the laminae forming the ripple mark and the crest of the ripple mark are not parallel. The mechanism (or mechanisms) which produced this angular difference is unknown. Observations of the Chugwater structures suggest that rib-and-furrow marks and pseudo rib-and-furrow marks originate in several ways, and that their usefulness as a paleocurrent direction indicator depends on their mode of formation and their relationship to other paleocurrent direction indicators.


The goal of this Report is to take a first step toward providing an empirical basis for assessing whether private enforcement of the antitrust laws is serving its intended purposes and is in the public interest. To do this the Report assembles, aggregates, and analyzes information about forty of the largest recent successful private antitrust cases. This information includes, inter alia, the amount of money each action recovered, what proportion of the money was recovered from foreign entities, whether the private litigation was preceded by government action, the attorneys' fees awarded to plaintiffs' counsel, on whose behalf money was recovered (direct purchasers, indirect purchasers, or a competitor), and the kind of claim the plaintiffs asserted (rule of reason, per se, or a combination of the two). The article also compares the amounts collected from all antitrust violations together, and also from cases that also resulted in criminal penalties, to the total of all criminal antitrust fines imposed during the same period by the U.S. Department of Justice. This information is then used to help formulate policy conclusions about the desirability and efficacy of private enforcement of the antitrust laws.


Background: People with epilepsy have impairment in their quality of life (QOL) due to effect of epilepsy on various aspects of their life and the medication effects. Systematic studies on QOL in epilepsy from developing countries are sparse. Objectives: To assess the QOL in people with epilepsy and to evaluate various factors affecting the QOL in them. Materials and Methods: People with generalized and partial epilepsy on medication aged more than 18 years were included in the study. The QOL was assessed with QOLIE-89 instrument. Statistical significance was evaluated by the use of Chi-square test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results: Sixty people with epilepsy were studied among whom the older patients had lower overall QOL scores compared to younger patients. Female patients had lower scores compared to males. Married people had lower quality of health score. Patients with simple partial seizures had lowest overall QOL mean score. There was reduction in the overall QOLIE scores with increasing duration of the epilepsy. Patients who had their last seizure within 10 months prior to evaluation had lower mean overall scores. Conclusion: QOL was impaired in people with epilepsy with increased impairment in women, older patients, simple partial seizures, and those with recent seizure.


Multiple routes of educational entry into nursing exist. Associate and baccalaureate prepared nurses take the same licensing exam and practice based on the same scope of practice. With minimal difference in salary, the current and future problem involves encouraging associate degree registered nurses to continue their education. Once the associate registered nurse is licensed and working, advancing to a baccalaureate degree may not be a priority. Evidence suggests improved patient outcomes, a decrease in morbidity and mortality rates, and higher job and personal satisfaction with bachelor prepared registered nurses. Because of this evidence, the Institute of Medicine (2010) recommends 80% of registered nurses in our nation hold a baccalaureate degree by the year 2020. Statistics suggest that the majority of rural registered nurses are educated at the associate degree level, which is true of rural Montana. This study examined the perceptions of associate degree registered nurses in rural Montana with regard to importance and incentives that would motivate nurses to return for a bachelor's degree in nursing or higher. For this phenomenological qualitative study eight associate degree registered nurses that currently live and work in Montana underwent face-to-face interviews, which were then analyzed and themed for trends in perception. Questions were open-ended which allowed each subject to speak freely about their experiences, thoughts, and opinions. Eight associate degree registered nurses were interviewed. Common perception themes included: education is important; education is expensive; associate nurses should not be required to return for a bachelor's degree or higher unless they choose; bachelor and master degrees are important for management or advanced practice; and higher degrees can increase career options. Incentives that would motivate nurses to pursue a higher degree included: tuition reimbursement; flexible scheduling; higher wage/differential; on-site/on-line courses; and time off for class hours. Barriers to returning for a higher degree included: cost; less personal/family time; getting back into "school mode"; difficulty getting time off work; and no increase in wage for BSN. Results indicate that rural Montana associate degree registered nurses do value education. Cost and time are the perceived barriers and monetary support and time flexibility are the perceived incentives.


The hyperon-nucleon (YN) interaction plays a key role in hypernuclei and strange nuclear matter and is an important part of the baryon-baryon interaction. While considerable progress has been made in the understanding of the nucleon-nucleon (NN) interaction, the YN interaction is less known. Some parameters of the YN potential can be obtained from the NN potential by using SU(3) symmetry. However, due to broken SU(3) there are parameters, which must be obtained from fits to experimental data. High-statistics data on exclusive Λ photoproduction off the deuteron initiated with highly-polarized photons offer a unique opportunity to extract a large sample of polarization observables for final-state interaction events, which can be used to constrain hyperon-nucleon potentials. In this work, we determine the polarization transfers to the Λ, Cx and Cz, from circularly polarized photons, and the hyperon recoil polarization, Py, for final-state interactions (FSI) in the reaction − →γ d→ K+ − → Λn using data taken with the CLAS detector at the Jefferson laboratory in the E06-103 experiment. Meanwhile, Cx, Cz, and Py for K+Λ photoproduction off the bound proton were extracted for systematic studies and compared to published CLAS results from K+Λ photoproduction off a free proton. Our results cover photon energies from 0.9 GeV to 2.6 GeV, a kaon momentum range up to 2 GeV/c, a kaon polar-angle range in laboratory system from 14◦ to 70◦, a Λ polar-angle range (relative to the three-momentum transfer to the Λn system) from 0◦ to 60◦, and a Λn invariant-mass range from 2 GeV/c2 to 2.5 GeV/c2. The FSI results are the first ever obtained for Cx, Cz, and Py and will be used to constrain the theoretical free parameters of the models of the YN potential.


Intestinal microbes trigger tumorigenic signals. Chronic intestinal inflammation is a risk factor for colorectal cancer (CRC). Inflammation can alter the composition of the gut microbiome and damages the mucosal lining of the intestine, enabling the interaction of gut microbes with the epithelia. Two studies describe how the mingling of microbes with intestinal cells may promote CRC development. Peuker et al. found that microbiota stimulated the proliferation of CRC-associated stem cells through the activation of calcineurin. Calcineurin is a phosphatase that activates transcription factors in the NFAT family. Some patients with poor prognosis carry a mutation in the catalytic subunit of calcineurin that causes constitutive activation. The expression of the gene encoding calcineurin was increased in patient CRC samples compared with normal intestinal epithelial cells, and the nuclear abundance of NFATc3 correlated with poor prognosis. Manipulating the expression and activity of calcineurin or NFATc3 in mouse models of CRC revealed that calcineurin-dependent activation of NFATc3, which included the induction of intestinal stem cell–associated genes, promoted tumor initiation and growth. Microbes trigger an innate immune response through the activation of Toll-like receptors (TLRs). CRC cells are positive for TLR2 and TLR4. The microbial population of mouse CRC-associated mucosa was enriched for those that trigger TLR4. TLR4 agonists stimulated the transcriptional activity of NFATc3 and proliferation in cultured CRC cells expressing functional but not inactive calcineurin. Treating CRC model mice with antibiotics or systemically deleting the gene encoding MYD88, which mediates the signal from TLR2 and TLR4 to interleukin-1 receptor–associated kinase (IRAK), prevented NFAT activation and tumor growth, which could be restored by expression of constitutively active NFATc3. Kesselring et al. (see also Jenkins) found that IRAK-M, a negative regulator of TLR–MYD88–IRAK signaling, contributes to inflammation-associated CRC by promoting barrier dysfunction during early stages of the disease and stabilizing proliferative pathways during the latter stages. Whereas the abundance of IRAK-M was associated with suppressed inflammation in a carcinogen-induced mouse model of colitis, it was associated with increased tumor growth in these and transgenic Tp53ΔIEC mice and poor prognosis in CRC patients. Cultured CRC cells or the colons of mice exposed to agonists of either TLR2 or TLR4 or molecules that activate the WNT pathway exhibited increased abundance of IRAK-M. Analyzing microbial species, epithelial barrier function, and intracellular signaling pathway activity between carcinogen-treated wild-type and IRAK-M–deficient mice revealed that IRAK-M suppressed the inflammatory, antimicrobial response in intestinal epithelial cells while promoting the abundance of the transcription factor STAT3 and suppressing apoptosis. The two studies reveal that the detection of microbiota as a result of the breakdown of the intestinal mucosal barrier can trigger TLR-dependent transcriptional and proliferative responses in intestinal epithelial cells and these responses lead to tumorigenesis. R. Kesselring, J. Glaesner, A. Hiergeist, E. Naschberger, H. Neumann, S. M. Brunner, A. K. Wege, C. Seebauer, G. Köhl, S. Merkl, R. S. Croner, C. Hackl, M. Stürzl, M. F. Neurath, A. Gessner, H.-J. Schlitt, E. K. Geissler, S. Fichtner-Feigl, IRAK-M expression in tumor cells supports colorectal cancer progression through reduction of antimicrobial defense and stabilization of STAT3. Cancer Cell 29, 684–696 (2016). [PubMed] B. J. Jenkins, Multifaceted role of IRAK-M in the promotion of colon carcinogenesis via barrier dysfunction and STAT3 oncoprotein stabilization in tumors. Cancer Cell 29, 615–617 (2016). [PubMed] K. Peuker, S. Muff, J. Wang, S. Künzel, E. Bosse, Y. Zeissig, G. Luzzi, M. Basic, A. Strigli, A. Ulbricht, A. Kaser, A. Arlt, T. Chavakis, G. R. van den Brink, C. Schafmayer, J.-H. Egberts, T. Becker, M. E. Bianchi, A. Bleich, C. Röcken, J. Hampe, S. Schreiber, J. F. Baines, R. S. Blumberg, S. Zeissig, Epithelial calcineurin controls microbiota-dependent intestinal tumor development. Nat. Med. 22, 506–515 (2016). [PubMed]


At the age of 25, divorced, crippled by an accident, Kuki Gallmann left to convalesce in Kenya with her friend Paolo Gallmann, who was soon to become her husband. So begins a journey that takes her to the extremities of human experience. In Kenya she and Paolo explore lakes, desert and tropical coastline before buying a vast ranch on the Laikipia plateau. The years bring a succession of discoveries and delights, but increasingly these are interspersed with dangers and premonitions. When her life with Paolo ends as violently as it had started, Kuki is left with her 14-year-old son Emanuele, an unborn baby and 90,000 acres of Africa to look after. There follow years of recovery and hope: the birth of Paolo's golden-haired daughter Sveva; the emergence of Emmanuele from a boy fond of hunting and fishing into a youth with a love for motorbikes and girls. But Emanuele has one passion that proves fatal - snakes. The last chapters epitomize the victory of friendship, courage and imagination over the cruellest tragedies. Through her dedication to the hills, gorges, elephant herds and tribespeople of Laikipia, the devotion of her friends and the love of her daughter, the author has forged a new life for herself and founded the Gallmann Foundation - a living memorial to her husband and son, dedicated to exploring new ways of combining development and conservation.


The initiation and control of gait from first principles: a mathematically animated model of the foot, a doctoral thesis by Craig Nevin examines the anatomical locations of the dynamic pressures that create the first five footprints when a standing person starts to walk. It is hypothesized that the primary activity starts with the dorsiflexion or lifting of the great toe. The metatarsophalangeal region of the forefoot where the first action is believed to begin was studied from three directions. Viewed side-on, the great toe free-body is found from a detailed post hoc analysis of previous kinematic data obtained from cadavers to operate as a cam. The cam model also follows closely from Aristotle's ancient description of the hinged instrument of animate motion. In cross-section, the first metatarsal torsion strength was estimated in 13 human, 1 gorilla, 3 chimpanzee 1 orangutan and 1 baboon set of dry-bone specimens of the hands and feet. The first metatarsal bone alone contributes 43% of the total strength of all the metatarsal bones. A result unique amongst the hominids and apes studied. The dynamic components and principle axes of the footprints of 54 humans (32 years ±11, 32 male, 22 female) were studied whilst standing on a 0.5m pressure plate, and then immediately when walking over a 2m plate (4 sensors per cm sampled at 100hz). Two footprints were obtained during the initial stance posture, and the first three footprints of the initial walk. Three new principles of animate motion were deduced from the divergent results obtained from complete and dissected cadavers: The metatarsal cam (from the sagittal side view) the ground reaction torque (from the frontal coronal view) and the amputation artifact. The philosophy of experimenting on inanimate cadavers rather than living subjects was intensively researched. Instead of assuming that gait is a uniform or regular motion as is usual, the foot was analyzed rather as if it was a beam attached the ground. Engineering equations were used to determine the flexural properties of the foot every 0.01 seconds, including the principle axes, radius of gyration and the local shear stresses on the sensors spaced 5-7mm apart. A sequence of these impressions creates a mathematically animated model of the footprint. The local force under the foot was normalized against both the total force and contact duration. The forces under the foot were each divided between 10 anatomical regions using individual masks for each foot strike. Producing a 54-subject database from which the normal behavior of the foot could be quantified. The group showed a surprisingly low right foot dominance of only 54%. The combination of the radius of gyration and impulse in particular produces a succinct but powerful summary of the footprint during dynamic activity. The initial angle and magnitudes of the loads that are applied and removed demonstrates that the body first rocks onto the heels after the instruction to walk is given. The feet simultaneously invert and their arches rise off the ground as anticipated. The principle axes were then animated in a mathematical four-dimensional model. The horizontal radius of gyration is on average 5 cm during heel strike, but increases to 20 cm as the forefoot comes into contact with the ground, finally rising to 25 cm at toe-off. Significantly the applied load during the fore-foot loading phase is more widely distributed than the load being removed. A new and unanticipated result that is believed to be a special characteristic of the animate foot. The standard deviation of the force under the great toe is the first mechanical parameter to converge in the 54 subjects. Conclusively verifying the hypothesis that the great toe both initiates and controls gait.


Mukherjee, R., Wray, E., Curfs, L., & Hollins, S. (2013). Estimation of alcohol content of wine, beer and spirits to evaluate exposure risk in pregnancy: Pilot study using a questionnaire and pouring task in England. The International Journal Of Alcohol And Drug Research, 2(3), 71-78. doi:10.7895/ijadr.v2i3.78 (http://dx.doi.org/10.7895/ijadr.v2i3.78)Aims:  Research has shown varying results regarding safe consumption levels of alcohol during pregnancy.  We argued in 2005 that an individual's inability to accurately predict her alcohol consumption may be one factor influencing risk.  In order to re-evaluate within the England, this study sought to assess the current knowledge of the public and of healthcare practitioners.Design:  Both alcohol-knowledge questionnaires and pouring tasks were conducted using standardised ethical-committee-approved methods.Settings:  Different sites across England, including Surrey, London, Oxford and Wigan, where FASD support groups are based.Participants:  Health professionals and the general public, self-selecting in response to advertisement.Measurements:  Frequency data and categorical data was collected and analysed using SPSS version 18.Findings:  In total, 1,265 questionnaires were completed (688 public and 577 professionals).  One hundred-forty people completed the pouring task.  People's ability to calculate accurately from strength and volume was within 20% of the accurate figure for units, although with a wide range.Conclusions:  These findings support the hypothesis that when pouring their own drinks, individuals are poor at estimating each drink's alcohol content.  This has implications for public health strategies.  Glass size and the level of alcohol concentration have different implications in different countries.  For those drinking during pregnancy, however, the message that "no exposure is no risk" remains true.


This study investigates the effects of gender on aggregate saving. We test the hypothesis that shifts in women's relative income, which can affect their bargaining power within the household, have a discernible impact on household saving and, by extension, gross domestic saving, due to differing saving propensities by gender. The empirical analysis is based on panel data for a set of semi-industrialised economies, covering the period 1975–95. The results indicate that, as some measures of women's relative income and bargaining power increase, gross domestic saving rates rise. The implied gender disparity in saving propensities may be linked to differences in saving motives based on gender roles, and well as divergent experiences of economic vulnerability. These findings suggest the importance of understanding gender differences in planning for savings mobilisation and in the formulation of financial and investment policies.


Urea and guanidinium chloride induced unfolding of thymidylate synthase, a dimeric enzyme, and engineered interface mutants have been monitored by circular dichroism, fluorescence, and size-exclusion chromatography. Equilibrium unfolding studies show biphasic transitions, with a plateau between 3.5 and 5 M urea, when monitored by far-UV CD and fluorescence energy transfer employing an (aminoethylamino) naphthalenesulfonyl (AEDANS) label at the active site residue, Cys198. AEDANS was also specifically incorporated at position Cys155 in the mutant protein T155C. Direct excitation of this extrinsic fluorophore in the wild type protein (labeled at Cys198) and mutant T155C (labeled at Cys155) showed remarkable differences in the unfolding profiles. C155 AEDANS has a transition centered at 3.5 M urea, which is in contrast to Cys 198 AEDANS (5.5 M urea). Unfolding studies monitored by following intrinsic fluorescence of Trp residues which are located in a small structural domain suggest that this region of the protein is intrinsically fragile. The stable equilibrium intermediate is identified to be an ensemble of partially unfolded aggregated species by gel filtration studies. The chaotrope-induced denaturation of TS appears to proceed through a partially unfolded intermediate that is stabilized by aggregation. Dissociation and loss of structure occur concomitantly at high denaturant concentrations. Introduction of two symmetrically positioned disulfide bridges across the dimer interface in the triple mutant T155C/E188C/C244T (TSMox) stabilized the protein against denaturant-induced unfolding. Aggregate formation was completely abolished in the mutant TSMox, which also enhanced the overall structural stability of the protein. Structural reinforcement of the fragile interface in thymidylate synthase results in dramatic stabilization toward chaotrope-induced unfolding.


The overarching question of my research was to discover in which ways adults perceive Walt Disney World, not the Disney brand or Disney movies, but the theme park itself. Much research has been put into discovering what types of "fantasies" or "dreams" the Walt Disney Company has manufactured and subsequently Walt Disney World has stepped in to bring to fruition. However, we have not discovered what it is that others "dream" about who do not buy into the typical Disney fantasies we must look as how it is that adults perceive the park, not just at how children experience it. Perhaps most importantly, we must looker deeper into the aspect of control that comes into play at Walt Disney World. How much effort is put into this control and how successful are the anticipated effects? First, I examined how the Disney company controls aspects of park perception. This was be done through my own knowledge as a former Walt Disney World cast member. Then I explored what actual guests are saying about their park experiences. Do their anticipated experiences and feelings coincide with genuine outcomes? Furthermore, how do guests view Disney World in comparison to other similar theme park experiences, namely Universal Studios. Through all of the control that Disney exerts on their theme park, does that control garner the anticipated results or is it a vain effort? Perceptions of the "World"


Abstract. Aircraft observations of wind and temperature are very important for upper air meteorology. In this article, the quality of the meteorological information of an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Contract (ADS-C) message is assessed. The ADS-C messages broadcast by the aircraft are received at air traffic control centres for surveillance and airline control centres for general aircraft and dispatch management. A comparison is performed against a global numerical prediction (NWP) model and wind and temperature observations derived from Enhanced Surveillance (EHS) air-traffic control radar which interrogates all aircraft in selective mode (Mode-S EHS). Almost 16 000 ADS-C reports with meteorological information were compiled from the Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) database. The length of the data set is 76 consecutive days and started on 1 January 2011. The wind and temperature observations are of good quality when compared to the global NWP forecast fields from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). Comparison of ADS-C wind and temperature observations against Mode-S EHS derived observations in the vicinity of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol shows that the wind observations are of similar quality and the temperature observations of ADS-C are of better quality than those from Mode-S EHS. However, the current ADS-C data set has a lower vertical resolution than Mode-S EHS. High vertical resolution can be achieved by requesting more ADS-C when aircraft are ascending or descending, but could result in increased data communication costs.


We propose an approach to learning with graph-structured data in the problem domain of graph classification. In particular, we present a novel type of readout operation to aggregate node features into a graph-level representation. To this end, we leverage persistent homology computed via a real-valued, learnable, filter function. We establish the theoretical foundation for differentiating through the persistent homology computation. Empirically, we show that this type of readout operation compares favorably to previous techniques, especially when the graph connectivity structure is informative for the learning problem.


1. The status of small cetaceans in the North Sea and adjacent waters has been of concern for many years. Shipboard and aerial line transect surveys were conducted to provide accurate and precise estimates of abundance as a basis for conservation strategy in European waters. 2. The survey, known as SCANS (Small Cetacean Abundance in the North Sea), was conducted in summer 1994 and designed to generate precise and unbiased abundance estimates. Thus the intensity of survey was high, and data collection and analysis methods allowed for the probability of detection of animals on the transect line being less than unity and, for shipboard surveys, also allowed for animal movement in response to the survey platform. 3. Shipboard transects covered 20 000 km in an area of 890 000 km2. Aerial transects covered 7000 km in an area of 150 000 km2. 4. Three species dominated the data. Harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena were encountered throughout the survey area except in the Channel and the southern North Sea. Whitebeaked dolphin Lagenorhynchus albirostris and minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata were found mainly in the north-western North Sea. 5. Phocoena phocoena abundance for the entire survey area was estimated as 341 366 [coefficient of variation (CV) = 0.14; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 260 000-449 000]. The estimated number of B. acutorostrata was 8445 (CV = 0.24; 95% CI 5000-13 500). The estimate for L. albirostris based on confirmed sightings of this species was 7856 (CV = 0.30; 95% CI = 4000-13 000). When Atlantic whitesided dolphin Lagenorhynchus acutus and Lagenorhynchus spp. sightings were included, this estimate increased to 11 760 (CV = 0.26; 95% CI 5900-18 500). 6. Shortbeaked common dolphin Delphinus delphis were found almost exclusively in the Celtic Sea. Abundance was estimated as 75 450 (CV = 0.67; 95% CI = 23 000-149 000). 7. Current assessments and recommendations by international fora concerning the impact on P. phocoena of bycatch in gillnet fisheries in the North Sea and adjacent waters are based on these estimates.


Understanding the nature of decision-related signals in sensory neurons promises to give insights into their role in perceptual decision-making. Those signals, traditionally quantified as choice probabilities (CP), are well-understood in a feedforward framework assuming zero-signal trials with no choice bias. Here, we extend this understanding by analytically solving models of choice-related signals that account for informative stimuli, choice bias, and importantly, feedback signals reflecting either internal states, such as attention or belief, or the outcome of the decision process. First, we relate CPs to Choice Triggered Averages (CTAs), which quantify choice-related average changes in neural responses, and show that both have general expressions valid for activity-choice covariations of both feedforward or feedback origin. These expressions allow a meaningful calculation of CPs across all trials, including non-zero signal trials. Second, we derive how CPs and CTAs depend on feedforward and feedback weights and on noise correlations under several plausible model architectures. Third, we examine different types of feedback signals, related to predictive coding, probabilistic inference, and attention, and we predict how CPs and CTAs depend in each case on the stimulus signal level and on the neural tuning properties. Finally, we show that measuring both CPs and CTAs offers complementary information about the origin of choice-related signals, especially when studying temporal changes of activity-choice covariations across the trial time. Overall, our work provides new analytical tools to better understand the link between sensory representations and perceptual decisions.


Public mountain biking and hiking trails can pose challenges to trail-user safety. The purpose of this project is to improve the overall safety factors on the Massanutten Western Slope, in eastern Rockingham County, Virginia, where a 15-plus mile trail system has been made available to a broad range of users. Owned by Massanutten Resort, the trail system is in a remote, forested area frequented by local off-road cyclists, runners, hikers, as well as seasonal tourists and is maintained by the Shenandoah Valley Bicycle Coalition (SVBC). This multifaceted project, which integrates ESRI ArcGIS, Trimble Pathfinder, USDA Soil Survey Geographic (SSURGO) data, and the National Land Cover Database (NLCD), has the common goal of increasing the overall safety of the trail system through assessing both environmental impact in trail construction and use, as well as accessibility for first responders. Trail erosion risk was modeled in ArcGIS based on the variables outlined in the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). The factors of soil erodibility, slope, and vegetation cover type were used to assess erosion risk and identify areas where current trails are likely to erode and where future construction should be avoided by SVBC. Field collection of GPS locational data using a surveygrade field rover was undertaken to update trail marker signage, provide accurate locational maps for rescue efforts, and test the validity of the erosion model through ground-truthing. Cellular strength data was collected to identify areas along the trails where cellular coverage may be weak. Ultimately, first responders will be provided with maps of the trail system labeled with geographic coordinates and that identify access points.


ABSTRACT Radon therapy using radon (222Rn) gas is classified into two types of treatment: inhalation of radon gas and drinking water containing radon. Although short- or long-term intake of spa water is effective in increasing gastric mucosal blood flow, and spa water therapy is useful for treating chronic gastritis and gastric ulcer, the underlying mechanisms for and precise effects of radon protection against mucosal injury are unclear. In the present study, we examined the protective effects of hot spring water drinking and radon inhalation on ethanol-induced gastric mucosal injury in mice. Mice inhaled radon at a concentration of 2000 Bq/m3 for 24 h or were provided with hot spring water for 2 weeks. The activity density of 222Rn ranged from 663 Bq/l (start point of supplying) to 100 Bq/l (end point of supplying). Mice were then orally administered ethanol at three concentrations. The ulcer index (UI), an indicator of mucosal injury, increased in response to the administration of ethanol; however, treatment with either radon inhalation or hot spring water inhibited the elevation in the UI due to ethanol. Although no significant differences in antioxidative enzymes were observed between the radon-treated groups and the non-treated control groups, lipid peroxide levels were significantly lower in the stomachs of mice pre-treated with radon or hot spring water. These results suggest that hot spring water drinking and radon inhalation inhibit ethanol-induced gastric mucosal injury.


Natural factors causing changes in Lake Pontchartrain, can be grouped into the following: subsidence and wetland loss due to the deterioration of the St. Bernard Delta, natural variations and long term cycles cause year to year and decade to decade changes, and hurricanes and other major storms produce short term and long term environmental change. The most significant factor affecting the water quality of Lake Pontchartrain is the activities of the over one million people who reside on the wetlands that in the past nourished it. During rains, the south shore becomes a mixing zone for urban runoff which is pumped from outfall canals into the lake. The city's drainage network is composed of a subsurface collection system that discharges into either open (102 miles) or covered (89 miles) canals. These canals convey the water to the pumping stations located throughout the city. To be able to reduce the environmental effects on Lake Pontchartrain of the urban runoff from New Orleans, it will be necessary to estimate the quantity and quality of the stormwater entering the lake. The quantity of urban runoff can be obtained by a flood frequency analysis for the outfall canals from the drainage system. This unique drainage system produces a unique flood frequency analysis.


The momentum behind Cloud Computing has revolutionized how ICT services are provided, adopted and delivered. Features such as high scalability, fast provisioning, on demand resource availability makes it an attractive proposition for deploying complex and demanding systems. Clouds are also very suitable for deploying systems with unpredictable load patterns including Critical infrastructure services. Though, the major obstacle in hosting Critical infrastructures is often a lack of assurance. The transparency and flexibility offered by the Cloud, abstracts per definition over e.g. data placement, hardware, service migration. This makes it very hard to assure security properties. We present an investigation of assurance approaches, an analysis of their suitability for Critical Infrastructure Services being deployed in the Cloud and presents our approach.


Background It is known that maintenance of muscle mass cannot prevent loss of muscle strength in older adults. Recent evidence suggests that fat mass can weaken the relationship between muscle mass and functional performance. No information exists if fat mass can independently affect muscle strength and jump test performance in middle-aged and older adults. Objective To assess the independent relationships between fat mass, leg muscle mass, lower extremity muscle strength, and jump test performance in adults, 55–75 years of age. Design Cross-sectional. Setting University laboratory. Participants Fifty-nine older adults (men, n = 27, age = 64.8 + 6.5 years; women, n = 32, age = 62.5 + 5.1 years) participated in this study. Measurements Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry was used to measure fat mass and leg muscle mass. An average of 3 maximal countermovement jumps was used to calculate jump power and jump height. Two leg press and hip abduction strength were assessed by 1-repetition maximum testing. Results Stepwise sequential regression analysis of fat mass and leg muscle mass versus jump test performance and measures of muscle strength after adjusting for age, height, and physical activity revealed that fat mass was negatively associated with jump height (p = 0.047, r partial = −0.410) in men. In women, fat mass was negatively associated with jump height (p = 0.003, r partial = −0.538), leg press (p = 0.002, r partial = −0.544), and hip abduction strength (p < 0.001, r partial = −0.661). Leg muscle mass was positively associated with jump power in women (p = 0.047, r partial = 0.372) only. Conclusions Fat mass has an independent negative relationship with jump test performance in middle-aged and older men and women. This has clinical implications for rehabilitating neuromuscular performance in middle-aged and older adults.


Robot behavior learning by demonstration deals with the ability for a robot to learn a behavior from one or several demonstrations provided by a human teacher, possibly through tele-operation or imitation. This implies controllers that can address both (1) the feature selection problem related to a great amount of mostly irrelevant sensory data and (2) dealing with temporal sequences of demonstrations. Echo state networks (H. Jaeger, 2001) have been proposed recently for time series prediction and have been shown to perform remarkably well on this kind of data. In this paper, we introduce ESN to robot behavior acquisition in the scope of a mobile robot performing navigation tasks. ESN actually show comparable and even better performance with that of other algorithms from the literature in similar experimental conditions. Moreover, some properties regarding dynamics of ESN in the context of learning by demonstration are investigated.


We investigate if asset return volatility is predictable by macroeconomic and financial variables and shed light on the economic drivers of financial volatility. Our approach is distinct due to its comprehensiveness: First, we employ a data-rich forecast methodology to handle a large set of potential predictors in a Bayesian Model Averaging approach, and, second, we take a look at multiple asset classes (equities, foreign exchange, bonds, and commodities) over long time spans. We find that proxies for credit risk and funding (il)liquidity consistently show up as common predictors of volatility across asset classes. Variables capturing time-varying risk premia also perform well as predictors of volatility. While forecasts by macro-finance augmented models also achieve forecasting gains out-of-sample relative to autoregressive benchmarks, the performance varies across asset classes and over time.


Cellular processes take place over many timescales, prompting the development of precision measurement technologies that cover milliseconds to hours. Here we describe ArrayG, a bipartite fluorogenic system composed of a GFP-nanobody array and monomeric wtGFP binders. The free binders are initially dim but brighten 15 fold upon binding the array, suppressing background fluorescence. By balancing rates of intracellular binder production, photo-bleaching, and stochastic binder exchange on the array, we achieved temporally unlimited tracking of single molecules. Fast (20-180Hz) tracking of ArrayG tagged kinesins and integrins, for thousands of frames, revealed repeated state-switching and molecular heterogeneity. Slow (0.5 Hz) tracking of single histones for as long as 1 hour showed fractal dynamics of chromatin. We also report ArrayD, a DHFR-nanobody-array tag for dual color imaging. The arrays are aggregation resistant and combine high brightness, background suppression, fluorescence replenishment, and extended choice of fluorophores, opening new avenues for seeing and tracking single molecules in living cells.


The literary analysis of influence of heavy metals is Given on an environment and organism of man. Heavy metals are the basic pollutants of environment of industrial cities. Connections of heavy metals possess high biochemical activity, ability to accumulate in an environment and living organisms. The important role of microelements is educed as catalysts of many biological reactions and pathogenic influence of heavy metals on the organism of man. The basic sources of receipt of heavy metals in an environment are extrass of industrial enterprises and exhausts of motor transport. The high concentrations of heavy metals in an environment can result in the decline of adaptive reactions of organism and development of the sickly states.


The most contentious and critical questions of contemporary times relate to the nature, scope, impact and conceptualization of globalization. The intensified impact of globalization and the acceptance that it is a contemporary social reality has manifested itself noticeably in a variety of disciplines. However, the inherently multidimensional processes of globalization demand new insights. The resultant rise of a Global Studies approach is expected to be unencumbered by dominant perspectives and existing academic loyalties by placing global theorizing and issues first. In light of this context, the paper raises several epistemological and ontological questions while outlining the broad contours of this emerging field. The analysis is based on academic literature as well as the examination of a selection of global studies programs in academic institutions to ascertain the contemporary application and perceptions of what constitutes global studies. The ensuing discussion explains why global studies is regarded as an overwhelmingly North American phenomenon. Finally, the paper suggests ways of broadening the disciplinary lens, which may also help global studies to overcome the wide regional divide.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the rise and the future of urban leisure format (ULF), i.e. local seasonal short-lived and repeatable small-scale place-time-based staging urban leisure experiences which become the focus of recreation and tourism development in many cities. It aims to analyse the structure of the ULF by identifying its main features and also to propose the future developments of the concept.

Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on the experience economy principles. It develops the models for structured experiences/experienscape by adding the analogy with television programme formats to propose the general logic of constructing, organising and packetizing urban leisure experiences that are multiplied effectively to other urban time-spaces.

Findings
The ULF's future potential lies in its ability to adopt local components, i.e. people and urban resources, to global trends using a structured experiences/experience logic which makes the ULF formattable, i.e. with the capacity to get informally standardised, then repeated and adapted to other cities' contexts.

Research limitations/implications
The paper provides a conceptual framework for formatting the leisure events and places under the framework of the structured experience, will be carefully adapted to the micro-local level, i.e. community activities sphere. The ULF is a theoretical concept and needs empirical research to verify its validity.

Practical implications
The ULF provides urban managers with a framework for replicating, multiplying and adapting urban leisure events and sites within the structured experiences (SE) designing framework.

Originality/value
The study contributes to the scientific discussion on the experience economy by introducing the ULF concept which can be adapted to various urban conditions.


Title of dissertation: Model-driven and Data-driven Approaches for some Object Recognition Problems Raghuraman Gopalan, Doctor of Philosophy, 2011 Dissertation directed by: Professor Rama Chellappa Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Recognizing objects from images and videos has been a long standing problem in computer vision. The recent surge in the prevalence of visual cameras has given rise to two main challenges where, (i) it is important to understand different sources of object variations in more unconstrained scenarios, and (ii) rather than describing an object in isolation, efficient learning methods for modeling object-scene 'contextual' relations are required to resolve visual ambiguities. This dissertation addresses some aspects of these challenges, and consists of two parts. First part of the work focuses on obtaining object descriptors that are largely preserved across certain sources of variations, by utilizing models for image formation and local image features. Given a single instance of an object, we investigate the following three problems. (i) Representing a 2D projection of a 3D non-planar shape invariant to articulations, when there are no self-occlusions. We propose an articulation invariant distance that is preserved across piece-wise affine transformations of a non-rigid object 'parts', under a weak perspective imaging model, and then obtain a shape context-like descriptor to perform recognition; (ii) Understanding the space of 'arbitrary' blurred images of an object, by representing an unknown blur kernel of a known maximum size using a complete set of orthonormal basis functions spanning that space, and showing that subspaces resulting from convolving a clean object and its blurred versions with these basis functions are equal under some assumptions. We then view the invariant subspaces as points on a Grassmann manifold, and use statistical tools that account for the underlying nonEuclidean nature of the space of these invariants to perform recognition across blur; (iii) Analyzing the robustness of local feature descriptors to different illumination conditions. We perform an empirical study of these descriptors for the problem of face recognition under lighting change, and show that the direction of image gradient largely preserves object properties across varying lighting conditions. The second part of the dissertation utilizes information conveyed by large quantity of data to learn contextual information shared by an object (or an entity) with its surroundings. (i) We first consider a supervised two-class problem of detecting lane markings from road video sequences, where we learn relevant feature-level contextual information through a machine learning algorithm based on boosting. We then focus on unsupervised object classification scenarios where, (ii) we perform clustering using maximum margin principles, by deriving some basic properties on the affinity of 'a pair of points' belonging to the same cluster using the information conveyed by 'all' points in the system, and (iii) then consider correspondencefree adaptation of statistical classifiers across domain shifting transformations, by generating meaningful 'intermediate domains' that incrementally convey potential information about the domain change. Model-driven and Data-driven Approaches for some Object Recognition Problems


Author: Abigail
 Michele
 Gaston Title: Determining
 Kanban
 Size
 Using
 Mathematical
 Programming
 and
 Discrete Event
 Simulation
 for
 a
 Manufacturing
 System
 with
 Large
 Production Variability Institution:
 Embry-‐Riddle
 Aeronautical
 University Year: 2012 In
 order
 to
 become
 more
 competitive
 and
 aggressive
 in
 the
 market
 place
 it
 is imperative
 for
 manufacturers
 to
 reduce
 cycle
 time,
 limit
 work-‐in-‐process,
 and
 improve productivity,
 responsiveness,
 capacities,
 and
 quality.
 One
 manner
 in
 which
 supply
 chains
 can
 be improved
 is
 via
 the
 use
 of
 kanbans
 in
 a
 pull
 production
 system.
 Kanbans
 refer
 to
 a
 card
 or signal
 for
 productions
 scheduling
 within
 just-‐in-‐time
 (JIT)
 production
 systems
 to
 signal where
 and
 what
 to
 produce,
 when
 to
 produce
 it,
 and
 how
 much.
 A
 Kanban
 based
 JIT production
 system
 has
 been
 shown
 to
 be
 beneficial
 to
 supply
 chains
 for
 they
 reduce
 work-‐ in-‐process,
 provide
 real
 time
 status
 of
 the
 system,
 and
 enhance
 communication
 both
 up
 and down
 stream. While
 many
 studies
 exist
 in
 regards
 to
 determining
 optimal
 number
 of
 kanbans, types
 of
 kanban
 systems,
 and
 other
 factors
 related
 to
 kanban
 system
 performance,
 no comprehensive
 model
 has
 been
 developed
 to
 determine
 kanban
 size
 in
 a
 manufacturing system
 with
 variable
 workforce
 production
 rate
 and
 variable
 demand
 pattern.
 This
 study used
 Stewart-‐Marchman-‐Act,
 a
 Daytona
 Beach
 rehabilitation
 center
 for
 those
 with
 mental disabilities
 or
 recovering
 from
 addiction
 that
 has
 several
 manufacturing
 processes,
 as
 a
 test bed
 using
 mathematical
 programming
 and
 discrete
 event
 simulation
 models
 to
 determine 2 the
 Kanban
 size
 empirically.
 Results
 from
 the
 validated
 simulation
 model
 indicated
 that there
 would
 be
 a
 significant
 reduction
 in
 cycle
 time
 with
 a
 kanban
 system;
 on
 average, there
 would
 be
 a
 decrease
 in
 cycle
 time
 of
 nine
 days
 (almost
 two
 weeks).
 Results
 were discussed
 and
 limitations
 of
 the
 study
 were
 presented
 in
 the
 end.


Maximal blood vessel dilation can be induced by calcium influx through just a few channel molecules in vascular endothelial cells. This Podcast features a conversation with the senior author of a Report published in the 4 May 2012 issue of Science. Mark Nelson discusses his group's use of a biosensor to investigate calcium (Ca2+) signaling in the endothelial cells that line arteries. Ca2+ signaling in endothelial cells is critical for their ability to regulate the function of the underlying vascular smooth muscle cells. Contraction and dilation of the smooth muscle cells control blood vessel diameter, which is important for regulating blood flow and pressure. Nelson's group identified localized Ca2+ signals generated by influx through single TRPV4 (transient receptor potential 4) cation channels, with activation of just a few channels per cell causing maximal vessel dilation. These results indicate that a small number of endothelial cell TRPV4 channels regulate vascular physiology and suggest that aberrant activation of these channels may be involved in pathological reductions in blood pressure or increases in blood vessel permeability.


Many transfer problems require re-using previously optimal decisions for solving new tasks, which suggests the need for learning algorithms that can modify the mechanisms for choosing certain actions independently of those for choosing others. However, there is currently no formalism nor theory for how to achieve this kind of modular credit assignment. To answer this question, we define modular credit assignment as a constraint on minimizing the algorithmic mutual information among feedback signals for different decisions. We introduce what we call the modularity criterion for testing whether a learning algorithm satisfies this constraint by performing causal analysis on the algorithm itself. We generalize the recently proposed societal decision-making framework as a more granular formalism than the Markov decision process to prove that for decision sequences that do not contain cycles, certain single-step temporal difference action-value methods meet this criterion while all policy-gradient methods do not. Empirical evidence suggests that such action-value methods are more sample efficient than policy-gradient methods on transfer problems that require only sparse changes to a sequence of previously optimal decisions.


Images sent back by the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity from the Meridiani Planum show sulfate-rich rocks containing plate-shaped voids with tapered edges that are interpreted as crystal molds formed after a late-stage evaporite mineral has been removed. Experimental studies of the MgSO4-H2O system at low temperatures reveal that the triclinic phase MgSO4·11H2O exhibits a crystal morphology that matches the shapes of these molds. MgSO4·11H2O melts incongruently above 2 °C to a mixture of 70% epsomite (MgSO4·7H2O) and 30% H2O by volume. When this occurs while crystals are encased in sediment, plate-shaped voids remain. The existence of ice, low surface temperatures, and the high sulfate content of surface rocks and soil on Mars makes MgSO4·11H2O a possible mineral species near the surface at high latitudes or elsewhere in the subsurface. If an evaporite layer contained a significant amount of this phase, incongruent melting would result in a rapid release of a large volume of water and could explain some of the landform features on Mars that are interpreted as outflow channels. MgSO4·11H2O would not survive a sample return mission unless extraordinary precautions were taken.


Among the Scolopendrellidae belonging to the collection of Symphyla of the Royal Museum for Central Africa (Tervuren, Belgium), ten species were found and seven new species are described: Symphylella erecta sp. nov., S. fuko sp. nov., S. kalundu sp. nov., S. lubumbashi sp. nov., S. malagassa sp. nov., S. tanganyika sp. nov. and Remysymphyla spinosa sp. nov. SEM micrographs and additional information of the new species and also of Remysymphyla hova Aubry & Masson, 1952, Ribautiella zagnanadina Brolemann, 1926 and R. schoutedeni Hinschberger, 1954 are provided, which contributes to an easier determination of the afrotropical scolopendrellid species. The diagnosis of the genus Remysymphyla is discussed.


We compute the transmission properties of two-dimensional (2-D) electromagnetic transverse magnetic (TM) waves that are normally incident on a Fabry--Perot structure with mirrors consisting of photonic crystals. We use a boundary integral formulation with quadratic boundary elements and utilize the Ewald representation for Green's functions. We trace the frequencies of the Fabry--Perot cavity modes traversing the photonic bandgap as the cavity length increases and calculate corresponding Q-values.


This thesis considers the interplay between the continuous and discrete properties of random stochastic processes. It is shown that the special cases of the one-sided Levy-stable distributions can be connected to the class of discrete-stable distributions through a doubly-stochastic Poisson transform. This facilitates the creation of a one-sided stable process for which the N-fold statistics can be factorised explicitly. The evolution of the probability density functions is found through a Fokker-Planck style equation which is of the integro-differential type and contains non-local effects which are different for those postulated for a symmetric-stable process, or indeed the Gaussian process. Using the same Poisson transform interrelationship, an exact method for generating discrete-stable variates is found. It has already been shown that discrete-stable distributions occur in the crossing statistics of continuous processes whose autocorrelation exhibits fractal properties. The statistical properties of a nonlinear filter analogue of a phase-screen model are calculated, and the level crossings of the intensity analysed. It is found that rather than being Poisson, the distribution of the number of crossings over a long integration time is either binomial or negative binomial, depending solely on the Fano factor. The asymptotic properties of the inter-event density of the process are found to be accurately approximated by a function of the Fano factor and the mean of the crossings alone.


Recently, important insights into static network topology for biological systems have been obtained, but still global dynamical network properties determining stability and system responsiveness have not been accessible for analysis. Herein, we explore a genome-wide gene-to-gene regulatory network based on expression data from the cell cycle in Saccharomyces cerevisae (budding yeast). We recover static properties like hubs (genes having several out-going connections), network motifs and modules, which have previously been derived from multiple data sources such as whole-genome expression measurements, literature mining, protein-protein and transcription factor binding data. Further, our analysis uncovers some novel dynamical design principles; hubs are both repressed and repressors, and the intra-modular dynamics are either strongly activating or repressing whereas inter-modular couplings are weak. Finally, taking advantage of the inferred strength and direction of all interactions, we perform a global dynamical systems analysis of the network. Our inferred dynamics of hubs, motifs and modules produce a more stable network than what is expected given randomised versions. The main contribution of the repressed hubs is to increase system stability, while higher order dynamic effects (e.g. module dynamics) mainly increase system flexibility. Altogether, the presence of hubs, motifs and modules induce few flexible modes, to which the network is extra sensitive to an external signal. We believe that our approach, and the inferred biological mode of strong flexibility and stability, will also apply to other cellular networks and adaptive systems.


Studying the middle atmospheric thermal structure over southern Africa is an important activity to improve the understanding of atmospheric dynamics of this region. Observations of a middle atmosphere thermal structure over Durban, South Africa (29.9°S, 31.0°E) using the Durban Rayleigh Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) data collected over 277 nights from April 1999 to July 2004, including closest overpasses of the Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) and Halogen Occultation Experiments (HALOE) satellites, are presented in this paper. There seems to be good agreement between the LIDAR and satellite observations. During autumn and winter, the temperatures measured by the LIDAR in the height region between 40 km and 55 km were 5 K to 12 K higher than those measured by the satellites. The data from the LIDAR instrument and the SABER and HALOE satellites exhibited the presence of an annual oscillation in the stratosphere, whereas in the mesosphere, semi-annual oscillations dominated the annual oscillation at some levels. The stratopause was observed in the height range of ~40 km - 55 km by all the instruments, with the stratopause temperatures measured as 260 K - 270 K by the LIDAR, 250 K - 260 K by the SABER and 250 K - 270 K by the HALOE. Data from the SABER and HALOE satellites indicated almost the same thermal structure for the middle atmosphere over Durban.


Background and purpose: Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder with increased inflammation and bronchial over react to stimulants. Th1 and Th2 cells are the main cells involved in the pathophysiology of asthma. The function of these cells is under the influence of T-bet and GATA3 transcription factors. This study aimed to investigate the impairment of immune responses in patients with allergic asthma compared with controls. Materials and methods: In a case-control study, 24 patients with allergic asthma and 10 healthy individuals were recruited. The Mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated and cDNA was synthesized after RNA extraction. Gene's expressions of T-bet and GATA3 were evaluated by Real-time Polymerase chain reaction and their relationships with risk factors for asthma were analyzed using statistical tests. Results: In our study, the GATA3 gene expression in patients increased 29 times more than that in controls (P= 0.002) but the expression of T-bet declined (0.43, P =0.32). Evaluation of T-bet / GATA3 showed that this ratio was significantly lower in patients compared with that in the controls (P<0.0001). Conclusion: Increased expression of GATA3 and significant reduction of T-bet / GATA3 ratio in patients showed disturbed immune responses in asthma. So, any remedial or control actions should focus on improving the unbalanced situation.


I. INTRODUCTION Before turning to a consideration of the problems, and the prospects, of those seeking to sue terrorists, terrorist organizations, and state sponsors of terrorism, it may be useful to compare briefly the advantages and disadvantages of such suits with those of criminal prosecution.1 Intuitively, one may be inclined to view civil suits as a second best option to be employed only if criminal prosecution is not available. This would be a mistake. At least in the United States, the prospects for holding the perpetrators of international terrorism civilly liable for their actions are substantially greater than the prospects for holding them criminally liable. Plaintiffs in civil suits benefit from a lower standard of proof - preponderance of the evidence rather than beyond a reasonable doubt - and are able to use discovery devices and, in some instances, international conventions on discovery to obtain documents and other forms of evidence unavailable in criminal proceedings. Moreover, civil suits may be more effective than criminal proceedings in establishing the full factual context in which the perpetrators committed their crimes, thereby enhancing the prospects that the victims will have their suffering brought to the attention of the wider community and that a definite, historically accurate account of the atrocities will be provided. Also, unlike criminal prosecutions, civil suits provide at least the possibility that victims may be compensated for property lost, injuries suffered, or emotional distress caused. Another advantage of civil litigation relative to criminal prosecution should be noted: a civil suit may result in a judgment against a former high-ranking government official or against a state that sponsors terrorism. To be sure, civil litigation in the United States as an alternative to criminal prosecution for the commission of international crimes like terrorism or egregious human rights violations is a highly controversial subject. Subjecting foreign governments to such suits has been especially controversial. Also, the barriers to successful litigation are formidable and include, among others, resistance by the United States government, limits on the lifting of foreign states' immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA),2 difficulties in collecting judgments in the United States, and possible hostile and retaliatory action on the part of foreign governments. Let us turn first to some examples of civil suits against terrorists and non-state supporters of terrorism. II. CIVIL SUITS AGAINST TERRORISTS AND NON-STATE SUPPORTERS OF TERRORISM A. Alien Tort Claims Act or Alien Tort Statute Other contributors to this symposium have addressed the Alien Tort Claims Act, often referred to as the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) and its controversial history, including the landmark Filartiga and Tel-Oren decisions and, most importantly, the United States Supreme Court's decision in Sosa.3 It should be noted that under the ATS, the plaintiff must be an alien, the complaint must allege a tort only, and the alleged tort must be in violation of "the law of nations."4 This ambiguous and controversial statute has been a primary basis for civil suits in federal courts based on the commission of international crimes abroad.5 It is not clear, however, that the ATS provides grounds for a civil suit against terrorists or terrorist supporters because it is unclear whether acts of terrorism are crimes or torts that violate the law of nations or customary international law.6 Although the ATS also grants federal courts subject matter jurisdiction over torts in violation of "a treaty of the United States," and the U.S. is party to most of the so-called antiterrorist treaties, such as the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombing, U.S. case law does not clearly support interpreting the ATS to provide a cause of action for non-self-executing treaties or for treaties ratified with non-self-executing declarations attached. …


This paper is devoted to the Snoek-Koster (SK) relaxation in deformed α-iron containing carbon as foreign interstital atoms (FIAs). In this study crucial experimental data on SK relaxation in deformed ultra-high purity α-iron doped with carbon at different concentration levels will be presented. The experimental results include the relaxation enthalpy, H S K , the relaxation time, τ s k , the shape of the SK peak and their dependences on carbon concentration, deformation temperature as well as the amount of plastic deformation will be used to critically test theoretical models. In fact, the interpretation of activation enthalpy is still the main unresolved issue in the studies of SK relaxation. Schoeck has recently called into attention that the essential question every theory of SK relaxation must answer is why the H S K is larger than the diffusion enthalpy of the corresponding interstitial in the lattice. Therefore we will focus our discussion on the problem of relaxation enthalpy and relaxation time of SK peak. From an analysis of the experimental data we find that the activation enthalpy of the carbon SK peak in α-iron actually varies over a wide range, decreasing towards the activation enthalpy, H S , of the Snoek relaxation with decreasing C concentration. This, together with an observed influence of the deformation temperature on the relaxtion strength of the SK peak raise serious question on the validity of the Seeger model based on kink pair formation (KPF) mechanism. Schoeck earlier had also ruled out the KPF mechanism by calling into attention the fact that some measurements found the strength of the SK relaxation far exceeds that predicted by the KPF mechanism. Therefore the hypothesis that only screw dislocations are responsible for SK relaxation is not confirmed in this study. In our theoretical approach presented here, the Shoeck model with the dragging mechanism is refined so as to take into account mutual interactions between FIAs possessing a long-range mobility in the Cottrell cloud surrounding dislocations. The cooperative migration of the FIAs caused by the mutual interactions between them with the FlAs locked in time-dependent strain field of dislocations subjected to an external, dynamical mechanical field is considered to be the basic "physical picture" of SK relaxation in our theoretical approach. We shall work out the consequence of this physical picture by using the coupling model to describe the cooperative migration of the FIAs and incorporating this into the dragging mechanism of Schoeck. The results can explain quantitatively the critical experimental facts that H S K increases over a wide range from 0.95 < A S K < 2.12 eV with carbon concentration and the corresponding preexponential factors. The relaxation strength is the same as the string model of Schoeck which is in agreement with experiment.


Nearly two decades after the EU first enacted data protection rules, key questions about the nature and scope of this EU policy, and the harms it seeks to prevent, remain unanswered. The inclusion of a Right to Data Protection in the EU Charter has increased the salience of these questions, which must be addressed in order to ensure the legitimacy, effectiveness and development of this Charter right and the EU data protection regime more generally. The Foundations of EU Data Protection Law is a timely and important work which sheds new light on this neglected area of law, challenging the widespread assumption that data protection is merely a subset of the right to privacy. By positioning EU data protection law within a comprehensive conceptual framework, it argues that data protection has evolved from a regulatory instrument into a fundamental right in the EU legal order and that this right grants individuals more control over more forms of data than the right to privacy. It suggests that this dimension of the right to data protection should be explicitly recognised, while identifying the practical and conceptual limits of individual control over personal data. At a time when EU data protection law is sitting firmly in the international spotlight, this book offers academics, policy-makers, and practitioners a coherent vision for the future of this key policy and fundamental right in the EU legal order, and how best to realise


Digital learning has reshaped education in many ways. The purpose of this study is to respond to the question of whether COVID-19 is the gateway for digital-learning in mathematics education. To this end, this study explores some uptakes of social media platforms by prospective secondary school teachers. Data was collected from 102 prospective mathematics teachers from the Copperbelt University (CBU). Cluster analysis approach was used. Results revealed that participants' scores for digital learning in mathematics in cluster 2 were higher than those in both cluster 1 and 3. This is a clear indication that prospective teachers in clusters with low scores are more likely to exhibit low skill levels in the use of mobile technology and the adoption of social media in relation to mathematics pedagogy during the COVID-19 crisis. Results show different patterns. However, overall results show that digital learning could be a positive response to COVID-19 closure period.


Biomass and carbon stocks are key information criteria to understand the role of forests in regulating global climate. However, for a bio-rich continent like Africa, ground-based measurements for accurate estimation of carbon are scarce, and the variables affecting the forest carbon are not well understood. Here, we present the first biomass study conducted in South Africa Mistbelt forests. Using data from a non-destructive sampling of 59 trees of four species, we (1) evaluated the accuracy of multispecies aboveground biomass (AGB) models, using predictors such as diameter at breast height (DBH), total height (H) and wood density; (2) estimated the amount of biomass and carbon stored in the aboveground compartment of Mistbelt forests and (3) explored the variation of aboveground carbon (AGC) in relation to tree species diversity and structural variables. We found significant effects of species on wood density and AGB. Among the candidate models, the model that incorporated DBH and H as a compound variable (DBH2 × H) was the best fitting. AGB and AGC values were highly variable across all plots, with average values of 358.1 Mg·ha−1 and 179.0 Mg·C·ha−1, respectively. Few species contributed 80% of AGC stock, probably as a result of selection effect. Stand basal area, basal area of the ten most important species and basal area of the largest trees were the most influencing variables. Tree species richness was also positively correlated with AGC, but the basal area of smaller trees was not. These results enable insights into the role of biodiversity in maintaining carbon storage and the possibilities for sustainable strategies for timber harvesting without risk of significant biomass decline.


Chemical speciation of heavy metals has become extremely important in environmental and analytical research because of the strong dependence that toxicity, environmental mobility, persistence and bioavailability of these pollutants have on their specific chemical forms. Novel nano-optical-based detection strategies, capable of overcoming the intrinsic limitations of well-established analytic methods for the quantification of total metal ion content, have been reported, but the speciation of different chemical forms has not yet been achieved. Here, we report the first example of a SERS-based sensor for chemical speciation of toxic metal ions in water at trace levels. Specifically, the inorganic Hg(2+) and the more toxicologically relevant methylmercury (CH₃Hg(+)) are selected as analytical targets. The sensing platform consists of a self-assembled monolayer of 4-mercaptopyridine (MPY) on highly SERS-active and robust hybrid plasmonic materials formed by a dense layer of interacting gold nanoparticles anchored onto polystyrene microbeads. The co-ordination of Hg(2+) and CH₃Hg(+) to the nitrogen atom of the MPY ring yields characteristic changes in the vibrational SERS spectra of the organic chemoreceptor that can be qualitatively and quantitatively correlated to the presence of the two different mercury forms.


PURPOSE
We hypothesized that tumor uptake and elimination of 2',2'-difluoro-2'-deoxycytidine/2',2'-difluoro-2'-deoxycytidine 5'-triphosphate (dFdCyd/dFdCTP) would be altered after dCK gene transfer and that this change would result in an enhanced cytotoxic effect. To test this hypothesis, we examined dFdCyd/dFdCTP uptake and clearance in HT-29 human colon carcinoma xenografts in nude mice by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and fluorine-19 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (F-19 MRS).

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
HT-29 tumors were grown from cells infected with either the retroviral vector alone (LNPO-LacZ) or vector containing the dCK gene (LNPO-dCK). HPLC and F-19 MRS analyses were performed after a single 160 mg/kg i.p. injection of dFdCyd. Tumor response was determined in animals receiving a similar dosing schedule of dFdCyd.

RESULTS
HPLC experiments revealed an increased tumor accumulation of dFdCTP in xenografts overexpressing dCK compared with wild-type controls (P < or = 0.05). dFdCTP in the dCK-infected tumors was easily identified at 24 h postinjection. Conversely, no dFdCTP could be detected in the control xenografts 14 h postinjection. Subsequent F-19 MRS experiments confirmed an altered uptake, revealing a 2.5-fold greater accumulation of dFdCyd/dFdCTP in the dCK xenografts. Whereas a modest tumor growth delay was observed in the wild-type tumors receiving dFdCyd, dCK xenografts demonstrated a marked tumor growth delay following treatment (P < or = 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
These data support the hypothesis that increased expression of dCK cDNA in HT-29 xenografts results in an enhanced dFdCTP accumulation and prolonged elimination kinetics, and ultimately a potentiated in vivo tumor response to dFdCyd. Related to these effects, changes in the overall tumor metabolism of dFdCyd/dFdCTP was detectable by noninvasive F-19 MRS. These data are relevant to future preclinical and clinical studies evaluating dCK gene transfer and dFdCyd therapy.


Collaboration between the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) is a form of public-private partnership in health care delivery in Nigeria. National Health Insurance Schemes' adoption of Health Maintenance Organizations to manage NHIS enrollees is seen as an effective and efficient means of running the scheme. The effective performance of Health Maintenance Organizations' role in the scheme, leads to increased access to health care services and ensures the overall achievement of NHIS goals. These organizations work on certain intricate modalities that do not allow HMOs to set their prices in managing NHIS enrollees but are still expected to ensure that enrollees are properly managed based on the agreed modalities for collaboration. If the scheme is successfully managed by the HMOs, there is the likelihood that the goals and objectives of NHIS would be achieved. And if not, NHIS goals would not be achieved. This is why the paper sought to investigate how this form of collaboration operates and the challenges that could result from collaboration. To achieve this therefore, a review of literature was done to highlight the functions of HMOs in Nigeria's NHIS, and the possible challenges that could come with this form of collaboration. In undertaking this study, nine in-depth interviews were conducted with representatives of participating organizations. At the end, the study discovered that HMOs played a prominent role in ensuring that the scheme is well implemented. The study therefore recommended that there should be constant review of the modalities on which the two organizations work as partners. Keywords: Public-Private Partnership, National Health Insurance Scheme, Health Maintenance Organization


We present a method to design binary diffractive microlenses with subwavelength structures, based on the finite-difference time-domain method and the genetic algorithm, also accounting for limitations on feature size and aspect ratio imposed by fabrication. The focusing efficiency of the microlens designed by this method is close to that of the convex lens and much higher than that of the binary Fresnel lens designed by a previous method. Although the optimized structure appears to be a binary Fresnel lens qualitatively, it is hard to quantitatively derive directly from the convex Fresnel lens. The design of a microlens with reduced chromatic aberration is also presented.


Julius Caesar was remembered in later times for the unprecedented scale of his military activity. He was also remembered for writing copiously while on campaign. Focusing on the period of Rome9s war with Gaul (58––50 BCE), this paper argues that the two activities were interrelated: writing helped to facilitate the Roman conquest of the Gallic peoples. It allowed Caesar to send messages within his own theater of operations, sometimes with distinctive advantages; it helped him stay in touch with Rome, from where he obtained ever more resources; and it helped him, in his Gallic War above all, to turn the story of his scattered campaigns into a coherent narrative of the subjection of a vast territory henceforward to be called ""Gaul."" The place of epistolography in late Republican politics receives new analysis in the paper, with detailed discussion of the evidence of Cicero.


Abstract The Tjårrojåkka area is located about 50 km WSW of Kiruna, northern Sweden, and hosts one of the best examples of spatially and possibly genetically related Fe-oxide and Cu-Au occurrences in the area. The bedrock is dominated by intermediate and basic extrusive and intrusive rocks. An andesite constrains the ages of these rocks with a U-Pb LA-ICPMS age of 1878±7 Ma. They are cut by dolerites, which acted as feeder dykes for the overlying basalts. Based on geochemistry and the obtained age the andesites and basaltic andesites can be correlated with the 1.9 Ga intermediate volcanic rocks of the Svecofennian Porphyrite Group in northern Sweden. They formed during subduction-related magmatism in a volcanic arc environment on the Archaean continental margin above the Kiruna Greenstone Group. Chemically the basalts and associated dolerites have the same signature, but cannot directly be related to any known basaltic unit in northern Sweden. The basalts show only minor contamination of continental crust and may represent a local extensional event in a subaquatic back arc setting with extrusion of mantle derived magma. The intrusive rocks range from gabbro to quartz-monzodiorite in composition. The area is metamorphosed at epidote-amphibolite facies and has been affected by scapolite, K-feldspar, epidote, and albite alteration that is more intense in the vicinity of deformation zones and mineral deposits. Three events of deformation have been distinguished in the area. D1 brittle-ductile deformation created NE-SW-striking steep foliation corresponding with the strike of the Tjårrojåkka-Fe and Cu deposits and was followed by the development of an E-W deformation zone (D2). A compressional event (D3), possible involving thrusting from the SW, produced folds in the central part of the area and a NNW-SSE striking deformation zone in NE.


Trypanosomiasis remains a major threat to humans in sub-Saharan Africa with 55-60 million people in 36 countries at risk of infection with T.b. gambiense or T.b. rhodesiense. Only a few drugs are available to treat the disease, which are either toxic, scarce, or do not readily pass the blood brain barrier to achieve therapeutic levels in the brain. A new drug is not in sight. The organo-arsenical compound melarsoprol is the main drug in use for therapy of the late stage of the disease, with central nervous system involvement. During melarsoprol treatment patients often suffer from serious adverse effects such as fever, diarrhea, pruritus and in 2-10% of the cases from reactive encephalopathy with fatal outcome in 50%. Although melarsoprol was introduced in 1949 there is a lack of data on its metabolites, pharmacologic or chemical properties. The present PhD project had two objectives: Firstly to analyze, characterize and determine the pharmacokinetics of the metabolites of the trypanocidal drug melarsoprol (the pharmacokinetics of relapse patients were additionally investigated). Secondly to evaluate further possible drug candidates for treatment of trypanosomiasis by structure activity relationship: In this study a group of antibacterial agents, the fluoroquinolones, was examined. A HPLC-UV method was developed to separate the parent drug melarsoprol from its potential metabolites. One metabolite could be identified after incubation of the drug with microsomes and also in serum of patients treated with melarsoprol: Melarsen oxide. Interestingly, this trypanocidal drug was in use before the development of melarsoprol, which is the condensation product of melarsen oxide and dimercaprol (an antidote for arsenic poisoning). After administration of 2.2 mg/kg of melarsoprol Cmax of melarsen oxide was reached after 5-15 minutes, the clearance was found to be 21.5 ml/min/kg and a half life of 3.8 hours was calculated. The therapeutic value of melarsen oxide was investigated in in vivo mice experiments: It could be demonstrated that the drug passes the blood brain barrier, hence might be an alternative to melarsoprol. Investigations on additional metabolites revealed that melarsen oxide or its arsenical derivatives are irreversibly bound to proteins. Covalent protein bound drugs are often associated with serious immunological adverse effects. The bacteriocidal class of fluoroquinolones act via the inhibition of topoisomerases. These enzymes mediating topological changes in the DNA are essential for cell survival. Trypanosomes possess a condensed, topologically interlocked circular type of mitochondrial DNA. The high demand for topoisomerase activity in combination with the rapid proliferation of trypanosomes makes the inhibition of topoisomerases an interesting drug target. 160 fluoroquinolones were tested against T.b. rhodesiense in vitro, with several compounds found to be active in the nanomolar range. The R7 substitution of the quinolone core was of importance for activity, whereas structural modification of the quinolone structure at position R1, R2, R3, and R8 did not influence trypanocidal activity. In vitro cytotoxicity was determined for active compounds and subsequently
six compounds were selected for further in vivo evaluation. However, even
after the administration of high doses (100 mg/kg) no parasitological cure of the mice
could be achieved.


Environmental temperature is a controlling factor in ecology and is influenced by global climate change. Upper/lower thermal limits for 10 species of sessile/sedentary invertebrates were established on a single rocky shore. Two species with different reproductive strategies (Littorina litto- rea, Nucella lapillus) from 3 Scottish and 3 Irish shores were investigated to test effects of small scale (<10 km) or larger scale (ca. 500 km) distances, and shore height on upper lethal temperature. At 3 sheltered and 3 exposed shores in Ireland, thermal responses of N. lapillus from the middle of their vertical distribution were compared. Amongst the 10 species from a single shore, thermal niche width rose asymptotically with maximum height of distribution on the shore and maximum emersion time. Median upper lethal temperature and median lower lethal temperature were closely correlated. For 8 species on the middle and upper shore, there were significant linear relationships between shore height and the variables upper lethal temperature, lower lethal temperature and thermal niche width. L. littorea upper lethal temperature was found not to vary with shore height, varied little over small geographical distances, but was significantly higher in Ireland than in Scotland. N. lapillus upper lethal temperature was higher in animals collected from the upper limit of distribution on the shore than in dogwhelks from the lower limit of distribution, was higher in animals taken from sheltered shores than from exposed shores and showed significant local differences. Upper lethal temperature was higher in Scottish than Irish dogwhelks.


Objectives—To evaluate the performance of a patient assessed outcome measure, the Oxford Hip Score, in a national study of primary hip replacement surgery. Design—A survey of patients' health status before undergoing primary hip replacement surgery and three months and one year after surgery. Setting—143 hospitals in three NHS English regions. Patients—7151 patients admitted for primary total hip replacement surgery over a period of 13 months from September 1996. Main measures—For patients, Oxford Hip Score and satisfaction with hip replacement and, for surgeons, American Anesthiologists' Society (ASA) classification of physical status. Results—The response rates to the postal questionnaire at three and 12 months follow up were 85.2% and 80.7%, respectively. Including all three administrations of the questionnaire, all except two items of the Oxford Hip Score were completed by 97% or more respondents and only one item at one administration appeared marginally to reduce the reliability of the score. The effect sizes for changes in the score from baseline to three months was 2.50 and to 12 months was 3.05. Patients rated by surgeons as being healthy preoperatively by the ASA classification were somewhat more likely to return a completed questionnaire at three months (79.4% versus 75.3%) and 12 months (72.4% versus 70.3%) than those rated as having poorer health. Conclusions—Overall there was little evidence of difficulties for patients in completing the Oxford Hip Score or of unreliable data, except in relation to one questionnaire item. The instrument was very responsive to change over time and score changes for the Oxford Hip Score related well to patients' satisfaction with their surgery. The instrument is an appropriate measure in terms of validity, responsiveness, and feasibility for evaluating total hip replacement from the perspective of the patient.


Little has been written about the literary methodology of the contemporary Belarusian writer Svetlana Aleksiyevich. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate how the aesthetic manipulation of factographic content in Svetlana Aleksiyevich's Chernobyl'skaya molitva aids Aleksiyevich in her stated goal of creating a "closer approximation to real life," while secondarily positioning Aleksiyevich within the literary background of Belarusian and Soviet dissident writers of documentary prose and providing an in-depth analysis of the narrative structure of Chernobyl'skaya molitva. At the heart of the methodology of Chernobyl'skaya molitva is a bifurcated structure I call "literary traumatic space," which is a modification of Michael Rothberg's concentrationary space as described in Traumatic Realism: The Demands of Holocaust Representation. The emotional impact of Aleksiyevich's Chernobyl'skaya molitva is greatly increased through multiple representations of irreconcilable trauma (as portrayed in "literary traumatic space") positioned one against another within the text.


The increasing uptake of electric vehicles, and the established practice of long-term parking at stations and airports, offers an opportunity to develop a flexible approach to help with the energy storage dilemma. This paper investigates the feasibility of using a number of EV batteries as an energy storage and grid balancing solution within the UK Central Hub area. Here, the capital cost of the vehicle is a sunk cost to the EV owner. The potential income generated, or discount on long-term parking, is an additional benefit of ownership. This paper considers the income available to a small and large size car park from the different market mechanisms to offer grid support in the UK and contrasts this with the complexity and costs of the EV charging infrastructure required within these types of scheme.


To make successful predictions in ungauged basins (PUB) exploring how to facilitate the identification of catchment characteristics from readily available information is as important as improving the theoretical representation of different hydrological processes. Today in most parts of the world, a significant amount of spatial information from GIS overlays and remote sensing imagery is available. However the hydrological information derived from such sources cannot be the complete answer to the PUB problem. Thus, to implement a field measurement program and measure the discharge hydrograph during a short observation period might be a cost‐effective strategy to improve predictive capability. In this study, we explore the most effective way to extract the information content from a limited period of observation. At first, the effectiveness of the phase correction technique using Dynamic Time Warping is demonstrated with long periods of observations to reduce the adverse influence of timing error, which is the discrepancy between the time of the real peak discharge and the observed one which may be disinformative for model identification. Then, by using the Monte Carlo approach with short periods of data, both the phase correction technique and the ensemble mean approach, in which a weighted ensemble mean of simulations using acceptable parameter sets is used as a prediction, are compared with conventional methods. We found that the ensemble mean approach without the phase correction technique could give the most robust model identification when the observation period is shorter than 2 weeks. We also found that the phase correction technique could work well with observation periods of 1 year or longer but was not always effective with shorter periods. These results were strongly dependent on the application catchment. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This article considers a particular printed circuit board (PCB) assembly system employing surface mount technology. Multiple, identical automatic placement machines, a variety of board types, and a large number of component types characterize the environment studied. The problem addressed is that of minimizing the makespan for assembling a batch of boards with a secondary objective of reducing the mean flow time. The approach adopted is that of grouping boards into production families, allocating component types to placement machines for each family, dividing of families into board groups with similar processing times, and the scheduling of groups. A complete setup is incurred only when changing over between board families. For the environment studied, precedence constraints on the order of component placement do not exist, and placement times are independent of feeder location. Heuristic solution procedures are proposed to create board subfamilies (groups) for which the component mounting times are nearly identical within a subfamily. Assignment of the same component type to multiple machines is avoided. The procedures use results from the theory of open-shop scheduling and parallel processor scheduling to sequence boards on machines. Note that we do not impose an open-shop environment but rather model the problem in the context of an open shop, because the order of component mountings is immaterial. Three procedures are proposed for allocating components to machines and subsequently scheduling boards on the machines. The first two procedures assign components to machines to balance total work load. For scheduling purposes, the first method groups boards into subfamilies to adhere to the assumptions of the open-shop model, and the second procedure assumes that each board is a subfamily and these are scheduled in order of shortest total processing time. The third procedure starts by forming board subfamilies based on total component similarity and then assigns components to validate the open-shop model. We compare the performance of the three procedures using estimated daily, two-day, and weekly production requirements by averaging quarterly production data for an actual cell consisting of five decoupled machines. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


We have demonstrated a two-step laser-enhanced ionization (LEI) technique to be potentially useful in measuring a spatially resolved temperature in an atmospheric air/acetylene flame. As a complement to the existing optical methods, LEI detection shares the advantages of extremely high sensitivity and the capability of achieving a high spatial resolution, confined to the dual-beam intersection area of 1 mm × 1 mm. A theoretical model was developed to precisely extract the temperature information from the obtained two-step LEI signal. The physical parameters required in the experiment include simply the relative values of the LEI signals, associated with the fine-structure doublets of a selected thermometric species, and their corresponding laser energies. The subsequent treatment is also convenient without the need to know the absolute energy of the incident laser beam and to accurately calibrate the detection system. Al and Ga were selected as the thermometric species. The resultant radial and axial temperature mappings are consistent with each other and are also comparable with those reported by other optical methods.


InGaN-based blue light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with different quantum well (QW) thicknesses were grown on freestanding GaN substrates with low threading dislocation densities (TDDs) and on c-plane sapphire substrates. In the case of thin QWs of 3nm in thickness, the external quantum efficiencies (EQEs) of LEDs on GaN substrates, as well as those on sapphire substrates, decreased with increasing forward current, indicating that carrier localization is in play on both types of substrates. For thicker 5-nm-thick QWs, the EQEs of LEDs grown on GaN substrates improved at high current densities, while those on sapphire substrates decreased even at low current densities. The LED with 5-nm-thick QWs on the GaN substrate mounted p-side down and molded with epoxy showed EQE as high as 26% at 125A∕cm2. Cathodoluminescence observations of the active layers on GaN substrates revealed that the expansion of nonradiative areas related to TDDs, which are responsible for the deterioration of the EQE of the LED on the sapphi...


GlaxoSmithKline has taken steps to open up more clinical data behind its drug trials, just months after the company was fined a record amount for ethical breaches.

From January all anonymised patient level data that sit hidden behind the results of clinical trials of its approved and failed drugs will be available without charge through a secure website once access has been approved.

Andrew Witty, GSK's chief executive, said that the move sprang from a desire to dismiss the perception that drug companies are always "hiding something."

"People have to really believe they are looking at the whole picture," he …


Osteoporosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality through its association with age-related fractures. Although most efforts in fracture prevention have been directed at retarding the rate of age-related bone loss and reducing the frequency and the severity of trauma among elderly people, evidence is growing that peak bone mass is an important contributor to bone strength during later life. The normal patterns of skeletal growth have been well characterized in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. It has been confirmed that boys have higher bone-mineral content, but not volumetric bone density, than girls. Furthermore, there is a disassociation between the peak velocities for height gain and bone mineral accrual in both genders. Puberty is the period during which volumetric density appears to increase in both axial and appendicular sites. Many factors influence the accumulation of bone mineral during childhood and adolescence, including heredity, gender, diet, physical activity, endocrine status, and sporadic risk factors (e.g., cigarette smoking). In addition to these modifiable factors during childhood, evidence has also accrued that fracture risk might be programmed during intrauterine life. Epidemiological studies have demonstrated a relationship between birthweight, weight in infancy, and adult bone mass. This appears to be mediated through modulation of the set-point for basal activity of endocrine systems such as the GH/IGF-1 and parathyroid hormone/vitamin D axes. Maternal vitamin D insufficiency is associated with reduced bone mineral acquisition during intrauterine and early postnatal life. Furthermore, both low birth size and poor childhood growth are directly linked to the later risk of hip fracture. The optimization of maternal nutrition and intrauterine growth should also be included within preventive strategies against osteoporotic fracture, albeit for future generations.


Provided here are both the underlying theory and recent results concerning the propagation and use of clones in research and in production forestry. State-of-the-art science and case histories treating production, testing, multiplication and deployment of clones are presented. Agroforestry, urban forestry and Christmas tree farming are covered, along with more traditional multiple-use forestry and high-intensity forestry for biomass, wood and fibre production. Clonal forestry is contrasted with the more recent developments of "family forestry", and the classical tree-improvement approach relying on seed-orchards. The history of clonal forestry is covered with reviews of several centuries' experience with sugi in Japan and poplars in Europe. The impact and use of clones in the context of genetic conservation and bio-diversity are discussed, as are the laws and regulations affecting clonal production and deployment.