Microelectrodes offer a number of advantages for exploitation as electrochemical sensors such as imparting stir-independence to sensor responses and allowing lower limits of detection to be minimised. Microelectrode arrays offer an attractive route for increasing the current responses of microelectrodes, whilst still retaining their advantageous properties. Despite this, no commercial sensors, to date, have successfully employed microelectrode arrays, largely due to conventional fabrication routes proving too costly to be economically viable for the production of disposable sensing devices. Previous work carried out by this research group has described a novel and patented procedure for the fabrication of microelectrode arrays via the sonochemical ablation of insulating polymer films electrochemically deposited upon conductive surfaces. This format lends itself to mass fabrication due to the simplicity and inexpensiveness of the approach. This thesis describes work focussed towards the optimisation of each of the individual components involved in the formation of sonochemically fabricated microelectrode arrays. In particular, factors and techniques that may facilitate the commercial exploitation and mass fabrication of such arrays as generic sensing templates are described. Screen printed carbon has been investigated for its suitability as a host electrode. The comparative use of a number of possible activation methods to increase amperometric current responses at such electrodes is also described. Homogeneous poly(o-phenylenediamine) films of -40 nm thickness formed at the surfaces of screen printed carbon electrodes via the anodic electropolymerisation of o-phenylenediamine are shown to serve as effective diffusional barriers, thus insulating the underlying carbon electrodes. Microelectrode arrays formed by the sonochemical ablation of such films to expose microscopic areas of the underlying conductive substrates are seen to possess electrode element populations of -7.3 x 104 cm 2. Over 400 such sensors are shown to be able to be fabricated simultaneously with reproducibility of responses <4% relative standard deviation. Amperometric and cyclic voltammetric characterisations of the thus produced microelectrode arrays performed in model redox systems are shown to agree with accepted theoretical microelectrode behaviour, demonstrating sigmoidal shaped voltammograms, fluctuations in steady-state current responses of <10% with convection, scan rate independence and fast attainment (<20 seconds) of steady-state responses. Arrays of this type are also demonstrated to be suitable for exploitation within aqueous chlorine sensing devices, offering detection limits of <0.005 mg/l free chlorine, representing an order of magnitude lower than those obtainable via contemporary optical wet chemistry based approaches. In order to demonstrate further the applicability of this approach to the mass fabrication of disposable devices, methods for the deposition of a chemical modifying layer are also investigated, to avoid the need for additional reagents.


With the growing interest in how online sedentary activity can mediate offline health practices, we present a study of social media activity related to personal health and fitness. We aim to identify the type of content and motivations for sharing health-related activity in social media outlets. To this end, we performed a qualitative analysis of Twitter posts, as well as an extensive set of interviews with experienced users who post messages on Twitter about exercise, diet, and weight loss activities. The qualitative analysis exposes varying levels of activity actualization and message sentiment. The interviews help us reason about the users practices and motivations for posting activity related to the pursuit and maintenance of volitional health behaviors. Our findings extend existing theoretical frameworks and can inform the design of technology that uses social media to help initiate and maintain challenging activities like exercise and diet.


Biological productivity in many ocean regions is controlled by the availability of the nutrient phosphorus. In the Mediterranean Sea, aerosol deposition is a key source of phosphorus and understanding its composition is critical for determining its potential bioavailability. Aerosol phosphorus was investigated in European and North African air masses using phosphorus near‐edge X‐ray fluorescence spectroscopy (P‐NEXFS). These air masses are the main source of aerosol deposition to the Mediterranean Sea. We show that European aerosols are a significant source of soluble phosphorus to the Mediterranean Sea. European aerosols deliver on average 3.5 times more soluble phosphorus than North African aerosols and furthermore are dominated by organic phosphorus compounds. The ultimate source of organic phosphorus does not stem from common primary emission sources. Rather, phosphorus associated with bacteria best explains the presence of organic phosphorus in Mediterranean aerosols.


A 28-year-old male with mild mental retardation and several possible psychiatric disorders has fallen through the cracks of local service programs on several occasions. The suggested psychiatric diagnoses include major depression, antisocial personality disorder, bipolar disorder, and atypical affective disorder. Following his involvement with the local mental health center, this individual was referred to a residential care facility for people with mental retardation due to aggressive acts in the community. This facility provided a dual diagnosis program offering individual and group therapy, which proved relatively successful for the client. As a result of a few attempts to run from the facility, he was discharged to a different group home. This residential program did not provide psychiatric services, and the local mental health center failed to provide alternative treatment programs. The client became progressively more irritable, and after leaving the facility for two weeks, he lost his residential placement and was placed in a semi-supervised apartment. While living in this apartment, he participated sporadically in day treatment programs, but his alcohol abuse increased dramatically. After significant alcohol and drug abuse, he was admitted into the psychiatric unit of the hospital, and following discharge, he returned to the semi-supervised apartment. His behavior became increasingly bizarre, and he began to make threatening phone calls to government officials. Despite the severity of problems presented with this case, the local mental health and mental retardation services could not agree on a joint care plan, and each system identified the client as the primary responsibility of the other system. As a result, he was sent to the correctional system and was not provided with the treatment options, which he appeared to clearly need (Menolascino, Gilson, & Levitas, 1986). Background Information The case described above reveals how difficult it can be to provide services to individuals with a dual diagnosis of mental retardation and mental illness. In fact, this population still remains widely unrecognized, and professionals who do recognize it often refer to this combination of diagnoses as the "other dual diagnosis," because the term, "dual diagnosis," is often assumed to refer to the combination of mental illness and substance abuse (Bongiorno, 1996, p. 1142). Along with the difficulty in recognizing this population, the services to people with mental retardation and mental illness still remain separate and continue to diverge considerably (Nezu, 1994). Without proper recognition and collaboration from both systems, necessary treatment is not possible. Historical Beliefs Problems providing services to individuals with mental illness and mental retardation began as a result of previously held beliefs of professionals. For instance, little distinction is often made between mental retardation and mental illness, and individuals with mental illness and/or mental retardation are treated as a single population (Nezu, 1994). In addition, some professionals believe that individuals with mental retardation are immune to emotional and psychological problems as a result of the retardation. Fletcher (1988) reported, "The mildly retarded have been characterized as worry-free and thus mentally healthy. The severely retarded have been considered to express no feelings and therefore do not experience emotional stress" (p. 255). These beliefs have prevented individuals with both mental retardation and mental illness from receiving appropriate services. Current Beliefs Recent research has revealed that professional beliefs, such as those described above, are not valid. Individuals with mental retardation can indeed experience emotional and psychological problems. In fact, it is now typically mandated that people with mental retardation receive appropriate medical assessment, diagnosis, and follow-up treatment (Szymanski, 1994). …


There is a growing need for generating more precise model simulations of urban drainage systems, both in off-line and on-line situations. In order to generate these improved model simulations data assimilation tools are needed that make it possible to include system measurements in the models to eliminate some of the unavoidable discrepancies between model and reality. The latter can partly be achieved by using the commercial tool MOUSE UPDATE, which is capable of inserting measured water levels from the system into the distributed, physically based MOUSE model. This study evaluates and documents the performance of the updating procedure for flow forecasting. Measured water levels in combination with rain gauge input are used as basis for the evaluation. When compared to simulations without updating, the results show that it is possible to obtain an improvement in the 20 minute forecast of the water level in an updated node and in the 3 hour forecast of flow through a downstream node. Our results indicate that updating produces better forecasts when implemented in a network with slow flow dynamics and with measurements from basins that are located upstream and contribute significantly to the flow at the forecast location.


The participation of children and early and late adolescents in resistance training activities, including training for sport, appears to continually be on the rise. The involvement of youth in the sport of weightlifting and the use of weightlifting methods as part of training for sport performance also appears to be growing. The increased acceptance of these activities is evidenced by the number of both lay and scientific articles, specialized magazines and publications devoted to the different types of resistance training. It is also indicated by simple observation of fitness centres and sports training facilities. The use of resistance training appears to be growing in popularity despite poorly supported position statements, anecdotal reports and speculation concerning the potential for injury. Children and adolescents participating in resistance training programs can make noticeable increases in strength and power as well as physiological parameters associated with both health and sport performance. Although the number of children and adolescents (aged 8 – 18 years) involved in some form of resistance training is increasing and evidenced-based reviews that support these activities have been published, controversy still exists. There are still those who insist that training with free weights, particularly the sport of weightlifting, should not take place until a person is fully developed, even though there is not much objective evidence to support such a position. More recently published scientific data support the notion that properly supervised resistance training programs can improve sport performance, reduce injury potential and enhance healthy facets of children and early and late adolescents.


Abstract Protected areas across the range of the African savannah elephant Loxodonta africana are increasingly being surrounded and isolated by agriculture and human settlements. Conflicts between people and crop-raiding elephants regularly lead to direct reprisals and diminish community support for conservation. We report on field trials in northern Tanzania that employed a new, humane way for wildlife managers to move elephants away from conflict zones, from distances of > 100 m, thereby enhancing the safety of wildlife managers, farmers and elephants. We deployed 10 unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) piloted by five trained teams of wildlife managers in the Tarangire–Manyara and Serengeti ecosystems. Game Scouts deployed the drones opportunistically during crop-raiding events at the peak of the maize ripening period in 2015 and 2016. In 100% of trials (n = 51) elephants responded to the presence of a drone by departing rapidly from crop fields (n = 38) and settlements (n = 13). The cost of five teams responsible for 617 km2 in Tarangire–Manyara was estimated to be USD 15,520 for 1 year, and all drones remained operational for the duration of the study. The initial success of this tool warrants further testing of the utility of small unmanned aerial vehicles as part of the toolbox for wildlife managers and communities dealing with high levels of conflict with wildlife.


Throughout the teaching/learning process of speaking, a teacher's role is believed to hold great importance. Teachers initiate learners to the whole learning process, and their feedback constitutes the significant step forward that triggers learners towards enunciating a language. As an illustration, Swain (1985, 2000) uses empirical evidence to show the importance of teacher's feedback during the production of speaking. Relatable to feedback during oral activity are issues that highlight teachers' pronunciation, fluency, body language, facial expressions, and error correction during the production phase. To identify these areas, the current article used students' questionnaires. The general aim is to gauge learners' perceptions, practices and problems. Results highlight the pivotal teachers' role in the whole process. Therefore, the specific aim of this study is to investigate the role of teachers' feedback during speaking activities in Moroccan classes. Results show that interaction enhancement and negotiation density do indeed establish the interconnection between accuracy and fluency. Some speech strategists and specialists have already demonstrated how instruction and the way teachers provide feedback do play a major role in learners' speaking skills including the need for a contrary evidence.


The UK's low levels of output per hour of labour and their productivity relative to other advanced economies is a matter for concern. The UK's productivity is a little over three-quarters that of Germany, the US, and France, and the about same as Italy. Furthermore, according to the OECD, it has been stagnant since 2007. Productivity is an important macroeconomic indicator as it demonstrates the output that an economy can generate using existing resources. It is generally acknowledged that technological progress, new research and technology can lead to higher investment and growth rates. Productivity refers to the quantity of goods and services that can be produced by a worker in a given period of time. For any economy, it is important to ensure rapid growth and a long-term trend of increased productivity. Indeed, this is particularly important for advanced economies where it is crucial to increase productivity in order to remain globally competitive. The study concludes that the UK's growth in productivity has been very slow relative to other major economies, and as a result the UK, which was already behind many other G7 countries, has fallen even further behind. This study suggests that a stronger and more viable manufacturing sector would help to build structural balance in the economy and to move it away from an over-reliance on the financial sector. To achieve this would require active state polices to increase investment in R&D, innovation and skills.


Defining the impact of e-business applications in a multi-disciplinary field with cross industry contexts has its own challenges. In this book, our attempts to compile a book started from the diversity on the use of e-business applications. In our own research on the use of technology in higher education and the automotive industry, we have seen that the impact of e-business applications may vary between industries and sometimes in organizations within the same industry in which it has taken place. In our literature review about the impact of e-business technologies on organizations, we have observed that there were accounts of e-business applications, useful cases indicating why e-business application implementations fail or succeed, but the absence of cases compiled under one roof prompted us to write this book. As editors, we have not sought to predefine the contextual setting or the area of impact, nor provide a certain definition or area of interest; the only boundaries we set forth were the assessment of e-business applications and the impact on organizations.

The purpose of this book initially was twofold: to assess the impact of e-business, and to provide two distinctive angles between private and public organizations. However, having looked at our contributors coming from 10 different countries with a wide array of e-business applications and implications on diverse organizations, we decided to group them into industries, and within them provided a public and private division. We believe that the changes reflected in the edited book provided a more richer picture and a chest of resources with concepts which may have already been published in various journals, but many of the perspectives are new, which makes this book both suitable for practitioners and academics at the same time. Twenty-four authors have contributed to this book, which are operating as either practitioners or academics in the fields, who are involved with various aspects of the impacts of e-business applications and strategies.


Most practitioners recognise the important part accurate estimates of development effort play in the successful management of major software projects. However, it is widely recognised that current estimation techniques are often very inaccurate, while studies (Heemstra 1992;
Lederer and Prasad 1993) have shown that effort estimation research is not being effectively transferred from the research domain into practical application. Traditionally, research has been almost exclusively focused on the advancement of algorithmic models (e.g. COCOMO (Boehm 1981) and SLIM (Putnam 1978)), where effort is commonly expressed as a function of system size. However, in recent years there has been a discernible movement away from algorithmic models with non-algorithmic systems (often encompassing machine learning facets) being actively researched. This is potentially a very exciting and important time in this
field, with new approaches regularly being proposed. One such technique, estimation by analogy, is the focus of this thesis. The principle behind estimation by analogy is that past experience can often provide insights and solutions to present problems. Software projects are characterised in terms of collectable features (such as the number of screens or the size of the functional requirements) and stored in a historical case base as they are completed. Once a case base of sufficient size has been cultivated, new projects can be estimated by finding similar historical projects and re-using the recorded effort. To make estimation by analogy feasible it became necessary to construct a software tool, dubbed ANGEL, which allowed the collection of historical project data and the generation of
estimates for new software projects. A substantial empirical validation of the approach was made encompassing approximately 250 real historical software projects across eight industrial data sets, using stepwise regression as a benchmark. Significance tests on the results accepted
the hypothesis (at the 1% confidence level) that estimation by analogy is a superior prediction system to stepwise regression in terms of accuracy. A study was also made of the sensitivity of the analogy approach. By growing project data sets in a pseudo time-series fashion it was possible to answer pertinent questions about the approach, such as, what are the effects of outlying projects and what is the minimum data set size? The main conclusions of this work are that estimation by analogy is a viable estimation
technique that would seem to offer some advantages over algorithmic approaches including, improved accuracy, easier use of categorical features and an ability to operate even where no statistical relationships can be found.


Densely connected convolutional neural networks are currently one of the best object recognition algorithms. Given the plasticity of neural networks, the DenseNet algorithm should perform similarly in NLP tasks. In its attempt to verify whether the DenseNet algorithm can yield equally impressive results on NLP tasks, this paper has modified the DenseNet algorithm and tested it on text classification. For this purpose, three differently sized datasets have each been encoded as Tf-IDf vectors and word vectors and then the DenseNet's performance on these different feature sets was compared to more conventional methods including Naïve Bayes classifiers and other neural networks. The paper finds that DenseNets can perform on par with these algorithms but scale especially well with large datasets and semantically rich features.


The interdisciplinary science of conservation biology provides undergraduate biology students with the opportunity to connect the biological sciences with disciplines including economics, social science and philosophy to address challenging conservation issues. Because of its complexity, students do not often have the opportunity to practise conservation biology. To increase exposure to this science, this paper describes a virtual rainforest island on which students collect data related to forest carbon storage, while also confronting ethical issues. Students are asked to independently make decisions, collect data and explore the island before writing a research report with recommendations for the future management of the island's forests. The ethics of decision-making are addressed in the students' research reports and are reinforced through guided class discussion. Students will complete this activity with increased ethical awareness, as well as a better understanding of the challenges associated with the practise of conservation biology.


We present three voting protocols with unconditional privacy and information-theoretic correctness, without assuming any bound on the number of corrupt voters or voting authorities. All protocols have polynomial complexity and require private channels and a simultaneous broadcast channel. Our first protocol is a basic voting scheme which allows voters to interact in order to compute the tally. Privacy of the ballot is unconditional, but any voter can cause the protocol to fail, in which case information about the tally may nevertheless transpire. Our second protocol introduces voting authorities which allow the implementation of the first protocol, while reducing the interaction and limiting it to be only between voters and authorities and among the authorities themselves. The simultaneous broadcast is also limited to the authorities. As long as a single authority is honest, the privacy is unconditional, however, a single corrupt authority or a single corrupt voter can cause the protocol to fail. Our final protocol provides a safeguard against corrupt voters by enabling a verification technique to allow the authorities to revoke incorrect votes. We also discuss the implementation of a simultaneous broadcast channel with the use of temporary computational assumptions, yielding versions of our protocols achieving everlasting security.


Mental disability especially at early stage is amenable to intervention measures. Objective of the study was to assess the effect of psychosocial intervention on Quality of life and Disabil-ity grading of mentally disabled adolescents. The study was conducted at 2 special schools namely St. Agnes special school and Sannidhya special school in Mangalore among 103 stu-dents between the age group of 12 to 18 years. The psychosocial intervention was conducted in 8 sessions over a period of 4 months. A pretest and post test was conducted in the 1st ses-sion and the 8th session (after the intervention) using Indian Disability Evaluation Assess-ment Scale (IDEAS) and WHO QOL BREF. Data were analyzed using Percentages, Fried-man test and Paired t test. The study has shown significant decrease in the disability level of self care, interpersonal activity, communication and understanding, work and increase in the quality of life after the intervention compared to baseline. The mean score of all do-mains- physical, psychological, social and environmental have shown a significant difference (P<0.001). But the mean difference was more in the psychological and social domains when compared to the physical and environmental domains. This could be due to the emphasis of the intervention being more on the skills related to psychological and social aspects of eve-ryday life. Psychosocial intervention brings about a decrease in the disability level and in-crease in the quality of life of mentally disabled adolescents.


We present a human performance model of operator control of a simplified air traffic control task developed under the Agent-based Modeling and Behavior Representation program (AMBR). The model was implemented using the ACT-R architecture of cognition. Using a well-developed cognitive architecture provided a number of benefits: 1 . The reuse of common design patterns, such as unit task decomposition and retrieval/computation dichotomy, greatly simplified and accelerated model development. 2. The model inherited parameter values from previous models and required no fine-tuning of parameters. 3. The architectural learning mechanisms provided automatic learning of situations. The resulting model was quite simple, consisting of only five declarative chunks of information and 36 production rules, while providing a highly accurate model of human performance. The model matched a wide range of performance measures, including amount and type of errors, response latency and choice percentages. Performance variability is a fundamental aspect of human behavior in complex task. The model accounted not only for the average but also for the distribution of performance through the fundamentally stochastic nature of the architecture, amplified by the interaction with the dynamic simulation environment. Although ACT-R is a goal-directed architecture, the model provided a straightforward account of multi-tasking behavior through the use of interruptions triggered by the onset of messages. The model also provided a theory of cognitive workload based on architectural primitives. The port of the model to the High Level Architecture (HLA) was relatively simple and straightforward. Providing a stochastic model of behavior, however, put strong demands on the efficiency of the simulation. The implications of such demands for HLA-enabled human performance models are discussed.


Causal models defined in terms of a collection of equations, as defined by Pearl, are axiomatized here. Axiomatizations are provided for three successively more general classes of causal models: (1) the class of recursive theories (those without feedback), (2) the class of theories where the solutions to the equations are unique, (3) arbitrary theories (where the equations may not have solutions and, if they do, they are not necessarily unique). It is shown that to reason about causality in the most general third class, we must extend the language used by Galles and Pearl. In addition, the complexity of the decision procedures is examined for all the languages and classes of models considered.


The question of whether or not parallel repetition reduces the soundness error is a fundamental question in the theory of protocols. While parallel repetition reduces (at an exponential rate) the error in interactive proofs and (at a weak exponential rate) in special cases of interactive arguments (e.g., 3-message protocols --- Bellare, Impagliazzo and Naor [FOCS '97], and public-coin protocols --- Haastad, Pass, Pietrzak and Wikstrom [Manuscript '08]), Bellare et. al gave an example of interactive arguments for which parallel repetition does not reduce the soundness error at all. We show that by slightly modifying any interactive argument, in a way that preserves its completeness and only slightly deteriorates its soundness, we get a protocol for which parallel repetition does reduce the error at a weak exponential rate. In this modified version, the verifier flips at the beginning of each round an (1-(1/4m), 1/4m) biased coin (i.e., 1 is tossed with probability 1/4m), where m is the round complexity of the (original) protocol. If the coin is one, the verifier halts the interaction and accepts, otherwise it sends the same message that the original verifier would. At the end of the protocol (if reached), the verifier accepts if and only if the original verifier would.


Most nutrient-spiraling studies have focused on estimates of gross uptake (Ugross), which show that streams take up dissolved inorganic nutrients very efficiently. However, studies based on estimates of net uptake (Unet) emphasize that streams tend to be at biogeochemical steady state (i.e., Unet ≈ 0), at least on a time scale of hours. These findings suggest that streams can be highly reactive ecosystems but remain at short-term biogeochemical steady state if Ugross is counterbalanced by release (R), a process that remains widely unexplored. Here, we propose a novel approach to infer R by comparing Unet and Ugross estimated from ambient and plateau concentrations obtained from standard short-term nutrient additions along a reach. We used this approach to examine the temporal variation of R and its balance with Ugross in 2 streams with contrasting hydrological regime (i.e., perennial vs intermittent) during 2 years. We focused on the spiraling metrics of NH4+ and soluble reactive P (SRP), essential sources of N and P in stream ecosystems. R differed substantially between the 2 streams. The perennial stream had a higher proportion of dates with R > 0 and a 2× higher mean R than the intermittent stream for both nutrients. Despite these differences, the magnitude of R and Ugross tended to be similar for both nutrients within each stream, which lead to Unet ≈ 0 in most cases. A notable exception occurred for SRP in the intermittent stream, where R tended to be higher than Ugross during most of the winter period, probably because of desorption of P from stream sediments. Together, our findings shed light on the contribution of release processes to the dynamics of nutrient spiraling and support the idea that streams can be active ecosystems with high spiraling fluxes while simultaneously approaching short-term biogeochemical steady-state.


This thesis describes the fundamental extension and extensive testing of a robust CFD model for predicting outflow following the failure of pressurised hydrocarbon pipelines. The main thrust of the study involves the extension of the basic outflow model to account for complex pipeline systems, improvements of the theoretical basis and numerical stability.

The basic model, based on the numerical solution of conservation equations using the method of characteristics, incorporates a suitable equation of state to deal with pipelines containing pressurised multi-component hydrocarbon mixtures. It utilises the homogeneous equilibrium flow (HEM) assumption, where the constituent phases in a two-phase mixture are assumed to be at thermal and mechanical equilibrium.

The first part of the study focuses on the development of an outflow model to simulate the failure of multi-segment pipelines incorporating valves and fittings passing through terrains of different inclinations. In the absence of real data, the numerical accuracy of the model is assessed based on the calculation of a mass conservation index. The results of a case study involving the comparison of the simulated outflow data based on the failure of a multi-segment pipeline as opposed to an equivalent single segment pipeline containing gas, liquid or two-phase inventories are used to highlight the impact of pipeline complexity on the simulated data.

The development and extensive testing of two models, namely the Hybrid Model and the Modified Homogeneous Equilibrium Model (MHEM) each addressing a principal limitation of the HEM are presented next. The Hybrid Model deals with the failure of the HEM in predicting post-depressurisation outflow for inclined pipelines containing two-phase mixtures or liquids through its coupling with a hydraulic flow model. The MHEM on the other hand addresses the failure of the HEM to accurately predict the discharge rates of flashing/ two-phase fluids discharging through an orifice.

Finally, the dilemma of the appropriate choice of the size and duration of the numerical discritisation steps expressed in terms of the Courant, Friedrichs and Lewy (CFL) criterion on the stability and computational workload of the pipeline failure model is investigated for different classes of hydrocarbon inventories. These include gas, liquid (flashing and incompressible) and two-phase mixtures.


Full coverage and sustainability of China's social protection system is a basic system of social justice and social progress. Through construction and analysis of two game models, think that the sustainability of urban social endowment insurance system is influenced by local government's subsidy, social benefit distribution proportion and residents' payment. The sustainability of the new rural endowment insurance is affected by central government's supervision efficiency and local government's punishment of "illegal execution". Then propose policy recommendations to achieve full coverage and sustainability of China's social protection system, including reasonable benefit share mechanism, long-term mechanism of financial support, multi supervision mechanism, comprehensive supplement mechanism and learning from foreign experience.


Subjective indicators have been proven to possess predictive power for a large array of social and economic outcomes. However, most of these measures face serious psychometric shortcomings, namely that the items used are not psychometrically investigated. Further, for the assessment of one and the same construct various different item phrasing and response formats are used in different surveys. In the present paper several recommendations are made to increase the quality and by that also the acceptance and usage of subjective indicators. These include to develop more ultra-short but multi-item measures for subjective indicators. Further, surveys should try to use the same form of measurement, i.e. the same item phrasings and the same response scales. In terms of psychometric properties it is recommended to investigate reliability and validity of the indicators in as much depth as possible. In addition suggestions are made how to investigate the respondent's judgmental process for the subjective indicators' measures which allows to obtain a clearer picture of how the item is understood by the respondent and on which cues he bases his judgment.


A general platform is introduced to study the dynamics of power systems with high voltage dc (HVDC) transmission links. Small-signal stability, voltage stability, and interaction phenomena of power systems with both line-commutated-converter HVDC (LCC-HVDC) and voltage-source-converter HVDC (VSC-HVDC) are addressed using the proposed platform. In this platform, the entire power system is modeled as a multivariable feedback control system (FCS) which consists of three interconnected blocks. The contents as well as the inputs and outputs of the blocks are selected such that the conventional analysis tools for power system stability are applicable, both in the time and frequency domains. In the FCS model, the relationships between different instabilities are clear, and participant agents of each instability can be determined. The model is developed in a modular and hybrid style, to make it feasible for a large power system. The proposed model is validated against an electromagnetic transient simulation program (PSCAD) using time responses.


Maternal infection increases the number of neural progenitor cells in adult offspring. Infection of expecting mothers is a putative risk factor for neuropsychiatric disease in human progeny. Infection triggers pro-inflammatory signals, and if prenatal exposure to inflammation creates enduring neurological changes then pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-6 (IL-6), could impact fetal brain development (see Cope and Gould). In mice, inhibition of the pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-6) in pregnant dams injected with a reagent that stimulates antiviral signaling can ameliorate brain defects and behavioral abnormalities in postnatal pups. Gallagher et al. found that two-month-old offspring of pregnant mice injected with a single bolus of IL-6 had increased numbers of proliferating neural progenitor cells (NPCs) in the forebrain subventricular zone (SVZ) as well as increased numbers of olfactory interneurons, which differentiate from these cells. Forebrain precursor cells in fetal brains 1 day after maternal injection of IL-6 or cultured forebrain precursor cells treated acutely with IL-6 exhibited increased cell proliferation and phosphorylation of STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3), a target of IL-6 receptor (IL6R) activation. The number of neurosphere-initiating cells and the ability to grow secondary neurospheres after passage in culture was enhanced for SVZ NPCs from brains of postnatal day 7 pups from IL-6–injected dams. Endogenous IL-6 was secreted into the media of cultured embryonic cortical precursor cells, and incubating these cells with a function-blocking IL-6 antibody reduced proliferation. The forebrains of Il6-knockout mice had fewer proliferating precursors, and the precursor cells had reduced ability to form primary and secondary neurospheres in culture. Knockdown of IL6R by siRNA-electroporation in vivo reduced the number of embryonic forebrain precursor cells and increased the number of neurons. Thus, maternal IL-6 exposure enhanced the endogenous IL-6 signaling pathway that is required to promote embryonic forebrain precursor cell self-renewal and prevent premature neuronal differentiation and could be a factor in neurological disease caused by maternal infection. D. Gallagher, A. A. Norman, C. L. Woodard, G. Yang, A. Gauthier-Fisher, M. Fujitani, J. P. Vessey, G. I. Cancino, N. Sachewsky, K. Woltjen, M. P. Fatt, C. M. Morshead, D. R. Kaplan, F. D. Miller, Transient maternal IL-6 mediates long-lasting changes in neural stem cell pools by deregulating an endogenous self-renewal pathway. Cell Stem Cell 13, 564–576 (2013). [PubMed] E. C. Cope, E. Gould, Cytokines make an indelible impression on neural stem cells. Cell Stem Cell 13, 507–508 (2013). [PubMed]


The objective of the research programme has been to investigate the problems besetting the national masonry arch bridge stock and topropose enhanced means of appraisal accordingly. The programme has involved site assessments and limited experimentation together with limit state and serviceability analyses. All theoretical and empirical studies have been mounted as micro-computer software and are supported by computer graphics. Throughout, the accent is on engineering requirements in practice; the almost universal absence of as-built drawings and the involvement of natural materials whose mechanical properties are highly variable are to be noted from the outset. Initial considerations relating to the arch form, its historical context and present masonry arch assessment methods are set out in Chapter 1. Fieldwork studies are presented in Chapter 2. The concept that masonry has finite compressive strength isaccordingly considered in Chapter 3 which includes experimentation establishing the appropriate constitutive properties with respect to natural rock. A general moment-thrust response modelling is established and an original non-linear limit-state moment-thrust interaction diagram is determined. Limit state and serviceability masonry arch bridge models ofinnovatory form are included in Chapter 4. These models follow from the studies of Chapter 3 and are novel in their own right. However, the critical arguments upon which they are based demand that these models be seen as prototypes of enhanced models whose features have now been established. Overall conclusions are discussed in Chapter 5 wherein the practical factors affecting the nature of masonry arch bridges are juxtaposed with the engineering requirements imposed upon them. Modern assessment methods must afford output that is safe without being overconservative. The findings of the research programme are in keeping with this. Supporting documentation is given in the Appendices.


Scale of data generated and processed is exploding in the Big Data era. The MapReduce system popularized by open-source Hadoop is a powerful tool for the exploding data problem, and is widely employed in many areas involving large scale of data. In many circumstances, hypothetical MapReduce systems must be evaluated, e.g. to provision a new MapReduce system to provide certain performance goal, to upgrade a currently running system to meet increasing business demands, to evaluate novel network topology, new scheduling algorithms, or resource arrangement schemes. The traditional trial-and-error solution involves the time- consuming and costly process in which a real cluster is first built and then benchmarked. In this dissertation, we propose to simulate MapReduce systems and evaluate hypothetical MapReduce systems using simulation. This simulation approach offers significantly lower turn-around time and lower cost than experiments. Simulation cannot entirely replace experiments, but can be used as a preliminary step to reveal potential flaws and gain critical insights.
We studied MapReduce systems in detail and developed a comprehensive performance model for MapReduce, including sub-task phase level performance models for both map and reduce tasks and a model for resource contention between multiple processes running in concurrent. Based on the performance model, we developed a comprehensive simulator for MapReduce, MRPerf. MRPerf is the first full-featured MapReduce simulator. It supports both workload simulation and resource contention, and it still offers the most complete features among all MapReduce simulators to date. Using MRPerf, we conducted two case studies to evaluate scheduling algorithms in MapReduce and shared storage in MapReduce, without building real clusters.
Furthermore, in order to further integrate simulation and performance prediction into Map- Reduce systems and leverage predictions to improve system performance, we developed on- line prediction framework for MapReduce, which periodically runs simulations within a live Hadoop MapReduce system. The framework can predict task execution within a window in near future. These predictions can be used by other components in MapReduce systems in order to improve performance. Our results show that the framework can achieve high prediction accuracy and incurs negligible overhead. We present two potential use cases, prefetching and dynamic adapting scheduler.


Recently, many studies have reported that a curved solar air heater (CSAH) performs better than a conventional flat SAH without using any extra material. It only requires geometrical modification. The present investigation is a two-dimensional numerical study of flow, heat transfer and entropy generation characteristics of a CSAH having a sinusoidal profile absorber plate. Reynolds number (Re) and relative roughness pitch (λ/a) have been varied from 3800 to 18000 and 7.143 to 17.857, respectively, while keeping the value of relative roughness height (a/Dh) at 0.042. The finite volume method (FVM) and SST k-λ model have been used to solve the governing equations. The average Nusselt number and average friction factor have been calculated to find the thermo-hydraulic performance parameter (THPP), which further helped determine the optimal arrangement of the number of sinusoidal waves in the absorber plate of the SAH. The maximum value of THPP developed with the proposed setup was found to be 5.9778. Turbulent flow features have been represented in the form of contours. Correlations have also been developed for Nuavgr and favgr as a function of Re and λ/a. Entropy generation per unit length due to heat transfer and fluid friction has been graphically represented.


This study investigated the learning of a group of four-year-olds as they worked in the construction area of a sessional early childhood setting. The researcher participated and observed as the children constructed with cardboard, rolled painted marbles around in a box to make Jackson Pollock style paintings, added collage and paint to pictures and constructions, and screen-printed cut-out figures and shapes of various kinds. These were described as technological practices, and five of them were compared as contexts for learning dispositions. Although the literature had provided discussion and definition of dispositions in early childhood, the connection between the psychological notion of disposition and an historically or socioculturally framed dispositional milieu had not been researched. The study investigated empirical evidence for a transactional model of the interface between learning disposition and dispositional milieu, and learning dispositions were located in discourse, narrative and technological practice. The affordance of the technology and the tools played an important part in the transaction between individual and environment, in particular the technology's transparency, challenge, and accessibility. The five technological practices were analysed as complex sociocultural worlds in which multiple discourses jostled for privileged positions, children made decisions about whether discourse membership was for display or for exploration, they tackled difficulty with enthusiasm or avoided it in imaginative ways, and they engaged with others from a range of positions of power and responsibility. These sequences of events were described as learning narratives: historically and socioculturally co constructed event structures about goals, challenge, and agency. A learning narrative was defined, identified, and investigated. Learning dispositions have been defined but not specified for early childhood. This study suggests that dispositions can be interpreted as parts of a learning narrative, and for this study key dispositional domains were identified as privileged discourses, preferred responses to difficulty, and favoured patterns of responsibility. Four learning dispositions emerged from these domains: courage, mindfulness, perseverance, and responsibility. These learning dispositions find a parallel in the strands of the early childhood curriculum document for Aotearoa New Zealand, Te Whciriki. The researcher followed up the observations by interviewing the children for their viewpoint on preferred responses to difficulty using an interview that reflected their experiences back to them as a picture book. Although much of the learning appeared to be attached to the context, and the privileged meaning and intent for that context was a key element, the transactional nature of the learning revealed individual learning dispositions and narratives that were developing in the early years and that may be robust and enduring.


The area of reasoning about action and change is concerned with the formalization of actions and their effects as well as other aspects of inhabited dynamical systems. The representation is typically done in some logical language. Although there has been substantial progress recently regarding the frame problem and the ramification problem, many problems still remain. One of these problems is the representation of concurrent actions and their effects. In particular, the effects of two or more actions executed concurrently may be different from the union of the effects of the individual actions had they been executed in isolation. This thesis presents a language, TAL-C, which supports detailed and flexible yet modular descriptions of concurrent interactions. Two related topics, which both require a solution to the concurrency problem, are also addressed: the representation of effects of actions that occur with some delay, and the representation of actions that are caused by other actions.Another aspect of reasoning about action and change is how to describe higher-level reasoning tasks such as planning and explanation. In such cases, it is important not to just be able to reason about a specific narrative (course of action), but to reason about alternative narratives and their properties, to compare and manipulate narratives, and to reason about alternative results of a specific narrative. This subject is addressed in the context of the situation calculus, where it is shown how the standard version provides insufficient support for reasoning about alternative results, and an alternative version is proposed. The narrative logic NL is also presented; it is based on the temporal action logic TAL, where narratives are represented as first-order terms. NL supports reasoning about (I) metric time, (II) alternative ways the world can develop relative to a specific choice of actions, and (III) alternative choices of actions.


Process improvement methods –such as Lean, Six Sigma and Agile– have been widely studied, and we know what tools work, and where. Yet our longitudinal study of 204 improvement projects
shows that one year into a successful implementation about half of all projects backslide. After two years, this reduces to one in three projects. First and foremost, our findings debunk the myth
that a 'continuous improvement culture' will emerge amongst workers and staff that sustains improvement efforts. The root cause behind backsliding is that sustaining process improvement
initiatives involves all levels of the organisation, and that leaders play a pivotal role herein they often neglect. We identify four common failure modes: an initiative fatigue that sets in as leaders
fail to provide continued support; a tool overzeal that seeks to reinvigorate efforts by switching approaches; chasing short-term metrics that are misaligned with the purpose of the organization;
and dogmatic implementations that deprive team members of engaging in a meaningful way. To sustain process improvement implementations, leaders must conceive it as a habit that they
continuously and consistently engage with; they must ensure that it resolves 'pain points' that demonstrate a real value to those engaged in the process; and act as coaches to harness the power
of small wins to motivate continued participation and engagement.


An alternative method for the formation of the top oxide in oxide-nitride-oxide dielectric stacks is proposed. This method combines low-energy (1keV) silicon ion implantation into a thin nitride-oxide stack and subsequent low-temperature wet oxidation (850°C for 15min). Transmission electron microscopy shows that for an implanted dose of 1.5×1016Sicm−2, an 8-nm-thick silicon oxide layer develops on the surface of the nitride-oxide stack. Time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry reveals: (1) transformation of the implanted silicon nitride to an oxygen-rich-silicon nitride layer and (2) pilling up of nitrogen atoms at the bottom silicon/oxide-substrate interface. The resulting oxide-nitride-oxide stack exhibits strong charge storage effects and excellent charge retention properties leading to a 1.5V, 10yr extrapolated memory window at 125°C. These results suggest that the proposed fabrication route may lead to gate dielectric stacks of substantial potential impact for mainstream nitride-based memory d...


ABSTRACT Objectives: Practices of social inclusion are important for maintaining the relationships of persons with dementia and are associated with positive clinical outcomes. The objective of this study was to explore the in-action practices of social inclusion in the activity center of a community-based organization. Methods: This study applies an ethnographic approach – including participant observation, informal and semi-structured interviews – with persons with dementia (n = 31) and organization staff members (n = 9) to explore the in-action practices of social inclusion. Results: Seven in-action practices of inclusion were identified: ensuring time for individual relationships, building schedules centered around flexibility, empowering decision-making, normalizing dementia-related behaviors, involving family members, soliciting and integrating persons with dementia's feedback, and supporting persons with dementia to practice social inclusion. Conclusions: Care providers of individuals with dementia can effectively facilitate active connections with them by continually soliciting and incorporating their feedback, and by supporting persons with dementia to practice inclusion and care for others. Clinical Implications: Community-based organizations can be effective at supporting the active connection of individuals with dementia with others and should be promoted for individuals with mild to moderate dementia.


Spectroscopic diagnostics have been extensively developed for studies of impurity and neutral particle transports at core and edge plasmas in LHD. Diagnostics of core plasmas are similar to a tokamak case, i.e., Zeff from visible bremsstrahlung, K-x-ray measurements from x-ray spectroscopy using Si(Li) detectors and a compact crystal spectrometer, and high-Z impurity diagnostics from VUV spectroscopy using a flat-field EUV spectrometer. A combination of impurity pellet injection and visible bremsstrahlung is an active tool for determination of the diffusion coefficient D and convective velocity V. Using this tool the spatial structures of D and V are obtained and discussed with a neoclassical effect. On the other hand, the spectroscopic method for edge diagnostics is considerably different from the tokamak case because of the existence of a thick ergodic layer in addition to the x-points necessarily included into the diagnostic chord view. In order to break this negative situation, Zeeman and polarization spectroscopy are adopted to LHD edge plasmas. As a result, 2-dimensional emission contours of HeI and Hα are successfully obtained. Laser absorption spectroscopy is tried to measure hydrogen neutrals directly. Radial profiles of edge impurities are also measured with a mirror-assembled 3 m VUV spectrometer. Recent results of and progress in LHD spectroscopy are briefly reviewed.


Even adults without formal music training have implicit musical knowledge that they have acquired through day-to-day exposure to the music of their culture. Two of the more sophisticated musical abilities to develop in childhood are knowledge of key membership (which notes belong in a key) and harmony (chords and chord progressions). Previous research suggests sensitivity to key membership by 4 or 5 years, but provides no behavioral evidence of harmony perception until 6 or 7. Thus, we examined knowledge of key membership and harmony in 4- and 5-year-old children using a simple task and a familiar song. In line with previous research, we found that even the youngest children had acquired key membership. Furthermore, even 4-year-olds demonstrated some knowledge of Western harmony, which continued to develop between 4 and 5 years of age. In sum, our results indicate that harmony perception begins to develop earlier than has been previously suggested.


Organic reactions are usually assigned to classes grouping reactions with similar reagents and mechanisms. Reaction classes facilitate communication of complex concepts and efficient navigation through chemical reaction space. However, the classification process is a tedious task, requiring the identification of the corresponding reaction class template via annotation of the number of molecules in the reactions, the reaction center and the distinction between reactants and reagents. In this work, we show that transformer-based models can infer reaction classes from non-annotated, simple text-based representations of chemical reactions. Our best model reaches a classification accuracy of 98.2%. We also show that the learned representations can be used as reaction fingerprints which capture fine-grained differences between reaction classes better than traditional reaction fingerprints. The unprecedented insights into chemical reaction space enabled by our learned fingerprints is illustrated by an interactive reaction atlas providing visual clustering and similarity searching. Code: https://github.com/rxn4chemistry/rxnfpTutorials: https://rxn4chemistry.github.io/rxnfp/Interactive reaction atlas: https://rxn4chemistry.github.io/rxnfp//tmaps/tmap_ft_10k.html


The effects of balneological procedures as well as the duration of hospitalization on blood pH, P(CO(2)) and P(O(2)) were studied in fifty-two patients chiefly including rheumatoid arthritics. The changes of these parameters in sixty minutes after any foment were discussed comparing with those in the control groups. The results were as follows. 1) Blood pH decreased in value from first to second hospital week and thereafter remained almost constant. No P(CO(2)) variation was observed. The P(O(2)) remained stable till third hospital week and then followed by up and down changes during the forth to the ninth week. 2) The arterial blood pH, P(CO(2)) and P(O(2)) in all showed a tendency to increase after the general spring bath of ten minutes duration (bath temp. : 40±1℃). The venous blood pH and P(O(2)) also increased as in the arterial but P(CO(2)) decreased. These non significcant changes in the venous blood were considered to be resulted from the increased cutaneous blood flow in the forearm. 3) It was showed that mud bath of twenty minutes duration (bath temp. : 40±1℃) made an influence on the venous blood pH, P(CO(2)) and P(O(2)) via two different mechanisms. The first is the increased blood flow which had five minute value of P(O(2)) and pH elevated but P(CO(2)) reduced significantly. The second is the prominent increase of oxygen uptake in which the significant reduction of five minute P(O(2)) value but no variation of pH or P(CO(2)) was demonstrated. It was suggested that these two types of variations were based on the difference of individual response to heat. 4) The signiilcant blood pH, P(CO(2)) and P(O(2)) changes after mud pack of twenty minutes duration (surface temp. : 40~50℃) were considered to reflect the increased blood flow. 5) The increased cutaneous blood flow induced by balneotherapeutical procedures was proved to remain as long as sixty minutes thereafter in almost all cases. 6) The blood pH, P(CO(2)) and P(O(2)) changes observed in the control groups were related mainly with the increased blood flow and only little, if any, with the elevated oxygen uptake.


BACKGROUND
Understanding COVID-19 epidemiology is crucial to clinical care and to clinical trial design and interpretation.

OBJECTIVE
To describe characteristics, treatment, and outcomes among patients hospitalized with COVID-19 early in the pandemic.

METHODS
A retrospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients with laboratory-confirmed, symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection admitted to 57 US hospitals from March 1 to April 1, 2020.

RESULTS
Of 1480 inpatients with COVID-19, median (IQR) age was 62.0 (49.4-72.9) years, 649 (43.9%) were female, and 822 of 1338 (61.4%) were non-White or Hispanic/Latino. Intensive care unit admission occurred in 575 patients (38.9%), mostly within 4 days of hospital presentation. Respiratory failure affected 583 patients (39.4%), including 284 (19.2%) within 24 hours of hospital presentation and 413 (27.9%) who received invasive mechanical ventilation. Median (IQR) hospital stay was 8 (5-15) days overall and 15 (9-24) days among intensive care unit patients. Hospital mortality was 17.7% (n=262). Risk factors for hospital death identified by penalized multivariable regression included older age; male sex; comorbidity burden; symptoms-to-admission interval; hypotension; hypoxemia; and higher white blood cell count, creatinine level, respiratory rate, and heart rate. Of 1218 survivors, 221 (18.1%) required new respiratory support at discharge and 259 of 1153 (22.5%) admitted from home required new health care services.

CONCLUSIONS
In a geographically diverse early-pandemic COVID-19 cohort with complete hospital folllow-up, hospital mortality was associated with older age, comorbidity burden, and male sex. Intensive care unit admissions occurred early and were associated with protracted hospital stays. Survivors often required new health care services or respiratory support at discharge.


A recent World Bank report warns of the increasing problems of car-dependent urbanization (Suzuki et al. 2015), particularly in rapidly growing cities in developing countries. The integration of transport and urban development at public transport nodes and networks, or 'Transit-Oriented urban Development' (TOD), is a popular strategy that potentially contributes to sustainable urban development. Many Chinese cities have adopted TOD policies as well, but the governance and finance of this strategy is not without problems. Many cities lack an effective integrated policy approach to transport, spatial planning and land management; development gain from real estate development in the vicinity of public transport nodes cannot be used to cofinance public transport investments. While the present land management system in China offers a unique and effective way to capture development gain via land concession fees, the limitations to this system increasingly become clear as well, opening up a debate on the use of alternative value capture instruments. In many countries around the world, financing of TOD strategies is often based on some sort of negotiated developer obligations (NDOs) as a value capture mechanism. In this research project, we analyze the potential use of NDOs and alternative value capture mechanisms that may support TOD policies, in a number of case studies in Chinese cities. The results of the case studies are then used as input for simulation games in which we have tested the effectiveness and impact on negotiation processes of alternative value capture mechanisms, including NDOs and urban land readjustment. The outcomes of our study suggest that, despite successful integrated financial approaches to TOD implementation in some cities, several institutional barriers still prevent the efficient use of value capture mechanisms all over China. Moreover, the cases discussed have in common that they must use, to a certain degree, informal (but not illegal) strategies to bypass current planning and land market regulations, to be able to implement innovative value capture mechanisms. Our study concludes that additional value capture tools can support future sustainable urban redevelopment processes, including TOD, in China, but that the future efficient use of these tools would benefit from a more transparent planning and land management context supporting such tools. As a possible way forward, the study comes with two suggestions. One suggestion would be to copy elements of TOD models from Hong Kong or Japan to mainland China (as some cities basically did already), based on an inclusive TOD concession to metro corporations. The other suggestion would be to develop a legal framework that allows experimental planning strategies in a transparent and controlled context.


Abstract. In view of the lack of consideration of user behavior motives in traditional personalized precision service systems, the accuracy of service content is not high.In order to solve this problem, research on personalized accurate service push method based on active geographic perception. By constructing a geographic feature information model, get the characteristics of the user's destination in real time, and then infer the user's behavioral motivation. Focusing on active geographic awareness technology and personalized precision service methods, the concept, principle, process and key technologies of active geographic sensing are studied, determined the main research content of active geographic perception and the relationship. Then analyze and discuss the construction method of active geographic awareness architecture, developed a geographic feature content system and studied its extraction and weight calculation methods. By the way, according to the characteristics of active geo-sensing, an active awareness API conforming to high efficiency and real-time is designed. Then explored the personalized accurate service push method based on active geographic perception,designed three processes of geographic awareness, service retrieval and service push, a service retrieval and delivery method is proposed. Finally, a personalized precise service system based on active geographical perception is designed. By adding geographic features to the personalized precision service, it can make up for the lack of service personalization and lack of precision caused by ignoring user motivation, which provides a new idea for more accurate and personalized service push.


In survival analysis interest often lies in the relationship between the survival function and a certain number of covariates. It usually happens that for some individuals we cannot observe the event of interest, due to the presence of right censoring and/or left truncation. A typical example is given by a retrospective medical study, in which one is interested in the time interval between birth and death due to a certain disease. Patients who die of the disease at early age will rarely have entered the study before death and are therefore left truncated. On the other hand, for patients who are alive at the end of the study, only a lower bound of the true survival time is known and these patients are hence right censored. In the case of censored and/or truncated responses, lots of models exist in the literature that describe the relationship between the survival function and the covariates (proportional hazards model or Cox model, log-logistic model, accelerated failure time model, additive risks model, etc.). In these models, the regression coefficients are usually supposed to be constant over time. In practice, the structure of the data might however be more complex, and it might therefore be better to consider coefficients that can vary over time. In the previous examples, certain covariates (e.g. age at diagnosis, type of surgery, extension of tumor, etc.) can have a relatively high impact on early age survival, but a lower influence at higher age. This motivated a number of authors to extend the Cox model to allow for time-dependent coefficients or consider other type of time-dependent coefficients models like the additive hazards model. In practice it is of great use to have at hand a method to check the validity of the above mentioned models. First we consider a very general model, which includes as special cases the above mentioned models (Cox model, additive model, log-logistic model, linear transformation models, etc.) with time-dependent coefficients and study the parameter estimation by means of a least squares approach. The response is allowed to be subject to right censoring and/or left truncation. Secondly we propose an omnibus goodness-of-fit test that will test if the general time-dependent model considered above fits the data. A bootstrap version, to approximate the critical values of the test is also proposed. In this dissertation, for each proposed method, the finite sample performance is evaluated in a simulation study and then applied to a real data set.


Large swaths of the nutrient-poor surface ocean are dominated numerically by cyanobacteria (Prochlorococcus), cyanobacterial viruses (cyanophage), and alphaproteobacteria (SAR11). How these groups thrive in the diverse physicochemical environments of different oceanic regions remains poorly understood. Comparative metagenomics can reveal adaptive responses linked to ecosystem-specific selective pressures. The Red Sea is well-suited for studying adaptation of pelagic-microbes, with salinities, temperatures, and light levels at the extreme end for the surface ocean, and low nutrient concentrations, yet no metagenomic studies have been done there. The Red Sea (high salinity, high light, low N and P) compares favorably with the Mediterranean Sea (high salinity, low P), Sargasso Sea (low P), and North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (high light, low N). We quantified the relative abundance of genetic functions among Prochlorococcus, cyanophage, and SAR11 from these four regions. Gene frequencies indicate selection for phosphorus acquisition (Mediterranean/Sargasso), DNA repair and high-light responses (Red Sea/Pacific Prochlorococcus), and osmolyte C1 oxidation (Red Sea/Mediterranean SAR11). The unexpected connection between salinity-dependent osmolyte production and SAR11 C1 metabolism represents a potentially major coevolutionary adaptation and biogeochemical flux. Among Prochlorococcus and cyanophage, genes enriched in specific environments had ecotype distributions similar to nonenriched genes, suggesting that inter-ecotype gene transfer is not a major source of environment-specific adaptation. Clustering of metagenomes using gene frequencies shows similarities in populations (Red Sea with Pacific, Mediterranean with Sargasso) that belie their geographic distances. Taken together, the genetic functions enriched in specific environments indicate competitive strategies for maintaining carrying capacity in the face of physical stressors and low nutrient availability.


Abstract Empirical studies which examine the theory of newsworthiness and the predictability of news coverage in transnational or developing countries still remain on the agenda of journalism research. Therefore, this study examines the influence of news factors on the foreign news coverage of three Mexican newspapers. Two main questions guide the research. First, is the theory of newsworthiness a valid approach for predicting news selection in a cultural context that is significantly different from western industrialized countries? Secondly, which are the relevant news factors that predict foreign news coverage in the Mexican press and thus shape the image of foreign nations? The results of a quantitative content analysis confirm the hypotheses of selection, additivity, and replication as they were originally postulated by Galtung and Ruge and thus prove the external validity of the theory of newsworthiness beyond western journalism.


Worldwide, many governments are mandating a 'cloud first' policy for information technology infrastructures. In 2013, the National Library of New Zealand's National Digital Heritage Archive (NDHA) outsourced storage of its digital collections. A case study of the decision to outsource and its consequences was conducted, involving interviews of the representatives of three key stakeholders: IT, the NDHA, and the vendor. Clear benefits were identified by interviewees, together with two main challenges. The challenges related to occupational culture tensions, and a shift in funding models. Interviewees also considered whether the cultural heritage sector had any unique requirements. A key learning was that information managers were at risk of being excluded from the detail of outsourcing, and so needed to be prepared to assert their need to know based on their stewardship mandate.


This essay defends an idea that is no longer fashionable: that there is a whole. The motivation for a defense of this notion has nothing to do with intellectual conservatism or a penchant for Hegel. Rather, what we hope to establish is a second path into what Alain Badiou has called the 'Cantorian Revolution'. In order to open this path we undertake a three-fold task. First, we deconstruct Badiou's onto-logical project by isolating the suppressed significance of Ernst Zermelo. This point allows us to recover a Cantorian possibility for addressing the infinite as an inconsistent whole. Second, we turn to work by the logician Graham Priest in order to remove the absurdity of discussing true contradictions. Finally, we return to Jacques Derrida's early work on Husserl in order to chart a phenomenological path to an affirmation of an inconsistent whole. We close, then, with the implications for contemporary philosophy.


The Bible is the most important book in the history of Western civilization, and also the most difficult to interpret. It has been the vehicle of continual conflict, with every interpretation reflecting passionately-held views that have affected not merely religion, but politics, art, and even science. This unique edition offers an exciting new approach to the most influential of all English biblical texts - the Authorized King James Version, complete with the Apocrypha. Its wide-ranging Introduction and the substantial notes to each book of the Bible guide the reader through the labyrinth of literary, textual, and theological issues, using the most up-to-date scholarship to demonstrate how and why the Bible has affected the literature, art and general culture of the English-speaking world. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.


Two-way seamless communication is the key aspect of realizing the vision of smart grid. There are several standardized wired and wireless communication technologies available for various smart grid applications. With the recent growth in wireless communication, it can offer standardized technologies for wide area, metropolitan area, local area, and personal area networks. Moreover, wireless technologies not only offer significant benefits over wired, such as including low installation cost, rapid deployment, mobility, etc., but also more suitable for remote end applications. Several activities are going on to explore specific applications of these technologies in smart grid environment. This paper presents various smart grid applications achieved through standardized wireless communication technologies, e.g. IEEE 802.11 based wireless LAN, IEEE 802.16 based WiMAX, 3G/4G cellular, ZigBee based on IEEE 802.15, IEEE 802.20 based MobileFi, etc. Moreover, challenges related to each wireless communication technologies have been discussed in brief.


This article offers a speculative reading on the linkage between Swedish popular media representations of digital technologies and peoplesi¯ stockpiling behavior. The hypothesis is that Swedish popular media representations of digital technologies contribute to fuelling an understanding of these technologies as resource-free, consumable goods, and that this in turn might affect peoplesi¯ tendencies to stockpile obsolete digital technologies in their homes. Previous studies have shown that stockpiling of obsolete electrical and electronic equipment is a common phenomenon in many countries (see for comparison Grossman, 2006; Saphores et al., 2006, 2009; Gabrys, 2011). At the same time, little light is shed on why people stockpile obsolete electrical and electronic equipment in their homes. This article focuses particularly on digital technologies such as computers, televisions, smart phones, cell phones, laptops and tablets. Digital technologies are interesting as they account for a large ¨C and increasing ¨C amount of electrical and electronic equipment. Looking at the ways in which Swedish popular media represent digital technologies, this article suggests that popular media representations of digital technologies matter, not only in the ways people imagine and use digital technologies, but also the ways in which we think (or choose not to think) about their afterlife. The hypothesis is that the ways in which Swedish popular media represent digital technologies obstruct environmentally sound disposal and reuse options, something that in turn serves to cement and/or reinforce contemporary consumption behaviors and the environmental impacts that follow. By this, this article provides additional insights into what appears to be a western tendency to store obsolete electrical and electronic equipment at home.


In biomedical and veterinary research, fish represent an extraordinary repertoire of models with which to carry out experiments. In the basic neuroscience, fish offer examples that indicate the usefulness of comparative neurobiological investigation in elucidating both normal and abnormal structure and function of the brain of vertebrates, and moreover they possess an enormous potential for the production of new neurons in the adult brain. In aging research, several fish species exhibit gerontological characteristics and provide research opportunities for disease modeling, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine.
This PhD thesis has developed a new teleost model organism N. furzeri, which is the shortest-lived vertebrate which can be cultured in captivity. This teleost shows typical signs of aging and represents an ideal model to assess the role of different physiological and environmental parameters on aging and lifespan determination.
The topic of this dissertation is the study of the organization of brain of N. furzeri and the neuroanatomical description of the occurrence of neurotrophins. The contruction of the brain atlas is a clear and fundamental guide to the structural and functional organization of the N. furzeri CNS, and provides informative reading for subsequent neurobiological surveys. The atlas has been the substratum for the neuroanatomical description of the occurrence of neurotrophins, both mRNA and protein, within the CNS. Neurotrophins are secreted proteins that link nervous system structure and function in vertebrates. They regulate neuronal survival, and regulate patterns of dendrites and axons, synaptic function, memory, learning, and cognition; abnormalities in neurotrophin function underlies neurological disorders. BDNF, NGF, NT-3, NT-4 and NT-6, all members of neurotrophins family, have been identified on expressed sequence tag (EST)-to-genome and genome-to-genome comparisons of N. furzeri and other teleosts. ISH and IHC analysis of cells expressing mRNAs for the neurotrophins revealed a specific expression pattern for each of the mRNAs and proteins. The analysis of sites of neurotrophin synthesis was performed with ISH technique using two LNA/DNA and oligonucleotide probes, encoding mature N. furzeri neurotrophin protein. The parallel immunohistochemical investigation, along with specific affinity-purified antibodies, was carried out to generate a detailed mapping of neurotrophin protein throughout the adult N. furzeri CNS. All neurotrophins occur in the brain of N. furzeri, except NT-3. The obtained results show a high level of correlation between ISH and IHC in the evaluation of neurotrophins in the brain of N. furzeri. The data, indeed, have revealed that several nuclei expressing neurotrophin mRNAs were correlated to the neurotrophin specific proteins throughout the CNS; the sites of mRNA synthesis and protein storage have suggested hypothesis on the mechanisms of retrograde/anterograde transport. Moreover, the sites of synthesis have been often identified as active proliferative areas of fish brain, where new neurons are generate or regenerate. The latter observation might suggest a role of neurotrophins in the neurogenic and regeneration activities.
This work provides new aspects of neurotrophic factors in the CNS of vertebrates, and it opens the opportunity to use N. furzeri as alternative model to investigate neurotrophin function and model related diseases.


Abstract A major threat to river dolphins in Brazil is habitat loss and fragmentation as a result of the construction of hydroelectric dams. We examine the degree of overlap between the distributions of two river dolphin species (boto Inia geoffrensis and tucuxi Sotalia fluviatilis) and hydroelectric projects and provide an initial quantification of impacts. The locations of dams were overlaid onto a map of the known distributions of the dolphins. Two types of impacts were evaluated: population fragmentation and effects on prey. For each of these a binary score (for absence or presence) was assigned for each dam. The sum of all impact scores for each dam, in each of the three watersheds in which dolphins are found, including realized and potential impacts, was calculated as the impact index. Thirteen dams affect the distribution of I. geoffrensis (as could a further three dams under construction and seven planned), and three dams affect S. fluviatilis (as could three under construction and two planned). Overall, the impact index was higher for I. geoffrensis than for S. fluviatilis. The Araguaia–Tocantins and North Atlantic watersheds have higher impact index values than the Amazon watershed. Although some impacts of damming could not be considered in this study, our approach was a rapid initial risk assessment that provided an overall understanding of how river dolphins are and may be affected by hydroelectric projects in Brazil. Our method may be applicable to other freshwater cetaceans and species facing similar threats when information about impacts is incomplete.


Creativity is important aspect of children to facing their future that have mare global rival. With their creativity, a child can actualize and express theirself, and a child who like to play creativity, make them more creative. Preschool condition is very meaningful to continue the process of kids build. At this age, kid always active, dynamic, antusiasm, rich of imagination, like fantasy, have short attention, and potential time to learn. Because of that, constructive play can stimulate their
creativity and also imagination. Its because plays media with material and object can makes the kids imagine something they want, and also they will happy and satisfied with their things. The research's aim is to know the effect of constructive play to preschool children creativity. The variable is constructive play free variable / experiment variable and creative play as control variable. Data collecting, conduct with three ways are figural creativity of circle to pre-test and given touching, conservative play to treat and observe during treatment. Data collected from 15 children of TK Kartika IV – 44 Kediri, where 8 children as experiment subject and 7 children as control subject. Meanwhile, the analysis technique use independent simple t-test with SPSS 13.0 version program for windows. The analysis result shows that t count for the differences of posttest and pretest for control group and experiment group is 2,673 in significant level 0,019, mean that significant value less than 0,05, in this condition, there is differences if the value less than 0,05. Means, there is differences between control group that having treatment and experiment group that given constructive play when pretest and posttest. So, there is effect of constructive play to preschool children creativity.


During the Zimbabwean crisis, millions crossed through the apartheidera border fence, searching for ways to make ends meet. Maxim Bolt explores the lives of Zimbabwean migrant labourers, of settled black farm workers and their dependents, and of white farmers and managers, as they intersect on the border between Zimbabwe and South Africa. Focusing on one farm, the book investigates the role of a hub of wage labour in a place of crisis. A close ethnographic study, this book addresses the complex, shifting labour and life conditions in northern South Africa's agricultural borderlands. Underlying these challenges are the Zimbabwean political and economic crisis of the 2000s and the intensified pressures on commercial agriculture in South Africa following liberalisation and post-apartheid land reform. But, amidst uncertainty, farmers and farm workers strive for stability. The farms on South Africa's margins are centres of gravity, islands of residential labour in a sea of informal arrangements.


Building on a comprehensive data set containing financial data on Norwegian companies from 2004 to 2016 combined with a database on all individuals holding directorships in the same period, this thesis investigates the level of director compensation in the Norwegian business environment. We draw upon agency theory, resource dependence theory and related literature to construct an extensive research model including firm characteristics, corporate performance, board characteristics, ownership structure, and gender diversity. We control for unobserved heterogeneity by employing a two-way fixed effects model, and detect a positive relationship between the level of director compensation and a firm's complexity. Moreover, our evidence suggest the relationship is negative for a firm's leverage ratio as well as the size of the board. Lastly, we provide novel evidence of a positive relationship between holding multiple directorships and the level of compensation. However, we are not able to identify any significant relationship between the level of director compensation and a firm's performance, a well-documented relationship internationally. Neither do we find evidence of gender diversity of the board and management to affect director compensation over the sample period, but some weak evidence of a positive relationship before the introduction of a gender quota on boards in 2008.


Essential oils (EOs) are used in the food industry because of their biological activity. We evaluated the effects of administration of essential oil (EO) extracted from bitter lemon (Citrus limon) fruit peels on the growth performance, biochemical, haemato-immunological parameters and possible disease resistance in fingerlings (4 weeks old) Labeo victorianus challenged with Aeromonas hydrophila. Fish were divided into five groups and fed diets supplemented with C. limon fruit peels EO extract at 1%, 2%, 5% and 8% [as fed basis] and treatment compared with control group fed diet without C. limon fruit peels EO extract. The experiment was executed in triplicate. Concentration of plasma cortisol, glucose, triglyceride and cholesterol decreased while that of total protein and albumin increased as dietary inclusion of the EO extract of C. limon fruit peels was increased from 2% to 5%. Meanwhile haemato-immunological parameters including red blood cell (RBC), white blood cell (WBC) counts, haematocrit (Htc), mean cell haemoglobin (MCH), mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and neutrophiles increased with increasing dietary inclusion from 1% to 5% inclusion of C. limon fruit peels EO extract. Serum immunoglobulins, lysozyme activity and respiratory burst increased with increasing dietary levels up to 5% inclusion of EO extract of C. limon fruit peels. We demonstrate that formulation of feeds by incorporating upto 5% the EO extract from C. limon fruit peels significantly improved biochemical, haematological and immunological response in juvenile fish resulting to lower mortality than the untreated groups and appear to be effective antibacterial against A. hydrophila.


This paper is a preliminary draft for eventual inclusion in the Handbook of Law and Economics, A. Mitchell Polinsky & Steven Shavell editors. It reviews and synthesizes the work of economists and law and economics scholars in the field of public international law. The bulk of that work has been in the area of international trade, but many of the ideas in the trade literature have implications for other subfields. Recent years have seen a significant increase in research on other topics as well. The paper begins with a general framework for thinking about the positive and normative economics of public international law, and then proceeds to a treatment of specific topics including customary law, strategic alliances and the laws of war, international trade, international investment, international antitrust, human rights law, conflicts of law, and the international commons (fisheries).


The Mooi River (Potchefstroom) is formed mainly by dolomite springs, one of which is on the farm Gerhardminnebron, 14 miles N.E. of Potchefstroom. The stones in the spring are covered with aquatic mosses while the central part of the spring, which has mainly a sandy bottom, has a growth of Nasturtium officinale R.Br. Watermites, mostly Thayasidae, were found chiefly amongst the roots of the water cress, and to a lesser extent in the moss.


The majority of the inventors in developing countries is independent inventors work on inventions by their
own interest. The Internet has been one of the leading knowledge repositories for these independent inventors
to search clues for their inventions. Owing to the self-driven behavior of the independent inventors, they
might gain success and perceive happiness through the inventive activities that involved searching and
creation of new knowledge. However, there is hardly any study that explains the influence of the Internet
usage on social and psychological aspects of grassroots level inventors (GLIS). Present study explores the
influence of the Internet usage on social capital, community connectedness, inventive achievements and
subjective well-being of the grassroots level inventive community of Sri Lanka. Findings suggest that the
Internet has significant direct influence on the subjective wellbeing of GLIS in Sri Lanka. Further The
Internet usages indirectly influence the subjective well-being through social capital and connectedness.
However, The Internet usage has not significantly influenced on the objective inventive achievements of the
GLIS in Sri Lanka.


Lactarius sakamotoi (Russulaceae) is here reported from northeastern China. It is the second collection for this species, originally described from Japan. Our detailed study of the type collection revealed that the ornamentation of the basidiospores is not "echinulatis" as mentioned in the protologue, but consists of isolated ridges and warts in a zebroid pattern. This ornamentation, together with the ellipsoid form of the spores, the dark-coloured squamulose pileus, and the thick brown hyphae in the pileipellis delimit the species that is here considered a member of Lactarius subgen. Piperites sect. Piperites. Its counterparts in North America, Europe and tropical Asia are L. purpureoechinatus, L. spinosulus, and L. strigosus respectively.


The postdoctoral community is an essential component of the academic and scientific workforce. As economic and political pressures impacting these enterprises continue to change, the postdoc experience has evolved from short, focused periods of training into often multidisciplinary, extended positions with less clear outcomes. As efforts are underway to amend U.S. federally funded research policies, the paucity of postdoc data has made evaluating the impact of policy recommendations challenging. Here we present comprehensive survey results from over 7,600 postdocs based at 351 academic and non-academic U.S. institutions in 2016. In addition to demographic and salary information, we present multivariate analyses on the factors that influence postdoc career plans and mentorship satisfaction in this population. We further analyze gender dynamics and expose wage disparities and career choice differences. Academic research positions remain the predominant career choice of postdocs in the U.S., although unequally between postdocs based on gender and residency status. Receiving mentorship training during the postdoctoral period has a large, positive effect on postdoc mentorship satisfaction. Strikingly, the quality of and satisfaction with postdoc mentorship appears to also heavily influence career choice. The data presented here are the most comprehensive data on the U.S. postdoc population to date. These results provide an evidence basis for informing government and institutional policies, and establish a critical cornerstone for quantifying the effects of future legislation aimed at the academic and scientific workforce.


The relationship between living environment, gender and both overall adjustment to college and social adjustment in freshmen students was examined in this study. The College Adjustment Scales were administered to 511 freshmen students living in on-campus housing. There were 259 students living in Freshmen Year Experience (FYE) Halls verses 252 students living in traditional residence halls that participated in the research. The overall adjustment level and social adjustment scale was utilized to compare overall and social adjustment levels based on gender and type of living environment. Males were found to have a significantly higher overall adjustment levels than females regardless of living environment. However, when freshmen males and females in the FYE halls were compared there was no significant difference in their levels of overall adjustment. There was a significant difference in social based on type of residence hall with students in the FYE halls having a significantly better level of social adjustment than students in the traditional residence hall group. This manuscript addresses the relationship between gender and living environment on the social adjustment of college students. ----- Without a successful adjustment and transition to college, students may drop out. Nearly 30-40% of college students drop out without obtaining a college degree, and many of these students never return to college to complete degrees (Consolvo, 2002). Individuals who are able to succeed at handling their independence and newfound freedoms are able to make new relationships while maintaining old relationships (Holmbeck & Leake, 1999). Developmental processes for male and female college students may differ, in that women tend to rely on relationships and socialization experiences to aid in adjusting to college more than their male counterparts (Kenny & Rice, 1995). Research by Rong and Gable (1999) emphasized the importance that living environment, social support and making meaningful relationship connections have on students' overall adjustment to the college environment. Institutions that provide opportunities for not only academic support, but also social and personal support increase their retention rates (Consolvo, 2002). Literature Review Previous studies have suggested that relationships and making meaningful connections are important for students to adjust to the college environment. Students who have been able to establish bonds in their new environment adjusted better than students who were isolated and not as successful in establishing new friendships and relationships. The theory of attachment has been used to explain the importance of emotional bonds and healthy adjustment. Healthy individuals tend to have secure attachments to parents, guardians, and significant others in their lives. Individuals with secure attachments tend to have an easier time transitioning to college than individuals who do not have secure attachments (Rice, FitzGerald, Whaley, & Gibbs, 1995). Relationships with parents may change when students go to college, which can be a difficult transition for all involved, and cause additional stress and pressure on the students as they move through the developmental process and become adults (Mudore, 1999). The process of adjustment can be frustrating and overwhelming for many students, leading to emotional maladjustment and depression (Wintre & Yaffe, 2000), which may, in turn, negatively effect college performance. High levels of social support buffer individuals from stress (Robbins, Lese, & Herrick, 1993). Attachment theory has emphasized the importance of healthy emotional bonds, and students who are able to create and maintain healthy bonds with others tend to have an easier time adjusting to college (Rice et al., 1995). Social adjustment may be just as important as academic adjustment, according to Gerdes and Mallinckrodt (1994) who studied 155 freshmen and found that "personal adjustment and integration into the social fabric of campus life play a role at least as important as academic factors in student retention" (p. …


High-temperature flame processes for the production of nanoparticles can be applied in chemical product and process engineering. As an example, one can produce welldefined spinel structures, e.g. zinc aluminate spinel (ZnAl2O4) and magnesium aluminate spinel (MgAl2O4) with high specific surface area because the desired phase is formed directly without any need for post calcinations, as would be needed for, e.g., co-precipitated hydroxides. The production and characterization of other materials such as supported noble metals like Pt/TiO2 and Au/TiO2 will be outlined along with the optional tuning of product properties by changing the flame operating conditions. For the typical industrial flame synthesis unit, the product particles are collected on filters. However, the hot product gas containing the particles can be applied directly in other product engineering concepts. Several cases of using an intermediate product of flame-made airborne nanoparticles are presented.