Heart disease is a chronic condition needing lifetime secondary prevention measures to decrease morbidity and mortality, and to improve quality of life. Cardiac rehabilitation exercise training, one aspect of cardiac recovery, traditionally includes some form of aerobic fitness and, more recently, muscle strength training to improve exercise tolerance. Tai chi, widely practiced in China for centuries, is a popular form of exercise among older Chinese persons associated with enhanced well-being and health among traditional Chinese practitioners. Recent research has reported improvement in cardiorespiratory function, balance and postural stability, fall prevention, and stress reduction. A review of the literature suggests potential benefits from tai chi exercise performed as an adjunct to cardiac rehabilitation exercise training. Tai chi is cost-effective and facilitates a lifestyle of health-related behavior practices.


Abstract T‐2 toxin (T2) and HT‐2 (HT2) toxin are trichothecenes, which form part of the group of Fusarium mycotoxins. Food and feed samples used to estimate human dietary and animal exposure were reported either as the individual results for T2 and/or, HT2, and/or as the sum of the two. The highest concentrations were reported in oats and oat‐containing commodities. Very high levels were reported in a small number of data on specific plant‐ and herb‐based dietary supplements. In humans, the mean chronic dietary exposure to the sum of T2 and HT2 was highest in 'Toddlers' and 'Infants', with maximum upper bound (UB) estimates of 64.8 and 62.9 ng/kg body weight (bw) per day, respectively. The 95th percentile dietary exposure was highest in 'Infants' with a maximum UB estimate of 146 ng/kg bw per day. UB estimations were on average fourfold higher than lower bound (LB) estimations. Average acute exposure ranged from a minimum of 13.4 ng/kg bw per day, estimated in 'Elderly', up to a maximum of 64.7 ng/kg bw per day estimated in 'Toddlers'. The highest 95th percentile acute dietary exposure was estimated for a dietary survey within the age class 'Infants' (170 ng/kg bw per day). Overall, among processed foods the main contributors were cereal flakes, fine bakery wares and, for acute exposure, also bread and rolls. In the elderly and very elderly, dietary supplements made an important contribution. Exposure to the sum of T2 and HT2 in farm and companion animals varied according to the animal species. Exposures considering mean concentration scenarios varied between 0.03–0.08 (LB–UB) μg/kg bw per day in beef cattle and 1.13–1.47 μg/kg bw per day in milking goats. For high concentration scenarios, exposures varied between 0.12–0.16 μg/kg bw per day and 2.37–2.58μg/kg bw per day in the same species. In the absence of data, potential modified form were not included.


This article identifies conditions under which newly established democracies adopt Universal Health Coverage. Drawing on the literature examining democracy and health, we argue that more democratic regimes – where citizens have positive opinions on democracy and where competitive, free and fair elections put pressure on incumbents – will choose health policies targeting a broader proportion of the population. We compare Ghana to Kenya and Senegal, two other countries which have also undergone democratization, but where there have been important differences in the extent to which these democratic changes have been perceived by regular citizens and have translated into electoral competition. We find that Ghana has adopted the most ambitious health reform strategy by designing and implementing the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). We also find that Ghana experienced greater improvements in skilled attendance at birth, childhood immunizations, and improvements in the proportion of children with diarrhea treated by oral rehydration therapy than the other countries since this policy was adopted. These changes also appear to be associated with important changes in health outcomes: both infant and under-five mortality rates declined rapidly since the introduction of the NHIS in Ghana. These improvements in health and health service delivery have also been observed by citizens with a greater proportion of Ghanaians reporting satisfaction with government handling of health service delivery relative to either Kenya or Senegal. We argue that the democratization process can promote the adoption of particular health policies and that this is an important mechanism through which democracy can improve health.


A collection of true-to-life essays which offer the reader various ways to view the socio-cultural state of the modern world as seen through the eyes of the author - a somewhat cynical but ethical Japanese professor. Through journeys in various cultures, these stories break numerous stereotypes, from the failure of higher education in Japan to the mysteries of using various types of toilets in Mediterranean Europe. The author narrates brief encounters with all aspects of society, from radical students to conservative academicians, from old-style street merchants to modern business people, from government agencies to independent artists. These stories also include lessons which, the author believes, people and society as a whole can and should learn from such encounters. The episodes highlight what is rapidly being lost across cultures in an era of globalization and the shrinking number of differences that once made every culture independent of the others. The work should be of interest to those who enjoy seeing another's view of the world, observing many unique "windows" from which to view global change on a personal level. Also of interest will be the cynical but ethical assessment of the future of Japanese universities which have lost their educational principles at this critical time of survival, and the approaching IT society.


Noncollinear second-harmonic generation from two ultrashort pulses intersecting in a nonlinear medium is studied in spectral and time domains. We derive analytical expressions for the second-harmonic (SH) amplitude in crystals of finite thickness neglecting diffraction. The contribution from characteristics of the fundamental radiation and interaction geometry to the process is analyzed. In addition, refined phase-matching conditions are obtained. We find that the spectral bandwidth is determined by the intersection angle and can be enlarged. The SH pulse duration can be optimized by varying the fundamental beam size and the intersection angle. It is found that the SH beam excited by a Gaussian fundamental beam becomes elliptical. It is shown that the fundamental pulse duration can be readily characterized with single pulses by means of measuring the ellipticity of the SH beam profile. The approach developed can potentially be used to calculate parametric interactions of fundamental pulses with an arbitrary spectrum.


Mycotoxins produced by Fusarium spp. during plant cultivation induce severe diseases in animal and humans. In 2007 a European Union regulation set maximum concentrations of mycotoxins in maize and derivatives of 4000 ppb for fumonisins B1 and B2, 1750 ppb for deoxynivalenol, and 350 ppb for zearalenone. To assess the safety of French maize food, investigations are currently being carried out by the national Biological Risk Monitoring network. Here, 84 plots were cropped with the Bt maize MON 810 and its isogenic non-Bt counterpart in 2005 and 2006 in Southwestern France. Mycotoxin levels were measured in grain at harvest. Fumonisins B1 and B2, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone were analysed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The data were analysed statistically using non-parametric tests for mycotoxins and analysis of variance for weather variables. As the climate was homogenous inside the experimental area, the transgenic event introduced into the maize was the only key parameter which differed between Bt and non-Bt maize plots. Our results show that Bt maize decreased concentrations of fumonisins by 90% and zearalenone by 50%, whereas the concentration of deoxynivalenol was slightly increased. Those findings suggest a competition among Fusarium species that produce fumonisins or trichothecenes. According to the European regulation, 93% of the Bt maize crops can be sold, compared with only 45% for non-Bt maize plots. Our results thus show that Bt maize improved food safety by greatly reducing mycotoxin levels in field crops in Southwestern France.


In the youth treatment literature, the alliance has been defined and measured as a consensual or collaborative bond. In this article, we review varied definitions of the alliance, enumerate its frequent measures, and present clinical examples. We provide a meta-analytic review on the relation between the therapeutic alliance and treatment outcome in child and adolescent psychotherapy. In particular, this review only includes prospective studies of youth therapy that used an explicit measure of alliance. The meta-analysis of 28 studies revealed a weighted random effect size of r = .19 (k = 28, N = 2419, p < .01, 95% confidence interval [.13, .25]), which is a small to medium effect (equivalent to d = 0.39) consistent with the adult alliance literature and with prior youth meta-analyses. Given that a medium-large amount of heterogeneity was observed in effect sizes (I2 = 64.19%), theory- and method-based moderators were examined. Multiple moderators of the alliance–outcome association were found, including diagnosis class, type of therapy, study design (randomized controlled trials [RCT] vs. nonrandomized trials [non-RCT]), and treatment setting (inpatient vs. outpatient). Research limitations, patient contributions, and diversity considerations follow. The article concludes with research-informed practices for building and maintaining the therapeutic alliance with youth.


In this paper, defects formed in GaN grown by different methods are reviewed. Thin GaN films were grown on c-, m-, and a-planes on a number of substrates and typical defects as characterized by transmission electron microscopy are described. For polar epilayers grown on c-plane sapphire the typical defects are dislocations (edge, screw and mixed). The lowest dislocation density was obtained for homoepitaxial growth using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) or hydride vapour phase epitaxy (HVPE). In these cases, the core structure of screw dislocations were studied in detail. In both cases, the cores are full. In the layers grown by HVPE the dislocations are decorated by pinholes stacked on top of each other. These pinholes are empty inside and their formation is attributed to impurities (oxygen) present in these layers. In these layers Ga-rich cores have been found. These were not observed in the layers grown by MBE on the top of the HVPE templates. Epilayers grown in non-polar directions (m- or a-plane) have a high density of planar defects (stacking faults) terminated by partial dislocations. Only low energy faults were found. The majority of these faults are formed at the interface with the substrate and propagate to the sample surface.


From a total of 656 broiler farms with the permission of exploitation in Guilan province, data was gathered from 20% of active farms including 85 units (Capacity of over 1663000 portions of broiler chickens) to evaluate the management of nutrition and nourish using questionnaire. The questionnaires were completed by the interview method. The methods of making feed, feed formulation, the shape of grain, the frequency of feeding, the type of dietary supplement and food additives, the use of experts, feed conversion ratio, causes of mortality, the age of mortality, drinking and feeding systems, and how to use fine nourishing (in the shape of supplement or concentrate) were considered in this study. The performance was calculated for each broiler farm. According to the production index, the farms were divided into three groups of weak (200+25), medium (250+25), and good (300+25) and their differences were compared. According to the results, among the managerial factors, the factors such as: feeding system, water quality, the conformity of ration in nutrition with the needs of commercial strains and drinking management, have the most portion in creating the three groups of good, medium and weak, among the broiler rearing farms. Thus, in the study of each group's feeding system, the good group has the highest percentage of using automatic systems (86/60) and the weak group has the highest percentage of using manual systems. In comparing three groups regarding the drinking water quality, it was observed that good, medium and weak groups drink 92%, 61.84%, and 75% fresh water, respectively. Furthermore, in the weak group, most of the farms have used the water with tolerable hardness or saltiness. Finally, the conformity of strain's requirement with diet was examined among groups. The results showed that 16.5% of units followed this conformity and the percentages of the good, medium, weak groups was 11.12%, 28%, 53.5%, respectively.


The rapid growth of the Semantic Web in the last years has led to the emergence of Ontology-Based Question Answering systems, namely systems that exploit the ontological structure of data in order to interpret and answer natural language questions. In this paper, we are interested in question answering scenarios where both semantic data and user questions can be characterized by vagueness and we propose a novel framework that is able to handle this vagueness by means of fuzzy ontologies.


Kilemo (Litsea cubeba L. Persoon) is the one of plant which cultivated as a medicine plant, such an essential oil. This plant harvested at the tip of leaves and the leaves, therefore the management include pruning and fertilizing. This research was aimed to observe the effect of pruning and fertilizing toward population of rhizosphere communities on kilemo (Litsea cubeba L. Persoon). Pruning was practiced on to kilemo after 2 years and four fertilizing treatments i.e control (without fertilizing), NPK fertilizer, microfertilizer and compost,were applied on to the plant with pruning and without pruning. Results of this research showed that pruning was able to decrease population of Azotobacter, P solubilizing microorganism (MoPP), cellulose solubilizing microorganism (MPS). Pruning with fertilizing NPK treatment also decreased population of microorganism. Furthermore, giving organic fertilizer was able to increase population of Azotobacter microorganism and P solubilizing microorganism (MoPP). Meanwhile, microfertilizer only increased population of cellulose solubilizing microorganism (MPS). Keywords: Fertilizing, kilemo, microorganism, pruning, rhizosphere


Article Info Background: Due to the central role of ethics in the overall success of professors and teachers in developing curricula and their direct relationship with students, the present study aims to investigate the factors influencing occupational ethics in faculty members at Farhangian University. Materials and Methods: This study uses a mixed method with a sequential explanatory design. The statistical population of the research in the qualitative section included 23 academic experts and officials of Farhangian University selected by targeted sampling. The quantitative section of the study included all faculty members of Farhangian University from all around the country, with 267 of whom selected using cluster random sampling. The research tool in the qualitative section was interviews, and researchermade questionnaire with 69 questions was used in the quantitative section. The results indicated the validity of the instrument. In addition, the Cronbach's alpha coefficient and retest results verified the reliability of the tool. Data analysis was performed through coding in the qualitative section of the research, and in the quantitative section, structural equation modelling was done using SPSS V22.0 and Lisrel V8.8. Results: According to the results, factors influencing occupational ethics among faculty members at Farhangian University included ethical intelligence (0.124), ethical leadership (0.197), organizational commitment (0.222), organizational culture (0.099), organization climate (0.143), work engagement (0.153), interactive justice (0.153), occupational competence (0.210), and personal development (0.265). Conclusion: The results implied that all the above-mentioned identified factors were desirable among faculty members at Farhangian University, and the proposed model had


This paper focuses on acoustic road traffic monitoring and looks, more specifically, into the problem of speed and wheelbase length estimation of two-axle vehicles as they pass by. It is known that both front and rear axle trajectories may be dissociated using cross-correlation based methods in conjunction with a well designed two-element microphone array placed on the roadside. This is mainly due to the broadband nature of the tyre/road noise which makes two peaks appear, one per axle, in the correlation measurement when the vehicle is in the broadside direction. This paper aims at analyzing such a "bimodal'' observation in order to automatically extract the position, speed, and wheelbase length of passing-by vehicles. We propose to conduct this tracking problem using a particle filter that model the position-variant bimodal sound source nature of the vehicles. The theoretical developments presented in this paper are experimentally assessed through real in-situ measurements.


Detecting diffuse lung infiltrates on chest radiography is a common clinical problem. Many diverse pathological processes can cause diffuse lung disease. The presentation of these diseases can vary from acute to chronic and includes a wide array of radiological patterns that are optimally evaluated on high-resolution computed tomography of the chest. In diagnosing diffuse lung disease, it is helpful to focus on a few pivotal parameters to narrow the broad differential diagnosis. We describe the diagnostic approach to a patient with diffuse lung disease using the following key parameters: tempo of the pathological pro- cess, characteristics of the radiological pattern, and clinical context. Mayo Clin Proc . 2002;77:1221-1227


In an unparalleled collaboration, two leading global thinkers in technology and foreign affairs give us their widely anticipated, transformational vision of the future: a world where everyone is connecteda world full of challenges and benefits that are ours to meet and to harness. Eric Schmidt is one of Silicon Valleys great leaders, having taken Google from a small startup to one of the worlds most influential companies. Jared Cohen is the director of Google Ideas and a former adviser to secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton. With their combined knowledge and experiences, the authors are uniquely positioned to take on some of the toughest questions about our future: Who will be more powerful in the future, the citizen or the state? Will technology make terrorism easier or harder to carry out? What is the relationship between privacy and security, and how much will we have to give up to be part of the new digital age? In this groundbreaking book, Schmidt and Cohen combine observation and insight to outline the promise and peril awaiting us in the coming decades. At once pragmatic and inspirational, this is a forward-thinking account of where our world is headed and what this means for people, states and businesses. With the confidence and clarity of visionaries, Schmidt and Cohen illustrate just how much we have to look forward toand beware ofas the greatest information and technology revolution in human history continues to evolve. On individual, community and state levels, across every geographical and socioeconomic spectrum, they reveal the dramatic developmentsgood and badthat will transform both our everyday lives and our understanding of self and society, as technology advances and our virtual identities become more and more fundamentally real. As Schmidt and Cohens nuanced vision of the near future unfolds, an urban professional takes his driverless car to work, attends meetings via hologram and dispenses housekeeping robots by voice; a Congolese fisherwoman uses her smart phone to monitor market demand and coordinate sales (saving on costly refrigeration and preventing overfishing); the potential arises for virtual statehood and Internet asylum to liberate political dissidents and oppressed minorities, but also for tech-savvy autocracies (and perhaps democracies) to exploit their citizens mobile devices for ever more ubiquitous surveillance. Along the way, we meet a cadre of international figuresincluding Julian Assangewho explain their own visions of our technology-saturated future. Inspiring, provocative and absorbing, The New Digital Age is a brilliant analysis of how our hyper-connected world will soon look, from two of our most prescient and informed public thinkers.


Additive models are widely applied in statistical learning. The partially linear additive model is a special form of additive models, which combines the strengths of linear and nonlinear models by allowing linear and nonlinear predictors to coexist. One of the most interesting questions associated with the partially linear additive model is to identify nonlinear, linear, and non-informative covariates with no such pre-specification given, and to simultaneously recover underlying component functions which indicate how each covariate affects the response. In this thesis, algorithms are developed to solve the above question. Main technique used is gradient boosting, in which simple linear regressions and univariate penalized splines are together used as base learners. In this way our proposed algorithms are able to estimate component functions and simultaneously specify model structure. Twin boosting is incorporated as well to achieve better variable selection accuracy. The proposed methods can be applied to mean and quantile regressions as well as survival analysis. Simulation studies as well as real data applications illustrate the strength of our proposed approaches.


Validity of PostureScreen Mobile® in the Measurement of Standing Posture Breanna Cristine Berry Hopkins Department of Exercise Sciences, BYU Master of Science Background: PostureScreen Mobile® is an app created to quickly screen posture using front and side-view photographs. There is currently a lack of evidence that establishes PostureScreen Mobile® (PSM) as a valid measure of posture. Therefore, the purpose of this preliminary study was to document the validity and reliability of PostureScreen Mobile® in assessing static standing posture. Methods: This study was an experimental trial in which the posture of 50 male participants was assessed a total of six times using two different methods: PostureScreen Mobile® and Vicon 3D motion analysis system (VIC). Postural deviations, as measured during six trials of PSM assessments (3 trials with and 3 trials without anatomical markers), were compared to the postural deviations as measured using the VIC as the criterion measure. Measurement of lateral displacement on the x-axis (shift) and rotation on the y-axis (tilt) were made of the head, shoulders, and hips in the frontal plane. Measurement of forward/rearward displacement on the Z-axis (shift) of the head, shoulders, hips, and knees were made in the sagittal plane. Validity was evaluated by comparing the PSM measurements of shift and tilt of each body part to that of the VIC. Reliability was evaluated by comparing the variance of PSM measurements to the variance of VIC measurements. The statistical model employed the Bayesian framework and consisted of the scaled product of the likelihood of the data given the parameters and prior probability densities for each of the parameters. Results: PSM tended to overestimate VIC postural tilt and shift measurements in the frontal plane and underestimate VIC postural shift measurements in the sagittal plane. Use of anatomical markers did not universally improve postural measurements with PSM, and in most cases, the variance of postural measurements using PSM exceeded that of VIC. The patterns in the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) suggest high trial-to-trial variation in posture. Conclusions: We conclude that until research further establishes the validity and reliability of the PSM app, it should not be used in research or clinical applications when accurate postural assessments are necessary or when serial measurements of posture will be performed. We suggest that the PSM be used by health and fitness professionals as a screening tool, as described by the manufacturer. Due to the suspected trial-to-trial variation in posture, we question the usefulness of a single postural assessment.


The study seeks to describe the experiences of teenage mothers subsequent to having their first child among females attending school in Jozini, a rural area in KwaZulu-Natal. The study adopted a qualitative research approach using in-depth interviews with teen mothers between the ages of 16-18 years, head masters of the two secondary schools, life orientation teachers two from each school and health workers of the two local clinics. A semi-structured interview schedule was developed and sixty-six (66) participants were interviewed individually and in focus groups. The major findings of this study are that the reproductive health knowledge of teenagers is very low as well as their knowledge on health resources available to them. Through the study, the experience that teenage mothers face while they are trying to complete their schooling having had a baby is revealed. Some have dropped-out of school and returned immediately after the baby's birth and some are deprived of the chance to continue with their schooling. They associate pregnancy with negative consequences, as they have nothing tangible to do for the reason that they are not confident about the future, because of low education together with low economic status. The financial burden place on them is massive as the babies' fathers do not stick around after the pregnancy hence no support is received from the baby daddies. Furthermore their parents' or guardians' educational and economic status was also discovered to be low. In light of these findings, it is important to allow them to return to school after the baby is born so that the educational attainment of teenagers may be increased. They also need support from the community, parents, teachers and health workers so that they can curb the high rates of school drop-outs and escalating teenage pregnancy rates.


We report on the zonal variability of mesopelagic particulate organic carbon remineralization and deep carbon transfer potential during the Kerguelen Ocean and Plateau compared Study 2 expedition (KEOPS 2; October–November 2011) in an area of the polar front supporting recurrent massive blooms from natural Fe fertilization. Mesopelagic carbon remineralization (MR) was assessed using the excess, non-lithogenic particulate barium (Baxs) inventories in mesopelagic waters and compared with bacterial production (BP), surface primary production (PP) and export production (EP). Results for this early season study are compared with the results obtained during a previous study (2005; KEOPS 1) for the same area at a later stage of the phytoplankton bloom. Our results reveal the patchiness of the seasonal advancement and of the establishment of remineralization processes between the plateau (A3) and polar front sites during KEOPS 2. For the Kerguelen plateau (A3 site) we observe a similar functioning of the mesopelagic ecosystem during both seasons (spring and summer), with low and rather stable remineralization fluxes in the mesopelagic column (150–400 m). The shallow water column (~500 m), the lateral advection, the zooplankton grazing pressure and the pulsed nature of the particulate organic carbon (POC) transfer at A3 seem to drive the extent of MR processes on the plateau. For deeper stations (>2000 m) located on the margin, inside a polar front meander, as well as in the vicinity of the polar front, east of Kerguelen, remineralization in the upper 400 m in general represents a larger part of surface carbon export. However, when considering the upper 800 m, in some cases, the entire flux of exported carbon is remineralized. In the polar front meander, where successive stations form a time series, two successive events of particle transfer were evidenced by remineralization rates: a first mesopelagic and deep transfer from a past bloom before the cruise, and a second transfer expanding at mesopelagic layers during the cruise. Regarding the deep carbon transfer efficiency, it appeared that above the plateau (A3 site) the mesopelagic remineralization was not a major barrier to the transfer of organic matter to the seafloor (close to 500 m). There, the efficiency of carbon transfer to the bottom waters (>400 m) as assessed by PP, EP and MR fluxes comparisons reached up to 87% of the carbon exported from the upper 150 m. In contrast, at the deeper locations, mesopelagic remineralization clearly limited the transfer of carbon to depths of >400 m. For sites at the margin of the plateau (station E-4W) and the polar front (station F-L), mesopelagic remineralization even exceeded upper 150 m export, resulting in a zero transfer efficiency to depths >800 m. In the polar front meander (time series), the capacity of the meander to transfer carbon to depth >800 m was highly variable (0 to 73%). The highest carbon transfer efficiencies in the meander are furthermore coupled to intense and complete deep (>800 m) remineralization, resulting again in a near-zero, deep (>2000 m) carbon sequestration efficiency there.


The Swedish academic discipline Informatics has roots in the Scandinavian design approach Participatory Design (PD). PD's point of departure is to design ICT and the new environment it becomes part of together with the future users driven by the ideal to bring more democracy to the workplace. PD builds further on the Action Research and industrial democracy tradition already starting in the 1960s in Scandinavia, in which the powerful Scandinavian trade unions have a central role. The aim of the unions is to prepare the workers and have influence on the introduction of new technologies that (are expected to) change the work and work environment of the workers. In the 1970s, when more computers emerge in the work place, this leads to the development of PD. Important difference with AR is that the aim of PD is to actually design new ICT and the new environment it becomes part of.During the in PD literature much referred to project UTOPIA in the first half of the 1980s, led by project leader and PD pioneer Pelle Ehn, it is discovered that bringing the different expertise of designers/researchers and workers together in design-by-doing processes also result in more appropriate ICT. With ICT being ubiquitous nowadays, influencing most aspects of our lives, inside and outside the workplace, and another role of trade unions in (Scandinavian) society, a question is how PD should further develop. PD pioneer Morten Kyng (also a UTOPIA designer/researcher) proposes a framework for next PD practices in a discussion paper. The first element he mentions in the framework is ideals; The designer/researcher should as a first step consider what ideals to pursue as a person and for the project, and then to consider how to discuss the goals of the project partners, for which Kyng does no further suggestions how to approach this.This design and research thesis has as aim to design and propose some PD processes to come at the beginning of a PD/design project to shared ideals to pursue, based on a better understanding of the political and philosophical background of PD, including design as a discipline in its own right. For a better understanding of the political and philosophical roots of PD, and design as a discipline in its own right, Pelle Ehns's early (PD research) work and (PD) influences and supporting theories are explored, next to Kyng's discussion paper (framework) and reactions from his debate partners on this. Find out is that politics and what ideals to pursue in PD are sensitive and (still) important subjects in PD, and in a broader sense also for design in general one could argue. In relation to this also related disciplines like Computer Ethics, Value Sensitive Design, and more recent formulated ideals for PD and its relation to ethics are explored. As a result a proposal for a redesigned framework for next PD practices as a design artefact is designed, in which the element ideals is most elaborated.Before the understanding of design as a discipline in its own right is further explored by exploring a selection of different models and quotes from related (design) literature, on which is reflected also in relation to PD, and which are used as reminders in a design process to come to a proposal for a model that tries to reframe the relation between design, practice and research. Finally some methods, processes and techniques used in PD, design, AR and related literature that can contribute to design proposals for design processes that enable the design of ideals using a PD approach, are explored. These are used as reminders in design-by-doing processes, in which suggestions for techniques and processes to design ideals together with participants are tried out in real live situations, reflected on and iteratively further developed. Trying to avoid framing as much as possible, (semi-) anonymity and silence seem to be important ingredients in these processes to stimulate the generation of idea(l)s as much as possible free from bias and dominance patterns. An additional design artefact developed in this context is a template for an annotated portfolio used to describe and reflect on the different processes.


Abstract:The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, secured a decisive mandate in India's recently concluded seventeenth general election. With this victory, the BJP has firmly established itself as the dominant national political party, ushering in a new phase in Indian politics. How did the BJP achieve this, and what does the 2019 election teach us about the dynamics of India's new dominant party? Analysts have identified money power, organizational strength, and right-wing populist politics as pillars of the BJP's electoral success. An important but sometimes overlooked aspect of this populist politics is the BJP's approach to welfare policy. Here, the BJP mixes left-wing populism in favor of the poor with right-wing cultural majoritarianism. Welfare programs—strategically deployed—are important instruments through which Modi has secured moral legitimacy and voter trust. In order to understand India's new party system and the character of the hegemony that it tends to maintain, it is thus important to study the dynamics of welfare politics.


The intensive development and growth in the popularity of mobile cloud computing services bring a critical need to introduce new solutions that increase the level of cloud and users security. One of the critical issues in highly distributed computational systems is a task scheduling process. This process may be exposed to many external and internal security threats, like task injection, machine failure or generation of incorrect schedule. These problems are especially important in mobile environments. It can be even more complicated if we take into consideration the personalization of the services offered. Recently, blockchain has been gaining rapidly in popularity, combining high efficiency with applications in distributed and highly personalized computational environments. In this paper, we developed and described a novel model for security-aware task scheduling in cloud computing based on blockchain technology. Unlike other blockchain-based solutions, the proposed model uses Proof of Stake, which does not have high requirements for computing power. A series of conducted experiments confirmed the high efficiency of the proposed model.


Our main objective of this study is to find the anti-convulsive activity of Mentha piperita Linn aqueous and ethanol extract in waster albino rats. The study was started after obtaining the institute animal ethics committee approval. The Wister albino rats of either sex with 200 - 250gm was obtained from the central animal house of the institution. For MES induced seizure- Rats were divided into 4 groups. Each group was having 6 rats. MES seizure was electrically induced by means of an Electro convulsiometer. 150mA current was delivered transauricularly for 0.2sec, to produce tonic hind limb extension in animals. Suppression of tonic hind limb extension was taken as a measure of efficacy of the drugs in this test. Onset and duration of tonic hind limb extension was noted and compared in all groups. The aqueous and ethanol extract (400mg/kg & 400 gm/kg), normal saline and standard drug (phenytoin) was administered to test, control and standard groups by orally respectively, 60 minutes before application of MES. For PTZ induced seizure- PTZ (60mg/kg, ip.) was used to induce generalized clonic or tonic convulsion. After the injection of PTZ, all the rats were observed for 30 min to detect the onset of generalized clonic or tonic convulsion. The onset of convulsion and the number of animals convulsing within the observation period were noted. The ability of the plant extract to prevent or delay the onset of the convulsion in the animals was taken as an indication of anticonvulsant activity. Diazepam (4mg/kg) was used as the standard drug. Percentage of seizure protection and mortality was measured. All the drugs were given orally. Values were expressed as mean ± SEM from 6 animals. Statistical difference in mean was analyzed by one way ANOVA. It was found to be significant in both MES & PTZ induced animal models. Mentha piperita linn aqueous and ethanol extracts were found to be effective in decreasing MES & PTZ induced seizures.


Zinc (Zn) is an important element determining the grain quality of staple food crops and deficient in many Ethiopian soils. However, farming systems are highly variable in Ethiopia due to different soil types and landscape cropping positions. Zinc availability and uptake by plants from soil and fertilizer sources are governed by the retention and release potential of the soil, usually termed as adsorption and desorption, respectively. The aim of this study was to characterize the amount of plant available Zn at different landscape positions. During the 2018/19 cropping season, adsorption-desorption studies were carried out on soil samples collected from on-farm trials conducted at Aba Gerima, Debre Mewi and Markuma in the Amhara Region. In all locations and landscape positions, adsorption and desorption increased with increasing Zn additions. The amount of adsorption and desorption was highly associated with the soil pH, the soil organic carbon concentration and cation exchange capacity, and these factors are linked to landscape positions. The Freundlich isotherm fitted very well to Zn adsorption (r2 0.87–0.99) and desorption (r2 0.92–0.99), while the Langmuir isotherm only fitted to Zn desorption (r2 0.70–0.93). Multiple regression models developed by determining the most influential soil parameters for Zn availability could be used to inform Zn fertilizer management strategies for different locations and landscape positions in this region, and thereby improve plant Zn use efficiency.


Over the past three decades, Cellular Manufacturing Systems (CMS) have attracted a lot of attention from manufacturers because of its positive impacts on analysis of batch-type production and also a wide range of potential application areas. Machine cell formation and part family creation are two important tasks of cellular manufacturing systems. Most of the current CMS design methods have been developed for a static production environment. This paper addresses the problem of machine cell formation and part family formation for a dynamic production requirement with the objective of minimizing the material handling cost, penalty for cell load variation and the machine relocation cost. The parameters considered include demand of parts in different period, routing sequences, processing time and machine capacities. In this work a new heuristic approach named PRABHA is proposed for machine cell formation and the part family formation. The computational results of the proposed heuristics approach were obtained and compared with the Genetic Algorithm approach and it was found that the proposed heuristics PRABHA outperforms the Genetic Algorithm.


The SCIP Optimization Suite is a software toolbox for generating and solving various classes of mathematical optimization problems. Its major components are the modeling language ZIMPL, the linear programming solver SoPlex, the constraint integer programming framework and mixed-integer linear and nonlinear programming solver SCIP, the UG framework for parallelization of branch-and-bound-based solvers, and the generic branch-cut-and-price solver GCG. It has been used in many applications from both academia and industry and is one of the leading non-commercial solvers.
This paper highlights the new features of version 3.2 of the SCIP Optimization Suite. Version 3.2 was released in July 2015. This release comes with new presolving steps, primal heuristics, and branching rules within SCIP. In addition, version 3.2 includes a reoptimization feature and improved handling of quadratic constraints and special ordered sets. SoPlex can now solve LPs exactly over the rational number and performance improvements have been achieved by exploiting sparsity in more situations. UG has been tested successfully on 80,000 cores. A major new feature of UG is the functionality to parallelize a customized SCIP solver. GCG has been enhanced with a new separator, new primal heuristics, and improved column management. Finally, new and improved extensions of SCIP are presented, namely solvers for multi-criteria optimization, Steiner tree problems, and mixed-integer semidefinite programs.


This paper proposes a queuing model for performance analysis of web applications on a Cloud Environment. In this model, the IaaS cloud computing platform is modeled as multiple queues and the virtual machines VMs are modeled as service centers. The instances act as virtual machines and VMs run on servers, its number decided a priori before running an application. The model is based on the Reserved Instances behavior of applications on Amazon EC2 [1]. The web applications running on the Cloud platform were analyzed to determine the statistical distributions of the relevant parameters and experiments were conducted for validation of the model by running the web applications on EC2. Results show that the model though simple can predict the performance accurately.


This paper considers the role of university art collections as meaningful contributors to the achievement of institutional goals relating to excellence in research, teaching and outreach. The discussion takes as its focus The University of Dublin, Trinity College, established in 1592, providing undergraduate and postgraduate courses in a wide range of disciplines. As practical fine art courses are not part of the teaching agenda, the university's art collections have evolved mainly as a historical narrative of the significant figures and achievements of its parent institution, parallel to the core business of research and teaching. While the other academic collections at the university, from anatomy to zoology, were generated by object based learning, it was only from 1959 onwards that the art collections were actively developed and exploited as a catalyst for informal learning and interdisciplinary engagement, driven by the actions of one man in particular, the late George W. P. Dawson, genetics professor. 20:20 hindsight – or the clearer perception of the significance of events after they have occurred – has been used as a guiding principle for the present renaissance of the utility of the art collections. The author, as curator of the Art Collections, has taken inspiration from the actions of George Dawson to prepare to retrofit formal systems of meaningful associations between the art collections and research and teaching. In an era that requires clear correlations between demands on funding and fulfilling campus-wide strategic objectives, university art collections such as at Trinity College Dublin are becoming more formally integrated into academic programmes as the useful educational and interpretive tools that many have been on standby to be for centuries.


Whereas skin and many other tissues are destroyed soon after their transplantation from one individual to another, clinical results have suggested that corneal homografts survive their transplantation for long periods, and perhaps indefinitely. The chief among several possible explanations of this apparent anomaly are (a) that corneal tissue as such is for some reason unable to provoke transplantation immunity; (b) that grafts transplanted to the cornea are either incapable of provoking immunity in that position, or (c) that they do so, but are protected from its consequences. These possibilities have been investigated by experiments on rabbits. It is shown that corneal homografts transplanted to richly vascular beds prepared in the skin of the chest, though they heal in, become vascularized and proliferate, are not long tolerated by their hosts. They break down just as skin homografts do when so transplanted. Furthermore, once a host has reacted against corneal homografts transplanted to its chest it becomes so affected as to accelerate the destruction of farther corneal homografts later transplanted from the same donor. It is inferred that when corneal homografts are trans planted in such a manner that they become vascularized, they immunize their hosts just as skin homografts do ; corneal tissue as such is therefore antigenically effective. The possibility that the intact cornea offers an immunologically privileged site for grafts of homologous tissue was investigated by carrying out the converse operation. Minute skin homografts transplanted to small pockets cut in the corneas of animals which had previously been immunized against their donor's skin long outlived skin homografts transplanted on the same occasion to the recipients' chests, provided that the grafts in the corneas remained un-vascularized. If, however, vessels from the limbus grew out and penetrated the grafts, they promptly broke down. It is inferred that tissue transplantation immunity is ineffective within the substance of the cornea so long as it remains avascular. The question of whether homografts transplanted to the cornea can themselves provoke immunity is thus of no practical importance, since any such immunity would be quite ineffective.


Forecast verification procedures for statistical events with binary outcomes typically rely on the use of contingency tables and Relative Operating Characteristic (ROC) diagrams. Originally developed for the statistical evaluation of tornado forecasts on a county-by-county basis, these methods can be adapted to the evaluation of competing earthquake forecasts. Here we apply these methods retrospectively to two forecasts for the M 7.3 1999 Chi-Chi, Taiwan, earthquake. We show that a previously proposed forecast method that is based on evaluating changes in seismic intensity on a regional basis is superior to a forecast based only on the magnitude of seismic intensity in the same region. Our results confirm earlier suggestions that the earthquake preparation process for events such as the Chi-Chi earthquake involves anomalous activation or quiescence, and that signatures of these processes can be detected in seismicity data using appropriate methods.


The purpose of this thesis is to explore musical anomalies that are allegedly paranormal
in origin. From a wide range of categories available, three areas are investigated:
• music and telepathy
• music written by mediums professedly contacted by dead composers
• music being heard where the physical source of sound is unknown and presumed
to be paranormal.
In the first part a method of sensory masking (referred to as ganzfeld) is used to study
the possibility of the emotional or physical content of music being capable of mind
transference. A further experiment presents additional results relating to the highest
scoring individuals in the previous trials. No systematic evidence for the telepathic
communication of music was found. In the second section a number of mediums and
the music they produced are investigated to examine the truthfulness of their claims of
spiritual intervention in compositions and performances. Methods of composition are
investigated and the music is analysed by experts. For the final part of the thesis
locations are specified where reports of anomalous music have been asserted and
people claiming to have heard such music are introduced and their statements
examined. Literature from a variety of data bases is considered to ascertain whether
the evidence for paranormal music consists of genuine material, misconceived
perceptions or fraudulent claims. Only a very few examples of fraud are discovered,
but seemingly genuine anomalies are generally found to consist of mistaken identities
or the embroidery of anecdotal facts. It would appear that human susceptibility and
enthusiasm for the paranormal are responsible for most of the data discovered.
The results bring together information on two subjects that have not previously been
seriously linked.


Plasma lithography is a template-guided self-assembly nanomanufacturing strategy for creating functional engineering devices using nanoscale and molecular building blocks. To elucidate the plasma lithography manufacturing process, the comparative binding of colloidal quantum dots on plasma patterned surface templates is investigated. In particular, fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed to characterize the pH-dependent assembly of quantum dots at equilibrium conditions. Remarkably, the amino-modified quantum dots adhere favorably to plasma treated, hydrophilic areas at low pH and to untreated, hydrophobic areas at high pH. The crossover pH for this transition occurs at approximately pH 9. Similar transitions can also be observed in other molecules, including bovine serum albumin, fluorescein isothiocyanate, and poly-L-lysine. Examining the crossover pH values for different building blocks reveals that the assembly process is a result of the competition between electrostatic and van der Waals interactions. The "image reversal" by adjusting the pH provides a simple and effective approach for manipulating the amount and location of nanoscale building blocks assembled on plasma lithography patterned surface templates.


The fifth Alaska Wood Energy Conference will take place April 15-17 in Fairbanks. The conference will highlight rural energy and Interior heating concerns, including the sustainable harvesting of wood and air quality issues. Other presentations will focus on woody biomass research, community evaluation of biomass options and new technologies. Conference sessions will meet April 16-17 at the Westmark Fairbanks Hotel and Convention Center. Participants may take an optional tour April 15 to Superior Pellet Fuels and Wood Brothers Firewood in North Pole. Conference coordinator Karen Petersen said sessions will be geared to a wide audience, including community officials considering wood heating options, individuals selling biomass products or others who are in the market for them. Patricia Longley Cochran, the executive director of the Alaska Native Science Commission, will address energy issues in rural villages. Other featured speakers will include Gwen Holdmann, director of the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Alaska Center for Energy and Power, who will talk about the future of Alaska energy; John Crouch of the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association, who will address managing particulate matter; and Allen Brackley, a research forester with the U.S. Forest Service's Pacific Northwest Research Station in Sitka, who will cover barriers to biomass project development. The conference will also include a public open house and trade show from 6 to 8 p.m., April 16, at the hotel. During the open house, half-hour sessions will provide information on using wood stoves efficiently, firewood cutting and understanding PM 2.5, fine particulate matter. Registration is not required for the open house. Conference co-sponsors include the UAF Cooperative Extension Service, Alaska Energy Authority, the Alaska Center for Energy and Power and the Forest Service. See conference details and registration linked at www.uaf.edu/ces.


The western pond turtle Emys (formerly Clemmys ) marmorata is declining throughout its range, primarily due to loss of habitat via urbanization and conversion to agriculture. Urban waterways present several important challenges to freshwater turtle populations, but they also present an opportunity to maintain declining species in a ubiquitous habitat that has high public visibility. The arboretum waterway on the University of California, Davis campus is an example of an extensively altered urban habitat that supports a relatively large E. marmorata population. Over the last 6 years, we monitored the turtle population inhabiting the arboretum waterway to determine the demographic health of the population, and the challenges and opportunities that urban environments pose for pond turtles. Since 1993, the naturally existing arboretum pond turtle population has declined by approximately 40% and has shown little natural recruitment. During this time, we also introduced 31 headstarted turtles into the arboretum. Headstarting is the process of raising juveniles in captivity until they have outgrown their period of greatest vulnerability to predators, and then releasing them into the wild. Our headstarting results demonstrate that this contentious strategy is a viable option for adding young turtles to the population, although it does not address the causes of decline. Over the course of our study, we encountered nine species of non-native turtles in the waterway, and these appear to be a serious threat to the native species. As more habitat becomes urbanized, it is increasingly important to understand how freshwater turtles, such as E. marmorata , adapt to urban waterways and the impact of non-native turtles on native turtle species. Our strong feeling is that urban waterways can provide habitat for viable populations of freshwater turtles and showcase them to the public, but both the aquatic and terrestrial habitat must be managed according to the biological requirements of individual species. # 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. rights reserved.


Based on mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequence analysis, the history of true sheep (Ovis) began approximately 3.12 million years ago (MYA). The evolution of Ovis resulted in three generally accepted genetic groups: Argaliforms, Moufloniforms, and Pachyceriforms. The Pachyceriforms of the subgenus Pachyceros comprise the thin-horn sheep Ovis nivicola (snow sheep), Ovis dalli (Dall and Stone sheep), and Ovis canadensis (Rocky Mountain and desert bighorn). North America wild sheep (O. canadensis and O. dalli) evolved separately from Eurasian wild sheep and diverged from each other about 1.41 MYA. Ancestral stock that gave rise to snow sheep, Moufloniforms, and Argaliforms occurred 2.3 MYA, which then gave rise to two different extant lines of snow sheep that diverged from each other about 1.96 MYA. The more recent nivicola line is genetically closer to the North American wild sheep and may represent a close association during the refugium when Alaska and Siberia were connected by the Bering land bridge. The earlier period of evolution of the Pachyceriforms suggests they may have first evolved in Eurasia, the oldest ancestor then giving rise to North American wild sheep, and that a canadensis-like ancestor most likely gave rise to nivicola. Cytogenetic analysis further validates that the standard diploid number for modern nivicola is 52.


Overuse musculoskeletal injuries of the hip, knee, and ankle are prevalent in dancers. Differences in muscular effort between the dominant and non-dominant limbs may increase musculoskeletal injury risk during dance movements involving a jump followed by a high-impact unilateral landing. PURPOSE: To investigate potential differences in lower extremity muscular effort (i.e., joint angular work) between the dominant and non-dominant limbs during the landing phase of a grand jeté movement in dancers. METHODS: Collegiate dancers consisting of eight women (19 ± 1 y; 54.7 ± 6.9 kg; 1.7 ± 0.1 m) and two men (21 ± 1 y; 70.6 ± 8.9 kg; 1.8 ± 0.01 m) performed three trials of the grand jeté movement on each leg (6 total trials) while kinematic and kinetic data were collected using a 12-camera motion capture system (200 Hz) and a force platform (1000 Hz). Paired-samples t-tests (α = 0.05) were conducted to compare the dominant and non-dominant limbs for the following variables of interest: total lower limb work (absolute sum of the angular work performed about the hip, knee, and ankle joints) and the corresponding percent contributions of the hip, knee, and ankle joints during the loading (time between ground contact and peak vertical ground reaction force [GRF]) and attenuation (time between peak vertical GRF and the end of downward center of mass motion) phases of landing. Effect sizes (ES) were calculated to supplement statistical probabilities and provide the magnitude of the mean differences. RESULTS: Total lower limb work was not significantly different between the dominant and non-dominant limbs during the loading phase and the mean difference was small (p = 0.062; ES = 0.40). However, the difference between limbs for the percent contribution of the knee musculature during the loading phase was large despite not being statistically significant (p = 0.076; ES = 0.89), with greater contributions occurring during landings on the non-dominant limb (49.0 ± 14.8%) versus the dominant limb (36.7 ± 12.9%). No other differences were detected during either phase of landing. CONCLUSION: Dancers appear to utilize limb-specific energy absorption strategies during the landing portion of the grand jeté, with greater muscular efforts about the knee joint in the non-dominant limb during the time when greatest external stress is experienced. As such, dancers may be at greater risk for developing overuse injuries or chronic ailments (e.g., patellofemoral pain syndrome) in the non-dominant limb.


Recent developments in the theory of measurement-based quantum computing reduce the problem of building a quantum computer to that of achieving high quality rotation and measurement of single qubits. The first generation of such machines may well therefore consist of individual modules each containing a single quantum system that embodies the qubit. The first demonstrations of entanglement of electronic qubits by measurement have been performed recently in ion traps. The leading contenders for physical qubits in the solid state are the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy defect in diamond and the Stranski Krastanow quantum dot, each of which offers long electronic spin dephasing times and convenient spin-sensitive optical transitions. In this article we will compare the strengths and weaknesses of these two systems and discuss some of the challenges to be met in constructing a measurement based quantum computer in the solid state.


A new metalloendopeptidase was purified to apparent homogeneity from a homogenate of normal human liver using successive steps of chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, hydroxyapatite and Sephacryl S-200. The purified enzyme hydrolyzed the Pro7-Phe8 bond of bradykinin and the Ser25-Tyr26 bond of atrial natriuretic peptide. No cleavage was produced in other peptide hormones such as vasopressin, oxytocin or Met- and Leu-enkephalin. This enzyme activity was inhibited by 1 mM divalent cation chelators such as EDTA, EGTA and o-phenanthroline and was insensitive to 1 microM phosphoramidon and captopril, specific inhibitors of neutral endopeptidase (EC 18.104.22.168) and angiotensin-converting enzyme (EC 22.214.171.124), respectively. With M(r) 85 kDa the enzyme exhibits optimal activity at pH 7.5. The high affinity of this endopeptidase for bradykinin (Km = 10 microM) and for atrial natriuretic peptide (Km = 5 microM) suggests that it may play a physiological role in the inactivation of these circulating hypotensive peptide hormones.


Over the next month, the ICANN Board will consider its options for ensuring that some framework is in place to ensure ICANN's accountability to the global Internet community after the approaching expiration of the its Memorandum of Understanding and Joint Project Agreement (MOU/JPA) with the U.S. Department of Commerce. The Board ought to allow the time necessary for the development of a permanent accountability framework in consultation with the global Internet community, as required by ICANN's Bylaws, however should should avoid rubber-stamping a recent proposal to essentially make the MoU/JPA a permanent instrument as inadequate to ensure ICANN's long-term accountability. The alternative, simply ending ICANN's relationship with the U.S. Government, would raise serious legal questions concerning ICANN's ability to collect fees from registrars and registries and the transfer of property rights underlying the domain name system. ICANN's new CEO Rod Rod Beckstrom should exercise the kind of leadership he advocated in his 2005 book, The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, which explains the advantages of decentralized managerial "nervous systems" ("starfish") over top-down hierarchies ("spiders"). "Instead of focusing on 'spider'-esque permanent instruments with a single government, Beckstrom and the ICANN Board should focus on more 'starfish'-like solutions that both continue the USG's stewardship role and involve more governments that want to participate in the unique private-public partnership known as ICANN - without compromising ICANN's guiding principles and commitment to private sector leadership," the authors conclude. "Only this outcome will ensure the long-term viability of ICANN as a global trustee of the Internet's unique identifiers."


The real-time distributed computing environment and reusable software architecture are important factors that affect the fidelity of flight simulation. We accomplished a flight simulator based on DDS (Data Distribution Service for Real-time Systems) middleware and structural software architecture and proved its high fidelity as a flight training device. According to the analysis of flight simulator's functional blocks, we developed the real-time distributed computing environment which utilized DDS middleware through Ethernet and decreased the communication latency among functional blocks. Furthermore, we proposed the structural software architecture on the basis of layered and component-based design pattern to facilitate the higher simulation components' reuse and replacement. The real-time communication procedures among simulation components are also described in this paper. The validation method and the contrasting simulation results are presented finally to show the feasible design based on DDS to carry out flight simulation with low communication latency and high quality.


Web Theory is a comprehensive and critical introduction to the theories of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Robert Burnett and P. David Marshall examine the key debates which surround Internet culture: from issues of globalization political economy and regulation, to ideas about communication, identity and aesthetics." "Web Theory explores the shifts in society, culture and the media which have been brought about by the growth of the World Wide Web. It identifies significant readings, Web sites and hypertext archive sources that illustrate the critical discussion about the Internet and it mediates these discussions, indicating key positions within each debate and pointing the reader to key texts.


SETTING
This innovative educational programme was developed in the South African context for general practitioners (GPs).

AIM
This short report describes the process of designing an Internet-based distance education programme Mental Disorders in Primary Care.

LEARNING METHODS
The article discusses relevant educational principles and then describes four stages in the instructional design process: design, development, evaluation and revision.

CONCLUSION
The design and development of an Internet-based distance education programme for GPs in South Africa was a potent learning experience for me as an academic family physician with no prior experience in this area. I hope that this short report will assist other people and contribute to an ongoing dialogue on this topic.


In Sinorhizobium meliloti the NolR repressor displays differential negative regulation of nodulation genes and is required for optimal nodulation. Here, we demonstrate that the NolR function is not unique to S. meliloti but is also present in other species of the Rhizobiaceae family. DNA hybridization indicates the presence of nolR homologous sequences in species belonging to the Rhizobium and Sinorhizobium genera while no hybridization signal was detected in species from the Mesorhizobium, Bradyrhizo-bium, Azorhizobium, and Agrobacterium genera. We isolated the nolR gene from the Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae strain TOM and showed that the TOM nolR gene acts similarly to S. meliloti nolR by repressing the expression of both the nodABCIJ and the nodD genes, resulting in decreased Nod factor production. The presence of a functional nolR gene in R. leguminosarum is correlated with an increased rate and extent of nodulation of pea. The conserved primary structure, the location of the DNA-binding domain,...


East Africa owes its great contrasts in natural vegetation, its diversity of crops and types of agriculture, to the wide range of altitude and resulting variation in temperature conditions, as well as to variations in amount of rainfall from place to place. The cool climate of the Kenya Highlands contributed largely to the success of European farming. besides being perhaps one of the most pleasant climates in the world. The text-book descriptionption of tropical highland climates is frequently so simplified as to suggest that increase in altitude has comparable effects to increase in latitude. In East Africa, from sea-level to nearly 20,000 feet, one might expect to find a range of climates equivalent to those found from the Equator to the Arctic or Antarctic: but the farmer or gardener soon becomes aware of differences when he introduces European plants to the East African highlands and finds that some will not grow well, or will not flower, in the light and temperature conditions of the short tropical day. In fact, there is considerable difference between 'temperate' high latitude climates, where the growing Season is limited by low winter temperatures, but compensated by long hours of daylight in the summer months, and 'temperate' climates at high altitudes in the tropics, where moisture availability (rainfall or irrigation), not temperature, determines the growing season. The adjective 'temperate' is perhaps most appropriately applied to the tropical highland climate with its small seasonal temperature range (Bailey, 1960), but in such areas crops must be suited to a wide diurnal range of temperature and fairly constant length of day.


Kristin Shrader-Frechette, a well known philosopher of environmental ethics, makes an ethical case for Environmental Justice. Explaining fundamental ethical concepts such as equality, property rights, procedural justice, free informed consent, intergeneration equality, just compensation and moral heroism - and then bringing them to bear on real-world social issues - Shrader-Frechette shows how many of these core concepts have been compromised for a large segment of the global population, among them Appalachians, African-Americans, workers in hazardous jobs and indigenous people living in developing nations. She argues that there are strong and compelling grounds for remedying our environmental problems and that burdens like pollution and resource depletion need to be apportioned more equally. She also argues vehemently that not only do we have strong ethical grounds for remedying environmental problems, but that these remedies need to involve the participation of those affected, that all citizens have a duty to engage in activism an behalf of Environmental Justice and that in a democracy it is the people, not the government, that are ultimately and truly responsible for equitable and fair use of the environment. Combining rigorous philosophical scholarship with a deep knowledge of actual problems in the environment and among the disenfranchised, Environmental Justice is a new look at an old problem and will encourage debate among those concerned with both social and environmental justice.


The aim of this research is to provide guidance for drawing Euler diagrams. People
draw Euler diagrams to visualise information about sets using closed curves, illustrat-
ing how they intersect and whether they are disjoint or in a subset relationship. As a
widespread and popular visualisation technique, considerable research efort has been
devoted to the problem of automatically drawing Euler diagrams. To draw efective
Euler diagrams, however, insight is needed into the layout choices being made and their
impact on user comprehension. Through surveying the literature we established five
guides spanning three categories of layout choice: descriptional, topological and graph-
ical. The literature accords robust layout guides for both the descriptional and topo-
logical choices. However, the literature yields limited guidance regarding the numerous
graphical choices that have to be made such as the shape and colour of curves. This
lack of guidance is perhaps surprising given it is well documented by information visu-
alisation theorists that people are visually sensitive to graphical choices. Importantly,
such theory tells us that graphical choices can significantly impact the comprehension
of diagrams.


Abstract The Molten Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE) site at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is being cleaned up and remediated. The removal of ~37 kg of fissile 233U is the main activity. Of that inventory, ~23 kg has already been removed as UF6 from the piping system and chemisorbed in 25 NaF traps. This material is in temporary storage while it awaits conversion to a stable oxide. The planned recovery of ~11 kg of uranium from the fuel salt will generate another 15 to 19 NaF traps. The remaining 2 to 3 kg of uranium are present in activated charcoal beds, which are also scheduled to be removed from the reactor site. Since all of these materials (NaF traps and the uranium-laden charcoal) are not suitable for long-term storage, they will be converted to a uranium oxide (U3O8), which is suitable for long-term storage. The conversion of the MSRE material into an oxide presents unique problems, such as criticality concerns, a large radiation field caused by the daughters of 232U (an impurity isotope in the 233U), and the possible spread of the high-radiation field from the release of 220Rn gas. To overcome these problems, a novel process was conceived and developed. This process was specially tailored for providing remote operations inside a hot cell while maintaining full containment at all times to avoid the spread of contamination. This process satisfies criticality concerns, maximizes the recovery of uranium, minimizes any radiation exposure to operators, and keeps waste disposal to a minimum.


During development of the retina, programmed cell death helps to establish the final size and distribution of various cell classes in distinct layers of the tissue. Here we show that dying cells in the developing ganglion and inner nuclear layers are clustered spatially and that gap junction inhibitors decrease the clustering of dying cells. To confirm the role of gap junctions in cell death, we induced targeted cell death via intracellular cytochrome c (Cc) and examined the induced cells and their neighbors for apoptotic morphology or caspase-3 cleavage. These studies indicate that bystander killing extends to coupled cells. Quantitative studies of bystander killing were performed by scrape-loading retinas with Cc in the presence of rhodamine dextran (RD; to identify Cc-loaded cells) and by counting pyknotic cells in cryosections. Although only 1.5% of control scrape-loaded cells (RD alone) showed apoptotic morphology, 97% of Cc scrape-loaded cells were pyknotic. Moreover, bystander killing extended to neighboring cells, not labeled with RD, and was reduced significantly by the gap junction inhibitors octanol and carbenoxolone. We hypothesize that dying cells in the retina generate a gap junction-permeant apoptotic signal that mediates bystander killing. This novel finding of naturally occurring bystander cell death may have important implications in the histogenesis and pathology of the nervous system.


Defenders have to enforce defense strategies by taking decisions on allocation of resources, to protect the integrity and survivability of CPSs from intentional and malicious cyber attacks. In this work, we propose an Adversarial Risk Analysis (ARA) approach to provide a novel one-sided (i.e.,) prescriptive support strategy for the defender to optimize the defensive resource allocation, based on a subjective expected utility model, in which the decisions of the adversaries are uncertain. This increases confidence in cyber security through robustness of CPS protection actions against uncertain malicious threats, compared with prescriptions provided by a classical defend-attack game-theoretical approach. We present the approach and the results of its application to a nuclear CPS, specifically, the digital Instrumentation and Control (I&C) system of the Advanced Lead-cooled Fast Reactor European Demonstrator (ALFRED)).


A novel proposal that the cognitive architecture for volition and cognition arises from particular kinds of social interaction and communication. In Open Minds, Wolfgang Prinz offers the novel claim that agency and intentionality are first perceived and understood in others, and that it is only through practices and discourses of social mirroring that individuals come to apply these features to themselves and to shape their architectures for volition and cognition accordingly. Developing a (social science) constructive approach within a (cognitive science) representational framework, Prinz argues that the architectures for agency (volition) and intentionality (cognition) arise from particular kinds of social interaction and communication. Rather than working as closed, individual systems, our minds operate in ways that are fundamentally open to other minds. Prinz describes mirror systems and mirror games, particular kinds of representational mechanisms and social games that provide tools for aligning closed individual minds with other minds. He maps the formation of an architecture for volition, addressing issues of agency and intention-based top-down control, then outlines the ways the same basic ideas can be applied to an architecture for cognition, helping to solve basic issues of subjectivity and intentionality. Addressing the reality and efficacy of such social artifacts as autonomy and free will, Prinz contends that our beliefs about minds are not just beliefs about their workings but powerful tools for making them work as we believe. It is through our beliefs that our minds work in a particular way that we actually make them work in that way.


Author(s): Liu, J; Rao, P; Therkelsen, P; Sheaffer, P; Scheihing, P; Tamm, Y | Abstract: ISO 50001 and other management systems (e.g., ISO 9001 and ISO 14001) allow for implementation and certification at the enterprise level. The "Central Office" concept, which allows a small group of employees to manage and facilitate the organization's energy management system (EnMS) at the enterprise level, was introduced within the ISO 50003 standard to provide guidance to ISO 50001 certification bodies. Four industrial companies have partnered with the United States Department of Energy to pilot the enterprise-wide ISO 50001/SEP concept under the Better Buildings Superior Energy Performance (SEP) Enterprise-wide Accelerator. Each organization developed a Central Office to host their EnMS while implementing ISO 50001/SEP at multiple physically separated sites. The four corporate partners tailored their Central Office implementation model to meet their own specific circumstances and needs. This paper reviews the commonalities, differences, and benefits of each of these enterprise-wide implementation models, including organizational structures, Central Office staff responsibilities, and key strategies. The cost savings and benefits of using the enterprise-wide approach were assessed, including the cost per site compared with that of a conventional, single-site ISO 50001/SEP implementation approach. This paper also discusses the drivers for the cost reductions realized through these enterprise-wide approaches. The four partner companies worked with 30 total sites. On average, these 30 sites improved energy performance by 5% annually over their SEP achievement periods, saved more than $600,000 annually in energy costs and reduced implementation cost for ISO 50001 and SEP by $19,000 and 0.8 Full Time Equivalent × years (FTE-yr) of staff time per site. The results can inform other organizations seeking to implement enterprise-wide ISO 50001/SEP, as well as energy efficiency organizations seeking to promote wider adoption of ISO 50001 implementation.


Objectives The objectives of this study are to: (1) examine the pattern of price elasticity of three major tobacco products (bidi, cigarette and leaf tobacco) by economic groups of population based on household monthly per capita consumption expenditure in India and (2) assess the effect of tax increases on tobacco consumption and revenue across expenditure groups. Setting Data from the 2011–2012 nationally representative Consumer Expenditure Survey from 101 662 Indian households were used. Participants Households which consumed any tobacco or alcohol product were retained in final models. Primary outcome measures The study draws theoretical frameworks from a model using the augmented utility function of consumer behaviour, with a two-stage two-equation system of unit values and budget shares. Primary outcome measures were price elasticity of demand for different tobacco products for three hierarchical economic groups of population and change in tax revenue due to changes in tax structure. We finally estimated price elasticity of demand for bidi, cigarette and leaf tobacco and effects of changes in their tax rates on demand for these tobacco products and tax revenue. Results Own price elasticities for bidi were highest in the poorest group (−0.4328) and lowest in the richest group (−0.0815). Cigarette own price elasticities were −0.832 in the poorest group and −0.2645 in the richest group. Leaf tobacco elasticities were highest in the poorest (−0.557) and middle (−0.4537) groups. Conclusions Poorer group elasticities were the highest, indicating that poorer consumers are more price responsive. Elasticity estimates show positive distributional effects of uniform bidi and cigarette taxation on the poorest consumers, as their consumption is affected the most due to increases in taxation. Leaf tobacco also displayed moderate elasticities in poor and middle tertiles, suggesting that tax increases may result in a trade-off between consumption decline and revenue generation. A broad spectrum rise in tax rates across all products is critical for tobacco control.


Prior to the NLN Education Summit 2005, the authors took part in a conference call to discuss some of the difficulties and challenges faced by faculty in schools of nursing. Familiar with the growing body of published work on troublesome behaviors in American schools and the workplace, we determined to use a panel discussion format to explore the nature of these difficulties and capture the meanings these experiences have for the individuals involved. By sharing personal experiences and presenting a review of the literature, we hoped to give voice to troublesome and sometimes painful aspects of our roles as educators. * In our vision for the panel discussion and this article, our desire was to be part of the solution. Our goal is to explore these experiences in a way that encourages self-reflection, teaches acceptable behavior, and supports positive change in the educational environment. We hope to promote opportunities for all involved in nursing education - students, faculty, and administrators - to grow and flourish. * This article follows the sequence of the panel presentation, which began with a comprehensive review of the literature on academic dishonesty, followed by a discussion of low-and high-tech forms of cheating used by students. We addressed the need to process social information correctly and develop positive and acceptable social skills needed for professional development, and we discussed bullying, issues of incivility among faculty members, and the troublesome practice known as "mean girl games." Our names are presented alongside our contributions, but all of us answered questions and participated in the lively discussion that took place at the Summit. Academic Dishonesty Joanne Parley Serembus Long part of academic life, academic dishonesty has been defined as "intentional participation in deceptive practices regarding one's academic work or the work of another" (1). As many as 70 to 95 percent of students have been reported to have engaged in such practices (2-4). Some have suggested that academic dishonesty arises from a deterioration of morals as documented over the past decade by the Josephson Institute (5). As nurse educators, we are responsible for providing curricula that integrate moral and ethical issues and prepare students to practice according to an accepted code of professional practice. Therefore, it is imperative that we do our best to prevent students from participating in practices such as cheating, plagiarism, unethical clinical practice, alteration of records, forgery, false representation, and knowingly assisting another in dishonest acts (1,6). Hubert's (7-9) finding of a relationship between unethical classroom behaviors and unethical clinical behaviors is particularly disturbing as unethical clinical practice can affect safe nursing practice. The most frequent unethical clinical behaviors found were: discussing patients in public places or with nonmedical personnel; taking hospital equipment for use at home; and recording that medications, treatments, observations, or home visits were performed when they were not. A number of factors contribute to academic dishonesty. These include competition for higher grades, honors, awards, and a grade point average sufficient for graduate study; an emphasis on perfection in nurses and nursing practice; lower levels of moral development; risk-taking behaviors that count on not getting caught or punished; the will to succeed at all costs; lack of preparation or skills; poor academic standing, poor grades, and concerns about the financial impact of failing a course; personal time management factors and competing assignments; a classroom or clinical environment conducive to academic dishonesty; and the use of rationalizations to justify dishonest actions (1,3,10). While faculty and students agree that an ever-increasing number of students cheat, students tend to differentiate between cheating on exams and what they consider less serious events such as plagiarism or working together on assignments that were meant to be completed individually (11,12). …


Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS), in combination with Biotyper software, is a rapid, high-throughput, and accurate method for the identification of microbes. Microbial outbreaks in a brewery present a major risk for companies as it can lead to cost-intensive recalls and damage to the brand reputation. MALDI-TOF MS has been implemented into a brewery setting for quality control practices and the identification of beer spoilage microorganisms. However, the applicability of this approach is hindered by compatibility issues associated with mixed cultures, requiring the use of time-consuming selective cultivation techniques prior to identification. We propose a novel, low-cost approach based on the combination of inertial microfluidics and secondary flows in a spiral microchannel for high-throughput and efficient separation of yeasts (Saccharomyces pastorianus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae) from beer spoilage microorganisms (Lactobacillus brevis and Pediococcus damnosus). Flow rates were optimised using S. pastorianus and L. brevis, leading to separation of more than 90% of the L. brevis cells from yeast. The microorganisms were then identified to the species level using the MALDI-TOF MS platform using standard sample preparation protocols. This study shows the high-throughput and rapid separation of spoilage microorganisms (0.3-3 μm) from background yeast (5 μm) from beer, subsequent identification using MALDI Biotyper, and the potential applicability of the approach for biological control in the brewing industry.


Smart building (SB), a promising solution to fast-paced and continuous urbanization around the world, includes the integration of a wide range of systems and services and involves the construction of multiple layers. SB is capable of sensing, acquiring, and processing a very large amount of data as well as performing appropriate actions and adaptation. Rapid increases in the number of connected nodes and thereby the data transmission demand of SB have led to conventional transmission and processing techniques becoming insufficient to provide satisfactory services. In order to enhance the intelligence of SBs and achieve efficient monitoring and control, sixth generation (6G) communication technologies, particularly indoor visible light communications and machine learning need to be incorporated in SBs. Herein, we envision a novel SB framework featuring a reliable data transmission network, powerful data processing, and reasoning abilities, all of which are enabled by 6G communications. Primary simulation results support the promising visions of the proposed SB framework.


Gendered social norms are difficult to overcome, due to a lack of consensus among legal, religious, and social institutions on the direction that will result in new social norms. In the case of Pakistan, which ranks sixth on the list of the most dangerous countries for women, it is not possible to change gendered social norms regarding domestic violence by only focusing on legal reform since, in its social context, the act of domestic violence is not in itself regarded as a serious offence. This article explores reform in Punjab, where deeply entrenched legal structural obstacles and discriminatory gender norms prevent women from accessing justice. The paper draws on a new framework for influencing changes in individuals' behaviour to reduce the condoning of domestic violence. Using a mixed-methods approach the paper introduces a new initiative of women for institutional reform undertaken by the Strategic Reforms Unit (SRU) in Pakistan, to examine the role of social norms in normalizing the practice of domestic violence. This initiative provides an opportunity for examining how these prevalent social norms can be changed by both improving women's access to legal processes regarding the registration and prosecution of crimes as well as addressing public shame associated with the wearing of a tracking device by the assailant. This model of institutional reform of the criminal justice system could provide the way forward to close the large gap between incidents of violence against women (VAW) and the low level of convictions in many societies. The paper concludes that such institutional reform could be adapted for use in other countries to comprehensively reduce VAW cases and to increase the success in prosecution and sentencing of perpetrators of such crimes.


Computational semantics is the art and science of computing meaning in natural language. The meaning of a sentence is derived from the meanings of the individual words in it, and this process can be made so precise that it can be implemented on a computer. Designed for students of linguistics, computer science, logic and philosophy, this comprehensive text shows how to compute meaning using the functional programming language Haskell. It deals with both denotational meaning (where meaning comes from knowing the conditions of truth in situations), and operational meaning (where meaning is an instruction for performing cognitive action). Including a discussion of recent developments in logic, it will be invaluable to linguistics students wanting to apply logic to their studies, logic students wishing to learn how their subject can be applied to linguistics, and functional programmers interested in natural language processing as a new application area.


Vibration problem during metal cutting occurs frequently in the manufacturing industry. The vibration level depends on many different parameters such as material type, dimensions of the workpiece, rigidity of tooling structure, cutting data and operation mode. In milling the cutting process subject the tool to vibrations and having a milling tool holder with long overhang, will most likely results in high vibration levels. These vibrations have a consequence of reduced tool life, poor surface finishing and disturbing sound. An investigation of dynamic properties of a milling tool holder with moderate overhang has been carried out by means of experimental modal analysis and vibration analysis during operating mode. Both angular vibrations of the rotating tool and vibrations of the machine tool structure were examined during milling. Also, bending motion of the rotating milling tool holder was examined during cutting. This paper focuses on identifying the source/sources of the dominating milling vibration components and to identify that of these vibrations which may be related to the structural dynamic properties of the milling tool holder.


Using the method of back translation, comparative surveys were conducted to examine the differences and similarities in hope and happiness in Japan, the UK, and the US. We find substantial differences in levels of hope; most people in the UK and US hope to realize something in the future, whereas only half of Japanese respondents have what they see as 'feasible' hopes. Looking at the similarities, the issue of family is consistently the most important content of hope in all three countries. The empirical estimations also reveal that marriage, jobs, health, friends, trust, and patriotism have similar effects on hope and happiness across the three countries. Lack of friends, limited experience of feeling trusted, and lack of religious belief result in less hope in Japan. Ordeals in the past tend to reduce the degree of happiness in the present, but at the same time, such difficulties encourage people to have hopes that forward-looking actions will bring about better conditions. This counter-trend implies that the positive setback effect impacts consistently upon hope in all three of the countries studied.


The English tense and aspect systems have always been a problematic issue in translation, especially when a language as discrepant as Arabic is involved. Novice translators, as it is the case with university students, face difficulties in finding equivalent translations for tense and aspect either in Arabic or in English. More specifically, Moroccan learners not only find difficulty in translating the English present perfectin both its simple and progressive reflexesinto Arabic, but they also fail to choose the correct equivalent English tense for the Arabic perfect and imperfect aspects. Building on some studies conducted mainly by Arab researchers (such as Bouras, 1999; Al-Fallay, 1999; Sekhri, 2009; Reishaan and Ja'far ,2008; Kechoud, 2010; Mansour, 2011; and Abu Joudeh et al, 2013) who dealt with almost the same issue, this study describes some of the errors made by Moroccan undergraduate students in the area of tense-aspect translation. To achieve this, 63 Moroccan undergraduate university students were tested. The test was analysed carefully and the results we have achieved so far justified our claims. This study also tries to provide an explanation for the problem, as well as suggest some solutions.


This paper discusses similarities and differences in the political and economic prospects for Angola and Mozambique. Central to the posing of these questions is the meaning and usefulness of putting these two countries in the same category. While both share some elements of a common colonial history, their similarities are in many respects outweighed by their differences. Angola is a country whose economy is dominated by huge oil revenues and whose governing party, the MPLA, recently won a military victory over its long time opposition, UNITA. UNITA, though now much weakened, nevertheless represents the legitimate interests of a large segment of the population, whose home provinces are the most agriculturally favored in the country. Mozambique is a country with many fewer natural resources, but in which the ruling party, FRELIMO, has fully embraced a policy of liberalization and opening of the economy. Its main opposition party, RENAMO, originated as a creature of foreign powers and lost its principal distinguishing feature of anti-Marxism when the governing party itself abandoned Marxism beginning a decade after independence.


Since 2012, California has generated billions of dollars from its market-based green- house gas emissions reduction program, commonly known as Cap-and-Trade. These rev- enues, deposited in the state's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), must be invest- ed in projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions while maximizing benefits for disadvantaged communities and households. SB 535 (de Leon 2012), as amended by AB 1550 (Gomez 2016), requires at least thirty-five percent of these revenues to be invested in projects that benefit disadvantaged community residents and low-income households and communities. Implementing these statutory requirements has been the work of a coalition of policy-advocacy and organizing groups, who have too often seen public in- vestment in environmental justice communities fail to meet the needs of low-income residents of color—or worse yet, actually harm them. This article presents the" disad- vantaged community benefits" framework that this coalition developed, which is now incorporated in large part into statewide guidelines on climate investments. The frame- work offers a four-step process for evaluating whether a project meaningfully benefits a disadvantaged community: (1) whether a project meets an important need identified by underserved residents (2) in a way that provides them a significant benefit and (3) targets its benefits primarily to low-income people while (4) avoiding substantial burdens on a disadvantaged community. This article discusses the genesis of this framework and its importance in enabling local residents to shape investment decisions in their commu- nities, and then assesses a GGRF investment in affordable housing according to this framework. A key lesson of California's experience in directing climate investments to benefit disadvantaged communities is that the same investments that promote the state's climate goals are also helping to tackle the crisis of extreme inequality.


Recommender Systems (RS) suggest to users items they will like based on their past opinions. Collaborative Filtering (CF) is the most used technique and works by recommending to the active user items appreciated by similar users. However the sparseness of user proles often prevent the computation of user similarity. Moreover CF doesn't take into account the reliability of the other users. In this paper 1 we present a real world application, namely moleskiing.it, in which both of these conditions are critic to deliver personalized recommendations. A blog oriented architecture collects user experiences on ski mountaineering and their opinions on other users. Exploitation of Trust Metrics allows to present only relevant and reliable information according to the user's personal point of view of other authors trustworthiness. Dieren tly from the notion of authority, we claim that trustworthiness is a user centered notion that requires the computation of personalized metrics. We also present an open information exchange architecture that makes use of Semantic Web formats to guarantee interoperability between ski mountaineering communities. 1 This work is based on an earlier work: \A Trust-enhanced Recommender System


The Scala Dei Group represents one of several coarse clastic wedges along the eastern margin of the Tertiary Ebro Basin. This group, of Eocene–Oligocene age, is partly concealed by faulted and locally overthrust older sediments, but a segment of Oligocene age is spectacularly exposed for about 15 km along the newly constructed A2 motorway. Near the edge of the basin multistorey conglomerate channel-bodies are composed of large scale foresets up to 3 m high, representing side bars or possibly point bars. Smaller (up to 40 cm) normally graded beds with imbricated clasts represent diagonal or transverse bars, and horizontally-stratified sheets may be longitudinal bars. Flow was highly variable. The multistorey conglomerate bodies are restricted to several crudely radiating axes representing major feeder systems and give rise to a 'goose-foot' depositional palaeomorphology. Towards the basin centre and in quiet zones between the main feeder axes single-storey channel-bodies of conglomerate and sandstone are common. Some plug-like conglomerate and sandstone channel-bodies are ribbons which are essentially straight in plan, and other, generally asymmetrical, sandstone channel-bodies preserve the point bars of channel bends where limited lateral migration took place. Many channel-bodies possess extremely well-developed wings representing levees and locally amalgamated crevasse splay sequences. Conspicuous crevasse channels cut through the levees. The wings and crevasse channel-bodies contain carbonate-rich palaeosols. This sequence is interpreted as an essentially distributive but ephemeral fluvial system.