"Future Medicine" is an investigation into the clinical, legal, ethical, and regulatory changes occurring in our health care system as a result of the developing field of Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM). Here Michael H. Cohen describes the likely evolution of the legal system and the health care system at the crossroads of developments in the way human beings care for body, mind, emotions, environment, and soul.Through the use of fascinating and relevant case studies, Cohen presents stimulating questions that will challenge academics, intellectuals, and all those interested in the future of health care. In concise, evocative strokes, the book lays the foundation for a novel synthesis of ideas from such diverse disciplines as transpersonal psychology, political philosophy, and bioethics. Providing an exploration of regulatory conundrums faced by many healing professionals, Cohen articulates the value of expanding our concept of health care regulation to consider not only goals of fraud control and quality assurance, but also health care freedom, integration of global medicine, and human transformation."Future Medicine" provides a fair-minded, illuminating, and honest discussion that will interest hospice workers, pastoral counselors, and psychotherapists, as well as bioethicists, physicians and allied health care providers, complementary and alternative medical providers (such as chiropractors, acupuncturists, naturopaths, massage therapists, homeopaths, and herbalists), and attorneys, hospital administrators, health care executives, and government health care workers.Michael H. Cohen is Director for Legal Programs, the Center for Research and Education in Complementary and Integrative Medical Therapies, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School.


This study examines the four-dimensional (4D) seismic signatures from multiple seismic surveys shot during gas exsolution and dissolution in a producing hydrocarbon reservoir, and focuses in particular on what reservoir information may be extracted from their analysis. To aid in this process, hydrocarbon gas properties and behaviour are studied, and their relationship to the fluid-flow physics is understood using numerical simulation. This knowledge is then applied to interpret the seismic response of a turbidite field in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS). It is concluded that for a repeat seismic survey shot 6 months or more after a pressure change above or below bubble point (as in our field case), the gas-saturation distribution during either exsolution or dissolution exists in two fixed saturation conditions defined by the critical and the maximum possible gas saturation. Awareness of this condition facilitates an interpretation of the data from our field example, which has surveys repeated at intervals of 12–24 months, to obtain an estimate of the critical gas saturation of between 0.6 and 4.0%. These low values are consistent with a range of measurements from laboratory and numerical studies in the open literature. Our critical gas-saturation estimate is also in qualitative agreement with the solution gas–oil ratios estimated in a material balance exercise using our data. It is not found possible to quantify the maximum gas saturation using the 4D seismic data alone, despite the advantage of having multiple surveys, owing to the insensitivity of the seismic amplitudes to the magnitude of this gas saturation. Assessment of the residual gas saturation left behind after secondary gas-cap contraction during the dissolution phase suggests that small values of less than a few per cent may be appropriate. The results are masked to some extent by an underlying water flood. It is believed that the methodology and approach used in this study may be readily generalized to other moderate- to high-permeability oil reservoirs, and used as input in simulation model updating.


Human consciousness instinctively tries to make sense of reality. Different human interpretations of reality lead to a world consisting of multiple realities. Conflict occurs when differing realities (worldviews) encounter one another. Worldviews are socially created and determine human behaviour and, as such, most often find expression in religion. The discussion of conflict and the role of religion in civil society take place within the discourse of the sociology of religion. Religion is socially determined. Peter Berger's insight into the sociology of religion therefore plays an important role in establishing the relationship between religion and civil society as one that takes on different forms. Thus, a clear definition of both civil society and religion was needed to understand the nature of these relationships. The role of religion in civil society with regard to the presence of conflict in society was further investigated in this article. The conditions under which conflict in society occurs were discussed, as were the conditions for tolerance in society, for religion ultimately becomes the provider of moral discernment when conflict occurs in civil society.


Feelings and impressions of a product are important for the decision of purchasing it or not. Designing attractive products therefore requires knowledge about the feelings and impressions the products evoke on the customer and the user. Integrating such affective values in product design requires the introduction of suitable methods into companies' product design processes, methods which can capture and convert subjective and even unconscious feelings about a product into concrete design parameters. This is sometimes referred to as 'Affective Engineering'. One methodology in this context is Kansei Engineering, which has been developed in Japan in order to design feelings into products. The aim of this thesis was twofold: Firstly, to improve understanding of the nature of products making emotional impact on the users and customers. Secondly, to identify and improve methods capable of grasping those affective values and translating them into concrete product design solutions. This thesis presents three empirical studies and two methodological papers, relating to warehouse trucks and laminate flooring. The first study was made on user impact of warehouse trucks in three different European countries. A second study dealt with affective values of rocker-switches in work vehicles, such as warehouse trucks. A third study on this truck type compared the old manoeuvring panel evaluated in the previous studies with a newly introduced manoeuvring panel in order to validate the impact of the design improvements made after the first study. Further, a conceptual model on Kansei Engineering methodology was proposed in a methods paper based on the experience from the studies performed in order to provide a structure for performing Kansei Engineering studies. The fifth paper had the purpose of validating and improving the proposed model using laminate flooring as research object. More structured ways of identifying design parameters and relevant product properties was given high priority in the improvement work of the methodology. A model for spanning the Space of Product Properties was presented and applied. This thesis also deals with other improvement areas in the methodology and proposed new developments, including the use of scales, experimental design and validation methods. In conclusion, Kansei Engineering is a concept and a methodology in strong development, a framework in which tools and methods are continuously developed, added and integrated.


Abstract. An analysis of observational data in the Barents Sea along a meridian at 33°30' E between 70°30' and 72°30' N has reported a negative correlation between El Nino/La Nina Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events and water temperature in the top 200 m: the temperature drops about 0.5 °C during warm ENSO events while during cold ENSO events the top 200 m layer of the Barents Sea is warmer. Results from 1 and 1/4-degree global NEMO models show a similar response for the whole Barents Sea. During the strong warm ENSO event in 1997–1998 an anomalous anticyclonic atmospheric circulation over the Barents Sea enhances heat loses, as well as substantially influencing the Barents Sea inflow from the North Atlantic, via changes in ocean currents. Under normal conditions along the Scandinavian peninsula there is a warm current entering the Barents Sea from the North Atlantic, however after the 1997–1998 event this current is weakened. During 1997–1998 the model annual mean temperature in the Barents Sea is decreased by about 0.8 °C, also resulting in a higher sea ice volume. In contrast during the cold ENSO events in 1999–2000 and 2007–2008, the model shows a lower sea ice volume, and higher annual mean temperatures in the upper layer of the Barents Sea of about 0.7 °C. An analysis of model data shows that the strength of the Atlantic inflow in the Barents Sea is the main cause of heat content variability, and is forced by changing pressure and winds in the North Atlantic. However, surface heat-exchange with the atmosphere provides the means by which the Barents sea heat budget relaxes to normal in the subsequent year after the ENSO events.


Design education in general includes various design fields such as product design, graphic design, communication design and design in engineering. Designing as an activity captures all these various fields. Design refers basically to a problem solving method, a creative problem solving approach and relevant processes. Design as an activity has always been considered as a creative tool. Design education mainly focuses on enhancing creative approaches with various 2D and 3D project based basic design studies. As the tools of designing developed in parallel with technology, the core structure of the education is based on a model with creative and analytical aspects: Designerly way of thinking aims at originality and uniqueness. Today the need for innovation has become more evident than ever. The main purpose of the paper is to explore and to identify the relationship between creativity, innovation and design related to design education. Bruno Munari(Milano, 1907-1998) as a designer and a design educator, is one of the prominent names reflecting innovation and creativity in the history of Italian Design. His innovative contribution to Italian Design is reinforced by his experimental design educator background in research for creativity. The paper aims at exploring the educational structures through history of design and design education that leads to creative thinking and nurture sustainable innovation through the case study of Bruno Munari's works as a designer and as an educator.


This paper present a 3D platform that enables to make both cultural heritage site survey and its virtual exploration. It provides a single and easy way to use framework for merging multi scaled 3D measurements based on photogrammetry, documentation produced by experts and the knowledge of involved domains leaving the experts able to extract and choose the relevant information to produce the final survey. Taking into account the interpretation of the real world during the process of archaeological surveys is in fact the main goal of a survey. New advances in photogrammetry and the capability to produce dense 3D point clouds do not solve the problem of surveys. New opportunities for 3D representation are now available and we must to use them and find new ways to link geometry and knowledge. The new platform is able to efficiently manage and process large 3D data (points set, meshes) thanks to the implementation of space partition methods coming from the state of the art such as octrees and kd-trees and thus can interact with dense point clouds (thousands to millions of points) in real time. The semantisation of raw 3D data relies on geometric algorithms such as geodetic path computation, surface extraction from dense points cloud and geometrical primitive optimization. The platform provide an interface that enables expert to describe geometric representations of interesting objects like ashlar blocs, stratigraphic units or generic items (contour, lines, …) directly onto the 3D representation of the site and without explicit links to underlying algorithms. The platform provide two ways for describing geometric representation. If oriented photographs are available, the expert can draw geometry on a photograph and the system computes its 3D representation by projection on the underlying mesh or the points cloud. If photographs are not available or if the expert wants to only use the 3D representation then he can simply draw objects shape on it. When 3D representations of objects of a surveyed site are extracted from the mesh, the link with domain related documentation is done by means of a set of forms designed by experts. Information from these forms are linked with geometry such that documentation can be attached to the viewed objects. Additional semantisation methods related to specific domains have been added to the platform. Beyond realistic rendering of surveyed site, the platform embeds non photorealistic rendering (NPR) algorithms. These algorithms enable to dynamically illustrate objects of interest that are related to knowledge with specific styles. The whole platform is implemented with a Java framework and relies on an actual and effective 3D engine that make available latest rendering methods. We illustrate this work on various photogrammetric survey, in medieval archaeology with the Shawbak castle in Jordan and in underwater archaeology on different marine sites.


This chapter describes various wellknown conventional and market-based instruments for nature conservation. Regulatory approaches have increasingly been combined with economic incentives to harness the advantages of each approach, building a bridge between command and control and economic approaches to conservation. In the light of the recent attention to payments for environmental services (PES) as a tool to both promote conservation and alleviate poverty, the chapter pays special attention to this instrument. PES has many advantages, and their voluntary nature makes them more socially palatable. They can be applied at the local level between private parties, as well as at the global level, even if this involves public parties as well as private ones. For example, via reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) + schemes PES may come to play a significant role in global efforts to mitigate the adverse consequences of the greenhouse effect.


In Towards a Science of Translating, (1969) Nida asserts that "There will always be a variety of valid answers to the question, 'Is this a good translation?'" In the professional translation environment, the whole question of how to evaluate a translated text is one which poses a challenge to the client, to the translator and to those responsible for training the translator. Much has been written about the difficulty of identifying (objectively) verifiable and perhaps more widely generalisable criteria for this form of evaluation, which needs to relate to the functional adequacy (Nord 1997, Toury 1995) of the translated text for its intended purpose. Such criteria would be equally welcome as guidelines for the actual translation process, to assist the translator in selecting from possible translation alternatives. Think aloud protocols have tried to identify what goes on the 'lack box' and the cognitive processes involved in the process of text production (Kussmaul 1991, 1995). However, TAPS are a means to an end, the end being the aim of achieving a better understanding of the process in order to minimise the occurrence of potential errors and rationalise and optimise the process. This article attempts to show how Descriptive Analysis (see Toury 1995) of text pairs can highlight potentially successful strategy types, in relation to aspects of a functionalist approach to text production. Having determined which text production criteria can be of use in evaluating the potential success of a translation choice within a text, it should be possible to formulate a set of guidelines against which translators could test choices.at micro-and macro-textual levels. Such guidelines, if also used to evaluate the target text, would ensure that evaluator and translator were 'alking the same language' and might not only improve the evaluation process but also optimise translation output. Translation theory can suggest potential criteria: corpus analysis, using the DTS methodology, can identify authentic examples of criteria in action. Bringing the two together into a usable format is the aim of this paper. To demonstrate our approach we have used samples of advertising text pairs.This text type is notoriously difficult to evaluate, relying as it does on persuasive effect through impact on the reader. Since (potential or real) impact is recognised as being difficult to quantify. It is particularly important, for this text type. to have some relatively objective means of evaluating the functional adequacy of the target text.


Need to learn iMovie HD 6 and iDVD 6 fast? Try a Visual QuickStart! This best-selling reference's visual format and step-by-step, task-based instructions will have you up and running with these great iLife applications in no time. Best-selling author and iLife expert Jeff Carlson uses crystal-clear instructions, full-color illustrations,i¾ and friendly prose to introduce you to everything from using themes, tools, and effects to timeline editing to video podcasts and blogs. You'll also learn about everything new in iMovie HD 6 and iDVD 6, including motion-graphics themes, real-time effects, audio enhancements, sharing options, and more!


Predictable text has become widely used for beginning readers but has not been the subject of much research. This study used predictable books to compare 3 reading treatments reflecting different components of a whole-to-part instructional model. In 3 first-grade classrooms, beginning readers working with isolated words in a modified word bank activity learned more words than when they worked with sentence strips. They also learned more words using sentence strips than when they simply read and reread the books. There was a significant treatment effect, justifying the theoretical position that beginning readers learn more words when those words are removed from the supportive context offered by predictable text. Students with higher levels of literacy skill learned 5 times as many words as those with lower levels. The overall number of words learned in these predictable books appears limited. These findings have important implications for the use of texts in beginning reading programs.


Web debates play an important role in enabling broad participation of constituencies in social, political and economic decision-taking. However, it is challenging to organize, structure, and navigate a vast number of diverse argumentations and comments collected from many participants over a long time period. In this paper we demonstrate Common Round, a next generation platform for large-scale web debates, which provides functions for eliciting the semantic content and structures from the contributions of participants. In particular, Common Round applies language technologies for the extraction of semantic essence from textual input, aggregation of the formulated opinions and arguments. The platform also provides a cross-lingual access to debates using machine translation.


Although the association between celiac disease and progressive myoclonic ataxia is well recognized, in each of the reported cases the neurologic features began in middle adult life and usually in patients who had clinical or laboratory evidence of malabsorption. We report a case of progressive myoclonic ataxia and epilepsy (Ramsay Hunt syndrome) that began in childhood. In this patient there were no features suggestive of gluten intolerance. The presence of antigliadin antibodies in the serum and CSF suggested celiac disease was the cause of the patient's neurologic syndrome. Duodenal morphologic abnormalities reversed with treatment but no major changes were noted in the patient. Celiac disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of myoclonic ataxia at any age, even in the absence of clinical evidence of gluten-sensitive enteropathy.


Few political figures of the twentieth century have aroused as much passion and controversy as the Russian Revolutionary Leon Trotsky. Trotsky's extraordinary life and extensive writings have left and indelible mark on revolutionary conscience; and yet there was at one time a danger that his name would disappear altogether from history. Isaac Deutscher's magisterial three-volume biography was the first major publication to counter the powerful Stalinist propaganda machine, and in this definitive work Trotsky emerges as the most heroic, and ultimately tragic, character of the Russian Revolution. This first volume of the trilogy, originally published in 1954, traces Trotsky's political development: his early activities, the formation and crystallization of his distinctive and motivating idea - the permanent revolution - his long feud and final reconciliation with Lenin and Bolshevism, and his role in the October insurrection of 1917. The volume ends in the year 1921, when Trotsky, then at the climax of power, unwittingly sowed the seeds of his own defeat.


We had to create a space at the table. That was a long struggle ... and be ok with the fact that you can deal with women's equality in a substantive way ... We split from male-led Chicano organizations and looked to White feminists for guidance ...(Alpert). --Estel Lopez, "F" Series panelist This is the real work of women of color feminists: to resists acquiescence to fatality and guilt, to become warriors of conscious and action who resist death in all its myriad manifestations: poverty, cultural assimilation, child abuse, motherless mothering, gentrification, mental illness, welfare cuts, the prison system, racial profiling, immigrant and queer bashing, invasion and imperialism at home and at war. --Cherrie Moraga (Hernadez and Rehman: xiv) In 2006, the Chicago Foundation for Women convened a series of public forums around the meaning(s) and place of feminism in the lives of women of color in the city of Chicago. The "F" Series offered Asian-Americans, African-Americans, and Latinas the space to voice our identification or lack there of with feminism, the feminist movement, and feminist epistemologies. Planned by the Chicago Foundation For Women's Leadership Councils and co-sponsored by Columbia College's Center for the Study of Gender in the Media and Arts, the series gave collective voice to those issues most relevant to the experiences of contemporary women of color as well as examined historical tensions around race and class within the second wave of feminism which marginalized and rendered women of color invisible within the earlier struggle for liberation. Each of the panels covered a wide range of topics including the intersections of race, class, gender, reproductive rights, violence against women, and many of the panelists expressed the need for using public policy as a means to advance the status of women and girls in the United States and abroad. Much of the dialogue also emphasized the important roles that culture, religion, and ethnicity play in our development as women first and as feminists second. In many ways, the personal narrative of each woman elucidated the dialectic between feminist thinking and deeply rooted cultural values, as well as the ways race, gender, and class ascribe the experiences of minority women, and shape political thinking at the same time. (1) The sentiment of some of the speakers echoes those of many women of color who don't believe feminism is a viable liberation strategy that addresses their specific racial, cultural, or class experiences. Yet, many of the speakers clearly identified themselves as feminists and embraced feminist thinking, while others embraced a feminist ideology, while never calling themselves as such. This reluctance to call oneself a feminist reflects the historical hesitance of many women of color, namely African-American women and Latinas, to join the feminist movement. When asked whether or not they were feminists, many recounted personal stories to describe their journey to feminism. For most, becoming a feminist had been a long, contentious battle between traditional values, responsibilities to the race, and the reality of White women's privilege at work within the movement. There was, it seemed, no place for us at liberation's table ... Again, this arduous road towards feminism for women of color is nothing new. It underscores the work of scholar-feminists of color including bell hooks, Cherrie Moraga, and Barbara Smith. It is not surprising then that the majority of speakers, respondents, and audience participants typically spoke of having this reluctance to identifying as feminists at different points in their lives. More often than not, this feeling was rooted in the memories of racism and classism women of color faced within the feminist movement during the '70s. Victoria Romero's belief that "the Feminist Movement wasn't made for us ... it was made for middle-class White women,"(Alpert) reflects this very same sentiment. …


The global surveillance of bacterial pathogens is particularly important for bacteria with diverse and dynamic populations that cause periodic epidemics or pandemics. The isolate characterization methods employed for surveillance should: (1) generate unambiguous data; (2) be readily implemented in a variety of scenarios and be reproducible among laboratories; (3) be scalable and preferably available in a high throughput format; and (4) be cost effective. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was designed to meet these criteria and has been implemented effectively for a wide range of microorganisms. The 'Impact of meningococcal epidemiology and population biology on public health in Europe (EU-MenNet)' project had amongst its objectives: (1) to disseminate meningococcal MLST and sequence-based typing throughout Europe by establishing a centre for training and data generation, and (2) to produce a comprehensive Europe-wide picture of meningococcal disease epidemiology for the first time. Data produced from the project have shown the distribution of a relatively small number of STs, clonal complexes and PorA types that account for a large proportion of the disease-associated isolates in Europe. The project demonstrates how molecular typing can be combined with epidemiological data via the Internet for global disease surveillance.


Shared decision making places an emphasis on patient understanding and engagement. However, when it comes to treatment selection, research tends to focus on how doctors select pharmaceutical treatments. The current study is a qualitative assessment of how patients choose among three common treatments that have varying degrees of scientific support and side effects. We used qualitative data from 157 undergraduates (44 males, 113 females; mean age = 21.89 years) that was collected as part of a larger correlational study of depression and critical thinking skills. Qualitative analysis revealed three major themes: shared versus independent decision making, confidence in the research and the drug, and cost and availability. Some participants preferred to rely on informal networks such as consumer testimonials while others expressed a false sense of security for over-the-counter treatments because they believe the drugs are regulated. Many indicated that they avoid seeking mental health services because of the time and money needed. The results indicate several factors influence selection of common depression treatments. Young adults indicate that when reading prescription information, they most often rely on perceptions including ease of access, price, and beliefs about drug regulations. General guidelines for treatment descriptions were created based on the qualitative analysis.


Gene-encoded antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are widely distributing in all classes of life ranging from plants to animals, including amphibians, birds, fish, and mammals etc. The characteristics of wide-spectrum, rapidness and specificity, and the activities against several bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa and cancerous cells, allow the development of numerous antimicrobial peptides with potentially useful properties as therapeutic agents. Development of activity predicted tools based on understanding the role of relationship of structure-activity is inevitable for their drug designs. In this study, we manually collected 1162 antimicrobial sequences firstly, then builded a comprehensive design platform for studying structure-activity relationship of antimicrobial peptides, finally constructed a new activity prediction model with stepwise discriminant analysis. This model integrated seven physicochemical parameters, including length, molecular weight, theoretical pI, primary amino acid composition, Instability index, aliphatic index and grand average of hydropathicity, charge. The prediction model correctly classified 70% of the known activity peptides in the database, and predicted 77.8% of the new unknown activity peptides. The results indicated that the model consisting of four discriminant functions can recognize and classify activity for antimicrobial peptides effectively.


The NPACI (National Partnership for Advanced Computational Infrastructure) HotPage is a user portal that provides views of a distributed set of high-performance computing (HPC) resources as either an integrated meta-system or as individual machines. These Web pages run on any Web browser, regardless of the system or geographical location, and are supported by secure, encrypted log-in sessions where authenticated users can access their HPC system accounts and perform basic computational tasks. We describe the development of the Grid Portals Toolkit (GridPort), which is based on the architecture developed for the HotPage, and provide computational scientists and application developers with a set of simple, modular services and tools that allow application-level, customized science portal development and that facilitate seamless Web-based access to distributed computational resources and Grid services.


This work presents Immucube, a scalable and efficient mechanism to improve dependability of interconnection networks for parallel and distributed computers. Immucube achieves better flexibility and scalability than any other previous fault-tolerant mechanism in k-ary n-cubes. The proposal inherits from Immunet several advantages over other previous fault-tolerant routing algorithms: 1) allowing any temporal and spatial fault combination, 2) permitting automatic and application-transparent reconfiguration after any fault, and 3) requiring a negligible overhead in the absence of faults. Immucube introduces new important features, such as: 4) providing graceful performance degradation, even in very large interconnection networks, 5) tolerating transparent resource utilization after transitory faults or partial repair of faulty resources, 6) being able to deal with intermittent faults, and 7) being able to dynamically recover the original network performance when all the failed components have been repaired


During a risk assessment procedure as well as when dealing with cleanup and monitoring strategies, accurate predictions of solute propagation in fractured rocks are of particular importance when assessing exposure pathways through which contaminants reach receptors. Experimental data obtained under controlled conditions such as in a laboratory allow to increase the understanding of the fundamental physics of fluid flow and solute transport in fractures. In this study, laboratory hydraulic and tracer tests have been carried out on an artificially created fractured rock sample. The tests regard the analysis of the hydraulic loss and the measurement of breakthrough curves for saline tracer pulse inside a rock sample of parallelepiped shape (0.60 × 0.40 × 0.08 m). The convolution theory has been applied in order to remove the effect of the acquisition apparatus on tracer experiments. The experimental results have shown evidence of a non-Darcy relationship between flow rate and hydraulic loss that is best described by Forchheimer's law. Furthermore, in the flow experiments both inertial and viscous flow terms are not negligible. The observed experimental breakthrough curves of solute transport have been modeled by the classical one-dimensional analytical solution for the advection-dispersion equation (ADE) and the single rate mobile-immobile model (MIM). The former model does not properly fit the first arrival and the tail while the latter, which recognizes the existence of mobile and immobile domains for transport, provides a very decent fit. The carried out experiments show that there exists a pronounced mobile-immobile zone interaction that cannot be neglected and that leads to a non-equilibrium behavior of solute transport. The existence of a non-Darcian flow regime has showed to influence the velocity field in that it gives rise to a delay in solute migration with respect to the predicted value assuming linear flow. Furthermore, the presence of inertial effects enhance non-equilibrium behavior. Instead, the presence of a transitional flow regime seems not to exert influence on the behavior of dispersion. The linear-type relationship found between velocity and dispersion demonstrates that for the range of imposed flow rates and for the selected path the geometrical dispersion dominates the mixing processes along the fracture network.


With the increasing importance that nanotechnologies have in everyday life, it is not difficult to realize that also a single molecule, if properly designed, can be a device able to perform useful functions: such a chemical species is called chemosensor, that is a molecule of abiotic origin that signals the presence of matter or energy. Signal transduction is the mechanism by which an interaction of a sensor with an analyte yields a measurable form of energy. When dealing with the design of a chemosensor, we need to take into account a "communication requirement" between its three component: the receptor unit, responsible for the selective analyte binding, the spacer, which controls the geometry of the system and modulates the electronic interaction between the receptor and the signalling unit, whose physico-chemical properties change upon complexation. A luminescent chemosensor communicates a variation of the physico-chemical properties of the receptor unit with a luminescence output signal.
This thesis work consists in the characterization of new molecular and nanoparticle-based system which can be used as sensitive materials for the construction of new optical transduction devices able to provide information about the concentration of analytes in solution. In particular two direction were taken. The first is to continue in the development of new chemosensors, that is the first step for the construction of reliable and efficient devices, and in particular the work will be focused on chemosensors for metal ions for biomedical and environmental applications. The second is to study more efficient and complex organized systems, such as derivatized silica nanoparticles. These system can potentially have higher sensitivity than molecular systems, and present many advantages, like the possibility to be ratiometric, higher Stokes shifts and lower signal-to-noise ratio.


227Ac is a naturally occuring radioactive tracer (half-life 21.8 years) that is continuously released into the overlying water by deep-sea sediments. Since the pioneering work of Nozaki (1984), it has been recognizedthat 227Ac in excess of its progenitor231Pa (227Acex) has a huge potential as a tracer for diapycnal mixing in the deep sea. However, data on the distribution of 227Ac are still scarce due to the difficult sampling and measurement.Recently, some additional information on the global distribution of227Ac has become available (Geibert et al. 2002), confirming the results of Nozaki, and adding new insights to the role of deep upwelling for its distribution in the Southern Ocean. There, 227Acex has been shown to bedetectable throughout the water column up to the sea surface as a consequence of intense and rapid verticalexchange of water masses.Here, we give an overview about the distribution of 227Ac in the ocean, including new results from inversemodelling. The obtained maps of the modelled global distribution of227Acex confirm that this tracer closelyreflects the underlying patterns of circulation and mixing.Additionally, we give an introduction to the available measurement techniques (different a-spectrometric techniques, delayed coincidence counting of its daughter nuclides), and present the potential applications of 227Ac inthe near future.


With energy consumption becoming one of the first-class optimization parameters in computer system design, compilation techniques that consider performance and energy simultaneously are expected to play a central role. In particular, compiling a given application code under performance and energy constraints is becoming an important problem. In this paper, we focus on an on-chip multiprocessor architecture and present a set of code optimization strategies. We first evaluate an adaptive loop parallelization strategy (i.e., a strategy that allows each loop nest to execute using a different number of processors if doing so is beneficial) and measure the potential energy savings when unused processors during execution of a nested loop are shut down (i.e., placed into a power-down or sleep state). Our results show that shutting down unused processors can lead to as much as 67 percent energy savings at the expense of up to 17 percent performance loss in a set of array-intensive applications. To eliminate this performance penalty, we also discuss and evaluate a processor preactivation strategy based on compile-time analysis of nested loops. Based on our experiments, we conclude that an adaptive loop parallelization strategy combined with idle processor shut down and preactivation can be very effective in reducing energy consumption without increasing execution time. We then generalize our strategy and present an application parallelization strategy based on integer linear programming (ILP). Given an array-intensive application, our optimization strategy determines the number of processors to be used in executing each loop nest based on the objective function and additional compilation constraints provided by the user/programmer. Our initial experience with this constraint-based optimization strategy shows that it is very successful in optimizing array-intensive applications on on-chip multiprocessors under multiple energy and performance constraints.


We extend the nominal rate of protection (NRP) methodology to a value chain framework. We develop our methodology for three types of value chains: a new value chain created by policy, a value chain in which a by‐product is created in the processing of a commodity, and a value chain in which processing of a commodity generates new product(s). We consider two cases of value chains: when the commodity is tradable and when it is non‐tradable. The proposed indicator, value chain NRP, allows policy‐makers to see an aggregate measure of all policy impacts on all the commodities and products in the value chain, normalised at the farm level. We apply the methodology to selected value chains in India. Our results indicate that farmers are subsidised, but at different rates. Both sugarcane producers and sugar producers are protected, but sugar producers are protected at higher rates. Producers of downstream products such as ethanol and molasses are taxed, whereas the crushing industry is subsidised. We observe that there is increasing protection along the value chain from commodity to product for the oilseeds sector, whereas the picture is less clear for the sugarcane value chain.


Flash-flood forecasting has emerged worldwide due to the catastrophic socio-economic impacts this hazard might cause and the expected increase of its frequency in the future. In mountain catchments, precipitation-runoff forecasts are limited by the intrinsic complexity of the processes involved, particularly its high rainfall variability. While process-based models are hard to implement, there is a potential to use the random forest algorithm due to its simplicity, robustness and capacity to deal with complex data structures. Here a step-wise methodology is proposed to derive parsimonious models accounting for both hydrological functioning of the catchment (e.g., input data, representation of antecedent moisture conditions) and random forest procedures (e.g., sensitivity analyses, dimension reduction, optimal input composition). The methodology was applied to develop short-term prediction models of varying time duration (4, 8, 12, 18 and 24 h) for a catchment representative of the Ecuadorian Andes. Results show that the derived parsimonious models can reach validation efficiencies (Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient) from 0.761 (4-h) to 0.384 (24-h) for optimal inputs composed only by features accounting for 80% of the model's outcome variance. Improvement in the prediction of extreme peak flows was demonstrated (extreme value analysis) by including precipitation information in contrast to the use of pure autoregressive models.


Postinfection irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS) is a diarrheal disease that develops after infectious gastroenteritis (IGE). Profound alterations in the microbiota accompany IGE yet only 10% of IGE patients progress to PI-IBS. This review explores research linking IGE severity, psychological comorbidity, PI-IBS, and the microbiome in various patient populations. Selective pressures caused by inflammation and increased gastrointestinal motility during gastroenteritis can alter intestinal bacterial phyla including Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria. More specifically, classes such as Bacteroides and Clostridia are differentially abundant in many PI-IBS patients. Altered microbiota may perpetuate a cycle of enteric and systemic inflammation, potently activating neural afferent signaling in the enteric nervous system and causing pain and diarrhea in PI-IBS patients. Altered production of microbial metabolites, for example short chain fatty acids, may have enteric and systemic effects on the host. Longitudinal sampling to characterize changes in the microbiota's genetic, metabolic, and transcriptional activities over time from IGE to PI-IBS may enable improved diagnosis and classification of PI-IBS cases into subtypes, allowing for targeted antibiotic, probiotic, and prebiotic treatments. PI-IBS is a heterogenous and largely organic disease marked by specific alterations in functions of the microbiota and is an important model for studying microbial influences on intestinal, neurological, and psychological host functions.


Both the variety and uniqueness of
organic semiconductors has contributed to the rapid development of
environmental engineering applications and renewable fuel production, typified
by photo-degradation of organic pollutants or water splitting. This paper
presents a rare example of an aggregation-induced emission luminogen (AIEgen)
as a highly efficient photo-catalyst for pollutant decomposition in an
environmentally relevant application. Under irradiation, the
tetraphenylethene-based AIEgen (TPE-Ca) exhibited high photo-degradation
efficiency of up to 98.7% of Rhodaminein (RhB) in aqueous solution. The
possible photocatalytic mechanism was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance
(EPR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra, electrochemistry,
thermal imaging technology, ultra-performance liquid chromatography and
high-definition mass spectrometry (UPLC/HDMS), as well as by density functional
theory (DFT) calculations. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the final
photo-catalytic degradation products show biocompatibility. Among the many
diverse AIEgens, this is the first AIEgen to be developed as a photo-catalyster
of organic pollutants. This research will open up new avenues for AIEgens
research, particularly for applications of environmental relevance.


In this thesis, we develop a meta-reasoning system based on CBR which solves sliding-block puzzles. The meta-reasoning system is built on top of a search-based sliding-block puzzle solving program which was developed as part of the specialization project at NTNU. As part of the thesis work, we study existing literature on automatic puzzle solving methods and state space search, as well as the use of reasoning and meta-level reasoning applied to puzzles and games. The literature study forms the theoretical foundation for the development of the meta-reasoning system. The meta-reasoning system is further enhanced by adding a meta-control cycle which uses randomized search to generate new cases to apply to puzzles. In addition, we explore several ways of improving the underlying solver program by trying to solve hard puzzles by using the solution for easier variants, and by developing a more memory-efficient way of representing puzzle configurations. We evaluate the results of our system, and shows that it offers a slight improvement compared to solving the puzzles with a set of general cases, as well as showing vast improvement for a few isolated test cases, but the performance is slightly behind the hand-tuned parameters we found in the specialization project. We conclude our work by identifying parts of our system where improvement can be done, as well as suggesting other promising areas for further research.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in verbal communication between doubles tennis teams during close game situations. Verbal messages exchanged between team players were recorded by means of audiotapes and videotapes. Recorded communication data were coded and analyzed using the Discussion Analysis Tool software (DAT; Jeong, 2003). Results indicated that most of the verbal communication included action (i.e., 34%) and emotional statements (i.e., 34%). Winning teams communicated twice as many messages than losing teams. Specifically, during the close games they won, winning teams communicated significantly more than losing teams. Losing teams used more communication patterns in close games they won relative to the ones they lost. Winning and losing teams also used distinct communication patterns during the close games they won relative to the ones they lost. These distinct communication patterns may have in turn improved the winning teams' coordination and thereby increased their ...


High doses of n–3 PUFA found in fish oils can reduce the circulating concentration of triacylglycerol (TG), which may contribute to the positive impact of these fatty acids on the risk of CVD. The present study aimed to establish the differential impact of EPA and docosahexaenoic (DHA) on plasma lipids and apo in adults. Forty-two normolipidaemic adult subjects completed a double-blind placebo controlled parallel study, receiving an EPA-rich oil (4·8 g EPA/d), DHA-rich oil (4·9 g DHA/d) or olive oil as control, for a period of 4 weeks. No effects of treatment on total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol or HDL-cholesterol were evident. There was a significant 22 % reduction in TG level relative to the control value following the DHA treatment (P=0·032), with the 15 % decrease in the EPA group failing to reach significance (P=0·258). There were no significant inter-group differences in response to treatment for plasma apoA1, -C3 or -E levels, although a significant 15 % within-group increase in apoE was evident in the EPA (P=0·006) and DHA (P=0·003) groups. In addition, a within-group decrease in the apoA1:HDL-cholesterol ratio was observed in the DHA group, suggesting a positive impact of DHA on HDL particle size. The DHA intervention resulted in a significant increase in the proportion of EPA P=0·000 and DHA P=0·000 in plasma phospholipids, whilst significant increases in EPA P=0·000 and docosapentaenoic acid P=0·002, but not DHA P=0·193, were evident following EPA supplementation (P>0·05). Our present results indicate that DHA may be more efficacious than EPA in improving the plasma lipid profile.


An effective In-line Inspection (ILI) program must provide a prioritized excavation response plan to address anomalies identified as being of particular concern. Locations that show potential for imminent or short term failure are prioritized under Phase 1 and Phase 2 responses respectively. Anomalies that could grow to become a severe risk for pipeline integrity prior to the next ILI are prioritized as Phase 3 excavations. This paper describes the use of External Corrosion Direct Assessment (ECDA) principles in prioritizing Phase 3 anomalies on a gas pipeline in northern Ontario, resulting in a more effective excavation program. A type of ECDA prioritization criterion, based on the results of an integrated Close Interval Potential Survey/Direct Current Voltage Gradient (CIPS/DCVG) survey in conjunction with the results of Phase 1 and Phase 2 digs, is proposed.


International migration implies the coexistence of different ethnic and cultural groups in the receiving country. The refugee crisis of 2015 has resulted in critical levels of opinion polarization on the question of whether to welcome migrants causing clashes in receiving countries. This scenario emphasizes the need to better understand the dynamics of mutual adaptation between locals and migrants and the conditions that favor successful integration. Agent-based simulations can help achieve this goal. In this work, we introduce our model MigrAgent and our preliminary results. The model synthesizes the dynamics of migration intake and postmigration adaptation. It explores the different acculturation outcomes that can emerge from the mutual adaptation of a migrant population and a local population depending on their degree of tolerance. With parameter sweeping, we detect how different acculturation strategies can coexist in a society and in different degrees among various subgroups. The results show higher polarization effects between a local population and a migrant population for fast intake conditions. When migrant intake is slow, transitory conditions between acculturation outcomes emerge for subgroups, for example, from assimilation to integration for liberal migrants and from marginalization to separation for conservative migrants. Relative group sizes due to speed of intake cause counterintuitive scenarios such as the separation of liberal locals. We qualitatively compare the processes of our model with the German portion sample of the survey "Causes and Consequences of Socio-Cultural Integration Processes Among New Immigrants in Europe," finding preliminary confirmation of our assumptions and results.


Buffer-indicated lime requirements of four groups of soils using several buffer methods were related to CaCO₂ incubation-measured lime requirements through regression analysis. Salt accumulated during the incubation period had marked effect on the amount of lime required to bring the soils to pH 6.5. Results from all buffer methods were highly correlated with incubation-measured values. Slopes and intercepts of regression lines revealed the marked tendency for the Woodruff buffer to indicate too much at low lime requirement levels and too little at high levels. The Mehlich buffer at pH 8.1 indicated approximately the correct amount for soils of high lime requirement but too much for those at low levels. Peech alterations of the Mehlich and the regular Mehlich method gave the same results. The Shoemaker, McLean, and Pratt method was found to be relatively rapid, accurate, and especially well adapted for soils requiring >4,000 lb of lime per acre, having


Richard Brown Baker (1912-2002) began collecting works by emerging artists in the 1940s, becoming one of the first collectors to embrace both Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art. He eventually amassed a collection of more than 1,600 works from the postwar period, including works by such groundbreaking American artists as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Chuck Close, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Morris, Jackson Pollock, Robert Rauschenberg, and James Rosenquist, as well as European and Asian artists such as Alberto Burri, Jean Dubuffet, Georges Mathieu, and Kurt Schwitters. Baker bequeathed the majority of his collection to the Yale University Art Gallery, and the balance to the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design. Highlighting 130 works, this is the first complete history of Baker's important collection. Essays by renowned art historians contextualize each of the five decades of Baker's collecting efforts, while entries on individual artists illustrate the remarkable scope of Baker's holdings. Throughout the publication, firsthand accounts from Baker's extensive personal journals describe his collecting activities within the dynamic New York art scene of the day.


Through teaching innovations, E-learning play a vital role in education. The researcher attests by determining the e-learning systems influence on students and instructors. In order to know the perceptions of the students and Instructors the researcher conducted a survey regarding their current experiences. The main purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of elearning used by the School of Computer Studies at Panpacific University. This study will detail the e-learning impacts which had on Instructors and Student participant's performance about the level of user satisfaction and productivity, utilization and problems encountered. The study found out that the use of e-learning systems shows a positive effect on student learning. Instructors utilized e-learning system as presentation and preparation tool in teaching and learning. Most instructors positively confirm that e-learning supports teaching and learning effectively implemented.


Curator Maria Campitelli wrote about PERDUTO PADRE:

This project arose from Fabiola Faidiga's pain, due to the loss of her father, and her necessity to deal with it and share it with other people/artists, in order to develop a plot of evocations, memories, assertions and analysis. These elements were supposed to reflect a want, a lack of what was but will not be anymore, and make it become art. Namely, it becomes a concrete witness of an ineluctable experience – death – and results in a constructive assertion and a range of propositions, enclosed in the complex sphere of art; prepositions that reassert the idea of life and the historical continuity in the succession of generations. The ten artists that accepted Faidiga's invitation display different marks. They recalled what their fathers did, what their fathers mostly identified themselves with and what they, daughters and sons, mostly acknowledged in their father's lives.

About 'Refocus' for PERDUTO PADRE
Nicola Rae with Douglas Rae

My father spent a great deal of time documenting our family life but unfortunately we have very few photographs of him. This regret developed into a wish to focus closely on the photographs of him that do exist at different stages in his life, projected as a series of black and white 35 mm slides. A looped fragment of his rarely-seen first film made in 1964 was also projected, using his Bell & Howell Autoload Standard 8 film projector.

Dad always carried a 35mm camera, a cine camera and a slide film camera, perhaps wanting to record and document everything that mattered to him, or possibly feeling more himself with a camera at hand. His earliest cameras from the 1950s-60s are shown on tripods in this installation: a visual presence of photography as process that represented one of his main interests away from work. The sounds of the whirring reels of the Bell & Howell Autoload Standard 8 film projector, and the sensation of seeing dust particles lit up in its beam, are well remembered from our childhood.

The section of unedited Standard 8 footage projected within the installation is at the start of his first film made in 1964, and shows my younger sister and myself ( aged 3 ) playing in our garden in Keston, Kent. We are trying to interrupt the process of being filmed by pouring water on his feet on a sunny day, and so negotiate a mutual space for play. Pushing me on the swing while filming, Dad captures movement in a more experiential way. Re-seeing these unedited silent film reels has been interesting, as the edited sections became overseen when transferred to low quality video with classical music that changed their meaning: the actual footage restages our narratives in different ways.

Projected through a 1958 Liesegang Fantax-Automat slide projector, the images of my father are seen in context and then in further detail: attempting to refocus through close ups on seeing him more clearly. He is shown as a boy and then after a four year internment in a Prisoner of War camp in Germany during his early twenties. His outraged memories of seeing a friend being shot while drawing from a window at Oflag V-B may have led directly to his early support of my chosen life as an artist, alongside my Mother's encouragement. My parents are seen holding hands for their engagement photograph in front of a ferry to Brittany, echoed again in the last photo taken of Dad standing, at their Golden Wedding Anniversary in 2003. Dad fell and broke his hip a month later, and Mum cared for him at home against hospital advice for five more years before he died in 2008. His presence still seems to be part of our lives particularly preparing for this exhibition.


This paper reviews the characteristics of human rights NGOs and their evolving role within the existing international and regional human rights mechanisms, and further, in Asia, the way in which they have worked together for better human rights practices and the establishment of regional human rights institutions (RHRIs) in this region. It also examines the role of human rights NGOs in strengthening human rights protection systems at the national level, especially in cooperation with national human rights institutions (NHRIs). My broad argument is that not only have they contributed to strengthening the international human rights system, but have also been key partners of regional bodies to effectively implement international norms at the regional level. Human rights NGOs are increasingly becoming regional for a better protection and promotion of human rights issues of common concern in the region, and they actively cooperate with other NGOs across national borders. All three existing regional human rights systems in Europe, the Americas, and Africa also show how human rights NGOs can interact and effectively address their concerns and problems under their regional framework. In Asia, their initiatives, input, and efforts have become the strong foundation for the establishment of RHRIs in the region. Further, at the national level, especially in relation to the cooperation with NHRIs, role of human rights NGOs is vital for the effectiveness of NHRIs and ultimately can lead to strengthening the national system for the protection and promotion of human rights. In other words, NHRIs' effectiveness for better human rights practices in each individual state depends mainly on how they can properly interact with the human rights NGOs and at the same time, on the level of interaction with civil society. In this paper, the case study of seven selected countries in Asia was provided to review the process of establishing NHRIs, both successful and unsuccessful ones, and more specifically, how human rights NGOs have worked together with NHRIs and their governments for the protection and promotion of human rights.


The problem of violence receives a lot of attention in Lithuania as well as in other countries. Scientific research data suggests that, while the crime rate is rapidly growing, violence against women in Lithuania (just like in other countries of the world) gains the largest comparative weight. Domestic violence has especially high rate in all social classes – from the poorest to the wealthiest. In view of the above said, Lithuania faces one problem that has to be dealt with urgently – how to estimate violence against women and children. Studies are conducted into reasons of violence, circumstances and mechanisms, measures are taken to develop preventive activity, ensure protection of victims of violence and their reintegration; however, we still lack data on the effects of violence on victims, households, general public and public sector (i.e. state and municipalities), and the state traditionally still fights against the consequences of violence instead of concentrating on preventive work. The outcome of such practice is negative – huge expenses incurred while fighting against the consequences of violence bring meager effects: the crime rate in Lithuania is growing, trafficking in persons is becoming more common, the population's health and demographic indicators are getting worse year by year. Moreover, violence reduces work efficiency, impairs quality of human resources, provokes such a phenomenon as women and children's absenteeism due to health problems, etc. All this, first of all, incurs huge expenses for the state and, secondly, has a negative effect on the population's standard of living and economic growth of the state. Comparative analysis of estimated costs of assistance to women who seek help in institutions of social care and those of supporting prisoners sentenced for violence shows that costs of fighting with the consequences of criminal acts at present in Lithuania significantly exceed the expenditure from the state budget allocated for crime prevention. In view of the above said, it is important to get acquainted with other countries' practice in this field and get aware of the real situation regarding violence against women and children in Lithuania; also, to compare state means allocated to fight against the consequences of violence and to its prevention and make relevant conclusions. In order to successfully deal with the problem of violence it is necessary to create an efficient model of fight against violence in Lithuania, which should be based on estimated costs of violence in Lithuania and aimed at the implementation of a system of preventive measures rather than fight against the consequences of violence. To get aware of the costs of violence incurred by the state, the researchers suggest employing such system of violence formation that would serve as a methodological grounding for further assessment of costs of violence. The suggested system of violence formation includes three levels: the first level – reasons of and factors encouraging violence; the second level – reflects emerging kinds and forms of violence in certain fields of social and economic activity; the third level – consequences of violence faced by the family, public and state. With a view to tightening control of criminal acts and minimizing psychological and economic consequences of violence, three major directions can be distinguished: – improving legislation, more effective use of sanctions against criminals, initiation of organizational changes in law application – restructuring law institutions; – preparing competent specialists for fighting against crimes, improving relations between officials and general public, ensuring public trust in law enforcement specialists; – encouraging early prevention, implementation of preventive measures at all levels (state, municipality, law enforcement institutions, organizations, enterprises, educational establishments, family, household).


This paper provides a critical review of the empirical literature on the relationship between health insurance, labor supply, and job mobility. We review over 50 papers on this topic, almost exclusively written in the last 10 years. We reach five conclusions. First, there is clear and unambiguous evidence that health insurance is a central determinant of retirement decisions. Second, there is fairly clear evidence that health insurance is not a major determinant of the labor supply and welfare exit decisions of low income mothers. Third, there is fairly compelling evidence that health insurance is an important factor in the labor supply decisions of secondary earners. Fourth, while there is some division in the literature, the most convincing evidence suggests that health insurance plays an important role in job mobility decisions. Finally, there is virtually no evidence in the literature on the welfare implications of these results. We present some rudimentary calculations which suggest that the welfare costs of job lock are likely to be modest. Our general conclusion is that health insurance has important effects on both labor force participation and job choice, but that it is not clear whether or not these effects results in large losses of either welfare or efficiency.


Background: Research on drinking water in the United States has rarely examined disproportionate exposures to contaminants faced by low-income and minority communities. This study analyzes the relationship between nitrate concentrations in community water systems (CWSs) and the racial/ethnic and socioeconomic characteristics of customers. Objectives: We hypothesized that CWSs in California's San Joaquin Valley that serve a higher proportion of minority or residents of lower socioeconomic status have higher nitrate levels and that these disparities are greater among smaller drinking water systems. Methods: We used water quality monitoring data sets (1999–2001) to estimate nitrate levels in CWSs, and source location and census block group data to estimate customer demographics. Our linear regression model included 327 CWSs and reported robust standard errors clustered at the CWS level. Our adjusted model controlled for demographics and water system characteristics and stratified by CWS size. Results: Percent Latino was associated with a 0.04-mg nitrate-ion (NO3)/L increase in a CWS's estimated NO3 concentration [95% confidence interval (CI), –0.08 to 0.16], and rate of home ownership was associated with a 0.16-mg NO3/L decrease (95% CI, –0.32 to 0.002). Among smaller systems, the percentage of Latinos and of homeownership was associated with an estimated increase of 0.44 mg NO3/L (95% CI, 0.03–0.84) and a decrease of 0.15 mg NO3/L (95% CI, –0.64 to 0.33), respectively. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that in smaller water systems, CWSs serving larger percentages of Latinos and renters receive drinking water with higher nitrate levels. This suggests an environmental inequity in drinking water quality.


Human capital endowment is one of the main factors influencing the level of development of a region. This paper analyses whether remoteness from economic activity has a negative effect on human capital accumulation and, consequently, on economic development. Making use of microdata this research proves that remoteness from economic activity has contributed to explain the divergences in the level of education observed across Spanish provinces over the last 50 years. The effect is significant even when controlling for the improvement of education supply. Nonetheless, the accessibility effect has been petering out since the 1960s due to the decreasing barriers to mobility.


This thesis investigates the mechanisms that lead to pole tip recession (PTR) in laminated magnetic recording heads (also known as "sandwich heads"). These heads provide a platform for the utilisation of advanced soft magnetic thin films in practical recording heads suitable for high frequency helical scan tape recording systems. PTR results from a differential wear of the magnetic pole piece from the tape-bearing surface of the head. It results in a spacing loss of the playback or read signal of 54.6dB per recording wavelength separation of the poles from the tape. PTR depends on the material combination used in the head, on the tape type and the climate - temperature and relative humidity (r.h.). Five head materials were studied: two non-magnetic substrate materials- sintered multi granular CaTi03 and composite CaTi03/ZrTi04/Ti02 and three soft magnetic materials- amorphous CoNbZr, and nanocrystalline FeNbSiN and FeTaN. Single material dummy heads were constructed and their wear rates measured when cycling them in a Hi-8 camcorder against commercially available metal particulate (MP) and metal evaporated (ME) tapes in three different climates: 25°C/20%r.h., 25°C/80%r.h. and 40°C/80%r.h. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to examine changes the head surface chemistry. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to examine changes in head and tape surface topography. PTR versus cycling time of laminated heads of CaTi03/ZrTiO4/Ti02 and FeTaN construction was measured using AFM. The principal wear mechanism observed for all head materials was microabrasion caused by the mating body - the tape surface. The variation in wear rate with climate and tape type was due to a variation in severity in this mechanism, except for tape cycling at 40°C in which gross damage was observed to be occurring to the head surface. Two subsidiary wear mechanisms were found: third body scratching (all materials) and grain pullout (both ceramics and FeNbSiN). No chemical wear was observed, though tribochemical reactions were observed on the metal head surfaces. PTR was found to be caused by two mechanisms - the first differential microabrasion of the metal and substrate materials and which was characterised by a low (~10nm) equilibrium value. The second was by deep ploughing by third body debris particles, thought mainly to be grain pullout particles. This level of PTR caused by this mechanism was often more severe, and of a non-equilibrium nature. It was observed more for ME tape, especially at 40°C/80%r.h. and 25°c/20%r.h. Two other phenomena on the laminated head pole piece were observed and commented upon: staining and ripple texturing.


The microblogging platform Twitter has enjoyed widespread uptake by museums for its ease of use and proven efficacy as a dialogic social medium. Warwickshire Museum's account @OisinTheDeer is founded upon a popular exhibit: the skeleton of an extinct Irish Elk. This is one of a growing number of accounts based on museum mascots, giving their parent museums a 'voice' to facilitate informal dialogic communication with diverse audiences. @OisinTheDeer has proved to be an effective broadcasting tool, further embedding the Warwickshire Museum within the broader arena of museums, heritage organisations, and local communities.


Coryneform bacteria are largely distributed in nature and are rod like, aerobic soil bacteria capable of growing on a variety of sugars and organic acids. Corynebacterium glutamicum is a nonpathogenic species of Coryneform bacteria used for industrial production of amino acids. There are three main publicly available genome annotations, Cg, Cgl and NCgl for C. glutamicum. All these three annotations have different numbers of protein coding genes and varying numbers of overlaps of similar genes. The original data is only available in text files. In this format of genome data, it was not easy to search and compare the data among different annotations and it was impossible to make an extensive multidimensional customized formal search against different protein parameters. Comparison of all genome annotations for construction deletion, over-expression mutants, graphical representation of genome information, such as gene locations, neighboring genes, orientation (direct or complementary strand), overlapping genes, gene lengths, graphical output for structure function relation by comparison of predicted trans-membrane domains (TMD) and functional protein domains protein motifs was not possible when data is inconsistent and redundant on various publicly available biological database servers. There was therefore a need for a system of managing the data for mutants and experimental setups. In spite of the fact that the genome sequence is known, until now no databank providing such a complete set of information has been available. We solved these problems by developing a standalone relational database software application covering data processing, protein-DNA sequence extraction and management of lab data. The result of the study is an application named, CORYNEBASE, which is a software that meets our aims and objectives.


Results from an extensive series of laboratory tests of irregular wave overtopping for a number of seawall and seawall/revetment configurations is presented. Data for 13 configurations has been collected and grouped into 7 data sets representing relatively similar geometrical characteristics. All data sets showed an approximately exponential relationship between the overtopping rate and a dimensionless freeboard parameter which is the ratio of the seawall freeboard to the local wave severity. This finding logically led to the development of three progressively more complex overtopping models. The models provide a relatively simple way to estimate overtopping rates and an objective way to evaluate the hydraulic performance of seawalls/revetments. Advantages and disadvantages of the models are discussed and their ability to predict overtopping rates is compared.


The aim of this study was to evaluate the growth performance and survival of the Pacific white shrimp ( Litopenaeus vannamei ) with red tilapia hybrid (Red Florida: Red Yumbo) and spotted rose snapper ( Lutjanus guttatus ), stocked at different densities in intensive brackish water mix-culture systems compared with monoculture of shrimp. The experiment, conducted in twenty-one plastic tanks (750 L) was set up to evaluate water quality, growth; production and survival of shrimp, tilapia, and snapper, for 60 days. Three replicates were assigned to seven treatments: After 30 day, initial densities were unfolded (shrimp = 50 org m -3 , tilapia = 16 org m -3 and red snapper = 8 org m -3 ).  Feeding rate was adjusted at 5 and 10% of body weight d -1 for shrimp and fish, respectively. The shrimp-tilapia mix cultures produced the higher nitrogen and phosphorus in water concentrations. Significant lower survival values were obtained for shrimp (60.0 ± 0.6%) cultured with snapper and for tilapia (79.0 ± 3.1%) reared with shrimp. Mean final biomass for shrimp, tilapia and snapper were higher for the mix-cultures (2.04, 7.7 and 2.9 fold increase, respectively) with respect to their initial biomass. The mix culture system allowed an increase in total production with lower feed conversion ratios, thus contributing with the system sustainability.


Abstract : In December 1996, a project was initiated at the Institute for Systems Research (ISR), under an agreement between Northrop Grumman Electronic Sensors and Systems Division (ESSD) and the ISR, to investigate the epitaxial growth of silicon{germanium (Si{Ge) heterostructures in a commercial rapid thermal chemical vapor deposition (RTCVD) reactor. This report provides a detailed account of the objectives and results of work done on this project as of September 1997. The report covers two main topics - modeling and model reduction. Physics{based models are developed for thermal, fluid, and chemical mechanisms involved in epitaxial growth. Experimental work for model validation and determination of growth parameters is described. Due to the complexity and high computational demands of the models, we investigate the use of model reduction techniques to reduce the model complexity, leading to faster simulation and facilitating the use of standard control and optimization strategies.


A survey to overview the presence of pollen supplements and substitutes for bees and other animal species in the EU was conducted to serve as input for the regulatory risk assessment of genetically modified feed by the EFSA GMO Panel. A comprehensive mapping of the possible presence of pollen collected by honey bees in the feed supply chain requires an understanding of the production in the EU as well as the flow of imports from non-EU to EU countries. The different uses of pollen as feed supplement were compiled by both identifying products being offered as well as the scientific and grey literature describing the applicability of pollen as feed for invertebrates such as honey bees and bumble bees as well as vertebrates ranging from pond fish, pet birds and chickens, rabbits, dogs, horses, camels, sheep and cows. The use of pollen as feed for managed honey bee colonies was identified, but rarely in commercial products due to the potential risk of spreading bee diseases. Significant quantities of frozen pollen were found necessary for the rearing of bumble bee colonies, which are marketed on an industrial scale for pollination. Bumble bee production is the only niche market where large amounts of pollen are specifically used as feed. Feed products for vertebrates tend to be generated from the same stock as pollen-based products for human consumption. This niche market is very fragmented. Any beekeeper can produce and market a pollen-based product. Only a few large specialized producers have been identified both in and outside the EU. The ratio between food and feed use of pollen is unknown in most cases. A notable exception is feed for bumble bee colonies, which may account for half of the pollen produced and imported in the EU. Products for other animals (vertebrates) are unlikely to represent more than 5% of the market. The customs classification for pollen does not allow for a clear distinction between food and feed and no statistics are being systematically stored and maintained.


Bipolar disorder (BD) is a debilitating psychiatric condition with a prevalence of 1–2% in the general population that is characterized by severe episodic shifts in mood ranging from depressive to manic episodes. One of the most common treatments is lithium (Li), with successful response in 30–60% of patients. Synapsin II (SYN2) is a neuronal phosphoprotein that we have previously identified as a possible candidate gene for the etiology of BD and/or response to Li treatment in a genome-wide linkage study focusing on BD patients characterized for excellent response to Li prophylaxis. In the present study we investigated the role of this gene in BD, particularly as it pertains to Li treatment. We investigated the effect of lithium treatment on the expression of SYN2 in lymphoblastoid cell lines from patients characterized as excellent Li-responders, non-responders, as well as non-psychiatric controls. Finally, we sought to determine if Li has a cell-type-specific effect on gene expression in neuronal-derived cell lines. In both in vitro models, we found SYN2 to be modulated by the presence of Li. By focusing on Li-responsive BD we have identified a potential mechanism for Li response in some patients.


Conservation aud sustainable development (CSD) represent one of the most important new ways of thinking in natural resource management and policy. Cornell University has developed an iuterdiscipli nary graduate minor to include this approach in its curriculum. The concept of CSD involves working toward environmental, social, and economic goals simultaneously. Although sustainability is sometimes criticized as a vague concept, CSD can be operationaliz ed by developing indicators for different goals through collaborative processes, and seeking positive sum solutions that, while not fully solving problems of sustainability, make concrete advances across these indicators. The graduate minor at Cornell University provides students with CSD concepts and skills through: (i) a core course, "Critical Issues in Conservation and Sustainable Development," which emphasizes the conceptual underpinnings of CSD and experience working in interdisciplinary groups to apply these concepts to case studies; (ii) a "Field Practicum in Conservation and Sustainable Development," which provides an interdisciplinary, team problem-solving experience in Latin America; and (iii) elective courses that provide students with interdisciplinary breadth, rather than the depth fostered by traditional minors. Students have found that the CSD minor helps them situate their research in the context of practical environmental management and policy problems, and provides them with skills to mauage complex relationships with practitioners and local communities


OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to determine whether facility-level, structural factors affect the provision of assistive devices and services.

DESIGN
A retrospective design was used. Activities of daily living and mobility-related devices were categorized into 11 types. Logistic regression models were performed for each type of device, controlling for patient-level and facility-level covariates.

RESULTS
Non-veteran-level factors significantly affect the provision of assistive devices, even after covariate adjustment. Increased rehabilitation clinician staffing by 1 full-time equivalent position was associated with increased provision odds of 1%-5% for 5 of 11 types of devices. Lower facility complexity was significantly associated with increased provision odds of 35%-59% for 3 types of devices and with decreased provision odds of 16%-69% for 3 types of devices.

CONCLUSION
System-level factors, in addition to patient need, significantly affect the provision of assistive devices. Provision guidelines could assist clinicians in making decisions about device provision.


Athletes include altitude training as a complement to their conventional training to improve performance. The aim of the study was to analyze the effects on anaerobic threshold (AT) produced by an IHT program in triathletes. 18 male trained triathletes were divided into intermittent hypoxic training group (GIHT: n=9; age: 26±6.73 years, height 173.33±5.94 cm, weight: 66.38±5.91 kg) and control group (GC: n=9; age: 29.27±6.84 years, height 174.89±4.59 cm, weight: 71.59±6.81 kg). The IHT program consisted of two 60-min sessions per week at intensities over the AT and atmospheric conditions between 14.5 and 15% FiO2. Before and after the program, cycling performance in a lactate thresholds test was determined. The treatment caused an improvement in the power output and perceived exertion in AT and enhanced cardiac performance in the aerobic threshold and AT.


In Speculation as a Mode of Production: Forms of Value Subjectivity in Art and Capital, Marina Vishmidt offers a new perspective on one of the main categories of capitalist life in the historical present. Writing not under the shadow but in the spirit of Adorno's negative dialectic, her work pursues speculation through its contested terrains of philosophy, finance, and art, to arrive at the most detailed analysis that we now possess of the role of speculation in the shaping of subjectivity by value relations. Featuring detailed critical discussions of recent tendencies in the artistic representation of labour, and a brilliant reconstruction of the philosophical concept of the speculative from its origins in German Romanticism, Speculation as a Mode of Production is an essential, widescreen theorisation of capital's drive to self-expansion, and an urgent corrective to the narrow and one-sided periodisations to which it is most commonly subjected.


Martin Buber was one of the most significant religious thinkers of the twentieth century. In this short and remarkable book he presents the essential teachings of Hasidism, the mystical Jewish movement which swept through Eastern Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Told through stories of imagination and spirit, together with Buber's own unique insights, The Way of Man offers us a way of understanding ourselves and our place in a spiritual world. 'There is something', he suggests, 'that can only be found in one place. It is a great treasure, which may be called the fulfilment of existence. The place where this treasure can be found is the place on which one stands.' Challenging us to recognize our own potential and to reach our true goal, The Way of Man is a life-enhancing book.


The concentration of arsenic (As) in rice grains has been identified as a risk to human health. The high proportion of inorganic species of As (As(i)) is of particular concern as it is a nonthreshold, class 1 human carcinogen. To be able to breed rice with low grain As, an understanding of genetic variation and the effect of different environments on genetic variation is needed. In this study, 13 cultivars grown at two field sites each in Bangladesh, India, and China are evaluated for grain As. There was a significant site, genotype, and site by genotype interaction for total grain As. Correlations were observed only between sites in Bangladesh and India, not between countries or within the Chinese sites. For seven cultivars the As was speciated which revealed significant effects of site, genotype, and site by genotype interaction for percentage As(i). Breeding low grain As cultivars that will have consistently low grain As and low As(i), over multiple environments using traditional breeding approaches may be difficult, although CT9993-5-10-1-M, Lemont, Azucena, and Te-qing in general had low grain As across the field sites.


The research presented here focuses on the functional aspect of biodiversity of plant
communities, with emphasis placed on the functions of species within biological
communities and ecosystems, rather than their identity. The prominence of plant
functional traits as major contributors to ecosystem functioning is based on underlying
mechanisms whereby individual species interact with each other and with their abiotic
environment to influence ecological processes on different spatial scales. In this study,
particular attention is given to the modulating effects of functional diversity and
composition on community dynamics and ecosystem processes (e.g., soil processes
relevant to the cycles of carbon and nitrogen), as well as its response to disturbance. A
number of green leaf functional traits considered to be pertinent to soil processes and the
biogeochemical cycles of carbon and nitrogen were measured from vascular plant species
growing in lowland fens in East Anglia, UK. Such habitats are widely recognised as areas of
high conservation value for providing numerous benefits to society, including nutrient
cycling and soil carbon storage. The set of analyses presented here reveals the implications
of different degrees of management intervention for the functional composition of lowland
fen plant communities. Overall, the functional diversity of such communities were found
to respond strongly to changing disturbance intensity, to significantly interact with abiotic
factors to contribute to the provision of ecosystem processes and to exert major effects on
species coexistence within plant assemblages. These results confirm the wide applicability
of the trait approach when investigating the effects of biodiversity on the stability of
biological communities and ecosystems, and is potentially informative to conservation focused
projects that aim to simultaneously enhance biodiversity and the provision of vital
ecosystem services. In fact, management intervention was largely found to favour species
with a set of traits conducive to enhancing soil carbon storage, lending support to current
long term conservation projects that aim to positively influence soil carbon balance.


This document describes how to prepare Unicode strings representing
user names and passwords for comparison. The document defines the
"SASLprep" profile of the "stringprep" algorithm to be used for both
user names and passwords. This profile is intended to be used by
Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL) mechanisms (such as
PLAIN, CRAM-MD5, and DIGEST-MD5), as well as other protocols
exchanging simple user names and/or passwords. [STANDARDS-TRACK]


Modern file systems, such as ext4, btrfs, and XFS, are evolving and enable the introduction of new features to meet ever-changing demands and improve reliability. File system developers are struggling to eliminate all software bugs, but the operating system community points out that file systems are a hotbed of critical software bugs. This paper analyzes the code coverage of xfstests, a widely used suite of file system tests, on three major file systems (ext4, btrfs, and XFS). The coverage is 72.34%, and the uncovered code runs into 23,232 lines of code. To understand why the code coverage is low, the uncovered code is manually examined line by line. We identified three major causes, peculiar to file systems, that hinder higher coverage. First, covering all the features is difficult because each file system provides a wide variety of file-system specific features, and some features can be tested only on special storage devices. Second, covering all the execution paths is difficult because they depend on file system configurations and internal on-disk states. Finally, the code for maintaining backward-compatibility is executed only when a file system encounters old formats. Our findings will help file system developers improve the coverage of test suites and provide insights into fostering the development of new methodologies for testing file systems. key words: file system, code coverage, software test


Two monoclonal antibodies prepared to purified virions of bean golden mosaic virus (BGMV) isolates from Guatemala (GA) and the Dominican Republic (DR) and one monoclonal antibody prepared to the coat protein of a BGMV isolate from Brazil (BZ) expressed in Escherichia coli were useful serological probes for detection of whiteflytransmitted geminiviruses. Abutilon mosaic, BGMV isolates from Puerto Rico (PR), and Homestead, Morida (H), BGMV-BZ, -DR, and -GA isolates, euphorbia mosaic, rhynchosia mosaic, squash leaf curl, soybean yellow mosaic, an isolate from Macroptilium lathyroides in Morida, and tomato mottle geminiviruses all reacted efficiently in Western blot and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with monoclonal antibody 3F7, indicating that this monoclonal antibody has a broad spectrum of reactivity. Another monoclonal antibody (2G5) reacted only with BGMV-DR, -GA, and -PR isolates. A third monoclonal antibody (5C5) reacted only with BGMV-BZ. A new geminivirus infecting cabbage (Bras-sicaceae) in Florida did not react with any of the three monoclonal antibodies


BACKGROUND
Patients with liver disease frequently have nutritional problems but intervening to improve these is challenging. Healthcare interventions that respond to patients' needs are associated with better health outcomes but no studies investigating patients' preferences for nutrition-related outcomes in liver disease have been published. The present study aimed to identify nutrition-related health outcomes that are important to patients with liver disease.

METHODS
An electronic questionnaire was devised and reviewed by patients and dietitians with relevant experience. It comprised a Likert scale and open questions focussing on six domains considered pertinent to patients with liver disease. An invitation to participate was posted on the website of a national liver charity and sent to liver patient support groups.

RESULTS
Fifty-one patients participated (22 men and 29 women). Responses indicated a wide range of preferred nutrition-related outcomes, with those identified as very important most frequently focussing on gaining knowledge about which foods to eat more or less of, as well as on understanding why nutrition is important in liver disease. Women tended to score outcomes as more important than did men. Participants who considered themselves overweight scored outcomes on body size and shape as more important than those with other nutritional problems. Additional outcomes were identified and included an increased knowledge of healthy eating, interactions between medication and food, and supplementation.

CONCLUSIONS
The present study identified a wide range of nutrition-related outcomes that were important to this small sample of patients with liver disease and these may be useful to guide the direction of future nutrition-related management.


STUDY QUESTION
What is the predictive value of pregnancy intentions on contraceptive behaviours among women aged 18-19?

SUMMARY ANSWER
Women aged 18-19 have high levels of inconsistent use of contraception, which mostly occur at times when women strongly wish to avoid a pregnancy.

WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY
Pregnancy intentions provide an indication of how well individuals achieve their reproductive goals. However, retrospective accounts of pregnancy intentions using dichotomous indicators suffer temporal instability and fail to capture the wide range of attitudes towards pregnancy.

STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION
In this study, data are drawn from a population-based survey of 992 women of ages 18-19 years in Michigan, who completed weekly journals assessing contraceptive use, pregnancy intentions and reproductive outcomes during 2.5 years of follow-up. The response rate was 86% for the baseline interview and 65% after 2.5 years of follow-up.

PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS
We examined 15 446 pairs of journal entries. We used logistic regression with random effects to assess the predictive effect of women's desire to become pregnant and to avoid a pregnancy, measured each week, on consistency of use of contraception the following week.

MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE
Women reported inconsistent use of contraception in more than a quarter of weekly journals (28.3%). Consistent use of contraception increased from 22 to 78% as women s intentions to become pregnant decreased and increased from 23 to 78% as motivations to avoid pregnancy increased. The combination of scores of the pregnancy desire and avoidance scales shows indifferent or ambivalent pregnancy attitudes in 8.6% of weekly records. These women were more likely to report inconsistent contraceptive use compared with women who expressed anti-conception attitudes [OR = 2.8 (2.2-3.5)]. However, 23% of women who had unequivocal anti-conception feelings did not use contraception consistently, contributing to 72% of the weeks of inconsistent use in our population.

LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION
In this study, consistency of contraceptive use, based on the use of contraception at every act of intercourse, does not fully capture a women's risk of becoming pregnant. The 35% attrition after 2.5 years may have affected the internal validity of our results, although a reanalysis based on the first year of observation produced very similar results.

WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS
Because most instances of inconsistent use of contraception occur among women who are keen to avoid a pregnancy, our results suggest there is room for improving contraceptive behaviours by promoting use of methods which do not require user adherence.

STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)
This work was supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for grant #R01-HDHD050329 (P.I. Barber, University of Michigan) and grant #R24HD047879 (Center infrastructure of the Office of Population Research at Princeton University, JT and KSH). None of the authors have a competing interest.


Leprosy is a worldwide health problem, which needs the development of new and inno- vative strategies to be controlled. Early diagnosis of leprosy is an important contribution to reducing the incidence of the disease; thus, the development of biotechnology plat- forms, which include the mapping of antigens with potential to be used in immunodiagnostic and molecular methods for the detection of Mycobacterium leprae , is an important tool to confirm the clinic al diagnostic. Molecular biology and biotechnological methods have been used to assist in the diagnosis of this disease, each one with its advantages and drawbacks. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is the used method for leprosy diagnosis, and it allows the detection of infection-related antigens. Alternatively, due to their versatility to perform the same functions as the protein and non-protein natural antigens, mimetic peptides are considered an important tool. On the other hand, lateral flow assay (LFA) and optical and electrochemical biosensors are rapid and por - table methods, capable of performing diagnosis in the field without sample preparation. This chapter presents such techniques, their uses in the diagnosis and detection of M. leprae, as well as the potential for the development of new techniques and strategies that can help to control and understand mycobacteriosis.


The introduction of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in India has injected hope for augmented economic growth in recent future. The motive behind establishment of SEZs was mainly to fuel rapid economic growth, provide world class infrastructure and employment, promote exports, increase foreign exchange reserves and attract more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The main objective of the paper is to investigate whether the enactment of SEZ policies had any impact on inflow of FDI among Indian states. This is tested using panel data techniques on 16 groups of states over 14 years period from 2001 to 2014. The results indicate that enactment of SEZ policy (as well as operational SEZs) in a state has induced more FDI inflow. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the states, which want to benefit from FDI inflow, they need to enact the policies sooner.


Purpose: The main objective of the Dakota core drilling program was to determine reserves of uraniferous lignite based on chemical uranium and spectrographic determinations from unweathered samples, particularly from those areas where surface sampling of the beds during the previous field season indicated that significant deposits of uranium-bearing lignite might be present. A secondary objective was to obtain fresh samples and to measure the radioactivity of the overlying Oligocene White River and Miocene Arikaree formations from which the uranium in lignite is believed to have been derived.