Cluster munitions have been a significant weapon in the world's arsenals for the last half-century, but their use has drawn sharp criticism for its impact on civilian populations. The weapons function by releasing dozens of small "bomblets" over a wide area. For years the debate over these weapons was focused on whether they violated the norms of international humanitarian law, but the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions has altered the discussion, banning the weapons outright. However, the major states that use the weapons, including the United States, have not joined the Convention, and the use of cluster munitions continues. This Note focuses in particular on the American approach to the weapons. It examines the legal status of the weapons and the degree to which U.S. policy has addressed some of the problems associated with them. Finally, it argues that if the United States insists on using cluster munitions, it must create a stricter policy to ensure that its use of the weapons is actually


Nurses in clinical settings in which evidence-based, individualized care is expected are often the best resource to identify important clinical questions and gaps in practice. These nurses are frequently challenged by a lack of resources to fully develop their questions and identify the most appropriate methods to answer them. A strategic and ongoing partnership between medical library services and nursing can support nurses as they embark on the process of answering these questions and, ultimately, improving patient care and clinical outcomes


We introduce a computational scheme for analyzing higher harmonic generation in nonlinear optical periodic nanostructures that are composed of multiple layers. Such nanostructures, i.e., photonic crystals, plasmonic nanostructures, or metamaterials, are currently in the focus of interest to enhance the efficiency of various nonlinear processes. We exploit an adapted Fourier modal method combined with a modified scattering-matrix algorithm to numerically model these processes. We explicitly present a numerically stable formulation of the scheme. The strength and the applicability of the algorithm are outlined at some selected examples.


Child maltreatment is a growing problem nationally in Australia. This paper documents the extent of the problem. It also presents a range of interventions shown to work, including a number that have been developed and used here in Australasia. Despite the fact that there are evidence-based services available, the problem of child maltreatment continues to grow. Problems linked to implementing and sustaining an evidence-based program or culture include organisations that are resistant to change, whose staff see a new program as short term and not a part of longer-term, routine service delivery. In the face of such a climate, these initial conditions then have potential to become exacerbated through hasty implementation of new services that are not well thought out, resourced or supported. With intervention services that have documented potential, the critical next step is to ensure that implementation is done correctly to guarantee that successful services are being delivered effectively over the long term. Thus, following a description of the problem of child maltreatment and review of potential intervention-based solutions, this paper then discusses factors that need to be considered when advocating for or adopting a new, evidence-supported service. Psychologists have a role to play in the future to help stem the growth of child maltreatment in Australia, at both local service delivery as well as state and national policy levels.


The present paper objective is generalization of the effects of agro-industrial entities' activity in Ukraine and outlining the main trends of their regulation by the state, with the aim of enjoying integration processes advantages. The topic expediency is stipulated by the need for finding new approaches to the state regulation of agro-holding growth caused by ambiguity of public perception of their operation and their impact on the development of the agricultural sector as a whole. The paper substantiates a necessity for strengthening the regulating influence of the state on development of large corporate structures of the agricultural sector of Ukraine's economy. The positive and negative aftermath of agro-holding operation has been identified; the main determinants of their activity regulation by the state have been specified.


The high virulence of the Dutch elm disease (DED) pathogen, Ophiostoma novoulmi, has decimated European and North American elm populations during the last century. The number of native resistant elm clones available on the market is scarce, and the defense mechanisms that render a tree tolerant or resistant to the disease are not well understood. In this work we cultivated in vitro Ulmus minor plants with the aim to: i) study the pathogen dispersion rate in two clones of contrasting susceptibility level to DED, and ii) characterize plant stress responses after O. novoulmi inoculation. At 1, 3, 7, 14 and 21 days after inoculation (dai) we monitored: pathogen spread within the plant, plant oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation), content of phenolic compounds, level of chlorophylls, and plant growth. We also performed an anatomical study of the xylem to evaluate the possible role of conduit size on susceptibility. The rate of pathogen dispersal was similar in both clones, suggesting that tolerance rather than resistance mechanisms operate in the low susceptible clone. Xylem anatomy was also similar in both clones, and therefore differences in the response to the pathogen were not attributable to anatomical factors. After pathogen inoculation, the tolerant clone showed a marked increase in lipid peroxidation at 1 dai, but afterwards the levels decreased to values of control plants. The susceptible clone, on the contrary, showed enhanced values of lipid peroxidation at 1, 3, 14 and 21 dai. A peak in total phenolic compounds was detected in the tolerant clone at 3 dai, while no significant changes were observed in the susceptible clone. The susceptible but not the tolerant plantlets suffered a significant delay in apical growth and a decrease in chlorophyll content at 21 dai. The results suggest that the tolerant clone, in spite of being widely colonized by the pathogen, rapidly controlled the induced oxidative burst by producing antioxidant compounds. The susceptible clone maintained a high oxidative stress level during a long period after inoculation, which possibly led to cell damage, cessation of growth and reduced chlorophyll content. Oxidative stress homeostasis thus appears as a factor that can contribute to elm tolerance to DED. Furthermore, the in vitro system used in the experiment arises as plausible early-screening method of elm tolerance.


This introduction addresses a number of approaches to the emerging field of the study of conspiracy theories and new and alternative religions. Scholars can examine how certain religious groups have been the subject of conspiracy narratives created by the wider culture, and how conspiracy narratives are mobilized within religious groups such as Aum Shinrikyo, Scientology or others. Moreover, we can fruitfully examine secular conspiracy theories through ideas typically applied to religions, such as theodicy, millenarianism, and esoteric claims to higher knowledge. Most studies assume that conspiracy theories indicate pathology—paranoia or simply stupidity. Increasingly however, scholars have begun to interpret the term "conspiracy theory" as operating polemically to stigmatize certain beliefs and ideas. The field therefore offers a microcosm of broader trends in the interplay of knowledge and power. The study of both new and emergent religions and conspiracy theories comes of age only when we cease to think of them as necessarily deviant and irrational.


Defects in myosin XVa and the PDZ domain-containing protein, whirlin, underlie deafness in humans and mice. Hair bundles of mutant mice defective for either protein have abnormally short stereocilia. Here, we show that whirlin, like myosin XVa, is present at the very tip of each stereocilium in the developing and mature hair bundles of the cochlear and vestibular system. We found that myosin XVa SH3-MyTH4 region binds to the short isoform of whirlin (PR-PDZ3) that can rescue the stereocilia growth defect in whirlin defective mice. Moreover, the C-terminal MyTH4-FERM region of myosin XVa binds to the PDZ1 and PDZ2 domains of the long whirlin isoform. We conclude that a direct myosin XVa-whirlin interaction at the stereocilia tip is likely to control the elongation of stereocilia. Whirlin, unlike myosin XVa, is also transiently localized in the basal region of developing stereocilia in rat vestibular and cochlear hair cells until P4 and P12, respectively. Notably, whirlin also interacts with myosin VIIa that is present along the entire length of the stereocilia. Finally, we show that the transmembrane netrin-G1 ligand (NGL-1) binds to the PDZ1 and PDZ2 domains of whirlin and has an extracellular region that homophilically self-interacts in a Ca2+-dependent manner. The interaction between whirlin and NGL-1 might be involved in the stabilization of interstereociliar links.


Islamic epistemology is based on a central doctrine; Allah (swt) is the source of all knowledge. Three main sources arise there form viz. God's teaching to Adam, Revelation (Qur'an and Sunnah), and Fitrah. The knowledge of Adam of was transmitted to his sons, and continues to flow down from one generation to another. Revelation being the word of God holds the truth, nothing but. The words of the Qur'an and their contexts contain the absolute and infinite knowledge. The Qur'an contains verses, which instigate the human mind to ponder on the wonders of the Universe form atoms to galaxies. It is a prime motive for scientific research. God taught man all what man knows, including science and technology. It is He who taught Adam the names of all things. It is He who taught Noah how to build ships, and taught Dawood how to use Iron to make shields and war equipment. It is He who facilities the powers and contents of nature for human benefit. Fitrah is an inborn faculty and great gif bestowed upon man. It is a formidable natural force. When its powers are released, the mind opens up to inspiration, whence great feats are accomplished. In the West it is left unleashed, in contrast with Islam which refines and controls it. Pure Fitrah leads to (Iman) and guides the soul towards good.


This paper presents a novel completely scaling-free CORDIC algorithm in rotation mode for hyperbolic trajectory. We use most-significant-1 bit detection technique for micro-rotation sequence generation to reduce the number of iterations. By storing the sinh/cosh hyperbolic values at octant boundaries in a ROM, we can extend the range of convergence to the entire coordinate space. Based on this, we propose a pipeline hyperbolic CORDIC processor to implement a direct digital synthesizer (DDS). The DDS is further used to derive an efficient arbitrary waveform generator (AWG), where a pseudo-random number generator modulates the linear increments of phase to produce random phase-modulated waveform. The proposed waveform generator requires only one DDS for generating variety of modulated waveforms, while existing designs require separate DDS units for different type of waveforms, and multiple DDS units are required to generate composite waveforms. Therefore, area complexity of existing designs gets multiplied with the number of different types waveforms they generate, while in case of proposed design that remains unchanged. The proposed AWG when mapped on Xilinx Spartan 2E device, consumes 1076 slices and 2016 4-input LUTs. The proposed AWG involves significantly less area and lower latency, with nearly the same throughput compared to the existing CORDIC-based designs.


This monograph is intended as a contribution to the integral description of language and verbal communication. Chapter I and Chapters VII and VIII are concerned with general problems of emotivity and expressivity in language as such and on all linguistic levels. These chapters describe emotivity from a new semiotic perspective and suggest a typology of emotive signs and meanings. Chapter II discusses general methodology of investigating and "measuring" emotive meaning in the area of word-formation (with examples from Russian). Chapters III, IV and V treat Russian diminutives fromgeneral-structural, lexical-contextual and pragmatic perspectives, while Chapter VI presents a comparison of the semantic structures of the various types of emotive noun derivatives which exist in Russian. The book thus begins with a general treatment on emotivity, goes on to consider the specific case of emotive noun-formation, giving special attention to the Russian diminutives, and then returns, by way of a comparison of the semantic structures of various types of emotive nouns, to more general problems of emotivity in language and to semiotic typology.


Since the goal of interventions for diabetic nephropathy is to prevent the progression of the disease, new early circulating biomolecules should be identified to be used as an early diagnostic tool instead of "markers" of nephropathy in diabetes patients. Hence, it would be essential to identify the earliest possible biomolecules which could serve as an early predictor for hyperglycemia induced nephropathy. Reports have showed association of elevated CYP2E1 gene expression and protein level in peripheral lymphocytes with prolonged diabetes and chronic renal failure. Our objectives were to evaluate the correlation of lymphocyte CYP2E1 in diabetic nephropathy and to identify other early peripheral biomolecules correlating with the onset of diabetic nephropathy. This is a cross-sectional cohort study, conducted on Malaysian subjects, consisted of control (C; n=28), type 2 diabetes (D; n=50), diabetic nephropathy (DN; n=34) and nondiabetic nephropathy (NDN; n=27) cohorts. Expression of CYP2E1 gene was evaluated using real-time PCR. Peripheral biomolecules correlating with onset of DN was investigated using microarray analysis. Differential and correlation statistics were done using ANOVA on ranks test and Spearman Rank Order Correlation test respectively. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant. Lymphocyte CYP2E1 levels correlated significantly with the increments of ACR and serum creatinine, and were detectable even when ACR and serum creatinine were still within normal reference limits. Further investigations are needed to determine the applicability of CYP2E1 as well as PGK1, GPI, ENO1, TPI1, ANGPTL4, AKR1B1 and SORD as candidate early risk predictors for diabetic nephropathy.


ABSTRACT In the context of higher tuition fees, the Government's employability agenda and growing concern for defined career development strategies among young people, there is a need more effectively for Politics programmes to foster the capacity to communicate politics. Without communicating the implications and relevance of politics the subject and the skills derived from studying within Politics the discipline, Politics departments may face recruitment difficulties that those in, for example, the natural sciences, vocational subjects or the ascendant Business Management, may not. This article examines pedagogical means of promoting the capacity to communicate politics as part of an overall programme which integrates outreach, widening participation, recruitment, undergraduate study and employability activities. I focus, in particular, on applying salient approaches prominent within the Politics pedagogical literature to the development of the curriculum of a third year undergraduate module in the Department of Politics, Philosophy and Religion at Lancaster University: PPR389: Communicating Politics. I suggest that incorporating active learning and innovative teaching and assessment methods provides opportunities for meeting both student recruitment and employability agendas in Politics and beyond.


Acute intoxication at pediatric age is one of the main causes of mortality and morbidity, with major impact on premature mortality and quality of life. Therefore, poisoning is one of the main reasons for presentation in the emergency room, with a permanent concern for analyzing both the real incidence and their evolutionary features. The World Health Organization estimates that, in 2004, the poisoning caused the death of over 45,000 people under 20 years old worldwide. It is also noted that fatal poisoning rates in low-income and middle-income countries are four times those of high-income countries. The age distribution of acute fatal poisoning in children has two peaks of incidence: children under 1 year old and adolescents around the age of 13-19 years old.


Autoimmune diseases (AD) are responsible for a substantial amount of disability and morbidity worldwide. Research generally focuses on a single disease, although autoimmune phenotypes could represent pleiotropic outcomes of non-specific disease genes underlying similar immunogenetic mechanisms. This report examined the effect and importance of the homozygosity status, using genome-wide interspersed markers, in individuals and multiplex families affected with AD. This study presented two approaches: (I) a case-control comparison and evaluation on the effect of homozygosity at the genome-wide level and per marker, including 453 unrelated individuals (121 late-, 79 early-onset AD, 40 polyautoimmunity (PolyA), 30 multiple autoimmune syndrome (MAS) and 183 healthy control individuals); and (II) a model-free affected pair linkage approach which included 35 MAS, 49 polyA, 104 late-, and 83 early-onset multiplex families. A total of 372 genome-wide markers were used in the analysis. The standardized observed homozygosity (SOH) was calculated and the association of the homozygosity status and the autoimmune trait was evaluated. The multipoint model-free linkage analysis was applied by using RELPAL from S.A.G.E v6.3. Results for the SOH showed significant differences between controls and early-onset individuals, where early-onset affected individuals showed lower homozygosity relative to controls. No differences were observed relative to controls for MAS, polyA and late-onset disease at the genome-wide level. The local marker homozygosity effect showed share and specific risk and/or protective effects for 24 markers. The model-free affected pair linkage approach lacked any suggestive linkage signals, but marginal signals displayed excess allele sharing for extreme phenotypes in autoimmunity. This study presumed autoimmunity as a trait rather than a clinical phenotype and tried to approach AD as a continuous trait presenting extreme phenotypes. Future approaches would be expected to dwell on the data presented here to corroborate and expand on sample size, marker coverage and their effects.


The French coast of the Atlantic and English Channel (EC) is promising for the development of Marine Renewable Energy (MRE), including wind, wave, and tidal stream, due to the high velocity of currents in some parts of the area. This paper, focusing on wind and tidal energy, discusses how the implementation of MRE converters influences biodiversity, and vice versa, through biofouling and reef effects. The understanding of these interactions requires the knowledge of the hydro-sedimentary conditions and the macrofauna. The research on these topics, performed at the Continental and Coastal Morphodynamic laboratory (M2C) (UNICAEN, France), is presented through a multi-disciplinary approach by i) studying the hydrodynamic conditions and the macrofauna in Alderney Race, ii) studying the biofouling effects on tidal turbines and their influence on the turbulent wake, iii) assessing the hydro-sedimentary impacts induced by the offshore wind farm, like scouring, and iv) taking an ecosystem approach on MRE, such as the reef effect. From an ecological perspective, the reef effect can be responsible for changes in the structure and function of the ecosystem. Although several studies have analyzed this effect at the species-or community-scale, the propagation of the reef effect at the ecosystem-scale remains unclear. Thus, understanding these ecosystem-scale effects is urgent for future research. From an engineering perspective, biofouling changes the structural characteristics (i.e., supplementary mass) of the converters and thus, affects their performance.


This dissertation examines two different topics related to the issuance of a convertible debt security. The first essay addresses the question of how managers set the equity value in a convertible debt issue. A convertible debt security has value derived from an equity component and a debt component. As a result, managers must decide how much of the convertible debt's value will be derived from equity at issuance. I examine three hypotheses in addressing this question. Empirical evidence is provided supporting the assertion that managers issue more equity-like debt when the firm will have lower future operating performance and a greater potential for underinvestment. Empirical support is not found for managers take into consideration asset substitution concerns when setting the equity value in a convertible debt issue. The second essay examines why are abnormal returns negative for the equity during the convertible debt's issuance period. This has been documented by Dann and Mikkelson (1984), Mikkelson and Partch (1986, 1988), and also by this dissertation. I furnish evidence that is consistent with a bid-ask spread bias not causing the negative equity abnormal returns during the issuance period of a convertible debt security. Tests are also performed that provide results that are consistent with the issue period returns being partially due to a resolution of


Since 1974, the curriculum for the Norwegian school has had a overarching part that puts the school and its content into a bigger social and political context. As such, this part of the curriculum is a highly political and ideological text that expresses the state's purpose and interest related to the school. This article looks into how indigenous people, minorities and diversity is represented in the general part of the curriculum from 1974 to 2017. The changing curricula show changes in the official politics and views on diversity. Through an analysis of the curricula we explore which terms and concepts that are used in the description of people and groups in Norwegian society. We focus primarily on the representation of the Sami, who move from being people in "mixed language districts" with limited rights, via being an "ethnic minority", to being an indigenous people with a set of rights. Further, we look into how the diverse society is represented, from the use of "alien workers", via "immigrants", to just "diversity". We argue that the concepts or strategies of politics of recognition and politics of integration respectively can be used to describe the curricula. Norway's educational policy towards minorities and indigenous people seems to exist between these two. In the end, this leave diversity competence as an important concept in the future Norwegian school.


Treating malaria before immunizing has been standard in malaria vaccine field trials. To assess the impact of this practice on subsequent infection and disease incidence, we conducted a randomized cohort study in Bandiagara, Mali. Subjects received a treatment dose of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) or no treatment at the beginning of the transmission season. Cumulative and age-specific incidence of clinical episodes was similar between the 2 groups, but SP treatment delayed the median time to first clinical episode from 38.5 to 68 days, and after this initial period of protection, disease incidence in the SP group quickly surpassed the incidence in the untreated group. Parasite densities during disease episodes were lower in the SP group. SP was chosen as the drug for initial parasite clearance for the following reasons: 1) it has been used in previous vaccine trials; 2) our studies have found it to have >99% efficacy in treating uncomplicated malaria in Mali compared to 85-90% efficacy for chloroquine in this area; 3) SP is the approved second-line antimalarial agent in Mali; and 4) its single-dose regimen ensures compliance when treatment is directly observed.


Conventional desalination technologies like multi stage flashing, multi-effect desalination (MED) using steam as motive fluid can be made sustainable by obtaining the motive steam from solar thermal systems. In this study, a transient simulation has been performed to determine the dissimilitude in pressure drop and dryness fraction, of working fluid in absorber tube due to variation in solar irradiance. A one-dimensional (1D) mathematical model has been developed using matlab for assessing the thermal performance and heat transfer characteristics of a direct steam generating (DSG) parabolic trough collector (PTC) system. It was observed that maximum pressure drop does not occur at maximum quality indicating the working conditions impair the system performance. The developed model was used to overcome this by varying both pressure and mass flowrate of working fluid in accordance to the radiation, results indicated reduction in pressure drop during the same time period for the same exit quality.


Given a definition of change and a dataset about spatiotemporal (ST) phenomena, ST change footprint discovery is the process of identifying the location and/or time of such changes from the dataset. Change footprint discovery is fundamentally important for the study of climate change, the tracking of disease, and many other applications. Methods for detecting change footprints have emerged from a diverse set of research areas, ranging from time series analysis and remote sensing to spatial statistics. Researchers have much to learn from one another, but are stymied by inconsistent use of terminology and varied definitions of change across disciplines. Existing reviews focus on discovery methods for only one or a few types of change footprints (e.g., point change in a time series). To facilitate sharing of insights across disciplines, we conducted a multi‐disciplinary review of ST change patterns and their respective discovery methods. We developed a taxonomy of possible ST change footprints and classified our review findings accordingly. This exercise allowed us to identify gaps in the research that we consider ripe for exploration, most notably change pattern discovery in vector ST datasets. In addition, we illustrate how such pattern discovery might proceed using two case studies from historical GIS. WIREs Data Mining Knowl Discov 2014, 4:1–23. doi: 10.1002/widm.1113


Drug consumption rooms (DCRs) are professionally supervised healthcare facilities where drug users can use drugs in safer and more hygienic conditions. Since 1986, more than 90 DCRs have been set up in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Luxembourg, Norway, Canada and Australia. Consumption rooms aim to establish contact with difficult-to-reach populations of drug users, provide an environment for more hygienic drug use, reduce morbidity and mortality risks associated with drug use � in particular street-based drug injectingand promote drug usersaccess to other social, health and drug treatment services. They also aim to reduce public drug use and improve public amenity near urban drug markets. At times, their establishment has been controversial due to concerns that they may encourage drug use, delay treatment entry or aggravate problems of local drug markets. As with evaluations of other public health interventions, research on DCRs faces methodological challenges in taking account of the effects of broader local policy or ecological changes. Despite these limitations, research shows that the facilities reach their target population and provide immediate improvements through better hygiene and safety conditions for injectors. At the same time, the availability of safer injecting facilities does not increase levels of drug use or risky patterns of consumption, nor does it result in higher rates of local drug acquisition crime. There is consistent evidence that DCR use is associated with self-reported reductions in injecting risk behaviour such as syringe sharing, and in public drug use. Due to a lack of studies, as well as methodological problems such as isolating the effect from other interventions or low coverage of the risk population, evidence regarding DCRs � while encouragingis insufficient for drawing conclusions with regard to their effectiveness in reducing HIV or hepatitis C virus (HCV) incidence. However, use of the facilities is associated with increased uptake of detoxification and treatment services. While there is suggestive evidence from modelling studies that they may contribute to reducing drug-related deaths at a city level where coverage is adequate, the review-level evidence of this effect is still insufficient. Taken in sum, the available evidence does not support the main concerns raised about this kind of intervention and points to generally positive impacts in terms of increasing drug usersaccess to health and social care, and reducing public drug use and associated nuisance.


The use of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and MAb conjugates as biopharmaceuticals have increased over the last decade. As a result, more cost-effective, efficient, and flexible process purification solutions are of high priority for MAb manufacturers. Increasing product titers upstream can introduce challenges in downstream purification processes. With increased MAb titers, the cell culture supernatant might contain an elevated number of impurities (e.g., aggregates) that need to be separated from the target molecule. This white paper is a guide to the development of MAb purification platforms and provides an overview of GE Healthcare's offering of process chromatography media (resins) and membranes for MAb purification processes. An introduction to high-throughput process development (HTPD) is also given, together with specific case studies on the development purification steps.


The number of vehicles on the road has increased in recent years. Due to the high density of all these vehicles, potential threats and road accidents are increasing. Wireless technology is designed to equip in-vehicle technology in order to reduce these factors by sending messages to each other, known as vehicular ad hoc networks or VANET. VANET provides a variety of road-safety and other applications through wireless devices installed in vehicles and roadside infrastructure. A roadside infrastructure in VANET is generally public, and is prone to several different malicious attacks including node compromise, impersonation, and false message delivery attacks. Therefore, a user of a VANET must verify the integrity of a message that is delivered from a roadside infrastructure. On the other hand, a vehicle-originated message should be anonymous in order to ensure user-privacy in a VANET. MIPDA algorithm is used to ensure about the malicious and irrelevant packets generated. It also deals with the correct packet generation; enhance the security of VANET system and to avoid the delay overhead in early. In the paper, we have applied MIPDA algorithm for detection of multiple malicious, invalid and irrelevant requests sent and received from multiple vehicles at a time and to analyze and detect the attacks in the efficient and effective manner for secure environment. And performance is tested using the detection of multiple malicious nodes in the proposed system and other performance parameters on multiple nodes such as energy consumptions, network lifetime, throughput, and packet delivery ratio and packet loss ratio.


Amputation as a result of impaired wound healing is a serious complication of diabetes. Inadequate angiogenesis contributes to poor wound healing in diabetic patients. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) normally augment angiogenesis and wound repair but are functionally impaired in diabetics. Here we report that decreased expression of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) in EPCs contributes to impaired would healing in a mouse model of type 2 diabetes. A decreased frequency of circulating EPCs was detected in type 2 diabetic (db/db) mice, and when isolated, these cells exhibited decreased expression and activity of MnSOD. Wound healing and angiogenesis were markedly delayed in diabetic mice compared with normal controls. For cell therapy, topical transplantation of EPCs onto excisional wounds in diabetic mice demonstrated that diabetic EPCs were less effective than normal EPCs at accelerating wound closure. Transplantation of diabetic EPCs after MnSOD gene therapy restored their ability to mediate angiogenesis and wound repair. Conversely, siRNA-mediated knockdown of MnSOD in normal EPCs reduced their activity in diabetic wound healing assays. Increasing the number of transplanted diabetic EPCs also improved the rate of wound closure. Our findings demonstrate that cell therapy using diabetic EPCs after ex vivo MnSOD gene transfer accelerates their ability to heal wounds in a mouse model of type 2 diabetes.


Introduction to Tantra-Thubten Yeshe 2005-06-10 What is tantra? Who is qualified to practice it? How should it be practiced? What are the results? According to Buddhism, every human being has the potential to achieve profound and lasting happiness. And according to the tantric teachings of Buddhism, this remarkable transformation can be realized very quickly if we utilize all aspects of our human energy especially the energy of our desires. Introduction to Tantra is the best available clarification of a subject that is often misunderstood. This new edition of this classic text includes a new foreword by Philip Glass and a new cover design, but leaves untouched Lama Yeshe's excellent original text, edited by Jonathan Landaw. Tantra recognizes that the powerful energy aroused by our desire is an indispensable resource for the spiritual path. It is precisely because our lives are so inseparably linked with desire that we must make use of desire's tremendous energy not just for pleasure, but to transform our lives. Lama Yeshe presents tantra as a practice leading to joy and self-discovery, with a vision of reality that is simple, clear, and extremely relevant to twenty-first century life.


Marketing scholars are devoting increasing attention to changing consequential and societally-relevant behaviors. However, the theories that have been relied upon for this purpose across the social and health sciences have come under increasing criticism, and there is a renewed attempt to build more comprehensive models out of a common core of constructs. Our accessibility, desirability, and feasibility (ADF) framework was developed to help policymakers and practitioners identify and design successful behavior change interventions. We demonstrate that the ADF framework is sufficiently comprehensive with the further advantage of being parsimonious and applicable to multiple domains.


Dramatic changes in the circulation of sea ice and the upper layers of the Arctic Ocean have been reported during the last decade. Similar variability is modeled using a regional, coupled ice‐ocean model. Realistic atmospheric forcing fields for 1979–93 are the only interannual signal prescribed in the model. Our results show large‐scale changes in sea ice and oceanic conditions when comparing results for the late 1970s/early 1980s and the 1990s. We hypothesize that these changes are in response to even larger scale atmospheric variability in the Northern Hemisphere that can be defined as either the Arctic Oscillation or the North Atlantic Oscillation. Agreement between the direction and scale of change in the model and observations, in the absence of interannual forcing from the global ocean thermohaline circulation, suggests that the atmospheric variability by itself is sufficient to produce basin‐scale changes in the Arctic Ocean and sea ice system.


A well-known challenge in leveraging implicit user feedback like clicks to improve real-world search services and recommender systems is its inherent bias. Most existing click models are based on the examination hypothesis in user behaviors and differ in how to model such an examination bias. However, they are constrained by assuming a simple position-based bias or enforcing a sequential order in user examination behaviors. These assumptions are insufficient to capture complex real-world user behaviors and hardly generalize to modern user interfaces (UI) in web applications (e.g., results shown in a grid view). In this work, we propose a fully data-driven neural model for the examination bias, Cross-Positional Attention (XPA), which is more flexible in fitting complex user behaviors. Our model leverages the attention mechanism to effectively capture cross-positional interactions among displayed items and is applicable to arbitrary UIs. We employ XPA in a novel neural click model that can both predict clicks and estimate relevance. Our experiments on offline synthetic data sets show that XPA is robust among different click generation processes. We further apply XPA to a large-scale real-world recommender system, showing significantly better results than baselines in online A/B experiments that involve millions of users. This validates the necessity to model more complex user behaviors than those proposed in the literature.


This paper addresses the problem of scale estimation in monocular SLAM by estimating absolute distances between camera centers of consecutive image frames. These estimates would improve the overall performance of classical (not deep) SLAM systems and allow metric feature locations to be recovered from a single monocular camera. We propose several network architectures that lead to an improvement of scale estimation accuracy over the state of the art. In addition, we exploit a possibility to train the neural network only with synthetic data derived from a computer graphics simulator. Our key insight is that, using only synthetic training inputs, we can achieve similar scale estimation accuracy as that obtained from real data. This fact indicates that fully annotated simulated data is a viable alternative to existing deep-learning-based SLAM systems trained on real (unlabeled) data. Our experiments with unsupervised domain adaptation also show that the difference in visual appearance between simulated and real data does not affect scale estimation results. Our method operates with low-resolution images (0.03 MP), which makes it practical for real-time SLAM applications with a monocular camera.


ZigBee wireless sensor networks has the benefit of superior optimization in power consumption and extremely long battery life. In near future, the handheld devices are expected to incorporate support for wireless sensor networks technology, and these devices can become active elements in ZigBee-based applications such as automated buildings and advanced metering systems. Use of these applications is also promising for the expansion of location services into environments that do not have access to Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). Compared with the ToA (Time of Arrival) and TDoA (Time difference of Arrival) methods, RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) has several advantages. It does not require additional hardware. Owing to the simplicity of RSSI, the most recent studies on localization using wireless sensor networks use RSSI-based algorithms. Previous works RSSI-based location estimation methods discussed by the literature depend on the impractical assumption that signal propagation characteristics are known and independent of both time variations and the environment. That assumption is invalid for the complex structures of indoor areas, which make the signal propagation characteristics for the same node differ significantly based on the orientation, even if the radiation pattern of the node is omnidirectional. Additionally, obtaining knowledge about signal propagation characteristics requires using manual data collection, which is impractical and time consuming. Furthermore, location estimation techniques must consider the large variations and high degree of uncertainty in RSSI observations. In this paper, we developed an adaptive localization system with low power and low cost, IEEE 802.15.4 ZigBee WSN. The under investigated system does not require manual pre-data collection and operates without performing exhaustive radio surveys. The first contribution in this paper is involving Kalman filtering for RSSI smoothing. Secondly, estimation of multi-link signal propagation characteristics; path loss exponent and Gaussian random variable in real-time by utilizing Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). The results from the experiments are taken show that using the proposed multi-link channel decomposition estimation technique is more effective than using only one fixed value of PLE and X0. The overall localization accuracy is within two meters in root mean square.


This paper deals with a widespread type of investment in personal health that is not adequately explained by the economic literature. The analysis of people's choice of intensity of engagement in health enhancing activities is made within an integrative, stochastic, micro-dynamic optimisation framework in which people's utility is accumulated along a health-dependent random lifespan with direct and indirect mutual effects among exercise, health, consumption, utility, happiness, productivity and survival. Distinction is made between exercise's length and exercise's vigour in analysing the effect of exercising on health and rest. A link between health and utility is introduced: health improves (declines) as utility surpasses (falls below) a threshold due to a greater level of happiness (unhappiness).


In biomedical signal analysis, artificial neural networks are often used for pattern classification because of their capability for nonlinear class separation and the possibility to efficiently implement them on a microcontroller. Typically, the network topology is designed by hand, and a gradient-based search algorithm is used to find a set of suitable parameters for the given classification task. In many cases, however, the choice of the network architecture is a critical and difficult task. For example, hand-designed networks often require more computational resources than necessary because they rely on input features that provide no information or are redundant. In the case of mobile applications, where computational resources and energy are limited, this is especially detrimental. Neuroevolutionary methods which allow for the automatic synthesis of network topology and parameters offer a solution to these problems. In this paper, we use analog genetic encoding (AGE) for the evolutionary synthesis of a neural classifier for a mobile sleep/wake discrimination system. The comparison with a hand-designed classifier trained with back propagation shows that the evolved neural classifiers display similar performance to the hand-designed networks, but using a greatly reduced set of inputs, thus reducing computation time and improving the energy efficiency of the mobile system.


tific advances from climate research and experience with risk reduction now offers the best hope of making humanitarian action in Africa more timely and effective, says the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre. Local disaster managers' awareness that National Societies will increasingly be confronted with the impacts of climate change and extreme weather has been growing for several years: in Africa some countries are experiencing a destructive cycle of drought and flood. More recently concrete operational responses have begun to find their way from the drawing board to the field.


In investigating Kenya rainfall variability and its relationship to other climatic elements it has become imperative to analyze the irregularly distributed rainfall events in time. To meet this requirement, this study used a stepwise regression technique. The study seeks to improve existing rainfall monitoring and prediction in Nairobi. Monthly rainfall data was fitted to several mathematical functions. The best mathematical model which best simulated the March-May (MAM) and October -December (OND) seasonal rainfall over the three stations of analysis was chosen using a stepwise regression technique. The value of R-squared for the best fit was computed to show the percentage of rainfall information that is explained by the variation in the independent (time) variable. From the results obtained, the stepwise regression technique selected the fourth degree polynomial as the best fit for analyzing the March-May (MAM) and October -December (OND) seasonal rainfall data set. Solar cycle period of ten (10) years was employed to get the fourth degree polynomial variables. Hence from the study, it can be deducted that the 4 th degree polynomial function can be used to predict the peak and the general pattern of seasonal rainfall over Nairobi, with acceptable error values.  This information can be used in the planning and management of water resources over Nairobi. The same information can be extended to other areas.


In A Dialogue between Haizi's Poetry and the Gospel of Luke Xiaoli Yang offers a conversation between the Chinese soul-searching found in Haizi's (1964–1989) poetry and the gospel of Jesus Christ through Luke's testimony. It creates a unique contextual poetic lens that appreciates a generation of the Chinese homecoming journey through Haizi's poetry, and explores its relationship with Jesus Christ. As the dialogical journey, it names four stages of homecoming—roots, vision, journey and arrival. By taking an interdisciplinary approach—literary study, inter-cultural dialogue and comparative theology, Xiaoli Yang convincingly demonstrates that the common language between the poet Haizi and the Lukan Jesus provides a crucial and rich source of data for an ongoing table conversation between culture and faith.


Parallel computing techniques are applied to a linear acoustic wave model to reduce execution time. Three parallel computing models are developed to parallelize computations. The fork-and-join, SPMD and SIMT models define the execution of parallel computations. The precision and efficiency of the linear acoustic wave model are improved through substantial speedups in all implementations. Furthermore, axisymmetric properties of certain acoustic fields lead to a reduction in the spatio-temporal complexity of those acoustic fields by removing redundant computations. The same linear acoustic wave model is also modified and extended to describe wave propagation across multiple media instead of only a single medium. The developed implementations are integrated into a particularly useful package for high performance simulation of two- or three-dimensional linear acoustic elds generated by realistic sources in various fluid media.


Radiation from UV-C has been demonstrated as a potential surface decontamination method in addition to several advantages over regular sanitation methods. However, UV-C radiation possibly affects the physicochemical properties of meat products. To determine the optimum exposure time for bacterial reduction, 39 chicken breasts, inoculated with a pool of Salmonella spp., were submitted to 3 levels of UV-C intensities (0.62, 1.13, and 1.95 mW/cm²) for up to 120 s. After the optimum exposure time of 90 s was determined, changes in the biogenic amines, total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, lipid oxidation, pH, and instrumental color were evaluated in 84 chicken breasts that were irradiated (0.62, 1.13, and 1.95 mW/cm²) and stored at 4°C for 9 d. The groups treated with UV-C radiation exhibited an increase in tyramine, cadaverine, and putrescine contents (P < 0.05). The highest UV-C intensity (1.95 mW/cm²) promoted a decrease in the initial bacterial load, and extended the lag phase and the shelf life. The groups irradiated with 1.13 and 1.95 mW/cm² exhibited a more stable b* value than the other groups; similar trends for L*, a*, pH, and TBA reactive substance values were observed among all groups. The UV-C light was demonstrated to be an efficient alternative technology to improve the bacteriological quality of chicken meat without negatively affecting the physical and chemical parameters of chicken breast meat. Nonetheless, the increases on the biogenic amines content should be considered as an effect of the UV processing and not as an indicator of bacterial growth.


Since suicide became a medical, not an ethical problem in the West, it has been associated with pathology. The dubious statistic cited in the current literature is that over 90% of all people who kill themselves are mentally ill. But what is the self being killed in suicide? Despite research that hopes to uncover genes that predispose a person to suicide, the work remains highly speculative. Epigenetic investigations are more promising and, although a relation between gene expression and environmental stress can be established, a direct link to suicidal behavior remains illusive. Subjective phenomenal experience must be part of Suicidology. Drawing from William James, Merleau-Ponty, Søren Kierkegaard, contemporary phenomenology, and the neuroscience of self, I argue that suicide cannot occur before a child has developed the capacity for reflective selfconsciousness, the ability to conceive of herself as an other in time—with a remembered past and an imagined future—and the social emotions that accompany this level of development, such as shame, guilt, and pride, and that the movement from pre-reflective to reflective self-consciousness is shaped by early attachment. Following Jean Améry, I argue that suicide is an act that addresses an other; is dialogical, can be rational, partakes of both conscious thoughts and intense feeling, which should not be lumped into one faculty as in emotion appraisal theory, a conflation that has guided the practice of CBT. What is crucial for a despairing person is not restructuring his reasoning but establishing a therapeutic alliance between self and other.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate clinical characteristics, outcome, and prognostic variables in a cohort of dogs surviving > 1 year after an initial diagnosis of osteosarcoma.

DESIGN
Retrospective case series.

ANIMALS
90 client-owned dogs.

PROCEDURES
Medical records for an 11-year period from 1997 through 2008 were reviewed, and patients with appendicular osteosarcoma that lived > 1 year after initial histopathologic diagnosis were studied. Variables including signalment, weight, serum alkaline phosphatase activity, tumor location, surgery, and adjuvant therapies were recorded. Median survival times were calculated by means of a Kaplan-Meier survival function. Univariate analysis was conducted to compare the survival function for categorical variables, and the Cox proportional hazard model was used to evaluate the likelihood of death > 1 year after diagnosis on the basis of the selected risk factors.

RESULTS
90 dogs met the inclusion criteria; clinical laboratory information was not available in all cases. Median age was 8.2 years (range, 2.7 to 13.3 years), and median weight was 38 kg (83.6 lb; range, 21 to 80 kg [46.2 to 176 lb]). Serum alkaline phosphatase activity was high in 29 of 60 (48%) dogs. The most common tumor location was the distal portion of the radius (54/90 [60%]). Eighty-nine of 90 (99%) dogs underwent surgery, and 78 (87%) received chemotherapy. Overall, 49 of 90 (54%) dogs developed metastatic disease. The median survival time beyond 1 year was 243 days (range, 1 to 1,899 days). Dogs that developed a surgical-site infection after limb-sparing surgery had a significantly improved prognosis > 1 year after osteosarcoma diagnosis, compared with dogs that did not develop infections.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Results of the present study indicated that dogs with an initial diagnosis of osteosarcoma that lived > 1 year had a median survival time beyond the initial year of approximately 8 months. As reported previously, the development of a surgical-site infection in dogs undergoing a limb-sparing surgery significantly affected prognosis and warrants further study.


This thesis was initiated during a time of profound economic, political and social change. It was triggered by social work academic and professional unrest at the 'crisis' that was characteristic of change within state social work (Clarke 1993). The first stage of enquiry took place between 1994 and 1999, during most of which time a Conservative government was in power. The aim of the research was to explore first line managers' experiences of change in local authority social work, and to formulate some conclusions about the impact of New Right policies and ideologies on social work. The second stage critically reflected on the findings from the first stage in a context of New Labour policy and ideology.
Initially this research project explored changes in social services working practices by thematically analysing qualitative data collected from interviews with first line social work managers. Forty interviews were conducted within 2 local authorities. The aim of the interview process was to enable each individual to focus on their experiences of change in social work since 1979. Recorded interviews of 1 - 2 hours, enabled detailed analysis of a considerable volume of material. The sample group were made up of first line managers from a variety of specialist teams. The data revealed a divergence in perceptions of change
among first line managers. Categories were established from within the narratives of the interviews, in order to classify the key factors contributing to the discursive construction of characteristically 'managerialist' and 'professionalist' first line managers.
The 1997 election brought New Labour to power. It appeared that further dramatic changes were about to impact on the shape of state social work, as welfare policy focussed the attention of the new government. An opportunity arose to consider the state of social work practice within New Labour's Modernisation strategy.
The second stage commenced with a review of key themes emerging from the analysis of data. Issues arising in the interview transcripts that preoccupied the sample group in the mid 1990s were re-visited, and critically discussed in the context of subsequent policy initiatives and published research findings (Richards 2000; Postle 2001).
Three themes were drawn from preliminary analyses that had established characteristically managerialist and professionalist clusters amongst the sample group.
loss of social work skills and knowledge/ changing practice
conflict and fragmentation with colleagues
• qualification and training issues.
For each of these three themes a clearly managerialist perspective presented overarching views about change and accountability, whilst a professionalist perspective offered an alternative point of view, based upon professional values
and knowledge informed practice. Conclusions have shown that New Labour's political agenda strongly favours accountability at all costs. Regulation and target setting define even the smallest social work task (Carey 2003), and take precedence over flexible 'service user centred' approaches to meeting need. This challenges the professional identity of some social workers, despite registration and postqualifying developments. What social workers know about meeting need is
compromised by managerialist agendas, deskilling and de-motivating them, and weakening their effectiveness.


Abstract Part II of this review paper highlights the salient features of the most popular statistical methods currently used for local and global sensitivity and uncertainty analysis of both large-scale computational models and indirect experimental measurements. These statistical procedures represent sampling-based methods (random sampling, stratified importance sampling, and Latin Hypercube sampling), first- and second-order reliability algorithms (FORM and SORM, respectively), variance-based methods (correlation ratio-based methods, the Fourier Amplitude Sensitivity Test, and the Sobol Method), and screening design methods (classical one-at-a-time experiments, global one-at-a-time design methods, systematic fractional replicate designs, and sequential bifurcation designs). It is emphasized that all statistical uncertainty and sensitivity analysis procedures first commence with the "uncertainty analysis" stage and only subsequently proceed to the "sensitivity analysis" stage; this path is the exact reverse of the conceptual path underlying the methods of deterministic sensitivity and uncertainty analysis where the sensitivities are determined prior to using them for uncertainty analysis. By comparison to deterministic methods, statistical methods for uncertainty and sensitivity analysis are relatively easier to develop and use but cannot yield exact values of the local sensitivities. Furthermore, current statistical methods have two major inherent drawbacks as follows: 1. Since many thousands of simulations are needed to obtain reliable results, statistical methods are at best expensive (for small systems) or, at worst, impracticable (e.g., for large time-dependent systems). 2. Since the response sensitivities and parameter uncertainties are inherently and inseparably amalgamated in the results produced by these methods, improvements in parameter uncertainties cannot be directly propagated to improve response uncertainties; rather, the entire set of simulations and statistical postprocessing must be repeated anew. In particular, a "fool-proof" statistical method for correctly analyzing models involving highly correlated parameters does not seem to exist currently, so that particular care must be used when interpreting regression results for such models. By addressing computational issues and particularly challenging open problems and knowledge gaps, this review paper aims at providing a comprehensive basis for further advancements and innovations in the field of sensitivity and uncertainty analysis.


Path planning considers the problem of designing the path a vehicle is supposed to follow. Along the designed path the objectives are to maximize the collected information (CI) from desired regions (DR), while avoiding flying over forbidden regions (FR) and reaching the destination. The path planning problem for a single unmanned air vehicle (UAV) is studied with the proposal of novel evolutionary operators: pull-to-desired-region (PTDR), push-from-forbidden-region (PFFR), and pull-to-final-point (PTFP). In addition to these newly proposed operators, standard mutation and crossover operators are used. The initial population seed-path is obtained by both utilizing the pattern search method and solving the traveling salesman problem (TSP). Using this seed-path the initial population of paths is generated by randomly selected heading angles. It should be emphasized that all of the paths in population in any generation of the genetic algorithm (GA) are constructed using the dynamical mathematical model of a UAV equipped with the autopilot and guidance algorithms. Simulations are realized in the MATLAB/Simulink environment. The path planning algorithm is tested with different scenarios, and the results are presented in Section VI. Although there are previous studies in this field, the focus here is on maximizing the CI instead of minimizing the total mission time. In addition it is observed that the proposed operators generate better paths than classical evolutionary operators.


Research project selection is an important task for government and private research funding agencies. When a large number of research proposals are received, it is common to group them according to their similarities in research disciplines. The grouped proposals are then assigned to the appropriate experts for peer review. Current methods for grouping proposals are based on manual matching of similar research discipline areas and/or keywords. However, the exact research discipline areas of the proposals cannot often be accurately designated by the applicants due to their subjective views and possible misinterpretations. Therefore, rich information in the proposals' full text can be used effectively. Text-mining methods have been proposed to solve the problem by automatically classifying text documents, mainly in English. However, these methods have limitations when dealing with non-English language texts, e.g., Chinese research proposals. This paper presents a novel ontology-based text-mining approach to cluster research proposals based on their similarities in research areas. The method is efficient and effective for clustering research proposals with both English and Chinese texts. The method also includes an optimization model that considers applicants' characteristics for balancing proposals by geographical regions. The proposed method is tested and validated based on the selection process at the National Natural Science Foundation of China. The results can also be used to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of research project selection processes in other government and private research funding agencies.


This paper discusses the solid state and melt nanoscale structure of a series of novel poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hybrid di- and triblock copolymers, which contain amphiphilic beta-strand peptide sequences. The block copolymers have been prepared via solid-phase synthesis, affording perfectly monodisperse peptide segments with a precisely defined alpha-amino acid sequence. Attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray scattering experiments indicate that the self-assembly properties of the peptide sequences are retained upon conjugation to PEG and mediate the formation of an ordered superstructure consisting of alternating PEG layers and peptide domains with an highly organized antiparallel beta-sheet structure. The results suggest that combination of biological structural motifs with synthetic polymers may be a versatile strategy for the development of novel self-assembled materials with complex internal structures and the potential to interface with biology.


Interest in plants is increasing and much work is being carried out these days on their multipurpose uses. A great impetus has been given to this during the last 3 decades. Several publications have been made by different investigators. Large number of naturally growing plants are collected and sold at the markets. Nearly 500 plants are used for primary health care in Turkey and a 23 in Cyprus. However, not much is known about the poisonous plants. Some of these are toxic and others cause reaction. Plant poisoning lies around 6 %, rurals suffer more from the consumption of naturally growing plants as compared to urban dwellers. One has to be very cautious before using these plants as the plants used for the purpose of treatment of diseases as a whole or parts thereof or consumed by the public directly could prove dangerous for the health. This paper describes ethnoecological aspects of the widely distributed major poisonous plants in Turkey and Northern Cyprus which can prove fatal if used unknowingly. Major applications and active constituents of plant taxa are outlined.


Dalradian meta-sediments of the Laurentian margin and mafic intrusions thereof in SW Connemara, Ireland, tectonically overlie meta-rhyolites of the Delaney Dome Formation. The two units are separated by the Mannin Thrust. A new U–Pb age of 474.6 ± 5.5 Ma shows that the Delaney Dome Formation is a temporal equivalent of arc volcanic rocks preserved in the adjacent South Mayo Trough: the Tourmakeady Volcanic Group, erupted during the collision of an oceanic island arc with the Laurentian margin in the Grampian Orogeny. New rare earth and high field strength element data show that the Delaney Dome Formation and Tourmakeady Volcanic Group are chemically similar and arc-like in character. This suggests that the Delaney Dome Formation is an along-strike equivalent of the Tourmakeady Group, strike-slip faulted south of the South Mayo Trough during or after the Grampian Orogeny. Further correlation of these units with northern Appalachian rhyolites is also possible. The Delaney Dome Formation is an extrusive temporal equivalent of intrusions that penetrate the Connemara Dalradian. Thus, movement along the Mannin Thrust brought mid-crustal plutons and Dalradian country rocks tectonically above the extrusive volcanic sequence. The Mannin Thrust is identified as a major imbricating structure within a continental arc, but not a terrane boundary.


There is hardly something that could be called "federal spirit" in Germany. Mostly, the German citizens have little knowledge about which jurisdiction is in charge of what. If things do not work well – like schooling in most of the Länder currently – politicians suggest, and citizens ask for centralized solutions. The roots of this apathy towards the federal order can be found in the formation of the German Empire of 1871: The agreement was that the German states (since 1919: Länder) wanted common federal regulations with their consent but the implementation was to remain in their hands. This concept is valid until today. The Basic Law stipulates: "The Länder shall execute federal laws in their own right ..." Still today we have a cleavage between the "Prussian" Protest North and East and the Catholic South. This cleavage is underpinned today by an economic cleavage, the South is more prosperous and richer than the North and in particular the East. Therefore, the North and the East has a stronger leaning towards the federal government while the South argues for more independence and mot autonomy for the Länder. Federalism in Germany: The View from Below | 2


Understanding situated dialogue requires identifying referents in the environment to which the dialogue participants refer. This reference resolution problem, often in a complex environment with high ambiguity, is very challenging. We propose an approach that addresses those challenges by combining learned semantic structure of referring expressions with dialogue history into a ranking-based model. We evaluate the new technique on a corpus of human-human tutorial dialogues for computer programming. The experimental results show a substantial performance improvement over two recent state-of-the-art approaches. The proposed work makes a stride toward automated dialogue in complex problem-solving environments.


The prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) has been well defined. However, the prevalence of PAD in hospitalized patients with CAD has not been defined. The ankle-brachial index (ABI) is a useful non-invasive tool to screen for PAD. The aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of PAD in hospitalized patients with CAD by measuring the ABI. The study was conducted at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics inpatient Cardiovascular Medicine Service. Medically stable patients with CAD were invited to participate prior to hospital discharge. Data regarding cardiovascular risk factors, history of previous PAD, physical examination, and ABI were collected. An ABI less than or equal to 0.9 or a history of previous lower extremity vascular invention was considered to be indicative of significant PAD. A total of 100 patients (66 men and 34 women) were recruited. Forty patients were found to have PAD (mean ABI in nonrevascularized patients with PAD = 0.67). By measuring the ABI, 37 (25 men) were positive for PAD and three had an ABI corrected with previous revascularization. Of these patients, 21 (52.5%) had previously documented PAD. Patients with PAD were older (p = 0.003), had a greater smoking history (p = 0.002), were more likely to have diabetes (p = 0.012), hypertension (p = 0.013) and a trend towards more dyslipidemia (p = 0.055). In conclusion, hospitalized patients with CAD are likely to have concomitant PAD. Risk factors for PAD in this patient population include advanced age, history of smoking, diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia and abnormal pulse examination. Identification of patients with PAD by measuring the ankle-brachial index is easily done.


A deep chasm still separates the microscopic world of atoms and molecules from the familiar macroscopic world that is part of everyday life. These worlds are profoundly different. In the former, time is reversible and the dynamics is Hamiltonian whereas, in the latter, we see dissipation, increasing entropy, and a very definite arrow of time.For equilibrium systems, Boltzmann's revolutionary ideas of a century ago provide deep insight, and have stood the test of time. Supplemented by the quantum statistical mechanics that came later, they lead to an excellent description of large-scale behaviour based on properties at the atomic and molecular scale. Thus, equilibrium thermodynamics can be derived convincingly from statistical mechanics, with only a few leaps of faith along the way. The only requirement is that the number of particles should be large. For non-equilibrium and open systems, however, there are few such certainties. The discovery (or rediscovery) of dynamical chaos added a further dimension to the problem, because the statistical features typically observed in systems with many degrees of freedom can also be generated by deterministic chaos in simple systems. So what is the connection, if any?


Neural architecture search (NAS) has demonstrated impressive performance in automatically designing high-performance neural networks. The power of deep neural networks is to be unleashed for analyzing a large volume of data (e.g. ImageNet), but the architecture search is often executed on another smaller dataset (e.g. CIFAR-10) to finish it in a feasible time. However, it is hard to guarantee that the optimal architecture derived on the proxy task could maintain its advantages on another more challenging dataset. This paper aims to improve the generalization of neural architectures via domain adaptation. We analyze the generalization bounds of the derived architecture and suggest its close relations with the validation error and the data distribution distance on both domains. These theoretical analyses lead to AdaptNAS, a novel and principled approach to adapt neural architectures between domains in NAS. Our experimental evaluation shows that only a small part of ImageNet will be sufficient for AdaptNAS to extend its architecture success to the entire ImageNet and outperform state-of-the-art comparison algorithms.


Genomic microsurgery is a type of genetic modification whereby DNA segments are inserted, removed, or replaced in order to obtain desired phenotypes. It has only recently been developed but already brings with it possibilities to customize one's genome to eliminate diseases or obtain certain traits.

Crispr, or "clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats," are found in bacteria and known to help bacteria fight off viruses. Crispr contains DNA sequences of viruses which have infected the bacteria or its ancestors, each separated by a short repeat. Using Crispr, the bacteria can recognize a viral gene and destroy it. When a novel virus invades, the new viral DNA sequence will be added to the end of the chain. Crispr is known to work in human cells even though we do not have Crispr-based immune system. Before the Crispr gene is incorporated into the human genome through genomic microsurgery, there are ethical questions which must be considered.
The benefits of incorporating Crispr into the human genome can be significant, one of which would be the potential to replace vaccines. However, there are unknown side effects (caused by introducing Crispr into the human genome) that may significantly harm individuals. Furthermore, genomic microsurgery does not yet have adequate specificity, scientists are still trying to make these 'edits' more specific, and the effectiveness of incorporating any gene into the human genome is unknown. How confident should scientists be of this technique before they start human experimentation or marketing to the public?
Aside from its potential benefits, the topic of gene editing raises fear of people wanting designer babies. Parents would be able to use it to edit the DNA of their embryos once it is available to the public. But each time the topic of gene alteration has come up in discussion, professionals in the field of genetics have stressed the fact that each individual—without exception—carry a number of lethal mutations. No one has a perfect genome; this may say something about our evolution and the ability of someone with the perfect genome to survive. So while scientists are still learning more about genomic microsurgery, it is essential to develop ethical guidelines and regulations to ensure that it will not be abused by the human desire to create the perfect, dream-child.


Proceedings: AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010‐‐ Apr 17‐21, 2010; Washington, DC

Protein acyltransferases (PATs), a group of enzymes that catalyze acylation of a variety of proteins, have recently been shown to play an important part in protein sorting and signalling in the cell. In the Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signalling pathway the PAT Hedgehog acyltransferase (Hhat) is responsible for addition of a palmitic acid (C16) to the N-terminal cysteine residue of Shh. In mice, this modification has been shown to be necessary for proper packaging and release of Shh from the signalling cell as well as for transmitting a potent signal to the receiving cell, rendering Hhat crucial for a functioning Shh signal. Aberrant regulation of the Shh signalling pathway leads to a variety of malignant diseases in adults. Oncogenic activation of the Shh signalling pathway is known to arise from excessive production of the Shh signal or oncogenic mutations in the signal receiving cell. To date, drug therapies targeting the pathway in cancer have been directed at Shh-independent mutations in downstream regulators, Ptch, Smo, and Su(Fu), in the signal-receiving cell. To complement this, we hypothesize that Hhat is a potential drug target in cancers dependent on excessive Shh production for their growth. Here, we validate the potential of Hhat as a therapeutic target in cancer cell lines dependent on Shh for their growth. By knocking down Hhat in established cancer cell lines using siRNA we show that proper distribution and signalling by Shh can be inhibited. We measure the effect of the knock-down on target gene expression of the pathway (Ptch and Gli1), cancer cell growth and invasive properties of the cells. The effect is validated against inhibition of the Shh pathway by the Shh blocking antibody 5E1, and KAAD-cyclopamine, a Smo antagonist.

Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend.

Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3956.


The effect of different mercerization techniques on tactile comfort properties of woven cotton fabric has been studied.Desized, scoured and bleached cotton fabrics are subjected to four different mercerization treatments at two levels oftemperature (20C and 65C) under two different conditions (tension and slack). Non-mercerized fabric is served as control.Results show that mercerization treatments improve the tensile strength of cotton fabrics owing to reduced fibre crystallinityafter mercerization. Highest increase in tensile strength is observed in case of hot mercerization in slack condition. Increasein low-stress mechanical properties, such as tensile energy, bending rigidity and shear rigidity values, indicates higherstiffness/toughness of mercerized fabrics. This is further reflected in their high Koshi (stiffness/firmness), low Sofutosa(softness) and medium Fukurami (fullness) values. However, mercerization causes significant decrease in frictionalcoefficient and surface roughness, and results in improved total hand value (THV). Total hand values range from 3 to 3.61;with highest being presented by fabric mercerized under hot and slack conditions. High hand value indicates fair suitabilityof this fabric in wear comfort.


The charter of the Export-Import Bank of the United States is set to expire on September 30. Proponents of reauthorization claim that by increasing exports and jobs, Ex-Im benefits the U.S. economy. But in that advocacy, the benefits are exaggerated and the costs totally ignored.The Bank's skeptics speak of the opportunity costs that arise when government attempts to allocate resources according to nonmarket criteria. They also note that subsidies provided for the benefit of one exporter put competing firms at an artificial disadvantage. In addition to these opportunity and intra-industry costs, there is a third set of significant costs that are too often forgotten: the downstream industry cost.Using official input-output tables and seven years of Export-Import Bank transactions records, this analysis estimates the downstream costs of Ex-Im subsidies that are inflicted on manufacturing firms in every industry across every U.S. state. These victims populate 189 of 237 manufacturing sub-industries and all 21 broad manufacturing industry categories identified under the North American Industry Classification System, and they incurred a net cost of $2.8 billion per year or $14.7 million per sub-industry per year as a result of Ex-Im policies.Among the specific sub-industry victims bearing the largest costs are U.S. manufacturers of motor vehicle bodies; computer storage devices; and, photographic and photocopying equipment. The 5 broad manufacturing industries incurring the greatest net costs are producers of electrical equipment, appliances and components; furniture; food; nonmetallic mineral products; and, chemicals. These 5 most ill-affected manufacturing industries account for 50 percent or more of manufacturing GDP in 7 U.S. states, and the 10 largest victims account for two-thirds or more of manufacturing GDP in 22 states.In their efforts to win reauthorization from Congress, supporters of the Export-Import Bank rely on exaggerated claims about the Bank's benefits, while ignoring its costs. Ex-Im policies reward some companies (in the short run) and penalize many others in the process. These kinds of data are often obscured or ignored, but they are essential to any informed judgments about the propriety and efficacy of the Export-Import Bank.


Forty eight 8-month-old male goats were divided into three groups. In each group, eight goats were feedrestricted for 45, 60 or 75 days, and eight goats served as the control. Restricted groups were fed with a maintenance ration, and the control goats were fed with a ration supporting 50 g of daily weight gain. At the end of restriction period, the restricted goats were offered the same ration as the control goats. When the average weight of the 75-day restricted goats approached that of the control, the goats were slaughtered. The carcass, several organs, carcass cuts and dissectible (trimmed) fat were weighed, and the chemical composition of the meat was determined. Feed restriction decreased the proportion in live weight of the dissectible fat, internal fat, liver and testis weight, meat dry matter and fat content, but the proportion of intestinal and splenic weights, and meat protein content were increased. Re-alimentation after 75 days of restriction was associated with a greater daily gain and less internal fat. Other measurements were not different from the control. Data showed that 8-month-old native kids are capable of considerable compensatory growth after 75 days of feed restriction without any deleterious effect on carcass composition.


This thesis describes the development and analysis of three probabilistic models of phenomena in the life
sciences.
Model 1 addresses the phenomenon in breast cancer called 'dormancy', where patients relapse suddenly
after many years or decades during which they were regarded as cured. Where and by what mechanism the
dangerous residual cancer remains hidden for so long is largely a mystery, and this lack of knowledge makes
it difficult to design effective preventive treatments. Analysis of our model leads to a number of predictions
related to dormancy's disease course.
Models 2 and 3 simulate the formation of high-fidelity, patterned nanoscale ornamentations in the biosilica
exoskeletons of diatoms, that today defy synthesis in vitro. Very little is known about this diatom biosilica
assembly yet, if the mechanisms are simple or synthetically imitable, then they are potentially of great
interest to industry and to the curious scientist.
Model 3, which is still presently under study, may lead to predictions about the nature of these mechanisms
of biosilica assembly. Notably, Model 3 is a new probabilistic model of a well established pattern
formation process that we envisage to have broader application.


Mobile health (mHealth) technology represents a means through which more stroke survivors could access early stroke rehabilitation. Although rehabilitation is most effective when begun early post-stroke, limited resources (facilities, therapists) prevent survivors from initiating therapy. Furthermore, the coupling of an aging population with advances in acute therapy has led to an increase in the absolute number of individuals suffering from and surviving strokes which in turn has put further strain on already scarce rehabilitation resources. There is an urgency to conduct high-quality research exploring cost-effective and creative mHealth devices for early rehabilitation in the acute setting. Mobile technology allows therapists to prescribe apps based on standard cognitive/physical assessments in the acute setting, remotely monitor patient progress across individual carepaths, and update prescribed therapies based on patient feedback and recovery. Recognition of the growing problem of accessing early stroke rehabilitation, and the possibilities offered by mHealth technology led to the development of the RecoverNow platform for stroke rehabilitation in the acute setting. RecoverNow is a custom built, tablet-based stroke rehabilitation platform that houses a variety of previously existing apps with activities analogous or identical to exercises in speech language and/or occupational therapy. While RecoverNow represents how mobile technology can be utilized to address a growing public health issue, the feasibility, acceptability and efficacy of tablet-based stroke rehabilitation are unknown. Studies with the goal of establishing feasibility of early tablet-based stroke rehabilitation are needed and, if appropriate, a randomized controlled trial to establish efficacy.


The first issue of the Red Cross Journal was published in January 1914, only eight months before the outbreak of the First World War. This article explores the impact of the war on this publication, as the work of the charity it represented dramatically expanded over the course of the conflict. How did the Journal survive the war, at a time when the Red Cross was deeply involved in supporting soldiers? This article examines the genesis of this publication and its evolving role during the war. This periodical, we argue, not only helped raise awareness of the work carried out by the Red Cross, but it also served practical purposes in the areas of training and funding. This publication reveals an increasingly critical stance towards the British Empire's enemies in the war, as well as the need for the British Red Cross Society to foster a sense of unity amongst members posted around the world.


The Thoroughbred racehorse is capable of maintaining speeds of approximately 17 m/s for distances of over a mile. This represents an average speed and the Thoroughbred can reach speeds in excess of 20 m/s over short distances. The present series of studies was undertaken to
investigate further the metabolic response to high-intensity exercise in
the Thoroughbred racehorse.
Unlike man, high-intensity exercise in the horse results in an increase in packed cell volume. This in turn causes acute changes in the colligative properties of blood and plasma. The changes in these properties
were investigated and the effect on calculation and distribution of
metabolites in blood and muscle was determined. The horse has a high capacity for lactate production compared to man
and existing methodology for the assessment of muscle buffering capacity in
biopsy samples was further developed and investigated. The horse was found
to have a significantly higher muscle buffering capacity compared with man
and it was calculated that this could be explained wholly on the basis of
the higher muscle carnosine content in the horse. The metabolic response to high-intensity exercise was investigated
using several exercise models, including single and multiple field gallops
and treadmill exercise. A consistent finding was that high-intensity exercise in the Thoroughbred racehorse was nearly always accompanied by a reduction in muscle ATP content. The nature of the ATP decrease was further investigated using a treadmill exercise model. Muscle ATP decrease was
found to occur at a particular exercise intensity rather than show a
gradual decrease with increasing intensity. The intensity at which muscle
ATP content began to decline significantly varied between individual
horses, but in each case appeared to coincide with muscle lactate contents
of approximately 70 mmol/kg dry muscle. The significance of the decline in
ATP is discussed.


In this article we discuss an open-ended problem involving quadrilaterals that we continually offer each semester. The task has been posed to undergraduate and graduate students in methods and problem solving classes. The task involves drawing all possible four sided figures with corners at the dots. A four by four array of dots is included in the instructions and students are asked to develop a system for knowing when they have identified all the quadrilaterals. Students are also encouraged to classify them in as many ways as they can and to look at the perimeters and angle measures. The focus of the discussion is on the potential richness of a task and how students engage in non-routine explorations.


The expert guide to deploying and managing any WebSphere Application Server V5.x application and environment If youre a WebSphere Application Server administrator or developer, this is your advanced guide for delivering applications rapidly, running them smoothly, and administering them efficiently. Four leading IBM consultants draw on their years of experience to illuminate the key steps involved in taking WebSphere Application Server applications from development to production. They focus on the areas most crucial to success, including application assembly and build, application and infrastructure configuration and administration, and application testing and verification. Along the way, they show how to implement automated deployment processes that can be executed frequently, reliably, and quickly -- so you can get your applications to market fast. The focus is on WebSphere Application Server Version 5.1, but much of the information applies to other versions. Coverage includes: Installing, testing, and managing WebSphere Application Server environments: clustering, security, messaging, integration, and more Deploying and managing key J2EE technologies: JDBC, Connectors, EJB, container managed and message driven beans, transactions, JMS, JavaMail, and more Deploying highly available, scalable multi-node WebSphere Application Server environments: clustering, distributed session management, and edge components Advanced considerations: working with Java Management Extensions, caching, and much more Performance tuning tools Troubleshooting Leveraging key WebSphere deployment and administration tools: ANT, wsadmin, Admin Console, and the Application Server Toolkit. Advanced discussions of J2EE and architectural concepts you need to deploy successfully -- with practical examples


This book describes the history of Corpus Christi through sketches of persons and events in the history of the city. According to the preface, it does focuses less on the history than on the people, "presenting in plain narrative form, a recountal of the days when Corpus Christi was young, of the trials and tribulations that fell to the lot of her residents in the war periods, and finally to emerge as a fast growing a progressive city of the Southland" (p. v).


The soft targets are closely related with the risk of attack to the group of the people. This problem can cause the fatal consequences to the population. Current situation on the world reflect the fear of the attack in the soft targets. We can see the fear of life in these public places. Each of us spells time in the shopping center or in the park every day. Between the characteristics of the soft targets belong a considerable number of the persons at the same time in the same area. In additional to this object has not implemented the adequate security or safety measures, which can help Integrated Rescue System to detect the attacker or help him to solve this situation. The main aim of the proposed methodology is to support the operators in the decision-making process and to positive increase the situation in this object. The main aim of the proposed software tool is the analysis of the objects features and according these features the software can propose the security measures.


Continuous Integration (CI) services, which can automatically build, test, and deploy software projects, are an invaluable asset in distributed teams, increasing productivity and helping to maintain code quality. Prior work has shown that CI pipelines can be sophisticated, and choosing and configuring a CI system involves tradeoffs. As CI technology matures, new CI tool offerings arise to meet the distinct wants and needs of software teams, as they negotiate a path through these tradeoffs, depending on their context. In this paper, we begin to uncover these nuances, and tell the story of open-source projects falling out of love with Travis, the earliest and most popular cloud-based CI system. Using logistic regression, we quantify the effects that open-source community factors and project technical factors have on the rate of Travis abandonment. We find that increased build complexity reduces the chances of abandonment, that larger projects abandon at higher rates, and that a project's dominant language has significant but varying effects. Finally, we find the surprising result that metrics of configuration attempts and knowledge dispersion in the project do not appear to affect the rate of abandonment.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to investigate the association of different physical fitness levels [assessed by the maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) test] with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in patients with RA.

METHODS
A total of 150 RA patients were assessed for cardiorespiratory fitness with a VO2max test and, based on this, were split in three groups using the 33rd (18.1 ml/kg/min) and 66th (22.4 ml/kg/min) centiles. Classical and novel CVD risk factors [blood pressure, body fat, insulin resistance, cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), physical activity, CRP, fibrinogen and white cell count], 10-year CVD risk, disease activity (DAS28) and severity (HAQ) were assessed in all cases.

RESULTS
Mean VO2max for all RA patients was 20.9 (s.d. 5.7) ml/kg/min. The 10-year CVD risk (P = 0.003), systolic blood pressure (P = 0.039), HDL (P = 0.017), insulin resistance and body fat (both at P < 0.001), CRP (P = 0.005), white blood cell count (P = 0.015) and fibrinogen (P < 0.001) were significantly different between the VO2max tertiles favouring the group with the higher VO2max levels. In multivariate analyses of variance, VO2max was significantly associated with body fat (P < 0.001), HDL (P = 0.007), insulin resistance (P < 0.003) and 10-year CVD risk (P < 0.001), even after adjustment for DAS28, HAQ and physical activity.

CONCLUSION
VO2max levels are alarmingly low in RA patients. Higher levels of VO2max are associated with a better cardiovascular profile in this population. Future studies need to focus on developing effective behavioural interventions to improve cardiorespiratory fitness in RA.


The developed world relies on an enormous supply of electricity and heat energy to power countless daily activities, predominantly using non-renewable fossil fuels. Although this energy assists people in meeting their basic human needs, the way in which it is produced is at odds with the ability of people to continue to meet their needs in the future. The current trend towards renewable energy generation in the developed world that involves community members is a positive step away from current unsustainable energy practices. A Strategic Sustainable Development (SSD) approach helps to guide planning and decision making by using a vision of a sustainable energy future to assist in undertaking strategic actions. To offer practical support to communities wanting to work towards sustainable energy generation, this research combines the experience of communities undertaking Community Renewable Energy projects with an SSD approach, producing a Sustainable Community Renewable Energy Tool.


The configuration of the supply chain is one of the main challenges faced by organizations operating in young, dynamic industries characterized for the use of new materials and technological innovations. In composites materials, a young developing industry, there is not a neither standard manufacturing process, nor are there standardized materials with defined or proscribed properties for companies to select. Using a survey of companies in the UK's composites material industry this research investigates 19 factors related to technology selection in manufacturing and supply chain configuration. The analysis performed includes descriptive statistics and correlation tests. The results for factors influencing manufacturing technology selection shows that improvement of quality and reduction of inventory levels received the highest and lowest average rates respectively. Regarding supply chain configuration, selection of the right manufacturing technology showed the highest average rate followed by on time deliveries/service level to customers. The responses are not conclusive yet indicative of some trends the composites materials industry in the UK needs to address as some important factors affect the configuration of their supply chain.


We test for evidence of spatial, residence-based labor market networks. Turnover is lower for workers more connected to their neighbors generally and more connected to neighbors of the same race or ethnic group. Both results are consistent with networks producing better job matches, while the latter could also reflect preferences for working with neighbors of the same race or ethnicity. For earnings, we find a robust positive effect of the overall residence-based network measure, whereas we usually find a negative effect of the same-group measure, suggesting that the overall network measure reflects productivity-enhancing positive network effects, while the same-group measure may capture a non-wage amenity.


Broadcasting is a commonly used feature in wireless ad hoc networks. It is a common operation for route establishment and for sending control and emergency messages. The primary goal of broadcasting is to successfully reduce the number of transmissions that are required to achieve full delivery with energy consumption using local broadcast algorithm. In static approach, using the local topology information, the local algorithm determines the status of each node and also the priority function. Using this approach it is not possible to achieve the good approximation factor to the optimum solution. The hybrid local broadcast algorithm based on dynamic approach is proposed for guarantee with full delivery and successful approximation to the optimum solution without considering the node position. In dynamic approach the position of the node is determined "on-the-fly" based on local topology information. So, it is possible to get the good approximation factor to the optimum solution. The position information is the solution for getting good approximation factor. But in some applications it may not be possible to get position information because of the sheer nature of ad hoc networks that allow mobility cause dynamic, unpredicted and frequent topology changes. In those situations also the proposed local broadcast algorithm can achieve both full delivery and a constant approximation to the optimum solution in which the status of each node is decided "on-the-fly" (i.e. reactive protocol).


Fiduciary theorists broadly agree that a duty of loyalty is fundamental to fiduciary relationships. They do not agree on a core minimum content of fiduciary loyalty. Some think that loyalty at the least requires the avoidance of conflicts of interest (and perhaps also conflicts of duties). Others think that loyalty requires a fiduciary to act in what he or she perceives are the beneficiary's best interests. Yet others conclude that loyalty amounts to the terms of a hypothetical bargain, in a world of zero transaction costs. Each approach is incorrect, at least when we view fiduciary law as a whole. This chapter argues that the various conceptions of fiduciary loyalty are not readily reducible into each other, and that for each of the leading conceptions of fiduciary loyalty the law provides important counter-examples. It is possible to find common features to fiduciary loyalty in its many settings, but doing so requires a very thin account of what it is to be loyal. Recognizing the variations in fiduciary loyalty, however, may tell us something significant about fiduciary law. This chapter indicates how variable fiduciary loyalty is, and it offers an initial exploration of why this matters.


I take this opportunity to welcome you all to this 6th Biennial ProLISSA Conference, an event that was initiated by the DISSAnet Project. DISSAnet is an acronym that stands for Development of Information Science in South Africa. The project was initiated in 1997 by Professors Irene Wormell and Peter Ingwersen from the Royal School of Library and Information Science in Copenhagen, Denmark. The aim was to create a nation-wide platform to support the advancement of LIS research in South Africa in order to also meet the demands of a new country. ProLISSA has grown from the initial mandate of South Africa only to include southern Africa, and now colleagues from East Africa have joined us.