*Abstract: The action consisted of approaching the decision-makers for the Colombian government's project to supply community internet access centres in schools, through which close to 1700 new telecentres will be installed. Colnodo and the National Network of Telecentres (RNT-Red Nacional de Telecentros), members of AndinaTIC in Colombia, have been working with the government to promote models of social appropriation of the internet. In 2007 several organisations were able to insert demands for guarantees to increase their impact and long-term social and financial sustainability into public tenders for telecentre installation. In this advocacy effort Colnodo and RNT met with government representatives and the companies that won the tender. There they distributed training materials, incorporated companies and operators into the network and planned courses for new administrators. Relations with the Ministry of Communications, which supported this experience, were thereby strengthened.


This work is intended to be a simple contribution to building a model able to implement theoretical results related to the random oriented fiber reinforced concrete in a procedure that could be used in structures analysis and design involving fiber reinforced elements. Here follows a short outline: In the introduction chapter the problem is presented together the work done. Section 2 develops some ancillary concepts of this material and its mechanical properties, while in Section 3, following the path of other researchers, the assumptions made to solve the problem are presented, together with the most relevant results related to presence of 3D randomly oriented fiber. In the following section a review of the mechanical process of fiber pull-out is done, and the results, mostly due to Victor Li researches, of a 3D randomly oriented synthetic fiber stress vs crack opening in a pull-out process from a cement matrix. In Section 5 the author, after making some assumptions about the configuration of the strain and crack geometry in the cross section where failure is assume to occur under flexural bending moment, the resultant stress is integrated to find the resultant internal moment vs increasing strain and crack width. In this analysis, the crack bridging law for synthetic fiber in FRC presented in the previous section is taken into account. In Section 6, a procedure to find a cross section configuration in equilibrium under external bending moment has been built. Under the assumption of a perfectly plastic collapse mechanism a numerical simulation is conducted on a specimen that undergoes a four-point bending test. A comparison with the trend of a similar test on a synthetic FRC sample has been done. The work is completed by the conclusions that could be inferred from this work.


ABSTRACT Hyperinflation, gas trapping and their responses to long-acting bronchodilator are clinically important in COPD. The forced oscillation technique (FOT) measures of respiratory system resistance and reactance are sensitive markers of bronchodilator response in COPD. The relationships between changes in resistance and reactance, and changes in hyperinflation and gas trapping, following long-acting bronchodilator (LA-BD) have not been studied. 15 subjects with mild-moderate COPD underwent FOT, spirometry then body plethysmography, before and 2 hours after a single 150 microg dose of the LA-BD indacaterol. Hyperinflation was quantified as the inspiratory capacity to total lung capacity ratio (IC/TLC), and gas trapping as residual volume to TLC ratio (RV/TLC). At baseline, FOT parameters were moderately correlated with IC/TLC (|r| 0.53–0.73, p < 0.05). At 2 hours post-LA-BD, there were moderate correlations between change in FOT and change in RV/TLC (|r| 0.60–0.82, p < 0.05). Baseline FOT parameters also correlated with the subsequent post-LA-BD change in both IC/TLC (|r| 0.54–0.62, p < 0.05) and RV/TLC (|r| 0.57–0.76, p < 0.05). FOT impedance reflects hyperinflation and gas trapping in COPD, and the potential for long-acting bronchodilator responsiveness. These results provide us with further insight into the physiological mechanisms of action of long-acting bronchodilator treatment, and may be clinically useful for predicting treatment responses.


Abstract In this article we explore how women use and perceive information technology in five villages in rural Tamil Nadu, India. We analyse the outcomes from structured in-depth interviews with 17 women Internet kiosk users and 22 women who have never used the Internet (non-users). Our intention was to systematically document the information and communication needs of women in rural South India as articulated by the women themselves. We identify several critical issues that must be taken into account in the design of information and communication technology (ICT) projects. Our findings suggest four main conclusions: (1) rural women in this study find ICTs useful; (2) there are gender-specific usage patterns and perceptions of ICTs; (3) obstacles to ICT use are generally structural (time, location, illiteracy) and not personal (for example, a prohibition from a relative); and (4) manifestations of gender awareness correlate with perceptions of obstacles to ICT use. Information and communication technologies hold great promise in the drive for development and poverty reduction in the global South, yet in order to ensure that the entire population reaps the benefits of these technologies, a clear understanding of the specific needs of women and other disadvantaged groups is imperative.


This Article begins by offering teaching objectives that can be used to focus supervision and education on effective representation of clients from different cultures as issues arise in the course of representation. The Article then discusses the context of student supervision and explains how case supervision sessions can be extremely effective moments during which to pursue those teaching goals. The Article next examines vignettes that grew out of cases handled by the University of New Mexico's Clinical Law Program.


The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between self-compassion and loneliness. Participants were 398 university students who were enrolled in mid-size state University, in Turkey. In this study, the Self-compassion Scale and the UCLA Loneliness were used. In correlation analysis, self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness factors of self-compassion were found negatively related to loneliness. On the other hand, self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification factors of self-compassion were found positively correlated to loneliness. According to path analysis results, loneliness was predicted negatively by self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness. Further self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification predicted loneliness in a positive way. This research shows that self-compassion has a direct impact on the loneliness.


Linearized operators describing inter-species and like-species collisions have been discretized and implemented in the gyrokinetic Particle-In-Cell (PIC) code ORB5 [S. Jolliet, Comp. Phys. Comm. 177, 409 (2007)] based on the delta-f approach. Simulation results for neoclassical transport are compared with both analytical predictions as well as results from other codes. This new version of ORB5 including collisional dynamics thus makes it possible to carry out simulations of microturbulence starting from a global neoclassical equilibrium including self-consistent electric fields. First results of ITG microturbulence simulations carried out in this way are presented. The issue of numerical noise, inherent to the PIC approach and further accentuated by the implementation of collisions in the delta-f scheme, is addressed. It is shown how a noise reduction scheme based on a coarse graining procedure [Y. Chen and S. E. Parker, Phys. Plasmas 14, 082301 (2007)] ensures the physical relevance of such simulations. Furthermore, a novel delta-f algorithm is presented, which switches between a canonical and a local Maxwellian background for carrying out the collisonless and collisional dynamics respectively, and its advantages are discussed.


The study of colonialism shows us that the law often serves the needs and interests of both the Imperial power and the subjugated country. Concessions are necessary to rule a conquered population. In order to understand Canadian law and the measure of Imperial influence, one must understand the dialogue between the various legal traditions.
This essay will examine legal transplants in a historical and colonial context. It will begin with a brief review of Canadian history in order to understand the evolution of Canadian copyright law. It will focus on the creation and significance of Canada's first copyright legislation. Using the Statute of Anne as a reference point, this essay will describe the evolution of Canadian copyright law on its journey to self-determination during the 18th and 19th centuries. More specifically, this essay will explore the influence of the 1709 Statute of Anne on the 1832 colonial Acte pour proteger la propriete intellectuelle.
It will argue that the influence of the Statute of Anne as an expression of the Canadianess of Canadian copyright policy is not to be found in the text of 1832. It can be found in the small prints of the numerous bills and amendments proposed to the English Parliament, in those provisions buried in the text which triggered an open war between Canadian, American and English publishers and stigmatized by the 1847 Foreign Reprints Act. It is in the context of the 1847 piece that the influence of the Statue of Anne and its monopolistic or imperialistic effects can be fully grasped.


A heretofore unsolved problem of great archaeological importance is the automatic assembly of pots made on a wheel from the hundreds (or thousands) of sherds found at an excavation site. An approach is presented to the automatic estimation of mathematical models of such pots from 3D measurements of sherds. A Bayesian approach is formulated beginning with a description of the complete set of geometric parameters that determine the distribution of the sherd measurement data. Matching of fragments and aligning them geometrically into configurations is based on matching break-curves (curves on a pot surface separating fragments), estimated axis and profile curve pairs for individual fragments and configurations of fragments, and a number of features of groups of break-curves. Pot assembly is a bottom-up maximum likelihood performance-based search. Experiments are illustrated on pots which were broken for the purpose, and on sherds from an archaeological dig located in Petra, Jordan. The performance measure can also be an aposteriori probability, and many other types of information can be included, e.g., pot wall thickness, surface color, patterns on the surface, etc. This can also be viewed as the problem of learning a geometric object from an unorganized set of free-form fragments of the object and of clutter, or as a problem of perceptual grouping.


ABSTRACT The racial gap in U.S. homeownership has widened since the recession of 2007–2011, partly because of housing loss from foreclosure. This study uses cumulative disadvantage theory to analyse the racial dimensions of home foreclosure activity across neighbourhoods in a Southern county. The methods involved collecting and analysing 1013 foreclosures in a population almost evenly divided between white and black residents. After creating a foreclosure ratio to measure black–white dissimilarities in homeownership, we used ArcGIS to map foreclosure landscapes in all tracts and three tracts with different racial compositions. The analysis identified racial disparities that are consistent with cumulative disadvantage theory. Although the greatest disparity occurred in significantly black areas, black homeowners were more likely to experience foreclosure compared to whites in all 45 tracts of the county. We conclude that the higher rate of foreclosure among black owners relates to discriminatory lending practices and other forms of cumulative disadvantage that affect housing outcomes in this population.


This paper presents a semantic space profiler for parallel functional programs. Building on previous work in sequential profiling, our tools help programmers to relate runtime resource use back to program source code. Unlike many profiling tools, our profiler is based on a cost semantics. This provides a means to reason about performance without requiring a detailed understanding of the compiler or runtime system. It also provides a specification for language implementers. This is critical in that it enables us to separate cleanly the performance of the application from that of the language implementation.
 Some aspects of the implementation can have significant effects on performance. Our cost semantics enables programmers to understand the impact of different scheduling policies while hiding many of the details of their implementations. We show applications where the choice of scheduling policy has asymptotic effects on space use. We explain these use patterns through a demonstration of our tools. We also validate our methodology by observing similar performance in our implementation of a parallel extension of Standard ML.


Here we present a comprehensive map of the accessible chromatin landscape of the mouse hippocampus at single-cell resolution. Substantial advances of this work include the optimization of single-cell combinatorial indexing assay for transposase accessible chromatin (sci-ATAC-seq), a software suite, scitools, for the rapid processing and visualization of single-cell combinatorial indexing datasets, and a valuable resource of hippocampal regulatory networks at single-cell resolution. We utilized sci-ATAC-seq to produce 2,346 high-quality single-cell chromatin accessibility maps with a mean unique read count per cell of 29,201 from both fresh and frozen hippocampi, observing little difference in accessibility patterns between the preparations. Using this dataset, we identified eight distinct major clusters of cells representing both neuronal and non-neuronal cell types and characterized the driving regulatory factors and differentially accessible loci that define each cluster. We then applied a recently described co-accessibility framework, Cicero, which identified 146,818 links between promoters and putative distal regulatory DNA. Identified co-accessibility networks showed cell-type specificity, shedding light on key dynamic loci that reconfigure to specify hippocampal cell lineages. Lastly, we carried out an additional sci-ATAC-seq preparation from cultured hippocampal neurons (899 high-quality cells, 43,532 mean unique reads) that revealed substantial alterations in their epigenetic landscape compared to nuclei from hippocampal tissue. This dataset and accompanying analysis tools provide a new resource that can guide subsequent studies of the hippocampus.


Behavior is shaped by both genetics and experience--nature and nurture. This book synthesizes research from behavioral genetics and animal and veterinary science, bridging the gap between these fields. The objective is to show that principles of behavioral genetics have practical applications to agricultural and companion animals.The continuing domestication of animals is a complex process whose myriad impacts on animal behavior are commonly under-appreciated. Genetic factors play a significant role in both species-specific behaviors and behavioral differences exhibited by individuals in the same species. Leading authorities explore the impact of increased intensities of selection on domestic animal behavior. Rodents, cattle, pigs, sheep, horses, herding and guard dogs, and poultry are all included in these discussions of genetics and behavior, making this book useful to veterinarians, livestock producers, laboratory animal researchers and technicians, animal trainers and breeders, and any researcher interested in animal behavior.Includes four new chapters on dog and fox behavior, pig behavior, the effects of domestication and horse behaviorSynthesizes research from behavioral genetics, animal science, and veterinary literatureBroaches fields of behavior genetics and behavioral researchIncludes practical applications of principles discovered by behavioral genetics researchersCovers many species ranging from pigs, dogs, foxes, rodents, cattle, horses, and cats


Objective. To determine the outcome of children treated primarily with beta-lactam antibiotics for a systemic infection outside the central nervous system (CNS) caused by isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae nonsusceptible to ceftriaxone (MIC ≥ 1.0 &mgr;g/ml). Design. Retrospective review of the medical records of children identified prospectively with invasive infections outside of the CNS caused by isolates of S. pneumoniae that were not susceptible to ceftriaxone between September, 1993, and August, 1999. A subset of this group treated primarily with beta-lactam antibiotics was analyzed for outcome. Patients. Infants and children with pneumococcal infections cared for at eight children's hospitals. Results. Among 2100 patients with invasive infections outside the CNS caused by S. pneumoniae, 166 had isolates not susceptible to ceftriaxone. One hundred patients treated primarily with beta-lactam antibiotics were identified. From this group 71 and 14 children had bacteremia alone or with pneumonia, respectively, caused by strains with an MIC of 1.0 &mgr;g/ml. Bacteremia or pneumonia caused by isolates with a ceftriaxone MIC ≥ 2.0 &mgr;g/ml occurred in 6 and 5 children, respectively. Three children with septic arthritis and 1 with cellulitis had infections caused by strains with an MIC to ceftriaxone of 1.0 &mgr;g/ml. Most were treated with parenteral ceftriaxone, cefotaxime or cefuroxime for one or more doses followed by an oral antibiotic. All but one child were successfully treated. The failure occurred in a child with severe combined immune deficiency and bacteremia (MIC = 1.0 &mgr;g/ml) who remained febrile after a single dose of ceftriaxone followed by 12 days of cefprozil. Conclusion. Ceftriaxone, cefotaxime or cefuroxime are adequate to treat invasive infections outside the CNS caused by pneumococcal isolates with MICs up to 2.0 &mgr;g/ml, a concentration currently considered resistant for these antibiotics by National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards breakpoints.


ABSTRACT This article documents a history of the NSW club industry, with particular emphasis on its evolution to a major contemporary operator of gaming machines at state, national and international levels. It argues that three conditions of club registration-their not-for-profit status, membership requirements, and social benefit objectives-have been instrumental for clubs in gaining and maintaining dominant rights to machine gambling in NSW. These three features of clubs traditionally have underpinned their legitimacy as major providers of machine gambling, reflecting prevailing government policy that linked legalised gambling to social benefit. However, the substantial revenues that accrued from machine gambling, amidst an absence of competition, fuelled an expansion of the club sector that was neither predicted nor planned, with many clubs growing dramatically in assets, membership and facilities. The original club goals of promoting and pursuing the social purpose and community benefit for which they were established became superseded by an emphasis on expansion, market share, and profits. More recently, increased competition for the gambling dollar, reflecting a shift in government policy towards economically driven stimulation and expansion of commercial gambling, has further entrenched the commercialisation of clubs in their machine gambling operations, subordinating their social agenda to economic interests. This change in focus by club management has diminished the social contract that exists for clubs to operate gambling for community benefit, the very basis of the clubs' legitimacy as major providers of machine gambling. Indeed, the implicit assumption that social benefit was built into club machine gambling has allowed the clubs to exploit their position of market dominance in a way that exacerbates the negative social impacts of their core product.


Abstract. Land surface models (LSMs) are widely used to study the continental part of the water cycle. However, even though their accuracy is increasing, inherent model uncertainties can not be avoided. In the meantime, remotely sensed observations of the continental water cycle variables such as soil moisture, lakes and river elevations are more frequent and accurate. Therefore, those two different types of information can be combined, using data assimilation techniques to reduce a model's uncertainties in its state variables or/and in its input parameters. The objective of this study is to present a data assimilation platform that assimilates into the large-scale ISBA-CTRIP LSM a punctual river discharge product, derived from ENVISAT nadir altimeter water elevation measurements and rating curves, over the whole Amazon basin. To deal with the scale difference between the model and the observation, the study also presents an initial development for a localization treatment that allows one to limit the impact of observations to areas close to the observation and in the same hydrological network. This assimilation platform is based on the ensemble Kalman filter and can correct either the CTRIP river water storage or the discharge. Root mean square error (RMSE) compared to gauge discharges is globally reduced until 21 % and at Obidos, near the outlet, RMSE is reduced by up to 52 % compared to ENVISAT-based discharge. Finally, it is shown that localization improves results along the main tributaries.


The broad aim of this study is to examine the quality of education provision for Traveller children and the factors which affect it. The twin themes of national policy and local response form the background against which the different aspects of provision are examined. The empirical studies of site and education provision take place in the North East Region of England. The Gypsies/Travellers are defined as a distinct ethnic group within British society with their own culture and lifestyle. The historical background of Gypsies is used as a base to illustrate the development of their relationship with society today. Education of Traveller children, as in fact with all children, is linked with a secure place to live. The importance of site provision for Travellers and its effect on their lifestyle is examined as is the ideological intent of site provision by Government and Local Authorities. The relevance of education for Travellers in schools is questioned as are the attitudes and expectations of teachers in schools where Travellers attend. The perception of Travellers by some teachers illustrates the need for the education of teachers, Examination of the development of education provision for Traveller children from the 19th. Century to the present day reveals the diversity and also uneven spread of such provision. This diversity, including no specific provision, is illustrated in the Study Region. During the period of this research there has been an increasing awareness of the educational needs of Traveller children and a commitment by Local Education Authorities to improve the situation. A matter for concern, however, is that some individual schools and teachers view education as a tool which will assimilate Travellers into the settled society.


A new actinopterygian, Calaichthys tehul gen. et sp. nov. is described on the basis of a few, well‐preserved specimens from the Anisian Cerro de Las Cabras Formation, Cuyo Basin in Mendoza Province. The new genus shows a combination of primitive characters (e.g. deep posterior region of the maxilla contacting the preopercle, a suspensorium backwardly oriented) and more advanced characters (e.g. distally segmented fin rays, hemiheterocercal caudal fin) and is thus considered to be a 'subholostean' fish. The new taxon is assigned to Redfieldiiformes on the basis of its single branchiostegal plate‐like ray, a median gular plate, pectoral fins with stout, stiff, mainly non‐segmented and distally branched fin rays, long and robust fringing fulcra in all fins, basal fulcra bordering both lobes of the caudal fin, and opposite dorsal and anal fins. Calaichthys is characterized by a combination of characters some of which are unique among redfieldiiforms (i.e. strongly ornamented but thin scales with a serrated posterior margin, smooth skull roof bones, extrascapulars with a bifid posterior margin, three suborbital bones, a hatchet‐shaped preopercle, rectangular and slender opercle, deep mouth gape, entopterygoid and ectopterygoid with small pointed teeth disposed in several series, unornamented rostral bone, massive pectoral fins and delicate dorsal, pelvic and anal fins). Calaichthys provides novel information about the anatomy of redfieldiiforms, in particular in relation with the fins and associated scaly elements, as well as the scale morphology and their disposition over the body. Our work confirms for the first time that redfieldiiforms occur in South America. Redfieldiiforms seem to have originated in Gondwana and shown two diversity peaks: in the Anisian and the Carnian. Calaichthys is coeval with those redfieldiiforms of the Middle Triassic (Anisian) of Africa and Australia dwelling in ephemeral lakes.


Multimedia on Symbian OS is the only book available to discuss multimedia on Symbian OS at this level. It covers key areas of multimedia technology, with information about APIs and services provided by Symbian OS. Other key features include details of UI platform-specific APIs from S60 and UIQ. This pioneering book covers each of the key technologies available (such as audio, video, radio, image conversion, tuner and camera) at a high level, to give the reader context, before drilling down to details of how to use each of them. The book includes code samples which are available for download on a website and cover key APIs with detailed description of each. Additional information includes the evolution of multimedia on Symbian OS from previous versions to the current (v9.5) and plans for the future. Chapters include: Architecture of Multimedia on Symbian OS Onboard Camera Multimedia Framework of both Video & Audio Image Converter Library The Tuner


The transmembrane-spanning receptor tyrosine kinase Torso (Tor) is evenly dispersed along the entire surface of the developing Drosophila embryo; however, Tor is activated only at the embryonic poles, suggesting that Tor's ligand is either produced and secreted at the poles, or becomes an active ligand only at the poles. Casali and Casanova hypothesized that, on the basis of its amino acid sequence, Trunk (Trk), a protein important for Tor signaling but whose function is unknown, might undergo proteolytic cleavage. Previous reports indicated that mutations near the likely cleavage site rendered Trk inactive. Expression of a COOH-terminal Trk fragment (TrkC-108) in Drosophila embryos activated Tor in the absence of other gene products required for proper Tor activation, indicating that Trk function lies downstream of those gene products, and that Trk processing may be required for Tor activation. TrkC-108 could not rescue the development of a Tor-deficient Drosophila mutant, suggesting that Trk might be a ligand for Tor. The authors speculate that inactive Trk is secreted but is only activated when cleaved by a proteolytic enzyme complex located at the poles proximal to Tor. Furthermore, Casali and Casanova suggest that some of the other gene products required for the activation of Tor through Trk contain protease activity. A. Casali, J. Casanova, The spatial control of Torso RTK activation: A C-terminal fragment of the Trunk protein acts as a signal for Torso receptor in the Drosophila embryo. Development 128, 1709-1715 (2001). [Online Journal]


The International Cataloguing Principles are currently being revised by IFLA's Cataloguing Section. The group dedicated to carrying out this task is composed of Dorothy McGarry, Elena Escolano Rodriguez, Maria Violeta Bertolini, Bobby Bothman, and Agnese Galeffi. Rather than a radical revamping of the text, the revision is a relatively minor one.
Even if it seems a little paradoxical, the principles of cataloguing have to be updated in concomitance with the changes that occur in the functionality of catalogues. The aim of this presentation is to remind that principles, data, and the functionality of catalogues constantly exert a reciprocal influence on each other.
The title "Cataloguing principles, data, and catalogue features" juxtaposes three different elements: Principles (of cataloguing), Data, and the Functionality (of catalogues), but in reality this juxtaposition isn't so bold. The section headed "Scope" in the 2009 ICP tells us that "The principles stated here are intended to guide the development of cataloguing codes. They apply to bibliographic and authority data and current library catalogues."

Can it be possible that the principles are a "guide to the development of cataloguing codes" at the same time as being applicable to both data and catalogues? In order to effectively fulfil the role of a guide, principles should tend towards generality and universality. How, then, can it also possible to utilize them to assess two products of cataloguing work – data and library catalogues – which in turn are (also) composed of such data?

Cataloguing can be considered a phenomenology, which is to say a description of phenomena: the way in which a reality manifests itself. In fact, we can regard both resources and entities (to adopt FRBR terminology) as phenomena.
To gain a better insight into the revision of 2009′s ICP, it might be useful to ask ourselves exactly what, in a general sense, principles are. Well, it's interesting to discover that they can actually be two different things, depending on whether you chose to interpret the term from a philosophical or scientific viewpoint.
The concept of a "principle" first emerged in the ancient Greek between the 7th and 6th centuries BC. The philosophers Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes spoke of an αρχή (archi), meaning "principle, beginning", in their effort to identify the primordial substance from which all things originated. This chronological precedent also served a benchmark of value. Thus the term αρχή took on the more general meaning of "foundation" or "raison d'etre" in an essentially ideal, intrinsic sense. The Oxford dictionary defines "principle" as "a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behaviour or for a chain of reasoning."

In the realm of the natural sciences, however, the term "principle" refers to the (more or less) universal methodological laws that the said sciences have to obey within the structure of their respective doctrines. These principles are based on experience; they are, in fact, generalizations of more specific laws.

So, to which of these two categories do cataloguing principles in fact belong? Are they philosophical or scientific principles?

In order to be philosophical principles, they would have to be representative of a basic principle underlying everything; they would have to be intrinsic and universal in nature; they would have to belong to cataloguing per se, be at its core, be its very essence. But can this really be possible?
In order to be scientific principles, they would have to be derived from generalizations drawn from practical, real life experience. In the FRBR – one ICP's basis –, when addressing the "recommendations for a basic level bibliographic record", we are informed that "the assessment was based in large part on the knowledge and experience of the study group members and consultants, supplemented by evidence in the library science literature gathered from empirical research, as well as assessments made by several experts outside the study group". I would like to underscore the terms evidence, empirical and assessments, all of which refer to the perceptible, phenomenological world.
If a principle is derived from a vast amount of experimental experience, it follows that if that experimental experience changes in some way, then the principle (or principles) will also change. The principles we're concerned here with are closely bound to the cataloguing experience, which is aimed at creating research tools. Changing the descriptive experience – what is described and for whom – should necessarily result in changes in the underlying principle or principles.


Aimed at fashion and textile students, the "Fashion A to Z" fills a gap in the market for an affordable, accessible, and up-to-date guide to fashion terminology. Bringing together all the key words commonly used in colleges and in industry, this fashion reference book is beautifully illustrated with diagrams and drawings of fashion details and costumes that bring the subject to life. The book contains over 2,000 entries, arranged alphabetically. Illustrated by renowned fashion illustrator and designer Zakee Shariff, this unique fashion dictionary will be quirky and fun, but will provide invaluable definitions of all the words a fashion and textile student needs to know but might be afraid to ask.


Much has been written about the origins of civil procedure. Yet little is known about the origins of criminal procedure, even though it governs how millions of cases in federal and state courts are litigated each year. This Article's examination of criminal procedure's origin story questions the prevailing notion that civil and criminal procedure require different treatment. The Article's starting point is the first draft of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure — confidential in 1941 and since forgotten. The draft reveals that reformers of criminal procedure turned to the new rules of civil procedure for guidance. The contents of this draft shed light on an extraordinary moment: reformers initially proposed that all litigation in the United States, civil and criminal, be governed by a unified procedural code. The implementation of this original vision of a unified code would have had dramatic implications for how criminal law is practiced and perceived today. The advisory committee's final product in 1944, however, set criminal litigation on a very different course. Transcripts of the committee's initial meetings reveal that the final code of criminal procedure emerged from the clash of ideas presented by two committee members, James Robinson and Alexander Holtzoff. Holtzoff's traditional views would ultimately persuade other members, cleaving criminal procedure from civil procedure.
Since then, differences in civil and criminal litigation have become entrenched and normalized. Yet, at the time the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure were drafted, a unified code was not just a plausible alternative but the only proposal. The draft's challenge to the prevailing notion that civil and criminal wrongs inherently require different procedural treatment is a critical contribution to the growing debate over whether the absence of discovery in criminal procedure is justified in light of discovery tools afforded by civil procedure. The first draft of criminal procedure, which called for uniform rules to govern proceedings in all civil and criminal courtrooms, suggests the possibility that current resistance to unification is, to a significant degree, historically contingent.


We adapted the RNA FISH Stellaris method to specifically detect the expression of Plasmodium genes by flow cytometry and ImageStream (Flow-FISH). This new method accurately quantified the erythrocytic forms of (1) Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax and (2) the sexual stages of P vivax from patient isolates. ImageStream analysis of liver stage sporozoites using a combination of surface circumsporozoite protein (CSP), deoxyribonucleic acid, and 18S RNA labeling proved that the new Flow-FISH is suitable for gene expression studies of transmission stages. This powerful multiparametric single-cell method offers a platform of choice for both applied and fundamental research on the biology of malaria parasites.


Despite decreasing overall convictions for drink driving 2009-2012 in New Zealand (NZ), convictions for high risk (repeat or high level) drink driving increased. Evidence shows alcohol ignition interlocks reduce drink driving compared to existing sanctions (licence disqualification and fines). In 2011 legislation enabled the introduction of an Alcohol Interlock Program (AIP) for high risk drink drivers in NZ. This paper reviews the AIP in its first year as a sentencing option for high risk drink drivers. Ministry of Justice and NZ Transport Agency data was reviewed and stakeholders and participants of the AIP provided information. For the period 10 September 2012 to 9 September 2013 there were 23,362 drivers convicted of drink/drug driving. Of these, 11,692 (50%) met the criteria for the AIP: 6,639 repeat convictions and 5,053 first time convictions over double the legal limit. Only 228 offenders received an alcohol interlock sentence in addition to other penalties (2% of those eligible), far fewer than expected. Stakeholders report multiple barriers to uptake of the AIP: cost; more attractive alternative sentences (shorter duration, shorter stand-down period, less cost); legal loopholes (e.g. competing 'mandatory' sentences); and use of the Zero Alcohol licence (introduced as part of the AIP) as a stand-alone alternative. The AIP has been involved in High Court Appeals, further reducing judges' confidence in this option. A mandatory AIP sentence for this cohort of drivers would bring NZ into line with international and Australian jurisdictions.


Acid protease has applications in pharmaceutical, food, leather, detergent industries. In this study, we performed medium optimization for protease production through one variable at a Time. Submerged fermentation of fungal culture Aspergillus was initiated with equal volumes of molasses and cheeses whey. The optimal pH and time of incubation was carried over pH range 2 to 9 and time of 3 to 7 days. Further enzyme productivity was tested with 1% (w/v) nitrogen sources followed by carbon sources. Best carbon and nitrogen sources were optimized upto 3% (w/v). The crude protease was partially purified by performing salt precipitation over 40 to 85% saturation. The protease activity of 3.648 μ/ml was obtained with the optimal pH of 4.5 and an incubation of 5 days. Best additional nitrogen source was found to be soya bean meal and its optimum concentration was determined as 1% (w/v). Similarly glucose enhanced the enzyme activity from 4.171 to 4.638 U/ml and finally the optimal values were found to be 1.5% (w/v). Production medium of acid protease from Aspergillus spp. was designed through conventional method, One Variable At a Time (OVAT) in an easy manner. Peak enzyme activity was found to be 4.638 U/ml with the combination of molasses and cheese whey supplemented with 1% (w/v) soya bean meal and 1.5% (w/v) of glucose. The protease was partially purified through precipitation by ammonium sulphate followed by dialysis with an enhanced the activity of 5.545 μ/ml.


Every work on Jewish thought and law since the twelfth century bears the imprint of Maimonides. A. N. Whitehead's famous dictum that the entire European philosophical tradition 'consists of a series of footnotes to Plato' could equally characterize Maimonides' place in the Jewish tradition. The critical studies in this volume explore how Orthodox rabbis of different orientations — Shlomo Aviner, Naftali Zvi Yehudah Berlin (Netziv), Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, Joseph Kafih, Abraham Isaac Kook, Aaron Kotler, Joseph Soloveitchik, and Elhanan Wasserman — have read and provided footnotes to Maimonides in the long twentieth century. How well did they really understand Maimonides? And where do their arguments fit in the mainstream debates about him and his works? Each of the seven core chapters examines a particular approach. Some rabbis have tried to liberate themselves from the influence of his ideas. Others have sought to build on those ideas or expand them in ways which Maimonides himself did not pursue, and which he may well not have agreed with. Still others advance patently non-Maimonidean positions, while attributing them to none other than Maimonides. Above all, the chapters published here demonstrate that his legacy remains vibrantly alive today.


Providing evidence for HEIs and policy makers working in this area, this report showcases the great breadth and variety of models and partnerships in the UK's outgoing HE TNE. The report is based on a detailed survey of all UK HE providers delivering TNE in 2014/15, with twelve case studies accompanying the data to give a face to UK HE TNE.

This report was created by HEGlobal, a joint initiative between the UK Higher Education International Unit and the British Council. It was established to address the questions and challenges surrounding TNE.


Mean-payoff games are important quantitative models for open reactive systems. They have been widely studied as games of perfect information. In this paper we investigate the algorithmic properties of several subclasses of mean-payoff games where the players have asymmetric information about the state of the game. These games are in general undecidable and not determined according to the classical definition. We show that such games are determined under a more general notion of winning strategy. We also consider mean-payoff games where the winner can be determined by the winner of a finite cycle-forming game. This yields several decidable classes of mean-payoff games of asymmetric information that require only finite-memory strategies, including a generalization of perfect information games where positional strategies are sufficient. We give an exponential time algorithm for determining the winner of the latter.


Low-dimensional spin systems with S = 1/2 and a singlet ground state attract intensive research efforts because of the quantum nature of their ground state. Since the discovery of the singlet plaquette CaV4O9 compound more attention has been paid to chemical analogues with S = 1/2, V4+ (d1) ions. For example, the V2O5 network exhibits the characteristics of layered and crystallographic shear structures and there is a large vanadium oxide bronze family, MxV2O5 (M = alkali, alkaline earth metals), which shows several original [V2O5] networks. For this reason, the atomic architectures of V2O5 and its derivatives provide a stage where various lower-dimensional quantum critical phenomena can be realised. Compounds in the series LixV2O5 were synthesised via soft chemistry methods and characterised structurally and magnetically via high-resolution x-ray and neutron diffraction and magnetization measurements using a SQUID magnetometer. Additional weaker peaks observed in certain of the diffraction patterns suggested the occurrence of charge ordering of vanadium ions in an incommensurately modulated superstructure for some of the E-LixV2O5 and E'-LixV2O5 phases. Having discovered a possible magnetic transition (Tf ~ 25 K) in one of these dilute-spin phases, Li0.50V2O5, believed to be associated with the low-dimensional, chain-like arrangement of the V4+ (S = 1/2, d1) cations over the non-magnetic V5+(S = 0, d0) network, a local probe, SR, was applied to investigate its ground state and the ground states of other members of the series LixV2O5 with x = 0.55, 0.64 and 0.72 which also exhibit interesting magnetic behaviour. Lack of oscillation in the SR data revealed the absence of any long-range magnetic order for Li0.50V2O5, Li0.55V2O5, Li0.64V2O5, and Li0.72V2O5, supportive of a true one-dimensional ground state, suggesting the formation of domains of one-dimensional antiferromagnetic chains, consistent with the Bonner-Fisher model for low-dimensional magnetic behaviour which provided a good fit to the SQUID data collected.


RNA granules are non-membrane bound cellular compartments that contain RNA and RNA binding proteins. The molecular mechanisms that regulate the spatial distribution of RNA granules in cells are poorly understood. During polarization of the C. elegans zygote, germline RNA granules, called P granules, assemble preferentially in the posterior cytoplasm. We present evidence that P granule asymmetry depends on RNA-induced phase separation of the granule scaffold MEG-3. MEG-3 is an intrinsically disordered protein that binds and phase separates with RNA in vitro. In vivo, MEG-3 forms a posterior-rich concentration gradient that is anti-correlated with a gradient in the RNA-binding protein MEX-5. MEX-5 is necessary and sufficient to suppress MEG-3 granule formation in vivo, and suppresses RNA-induced MEG-3 phase separation in vitro. Our findings support a model whereby MEX-5 functions as an mRNA sink to locally suppress MEG-3 phase separation and drive P granule asymmetry. HIGHLIGHTS - The intrinsically-disordered protein MEG-3 is essential for localized assembly of P granules in C. elegans zygotes. - MEG-3 binds RNA and RNA stimulates MEG-3 phase separation. - The RNA-binding protein MEX-5 inhibits MEG-3 granule assembly in the anterior cytoplasm by sequestering RNA.


The prevalence and history of fires in Africa has led to the continent being named 'the fire continent'. Fires are common on the continent and lead to a high number of annual fire disasters which result in many human fatalities and considerable financial loss. Increased population growth and concentrated settlement planning increase the probability of fire disasters and the associated loss of human life and financial loss when disasters occur. In order to better understand the spatial and temporal variations and characteristics of fires in South Africa, an 11-year data set of MODIS-derived Active Fire Hotspots was analysed using an open source geographic information system. The study included the mapping of national fire frequency over the 11-year period. Results indicate that the highest fire frequency occurred in the northeastern regions of South Africa, in particular the mountainous regions of KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga, and in the Western Cape. Increasing trends in provincial fire frequency were observed in eight of the nine provinces of South Africa, with Mpumalanga the only province for which a decrease in annual fire frequency was observed. Temporally, fires were observed in all months for all provinces, although distinct fire seasons were observed and were largely driven by rainfall seasons. The southwestern regions of South Africa (winter-rainfall regions) experienced higher fire frequencies during the summer months and the rest of the country (summer-rainfall regions) during the winter months. Certain regions – those which experienced bimodal rainfall seasons – did not display distinct fire seasons because of the complex wet and dry seasons. Investigation into the likely effects of climate change on South African fire frequency revealed that increased air temperatures and events such as La Nina have a marked effect on fire activity.


Abstract. Climate variability in the North Atlantic sector is commonly ascribed to the
North Atlantic Oscillation. However, recent studies have shown that taking
into account the second and third mode of variability (namely the East
Atlantic – EA – and the Scandinavian – SCA – patterns) greatly improves
our understanding of their controlling mechanisms, as well as their impact on
climate. The most commonly used EA and SCA indices span the period from 1950
to present, which is too short, for example, to calibrate palaeoclimate
records or assess their variability over multi-decadal scales. To tackle
this, here, we create new EOF-based (empirical orthogonal function) monthly
EA and SCA indices covering the period from 1851 to present, and compare them
with their equivalent instrumental indices. We also review and discuss the
value of these new records and provide insights into the reasons why
different sources of data may give slightly different time series.
Furthermore, we demonstrate that using these patterns to explain climate
variability beyond the winter season needs to be done carefully due to their
non-stationary behaviour. The datasets are available at
https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.892769.


In May 2000, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that it would not go forward under a privatization contract with BNFL, Inc., the U.S. affiliate of U.K.-based British Nuclear Fuel, plc, because the final bid price had escalated by more than 120%. BNFL was bidding to complete the final design, construction, and operation of a large-scale nuclear waste vitrification facility to be located in Hanford, Washington, the site of DOE's largest concentration of nuclear waste. This article examines, from a financial perspective, the lessons learned in structuring a privatized contract with a U.S. Federal agency, including the issues that were encountered throughout the negotiation in order to enable private financing for one of the largest nuclear waste disposal facilities in operation. It identifies both the necessary ingredients for successful public-private-partnerships and some critical issues that should be addressed to enable future federal privatizations to succeed.


The article reviews issues in formation of the institute of public service in Ukraine and the existing national system of training, re-training and qualification improvement of public servants, also the conceptual and practical approaches of its reform. Terms of "professionalism", "qualification", and "competence" are discussed. The need for introduction in Ukraine the national standards of public servants' professional training, based on the European standards, is substantiated.


At present, the Information Systems (IS) community is debating the relevance of its research results. Design ScienceResearch (DSR) is considered a promising approach to advance the scientific body of knowledge while, at the same time,resulting in research results of high practical utility. As a consequence, a number of guidelines and recommendations havebeen proposed to support the researcher in conducting DSR. Interestingly, though, almost no contribution can be found so farwhich investigates the transfer of knowledge between researchers and practitioners in DSR. Without efficient and effectivetransfer of knowledge between those two communities, DSR projects will not be able to achieve their goals. Motivated bythis research gap the paper at hand takes a knowledge creation perspective on DSR. It proposes an integrated modelconsisting of five different knowledge transfer activities between researchers and practitioners and vice-versa. The model isdiscussed on the basis of three recent DSR cases. The paper shows the general applicability of knowledge creation theory toDSR and lays the foundation for future research, in particular for further evaluation and elaboration of the model


In this paper two discussions between experts about Bayesian modellings of complex criminal cases are analysed on their argumentation structure. The usefulness of several recognised argument schemes is confirmed, two new schemes for interpretation arguments and for arguments from statistics are proposed, and an analysis is given of debates about the validity of arguments. From a practical point of view the case study yields insights into the design of support software for discussions about Bayesian modellings of complex criminal cases.


Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) regulates many facets of animal development. Proteins that are expressed in the same pattern as FGF and are involved in the same signaling pathway are referred to as the FGF synexpression group and, thus far, include the FGF receptor (FGFR), a transmembrane protein called Sef, intracellular proteins of the sprouty family, and transcription factors such as Erm and Pea3. Sef and sprouty negatively regulate FGF signaling. Böttcher et al. have identified a positive regulatory protein in Xenopus that is a member of the fibronectin-leucine-rich transmembrane protein family (XFLRT3), which may also belong to this synexpression group. The expression of XFLRT3 resembles that of FGF8 in developing Xenopus embryos, and its expression is regulated by FGF. Expression of a dominant-negative form of the FGFR blocked the effect of XFLRT3 on gene expression, and both proteins coimmunoprecipitated when overexpressed in cultured mammalian cells, which suggests an interaction at the plasma membrane. XFLRT3 overexpression also activated the mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling arm of the FGF pathway. The authors propose that XFLRT3 modulates FGF signaling directly or recruits factors to the membrane to enhance signaling. The FGFR may reside with both positive and negative regulators in a large complex at the cell surface. R. T. Böttcher, N. Pollet, H. Delius, C. Niehrs, The transmembrane protein XFLRT3 forms a complex with FGF receptors and promotes FGF signalling. Nat. Cell Biol. 6, 38-44 (2004). [Online Journal]


Efficient energy storage is one of the greatest concerns for renewable power generation. This paper focuses on the control of a battery management system (BMS) for photovoltaic (PV) applications with a high efficiency bidirectional converter. The proposed BMS control strategy utilizes the dc bus power and battery state of charge (SOC) for the charging and discharging of the battery with a bidirectional converter. The bidirectional converter includes fewer components and switches, has less switching losses with zero voltage switching, and has high gain buck-boost operations. A new control algorithm of charging-discharging control for the battery storage system is proposed. The complete PV system with a boost dc to dc converter controller to regulate the dc link voltage, bidirectional converter based battery charge controller, and an inverter with its associated vector mode controller is implemented in the Simulink/Simpower environment. The simulation results are presented and discussed to verify the validity of the proposed control algorithm.


Aim: Heart failure is a serious complication of acute myocardial infarction leading to poor prognosis. We aimed at exploring time trends of heart failure and their impact on mortality among patients with an incident acute myocardial infarction. Methods: From the National Patient Danish Registry we collected data on all patients hospitalized with an incident of acute myocardial infarction during 2000–2009 and identified cases with in-hospital heart failure (presented on admission or developing heart failure during acute myocardial infarction hospitalization) or post-discharge heart failure (a hospitalization or outpatient visit following acute myocardial infarction discharge), and assessed in-hospital, 30-day and 1-year mortality. Results: Of the 78,814 patients included in the study, 10,248 (13.0%) developed in-hospital heart failure. The odds of in-hospital heart failure declined 0.9% per year (odds ratio=0.991, 95% confidence interval: 0.983–0.999). In-hospital heart failure was associated with 13% (odds ratio=1.13, 95% confidence interval: 1.06–1.20) and 14% (odds ratio=1.14, 95% confidence interval: 1.07–1.20) higher in-hospital and 30-day mortality, respectively. Of the 61,637 patients discharged alive without in-hospital heart failure, 5978 (9.7%) experienced post-discharge heart failure, 4116 (6.7%) were hospitalized and 1862 (3.0%) were diagnosed at outpatient clinics. The risk of heart failure requiring hospitalization declined 5.5% per year (hazard ratio=0.945, 95% confidence interval: 0.934–0.955) whereas the risk of heart failure diagnosed at outpatient clinics increased 13.4% per year (hazard ratio=1.134, 95% confidence interval: 1.115–1.153). Post-discharge heart failure was associated with 239% (hazard ratio=3.39, 95% confidence interval: 3.18–3.63) higher 1-year mortality. Conclusions: In-hospital and post-discharge heart failure requiring hospitalization decreased whereas post-discharge heart failure diagnosed at outpatient clinics increased among incident acute myocardial infarction patients during 2000–2009. The development of heart failure, especially after acute myocardial infarction discharge, indicates a poor prognosis.


Simulation is a good way to gain insight into a system, for example during development, without having to run or build the actual system. This is especially true for real-time systems, which often operate in hazardous environments or control critical entities in the 'real' world, making testing of these systems in their real environment unsafe during development. When building simulations, one simulator is not likely to fit every type of simulation project. Therefore, different simulators, which focus on different aspects of simulation, are built. The High Level Architecture (HLA) from the Defense Modeling and Simulation Office (DMSO) is an architecture for distributed simulations providing a means to communicate between different simulations. However, the HLA standard has limitations if viewed from a real-time perspective. For example, there is no built-in support for fault tolerance. In this thesis some of the limitations in HLA are identified and an extended architecture that uses a distributed active real-time database as a way to overcome these limitations is presented. One of the major advantages with this new extended HLA architecture is that it is still compliant with HLA, i.e., no modifications have been made to the HLA interfaces.


As rapid urbanization intensifies around the world, so do contestations over how city space is utilized and for whose benefit urban revitalization is undertaken. The most prominent sites of this contestation are efforts by city residents to claim important urban goods — open squares, parks, abandoned or underutilized buildings, vacant lots, cultural institutions, streets and other urban infrastructure — as collective, or shared, resources of urban communities. The assertion of a common stake or interest in resources shared with others is a way of resisting the privatization and/or commodification of these resources. We situate these claims within an emerging "urban commons" framework embraced by progressive reformers and scholars across multiple disciplines. The urban commons framework has the potential to provide a discourse, and set of tools, for the development of revitalized and inclusive cities. Yet, scholars have failed to fully develop the concept of the "urban commons," limiting its utility to policymakers. In this article, we offer a pluralistic account of the urban commons, including the idea of the city itself as a commons. We find that, as a descriptive matter, the characteristics of some shared urban resources mimic open-access, depletable resources that require a governance or management regime to protect them in a congested and rivalrous urban environment. For other kinds of resources in dispute, the language and framework of the commons operates as a normative claim to open up access of an otherwise closed or limited access good. This latter claim resonates with the social obligation norm in property law identified by progressive property scholars and reflected in some doctrines which recognize that private ownership rights must sometimes yield to the common good or community interest.Ultimately, however, the urban commons framework is more than a legal tool to make proprietary claims on particular urban goods and resources. Rather, we argue that the utility of the commons framework is to raise the question of how best to manage, or govern, shared or common resources. The literature on the commons suggests alternatives beyond privatization of common resources or monopolistic public regulatory control over them. We propose that the collaborative and polycentric governance strategies already being employed to manage some natural and urban common resources can be scaled up to the city level to guide decisions about how city space and common goods are used, who has access to them, and how they are shared among a diverse population. We explore what it might look like to manage the city as a commons by describing two evolving models of what we call "urban collaborative governance": the sharing city and the collaborative city.


Background and Aims Stomatal morphology and function have remained largely conserved throughout ∼400 million years of plant evolution. However, plant cell wall composition has evolved and changed. Here stomatal cell wall composition was investigated in different vascular plant groups in attempt to understand their possible effect on stomatal function. Methods A renewed look at stomatal cell walls was attempted utilizing digitalized polar microscopy, confocal microscopy, histology and a numerical finite-elements simulation. The six species of vascular plants chosen for this study cover a broad structural, ecophysiological and evolutionary spectrum: ferns (Asplenium nidus and Platycerium bifurcatum) and angiosperms (Arabidopsis thaliana and Commelina erecta) with kidney-shaped stomata, and grasses (angiosperms, family Poaceae) with dumbbell-shaped stomata (Sorghum bicolor and Triticum aestivum). Key Results Three distinct patterns of cellulose crystallinity in stomatal cell walls were observed: Type I (kidney-shaped stomata, ferns), Type II (kidney-shaped stomata, angiosperms) and Type III (dumbbell-shaped stomata, grasses). The different stomatal cell wall attributes investigated (cellulose crystallinity, pectins, lignin, phenolics) exhibited taxon-specific patterns, with reciprocal substitution of structural elements in the end-walls of kidney-shaped stomata. According to a numerical bio-mechanical model, the end walls of kidney-shaped stomata develop the highest stresses during opening. Conclusions The data presented demonstrate for the first time the existence of distinct spatial patterns of varying cellulose crystallinity in guard cell walls. It is also highly intriguing that in angiosperms crystalline cellulose appears to have replaced lignin that occurs in the stomatal end-walls of ferns serving a similar wall strengthening function. Such taxon-specific spatial patterns of cell wall components could imply different biomechanical functions, which in turn could be a consequence of differences in environmental selection along the course of plant evolution.


Create advanced reports, including cross tabs, sub-reports, and charts that connect to practically any data source using open source Pentaho Reporting. Create great-looking enterprise reports in PDF, Excel, and HTML with Pentaho's Open Source Reporting Suite, and integrate report generation into your existing Java application with minimal hassleUse data source options to develop advanced graphs, graphics, cross tabs, and sub-reportsDive deeply into the Pentaho Reporting Engine's XML and Java APIs to create dynamic reportsWork with a multitude of examples throughout the book for quick learning on every topic In Detail Pentaho Reporting lets you create, generate, and distribute rich and sophisticated report content from different data sources. Knowing how to use it quickly and efficiently gives you the edge in producing reports from your database. If you have been looking for a book that has plenty of easy-to-understand instructions and also contains lots of examples and screenshots, this is where your search ends.This book shows you how to replace or build your enterprise reporting solution from scratch with Pentaho's Reporting Suite. Through detailed examples, it dives deeply into all aspects of Pentaho's reporting functionalities, providing you with the knowledge you need to master report creation.This book starts off with a number of examples to get you familiar with the tools and technology of the Pentaho Reporting Suite. Then, with additional examples, it goes into advanced subjects such as charting, sub-reporting, cross tabs, as well as API generation of reports. There are also details and examples on extending Pentaho's open source reporting engine. The reader will learn the ins and outs of Pentaho Report Designer, including a cheat sheet with all the available short-cut keys, to make report design efficient and painless.Embedding reports into your Java application can be difficult. With Pentaho Reporting it's just a few lines of code. The book provides examples of how to embed reporting into your J2EE and client Java applications, as well as showing you how to build dynamic reports from scratch using Pentaho Reporting's simple Java Bean-based report generation API.Setting up and integrating a reporting server in an enterprise environment can be arduous. In addition to learning how to build great embeddable reports, you'll also learn how to combine Pentaho Reporting with Pentaho's BI Server for a zero-code, easy-to-configure, enterprise reporting solution. What you will learn from this book? Install and get started with Pentaho ReportingBuild great-looking reports that render as PDF, Excel, and HTML using Pentaho Report DesignerLearn the ins and outs of Pentaho Report Designer, including a list of short-cut keys for quick report generationConfigure your JDBC database and other data sources to drive dynamic reportsInclude Pie, Bar, Line, and many other chart types within your reports, as well as other graphicsParameterize your reports, using the open formula standard to drive calculations within your reportsAdd sub-reports and cross tabs in your reports to more effectively present informationBuild interactive Swing and HTML reports that are more like dashboards than traditional static enterprise reportsBuild Pentaho Reports programmatically with easy-to-use XML and Java APIsLearn to write your own open formula functions and custom graphical elements in reportsWrite your own extensions to Pentaho Reporting, for complete integration and customization into your environmentFind out why you should use open source reporting over proprietary reporting offerings (hint: it's free and you can customize it)Install Pentaho's BI Server and deploy your reports with permissions and scheduling with zero code. Chapter 1 An introduction to Pentaho Reporting - Get a quick overview of Pentaho Reporting, including a feature summary and architectural summary, as well as a history of the product. Chapter 2 Pentaho Reporting client and enterprise examples - Install and create reports, and learn to embed reports in your J2EE and client Java applications. Chapter 3 Pentaho Reporting examples in the real world - Connect to a JDBC data source and create realistic inventory, balance, and invoice reports, including charts and sub-reports. Chapter 4 Design and layout in Pentaho's Report Designer - Take a deep dive into Pentaho's Report Designer, learning how to create great-looking reports. Chapter 5 Working with data sources - Learn the various ways to connect your report to live data, including JDBC, Hibernate, Java Beans, OLAP, and many other data sources. Chapter 6 Including charts and graphics in reports - Incorporate Pie, Bar, Line and many other chart types in your reports, as well as including dynamic images in your report. Chapter 7 Parameterization, functions, formulas and style expressions in reports - Define parameters for dynamic report generation. Write formulas and use available functions for rich summary and calculated values in your reports. Dynamically adjust colors and styles using expressions in your report. Chapter 8 Adding sub-reports and cross tabs to reports - Build reports that include side-by-side sub-reports and cross tabs. Chapter 9 Building interactive reports - These aren't standard boring static reports. Learn how to add dynamic interaction to HTML and Swing reports, for immediate feedback and dashboard-like functionality. Chapter 10 API-based report generation - Build reports from XML and by using Pentaho Reporting's Java Bean API. Chapter 11 Extending Pentaho Reporting - Learn to write custom functions and elements within Pentaho Reporting. Chapter 12 Additional Pentaho Reporting topics - Discover how to use Pentaho Reporting with the Pentaho BI Server, including Pentaho Metadata. Learn more about Pentaho Reporting's open source approach, and how you can contribute to the free software movement. Approach This hands-on tutorial, filled with exercises and examples, introduces the reader to a variety of concepts within Pentaho Reporting. With screenshots that show you how reports look at design time as well as how they should look when rendered as PDF, Excel, or HTML, this book also contains complete example source code that you can copy and paste into your environment to get up and running quickly. Who this book is written for? This book is primarily written for Java developers who want to assemble custom reporting solutions with Pentaho Reporting. Their main interest is in the technical details of creating reports and they want to see how to solve common report problems with a minimum of fuss; they do not need an overview of BI or the importance of reporting. Secondary audiences of this book are information technologists who need to install a reporting solution in their environment, and want to learn advanced concepts within Pentaho Reporting such as sub-reports, cross-tabs, data source configuration, and metadata-based reporting.


This work focuses on the unique U.S.-Russian counterterrorism partnership. Following 9/11, the two states identified terrorism as a mutual enemy that posed utmost concerns to their national securities. Despite decades filled with antagonism, their teamwork reached unprecedented levels of cooperation on a multiplicity of matters; counterterrorism, counter-narcotics, and nuclear security are three concerns which this research centers on. Areas of such collaboration include multidimensional efforts in Afghanistan to eradicate drugs, to build infrastructure and to train Afghan police and military to fight the Taliban and to eliminate its sources of funding, which mostly come from the narcotics trade. The goal is to build the capacity of local Afghan forces that will be in charge, and responsible for protecting their country and people once the NATO troops withdraw in 2014. While efforts in Afghanistan have been significant in areas of education and training of Afghan military personnel, the larger issues of the Taliban and illicit drugs have not been solved. In fact, data show a significant increase of cultivation of opium since 2002. A severe amount of corruption together with the weak economy makes it nearly impossible for any progress to be made, because farmers cultivating opium have great economic incentives and weak alternatives. This thesis essentially concludes that the lingering mistrusts of the Cold War impede greater cooperation between Russia and the U.S., and that while the two powers have made notable progress in taking preventive measures to secure nuclear facilities, their counterterrorism efforts in Afghanistan have not been as successful.


The Mitoke active fault system (MAFS) is about 50 km long with a NW-WNW strike in the western margin of the Tamba Mountains, and is generally characterized by an uplifting of the northeast side accompanied by a left-lateral slip. The MAFS is composed of many active faults and is one of the largest active fault system in the northern Kinki district. The Tonoda fault is situated in the central part of the MAFS and is about 15 km long. Based on a study of the fault topography, the Tonoda fault acted with an uplifting northeastern side and a left-lateral slip during the late Quaternary period. A paleoseismological study was requested due to the lack of evidence on which to base on evaluation of earthquake risk.To clarify the age of the latest event and intervals of events of the Tonoda fault during the late Quaternary, trenches were excavated across the fault scarplet at Sekibayashi where this fault cut river terraces with a NW trend.The results of this study can be summarized as follows:This fault is a reverse fault with northeastern side up-thrown and fault planes dips about 80° to the north. Based on differences of geologic section and fault striation, this is accompanied by a left lateral slip.1) The vertical displacements of depositional surfaces of Li and L2 terraces are 5 to 9m and 1.9-3m respectively, based on drilling and trenching data. This fault is characterized by a average vertical slip rate of 0.1-0.3m/1, 000 years during the late Quaternary period.2) At trench B, three faulting events were identified since 11 ka. The latest event was dated to be 1, 950-2, 310y. B. P.(A. D. 100-B.C. 395), that is from the Middle Yayoi to Latest Jomon period. The second and third latest events were dated to be 5, 500-7, 500y. B. P, and 8, 500-10, 710y. B. P. The average reccurence interval of faulting is estimated to be about 3, 740 years. A much older faulting event from 17, 000-22, 000y. B. P. was only identified at trench A because of the poor resolution for a paleoseismicity analysis.


The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of excessive concentration of selected heavy metals nickel, copper and zinc on aromatic plants Thymus vulgaris. The present work examines the concentration of phenolic compounds, total antioxidant capacity and flavonoids content in leaves obtained from plants Thymus vulgaris grown on the soil contaminated with different concentration of these heavy metals. It was assumed, that selected metals, playing the role of micronutrients, cause toxic effect in their excessive concentrations, inhibit the growth and development of plants. Adverse impact on the plant is most likely due to the oxidative stress at a cellular level. It was demonstrated, that the lowest applied concentrations of heavy metals lead to the increased antioxidant content, which then decreases with increasing metal concentrations.


The purpose of this study was to assess the main health-related anthropometric characteristics of young adults in order to evaluate the relationship of their anthropometric characteristics with the quantity and type of physical activity and the physical abilities according to sex. The study was carried out using a sample of young adults applying to the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences (EASS) for programs which require physical ability tests upon application in order to ensure that public safety employees are capable of meeting the physical demands of their jobs. The present study confirms that regular weekly physical activity is significantly correlated to body composition parameters as well as with the physical ability to perform fitness tests well.


Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer-Global Digital Elevation Model (ASTER GDEM), Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), and Global Multi-resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010) are freely available Digital Elevation Model (DEM) datasets for environmental modeling and studies. The quality of spatial resolution and vertical accuracy of the DEM data source has a great influence particularly on the accuracy specifically for inundation mapping. Most of the coastal inundation risk studies used the publicly available DEM to estimated the coastal inundation and associated damaged especially to human population based on the increment of sea level. In this study, the comparison between ground truth data from Global Positioning System (GPS) observation and DEM is done to evaluate the accuracy of each DEM. The vertical accuracy of SRTM shows better result against ASTER and GMTED10 with an RMSE of 6.054 m. On top of the accuracy, the correlation of DEM is identified with the high determination of coefficient of 0.912 for SRTM. For coastal zone area, DEMs based on airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) dataset was used as ground truth data relating to terrain height. In this case, the LiDAR DEM is compared against the new SRTM DEM after applying the scale factor. From the findings, the accuracy of the new DEM model from SRTM can be improved by applying scale factor. The result clearly shows that the value of RMSE exhibit slightly different when it reached 0.503 m. Hence, this new model is the most suitable and meets the accuracy requirement for coastal inundation risk assessment using open source data. The suitability of these datasets for further analysis on coastal management studies is vital to assess the potentially vulnerable areas caused by coastal inundation.


This article contributes to the history of science by giving an overview of the international comparative surveys connected to the University of Tartu on the basis of the original questionnaire-based or interview data originating from the period 1990–2014. We got information about 102 projects that were in accordance with the conditions described above. The most common international partners were Finns, Brits, Germans, Swedes, Poles and the Spanish. In terms of topics, most of the surveys were carried out in the field of social sciences in general (71 surveys), followed by health sciences (12 surveys), political science (12 surveys), education (7 surveys) and linguistics (1 survey). In terms of institutional affiliation, the greatest number of surveys were conducted in sociology and social policy (19 surveys), psychology (17 surveys), health sciences (16 surveys), education (15 surveys), social work (10 surveys), law (6 surveys), political science (6 surveys), media (5 surveys), religion (4 surveys), sports (2 surveys), by the Centre for Applied Social Sciences (2 surveys) and in linguistics (1 survey). 56% of the surveys were quantitative, 16% qualitative and 22% used mixed methods. The number of the quantitative surveys has been quite stabile over time, with four new projects starting every year on average, but the amount of qualitative and mixed method projects has risen after 2006. 43% of the surveys were designed to be representative of a group or certain population, 11 surveys were representative of the whole Estonian population. Many projects had only one or two publications, one third of the projects had six or more publications. The European Social Survey project in Estonia had the highest number of publications, publishing 70 additional items every year. A new paradigm cultivated by the European Social Survey was open access data. 12% of data in the surveyed 102 projects had open access data, in 54% of the cases the Estonian and international project team both had the data, in 20% of cases only the Estonian team had the data and in 4% of cases data was given away to the international team.


This paper reports a simple preparation route to a composite of small Ni2P nanoparticles (NPs) entrapped in 3D mesoporous graphene by the thermal conversion of a coordination compound followed by phosphidation. Recently, transition metal phosphides (TMPs) have gained increasing attention owing to their promising potential as non-precious metal catalysts in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In order to enhance the catalytic activity of TMPs, researchers have sought to synthesize small TMP NPs to increase the catalytically active surface area. Although surfactant-mediated syntheses can produce small TMP NPs, a cumbersome surfactant removal step is necessary to generate catalytically active clean surfaces. Interfacing TMP NPs with carbon nanomaterials is another promising approach to boost the catalytic performance by providing high electrical conductivity and durability. However, the synthesis of composites of TMP NPs and carbon demands multiple synthetic steps, including the preparation of TMP NPs, synthesis of carbon nanomaterials, and dispersion of TMP NPs onto the carbon support. The essence of our approach toward the 3D graphene encapsulating Ni2P NPs (Ni2P@mesoG) lies in the utilization of the conversion phenomenon of [Ni2(EDTA)] (EDTA = ethylenediaminetetraacetate). The thermolysis of [Ni2(EDTA)] at 600 °C produces a composite of single-crystalline 5 nm-sized Ni NPs individually entrapped in 3D mesoG (Ni@mesoG), and the following phosphidation completely converts the Ni NPs to single-crystalline Ni2P NPs in mesoG (Ni2P@mesoG) without agglomeration. This solvent-free thermal conversion route to the Ni2P@mesoG composite is simple and scalable. Notably, graphitic shell layers in Ni2P@mesoG stabilize small Ni2P NPs possessing a large active surface area, and facilitate the electron transfer due to the intimate contact between them. Consequently, the use of Ni2P@mosoG exhibits superior electrocatalytic HER activity and durability in both strong acidic and basic media.


Optogenetic Insights Mapping functional neural circuits for many behaviors has been almost impossible, so Vogelstein et al. (p. 386, published online 27 March; see the Perspective by O'Leary and Marder) developed a broadly applicable optogenetic method for neuron-behavior mapping and used it to phenotype larval Drosophila and thus developed a reference atlas. As optogenetic experiments become routine in certain fields of neuroscience research, creating even more specialized tools is imperative (see the Perspective by Hayashi). By engineering channelrhodopsin, Wietek et al. (p. 409, published online 27 March) and Berndt et al. (p. 420) created two different light-gated anion channels to block action potential generation during synaptic stimulation or depolarizing current injections. These new tools not only improve understanding of channelrhodopsins but also provide a way to silence cells. A class of directly light-gated anion channels can be used to block neuronal output in a fully reversible fashion. [Also see Perspective by Hayashi and Report by Wietek et al.] Using light to silence electrical activity in targeted cells is a major goal of optogenetics. Available optogenetic proteins that directly move ions to achieve silencing are inefficient, pumping only a single ion per photon across the cell membrane rather than allowing many ions per photon to flow through a channel pore. Building on high-resolution crystal-structure analysis, pore vestibule modeling, and structure-guided protein engineering, we designed and characterized a class of channelrhodopsins (originally cation-conducting) converted into chloride-conducting anion channels. These tools enable fast optical inhibition of action potentials and can be engineered to display step-function kinetics for stable inhibition, outlasting light pulses and for orders-of-magnitude-greater light sensitivity of inhibited cells. The resulting family of proteins defines an approach to more physiological, efficient, and sensitive optogenetic inhibition.


Glioblastoma (GB) is one of the most lethal forms of cancer, with an invasive growth pattern that requires the use of adjuvant therapies, including chemotherapy and radiation, to prolong survival. Temozolomide (TMZ) is an oral chemotherapy with a limited side effect profile that has become the standard of care in GB treatment. While TMZ has made an impact on survival, tumor recurrence and TMZ resistance remain major challenges. Molecular markers, such as O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase methylation status, can be helpful in predicting tumor response to TMZ, and therefore guides clinical decision making. This review will discuss the epidemiology and possible genetic underpinnings of GB, how TMZ became the standard of care for GB patients, the pharmacology of TMZ, the practical aspects of using TMZ in clinic, and how molecular diagnostics – particularly the use of O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase status – affect clinical management.


Southeast Asia: A New Model for Hotel Development. Heather A. Saunders and Leo M. Renaghan. The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, vol. 33, no. 5, October 1992, pp. 16-23. 20 Thomwood Drive, Suite 106, Ithaca, NY 14850-9917. $95 institutional subscription rate. Southeast Asia is one of the major locations for hotelcompany expansion in the 1990s. But hotel companies will find that the old operator-driven game plan that once worked so well in other ventures around the world will not work in


Sequencing coding regions identified genetic changes likely involved in adaptation to hypoxia. Peoples living in high altitudes have adapted to their situation (see the Perspective by Storz). To identify gene regions that might have contributed to high-altitude adaptation in Tibetans, Simonson et al. conducted a genome scan of nucleotide polymorphism comparing Tibetans, Han Chinese, and Japanese, while Yi et al. performed comparable analyses on the coding regions of all genes—their exomes. Both studies converged on a gene, endothelial PAS domain protein 1 (also known as hypoxia-inducible factor 2α), which has been linked to the regulation of red blood cell production. Other genes identified that were potentially under selection included adult and fetal hemoglobin and two functional candidate loci that were correlated with low hemoglobin concentration in Tibetans. Future detailed functional studies will now be required to examine the mechanistic underpinnings of physiological adaptation to high altitudes. T. S. Simonson, Y. Yang, C. D. Huff, H. Yun, G. Qin, D. J. Witherspoon, Z. Bai, F. R. Lorenzo, J. Xing, L. B. Jorde, J. T. Prchal, R. Ge, Genetic evidence for high-altitude adaptation in Tibet. Science 329, 72–75 (2010). [Abstract] [Full Text] X. Yi, Y. Liang, E. Huerta-Sanchez, X. Jin, Z. X. P. Cuo, J. E. Pool, X. Xu, H. Jiang, N. Vinckenbosch, T. S. Korneliussen, H. Zheng, T. Liu, W. He, K. Li, R. Luo, X. Nie, H. Wu, M. Zhao, H. Cao, J. Zou, Y. Shan, S. Li, Q. Yang, Asan, P. Ni, G. Tian, J. Xu, X. Liu, T. Jiang, R. Wu, G. Zhou, M. Tang, J. Qin, T. Wang, S. Feng, G. Li, Huasang, J. Luosang, W. Wang, F. Chen, Y. Wang, X. Zheng, Z. Li, Z. Bianba, G. Yang, X. Wang, S. Tang, G. Gao, Y. Chen, Z. Luo, L. Gusang, Z. Cao, Q. Zhang, W. Ouyang, X. Ren, H. Liang, H. Zheng, Y. Huang, J. Li, L. Bolund, K. Kristiansen, Y. Li, Y. Zhang, X. Zhang, R. Li, S. Li, H. Yang, R. Nielsen, J. Wang, J. Wang, Sequencing of 50 human exomes reveals adaptation to high altitude. Science 329, 75–78 (2010). [Abstract] [Full Text] J. F. Storz, Genes for high altitudes. Science 329, 40–41 (2010). [Abstract] [Full Text]


The purpose of the study was to examine certain problems related to seventh and eighth grade science programs in a sample area of North Central Kansas and to relate these problems to similar problems which appear to exist in other areas of the state. The specific area studies included: Cloud, Jewell, Lincoln, Mitchell, Osborne, and Ottawa countries in Kansas. The area is predominately rural with no accredited junior high schools. The study was limited to Public Unified or common school districts in the sample area. The fifteen school superintendents interviewed furnished the following data concerning the forty-two seventh and eighth grade science teachers involved in the study: (1) Seven of the teachers were in their first year of teaching, while two teachers had completed thirty years or more of teaching. The average experience was 10.6 years, with the median begin 7.5 years. (2) Eighteen teachers were teaching for the first time in the present system, while one was in his fifteenth year of tenure. The average tenure was 3.4 years while the median was two years. (3) Twenty-three teachers had only secondary certificates, fourteen teachers had only elementary certification and five teachers were certified at both levels. (4) The greatest number of total science hours accumulated by any teacher was ninety-seven, while two teachers had completed only three hours each. The average total hours in science per teacher was 24.3 with a median of twenty-two. (5) The teachers had completed an average of 13.7 hours biological science with a median of ten hours. The average number of physical science hours was 10.6 with a median of five hours. Only nine of the teachers had earned college credit in science method courses. The teachers provided information which concerned: (1) The number of students in their classrooms, (2) the time scheduled for science classes, (3) their attitudes toward science teaching and about the adequacy of their science backgrounds, and (4) their desire for more academic science training. A total of 1,515 students were assigned to the seventh and eighth grade science classrooms in the study. Nineteen teachers with less than twenty science hours were teaching 394 students, while the twenty-two teachers with twenty or more science hours were teaching 1,121 students. Twenty-eight of the teachers indicated they enjoyed teaching science even though some of them had feelings of inadequacy. Three teachers evidenced a dislike for teaching science at this level and ten others indicated little enthusiasm toward their science teaching. Twenty-one of the teachers believed their science preparations was adequate for their teaching assignments while twenty considered their academic background in science to be somewhat inadequate. Many of the teachers indicated a desire to take some more science courses if the opportunity presented itself. The study revealed that an approximately equal number of teachers were teaching 1,213 students in departmentalized classrooms and only 302 students in self-contained classrooms. The time scheduled for science varied from forty to 180 hours per year with a median number of 105 hours. The 1,515 seventh and eighth grade science students involved in the study averaged approximately 112 scheduled hours of science for the year. A judgment of the adequacy of the science equipment and facilities present in the various classrooms was made with the help of each teacher. Twenty-seven classrooms housing 971 students had what was deemed adequate equipment. Ten classrooms with 498 students were considered to have inadequate equipment, while four classrooms with forty-six students were placed in the "poor" category. Facilities, which include space for student experimentation, were adequate in twenty-one classrooms which housed 451 students. Seventeen classrooms with 724 students were considered to have inadequate facilities, with some of the larger classes being involved. There were only three cases in which facilities were considered poor, but these involved 340 students. Nearly 70% of the students were in classrooms with what was considered either inadequate or poor facilities.


Legionellae are ubiquitous in the environment. Molecular techniques have been applied, but they too have inherent limitations and rarely provide quantitative data. Consequently, there is a real need for a rapid and direct detection method. Each DNA probe has its own specific requirements, and the hybridization procedure is highly sensitive to changes in temperature, pH, and ionic conditions. This causes problems when working with environmental samples. An alternative is to use peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probes. PNAs are synthetic molecules in which the sugar phosphate backbone has been replaced by 2-aminoethyl-glycine. They exhibit sequence-specific recognition of both DNA and RNA, obeying Watson-Crick hydrogen bonding rules. A study has been undertaken to directly compare the binding efficiency of two published DNA probes against two newly designed PNA probes. The DNA probes tested were LEG226 and LegPNE1, which target all species of Legionella and only Legionella pneumophila, respectively. The thermal stability and chemical resistance of PNA probes make them a valuable tool for use with complex environmental samples and will permit the simultaneous labeling of several target species. It has been shown previously that Legionellae are widespread in potable water systems, but there is no information on population sizes and the proportion associated with biofilm compared to the bulk water. As outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease continue, it is imperative that the authors increase their understanding of the distribution and prevalence of this serious human pathogen.


In the text we summarize changes that have occurred in academic education during our professional life span. We point out, i.a., that (1) Contemporary universities are communities of people seeking not the truth, as it was years ago, but the business success, which can be achieved through competition between both individuals and universities; (2) At the time of the mass of academic training, mass production of studies and publications, rewards go not to those who write when they have something to say, but to those who write and publish non-stop, (3) It is absurd to claim that universities provide educational service, since the quality of this "service" depends both on the effort of lecturers (service providers?) and students (clients?). Universities of the future will become places for acquisition of experience in controlled conditions, according to the model of an intellectual gym.


The introduction of new elements in the Greek Science and Technology policy has not been followed to the same extent by an explicit concern for the promotion of R&D co-operation. National policy in that respect has been shaped to a large extent by the European Commission's policy initiatives. Although the EU Framework Programmes and the European Support Framework I&II played an important role in setting favourable conditions for the development of R&D co-operation, it would be unrealistic to expect that they could alone influence the attitude of the Greek industrial system towards this type of co-operation. National initiatives in the field of S&T policy have followed the general orientations of the EU policy but until now have failed to establish an authentic set of coherent actions aiming at strengthening interactive processes and establishing intense linkages among economic actors. It is argued that there is no independent growing interest for the promotion of R&D co-operation, neither from the policy makers side nor from the side of the private economic actors. No significant changes in competition and IPR rules have been introduced to promote R&D co-operation.


The dissolution of most common multicomponent silicate minerals and glasses is typically incongruent, as shown by the nonstoichiometric release of the solid phase components. This results in the formation of so-called surface leached layers. Due to the important effects these leached layers may have on mineral dissolution rates and secondary mineral formation, they have attracted a great deal of research. However, the mechanism of leached layer formation is a matter of vigorous debate. Here we report on an in situ atomic force microscopy (AFM) study of the dissolution of wollastonite, CaSiO 3 , as an example of leached layer formation during dissolution. Our in situ AFM results provide, for the first time, clear direct experimental evidence that leached layers are formed in a tight interface-coupled two-step process: stoichiometric dissolution of the pristine mineral surfaces and subsequent precipitation of a secondary phase (most likely amorphous silica) from a supersaturated boundary layer of fluid in contact with the mineral surface. This occurs despite the fact that the bulk solution is undersaturated with respect to the secondary phase. Our results differ significantly from the concept of preferential leaching of cations, as postulated by most currently accepted incongruent dissolution models. This interface-coupled dissolution-precipitation model has important implications in understanding and evaluating dissolution kinetics of major rock-forming minerals.


Along with other investigations, patients presenting to an environmental health clinic with various chronic conditions were assessed for bone health status. Individuals with compromised bone strength were educated about skeletal health issues and provided with therapeutic options for potential amelioration of their bone health. Patients who declined pharmacotherapy or who previously experienced failure of drug treatment were offered other options including supplemental micronutrients identified in the medical literature as sometimes having a positive impact on bone mineral density (BMD). After 12 months of consecutive supplemental micronutrient therapy with a combination that included vitamin D3, vitamin K2, strontium, magnesium and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), repeat bone densitometry was performed. The results were analyzed in a group of compliant patients and demonstrate improved BMD in patients classified with normal, osteopenic and osteoporotic bone density. According to the results, this combined micronutrient supplementation regimen appears to be at least as effective as bisphosphonates or strontium ranelate in raising BMD levels in hip, spine, and femoral neck sites. No fractures occurred in the group taking the micronutrient protocol. This micronutrient regimen also appears to show efficacy in individuals where bisphosphonate therapy was previously unsuccessful in maintaining or raising BMD. Prospective clinical trials are required to confirm efficacy.


This paper examines whether the chances of job placements improve if unemployed persons are counselled by caseworkers who belong to the same social group, defined by gender, age, education, and nationality. Based on an unusually informative dataset, which links Swiss unemployed to their caseworkers, we find positive employment effects of about 3 percentage points if the caseworker and his unemployed client belong to the same social group. Coincidence in a single characteristic, e.g. same gender of caseworker and unemployed, does not lead to detectable effects on employment. These results, obtained by statistical matching methods, are confirmed by several robustness checks.


A more than 6 JMA (Japanese Meteorological Agency Seismic Intensity Scale) earthquake hit northern Nagano Prefecture just one day after the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011. This paper employs the case of the Village of Sakae to: 1) illustrate the damage and recovery from the earthquake; 2) identify challenges to promote participation of residents in the planning for reconstruction; and 3) point out efforts generated for, but also challenges encountered in, the mobilization of local resources for reconstruction and the establishment of internal and external stakeholder networks. Based on original interviews, statistics and collected documents, this investigation establishes that not only did retirement from farming after the earthquake occur because of this natural disaster but it was also due to the deterioration of living conditions, the advanced age of the local population, and the decline of agricultural commodities' prices. As the reconstruction plan in the Village of Sakae centers on a policy of "participation by all," including small and family owned farms, it significantly departs from the policy of "creative reconstruction" or "shock doctrine." However a number of challenges to residents' participation remain and need to be addressed.