The use of e-commerce in small medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has become an important topic in information systems research. At present, there is a large number of well-documented benefits derived from e-commerce for small-medium enterprises (SMEs) both in theoretical and practical literature. Despite the enormous attention given to encourage SMEs to adopt e-commerce both by academics as well as governments, little research has been carried out in identifying strategies of e-commerce adoption for SMEs in developing countries, especially Indonesia. It is, therefore, the aim of this paper to understand the factors and combinations of factors that SMEs need to be considered before embracing e-commerce into their business by providing a closer look at actual experience of Indonesian SMEs. Case study research was carried out to analyse and explain the underlying factors that are likely to determine the varying extent of e-commerce adoption in SMEs, especially the service sector. The findings of the case studies have further extended into the development of proposed practical framework to illustrate how e-commerce adoption should be carried out from a strategic perspective.


From the 1950's to the 1980's, research in Rwanda highlighted the country's significant
archaeological potential, including some of the earliest evidence for iron production in
sub-Saharan Africa. However, years of civil war culminated in the 1994 genocide and
the country was left devastated. Further archaeological research to develop the potential
already indicated was inappropriate.
In 2006 this research project, to explore Rwanda's past iron smelting traditions, was
accepted by the Institute of National Museums in Rwanda. Six months of fieldwork
followed, including survey and the excavation of six newly located iron production
sites. Archaeometallurgical samples collected in the field have been analysed at the
Institute of Archaeology using a variety of different analytical techniques, and the
results generated have been interpreted. Thus, aspects of the production techniques
represented at each of the smelting locations investigated during this research have been
illuminated.
This first systematic exploration of diachronic change within iron smelting traditions in
Southern Rwanda has revealed two and a half millennia of dynamic technologies
embedded within wider society. A chronological framework has been defined to provide
a sound basis for the consideration of the results, which include a high-resolution
understanding of Early Iron Age smelting techniques and an appreciation of smelting
traditions during the Middle Iron Age. Technological traditions have been
contextualised within broader Great Lakes, and specifically Rwandan, history, and the
significant potential for such high-resolution studies has been demonstrated.


Variability analysis of nanoscale transistors and circuits is emerging as a necessity at advanced technology nodes. Technology Computer Aided Design (TCAD) tools are powerful ways to get an accurate insight of Process Variations (PV). However, obtaining both fast and accurate device simulations is impractical with current TCAD solvers. In this paper, we propose an automated output prediction method suited for fast PV analysis. Coupled with TCAD simulations, our methodology can substantially reduce the time complexity and cost of variation analysis for emerging technologies. We overcome the simulation obstacles and preserve accuracy, using a neural network based regression to predict the output of individual process simulations. Experiments indicate that, after the training process, the proposed methodology effectively accelerate TCAD-based PV simulations close to compact-model-based simulations. Therefore, the methodology can be an excellent opportunity in enabling extensive statistical simulations such as Monte-Carlo for emerging nano-devices.


Objective: Patients showing anisocoria due to head trauma (HT) or spontaneous intracranial hemorrhage (SIH) require immediate evaluation and neurosurgical intervention. This study is focused on the prognosis and adverse prognostic factors for mortality and functional outcome in these patients.

Methods: This is a case-control study of 247 patients with anisocoria due to increased intracranial pressure which were admitted to our emergency room. We compared the patients´ demographic and clinical data with the mortality at time of discharge from the intensive care unit, using a multiple logistic regression analysis. The clinical data were collected retrospectively between January 1995 and September 2009. Exclusion criteria were known physiological anisocoria, an observed anisocoria during epileptic seizure or cardiopulmonary recuscitation. spontaneous regression of anisocoria, bulbus trauma or occulomotoric palsy.

Results: 175 patients met the inculsion criteria (99 male, 76 female). 93 patients were admitted with HT, 82 with SIH. All showed anisocoria at the time of admittance to the emergency room. Generally, patients with HT had a better chance of survival (p=0.0147). Of 57 (61.3%) survivors with HT, 23 (43.4%) had a KPS >70%. 33 (40.2%) patients with SIH survived, only 11 (33.3%) of these with a KPS of >70%. Of 14 proposed variables tested, 7 lacked prognostic value. When the other 7 predictors were analyzed in a multiple logistic regression model, 3 remained significant as adverse predictors of outcome in patients with HT (systolic blood pressure >160 mmHg measured at accident (OR 12.67), age older than 65 years (OR 9.8), and anticoagulative treatment (OR 4.48). In patients with SIH, solely age older than 65 years (OR 4.45) remained a significant adverse prognostic factor for survival.

Conclusions: Patients with anisocoria due to severe head trauma have a more favorable clinical outcome than those suffering from spontaneous intracranial bleeding. Adverse prognostic factors in head trauma are patients age >65 years, anticoagulant treatment and systolic blood pressure >165 mmHg measured at accident.


Abstract In many areas of geotechnical engineering it is necessary to have an estimate of the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of a soil in order to allow preliminary design estimates. Standard methods of CEC determination are time-consuming and involve several steps (e.g. displacement of the saturating cation requires several washings with alcohol). Therefore, a rapid method of CEC estimation would be very useful. During preliminary site investigations, the soil engineering parameters can be estimated from the considerable number of correlations available in the literature. In this study, relationships between CEC and various other soil engineering properties have been investigated, resulting in a quick method for estimating CEC. Simple correlations were developed between CEC and specific surface area (SSA), soil organic matter (OM), clay fraction (CF), activity (A), Atterberg limits (liquid (LL), plastic (PL), and shrinkage (SL)), and modified free swell index (MFSI) of the soils. Strong correlations are observed between the CEC values and those for ethylene glycol monoethyl ether (EGME) uptake and methylene blue (MB) titration. However, no significant correlation was found between CEC and N2_SSA. No unique relationship was seen between CEC and CF (r2 <0.5). No relationship was observed between CEC and OM in this study. The best correlation coefficient between the CEC and Atterberg limits exists between CEC and LL (r2 = 0.61). No significant relationship was seen between CEC and PL or SL. The correlation coefficient between CEC and MFSI was 0.65. Multiple linear regression analyses were developed to investigate the contributions of different soil parameters to CEC. These analyses show that EGME_SSA, in combination with LL, accounted for 91% of the variation in CEC. Correlations between CEC and EGME_SSA, MB_SSA and LL appear to be sufficiently good to enable an indication of CEC to be estimated from these parameters.


About 25–44% of women will experience at least one episode of recurrent UTI and the causative agent in over 70% of UTI cases is uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). UPEC cause recurrent UTI by evading the bladder's innate immune system through internalization into the bladder epithelium where antibiotics cannot reach or be effective. Thus, it is important to develop novel therapeutics to eliminate these intracellular pathogens. Nanodiamonds (NDs) are biocompatible nanomaterials that serve as promising candidates for targeted therapeutic applications. The objective of the current study was to investigate if 6 or 25 nm NDs can kill extracellular and intracellular UPEC in infected bladder cells. We utilized the human bladder epithelial cell line, T24, and an invasive strain of UPEC that causes recurrent UTI. We found that acid-purified 6 nm NDs displayed greater antibacterial properties towards UPEC than 25 nm NDs (11.5% vs 94.2% CFU/mL at 100 μg/mL of 6 and 25 nm, respectively; P<0.001). Furthermore, 6 nm NDs were better than 25 nm NDs in reducing the number of UPEC internalized in T24 bladder cells (46.1% vs 81.1% CFU/mL at 100 μg/mL of 6 and 25 nm, respectively; P<0.01). Our studies demonstrate that 6 nm NDs interacted with T24 bladder cells in a dose-dependent manner and were internalized in 2 hours through an actin-dependent mechanism. Finally, internalization of NDs was required for reducing the number of intracellular UPEC in T24 bladder cells. These findings suggest that 6 nm NDs are promising candidates to treat recurrent UTIs.


The challenges of managing radical innovation in hypercompetitive environments require a critical re-evaluation of R&D practices. Among these R&D practices, the management of technical staff (i.e. researchers, scientists and engineers) is increasingly crucial for science-based organizations. Indeed, a key challenge is to be able to anticipate and to accelerate the renewal of knowledge, competencies and expertise in a context of uncertain dominant design, while controlling resources. Today, the dual ladder system is the main technical staff management system used by the most organizations. Paradoxically, though this management device has been strongly criticized by practitioners and researchers, it is still the same for over 50 years. This paper discusses the relevance of the dual ladder system and its limitations in situation of radical innovation, by using recent advances in design theory. Recent advances in design theory highlight a new way of thinking about innovation far beyond a mere combination of existing knowledge to include the renewal of knowledge and the expansion of expertise. Based on a collaborative management research conducted in one of the European leaders in semiconductor industry, this qualitative research highlights that design theory allows characterizing the role of technical staff according to different modalities of intervention. From a practical perspective, we propose to complete the dual ladder system by a new organizational structure, able to take into account the role of experts and the conditions of technical staff collective action for radical innovation management.


Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address the role of accelerators as authentic learning-based entrepreneurial training programs. Accelerators facilitate the development and assessment of entrepreneurial competencies in nascent entrepreneurs through the process of creating a start-up venture.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data from applicants and participants of four start-accelerators are used to explore the linkages between accelerators and the elements of authentic learning. Authentic learning processes are then mapped onto the start-up processes that occur within the accelerators.

Findings

Accelerators take in nascent entrepreneurs and work to create start-ups. This activity develops the participants' entrepreneurial competencies and facilitates authentic self-reflection.

Research limitations/implications

This study explores how accelerators can be useful as authentic learning platforms for the development of entrepreneurial competencies. Limitations include perceptual measures and the inability to conduct paired sampling.

Practical implications

Entrepreneurship training is studied through the lens of authentic learning activities that occur within an accelerator. Participants develop and assess their mastery of and interest in entrepreneurship through tasks, exposure to experts and mentors, peer learning, and assessments such as pitching to investors at Demo Day.

Originality/value

This paper reports on the authentic learning processes and its usefulness in competency development and self-appraisal by accelerators participants. The opportunity for competency development and self-appraisal by nascent entrepreneurs before escalating their commitment to a start-up may be an accelerator's raison d'etre.


This article is a response to six essays from a symposium about my book, "When the State Speaks, What Should It Say? How Democracies Can Protect Expression and Promote Equality." In the book I offer an account of liberal democracy that combines the "neutralist's" protection of rights with the feminist's and "prohibitionist's" concern for the equal status of citizens. I call this third view of liberalism and free speech "value democracy." When the State Speaks offers an account of "democratic persuasion" that requires the state to protect all viewpoints from coercion or prohibition. But when it "speaks" in statements by public officials, when it educates, when it uses its spending power, and when it confers the tax privileges of nonprofit status, the state must affirmatively take the side of upholding free and equal citizenship. Democratic persuasion, I argue, is not just something that the state is permitted to do. It is a matter of political obligation. Our constitutional jurisprudence, including the doctrine of viewpoint neutrality, must be tailored to permit the state to pursue its duty of democratic persuasion. At the same time, democratic persuasion places limits on state speech. It prohibits the state from speaking in ways that undermine its commitment to the values of freedom and equality.Several of the essays in this symposium attempt to push my view toward one of the opposing poles of neutralism or prohibitionism. On the more neutralist side, Steve Calabresi worries that I have abandoned traditional liberal commitments to respect the independence and autonomy of religious citizens. Although he endorses much of value democracy, he wants to see greater reticence in democratic persuasion to limit its application to religious organizations. While Calabresi accepts a central role in liberal democracy for a more reserved form of democratic persuasion, Andrew Koppelman denies that the state has a duty to pursue democratic persuasion. At most for him, it is a "second best" set of tools for the state to use in some circumstances, especially given his skepticism about whether it is necessary or effective.Robin West and Sarah Song push in the opposite direction of prohibitionism. On their view, I am right to seek to persuade citizens to change hateful viewpoints. They share my commitment to a political theory that challenges discrimination and seeks to promote ideals of equality in the family and civil society. But they worry that I have not gone far enough in my account. West believes that democratic persuasion does not act strongly enough to protect equality. Song questions how I might respond to critics, like Susan Okin and other liberal feminists, who argue that the state should promote more extensive changes in civil society than is permissible in democratic persuasion.In response to these critics, I suggest that value democracy and democratic persuasion offer a third way forward in thinking about the role of values in liberalism. I attempt to show that value democracy strikes what Calabresi aptly calls "the golden mean" between neutralism and prohibitionism. My defense and elaboration of value democracy and democratic persuasion are aided by essays from Frank Michelman and Josiah Ober. I begin by highlighting how Michelman's essay underscores the strengths of my view that a legitimate state has an obligation to engage in democratic persuasion. His focus on legitimacy offers an important reply to theorists who want to see greater reticence in democratic persuasion, including Calabresi and Koppelman. Ober's essay responds powerfully to concerns about the effectiveness of democratic persuasion and its respect for citizens. Finally, I address West's and Song's calls for a more radical form of democratic persuasion, suggesting that the cautionary arguments from Calabresi and Koppelman can be used to push back against West and Song.


Milk protein concentrate (MPC) has become an important raw material for many applications, including processed cheese, ice cream, yoghurt, fermented dairy and meal replacement beverages. Various processing conditions during MPC production affect their physical functionalities. Quantitative knowledge about the relationship between production conditions and functional properties is limited, especially for the production of MPC using membrane technology.
Understanding this relationship will lead to the establishment of design rules of manufacturing practices for production of MPC with enhanced functionalities. The purpose of this study is to understand how temperature, pH and calcium (Ca) chelators affect the ultra-filtration (UF) process and the functionalities of the MPC. Three major experiments were conducted: i) effect of operation temperature (i.e. 15, 30 and 50 ˚C), ii) effect of the pH of skim milk (i.e. pH 6.7, 6.3, 5.9 and 5.5), and iii) the effect of Ca chelators (EDTA and citrate, at levels of 10, 20 and 30 mM) on the UF operation and the functionalities of the MPC obtained. Raw milk was first used to investigate the effect of temperature, pH and Ca chelators, individually or in combination, on milk at its native state, avoiding the possibilities of the milk protein and minerals being disrupted by any industrial process, then commercial skim milk was selected and used for MPC production and functionality tests.


This thesis within economics is examining the impact that remittances could have on the level of new small and medium sized enterprise start-ups. Remittances could be seen as a capital flow and would therefore increase the level of new SME start-ups but is this really the case? A model is developed with a panel data set over 45 countries all across the globe over a two year period. Six businesses environment variables are included in the regressions to see how the businesses environment affects the level of new SME start-ups. This model is also used when testing if the relationship between remittances and the level of new SMEs are stronger in the middle income countries than in the lower income countries. The descriptive statistics shows that both remittances and the number of new SME`s have increased from 2003 to 2005. The level of new SME`s have increased with a larger percentage share in the middle income countries relative to low income countries. The results from this thesis are somewhat difficult to interpret. Although there seems to be the case that remittances are not affecting the level of new SME start-ups when including all the countries in the same regression. As the countries are divided into two groups one can see a stronger relationship between remittances and the level of new SME started in the low income countries than in the middle income countries. One can also see that credit right and the cost of starting a new business is strongly related to the level of new SME.


A Survey of Experimental Research on Contests, All-Pay Auctions and Tournaments Emmanuel Dechenaux, Dan Kovenock and Roman M. Sheremeta* Many economic, political and social environments can be described as contests in which agents exert costly efforts while competing over the distribution of a scarce resource. These environments have been studied using Tullock contests, all-pay auctions and rankorder tournaments. This survey provides a review of experimental research on these three canonical contests. First, we review studies investigating the basic structure of contests, including the contest success function, number of players and prizes, spillovers and externalities, heterogeneity, and incomplete information. Second, we discuss dynamic contests and multi-battle contests. Then we review research on sabotage, feedback, bias, collusion, alliances, and contests between groups, as well as real-effort and field experiments. Finally, we discuss applications of contests to the study of legal systems, political competition, war, conflict avoidance, sales, and charities, and suggest directions for future research.


This thesis explores the ways in which local communities in Musanze, northern Rwanda, heal psychosocial suffering from the war period between 1990 and 2000 in the context of limited humanitarian aid. Employing a narrative approach, it unpacks experience of psychosocial suffering, elaborates the ways in which communities heal themselves, and describes the meaning of 'healing' in the light of local views of morality, life and death. Qualitative analysis drew on participant observation, in-depth interviews, and focus-group discussions based on ten months of ethnographic fieldwork, which built on prior life and work experience in the field over two years.
Findings first describe local conceptualizations of psychosocial sufferings. These fell on a spectrum constructed by the degree of social disconnection reported by participants and how far their thoughts and memories were oriented towards a wounded past. A key element of suffering was the literal 'unspeakability' of many wounds due to politically-sensitive circumstances. This related to difficulties in making sense of what they have experienced. Narratives of healing pathways described a common theme of leaving the past behind and going forward to the future through participation in different communities, including church-based groups, traditional mutual-saving groups, and neighbourhood relationships. In the context of the unspeakability of many wounds, communities provided alternative ways of healing from 'speaking' of wounds directly. These include: allowing members to make sense of their sufferings through religious and traditional activities, everyday-life practices, and life-event ceremonies.
The thesis highlights that, in this setting, healing is not conceptualized as 'recovery' as assumed by Western theories, but rather, as a trajectory of 'life goes on': that is, that time continues into the future. In this emic experience of healing, the focus is not on traumatic time but on time 'being lived' as part of life, and a series of lives handed over from generation to generation, through sharing everyday life and significant life events. In other words, healing can take place through social connection in a wider time-scale than trauma.


an improved bit error rate is obtained by using neural networks in OFDM system, and there is also a comparison between self-organizing map (SOM) and parameterless Self-organizing map (PLSOM), neural network. Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system is widely used for audio/video broadcasting, WiMAX, Wi-Fi, and provides high data rates. OFDM contributes to multipath fading, which leads to major degradation, different channel modes are considered in OFDM system. In this paper, we discuss improved bit error rate by using neural networks and comparison of SOM and PLSOM.


This paper aims to develop and assess the exergetic sustainability indicators for a single layer solar drying process of the shelled and unshelled pistachio samples. For this purpose, in terms of the Second Law of Thermodynamics, the exergetic sustainability indicators such as exergetic efficiency, waste exergy ratio, exergy recoverability ratio, exergy destruction ratio, environmental impact factor and exergetic sustainability index are defined and estimated by depending on the experimental data, previously obtained from the single layer solar drying system. Accordingly, it can be said that these indicators are quite important to find out the exergetic, environmental and sustainability aspects of solar drying processes and systems. Under this important conclusion, it is observed that the increase of the waste exergy ratio decreases the exergetic efficiency and exergetic sustainability index while increasing environmental impact factor.


This paper discusses the strategies chosen by Norwegian-based environmental non-governmental organizations(ENGOs) and their international allies in the Climate Action Network (CAN) in seeking to influence Norway's behaviour in the UN climate change negotiations. We focus on ENGO activities at the major negotiating sessions and find that the ENGOs for the most part chose not to try to affect negotiation outcomes through influencing the negotiators directly (i.e., lobbying). Instead, they used the negotiating sessions as opportunities to shape the domestic political agenda by transmitting information and arguments to the media. The aim was to indirectly influence Norway's foreign policy and negotiating position by shaming its government into adopting policies preferred by the ENGOs, and framing the domestic climate policy debate in terms favourable to the NGO's policies. We show how actions taken in the international and domestic political arenas were closely intertwined in this case, and argue that ENGO influence in international negotiations should be understood with such linkages taken into account. Specifically, we emphasise that the ENGOs'ability to threaten a government's legitimacy and popular image, as well as their ability to shape domestic actor's interpretations of international commitments, should be noted as potentially important vehicles of influence over foreign policy and thereby over negotiation outcomes.


SBAs and EMIs for the General Surgery FRCS is a key resource for trainees preparing to face the challenging FRCS Section 1 examination. Featuring over 600 Single Best Answers (SBAs) and Extended Matching Items (EMIs) written by successful candidates of the General Surgery FRCS, this resource ensures high-quality self-assessment. Split into chapters on key sub-specialties, all questions are mapped to the surgical curriculum and mirror the level of detail required to succeed in the Section 1 examination. Each chapter is clearly structured with all SBA and EMI questions first, followed by corresponding answers, detailed explanations and relevant further reading sources. This layout enables trainees to assess their level of knowledge, and practise the technique and approach needed for the examination. Providing high-quality questions and expert guidance, this resource is a comprehensive revision tool for senior trainees in General Surgery.


The series builds an extensive collection of high quality descriptions of languages around the world. Each volume offers a comprehensive grammatical description of a single language together with fully analyzed sample texts and, if appropriate, a word list and other relevant information which is available on the language in question. There are no restrictions as to language family or area, and although special attention is paid to hitherto undescribed languages, new and valuable treatments of better known languages are also included. No theoretical model is imposed on the authors; the only criterion is a high standard of scientific quality.


This dissertation focuses on finding plausible imputations when there is some restriction posed on the imputation model. In these restrictive situations, current imputation methodology does not lead to satisfactory imputations. The restrictions, and the resulting missing data problems are real-life situations that are frequently encountered across different domains of statistics, such as social statistics, social sciences, geology and medicinal sciences. More specifically, imputation strategies that yield plausible imputations are considered for the following restrictive problems. First, in social statistics highly skewed semicontinuous (or zero-inflated) data are frequently encountered. When imputing these data, the non-negative mixture of continuous values and the point mass (often at zero) need to be considered in such a way that imputations fall within the plausible range of values. Current imputation approaches use multi-step approaches that depend on data transformations to conform the incomplete data to the imputation model. A single-step imputation solution that does not require data transformations and leads to valid inference and plausible imputations is discussed. Second, in many domains in statistics, multilevel (or clustered) data are often encountered. With multilevel data, groups of respondents share common characteristics and can be clustered into classes. This class structure, often summarized in the intraclass correlation coefficient, needs to be taken into account when imputing such data. An imputation approach that provides a straightforward solution for obtaining plausible imputations while taking the multilevel structure of the data into account is discussed. Third, applied researchers frequently use squared terms in their analysis models. It is known that the imputation model should embrace all relations of scientific interest. When generating plausible imputations, the relation between the original variable and its squared counterpart needs to be preserved. After all, a squared value that has no relation to its square root, can never be deemed plausible. An imputation technique for obtaining plausible imputations when the imputation model contains squared terms is proposed. Fourth, in many domains in statistics, compositional data structures are encountered. Compositional data can be defined as a set of parts that obey a certain edit restriction, such that the parts have to sum up to a certain total. Imputing compositional data is challenging because imputations must obey the restrictions in the data while remaining strictly non-negative. An imputation approach that can handle intricately nested compositional data and provides plausible imputations that adhere to the compositional structure is proposed. Finally, when evaluating imputation approaches, simulations studies are often used. Data are usually sampled from some sort of theoretical distribution that serves as the population. If this is not possible, design-based simulation studies are performed, where data is usually sampled from some 'true' dataset of sufficient size. Both simulation approaches introduce sampling variance, which is not of specific interest when evaluating imputations. I demonstrate a simplification of the conventional pooling rules for multiple imputation in situations where sampling variance is not of interest. These pooling rules are also applicable in situations where the size of the population is restricted and essentially all units in the population have been observed.


Increasing evidence supports an extensive and complex genetic contribution to Parkinson's disease (PD). Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have shed light on the genetic basis of risk for this disease. However, the genetic determinants of PD age of onset are largely unknown. Here we performed an age of onset GWAS based on 28,568 PD cases. We estimated that the heritability of PD age of onset due to common genetic variation was ~0.11, lower than the overall heritability of risk for PD (~0.27) likely in part because of the subjective nature of this measure. We found two genome-wide significant association signals, one at SNCA and the other a protein-coding variant in TMEM175, both of which are known PD risk loci and a Bonferroni corrected significant effect at other known PD risk loci, INPP5F/BAG3, FAM47E/SCARB2, and MCCC1. In addition, we identified that GBA coding variant carriers had an earlier age of onset compared to non-carriers. Notably, SNCA, TMEM175, SCARB2, BAG3 and GBA have all been shown to either directly influence alpha-synuclein aggregation or are implicated in alpha-synuclein aggregation pathways. Remarkably, other well-established PD risk loci such as GCH1, MAPT and RAB7L1/NUCKS1 (PARK16) did not show a significant effect on age of onset of PD. While for some loci, this may be a measure of power, this is clearly not the case for the MAPT locus; thus genetic variability at this locus influences whether but not when an individual develops disease. We believe this is an important mechanistic and therapeutic distinction. Furthermore, these data support a model in which alpha-synuclein and lysosomal mechanisms impact not only PD risk but also age of disease onset and highlights that therapies that target alpha-synuclein aggregation are more likely to be disease-modifying than therapies targeting other pathways.


We investigate the statistical convergence rate of a Bayesian low-rank tensor estimator, and derive the minimax optimal rate for learning a lowrank tensor. Our problem setting is the regression problem where the regression coefficient forms a tensor structure. This problem setting occurs in many practical applications, such as collaborative filtering, multi-task learning, and spatiotemporal data analysis. The convergence rate of the Bayes tensor estimator is analyzed in terms of both in-sample and out-of-sample predictive accuracies. It is shown that a fast learning rate is achieved without any strong convexity of the observation. Moreover, we show that the method has adaptivity to the unknown rank of the true tensor, that is, the near optimal rate depending on the true rank is achieved even if it is not known a priori. Finally, we show the minimax optimal learning rate for the tensor estimation problem, and thus show that the derived bound of the Bayes estimator is tight and actually near minimax optimal.


The autonomous car technology promises to replace human drivers with safer driving systems. But although autonomous cars can become safer than human drivers this is a long process that is going to be refined over time. Before these vehicles are deployed on urban roads a minimum safety level must be assured. Since the autonomous car technology is still under development there is no standard methodology to evaluate such systems. It is important to completely understand the technology that is being developed to design efficient means to evaluate it. In this paper we assume safety-critical systems reliability as a safety measure. We model an autonomous road vehicle as an intelligent agent and we approach its evaluation from an artificial intelligence perspective. Our focus is the evaluation of perception and decision-making systems and also to propose a systematic method to evaluate their integration in the vehicle. We identify critical aspects of the data dependency from the artificial intelligence state of the art models and we also propose procedures to evaluate them.


Word embeddings resulting from neural language models have been shown to be a great asset for a large variety of NLP tasks. However, such architecture might be difficult and time-consuming to train. Instead, we propose to drastically simplify the word embeddings computation through a Hellinger PCA of the word co- occurence matrix. We compare those new word embeddings with some well-known embeddings on named entity recognition and movie review tasks and show that we can reach similar or even better performance. Although deep learning is not really necessary for generating good word embeddings, we show that it can provide an easy way to adapt embeddings to specific tasks.


We constructed an automated reflectometry system for accurate measurement of coherent reflectance curves of turbid samples and analyzed the presence of coherent and diffuse reflection near the specular reflection angle. An existing method has been validated to determine the complex refractive indices of turbid samples on the basis of nonlinear regression of the coherent reflectance curves by Fresnel's equations. The complex refractive indices of fresh porcine skin epidermis and dermis tissues and Intralipid solutions were determined at eight wavelengths: 325, 442, 532, 633, 850, 1064, 1310, and 1557 nm.


Cape Disappointment, Washington, 2009 One family retraces Lewis and Clark's 1805 arrival at the Pacific To create the distance a frontier demands. Green hunger splitting the husk of our lives. The husk turned from. To seek out that turning, that distance. To set it loose just to see what it does. To watch it learn to walk. To build a home beside it. With what wood we found. NOVEMBER 5 Through the fog we tail a milk truck painted in puns--The Udder Guys, Dairy Aire--then hall a house on a flatbed. You're trying to explain the difference between tension and piecework, a small aggravation inside a larger sadness. Briefly, cut from the fog, a field strewn with mower parts, spools, then a lull of grass, six crooked graves, the half house turns left and we double our speed. The river has rose nearly 8 Inches to day and has every appearance of a tide, from what Cause I can't Say-- When Clark pointed at individual Indians within a group in hopes of learning their names, he kept getting the same answer. A new edition of the journals tells us, in a footnote, the Indians were saying, He is pointing at him. The road to the winter camp the explorers chose for its ready elk is now marked with a yellow sign warning ELK. HOW they knew they were nearing the sea was not by the river's tide bur by the familiar words called out from boats carrying ballast in copper kettles. Everything they were afraid of that season took root, then fed them through the long spring. Sometimes they'd name a bird twice, three times, tongues lapping the fog. This winter of naming spread and battened in like a quilt: what they remembered and what they kept trying to see. They built the fort out of anger at the constant damp, the wet rolling logs that had frightened them now bound into thick-walled rooms, cut for fire. But whether to trust the first draft, or the third ... Reading interviews with poets, I notice their answers are longer and smarter than a decade ago. Even though on the page they gather at a kitchen table, tape recorder and cigarettes in front of them, through their smooth and arching syntax it's clear they've actually written out their replies, revised them, rather than hear their own stutter transcribed. Upstairs my son sings every song he knows, retells whole conversations against the sleep I've laid out. Every day he throws the cup of his words like dice. Like Lewis, who broke a months-long silence to write about a beaver he saw, H. was mesmerized by the one he spotted this morning at the fort. Everything after it either a littler beaver or a bigger one. So an idea is smoothed, built to its socket and tested, rather than the slick log battering the shore until it lodges or splits. Dismal Nitch: the men balanced all night on the turning blackness. NOVEMBER 6 Whether or not there was a bear seems beside the point. When Patrick Gass, one of the explorers, published his journals in 1807--seven years ahead of Lewis and Clark--the in-house illustrator back east etched his best guess of a grizzly: a beautiful, shaggy ten-foot dog with the explorer tiny and trembling in a tree just overhead. wings unbearably close I don't believe that one thing leads to another. I don't believe Rukeyser, who says choice after choice falls away. I believe in the hung mobile, the tether and each animal's idle spin, its surface the reflection of its surface so that you can't tell which side of the cut board led the scissors, which was belly. Today I drive farther north than the explorers ventured--Clark started up this peninsula but after four miles of what he named Long Beach, declared the beach before him the same as the beach behind him. I drive to the tip, Leadbetter Point. The water on both sides comes nearly to the road, and on the trail I turn back when the way shines with water. I can hear the water breathing, the opening of a thousand eyes. Along the shore tiny water birds are stationed just beyond the waves. …


Hemolytic uremic syndrome is a form of thrombotic microangiopathy which takes its clinical course by a triad of symptoms: microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia and acute renal failure. We review a considerable amount of literature about the mentioned problem. Two kinds of hemolytic uremic syndrome are known today: the first one is associated with a preceding diarrheal episode, most commonly caused by Escherichia coli, while the second one is not associated with diarrhea, but with different streptococcal infections or genetic mutations. Because antibiotics and anti-diarrheal drugs play a role as a trigger factor for the disease, supportive care is the essential treatment of patients with diarrhea-associated variant of the disease and plasma therapy for nondiarrheal hemolytic uremic syndrome. New therapeutic strategies are developed such as SYNSORB for diarrheal hemolytic uremic syndrome and Eculizumab for the non-diarrheal variant. The prognosis of the disease is auspicious, but what about non-diarrheal forms, up to 25% of patients die in the acute phase and 50% progress to end stage renal disease /ESRD/. For these reasons the characteristics of hemolytic uremic syndrome have to be known in details and physicians have to focus on early diagnosis and treatment of the disease when its prognosis stays auspicious.


Abstract We present a minimal model for the global carbon cycle of the Earth containing the reservoirs mantle, ocean floor, continental crust, continental biosphere, and the kerogen, as well as the aggregated reservoir ocean and atmosphere. This model is coupled to a parameterised mantle convection model for describing the thermal and degassing history of the Earth. In this study the evolution of the mean global surface temperature, the biomass, and reservoir sizes over the whole history and future of the Earth under a maturing Sun is investigated. We obtain reasonable values for the present distribution of carbon in the surface reservoirs of the Earth and find that the parameterisation of the hydrothermal flux and the evolution of the ocean pH in the past has a strong influence on the atmospheric carbon reservoir and surface temperature. The different parameterisations give a rather hot as well as a freezing climate on the early Earth (Hadean and early Archaean). Nevertheless, we find a pronounced global minimum of mean surface temperature at the present state at 4.6 Gyr. In the long-term future the external forcing by increasing insolation dominates and the biosphere extincts in about 1.2 Ga. Our study has the implication that the Earth system is just before the point of evolution where this external forcing takes over the main influence from geodynamic effects acting in the past.


We analyzed student evaluations for 3,585 classes collected over 20 years to determine stability and evaluate the relationship of perceived grading to global evaluations, perceived fairness, and appropriateness of assignments. Using class as the unit of analysis, we found small evaluation reliability when professors taught the same course in the same semester, with much weaker correlations for differing courses. Expected grade and grading related questions correlated with overall evaluations of courses. Differences in course evaluations on expected grades, grading questions, and overall grades were found between full-time faculty and other types of instructors. These findings are expanded to a model of grading type questions mediating the relationship between expected grade and overall course evaluations with a moderating effect of type of instructor.


Different spectral wavelengths of light exist in our natural environment that can influence an organism's behaviour. Some organisms may show a preference for different areas with certain wavelengths while others may completely avoid such regions. We were interested in the phototactic response to certain spectral wavelengths of light, in both the wild-type and ort 1 mutant of Drosophila melanogaster . We performed two separate experiments for the wild-type and mutant strains, using green, red, and blue acetate filters at spectral wavelengths of 500, 680, and 410 nm, respectively. We constructed a setup with four t-tubes and measured the time spent by an organism in each of the three regions, in order to test if spectral wavelength preference was present. We found that for both the wild-type and mutant strains there was a significant difference between the percentages of time spent in each of the three different colour regions. For the wild-type strain, we found that the mean percentage of time spent in the green was the highest, followed by red. We found that the blue region had the lowest percentage of time, indicating the lowest preference. For the mutant strain, we found that the highest mean percentage of time was in the green region, followed by blue, and then red. We used the Kruskal-Wallis one way analysis of variance with an alpha p -value of 0.05 and found the wild-type had a p -value of 0.0226 and the mutant had a p -value of 0.028; therefore, we rejected the null hypothesis and found support for our alternate hypothesis; there is an effect of spectral wavelength on phototactic response in wild-type and mutant D. melanogaster .


We recall the analytical expression that gives, for a rough surface illuminated at normal incidence, the light scattered in the half-space containing the specular reflection direction. Two cases are studied: the bare substrate and the substrate coated with one transparent layer. It is shown, for this specular direction, that the light scattered from a single layer can be equal to zero (perfect antiscattering) in certain conditions relative to the roughnesses of the two layer interfaces. Data calculation proves that this antiscattering effect occurs in all directions of the half-space of the reflected light. The experimental results are in good agreement with this theoretical analysis for five different dielectric materials. This study brings out most information about the grain of the material, which is responsible for the residual roughness.


Following the contested election of 1876, as part of the compromise that gave the United States Presidency to Rutherford B. Hayes, Union troops were withdrawn from the states of the former Confederacy. As a more or less direct consequence, the formerly enslaved African Americans, who had begun to exercise political power under Reconstruction, were once again disenfranchised. The Fifteenth Amendment would remain all but a dead letter until the civil rights movement of the mid-twentieth century. Along with direct challenges to Jim Crow came legal challenges to the various restrictions and qualifications that states and their subdivisions placed on African-American suffrage. Literacy tests were a favorite device. As Justice Thomas recounted in his separate opinion in Northwest Austin Municipal Utility No. One v. Holder ("NAMUNDO"), such tests dated back to the period immediately following the adoption of the Fifteenth Amendment. Literacy tests were an effective tool of racially selective disenfranchisement because, as a legacy of slavery and continuing inequality in educational opportunities, the African American population was disproportionately illiterate. To compound the disproportionate impact of literacy tests, white illiterates were often permitted to vote under "grandfather clauses" extending the franchise to those whose grandparents (in the time of slavery) had voted. The blatant race discrimination of the literacy-test-plusgrandfather-clause was invalidated by the Supreme Court as early as 1915. Nevertheless, state officials were creative, so when one stratagem failed, a new one sprang up, and the new ploy was used until it, too, was struck down. But, by then, yet a new disenfranchising technique had been developed. These tactics were very effective at disenfranchising African Americans in the South, and accordingly, when, a century after the conclusion of the Civil War, Congress finally addressed them, it needed equally effective countermeasures. The Voting Rights Act ("VRA") of 1965 created one such mechanism. Devices that have the purpose or effect of suppressing minority votes violate the substance of the VRA. In addition, under section 5 of the VRA, if a state or one of its subdivisions in a "covered jurisdiction" attempts to change its voting rules in any way, it must first submit the proposed change either to a three-judge court in the District of Columbia or to the Attorney General for what has become known as preclearance.


Changes in suspended sediment concentration (SSC) are important for both the physical and ecological environment. One of the main impacts is on the attenuation of light intensity with depth, which affects phytoplankton and macrophyte primary production, and the environment for visual predators. However, detailed data on SSC are relatively scarce, so both dynamic and statistical models which may predict SSC from more readily available data are potentially valuable. We analysed a dataset of >400 turbidity profiles collected at weekly intervals during 2007-2011 at the Marine Scotland Science sampling site off Stonehaven on the east of Scotland. We sought to establish a statistical General Additive Model (GAM) of SSC at a given altitude above the seabed with explanatory variables being seabed depth, tidal, wind, wave, and river outflow data. Alternative models were assessed with Akaike's Information Criterion to choose between the fits offered by different models. Our final model provided a highly significant fit to the observed data from the main sampling site. We then tested the model by applying it to independent data collected at secondary sampling sites in both shallower and deeper water in the vicinity and showed that the model provided as significant account of the SSC dynamics at these site also.


Food and sustainability have received much public attention in the last couple of years. Much of this has been driven by the world oil crises (peak oil); changes in climate and natural disasters and related economic global dilemmas (see Lang and Heasman, 2004; Public Health Association of Australia 2009: SIGNAL 2000). Australia has of course been a net importer of food, producing more than enough for its needs and exporting some. It is important to realise that the food system is driven by oil, oil to produce fertilizers, oil to work on the farm, oil to transport food around the country. This has led to an increase in costs at all levels and parts of the food system. In 2008 when the price of wheat had increased threefold for Australian farmers they were still having to factor in the higher costs of oil at all these stages not to mention the next year's increases. So should Australians be worried? A country that still (even with the igures in decline) produces a surplus of food is obviously still in a strong position. But there is a crisis emerging and now is the time to tackle that crisis.


What makes strolling down a particular street enjoyable? The authors of "Measuring Urban Design" argue it's not an idle question. Inviting streets are the centrepiece of thriving, sustainable communities, but it can be difficult to pinpoint the precise design elements that make an area appealing. This accessible guide removes the mystery, providing clear methods to measure urban design. In recent years, many "walking audit instruments" have been developed to measure qualities like building height, street length, and pavement width. But while easily quantifiable, these physical features do not fully capture the experience of walking down a street. In contrast, this book addresses broad perceptions of street environments. It provides operational definitions and measurement protocols of five intangible qualities of urban design, specifically: imageability, visual enclosure, human scale, transparency, and complexity. The result is a reliable field survey instrument grounded in constructs from architecture, urban design, and planning. Readers will also find a case study applying the instrument to 588 streets in New York City, which shows that it can be used effectively to measure the built environment's impact on social, psychological, and physical well-being. Finally, readers will find illustrated, step-by-step instructions to use the instrument and a scoring sheet for easy calculation of urban design quality scores. For the first time, researchers, designers, planners, and lay people have an empirically tested tool to measure those elusive qualities that make us want to take a stroll.


Recent findings suggest the therapeutic action of relaxin during hypertension is dependent on nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activation; however, the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of relaxin on the NOS system have not been fully elucidated. We hypothesized that the protective effects of relaxin include reducing both oxidative stress and the endogenous NOS inhibitor asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA). We examined the effect of Serelaxin [human recombinant relaxin-2 (RLX)] in male Sprague-Dawley rats given high-dose angiotensin (ANG) II (400 ng·kg(-1)·min(-1) sc) for 6 wk or shams. RLX was administered (4 μg/h sc) to half of the rats in each group after 2 wk of ANG II for the remaining 4 wk. ANG II induced hypertension and proteinuria, reduced NO oxidation products (NOx), and increased oxidative stress (NADPH oxidase activity, thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, and 8-isoprostane excretion) and plasma ADMA. While RLX had no effect on sham rats, RLX attenuated the ANG II-dependent hypertension (165 ± 5 vs. 135 ± 13 mmHg, P < 0.05) and proteinuria at 6 wk (62 ± 6 vs. 41 ± 4 mg·day(-1)·100 g(-1), P < 0.05) and normalized oxidative stress and circulating ADMA, in association with restored NOx excretion and kidney cortex NOx. We found that RLX had no impact on the ADMA-regulatory enzymes protein arginine methyltransferase and dimethylarginine-dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH). Furthermore, RLX treatment did not increase DDAH activity in kidney cortex or liver. These data suggest that benefits of RLX treatment include reduced ADMA levels and increased NO bioavailability, possibly due to its antioxidant effects.


This research presents design techniques for a linear power amplifier with high efficiency in wireless handsets. The power amplifier operates with high efficiency at the saturated output power, maintains high linearity with enhanced efficiency at back-off power levels, and covers a broadband frequency response. The amplifier is thus able to operate in multiple modes (2G/2.5G/3G/4G). The design techniques provide contributions to current research in handset power amplifiers, especially to the converged power amplifier architecture, to reduce the number of power amplifiers within the handset while covering all standards and frequency bands around the globe. Three main areas of interest in power amplifier design are investigated: high power efficiency; high linearity; and broadband frequency response. Multiple techniques for improving the efficiency are investigated with the focus on maintaining linear operation. The research applies a new technique to the handset industry, class-J, to improve the power efficiency while avoiding the practical issues that hinder the typical techniques (class-AB and class-F). Class-J has been implemented using GaN FET in high power applications. To our knowledge, this work provides the first implementation of class-J using GaAs HBT in a handset power amplifier. The research investigates the linearity, and the nature and causes of nonlinearities. Multiple concepts for improving the linearity are presented, such as avoiding odd-degree harmonics, and linearizing the relationship between the output current and the input voltage of the amplifier at the fundamental frequency. The concept of bias depression in HBT transistors is introduced with a bias circuit that reduces the bias-offset effect to improve linearity at high output power. A design methodology is presented for broadband matching networks, including the component loss. The methodology offers a quick and accurate estimation of component values, giving more degrees of freedom to meet the design specifications. It enables a trade-off among high out-of-band attenuation, number/size of components, and power loss within the network. Although the main focus is handset power amplifiers, most of the developed techniques can be applied to a wide range of power amplifiers.


Principles of optimality provide an interesting alternative to modeling hydrological processes in detail on small scales and have received growing interest in the last years. Inspired by the more than 20 years old concept of minimum energy dissipation in river networks, we present a corresponding theory for subsurface flow in order to obtain a better understanding of preferential flow patterns in the subsurface. The concept describes flow patterns which are optimal in the sense of minimizing the total energy dissipation at a given recharge under the constraint of a given total porosity. Results are illustrated using two examples: two-dimensional flow towards a spring with a radial symmetric distribution of the porosity and dendritic flow patterns. The latter are found to be similar to river networks in their structure and, as a main result, the model predicts a power-law distribution of the spring discharges. In combination with two data sets from the Austrian Alps, this result is used for validating the model. Both data sets reveal power-law-distributed spring discharges with similar scaling exponents. These are, however, slightly larger than the exponent predicted by the model. As a further result, the distributions of the residence times strongly differ between homogeneous porous media and optimized flow patterns, while the mean residence times are similar in both cases.


Conventional screen histories tend to concentrate on New York City and Hollywood in chronicling the evolution of American cinema. Notwithstanding the tremendous contribution of both cities, Syracuse and Central New York also played a strategic - yet little-known - role in early screen history.In 1889 in Rochester, New York, George Eastman registered a patent for perforated celluloid film, a development that would telescope the international race to record motion by means of photography to the immediate future. In addition, the first public film projection occurred in Syracuse, New York, in 1896. Norman O. Keim and David Marc provide a highly readable and richly detailed account of the origins of American film in Central New York, the colorful history of neighborhood theaters in Syracuse, and the famous film personalities who got their start in the unlikely snow belt of New York State. Lavishly illustrated, this book will be treasured by both film buffs and Central New Yorkers.


In airline scheduling problems, integrated decision methodologies have aroused intense interest in the last decade. These integrated approaches allow for more efficient solutions due to the simultaneous decision making process. The studied integrated models mostly consist of planning phase subproblems. However in order to be demand responsive, demand related information should also be included in planning models. For that matter supply-demand interactions are now being introduced in airline decision problems. This is often carried out with simplified demand models that are exogenous to the supply model. In this paper we present an integrated airline scheduling, fleeting and pricing model which includes an explicit demand model formulation. The integrated model combines supply and demand related decisions. On the supply side, we have the decisions on the subset of flights to be flown and the aircraft types to be assigned to each flight. On the demand side, we have the pricing decision and spill and recapture effects which are facilitated through an itinerary choice model. This itinerary choice model is estimated based on real data which is a combination of RP and SP datasets. In this paper a sensitivity analysis is presented for the added-value of the integrated supply-demand interactions. Furthermore a reformulation of the model is proposed to reduce the complexity.


The importance of developing predictive modeling tools has considerably increased with the diffusion of nanoscale technologies, in which strained layers and heterojunctions determine the materials modeling complexity. A self--consistent Poisson--Schroedinger solver based on a full-band k.p method within the envelope-function approximation has been developed and validated on large test structures, studying the oxide capacitance for various gate stacks. Among the effects governing the electrostatics of the devices we have studied (i) the impact of band structure models of the oxide, (ii) of the semiconductor, and (iii) the impact of the Si/SiO2 interfacial layers. The predictions of 2 advanced full band (FB) models (tight binding model and 30-bands k.p model) are compared to simpler 6-band k.p and 3-band effective mass approximation. In FB models, the oxides have been treated as pseudo zinc-blende materials, adjusting the model parameters using ab-initio simulations to match the band structure obtained from first principles. The importance of having such accurately calibrated models relies in the reduced computational time of EMA models with respect to FB models. Additionally we performed 2D TCAD simulations with a commercial simulation package to assess the predictions of the models implemented in TCAD tools. Finally we assessed the importance of accurate electrostatic modeling on gate tunneling current.


Abstract. The validation of geophysical data sets (e.g. derived from models, exploration techniques or remote sensing) presents a formidable challenge as all products are inherently different and subject to errors. The collocation technique permits the retrieval of the error variances of different data sources without the need to specify one data set as a reference. In addition calibration constants can be determined to account for biases and different dynamic ranges. The method is frequently applied to the study and comparison of remote sensing, in-situ and modelled data, particularly in hydrology and oceanography. Previous studies have almost exclusively focussed on the validation of three data sources; in this paper it is shown how the technique generalizes to an arbitrary number of data sets. It turns out that only parts of the covariance structure can be resolved by the collocation technique, thus emphasizing the necessity of expert knowledge for the correct validation of geophysical products. Furthermore the bias and error variance of the estimators are derived with particular emphasis on the assumptions necessary for establishing those characteristics. Important properties of the method, such as the structural deficiencies, dependence of the accuracy on the number of measurements and the impact of violated assumptions, are illustrated by application to simulated data.


Follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) are found in all secondary lymphoid tissues, where they function as a repository of antigens to maintain long-term IgG and IgE responses. Antigens are trapped and retained on FDCs in the form of immune complexes; and while most immune complexes require large quantities to induce an immune response, FDC-trapped antigens are remarkably immunogenic and only a few picogram can induce microgram concentrations of a specific antibody. In addition to providing antigens, FDCs provide a number of additional signals (e.g. BAFF, IL-6) that further contribute to antibody production. In addition to their contributions to immunity in health, FDCs are involved in some pathological situations including HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome), sarcoma/lymphoma, prion-mediated transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (e.g. Creutzfeldt–Jakob) and Castleman disease. A further understanding of FDCs and their functions in both health and disease may aid our ability to better regulate immunity and ameliorate some disease states.

Key Concepts

FDCs trap antigens as immune complexes that consist of antigen in the presence of either specific antibodies or complement proteins, or both. FDCs trap immune complexes using CD32 and/or CD21.
FDC-trapped antigens or iccosomes are highly immunogenic and minute amounts (picogram) can induce significant quantities (microgram) of a specific antibody.
FDC-trapped antigens remain on the surface of FDCs and are not internalised. These antigens are not degraded but maintain their native configuration and immunoreactivity for many months.
In addition to trapping conventional antigens, FDCs also trap HIV (and potentially other viruses) and maintain the infectious nature for many months. FDC-trapped HIV can transmit infection to adjacent target cells (e.g. CD4+ T lymphocytes).
FDCs provide both antigen and other signals that are central to the induction and maintenance of specific antibody responses.
FDCs can play roles in both health and disease (e.g. HIV/AIDS, prion diseases and follicular lymphomas).

Keywords:

follicular dendritic cells;
secondary lymphoid tissues;
germinal centres;
anamnestic antibody responses;
complement proteins and receptors;
Fc receptors;
antigen presentation to B-lymphocytes;
HIV reservoir;
prions;
follicular lymphoma and sarcoma


Impact cratering is an important and unique geologic process. The high speeds, forces and temperatures involved are quite unlike conventional endogenic processes, and the environmental consequences can be catastrophic. Kilometre-scale craters are excavated and collapse in minutes, in some cases distributing debris around the globe and exhuming deeply buried strata. In the process, rocks are deformed, broken, heated and transformed in unique ways. Elevated temperatures in the crust may persist for millennia, and important chemical reactions are promoted by the extreme environment of the impact plume. Released gases may cause long-term perturbations to the climate, and impact-related phosphorus reduction may have played a role in the origin of life on Earth.


The design of nanoparticle delivery materials possessing biological activities is an attractive strategy for the development of various therapies. In this study, 11 cationic amphiphilic 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-dihydropyridine (1,4-DHP) derivatives differing in alkyl chain length and propargyl moiety/ties number and position were selected for the study of their self-assembling properties, evaluation of their cytotoxicity in vitro and toxicity on microorganisms, and the characterisation of their interaction with phospholipids. These lipid-like 1,4-DHPs have been earlier proposed as promising nanocarriers for DNA delivery. We have revealed that the mean diameter of freshly prepared nanoparticles varied from 58 to 513 nm, depending upon the 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP structure. Additionally, we have confirmed that only nanoparticles formed by 4-(N-dodecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives 3 and 6, and by 4-(N-hexadecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives 10 and 11 were stable after two weeks of storage. The nanoparticles of these compounds were found to be homogenous in size distribution, ranging from 124 to 221 nm. The polydispersity index (PDI) values of 1,4-DHPs samples 3, 6, 10, and 11 were in the range of 0.10 to 0.37. We also demonstrated that the nanoparticles formed by 4-(N-dodecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives 3, 6, and 9, and 4-(N-hexadecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives 10 and 11 had zeta-potentials from +26.07 mV (compound 6) to +62.80 mV (compound 11), indicating a strongly positive surface charge and confirming the relative electrostatic stability of these nanoparticle solutions. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of nanoaggregates formed by 1,4-DHPs 3 and 11 confirmed liposome-like structures with diameters around 70 to 170 nm. The critical aggregation concentration (CAC) value interval for 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP was from 7.6 µM (compound 11) to 43.3 µM (compound 6). The tested 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives were able to quench the fluorescence of the binary 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH)—1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) system, demonstrating hydrophobic interactions of 1,4-DHPs with phospholipids. Thus, 4-(N-dodecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivative 3 quenched the fluorescence of the DPH–DPPC system more efficiently than the other 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives. Likewise the compound 3, also 4-(N-dodecylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivative 9 interacted with the phospholipids. Moreover, we have established that increasing the length of the alkyl chain at the quaternised nitrogen of the 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP molecule or the introduction of propargyl moieties in the 1,4-DHP molecule significantly influences the cytotoxicity on HT-1080 (human fibrosarcoma) and MH-22A (mouse hepatocarcinoma) cell lines, as well as the estimated basal cytotoxicity. Additionally, it was demonstrated that the toxicity of the 4-(N-alkylpyridinium)-1,4-DHP derivatives on the Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria species and eukaryotic microorganism depended on the presence of the alkyl chain length at the N-alkyl pyridinium moiety, as well as the number of propargyl groups. These lipid-like compounds may be proposed for the further development of drug formulations to be used in cancer treatment.


The thesis investigates a diverse range of feminist postmodern philosophy, distinguished by its varying rearticulation of the relationship between modernism and postmodernism and feminism's own position vis-a-vis that debate. Drawing on postmodernism's primary tenet that substantive, binary identity categories comprise discursive, performative constructs, feminist postmodernism theorises a range of strategies for their subversive re-performance. This is realised in the mobilisation of parodic, "failed" repetitions and identities embodied, for instance, by transsexual, transgender, and transvestite personae. Hence the reformulation of postmodern versions of agency, resistance, and choice.
In the second instance, the thesis examines the combination of feminist postmodern philosophy with the narrative techniques of postmodernism and its sister genre, the fantastic mode. As a heterogeneous, open-ended, self-reflexive form, the "postmodern fantastic" challenges conventional realism and its correlative sovereign subject. The postmodern fantastic is redeployed by feminist practitioners, whose inscription of both textual and topographical re-performance, such as is manifest in the cyborg and the grotesque, represent the literary counterparts of feminist postmodern agency.
The above provide critical contexts for a reading of four late-twentieth-century women writers, focusing in particular on their intervention in the modernism/postmodemism debate and their deployment of the feminist postmodern fantastic as a means of destabilising sexed, gendered, and sexual identity. The selected authors Helene Cixous, Monique Wittig, Jeanette Winterson, and Angela Carter represent distinct and diverse, culturally specific, literary and feminist traditions, reformulating the relationship between modernism and postmodernism in different ways and with varying degrees of success. They coalesce, however, in their contribution to the feminist postmodern fantastic. It is the general purpose of the thesis to demonstrate how this particular mode embodies one of feminist postmodernism's most powerful means of literary and ideological critique


The Northeastern viticultural industry has become a model for the whole Brazil and has been identified as a grape production district. Given the importance of agriculture in the economy of the region our study aims at analysing whether the grape producing activity affects some socio-economic indicators, namely the Theil index, the Human Development Index (HDI) and the unemployment rate over the period 2000-2010. The study is focused on the Northeastern states of Bahia and Pernambuco, two of the poorest and with the highest income inequality among Brazilian States and combines the Difference-in-Differences with the Propensity Score matching method at the municipality level. Results seem to indicate that grape growing plays an important role to guarantee a fairer income distribution. Indeed, the municipalities that grow grape experience a decrease in the level of Theil index by 11.7% compared to the level they would have if they had not participate in grape production. No effect has been found on the HDI and on the unemployment rate. Results are robust to the potential presence of an hidden bias according to the Rosenbaum sensitivity analysis.


We present a GPU-based ray-tracing system for the accurate and interactive visualization of cut-surfaces through 3D simulations of physical processes created from spectral/hp high-order finite element methods. When used by the numerical analyst to debug the solver, the ability for the imagery to precisely reflect the data is critical. In practice, the investigator interactively selects from a palette of visualization tools to construct a scene that can answer a query of the data. This is effective as long as the implicit contract of image quality between the individual and the visualization system is upheld. OpenGL rendering of scientific visualizations has worked remarkably well for exploratory visualization for most solver results. This is due to the consistency between the use of first-order representations in the simulation and the linear assumptions inherent in OpenGL (planar fragments and color-space interpolation). Unfortunately, the contract is broken when the solver discretization is of higher-order. There have been attempts to mitigate this through the use of spatial adaptation and/or texture mapping. These methods do a better job of approximating what the imagery should be but are not exact and tend to be view-dependent. This paper introduces new rendering mechanisms that specifically deal with the kinds of native data generated by high-order finite element solvers. The exploratory visualization tools are reassessed and cast in this system with the focus on image accuracy. This is accomplished in a GPU setting to ensure interactivity.


Digital-to-analog converters have a wide range of applications from converting stored digital/audio signals to data processing and to data acquisition systems. Another application area could be a supporting building block in either cooled or un-cooled Read-out integrated circuits (ROICs). For this aspect, the capability of ultra wide temperature range operation may prove useful providing freedom to the designer and the consumer. In this thesis, design of an 8-bit, fully binary R-2R based digital-to-analog converter is realized with 90nm CMOS technology to operate in a wide temperature range (-200°C to 120°C) to be used in an ongoing Digital Read-out Integrated Circuit (DROIC) for infrared (IR) imaging systems. UWT range of operation is obtained via a temperature compensated voltage reference generator circuit consisting of only MOSFETs. In order to aid the matching of the resistors, a common-centroid layout technique is applied to the resistor core of the circuit which eliminates the process gradients. TSMC's 90nm 1 poly, 9 metal Mixed – Signal RF technology and a power supply of 1.2V are used for this design. For accuracy, the best performance is obtained at the room temperature where the fastest operation is possible at cryogenic temperatures at the expense of precision. It has a DNL and INL of ±0.3LSB at room temperature and ±0.45LSB at 120°C. The DAC can operate up to 20MHz. The circuit dissipates only 0.43mW in full scale range at cryogenic temperatures where 1.1mW at room. It occupies a chip area of only 0.015mm2 [square millimetre].


Plane-to-plane guided-wave-based interconnection modules are proposed as building blocks for scalable optoelectronic multistage interconnection networks (MINs). This approach leads naturally to a MIN paradigm based not on cascading switching stages containing several size-reduced crossbars, as in the shuffle-exchange (SE) networks, but on cascading permutation-reduced crossbars instead, one per stage. The interest of such an architecture lies in the control simplicity and scalability potential. Transparent circuit switching for permutation routing is possible in such an unbuffered "globally switched" multistage interconnection network (GSMIN). Preliminary experiments using fiber-based interconnection modules are presented. Performance analysis and simulation of a buffered GSMIN is also studied for packet routing purposes.


Summary The Torneträsk area, including the Abisko National Park, Sweden, is arachnologically one of the best explored sites of Fennoscandia. Here, we report the results of pitfall trapping at Abisko Scientific Research Station during the summers of 2004 and 2005, recording 791 individuals of 62 species of spiders. As expected, at the species level, samples were dominated by members of the Linyphiidae, while at the level of individuals Pardosa hyperborea and other lycosids were dominant. Two subsites, on heath and bog, differed substantially in their species profile: seven species were statistically overrepresented on the drier heath site, while two showed a strong preference for the wetter bog site. The samples also contained the first reported lateral gynandromorph of Archaeodictyna consecuta (Dictynidae). This study, from 195 km north of the Arctic Circle, provides important reference data for continued studies on the long-term effects of climate change on Arctic ecosystems.


Septoria nodorum blotch is a major disease of wheat caused by the fungus Parastagonospora nodorum. Recent studies have demonstrated that secondary metabolites, including polyketides and non-ribosomal peptides, produced by the pathogen play important roles in disease and development. However, there is currently no knowledge on the composition or biological activity of the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) secreted by P. nodorum. To address this, we undertook a series of growth and phytotoxicity assays and demonstrated that P. nodorum VOCs inhibited bacterial growth, were phytotoxic and suppressed self-growth. Mass spectrometry analysis revealed that 3-methyl-1-butanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol, 2-methyl-1-propanol and 2-phenylethanol were dominant in the VOC mixture and phenotypic assays using these short chain alcohols confirmed that they were phytotoxic. Further analysis of the VOCs also identified the presence of multiple sesquiterpenes of which four were identified via mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance as β-elemene, α-cyperone, eudesma-4,11-diene and acora-4,9-diene. Subsequent reverse genetics studies were able to link these molecules to corresponding sesquiterpene synthases in the P. nodorum genome. However, despite extensive testing, these molecules were not involved in either of the growth inhibition or phytotoxicity phenotypes previously observed. Plant assays using mutants of the pathogen lacking the synthetic genes revealed that the identified sesquiterpenes were not required for disease formation on wheat leaves. Collectively, these data have significantly extended our knowledge of the VOCs in fungi and provided the basis for further dissecting the roles of sesquiterpenes in plant disease.


This work is an investigation of the anelastic structure of the Derbyshire Dome and adjacent areas from the analysis of high frequency, 0.6 - 4.2 Hz, fundamental mode Rayleigh waves observed from quarry blasts within the study area.

Seismic field experiments, designed and implemented to record Rayleigh waves accurately, are discussed together with the data preparation sequence. The effects of possible errors on timing and amplitude measurements are investigated and reduced.

Time domain measurements indicate the Carboniferous Limestone district of the Derbyshire Dome consists of smaller provinces the boundaries of which are marked by sudden changes in group velocity and co-incide with geological surface features. Similar provinces are not found in the adjacent Millstone Grit district. Approximate
estimates of group velocity are higher over the limestone than over the Millstone Grit district.

Transformation into the frequency domain facilitates the
determination of group arrival times and amplitude spectrum of each Rayleigh wave recorded. Least squares interstation analyses provide estimates of group slowness dispersion for the districts and component provinces and the Rayleigh wave specific attenuation factor, Qy-1(v), as a function of frequency for certain districts and provinces.

Group slowness which ranges from 0.33 - 1.1 s km 1,
increasing generally with frequency, is higher in the Millstone Grit district.
Qy-1 (v) ranges between 0.01'and 0.08 showing no marked correlation with surface lithology.

Models of shear wave velocity, s(z), and intrinsic specific
11 attenuation factor for shear waves, Qsl(z), with depth, z, are obtained for the upper 1.5 km of the crust in each district and
province from the inversion of the observed dispersion and Q-1(v)Y data using linearised and Hedgehog techniques for s(z) and similar methods for Qsl(z).

The deep geology of the area is inferred from the s(z) models. The limestone district is divided by a major basement fault, to which surface features may be related. The Carboniferous Limestone of different provinces is underlain directly by Ordovician mudstones or Devonian sandstones. A sedimentary basin, of 1.5 km thickness,
displaying rhythmic sedimentation is postulated within the Millstone Grit district.

Fluid saturation conditions are inferred from the Qs1(2)
models. On comparison with previous laboratory work values of Q1-s which exhibit a possible frequency dependence imply partial saturation of the upper layers of the limestone district whilst field estimates of Qs-1 not exhibiting any frequency dependence imply the Millstone Grit district to be fully saturated at all levels. Two mechanisms of dissipation based on the petrographic character of the
rock and fluid flow are believed to operate jointly.


This book is an advanced text in welfare economics and its application to environmental economics. It provides, in the first chapters, a comprehensive survey of developments in the theory of measurement of welfare, and then applies this theory to environmental economics. The first part derives consumer surplus measures to be held in a timeless world. Throughout the emphasis is on the circumstances in which a money measure correctly reflects the underlying utility change. Four main cases are considered: unrationed private goods, rationed private goods, public goods or externalities, and discrete choices. Reviews of practical methodologies for the calculation of consumers' surplus for these classes of goods are also given. The second part looks at intertemporal issues. In particular, it derives comsumer faces risk and uncertainty. The book is intended for advanced courses in environmental and welfare economics, and as a reference work for those interested in the theory of measurement of welfare and its application to environmental economics.


In various single-molecule experiments, a chiral polymer, such as DNA, is simultaneously pulled and twisted. We address an elementary but fundamental question raised by various authors: does the molecule overwind or unwind under tension? We show that within the context of the classic Kirchhoff-Love rod model of elastic filaments, both behaviors are possible, depending on the precise constitutive relations of the polymer. More generally, our analysis provides an effective linear response theory for helical structures that relates axial force and axial torque to axial translation and rotation.


This experiment was conducted to evaluate different levels of digestible energy on the performance of Nile tilapia larvae (Oreochromis niloticus) during the sexual reversion phase. Three hundred and seventy-five larvae with initial average length and weight of 21.0±4.0 mg and 1.19±0.72 cm, respectively, were allotted to 25 30L-aquarium. A completely randomized design with five treatments and five replicates was used. The aquarium with 15 larvae was the experimental unit. The diets were formulated to contain levels of 3,300, 3,525, 3,750, 3,975, and 4,200 kcal/kg of digestible energy and to be isoprotein (38.6% digestible protein). The animals were fed ad libitum five times a day. At the end of the experiment, the averages of weight (PF), survival rate (SO), condition factor (FC) and length (CF) were analyzed. Linear reduction of fishes PF and CF, as the dietary digestible energy levels increased, was observed. No differences on fish SO and FC of different treatments were observed. Deleterious effects on performance due to the increasing dietary digestible energy levels were noticed for Nile tilapia larvae during the sexual reversion.


The Lick AGN Monitoring Project 2011 observing campaign was carried out over the course of 11 weeks in spring 2011. Here we present the first results from this program, a measurement of the broad-line reverberation lag in the Seyfert 1 galaxy Mrk 50. Combining our data with supplemental observations obtained prior to the start of the main observing campaign, our data set covers a total duration of 4.5 months. During this time, Mrk 50 was highly variable, exhibiting a maximum variability amplitude of a factor of ∼4 in the U-band continuum and a factor of ∼2 in the Hβ line. Using standard cross-correlation techniques, we find that Hβ and Hγ lag the V-band continuum by τcen = 10.64+0.82− 0.93 and 8.43+1.30− 1.28 days, respectively, while the lag of He ii λ4686 is unresolved. The Hβ line exhibits a symmetric velocity-resolved reverberation signature with shorter lags in the high-velocity wings than in the line core, consistent with an origin in a broad-line region (BLR) dominated by orbital motion rather than infall or outflow. Assuming a virial normalization factor of f = 5.25, the virial estimate of the black hole mass is (3.2 ± 0.5) × 107 M☉. These observations demonstrate that Mrk 50 is among the most promising nearby active galaxies for detailed investigations of BLR structure and dynamics.


The higher order singular value decomposition (HOSVD) of tensors is a generalization of matrix SVD. The perturbation analysis of HOSVD under random noise is more delicate than its matrix counterpart. Recently, polynomial time algorithms have been proposed where statistically optimal estimates of the singular subspaces and the low rank tensors are attainable in the Euclidean norm. In this article, we analyze the sup-norm perturbation bounds of HOSVD and introduce estimators of the singular subspaces with sharp deviation bounds in the sup-norm. We also investigate a low rank tensor denoising estimator and demonstrate its fast convergence rate with respect to the entry-wise errors. The sup-norm perturbation bounds reveal unconventional phase transitions for statistical learning applications such as the exact clustering in high dimensional Gaussian mixture model and the exact support recovery in sub-tensor localizations. In addition, the bounds established for HOSVD also elaborate the one-sided sup-norm perturbation bounds for the singular subspaces of unbalanced (or fat) matrices.


This study integrates the event of rupture in the concept of tradition, before examining in a critical manner the identity vectors of the Order of the Minors, namely contemplation or the prayer of faith, fraternity, the mission which results from this, minority (including poverty and solidarity), and the formation that preaching or the mission requires. This critical reflection particularly highlights the historical role of the institution and its emblems. Without them, the singular intuition will seek its institutional mediations apart from its native social and spiritual (ecclesiastical) background.


Background/Aims Mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS I) is a rare lysosomal storage disorder treated with bone marrow transplantation or enzyme replacement therapy with laronidase, a high-cost orphan drug. Laronidase was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency in 2003 and by the Brazilian National Health Surveillance Agency in 2005. Many Brazilian MPS I patients have been receiving laronidase despite the absence of a governmental policy regulating access to the drug. Epidemiological and treatment data concerning MPS I are scarce. This study aims to present a demographic profile of Brazilian patients with MPS I, describe the routes of access to laronidase in Brazil, and discuss associated ethical issues relating to public funding of orphan drugs. Methods In this cross-sectional observational study, data were collected nationwide between January and September 2008 from physicians, public institutions and non-governmental organisations involved with diagnosis and treatment of MPS I, using two data collection instruments specifically designed for this purpose. Results The minimum prevalence of MPS I in Brazil was estimated at 1/2 700 000. Most patients (69.8%) were younger than 15 years; 60 (88.2%) received laronidase. The most common route of access to the drug was through lawsuits (86.6%). Conclusions In Brazil, MPS I is predominantly a paediatric illness. Even though the cost of laronidase treatment is not officially covered by the Brazilian government, most MPS I patients receive the drug, usually through litigation. This gives rise to major ethical conflicts concerning drug access in a low-resource context. The Brazilian health policy framework lacks evidence-based clinical protocols for the distribution of orphan drugs.


Background: Software quality issues are commonly reported when off shoring software development. Value-based software engineering addresses this by ensuring key stakeholders have a common understanding of quality. Aim: This work seeks to understand the levels of alignment between key stakeholders on aspects of software quality for two products developed as part of an offshore in sourcing arrangement. The study further aims to explain the levels of alignment identified. Method: Representatives of key stakeholder groups for both products ranked aspects of software quality. The results were discussed with the groups to gain a deeper understanding. Results: Low levels of alignment were found between the groups studied. This is associated with insufficiently defined quality requirements, a culture that does not question management and conflicting temporal reflections on the product's quality. Conclusion: The work emphasizes the need for greater support to align success-critical stakeholder groups in their understanding of quality when off shoring software development.


Profound and intriguing, Grettir's Saga is the last of the great Icelandic sagas. It tells of the life and death of Grettir, a great rebel, individualist, and romantic hero viewed unromantically. Grettir spends his childhood violently defying authority: as a youth of sixteen he kills a man and is outlawed; all the rest of his life he devotes, with remarkable composure, to fighting more and more formidable enemies. He pits himself against bears, berserks, wraiths, trolls, and finally, it seems, the whole population of Iceland. Yet he is not a bloodthirsty killer, but only a man who is totally unwilling to compromise. As a result of his desire for freedom, he becomes increasingly isolated, although he wishes to live in society, and indeed can hardly bear solitude. Driven back and forth from Iceland to Norway, harried around Iceland, he continually flees subjection and confinement only to find a perilous freedom beset both by the external hazards of a new land and by the internal hazards of loneliness and pride. He escapes to freedom and finds destruction. He finally meets his death in his last refuge on the top of an unscalable island near the northern tip of Iceland. Grettir's Saga has several themes. One of them is the conflict between the Christian world and the survival of the pagan world, as sorcery or heroic pride; the other is the conflict between man's desire for individual freedom and the restrictive bond imposed by society. This translation is the first into English since 1914; it is based on a more accurate Icelandic text than the earlier translations, and, unlike them, is unexpurgated and in unarchaic English. The saga has an especial modern relevance - a recent translation into Czech reached the top of the best-seller list. The present volume includes genealogies, a study of the legal system, and a critical assessment of the work.


This article develops a taxonomy of health care programmes, and assesses whether or not these programmes represent a viable option for addressing key health policy objectives, including efficiency, equity and sustainable financing. A broad literature review was undertaken to identify the various types of health care programmes to develop a taxonomy. Then, a targeted literature review of each type of health care programme was undertaken to collect evidence on the ability of programmes to address health policy objectives. Many health care programmes were identified and grouped into six categories: financial support, patient education, integrated care, special population, national/regional plans, and disease management. Design and implementation of these programmes varied widely within and across categories. Evidence surrounding impact of health care programmes was largely mixed, with evidence of both successful and unsuccessful initiatives. The evidence suggests that when properly implemented, health care programmes can help generate cost savings, improve patient adherence to treatment, address inequities in access to health care, and improve patient health outcomes. However, the evidence relies on a highly heterogeneous sample of studies, study populations and diseases studied; studies are often of variable quality. Further research on this subject would therefore be beneficial.


Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) is an important cool-season grass species in the turfgrass and forage industries. Understanding the genetics of Kentucky bluegrass is useful in developing improved cultivars and hybrids. However, studying the genetics of Kentucky bluegrass can often be difficult because of the high variation in ploidy level that results from its facultative apomictic reproductive nature. Flow cytometry provides an easy and accurate method for assessing this variation by quantifying DNA content. The purpose of our study was to determine the level of variation in ploidy in Kentucky bluegrass by analyzing its DNA content using flow cytometry. In addition, DNA content was compared with genetic similarity derived from DNA marker data, and was also correlated with chromosome number. Twenty-two cultivars of Kentucky bluegrass were selected for the study by considering the range of variability in morphological traits and genetic distance derived from DNA marker data. We found that the DNA content of Kentucky bluegrass genotypes from the 22 cultivars ranged from 5.39 to 17.69 pg of DNA/2C and that a majority of the genotypes had a DNA content value in the range of 7 to 13 pg. A significant correlation between DNA content and chromosome number was detected. Euploid chromosome numbers (x = 7) with a range from the pentaploid (2n = 5x = 35) to the quindecaploid (2n = 15x = 105) were found along with aneuploid numbers. The results of this research could aid both breeders and researchers in studying the genetics of the species and in improving Kentucky bluegrass cultivars via intra- and interspecific hybridizations.


The study of the growth of nucleation-mode parti- cles is important, as this prevents their loss through diffusion and allows them to reach sizes where they may become ef- fective cloud condensation nuclei. Hyyti ¨¨ a, a forested site in southern Finland, frequently experiences particle nucle- ation events during the spring and autumn, where particles first appear during the morning and continue to grow for sev- eral hours afterwards. As part of the QUEST 2 intensive field campaign during March and April 2003, an Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) was deployed alongside other aerosol instrumentation to study the particulate com- position and dynamics of growth events and characterise the background aerosol. Despite the small mass concentrations, the AMS was able to distinguish the grown particles in the <100 nm regime several hours after an event and confirm that the particles were principally organic in composition. The AMS was also able to derive a mass spectral finger- print for the organic species present, and found that it was consistent between events and independent of the mean par- ticle diameter during non-polluted cases, implying the same species were also condensing onto the accumulation mode. The results were compared with those from offline analyses such as GC-MS and were consistent with the hypothesis that the main components were alkanes from plant waxes and the oxidation products of terpenes.


Music was an anomalous subject in the universities of nineteenth-century Britain. The institutionalisation of music as an academic subject came at a time when the music profession suffered low status, and music itself was commonly conceived as a feminine accomplishment. Universities, on the other hand, remained the bastions of upper-class male domination, with a non-vocational, liberal agenda. By the end of the century, music degrees were available at the major universities, candidates numerous, and lectures on musical subjects common. However, debate continued about the relationship between the universities and conservatoires, and the relative demands and status of the different degrees. Moreover, university music remained uneasily situated between liberal and professional studies. This study captures the tensions that resulted from conflicts of educational ideology and practical reality, and traces the construction of university 'music' within a tight-knit matrix of social, institutional, and professional identities.

At the core of the book are four case studies, which examine the responses of University institutions to the problem of music. At Oxford and Cambridge, the presence of music dated back centuries, but its status as a degree subject in the context of liberal educational ideals was a particular issue. At Edinburgh, a generous benefaction required the institution of a professorship and invention of a subject, while at London pressures from conservatoires conflicted with and challenged educational outlooks. The identity of music as a science, and its relationship with the church, are of particular interest. Ideas of professionalisation and regulation through university accreditation were also important. Finally, non-musical factors such as residence and arts requirements are shown to have been crucial to the development of music qualifications.