The authors investigate the extent to which the contrast brightness of ship tracks, that is, the relative change in observed solar reflectance, in visible and near-infrared imagery can be explained by the microphysics of the background cloud in which they form. The sensitivity of visible and near-infrared wavelengths for detecting reflectance changes in ship tracks is discussed, including the use of a modified cloud susceptibility parameter, termed the ''contrast susceptibility,'' for assessing the sensitivity of background cloud microphysics on potential track development. It is shown that the relative change in cloud reflectance for ship tracks is expected to be larger in the near-infrared than in the visible and that 3.7- mm channels, widely known to be useful for detecting tracks, have the greatest sensitivity. The usefulness of contrast susceptibility as a predictor of ship track contrast is tested with airborne and satellite remote sensing retrievals of background cloud parameters and track contrast. Retrievals are made with the high spatial resolution Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Airborne Simulator flown on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's high-altitude ER-2 aircraft, and with the larger-scale perspective of the advanced very high resolution radiometer. Observed modifications in cloud droplet effective radius, optical thickness, liquid water path, contrast susceptibility, and reflectance contrast are presented for several ship tracks formed in background clouds with both small and large droplet sizes. The remote sensing results are augmented with in situ measurements of cloud microphysics that provide data at the smaller spatial scales.


The provision of public schooling in the United States has primarily been the states' responsibility, but states generally lack the capacity to manage day-to-day school operations. Thus, states delegate responsibility to districts while maintaining some oversight. Forms of oversight include regulations and political and market-based accountability. However, these can only do so much in holding schools accountable for providing high-quality schooling. Administrative accountability based on student outcomes and school process measures presents an alternative to complement other accountability mechanisms. Standardized measures of performance used for administrative accountability can better align curriculum with state standards, improve quality, and signal the skills that society wishes for students to build. However, they can be counterproductive if they are not reliable, valid, or comprehensive. We suggest in this article that no measure is perfect and that the usefulness of test-based accountability depends on whether the measures enhance educational opportunities and reflect shared goals with reliability, validity, and comprehensiveness.


Urban regeneration programmes in the UK over the past 20 years have increasingly focused on attracting investors, middle-class shoppers and visitors by transforming places and creating new consumption spaces. Ensuring that places are safe and are seen to be safe has taken on greater salience as these flows of income are easily disrupted by changing perceptions of fear and the threat of crime. At the same time, new technologies and policing strategies and tactics have been adopted in a number of regeneration areas which seek to establish control over these new urban spaces. Policing space is increasingly about controlling human actions through design, surveillance technologies and codes of conduct and enforcement. Regeneration agencies and the police now work in partnerships to develop their strategies. At its most extreme, this can lead to the creation of zero-tolerance, or what Smith terms 'revanchist', measures aimed at particular social groups in an effort to sanitise space in the interests of capital accumulation. This paper, drawing on an examination of regeneration practices and processes in one of the UK's fastest-growing urban areas, Reading in Berkshire, assesses policing strategies and tactics in the wake of a major regeneration programme. It documents and discusses the discourses of regeneration that have developed in the town and the ways in which new urban spaces have been secured. It argues that, whilst security concerns have become embedded in institutional discourses and practices, the implementation of security measures has been mediated, in part, by the local socio-political relations in and through which they have been developed.


Mammary gland tumors in dogs rank second among all newly diagnosed tumors in this species. Research goal was to study clinical/morphological characteristics of breast cancer in dogs with the use of ultrasound investigation. 34 dogs of different breeds and age groups with spontaneously emerging neoplasms of mammary glands were chosen for the study. To classify malignant tumors, the histological classification was applied. Complete examination of breast tumors was carried out with the help of clinical observation, ultrasound, radiologic, hematological and ultrasonographic methods applied. The largest percentage (23.5%) of animals with mammary gland neoplasms are mongrel female dogs. The breed predisposition was detected in dogs of the following breeds: Miniature Schnauzer 11.9%, Standard Dachshund 11.9%, American Bulldog, American Cocker Spaniel and Miniature Poodle 8% each. Breast cancer was diagnosed in 29 animals (85.3%), 100% of those cases in the nodular form with microcalcifications in the tumor parenchyma. The horizontal orientation of growth is more often typical of breast cancer in the mammary gland pairs I and II at the initial stage of carcinogenesis, and is characterized by an inhomogeneous hypoechoic structure with sufficiently pronounced boundaries detected during the ultrasound investigation. The vertical orientation of growth is mainly typical of breast cancer in the mammary gland pairs III, IV and V from the very beginning of the disease. The ultrasonography usually shows: inhomogeneous hypoechoic structure containing inclusions in the form of cords or foci of a higher acoustic solidity; also clearly defined lateral acoustic shadows and dorsal echo enhancement; as well as unevenness and indistinctness of borders. The performed histological study within the current research revealed a multifocal, infiltrating epithelial neoplasm with distinct edges, surrounded by a large amount of fibrous tissue. The tumor consisted of a number of acini with a tendency of forming a network structure. The shape of cells was detected from round to irregular, the cytoplasm was found scarce, often with uneven borders, with the large central core, with chromophilic substance and 1-2 nucleoli. The cells were characterized by the pronounced anisocytosis and anisocariosis, and a great number of mitotic figures. Lymphatic invasion was observed. Ultrasound investigation of the mammary gland allows for performing percutaneous minimally invasive interventions and differential diagnostics of cystic and solid lesions of the mammary gland (96-100% accuracy), mastopathy and carcinoma conditions.


Background: The present work is part of a greater research project, aimed to examine Safety Representatives' (SRs) role, twenty years after the appointment of this figure. Objectives: The study aims to investigate the role of some personal and organizational dimensions in the promotion of SRs' well-being, in terms of reducing burnout and improving performance. Methods: The study involved 455 SRs operating in North East Italy. They completed a self-report questionnaire, regarding conflicts with co-workers, ethical conflict, training satisfaction, work engagement, performance, and burnout. Results: Structural equation models show that work engagement partially mediates (γ=-0.52, p<0.001; β=0.23, p<0.01) the relationship between conflict with co-workers and performance (γ=-0.26; p<0.01), as well as partially mediating (γ=0.14, p<0.05; β=0.23; p<0.01) the relationship between training satisfaction and performance (γ=0.21, p<0.001). Moreover, it totally mediates the relationship between conflict with co-workers and burnout (γ=-0.52, p<0.001; β=-0.40, p<0.001), as well as totally mediating the relationship between training satisfaction and burnout (γ=0.14, p<0.05; β=-0.40, p<0.001). Finally, ethical conflict is positively associated with burnout (γ=0.047, p<0.001). Conclusions: This study provides useful information about the improvement of SRs' well-being, highlighting the importance of their involvement in this role.


The population density of the big-headed ant was higher during the second (ratoon) crop than during the first crop of pineapple at both Poamoho and Molokai. At Poamoho, no mealybug wilt plants were found in plots where ants had been controlled, while the number of such plants increased sharply during the second crop in plots where ants were not controlled. The incidence of mealybug wilt was higher at the edges of plots than toward the middle reflecting the greater abundance of ants and mealybugs on the margins on the plots. Wilt spread in a contagious manner with the number of diseased plants increasing at a logrithmic rate over time. The coefficient of correlation between the number of ants caught in pitfall traps and the percentage of mealybug infested plants was very high (r = 0.97). Infestation of the Molokai experimental planting by big-headed ants started at the edges of plantings adjacent to abandoned fields and waste areas. Invasion progressed slowly, and two and one half years elapsed before all plots had become infested. Ant and mealybug populations in infested plots increased gradually and appeared to be strongly influenced by the phenology of the pineapple plants during the first fruit crop. Unusually heavy rainfall during March and April 1979 may have caused the dramatic reduction in ant populations observed then. Highest ant population levels occured about three years after planting when all untreated plots became nearly uniformly infested. Pest management strategies for pineapple ants and mealybugs are discussed, and it is suggested that a program of ant surveillance using bait stakes, coupled with treatment of field margins and adjacent infested old fields or uncultivated areas when ants are discovered, can prevent migration of these pests into plantation fields.


This paper, based on an analysis of the mean annual flow (MAF) of 16 natural rivers over the period 1934-2000, has the following goals: (1) to determine the different temporal variability modes of the MAF in the St. Lawrence watershed, (2) to describe the temporal variability of the streamflow in each mode and (3) to analyze the influence of the AMO (Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation) on the interannual and interdecadal variability of mean annual flows in this Quebec watershed. This paper shows that the interannual variability of mean annual flow was not synchronous on both sides of the river. During the period analyzed, M AF variability was characterized by a tendency to decrease on the south shore (right bank) but to increase on the north shore (left bank). A correlation analysis reveals that the influence of the AMO was limited exclusively to the north shore of the river, which is characterized by a continental climate. This correlation is negative. On the south shore, streamflow is correlated negatively to the AO (Arctic Oscillation).


Tourism studies have recently been subject to increasing debate regarding journal and research rankings. This debate is reflective of broader concerns over the use of bibliometric tools for purposes for which they were not originally designed. Google Scholar is examined as a means of accessing the citation impact of tourism publications in comparison with Thomson Scientific [formerly Thomson Institute of Scientific Information (ISI)] databases. For pre-1990 publications the citation counts tended to be proportional. For papers published from 1990 on not only were the citation counts proportional the actual number of citations also tended to be very similar. The highest ranking tourism publications by citations are also provided.


Vulnerability to both shame and the longing for approval and love is the core of what Silvan Tomkins has called the "depressive posture," one that is found frequently among certain types of highly creative personalities. As Tomkins describes the depressive's relationship to the other, as first formed in the parent-child dyad, the parent shows great affection and love to the child but also alternately distances her with shame, anger, and contempt when she is perceived as offending or falling short, thus creating a strong corrective identification with the parent. Thus arises a magnified greed for both love and respect, in which the latter become fatefully tied to achievement. The quest for love and respect through communion, concern, control, and achievement underlies the major themes of George Eliot's life and work. The dynamic nature of this depressive drama is particularly well illustrated in Eliot's last great novel, Daniel Deronda. keywords: George Eliot, Silvan Tomkins, affect and script theory, shame, distress, depression url: http://www.clas.ufl.edu/ipsa/journal/2009_adamson01.shtml At the beginning of her career as a novelist, when the identity of George Eliot still remained a secret, acting as her agent George Henry Lewes wrote a letter to John Blackwood which included, and not for the first time, a cautionary note about the author's particular susceptibility to criticism: Entre nous let me hint that unless you have any serious objection to make to Eliot's stories, don't make any. He is so easily discouraged, so diffident of himself, that not being prompted by necessity to write, he will close the series in the belief that his writing is not relished. I laugh at him for his diffidence and tell him it's a proof he is not an author (Letters 2: 363-64). Eliot's "diffidence" is a theme sounded throughout her life. In these early years of publication Lewes took pains to make Blackwood aware of his friend's unusual sensitivity and easily "shaken confidence," her anxiety about "excellence" and fear of "failure" (2: 276-77). Even twenty years later, at the height of her success and celebrity as installments of Daniel Deronda began to appear, Lewes continued to shield her. He cautioned Blackwood's son, when he was to lunch with them, not to mention any "criticisms" of the novel: "Mrs. Lewes is so easily discouraged and so ready to believe and exaggerate whatever is said against her books that I not only keep reviews from her but do not even talk of them to her" (6: 218). To Blackwood himself, long educated in the matter, he spoke yet again of the lengths he went to ensure that "nothing comes to her ears or eyes that would sound or read like objection, being so well aware of how she would lay hold of it as a proof of her forebodings being justified. And I don't let her see even the enthusiastic criticisms, for many reasons" (6: 219). Eliot's deep-seated vulnerability, her fear that her readers would not "relish" what she wrote remained as intransigent as ever. She continued to be as prone to depression and longing for approval as she was to feeling criticized and depressed even in the face of praise. In spite of Lewes's teasing remark about her unfitness for authorship, her very susceptibility is in fact a proof that she was very much the sort of person who becomes an author, someone with a magnified need to excite and hold the interest of others with her writings. Silvan Tomkins, whose affect and script theory will be the theoretical basis of this paper, observes: In contrast to the paranoid, such an individual's deepest hope is to achieve communion with others, to be as close physically as possible, to talk with others, to excite them, to please them, and to do what will evoke both love and respect from them. Perhaps the clearest difference is found in the attitudes toward the eyes. One is afraid lest human eyes see him; the other is afraid lest human eyes not look at him. …


This paper deals with nestedness measures that are based on pairwise comparisons of sites, evaluates their performance and suggests improvements and generalizations. There are several conceptual and technical criteria to judge their ecological applicability. It is of primary concern whether the measures 1) have a clear mathematical definition, 2) are influenced by the ordering of the data matrix, 3) incorporate similarity alone or similarity together with a dissimilarity component, 4) consider site pairs with identical species number negatively or positively, 5) show sensitivity to small changes in the data, and 6) are not vulnerable to type I and type II error rates. We performed a detailed comparison of the nestedness metric based on overlap and decreasing fill (NODF), the percentage relativized nestedness and the percentage relativized strict nestedness functions (PRN and PRSN, respectively), based on analytical results as well as on artificial and actual examples. We show that NODF is in fact the average Simpson similarity of sites with different species totals, and that its value depends on how the matrix is actually ordered. NODF is modified to always produce the maximum possible result (NODFmax), independently of the order of columns and rows. Being based on similarities, NODF and NODFmax overemphasize the overlap component of nestedness and underrate richness difference which is also an important constituent of nested pattern in meta-community data. This latter feature is reflected adequately by PRN and PRSN. However, PRSN is similar to NODF and NODFmax in sharing the disadvantages that 1) complete agreement and segregation in species composition are not distinguished, 2) a random matrix can have a higher value than truly nested patterns, and 3) they are ill-conditioned statistically. These problems are rooted mostly in that site pairs with tied totals affect the result negatively. We emphasize that PRN is free from these difficulties. PRN, PRSN, and NODFmax, together with mean Simpson similarity exhibit highly similar statistical performance: they are resistant to type I and type II errors for the less constrained null models, although there are subtle differences depending on matrix fill and algorithm of randomization. The most constrained null model, with all marginal totals fixed, makes all statistics more sensitive to type I errors, although vulnerability depends greatly on matrix fill.


Structural order emerging in the liquid state necessitates a critical degree of anisotropy of the molecules. For example, liquid crystals and Langmuir monolayers require rod- or disc-shaped and long-chain amphiphilic molecules, respectively, to break the isotropic symmetry of liquids. In this Letter we present results from molecular dynamics simulations demonstrating that in two-dimensional liquids, a significantly smaller degree of anisotropy is sufficient to allow structural organization. In fact, the condensed phase of the smallest amphiphilic molecule, methanol, confined between two, or adsorbed on, graphene sheets forms a monolayer characterized by long chains of molecules. Intrachain interactions are dominated by hydrogen bonds, whereas interchain interactions are dispersive. Upon a decrease in density toward a gaslike state, these strings are transformed into rings. The two-dimensional liquid phase of methanol undergoes another transition upon cooling; in this case, the order-disorder transition is characterized by a low-temperature phase in which the hydrogen bond dipoles of neighboring strings adopt an antiparallel orientation.


This research project has attempted to develop a
methodology for the identification of charred remains of
useful non-woody vegetative parts of plants by the use of
morphological and anatomical characters. A large number
of taxa have been observed covering a wide morphological,
anatomical, ethnographic and taxonomic range. The chosen
taxa cover a geographic area from Western Europe, through
the Mediterranean to the Near East.
Anatomy of fresh material viewed under the light
microscope has been used to interpret the anatomy of
experimentally charred tissues viewed under the Scanning
Electron Microscope. Classical morphological and
anatomical characters have been used as well as
artifactual characters caused by charring.
Literature covering root and tuber domestication and the
exploitation of roots and tubers as wild resources are
reviewed. The origins of root crops in Europe and the
Near East is discussed and compared with the origin of
root and tuber crops in the tropics. The application of
morphological terms such as rhizome, rootstock and corm as
well as the use of anatomical and morphological characters of the tissues under observation for classification and
identification are discussed.
The results first describe the characters of charred non-woody
vegetative tissue, so that in the separate
descriptions of the charcoal each taxon that follows the
morphology and anatomy may be interpreted. Those
characters that are diagnosed are indicated.
Archaeological charcoal that has been analysed is also
described.
The results are discussed with a view to methods of
identification of parenchymatous tissues and a manual
dichotomous key is presented. Applications of the
research are examined. Finally a list of concluding
points is put forward.


Abstract Jurassic dykes of western Dronning Maud Land (Antarctica) form a minor component of the Karoo large igneous province. An extensive local dyke swarm intrudes Neoproterozoic gneisses and Jurassic syenite plutons on the margins of the Jutulstraumen palaeo rift in the Svedrupfjella region. The dykes were intruded in three distinct episodes (~204, ~176 and ~170 Ma). The 204 Ma dykes are overwhelmingly low-Ti, olivine tholeiites including some primitive (picritic) compositions (MgO >12 wt.%; Fe2O3 >12 wt.%; Cr >1000 ppm; Ni >600 ppm). This 204 Ma event precedes the main Karoo volcanic event by~25 Ma, so any correlations to the wider province are difficult to make. However, it may record the earliest phase of rift activity along the Jutulstraumen. The 176 Ma dyke event is more intimately associated with the two syenite plutons. The dykes are alkaline (basanite/ tephrite) and were small-degree melts from an enriched, locally derived source and underwent at least some degree of interaction with a syenitic contaminant. This ~176 Ma dyke event is widespread elsewhere in the Karoo (southern Africa and Dronning Maud Land). Later-stage (170 Ma) felsic (phonolite-comendite) dykes intrude the 176 Ma basanite-tephrite suite and represent the last phase of magmatic activity in the region.


This thesis presents a detailed investigation of the capability of a modern three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver to predict the secondary flows and losses in a linear cascade of high turning turbine rotor blades. Three codes were initially tested, to permit selection of the best of the available numerical solvers for this case. This program was then tested in more detail. Results showed that although very accurate prediction of the effects of inviscid fluid mechanics is now possible, the Reynolds stress modelling can have profound effects upon the quality of the solutions obtained. Solutions using two different calculation meshes, have shown that the results are not significantly grid dependent. The flowfield of the cascade was traversed with hot-wires to obtain measurements of the turbulent Reynolds stresses. A turbulence generating grid was placed upstream of the cascade, to produce a more realistic inlet turbulence intensity. Results showed that regions of high turbulent kinetic energy are associated with regions of high total pressure loss. Calculation of eddy viscosities from the Reynolds stresses showed that downstream of the -cascade the eddy viscosity is fairly isotropic. Evaluation of terms in the kinetic energy equation, also indicated that both the normal and shear Reynolds stresses are important as loss producing mechanisms in the downstream flow. The experimental Reynolds stresses have been compared with those calculated from the eddy viscosity and velocity fields of Navier-Stokes predictions using a mixing length turbulence model, a one equation model, and K - ϵ model. It was found that in the separated, shear flows, agreement was poor, although the K - ϵ model performed best. Further experimental work is suggested to obtain data with which to determine the accuracy of the models within the blade and endwall boundary layers.


Open-channel bends are characterized by complex interactions between streamwise flow, curvature-induced secondary flow and bed morphology. These bend effects cause erosion near the outer bank, and deposition near the inner bank. Previous laboratory experiments in a sharply curved flume with a mobile bed under clear-water scour conditions have shown that an air-bubble screen generated with a porous tube on the bed can counteract the curvature-induced secondary flow and lead to a shift of the maximum scour away from the outer bank. The here reported study provides experimental results on the optimization of the bubble screen under live-bed conditions. The air-bubble screen considerably reduces erosion near the outer bank for all investigated configurations of the bubble screen. Comparison of three different locations of the porous tube shows that the bubble screen is most efficient when placed very near to the outer bank.


Catecholamines are an integral component of the host stress response and usually increase appropriately at times of need. Unfortunately, in severe and prolonged critical illness, they can contribute to significant harm with unwanted biological effects on cardiac function, inflammatory, immune, metabolic, and coagulation pathways1. A good example is Takotsubo ('stress') cardiomyopathy where heart failure ensues after an emotional stress resulting in extremely high levels of circulating catecholamines, considerably above that seen in a significant myocardial infarction2. Unwittingly, we are likely contributing to catecholamine toxicity in our management of the critically ill septic patient through use of exogenous catecholamine therapies which carry the same detrimental effects as endogenous catecholamines1,3. Catecholamines are currently recommended first-line agents for septic shock, and are used in an attempt to overcome the vascular hyporeactivity and myocardial depression associated with sepsis. Use of higher doses of catecholamines is however associated with worse outcomes4. This is usually ascribed to the patient's underlying illness severity and an iatrogenic contribution is not considered – but perhaps should be. Beta-blockers have multiple actions, on cardiac function and beyond. They reduce cardiac work through negative inotropic and chronotropic effects. Importantly, through slowing an excessive heart rate, both systolic and diastolic ventricular function are improved. They also act on adrenergic receptor responsiveness, enhancing the activity of catecholamines and allowing reductions in dose to achieve the same haemodynamic effect. Outside the heart, they improve vascular tone, enhance metabolic efficiency, and have anti-inflammatory effects and anti-thrombotic activity. The first use of beta-blockade in sepsis goes back nearly 50 years with successful use in some patients in refractory shock. In the last decade an increasing number of observational studies and a few single-centre randomised controlled trials have shown both safety and improved outcomes5. These reflect findings in animal models of sepsis where various mechanisms were demonstrated including protective effects on the heart, anti-inflammatory actions and preservation of the gut barrier5. Clearly, the patient needs to be adequately fluid-resuscitated and stabilised before commencing beta-blockers. Ideally, the use of a short-acting agent such as esmolol or landiolol allows easy titration, or cessation, of the infusion should hypotension or excess bradycardia occur with the unwanted effects wearing off within minutes. The largest study to date by Morelli et al., randomised 154 septic shock patients to receive either placebo or esmolol to reduce heart rate to 80-95 bpm. This was successfully achieved with no increase in complication rates compared to placebo. Importantly, there were also benefits in terms of earlier recovery of renal function, cessation of norepinephrine infusion, lower troponin levels (indicative of less cardiac damage), and improved survival rates. These encouraging findings need to be repeated in multicentre settings and two studies (one UK-based "STRESS-L", one in 4 European countries) are currently ongoing.


Aims: In 2005 a baseline study was conducted in order to know the curricular plans and syllabi contents of the Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, related to violence health disorders given to undergraduate students of the 5 Academic Professional Schools (APS), under the hypothesis that this national health problem has not been considered sufficiently and adequately in the curricular plans of the Faculty. Objectives: To determine the Faculty of Medicine's teaching-learning process on integral health care to persons affected by violence and human rights violation. Design: Descriptive, transversal evaluative analysis. Setting: Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima, Peru. Materials: Curricular plans of the 5 Faculty's academic professional schools. Interventions: A total of 81 syllabi courses were considered would have contents on themes related to violence. Coordination work with the directors of the Academic Professional Schools of Medicine, Midwifes, Nursery, Medical Technology and Nutrition was carried out. Formal presentations of the objectives of the Program and this research were done to the Department heads of Medicine, Surgery, Pediatrics, Gynecology-Obstetrics, Psychiatry, Preventive Medicine and Public Health. Interviews to professors to determine their knowledge, experience and interest in the field of violence were conducted as to consider future training. Main outcome measures: Academic professional schools' curricular plans contents on violence. Results: This study showed that only 30 out of 81 syllabi (37%) had any content on violence, distributed as follows: Medicine 9/19 (47,3%), Midwifes 9/20 (45%), Nursery 5/12 (41,6%), Medical Technology 6/19 (31,5%) and Nutrition 1/11 (9,1%). Conclusions: These results demonstrate the validity of the work hypothesis in the sense that teaching of violence health consequences in the Faculty of Medicine had not been sufficiently considered.


Abstract Portuguese national policies for forests were developed considering related themes such as climate change, forest health, fire and the protective functions of forests. In Portugal, maritime pine forest is mainly private non-industrial and its area is in decline. Therefore, the aim of this study was two-fold: first, to assess maritime pine forest characteristics over a 19-year period; second, to analyse forest cover change over that period. In the end, the implementation of state policies was explored. A study area highly forested by continuous areas of naturally regenerated maritime pine in the centre of Portugal was used. To assess maritime pine forest characteristics, two sets of inventory data collected in previous studies (1991-1996 and 2007-2010) were used. To analyse forest cover change, the official land cover maps for 1990 and 2007 were used. This study findings highlighted that study area's trends over the past years were the following: first, the decrease of maritime pine forest areas and its management decline (stands less stable, under-stocked, with large amounts of small-diameter poles and enlarged tree size variability); second, the increase of scrubland areas; third, the increase of eucalyptus afforestation with no regard for protection areas; and fourth, the absence of native oaks or introduction of other broadleaves as recommended by the state policies. Therefore, it is argued that there is a need for effective field monitoring actions with regard to the implementation of state policies. Additionally, selective incentives are key to mobilise private non-industrial forest to achieve the goals of state forest policies.


To describe the clinical and demographic characteristics of fatal hepatitis due to single-drug isoniazid preventive therapy for tuberculosis, we did a survey of cases from state health departments, published case reports, and reports to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1970 to 1992. Of 108 reported cases, some clinical information was available for 76. A medical review panel judged 39 of these deaths as probably due to isoniazid hepatitis and 23 deaths as possibly due to isoniazid hepatitis. Of the 62 probable and possible cases combined, 50 (81%) were female, 49 (79%) were non-Hispanic black or Hispanic, and 19 (31%) were younger than 35 years. The median duration of isoniazid preventive therapy before symptom onset was 16 weeks. Of the 60 cases with symptom information, 54 (90%) presented with jaundice. Of the 62 cases, 26 (42%) were monitored monthly in accordance with current recommendations, and 6 of the patients were younger than 35 years. We estimate that the rate of fatal isoniazid hepatitis among patients in the public sector was no greater than 4.2 per 100,000 persons beginning therapy and no greater than 7 per 100,000 persons completing therapy. Adherence to isoniazid preventive therapy guidelines apparently reduces, but does not eliminate, the risk of fatal hepatitis. Careful patient selection, education, and monitoring are critical for minimizing that risk.


OBJECTIVE
Some phytoestrogens are believed to have selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) activity with no action in the uterus but beneficial effects in the hypothalamo/pituitary unit and in the bone and are presently the focus of clinical interest. In the present experiments, the effects of the clinically used Cimicifuga racemosa (CR) extract BNO 1055 in the uterus, in the bone and on serum luteinizing hormone (LH) were compared with the effects of estradiol-17beta (E(2)) under acute and chronic conditions in ovariectomized rats.

METHODS
Ovariectomized rats were treated either acutely (6 h) or chronically (3 Months) with E(2) or the CR extract. Gene expression of some estrogen-regulated genes in the metaphysis of the tibia and the uterus was determined. Furthermore, bone mineral density was measured by quantitative computer tomography.

RESULTS
When given acutely, both E(2) and the CR extract inhibited LH secretion and slightly stimulated gene expression of IGF-I, collagen-1alpha1, osteoprotegerin and osteocalcin (all osteoblast products), and of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP, an osteoclast product) in the metaphysis of the femur. While E(2) stimulated uterine weight and expression of progesterone receptor (PR), the complement protein (C3) and IGF-I genes, and inhibited gene expression of the estrogen receptor beta (ERbeta) in the uterus, no such effect was observed under acute CR treatment. After chronic application with pelleted food over 3 Months E(2) had profound effects in the uterus on weight and gene expression (ERbeta, PR, C3 and IGF-I) which were not seen in the CR-treated animals. Within 3 Months after ovariectomy, control rats had lost more than 50% of the metaphyseal bone mass of the tibia, an effect prevented by E(2) and partially by CR supplementation.

CONCLUSIONS
These data confirm the concept that the CR extract BNO 1055 contains as yet unidentified substances with SERM properties which act in the hypothalamo/pituitary unit and in the bone but not in the uterus.


Owing to revolutionary developments in automobile technologies, a variety of advanced vehicles - hybrid vehicle, hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, electric vehicle, etc. - emerges recently. The safety is getting more important for developing automobiles. The electro-magnetic compatibility has to be assured, since those advanced vehicles are equipped with various new electronic systems. Electro-magnetic compatibility tests, in general, consist of an EMI (electro-magnetic interference) test and an EMS (electro-magnetic susceptibility) test. We investigated the susceptibility test method suggested in KMVSS (Korean Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) as the EMS test method. A series of experiments results that the above test method should be partially revised to comply with a Korean governmental standard method. In this paper, the some directions of modifications are presented to enhance the quality of the above EMS test method.


Based on panel data from 1995.1997, the paper focusses on the impact of ownership concentration on the performance of Russian non-financial privatised companies that constitute the group of .blue chips. of the country.s stock market. We consider three indicators of company performance . labour productivity, profitability, and Tobins.s q . and employ instrumental variables technique to correct regression results for endogeneity of ownership. We find that ownership concentration positively affects labour productivity, but has a negative impact on Tobins.s q. The relationship between ownership concentration and profitability follows a U-shaped pattern with the turning point at 56% concentration. These findings imply that ownership concentration results in higher technical efficiency of enterprises, but the benefits from productivity improvements do not accrue to all shareholders. This is consistent with the expropriation hypothesis that large owners use their power to extract private benefits of control.


Kaposi's sarcoma is a human herpes virus 8 associated-angioproliferative disorder, which is commonly associated with immunocompromised conditions such as those which arise in renal transplant recipients, or in acquired immune-deficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases. It is less well described, however, in patients with solid tumors undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery. We report the case of an HIV-negative heterosexual Taiwanese man who developed a second primary Kaposi's sarcoma 5 months after the start of adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer. Thalidomide treatment was started after the patient completed 6 months of adjuvant chemotherapy, and the Kaposi's sarcoma regressed within 2 months. The case reported here suggests that pre-existing HHV-8 infection and adjuvant chemotherapy may predispose these patients to a second malignancy with Kaposi's sarcoma. Restoration of immune function through cessation of chemotherapy and thalidomide administration may accelerate the regression of the disease, thereby avoiding the need for radiotherapy or anthracycline-based chemotherapy. J Med Cases. 2013;4(7):466-470 doi: https://doi.org/10.4021/jmc1199w


Charles Darwin's discovery of the theory of evolution by natural selection is unquestionably one of the most profound scientific achievements in history. Darwin was heavily influenced by the great geologist Charles Lyell, who developed uniformitarianism, the methodological and substantive doctrine that sought to explain all geological formations as the result of the accumulation of small events happening continually over long periods of time. In The Formation of Vegetable Mould, Through the Action of Worms, with Observations on Their Habits, Darwin—inspired by Lyell's grand conception—focused on how worms transform the surface of the earth through their constant, everyday activities.They contribute to the formation of soil, turning it over and over, which enhances the circulation of nutrients within ecosystems. All studies of nature are indebted to Darwin for his devotion to illustrating the power of the materialist approach and for illuminating how the world works through its natural processes, including the invisible labor of worms.


A recent publication provides the network graph for a neocortical microcircuit comprising 8 million connections between 31,000 neurons. Since traditional graph-theoretical methods may not be sufficient to understand the immense complexity of such a biological network, we explored whether methods from algebraic topology could provide a new perspective on its structural and functional organization. Structural topological analysis revealed that directed graphs representing connectivity among neurons in the microcircuit deviated significantly from different varieties of randomized graph. In particular, the directed graphs contained in the order of 10 simplices groups of neurons with all-to-all directed connectivity. Some of these simplices contained up to 8 neurons, making them the most extreme neuronal clustering motif ever reported. Functional topological analysis of simulated neuronal activity in the microcircuit revealed novel spatio-temporal metrics that provide an effective classification of functional responses to qualitatively different stimuli. This study represents the first algebraic topological analysis of structural connectomics and connectomics-based spatio-temporal activity in a biologically realistic neural microcircuit. The methods used in the study show promise for more general applications in network science.


Local health departments are tasked with understanding and addressing health inequities in the populations they serve. To meaningfully address health inequities, local health departments have identified the need for credible local data to better understand the relationship between community conditions and health outcomes. Yet, when given access to these data, we observe a very large variation in the level of interest between local health departments. In this study, we offered Connecticut's Local health departments access to the Health Equity Index, a web based tool that provides data on health outcomes and community conditions at the state, municipal or neighborhood levels. Their usage of the Index was then monitored. We compared participation in the study as well as usage levels of the Index to characteristics of individual health directors, the health departments they lead and the populations that they serve. Those health directors who chose to participate in the study and gain access to the index were more likely to lead departments or districts with economically disadvantaged and racially and ethnically diverse populations. They were also more likely to be supported by a board of directors. Usage level of the Index was best predicted by the length of service of the health director and the percentage of MPH on staff. This study was limited by a small study size, with directors of health given the role of gate-keeper to the Index for their departments. Future studies should investigate Index usage by local health departments without this restriction.


Aims: Research on use of contact lenses as drug delivery systems continues. Disposable lenses are often used to treat corneal injuries. Accurate intraocular pressure (IOP) measurements with lenses in situ will enhance patient care and save valuable chair time.Inter- and intraobserver reliability of rebound tonometer (RBT) and intraobserver reliability of ocular response analyser (ORA) with and without contact lenses of 50 (15 male, 35 female) healthy well adapted contact lens wearers between 18 – 55 years (M = 38.90, SD = 9.23) were examined. Clinical comparisons of IOP measurements with ORA and RBT were done. Accuracy of IOP measurements with four commonly prescribed disposable contact lenses (Acuvue Oasys, Frequency XC, Acuvue 1-Day Moist, and Pure Vision with powers -6.00 − +6.00 D) in situ was evaluated. Physiological and physical factors influencing IOP measurements with both instruments were determined. Findings: Intraobserver reliability of RBT without and with lenses was excellent (ICC > 0.88; > 0.92 respectively). Interobserver reliability of RBT was excellent without or with lenses (ICC 0.81; 0.88 respectively). Intraobserver reliability of ORA was good for all metrics measured except for corneal hysteresis (CH) (ICC: CH 0.63; corneal resistance factor (CRF) 0.79; corneal compensated IOP (IOPcc) 0.77; IOPg 0.87).RBT and ORA IOPg (Goldmann equivalent IOP) measurements were clinically and statistically comparable without or with lenses (differences < 0.6 mmHg). ORA IOPcc and RBT were less comparable (differences < 1.45 mmHg).Accurate RBT and ORA tonometry (within 2 mmHg) was possible with low minus power (range -0.50 to -6.00 D); moderate modulus of elasticity (< 0.75 MPa); thin silicone hydrogel (Acuvue Oasys) and hydrogel (Frequency XC; Acuvue 1-Day Moist) contact lenses in situ.Multiple regression analyses showed biomechanical metrics CRF and CH affected RBT and ORA (IOPcc and IOPg) measurements strongly (p < 0.0001). Therefore, cornea's biomechanical properties had greater influence on accuracy of IOP measurements with these two instruments than other variables examined.


In this thesis an electronically controlled movable chair is designed to be connected to the door of a shower. A bathroom model was created using Autodesk Inventor, and materials were researched and selected for modeling before doing a static simulation. A dynamic simulation was then carried out to simulate the vertical motion of the chair; the driving torque was generated at the same time. Based on the driving torque, a direct current motor which connects with a system controlling the vertical direction movement of the chair was designed and built.


Data collected using traceroute-based algorithms underpins research into the Internet's router-level topology, though it is possible to infer false links from this data. One source of false inference is the combination of per-flow load-balancing, in which more than one path is active from a given source to destination, and classic traceroute, which varies the UDP destination port number or ICMP checksum of successive probe packets, which can cause per-flow load-balancers to treat successive packets as distinct flows and forward them along different paths. Consequently, successive probe packets can solicit responses from unconnected routers, leading to the inference of false links. This paper examines the inaccuracies induced from such false inferences, both on macroscopic and ISP topology mapping. We collected macroscopic topology data to 365k destinations, with techniques that both do and do not try to capture load balancing phenomena. We then use alias resolution techniques to infer if a measurement artifact of classic traceroute induces a false router-level link. This technique detected that 2.71% and 0.76% of the links in our UDP and ICMP graphs were falsely inferred due to the presence of load-balancing. We conclude that most per-flow load-balancing does not induce false links when macroscopic topology is inferred using classic traceroute. The effect of false links on ISP topology mapping is possibly much worse, because the degrees of a tier-1 ISP's routers derived from classic traceroute were inflated by a median factor of 2.9 as compared to those inferred with Paris traceroute.


Words for 'dog' are frequently borrowed in several parts of the world, including the Americas. Often words for 'dog' are borrowed along with other lexical material. The study of the distribution of these borrowed words can serve as a first step towards the identification of evidence for linguistic and cultural contact. We offer three case studies from the Americas that illustrate how the identification of borrowings of 'dog' can lead to discoveries of intricate networks of interaction and provide surprising evidence for prehistorical commercial relations. The three areas studied are: Native California, the U. S. Southeast together with Mesoamerica, and the central Andes together with the eastern lowlands of South America.


The assessment of local and regional impacts of climate change often requires downscaling of general circulation model (GCM) projections from coarser GCM-scale to finer local- or catchmentscale spatial resolution. This paper provides an assessment of two downscaling approaches for simulation of daily rainfall over Sydney, Australia. The two downscaling alternatives compared include a multivariate multisite statistical downscaling model based on semi-parametric conditional simulation and a dynamical downscaling approach that uses the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) weather research and forecasting (WRF) model. The two approaches are evaluated for their ability to reproduce important at-site rainfall statistics at a network of 45 raingauge stations and regional statistics over the catchment area of the Warragamba Dam (9,050 km 2 ). The results indicate that the simulations from these approaches capture many regionally observed climate features, including the simulated seasonal and annual means and daily extreme rainfall values. Further analyses suggest that the statistical downscaling approach provides improved simulations of attributes related to point rainfall, spell lengths and amounts, whereas the dynamical approach is well-suited for applications where regionally averaged rainfall is of primary concern.


: The construction industry plays a vital role in South Africa's economic and social development where this industry provides the physical infrastructure and backbone for economic activity while providing a large-scale provider of employment. In a world of rapidly increasing global competition, enterprises partake in joint ventures in order to stay competitive and strategically flexible. Even though, one of the most prevalent types of business arrangements that are being used by South Africans, in the tender environment, is Joint Venture, risks are innate in JV construction projects and lead to at least 40% to 70% of JVs failure. As a result, the success of a joint venture evidently depends on the synergy created by the individual contributions of each partner, and thus, a good joint venture management lies not only in the implementation of the project, but also a proper partner selection. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the factors to select JV partner. A quantitative research methodology was adopted and the data was collected through the use of questionnaires. Key findings reveal that the selection criteria of JV partner(s) include the commitment between the partners, complementary technical skills, compatible management teams, complementary resources, commitment to joint venture objectives as well as trust between partners. Other selection criteria which appear to be neutral to respondents relate to mutual dependency and relative company size. As the study reveals these findings, interested and concerned parties (contractors, consultants, owners of construction companies) are able to improve by far the performance of JV construction projects in South Africa before signing contracts agreement.


Many statistical problems involve the learning of an importance/effect of a variable for predicting an outcome of interest based on observing a sample of $n$ independent and identically distributed observations on a list of input variables and an outcome. For example, though prediction/machine learning is, in principle, concerned with learning the optimal unknown mapping from input variables to an outcome from the data, the typical reported output is a list of importance measures for each input variable. The approach in prediction has been to learn the unknown optimal predictor from the data and derive, for each of the input variables, the variable importance from the obtained fit. In this article we propose a new approach which involves for each variable separately 1) defining variable importance as a real valued parameter, 2) deriving the efficient influence curve and thereby optimal estimating function for this parameter in the assumed (possibly nonparametric) model, and 3) develop a corresponding double robust locally efficient estimator of this variable importance, obtained by substituting for the nuisance parameters in the optimal estimating function data adaptive estimators. We illustrate this methodology in the context of prediction, and obtain in this manner double robust locally optimal estimators of marginal variable importance, accompanied with p-values and confidence intervals. In addition, we present a model based and machine learning approach to estimate covariate-adjusted variable importance. Finally, we generalize this methodology to variable importance parameters for time-dependent variables.


In this paper, we present a simplified shallow semantic parsing approach to extracting opinion targets. This is done by formulating opinion target extraction (OTE) as a shallow semantic parsing problem with the opinion expression as the predicate and the corresponding targets as its arguments. In principle, our parsing approach to OTE differs from the state-of-the-art sequence labeling one in two aspects. First, we model OTE from parse tree level, where abundant structured syntactic information is available for use, instead of word sequence level, where only lexical information is available. Second, we focus on determining whether a constituent, rather than a word, is an opinion target or not, via a simplified shallow semantic parsing framework. Evaluation on two datasets shows that structured syntactic information plays a critical role in capturing the domination relationship between an opinion expression and its targets. It also shows that our parsing approach much outperforms the state-of-the-art sequence labeling one.


We present a new interactive and online approach to 3D scene understanding. Our system, SemanticPaint, allows users to simultaneously scan their environment whilst interactively segmenting the scene simply by reaching out and touching any desired object or surface. Our system continuously learns from these segmentations, and labels new unseen parts of the environment. Unlike offline systems where capture, labeling, and batch learning often take hours or even days to perform, our approach is fully online. This provides users with continuous live feedback of the recognition during capture, allowing to immediately correct errors in the segmentation and/or learning—a feature that has so far been unavailable to batch and offline methods. This leads to models that are tailored or personalized specifically to the user's environments and object classes of interest, opening up the potential for new applications in augmented reality, interior design, and human/robot navigation. It also provides the ability to capture substantial labeled 3D datasets for training large-scale visual recognition systems.


Cracking is a most unwanted development in soil structures undergoing periodic drying. Desiccation cracking arises in the apparent absence of external forces. Hence, either an internal, self equilibrated stress pattern resulting from kinematic incompatibilities, or stress resulting from reaction forces at the constraints should be contemplated to arrive at cracking criteria. Three circumstances are considered for drying cracks: drying shrinkage, kinematic constraints impeding the shrinkage inducing reaction forces, and consequent tensile effective stress reaching tensile strength. An earlier tubular micro-scale model of porous drying medium is considered with constrained at restrictive inter - pore solid contacts. At the meso-scale tubular drying pores are considered in the vicinity of an imperfection, inducing a stress concentration near its tip, in the presence of significant pore suction. This approach allows one to use the effective stress analysis, which otherwise, away from the stress concentration usually yields compressive effective stress and hence a physically incompatible criterion. Recent experimental results from an idealized configuration of a cluster of grains provide geometrical data suggesting that an imperfection as a result of air entry deep into the granular medium penetrates over 8 internal radii of the typical pore


To unravel the functions of cell wall and vacuolar invertases in carrot, we used an antisense technique to generate transgenic carrot plants with reduced enzyme activity. Phenotypic alterations appeared at very early stages of development; indeed, the morphology of cotyledon-stage embryos was markedly changed. At the stage at which control plantlets had two to three leaves and one primary root, shoots of transgenic plantlets did not separate into individual leaves but consisted of stunted, interconnected green structures. When transgenic plantlets were grown on media containing a mixture of sucrose, glucose, and fructose rather than sucrose alone, the malformation was alleviated, and plantlets looked normal. Plantlets from hexose-containing media produced mature plants when transferred to soil. Plants expressing antisense mRNA for cell wall invertase had a bushy appearance due to the development of extra leaves, which accumulated elevated levels of sucrose and starch. Simultaneously, tap root development was markedly reduced, and the resulting smaller organs contained lower levels of carbohydrates. Compared with control plants, the dry weight leaf-to-root ratio of cell wall invertase antisense plants was shifted from 1:3 to 17:1. Plants expressing antisense mRNA for vacuolar invertase also had more leaves than did control plants, but tap roots developed normally, although they were smaller, and the leaf-to-root ratio was 1.5:1. Again, the carbohydrate content of leaves was elevated, and that of roots was reduced. Our data suggest that acid invertases play an important role in early plant development, most likely via control of sugar composition and metabolic fluxes. Later in plant development, both isoenzymes seem to have important functions in sucrose partitioning.


The private economy sector in Vietnam is a quite recent phenomenon that emerged in the process of the Vietnamese
reform and renovation process (doi moi). In Western languages we find rather few publications addressing that sector.
For many Western scholars Vietnamese material is rarely available. Therefore, more information might be of interest for
scholars interested in Southeast Asian developments.
This Working Paper contains three contributions on private sector development in Vietnam. The first paper was written
by Prof. Tuong Lai, former Director of the Institute of Sociology, National Center for Humanities and Social Sciences in
Hanoi who is currently a member of the Research Institute under the Vietnamese Prime Minister.
Author of the second paper is Nguyen Duc Vinh, a research fellow of the Institute of Sociology in Hanoi. The papers
from Tuong Lai and Nguyen Duc Vinh were presented to a workshop on "Private Entrepreneurship in China and
Vietnam" at Gerhard-Mercator University Duisburg in May 1999.
The third paper, written by Thomas Heberer and Arno Kohl, addresses preliminary findings of a research project on the
private economy in Vietnam, conducted in 1996 (a five months field study) and was funded by the German Research
Council (DFG).
The authors of the papers are solely responsible for the contents of their papers and the English version.


In the German Democratic Republic, the annually available mean recovered water resource per inhabitant is significantly less than in other European states. Approximately half of this quantity is actually available for utilization. Thus, the natural yield of water is very limited and an extensive expansion of water supply is impossible. About 75% is taken from surface waters and 25% from ground water. During dry months the multiple use of water increases to a factor of 3 to 4 in areas where industry and population agglomerate. The growing demand for water by population, agriculture and industry can be met only by an intensification of the utilization of water resources. But we cannot hope to manage water resources in a rational way unless we understand the relationships between the amount of water used by man, the input from man into ground and surface water and the resulting ecosystem response, especially the resulting water quality of rivers, lakes, reservoirs and aquifers.


Microstrip Post Production Tuning Bar Error and Compact Resonators Using Negative Refractive Index Metamaterials. (May 2005) Aaron David Scher, B.S., Texas A&M University Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. Kai Chang In this thesis, two separate research topics are undertaken both in the general area of compact RF/microwave circuit design. The first topic involves characterizing the parasitic effects and error due to unused post-production tuning bars. Such tuning bars are used in microwave circuit designs to allow the impedance or length of a microstrip line to be adjusted after fabrication. In general, the tuning bars are simply patterns of small, isolated sections of conductor adjacent to the thru line. Changing the impedance or length of the thru line involves bonding the appropriate tuning bars to the line. Unneeded tuning bars are simply not removed and left isolated. Ideally, there should be no coupling between these unused tuning bars and the thru line. Therefore, the unused tuning bars should have a negligible effect on the circuit's overall performance. To nullify the parasitic effects of the tuning bars, conventional wisdom suggests placing the bars 1.0 to 1.5 substrate heights away from the main line. While successful in the past, this practice may not result in the most efficient and cost-effective placement of tuning bars in today's compact microwave circuits. This thesis facilitates the design of compact tuning bar configurations with minimum parasitic effects by analyzing the error attributable to various common tuning bar configurations with a range of parameters and offset distances. The error is primarily determined through electromagnetic simulations, and the accuracy of these simulations is verified by experimental results. The second topic in this thesis involves the design of compact microwave resonators using the transmission line approach to create negative refractive index metamaterials. A survey of the major developments and fundamental concepts related to negative refractive index technology (with focus on the transmission line approach) is given. Following is the


Abstract : The Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) Program is a multi-agency Department of Defense (DoD) effort that supports multidisciplinary research teams at academic institutions whose efforts intersect more than one traditional science and engineering discipline. This report reviews the achievements of the MURI program and assesses the scientific, economic, and military impact of a set of 25 highlighted projects that were identified as successful. A metric-based approach along with a qualitative analysis was used to select the 25 projects to highlight for this report from the over 600 grants that have been awarded during the 25+ years of the MURI program. The metrics used were publications, citations, patents, and derived patents, while the qualitative component of selection process was based on discussions with program managers and government researchers. The report provides insight into the value of funding basic research through the MURI program and recommendations for how to sustain a high level of performance from the program in the future.


The Fairbanks area in Interior Alaska is characterised by discontinuous permafrost and a continental climate with mean annual air temperatures of about -3 oC and annual precipitation of 263mm measured at Fairbanks Airport (1971-2000). The permafrost consists of sediment and ground ice, and preserves the signals for the reconstruction of late Quaternary environment and climate.The Vault Creek gold mining tunnel is located 40km north of Fairbanks, Alaska, and was established since 1990 by a local private gold miner. It is the deepest (> 40m) and longest permafrost tunnel (>200 m) ever being subject for research, comparable to the famous Fox research tunnel near Fairbanks constructed in 1963 by the US Army Corps of Engineers (CRREL). The study site has about 120m thick permafrost. Average permafrost temperatures at 2m below ground surface are relatively warm with 0.78°C. In this region, permafrost is considered to have developed after Sangamon (or Eemian) interglacial period.The sedimentary sequence consists of 40 m of late Quaternary deposits above schistose bedrock. These are: (1) alluvial sediments mainly consisting of fluvial gravels with sand and several peat lenses in the lower part and (2) ice-rich silty sediments, most likely loess with high amounts of organic material including fossil bones as well as ice wedges in the upper part. In between, (3) a transition horizon of fluvial gravels interbedding with loess and ice wedges was held out. First AMS dates point out that loess accumulation took place in the area around 42 ka BP, whereas the fluvial sediments show infinite 14C ages. In general, ice wedges are periglacial features containing information about winter temperatures, which were derived by stable isotopes (d18O and d2H). Both, ice wedges and sediments were deformed presumably by post-depositional slope processes. In this paper, a picture of the regional environmental history is drawn using sedimentology, palynology, radiocarbon dating, greenhouse gases, hydrochemistry and stable isotope geochemistry.


Abstract Child conduct problems (CP) reflect a heterogeneous collection of oppositional, aggressive, norm-violating, and sometimes violent behaviors, whereas child callous–unemotional (CU) behaviors reflect interpersonal styles of interactions reflecting a lack of guilt and empathy as well as uncaring and shallow emotional responses to others. Taken together, high levels of child CP and CU behaviors are thought to identify a relatively homogenous group of children at elevated risk for persistent and more severe problem behaviors across childhood and into adulthood. Although a large body of research has examined the developmental etiology of CP behaviors, only recently has a developmental psychopathology approach been applied to early CU behaviors. The current study examines multiple levels of contextual influences during the first years of life, including family socioeconomic status, household chaos, and parenting behaviors, on CP and CU behaviors assessed during the first-grade year. Whereas previous studies found associations between parenting behaviors and child problem behaviors moderated by household chaos, the current study found no evidence of moderation. However, path analyses suggest that the associations between child CP and CU behaviors and the contextual variables of socioeconomic status (family income and parental education) and household chaos (disorganization and instability) were mediated by maternal sensitive and harsh–intrusive parenting behavior. Analyses are presented, interpreted, and discussed with respect to both bioecological and family stress models of development.


Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is the third most common cancer
worldwide. High c-Myb expression is frequently associated with
a variety of immature cell lineages, and it decreases as cells
differentiate. Patients with colorectal carcinomas exhibiting
upregulated c-Myb expression have poor prognosis. The aim of
our study was to clarify the role of c-Myb in control of the
cell death/survival of CRC cells treated with cytotoxic agents.
We showed that c-Myb reduced sensitivity of CRC cells to the
cytotoxic agents. We tested the levels of ROS and
expression/activity of key components of several signalling
pathways to identify downstream effectors mediating the effect
of c-Myb on cell viability. We identified the enhanced levels
of (a) ROS-generating NADPH oxidase (NOX), (b) the
phosphorylated MAPKp38, and (c) JNK/c-Jun kinases upon c-Myb
overexpression. In this work we documented for the first time
that the prosurvival effect of c-Myb is associated with
NOX1-dependent regulation of ROS and we discuss the role of
c-Myb-ROS axis in activation of MAPKp38 and c-Jun kinases.


This paper presents the approach of a current research project at the EPFL in the area of seismic risk management. The objective of the project is to define and test a methodology for the quantitative characterization and comparison of intervention strategies in a risk management framework. A tool to assist in the selection of an intervention strategy will be developed. The project includes a pilot project for the seismic risk management of a small town in Switzerland. The selection of an intervention strategy raises two categories of problems. The first is connected to the quality of the information available. The second is connected to the variety of the criteria integrated in the decision-making process. The use of multi-criteria methods facilitates decision-making. Concerning the type of multi-criteria methods, experience has drawn attention to the quality of the "surclassement" methods (e.g. ELECTRE), because they can deal equally with qualitative or quantitative criteria.


Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) is an epigenetic carcinogen that is persistent in the environment and has a tendency to bio-accumulate. HCB is stored in fatty tissues of animais and humans. When rats are exposed to HCB, females are more susceptible to develop tumors as compared to males. The genes responsible for such an expression are poorly understood. The objective of this study was to determine the gender-specific hepatic gene expression profiles observed in rats exposed to HCB.

Four experimental groups were used; control males; control females; HCB-treated males and HCB-treated females. Treated rats were exposed to HCB (100 mg/kg) for five consecutive days and sampled on day 50 of the experiment. The in vivo exposure model used in the present study in which rats are sampled at day 50 represents a "steady state" situation following from HCB exposure. Total RNA was isolated from the liver and reverse transcribed and used to screen an Atlas™ 1.2 II Rat Array containing 1176 genes. Data were analyzed using four individual rats per experimental group. Genes expressed in at least 3 out of 4 trials were selected for analysis. In addition, the genes must have had signal intensities at least 2X background level.
Our data indicates a sexual dimorphism in the expression of hepatic genes due to HCB-treatment. The female control group displayed comparable gene expression as the male control group (185 versus 184 genes). Seven genes were exclusively found in the male control group; ERp29, synaptogyrin 1, synaptojanin, DPPIII, kinesin-related protein, atrophin 1 and glycoprotein 55. Two genes were exclusively expressed in
females; Mammalian achaete scute homolog 2 (MASH-2) and carboxypeptidase z.

In HCB-treated males a total of 189 genes were detected by the eDNA microarray. Four of those genes had significant differentiai expressions; EGR2, dihydropyrimidinase and a liver-specific transport protein were down-regulated while epoxide hydrolase, an enzyme involved in the biotransformation of xenobiotics and epoxides was up-regulated.

No genes were exclusively expressed in HCB-treated females. However, HCB caused an 18% decrease (31 genes) in the total number of genes detected by the microarray in livers of HCB-treated females compared to control females. Twenty-nine percent of the 31 genes decreased in HCB-treated females have already been reported to be down-regulated in liver cancer. Furthermore we noticed a sexual dimorphism at the genetic level since in HCB-treated females surprisingly only 151 were expressed among which five genes were differentially expressed in HCB-treated females only; phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase, phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein, ribosomal protein L18 and testis-specific farnesyl pyrophosphate were up regulated while protectin/CD59 was repressed.

Thirty-six genes were altered by HCB treatment and may be implicated in the epigenetic mechanism of HCB-induced hepatocarcinogenesis. Of those genes 31 were found to be putative tumor suppressor genes whose mRNA levels were undetectable in HCB-treated females and 5 that showed sexual dimorphism in terms of genetic expression. The functional genomic approach used in this study bas enabled us to target and identify trends in the expressions of clusters/families of genes that have been linked to HCB-induced hepatocarcinogenesis in HCB-treated females only. The results of this study expose additional insights into the mechanisms underlying HCB carcinogenesis. We propose a primary mechanism by which HCB alters the DNA methylation machinery of the cell, a known factor implicated in epigenetic carcinogens and reported to contribute to the early steps of carcinogenesis.


This paper presents the experimental results of synthesizing silver nanoparticles in the near-surface layers of glasses by heat treatment in water vapor. It is shown that the presence of a cracked layer on the glass surface has a substantial effect on the shape of the silver nanoparticles, and this manifests itself in the absorption spectra of the glasses. It is established that, when silver is introduced by thermal diffusion from a film, the silver nanoparticles have the shape of oblate ellipsoids in nanocracks and on the glass surface, whereas they acquire a spherical shape in the volume of the glass. It is shown that, when silver is introduced into glass by ion exchange and the glass is later heat-treated in water vapor, part of the silver emerges onto the glass surface, forming a structured film.


At an early age, Jim T. Graham spent his weekends with his Grandpa going to full-scale air shows. The first airplane he fell in love with was a Pitts biplane. His uncle had an air hangar in the pasture next to his house in Sadler, Texas; as a young boy Jim would spend the day flying around the Texas countryside. Perrin Air Force base was not too far from the ranch Jim grew up on and each year they had an aerobatics competition. He would sit in a field and watch the competitors practice each day, a week prior to the event. How could he not be airplane crazy with an upbringing like that? Jim became the marketing and public relations person for Hobby Lobby International at the exact moment LiPo batteries and outrunner motors hit the market. The first product he was responsible for was the AXI line of outrunner motors. Jim played a key role in bringing 3-D airplanes to the market during the early days of the foamy. Jim then started his own company, Billy Hell RC. His company dealt exclusively in 3-D profile airplanes; the interesting part was that they were made in the USA. He currently helps manage RCGroups.com, the world's largest and most active RC website.


High latitude regions are undergoing significant climate-related change and represent an integral component of the Earth's climate system. Near-surface vapor pressure deficit, soil temperature, and soil moisture are essential state variables for monitoring high latitude climate and estimating the response of terrestrial ecosystems to climate change. Methods are developed and evaluated to retrieve surface soil temperature, daily maximum/minimum air temperature, and land surface wetness information from the EOS Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR-E) on the Aqua satellite for eight Boreal forest and Arctic tundra biophysical monitoring sites across Alaska and northern Canada. Daily vapor pressure deficit is determined by employing AMSR-E daily maximum/minimum air temperature retrievals. The seasonal pattern of microwave emission and relative accuracy of the estimated land surface state are influenced strongly by landscape properties including the presence of open water, vegetation type and seasonal phenology, snow cover and freeze-thaw transitions. Daily maximum/minimum air temperature is retrieved with RMSEs of 2.88 K and 2.31 K, respectively. Soil temperature is retrieved with RMSE of 3.1 K. Vapor pressure deficit (VPD) is retrieved to within 427.9 Pa using thermal information from AMSR-E. AMSR-E thermal information imparted 27% of the overall error in VPD estimation with the remaining error attributable to underlying algorithm assumptions. Land surface wetness information derived from AMSR-E corresponded with soil moisture observations and simple soil moisture models at locations with tundra, grassland, and mixed forest/cropland land covers (r = 0.49 to r = 0.76). AMSR-E 6.9 GHz land surface wetness showed little correspondence to soil moisture observation or model estimates at locations with > 20% open water and > 5 m m Leaf Area Index, despite efforts to remove the impact of open water and vegetation biomass. Additional information on open water fraction and vegetation phenology derived from AMSR-E 6.9 GHz corresponds well with independent satellite observations from MODIS, Sea-Winds, and JERS-1. The techniques and interpretations of high-latitude terrestrial brightness temperature signatures presented in this investigation will likely prove useful for future passive microwave missions and ecosystem modeling.


Copper–graphite metal matrix composites possess the properties of copper, i.e. excellent thermal and electrical conductivities, and properties of graphite, i.e. solid lubricating and small thermal expansion coefficient. Copper matrix containing graphite are widely used as brushes, and bearing materials in many applications due to the excellent thermal and electrical conductivities, and the favorable self-lubricating performance. The addition of solid lubricant particles into a metal matrix improves not only the anti-friction properties, but also wear and friction properties. In the present investigation, attempts have been made for the fabrication of Cu-graphite MMC by conventional and spark plasma sintering (SPS) techniques. Copper-graphite MMCs were fabricated by mixing 1, 3, 5, and 10 vol. % of graphite powder into copper powder followed by conventional powder metallurgy route. The composite powder mixture were cold compacted by uni-axial press and then sintered in tubular furnace using argon gas. In another set of experiments, Cu-1 vol. % graphite and Cu- 5 vol. % MMCs were fabricated by spark plasma sintering technique at 700C under vacuum for 5 minutes. The MMCs were characterised by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Different mechanical properties like density, bulk hardness and wear study were also conducted. XRD spectra show the presence of Cu, graphite and Cu2O peaks which shows that no interaction between Cu and graphite takes place during fabrication. The presence of a weak peak of Cu2O proves that slight oxidation of Cu takes place during conventional sintering of MMCs. However, no peak of Cu2O is visible for SPS as it was conducted under vacuum. It has been found that addition of graphite into copper does not result in much improvement in hardness due to the soft nature of graphite. However, 90 and 97 % of theoretical density have been obtained for conventional sintered and SPS samples respectively. Maximum Vickers hardness value of around 100 has been achieved for Cu-1 vol. % graphite MMC when it is fabricated by SPS. However, a hardness value of 65 has been obtained for the same composite when it is fabricated by conventional sintering at 900C for 1 hour. To study the effect of milling, Cu-1vol. % graphite and Cu-5 vol. % graphite powder mixture were milled for various time periods and then sintered. It has been found that hardness increases with milling. The micrographs of Cu-graphite reflect the clean interface and good compatibility between matrix and reinforcement. It has also been found that graphite particles are uniformly distributed into copper matrix. From wear study, it is concluded that the wear resistance of the composite increases with increase in graphite content due to the lubricating properties of graphite. It has also been found that wear depth decreases with increase in graphite content. SPS sintered samples show higher wear resistance than conventional sintered samples. It has also been found that compressive strength increases with addition of graphite and maximum up to 3 vol. % of graphite. With further addition of graphite there is a decrease in compressive strength due to increase in brittle nature of composites.


Activation of the inflammatory response mediated by the transcription factor nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) is a one-way street, because activation involves the phosphorylation (by the kinase complex IKK) and ubiquitin-mediated degradation of the protein (IκB) that sequesters NF-κB in the cytosol to inhibit its activity. In T and B cells, a signaling adaptor complex consisting of CARMA1 [caspase recruitment domain (CARD) 11], Bcl10, and MALT1 connects receptor activation to activation of IKK, IκB degradation, and NF-κB translocation to the nucleus to activate proinflammatory gene expression. Lobry et al. provide evidence from cultured T cell lines that IKK also phosphorylates Bcl10, which leads to its ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation, thereby providing a mechanism by which the extent of NF-κB activation can be limited. Degradation of Bcl10 in response to T cell receptor ligation or phorbol esters (which directly activate protein kinase C, bypassing the receptor) was inhibited in Jurkat cells deficient for CARMA1 or NEMO (which is a regulatory component of the IKK complex), which suggested that activation of the pathway through IKK was required. Pharmacological inhibition of IKK or down-regulation of IKKβ by RNA interference (RNAi) also prevented Bcl10 degradation. (IKKβ is one of two IKK isoforms; RNAi for IKKα was less effective at inhibiting phosphorylation of Bcl10.) Overexpression of tagged Bcl10 with tagged IKKβ resulted in the accumulation of slower migrating forms of Bcl10, and phosphatase treatment suggested that these were phosphorylated forms of Bcl10. In vitro assays confirmed that IKKβ directly phosphorylated Bcl10, and mutational analysis identified several phosphorylation sites including two (Thr81 and Ser85) that were in a consensus recognition sequence for phosphorylation-mediated binding of the ubiquitin ligase β-transducin repeat-containing protein (β-TrCP). In transfected HEK293 cells, Bcl10 and β-TrCP were coimmunoprecipitated when active IKKβ was also expressed. Two mutant forms of Bcl10, in which Thr81 was replaced by Ala (T81A) and Ser85 by Ala (S85A), did not interact with β-TrCP, and this mutant was also resistant to T cell receptor-stimulated degradation. Interleukin 2 production was enhanced in T cell lines (E29.1) expressing the T81A and S85A mutant compared with cells expressing wild-type Bcl10; thus, Bcl10 degradation appears to limit NF-κB signaling. Finally, two different IKK phosphorylation-deficient mutant forms of Bcl10 accumulated in the nucleus after T cell receptor stimulation. This is intriguing because this localization has also been noted in mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. The results regarding Bcl10 phosphorylation reported here are not entirely consistent with other studies and it may be that, under different conditions, different regulatory mechanisms involving Bcl10 exist. C. Lobry, T. Lopez, A. Israël, R. Weil, Negative feedback loop in T cell activation through IκB kinase-induced phosphorylation and degradation of Bcl10. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 104, 908-913 (2007). [Abstract] [Full Text]


A growing body of research uses computational models to study political decision making and behavior such as voter turnout, vote choice, party competition, social networks, and cooperation in social dilemmas. Advances in the computational modeling of political decision making are closely related to the idea of bounded rationality. In effect, models of full rationality can usually be analyzed by hand, but models of bounded rationality are complex and require computer-assisted analysis. Most computational models used in the literature are agent based, that is, they specify how decisions are made by autonomous, interacting computational objects called "agents." However, an important distinction can be made between two classes of models based on the approaches they take: behavioral and information processing. Behavioral models specify relatively simple behavioral rules to relax the standard rationality assumption and investigate the system-level consequences of these rules in conjunction with deductive, game-theoretic analysis. In contrast, information-processing models specify the underlying information processes of decision making—the way political actors receive, store, retrieve, and use information to make judgment and choice—within the structural constraints on human cognition, and examine whether and how these processes produce the observed behavior in question at the individual or aggregate level. Compared to behavioral models, information-processing computational models are relatively rare, new to political scientists, and underexplored. However, focusing on the underlying mental processes of decision making that must occur within the structural constraints on human cognition, they have the potential to provide a more general, psychologically realistic account for political decision making and behavior.


With continuing loss of open space around growing urban centers, measures to maintain periurban landscape quality are gaining importance on political agendas. Understanding the demand for alternative approaches to landscape management is crucial for designing efficient policies and acceptable financing arrangements. Here, we analyze voter support for a proposition to create landscape reserves in the densely populated canton of Zurich, Switzerland. We then contrast the pattern of voter support for this "regulation" measure with the support among the same population for a "financing" measure that proposed to maintain landscape quality through increased public spending for the management of landscape amenities and historical heritage. The demand for both landscape regulation and financing increased with decreasing local open space. The role of income differed between the two propositions and between more urban and more rural populations. Our descriptive results should contribute to the design of widely acceptable policies and financing arrangements.


The fault current in a power system consists of three components namely: fundamental frequency component, harmonics and a DC component. The relays associated with power systems can easily discriminate between fundamental and harmonic components but when it comes to dc component or dc offset these relays are helpless. In this thesis the authors have studied various filtering techniques used for the removal of the above mentioned dc component. The various filtering techniques discussed are:
1-Lowpass Highpass Filtering technique.
2- Kalman Filtering technique.
3-FIR/IIR Filtering technique.


Objective. Intraspinal microstimulation (ISMS) is a promising method for activating the spinal cord distal to an injury. The objectives of this study were to examine the ability of chronically implanted stimulating wires within the cervical spinal cord to (1) directly produce forelimb movements, and (2) assess whether ISMS stimulation could improve subsequent volitional control of paretic extremities following injury. Approach. We developed a technique for implanting intraspinal stimulating electrodes within the cervical spinal cord segments C6–T1 of Long-Evans rats. Beginning 4 weeks after a severe cervical contusion injury at C4–C5, animals in the treatment condition received therapeutic ISMS 7 hours/day, 5 days/week for the following 12 weeks. Main results. Over 12 weeks of therapeutic ISMS, stimulus-evoked forelimb movements were relatively stable. We also explored whether therapeutic ISMS promoted recovery of forelimb reaching movements. Animals receiving daily therapeutic ISMS performed significantly better than unstimulated animals during behavioural tests conducted without stimulation. Quantitative video analysis of forelimb movements showed that stimulated animals performed better in the movements reinforced by stimulation, including extending the elbow to advance the forelimb and opening the digits. While threshold current to elicit forelimb movement gradually increased over time, no differences were observed between chronically stimulated and unstimulated electrodes suggesting that no additional tissue damage was produced by the electrical stimulation. Significance. The results indicate that therapeutic intraspinal stimulation delivered via chronic microwire implants within the cervical spinal cord confers benefits extending beyond the period of stimulation, suggesting future strategies for neural devices to promote sustained recovery after injury.


In eastern North America, large prehistoric settlements were concentrated in and along the floodplains of the midcontinent, but few sedimentary records have been examined adjacent to these sites to evaluate the impacts of Native American land use on terrestrial ecosystems. Here we report a high-resolution and multiproxy paleoecological record from Horseshoe Lake, an oxbow lake in the central Mississippi River valley that is adjacent to the Cahokia site (Illinois, USA), the largest prehistoric settlement north of Mexico. Palynological and carbon isotope data document pronounced vegetation changes over the past 1700 yr driven primarily by land use, including 900 yr (450–1350 CE) of sustained prehistoric human impacts. Rapid forest clearance was followed closely by the proliferation of indigenous seed crops of the Eastern Agricultural Complex beginning ca. 450 CE, centuries before the emergence of Cahokia at 1050 CE. Agricultural intensification that included the use of maize ( Zea mays subsp. mays ) followed this initial clearance, with peak land use intensity between 900 and 1200 CE. A large flood event ca. 1200 CE marks the onset of agricultural contraction and Cahokia's decline. Reforestation follows the abandonment of the Cahokia region at ca. 1350 CE. The Horseshoe Lake record thus indicates that regional agricultural activity began abruptly at 450 CE and intensified over the following centuries, well before the formation of Cahokia and other large prehistoric settlements. The evidence that a major flood coincided with the onset of Cahokia's decline is noteworthy, but will require corroboration from additional records.


EDITOR—Persistent concerns have been raised about the role of the World Medical Association (WMA), the international watch-dog on medical ethics, in respect of their approach to the Israeli Medical Association (IMA) in particular.1 Matters have now come to a head with the news that Yoram Blachar, longstanding IMA president, has been elected as chairman of the WMA council.

The WMA must know the well founded criticism over many years of the medical ethical track record of the Israeli Medical Association (IMA). In 1996 Amnesty International concluded that Israeli doctors working with the security services "form part of a system in which detainees are tortured, ill treated, and humiliated in ways that place prison medical practice in conflict with medical ethics."2 Other major human rights organisations, such as Physicians for Human Rights (USA) and Human Rights Watch, published similarly. The IMA did nothing, although when challenged tended to dismiss criticism as "political" and point to their membership of the WMA as evidence of their probity. Moreover Blachar is on record in the Lancet as defending "moderate physical pressure" during the interrogation of Palestinian detainees: it is not often that the …


We present the results of bispectrum speckle interferometry of the B[e] star MWC 349A obtained with the SAO 6 m telescope. Our diffraction-limited J-, H-, and K-band images (resolutions 43–74 mas) suggest the star is surrounded by a circumstellar disk seen almost edge-on. The observed visibility shape is consistent with a two-component elliptical disk model, probably corresponding to the gaseous and dusty components of the disk. We show that the classification of the object as a pre-main-sequence star or a young planetary nebula is problematic. An analysis
of the uncertainties in the basic parameter determination lead us to the conclusion that MWC 349A is probably either a B[e] supergiant or a binary system, in which the B[e]-companion dominates the observed properties.


Cracking occurred within the plastic jacket (injection molded from an impact-modified, 15% glass-fiber-reinforced PET resin.) of several assemblies used in a transportation application during an engineering testing regimen which involved cyclic thermal shock (exposing the parts to alternating temperatures of -40 and 180 deg C (-40 and 360 deg F)). Prior to molding, the resin had reportedly been dried at 135 deg C (275 deg F). The drying process usually lasted 6 h, but occasionally, the material was dried overnight. Comparison investigation (visual inspection, 20x SEM views, micro-FTIR, and analysis using DSC and TGA) with non-failed parts supported the conclusion that that the failure was via brittle fracture associated with the exertion of stresses that exceeded the strength of the resin as-molded caused by the disparity in the CTEs of the PET jacket and the mating steel sleeve. The drying process had exposed the resin to relatively high temperatures, which caused substantial molecular degradation, thus limiting the part's ability to withstand the stresses. The drying temperature was found to be significantly higher than the recommendation for the PET resin, and the testing itself exposed the parts to temperatures above the recognized limits for PET.


Relational Data Base Management Systems (RDBMS)
are currently the most popular database systems.
The relational model of data is a simple and
powerful model for representing real world
applications. However, it lacks the expressiveness
 present in conceptual models. Unlike the latter,
 the relational model does not make an extensive
use of the generalization abstraction. Therefore,
 it does not allow the designer to represent
directly a large variety of integrity constraints.
 Moreover, inclusion dependencies formalizing
inter-relational constraints, can not directly
be represented in the relational model, due to
the fact that the relation is its unique building
 structure. Finally, relational databases lack
concepts that allow the designer to represent
inheritances in a natural way.
A number of approaches have been proposed to
extract from relational databases
specialization/generalization links.
In this paper we make a comparative study
of six representative previous approaches
which provide methods to reverse-engineer
the inheritance links hidden in a relational
database. We then present a new improved and
more general method combining heuristic and
algorithmic techniques, allowing us to go beyond
 the limits of previous approaches. A common
example is used to illustrate and compare all
 the approaches. A set of criteria is proposed
 to facilitate this comparison.


AIM
To investigate thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) in liver transplantion, because TMA is an infrequent but life-threatening complication in the transplantation field.

METHODS
A total of 206 patients who underwent living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT) were evaluated, and the TMA-like disorder (TMALD) occurred in seven recipients.

RESULTS
These TMALD recipients showed poor outcomes in comparison with other 199 recipients. Although two TMALD recipients successfully recovered, the other five recipients finally died despite intensive treatments including repeated plasma exchange (PE) and re-transplantation. Histopathological analysis of liver biopsies after LDLT revealed obvious differences according to the outcomes. Qualitative analysis of antibodies against a disintegrin-like domain and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin type 1 motifs (ADAMTS-13) were negative in all patients. The fragmentation of red cells, the microhemorrhagic macules and the platelet counts were early markers for the suspicion of TMALD after LDLT. Although the absolute values of von Willebrand factor (vWF) and ADAMTS-13 did not necessarily reflect TMALD, the vWF/ADAMTS-13 ratio had a clear diagnostic value in all cases. The establishment of adequate treatments for TMALD, such as PE for ADAMTS-13 replenishment or treatments against inhibitory antibodies, must be decided according to each case.

CONCLUSION
The optimal induction of adequate therapies based on early recognition of TMALD by the reliable markers may confer a large advantage for TMALD after LDLT.


Traditional approaches to the algorithmic veri cation of real-time systems are limited to checking program correctness with respect to concrete timing properties (e.g., \message delivery within 10 milliseconds"). We address the more realistic and more ambitious problem of deriving symbolic constraints on the timing properties required of real-time systems (e.g., \message delivery within the time it takes to execute two assignment statements"). To model this problem, we introduce parametric timed automata | nite-state machines whose transitions are constrained with parametric timing requirements. The emptiness question for parametric timed automata is central to the veri cation problem. On the negative side, we show that in general this question is undecidable. On the positive side, we provide algorithms for checking the emptiness of restricted classes of parametric timed automata. The practical relevance of these classes is illustrated with several veri cation examples. There remains a gap between the automata classes for which we know that emptiness is decidable and undecidable, respectively, and this gap is related to various hard and open problems of logic and automata theory.


Publication Date 11-1-2007 Document Type Conference Presentation Disciplines Curriculum and Instruction Comments Presented at the Association of Christian Schools International – Carolina/Virginia Educator Conference, November 1-2, 2007. Greensboro, NC. Abstract Selected titles of children's literature are shown that can enhance writing instruction. Titles shared cut across content areas and address the writing of letters, journals, non-fiction, poetry, and fables. The following information is given for each title: awards won, themes, writing ideas, and website addresses for further information. The target audience is grades 4-8. Recommended Citation Schwedt, Rachel and DeLong, Janice A., "Using Children's Literature to Teach Writing" (2007). Faculty Publications and Presentations. 23. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/lib_fac_pubs/23  Download