Divergent fertility trends in the course of development are commonly ascribed to differences in state action-that is, to government "policy", deliberate or inadvertent. However, fertility outcomes can also, often more persuasively, be traced to differences in cultural and institutional inheritance and in the supply and growth potential of human capital. These are materials that states and societies find themselves endowed with-in brief, their "legacy". In reality, legacy and policy are interwoven: policy actions build on some legacy elements and attempt to combat others. And there is a third set of factors influencing fertility outcomes, covering distinctive features of the economic and geopolitical environment and essentially fortuitous events-together termed "circumstance". Legacy and circumstance can shrink or shift the policy space, helping to explain past failures in policy achievement. These broad considerations are the basis for a sketch of East Asian/sub-Saharan African contrasts in fertility transition over the last 50 years. The sketch points to missing avenues of policy action in the African case in seeking to overcome legacy obstacles. Copyright (c) 2009 The Population Council, Inc..


More than 11 million adults in the United States have a serious mental illness. Outcomes for these illnesses are good when appropriate treatments are received; however, rates of delivery and utilization of evidence-based care for this population are moderate to low. This article introduces SMI Adviser, a national initiative, supported by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to advance the use of evidence-based practices and delivery of patient-centered care for the population with serious mental illness. SMI Adviser offers free technical assistance to clinicians caring for this population through accredited educational opportunities, vetted resources, and on-demand consultations.


Forecasting how species and ecosystems will respond to climate change has been a major aim of ecology in recent years. Much of this research has focused on phenology – the timing of life‐history events. Phenology has well‐demonstrated links to climate, from genetic to landscape scales; yet our ability to explain and predict variation in phenology across species, habitats and time remains poor. Here, we outline how merging approaches from ecology, climate science and evolutionary biology can advance research on phenological responses to climate variability. Using insight into seasonal and interannual climate variability combined with niche theory and community phylogenetics, we develop a predictive approach for species' reponses to changing climate. Our approach predicts that species occupying higher latitudes or the early growing season should be most sensitive to climate and have the most phylogenetically conserved phenologies. We further predict that temperate species will respond to climate change by shifting in time, while tropical species will respond by shifting space, or by evolving. Although we focus here on plant phenology, our approach is broadly applicable to ecological research of plant responses to climate variability.


Three major approaches to explaining the motivations behind international film production are reviewed in this study: the creative/economic approach, the international business approach, and the historical approach. In addition, the case of international joint film productions between Taiwan and Hong Kong is examined to show that the process of internationalisation in the film industry is more complicated than the existing literature indicates. This suggests international film projects with different attributions may have different implications for film industry development in both home and host countries.


The isolation of graphene and transition metal dichalcongenides has opened a veritable world to a great number of layered materials which can be exfoliated, manipulated, and stacked or combined at will. With continued explorations expanding to include other layered materials with unique attributes, it is becoming clear that no one material will fill all the post-silicon era requirements. Here we review the properties and applications of layered, quasi-1D transition metal trichalcogenides (TMTCs) as novel materials for next generation electronics and optoelectronics. The TMTCs present a unique chain-like structure which gives the materials their quasi-1D properties such as high anisotropy ratios in conductivity and linear dichroism. The range of band gaps spanned by this class of materials (0.2 eV–2 eV) makes them suitable for a wide variety of applications including field-effect transistors, infrared, visible and ultraviolet photodetectors, and unique applications related to their anisotropic properties which opens another degree of freedom in the development of next generation electronics. In this review we survey the historical development of these remarkable materials with an emphasis on the recent activity generated by the isolation and characterization of atomically thin titanium trisulfide (TiS3).


A landmark publishing event of one of Japan's most famous cartoonistsShigeru Mizuki is the preeminent figure of "Gekiga "manga and one of the most famous working cartoonists in Japan today a true living legend. "Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths "is his first book to be translated into English and is a semiautobiographical account of the desperate final weeks of a Japanese infantry unit at the end of WorldWar II. The soldiers are told that they must go into battle and die for the honor of their country, with certain execution facing them if they return alive. Mizuki was a soldier himself (he was severely injured and lost an arm) and uses his experiences to convey the devastating consequences and moral depravity of the war. Mizuki's list of accolades and achievements is long and detailed. In Japan, the life of Mizuki and his wife has been made into an extremely popular television drama that airs daily. Mizuki is the recipient of many awards, including the Best AlbumAward for his book "NonNonBa "(to be published in 2012 by D+Q) and the Heritage Essential Award for "Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths "at the Angouleme International Comics Festival, the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Special Award, the Kyokujitsu Sho Decoration, the Shiju Hosho Decoration, and the KodanshaManga Award.His hometown of Sakaiminato honored him with Shigeru Mizuki Road a street decorated with bronze statues of his "Ge Ge Ge no Kitaro "characters and the Shigeru Mizuki International Cultural Center."


Tests are considered important to ensure the good behavior of applications and improve their quality. But development in companies also involves tight schedules, old habits, less-trained developers, or practical difficulties such as creating a test database. As a result, good testing practices are not always used as often as one might wish. With a major IT company, we are engaged in a project to understand developers testing behavior, and whether it can be improved. Some ideas are to promote testing by reducing test session length, or by running automatically tests behind the scene and send warnings to developers about the failing ones. Reports on developers testing habits in the literature focus on highly distributed open-source projects, or involve students programmers. As such they might not apply to our industrial, closed source, context. In this paper, we take inspiration from experiments of two papers of the literature to enhance our comprehension of the industrial environment. We report the results of a field study on how often the developers use tests in their daily practice, whether they make use of tests selection and why they do. Results are reinforced by interviews with developers involved in the study. The main findings are that test practice is in better shape than we expected; developers select tests " ruthlessly " (instead of launching an entire test suite); although they are not accurate in their selection, and; contrary to expectation, test selection is not influenced by the size of the test suite nor the duration of the tests.


The puppet creates delight and fear. It may evoke the innocent play of childhood, or become a tool of ritual magic, able to negotiate with ghosts and gods. Puppets can be creepy things, secretive, inanimate while also full of spirit, alive with gesture and voice. In this eloquent book, Kenneth Gross contemplates the fascination of these unsettling objects - objects that are also actors and images of life. The poetry of the puppet is central here, whether in its blunt grotesquery or symbolic simplicity, and always in its talent for metamorphosis. On a meditative journey to seek the idiosyncratic shapes of puppets on stage, Gross looks at the anarchic Punch and Judy show, the sacred shadow theater of Bali, and experimental theaters in Europe and the United States, where puppets enact everything from Baroque opera and Shakespearean tragedy to Beckettian farce. Throughout, he interweaves accounts of the myriad faces of the puppet in literature - Collodi's cruel, wooden Pinocchio, puppet-like characters in Kafka and Dickens, Rilke's puppet-angels, the dark puppeteering of Philip Roth's Mickey Sabbath - as well as in the work of artists Joseph Cornell and Paul Klee. The puppet emerges here as a hungry creature, seducer and destroyer, demon and clown. It is a test of our experience of things, of the human and inhuman. A book about reseeing what we know, or what we think we know, "Puppet" evokes the startling power of puppets as mirrors of the uncanny in life and art.


Men and women differ in specific cognitive abilities and in the expression of several neuropsychiatric conditions. Such findings could be attributed to sex hormones, brain differences, as well as a number of environmental variables. Existing research on identifying sex-related differences in brain structure have predominantly used cross-sectional studies to investigate, for instance, differences in average gray matter volumes (GMVs). In this article we explore the potential of a recently proposed multi-view matrix factorisation (MVMF) methodology to study structural brain changes in men and women that occur from adolescence to adulthood. MVMF is a multivariate variance decomposition technique that extends principal component analysis to "multi-view" datasets, i.e. where multiple and related groups of observations are available. In this application, each view represents a different age group. MVMF identifies latent factors explaining shared and age-specific contributions to the observed overall variability in GMVs over time. These latent factors can be used to produce low-dimensional visualisations of the data that emphasise age-specific effects once the shared effects have been accounted for. The analysis of two datasets consisting of individuals born prematurely as well as healthy controls provides evidence to suggest that the separation between males and females becomes increasingly larger as the brain transitions from adolescence to adulthood. We report on specific brain regions associated to these variance effects.


The observation that states can only act through individuals begins, but does not end, discussions about the implications of state sovereignty for foreign official immunity. Bright-line immunity rules might be alluring, but they do not always best reflect the realities of inter-state relations or serve the needs of the international community. This Essay challenges the prevailing tendency among many courts and jurists dealing with questions of official immunity to treat civil and criminal consequences as categorically distinct, and to ignore immigration consequences altogether. It argues that we should instead view criminal, civil, and immigration consequences (detention, damages, and deportation) as manifestations of the same underlying principle: that individual officials may bear personal responsibility for their acts under international law, and that the domestic institutions of one state may in certain circumstances attach consequences to that responsibility without violating the sovereignty of foreign states. The integrated approach proposed here has at least three important implications. First, it supports the view that just because individual and state responsibility may be concurrent, does not mean that an individual's and a state's immunity must be congruent. Second, it suggests that we should treat states' decisions (and foreign states' reactions) regarding detention, damages, and deportation as relevant to determining the evolving parameters of conduct-based immunity under international law. Third, it highlights that, although we tend to think of state sovereignty in absolute terms, our understandings of sovereignty — as manifested in state practice — are actually varied and context-dependent. Our ultimate goal should be to tailor horizontal enforcement regimes that respect the core of state sovereignty while promoting individual accountability consistent with due process.


Paul Fatt made discoveries that are fundamental to our understanding of synaptic transmission in the nervous system. He grew up in the USA and saw service in World War II, but came to London in 1948 as a research student supported by the GI Bill. His seminal work with Bernard Katz at University College London (UCL), John Eccles in Canberra, and Bernard Ginsborg at UCL was carried out during an intense period between 1950 and 1960. His work with Katz demonstrated for the first time that neurotransmitter is released in small packets, or 'quanta'. His work with Eccles (and Katz) provided an understanding of the mechanism underlying synaptic inhibition, and his work with Ginsborg identified voltage-gated calcium currents for the first time. Furthermore, in the early 1960s his electrical measurements of the muscle transverse tubule system contributed to the early models of excitation–contraction coupling in muscle. The final period of his research career was spent working on phototransduction in the visual system.


This study was conducted to find out whether dairy farmers could increase their profits through intensification of input use. Data was collected from 150 farmers in three dairy production systems. Data collected included the resources used in milk production, yields obtained, prices of inputs and output and the problems faced by farmers in dairy production. Gross margin analysis was done and results indicated that the GMs for the three systems are not significantly different from each other. Quadratic and Cobb-Douglas functions were fitted using the inputs used in dairy production and marginal products equated to inverse price ratios. The results showed that the highest scope for increasing milk yield and profit exists in zero grazing where it is possible to increase milk yield by 94.4% through increased use of concentrates and farm by-products. For semi-zero and extensive grazing systems, farmers could increase milk yield by 57.5% to reach economic optimum by using more concentrates and forages. The important conclusion which can be drawn from this study is that there is unexploited potential in the three dairy production systems. The study recommends that farmers should be encouraged to use more concentrates and by-products by addressing problems which lead to limited use of concentrates and by-products.


Paleoclimatic research can provide critical insight on causes of change in the East Asian monsoon, which influences the lives of 1.6 billion people today. In this study, we use paleoclimatic indexes from Chinese loess deposits, which have clear climatic implications and are independently dated, to reconstruct the monsoon precipitation since 21 ka. Our results show that monsoon precipitation persistently decreased from 21 ka to ca. 8 ka, and increased after ca. 8 ka, with a precipitation peak at 8–3 ka. These changes in East Asian summer monsoon precipitation are synchronous with changes in high-northern-latitude ice volume/ice cover and atmospheric CO2. These new data suggest that variation of the monsoon precipitation was probably driven by CO2-forced high-northern-latitude temperature changes, shifting the location of the intertropical convergence zone that dominates monsoon precipitation. Our TraCE-21000 modeling experiment supports this interpretation.


Hollow sections have been widely used for steel structures. Applications of High Strength Steel (HSS) on cold-formed hollow sections lead to thinner and lighter structures. This paper presents numerical investigations on the lateral-torsional buckling resistance of the cold-formed high strength steel rectangular hollow beam. Results from finite element analysis using Abaqus software are compared to calculations accroding to Eurocode 3. First, buckling analyses are carried out to investigate buckling behaviors of the rectangular hollow beams. In this step, elastic critical moments have been investigated and compared to calculations according to SN003. Buckling shapes have been also obtained in this step. Secondly, nonlinear analyses using Riks method have been performed. Buckling resistances of the beams with various thicknesses, various high strength materials S460, S650 and S960 have been compared to calculations according to EC 3. Further investigations on geometric imperfection sensitive have been carried out with different amplitudes L/1000, L/750, L/500 and L/250.


Synopsis The supracrustal rocks of the Loch Maree Group (LMG), which form a Palaeoproterozoic cover to the Scourian basement of the Lewisian complex, underwent amphibolite-facies regional metamorphism during the Laxfordian orogeny. Micro-structural studies indicate that the peak of metamorphism in both the Loch Maree and Gairloch outcrops of the LMG was preceded by at least one major phase of ductile deformation, recorded by annealed lineations and foliations and by inclusion trails in minerals. At Loch Maree, this involved intense WNW–ESE stretching. The metamorphic peak occurred statically and was followed by (i) intense top-to-NW shearing, recorded by mylonitic fabrics particularly associated with the Loch Maree Thrust and (ii) several generations of open folding. These retrograde fabrics and folds reflect tectonically-induced uplift and exhumation during late Laxfordian times. Thermobarometric studies were undertaken on low-variance rocks that had experienced relatively little retrogressive deformation. A garnetiferous calc-silicate rock, an ironstone and two dolomitic marbles from the Gairloch outcrop yielded Laxfordian peak-metamorphic conditions of 530 ± 20°C and 6.5 ± 1.5 kbar consistent with the epidote–amphibolite–facies assemblages. In general, the mylonites of Loch Maree outcrop proved unsuitable for thermo-barometric work, but a protomylonitic garnet–staurolite–mica schist yielded peak-metamorphic conditions of 630 ± 30°C and 6.5 ± 1.5 kbar. Temperatures during mylonitization were still high enough to stabilize garnet (i.e. > 470°C) which recrystallized as tiny neoblasts in the mylonites. The peak-metamorphic pressures imply burial of the supracrustal LMG to c. 24 ± 5 km, requiring substantial early Laxfordian tectonic thickening of the crust. Thus the main phase of basement–cover interleaving occurred before the development of the mylonitic fabric marked by the Loch Maree Thrust. Geothermal gradients at the metamorphic peak were moderate (c. 20–30°C km−1), consistent with metamorphism in tectonically thickened crust. Existing tectonic models for the Laxfordian fail to account for the tectonic burial of the LMG to mid-crustal depths.


Three years ago, Jennifer Francis of Rutgers University proposed that a warming Arctic was altering the behavior of the northern polar jet stream, the high, fast-moving torrent of air that circles the pole. The jet stream is slowing and meandering more, she proposes, causing extreme weather patterns to linger longer over North America. The idea has drawn extensive attention from the media, the public, and influential policymakers, such as White House science adviser John Holdren. Many researchers, however, are skeptical, and some have been vociferously critical. But Francis, whose life and work has been shaped by two round-the-world sailing adventures, has remained calm throughout the storm.


The incidental capture of unwanted species along with target species is a common and wasteful aspect of many fisheries. Trawl fisheries in particular have a high rate of incidental capture, or bycatch, due to the low selectivity of their nets. The bycatch of protected, endangered and threatened species is of particular concern and poses significant challenges for the ecologically sustainable management of wild capture fisheries. In the Pilbara Fish Trawl Interim Managed Fishery (PFTIMF), approximately 50 common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are reportedly caught incidentally every year. Failure to adequately address the bycatch of this protected species has prevented the PFTIMF from attaining 'Managed Fishery' status. In this study, I analysed 195 hours of underwater video footage recorded inside active trawl nets in the PFTIMF to address the following aims:
Chapter 2: a) examine and describe fine-scale dolphin behaviour in and around the trawl nets, and b) discuss the implications of these interactions for the reduction of dolphin bycatch in the fishery; and Chapter 3: a) assess the efficacy of two bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) at reducing the catch of dolphins and five other taxonomic groups of concern, and b) provide an estimate of the number of wildlife species caught annually in the PFTIMF.

Dolphins frequently interacted with active trawl nets, and were recorded inside and outside the net for up to 98% and 99% of the trawl duration, respectively. Inside the net, dolphins exhibited a significantly higher proportion of foraging behaviours than outside the net, which may indicate that dolphins enter trawl nets because they provide a concentrated food source. Outside the net, dolphins most frequently engaged in 'trampolining', whereby they bounced on the upper surface of the net, often rubbing different body parts on the mesh. It thus appears that dolphins are motivated by several factors to approach and interact with active trawl nets. Most of the 29 individually identified dolphins returned to the net numerous times throughout a trawl, and seven individuals were re-sighted repeatedly in different trawls and on separate fishing trips. Entering trawl nets may thus be a specialisation exhibited only by a subset of the dolphin population in the region. Compared to the high interaction rates, bycatch events occur infrequently. This suggests that the majority of dolphin bycatch events in the fishery result from dysfunctional fishing gear, or when young or otherwise naive dolphins enter the net.

Results from the second part of this study indicate that the PFTIMF may capture in the order of 10,320 individuals of vulnerable wildlife species annually. Dolphins, large sharks and rays appear to be expelled most effectively (67%, 46% and 39% of all captured individuals respectively), but most sea snakes and pipefish are able to swim through the BRD grid's bars into the codend. The high exclusion rate of dolphins suggests that the number of non-landed bycaught dolphins may be significant. The older grid model, which had a shallower decline and a centrally placed horizontal bar across the vertical bars, excluded a significantly larger proportion of wildlife bycatch than the newer grid model, which lacked a horizontal bar and was placed at a steeper angle. Some sea snakes, sharks, a dolphin and a turtle reacted to an interaction with the new grid by swimming upward, indicating that 1) a shallower decline guides animals toward the downward-opening escape hatch, and 2) BRDs should include an upward-opening escape hatch, for air-breathing animals in particular. Direct (post-capture) and indirect (post-release) fishing mortality is high in the PFTIMF; observer reports suggest that of all by catch landed during 44 analysed trawls, 77% were discarded dead. This stresses the need for improved BRD designs, particularly the introduction of upward-opening escape hatches and BRDs for smaller bycatch, such as sea snakes and pipefish. In order to establish the threat to stocks and populations resulting from incidental capture in the fishery, further investigation of the population size and the levels of removal of bycaught species is required. Continuous bycatch monitoring, particularly of dolphins and other vulnerable species, must be an important management objective of this fishery if it is to attain 'Managed Fishery' status.


One of the key differences between creative writing and almost every other discipline in the humanities is that it lacks a scholarly apparatus that assigns value to published works through the process of peer review. In 2008, the Creative Practices Area at the University of Technology, Sydney conducted a double-blind review of an extended work of fiction in order to assess the impact of the peer review process on writers' work. This study, and the problems it highlights, is timely in light of the Rudd government's ERA (Excellence in Research for Australia) system for the quantification and evaluation of academic research - in particular, the planned introduction of a peer review process for creative works to be conducted and monitored by the ARC (Australian Research Council). [note 1]


Here, we report on the ability of the biomass derived solvents ethanol and, in particular, n-butanol to fractionate lignocellulose into its main components. An organosolv system consisting of n-butanol containing 5% water and 0.2 M HCl at reflux was found to remove effectively the lignin and hemicellulose components of lignocellulosic biomass leaving a cellulose pulp suitable for enzymatic hydrolysis to simple sugars. Using a hardwood beech pulp as an example, essentially complete conversion of the cellulose component to reducing sugars was achieved with a cellulase loading of 22 FPU per g. Analysis of the solubilised hemicellulose fractions revealed that they consist almost exclusively of alkyl xylosides and mannosides which could serve as valuable synthetic building blocks. Additionally, the mild conditions (<120 °C) and high alcohol content of the pre-treatment solvent suppressed lignin degradation reactions and allowed for the isolation of high quality lignins in good yields. Detailed HSQC NMR analysis of the isolated lignins revealed that they still contained large amounts of β-aryl ether units, especially α-ethoxylated and α-butoxylated β-O-4 units, making them particularly suitable for depolymerisation to mono-aromatic chemicals. This was demonstrated using a recently reported acidolysis method utilizing ethylene glycol which gave monomer yields of between 7.4 and 18 wt%. The yields for n-butanol lignins were at least four fold higher than those obtained from a current generation technical organosolv lignin under comparable conditions.


The Coalition for National Unity and Rural Advancement (cnura) government entered 2010 with a focus on the national general elections several months ahead. In the last two or so years that they were in power, the government recorded passing a higher number of legislations than any other government since independence. They also stabilized diplomatic relations with neighboring countries, and the case of a former attorney generalâ�"which was instrumental for the downfall of the government before cnuraâ was brought before relevant authorities. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank have set up offices in Honiara and are working well with the government. The first half of 2010 was occupied with the registration of voters and preparation for the national elections. This review concentrates on events leading up to the national elections, government formation, and some notable developments and events that occurred throughout the year.
Just before the dissolution of Parliament in 2010, then Prime Minister Dr Derek Sikua attempted to push through what was called the Political Parties Integrity Bill, which was aimed at reducing political instability in governmentâ�"an endemic feature of Solomon Islands politics (ssn, 22 April 2010). Unfortunately (or fortunately), it was defeated because of what Dr Sikua believed to be a move orchestrated by some of his own ministers and backbenchers. This occurred on 24 April, two days before the dissolution of Parliament (ssn, 13 July 2010), and signaled an end to the solidarity of the cnura, which was enthusiastic to enter the national election as a political group. At their meeting on 5 April 2010, the political parties that had been running the cnura government (ie, National Party, Solomon Islands Democratic Party, Solomon Islandsâ�™ Party for Rural Advancement, Liberal Party, Peopleâs Alliance Party, and the Association of Independents) had agreed to sign a preelection coalition agreement that would allow them to regroup after elections (sto, 7 April 2010). They felt that the cnura government under Sikuaâs leadership had achieved a lot and therefore should continue with its good work. The defeat of the Political Parties Integrity Bill ended what could have been a road to political stability in the legislature. Consequently, many more parties emerged to contest the elections, as will be discussed later.
While the cnura government was still in caretaker mode, a second mobile service provider in the country established its infrastructure. This became possible after the monopoly over telecommunication services was removed in 2009. The Be-mobile company erected towers and set up an office in the country. It also promised to offer coverage for 25 percent of the population by mid-June 2010. There were concerns earlier that the company seemed like it was not making progress after it had obtained a license to operate. Indeed, the company was fined us$1.5 million for failing to launch its network on time (sto, 30 June 2010). Nevertheless, Be-mobile installed its towers and network, and by the end of August it launched its network with the tagline â mifala long hia naoâ�(we are now here) (sto, 31 Aug 2010). Solomon Islands Prime Minister Danny Philip praised Be-mobile, claiming that â�œthe launch of Be-mobileâs network has brought the country to a new threshold of a new partnership and a new beginning for governments, the private sector and other stakeholdersâ (sto, 9 Nov 2010).


Records on final BW (kg), backfat depth (cm), and LM area (cm(2)) of pigs from a University of Nebraska Large White/Landrace composite population were analyzed to estimate the effects of pen mates. Measurements were at approximately 180 d of age for 3,524 pigs in 351 pens (9 to 11 pigs per pen) farrowed from 1999 to 2005. The area of each pen was 8.13 m(2). The full model (M1) included the fixed effects of contemporary group, sex, line, and the covariates of age and inbreeding coefficient, and included random direct genetic, genetic pen-mate, permanent environmental, pen, litter, and residual effects. A derivative-free algorithm was used to obtain REML estimates of variance components for final BW adjusted to 180 d of age with M1 and 7 reduced models, and with 4 reduced models for the carcass traits. For final BW, likelihood ratio tests showed that M1 did not fit the data better than model 2 (permanent environmental effect omitted from M1) or model 3 (pen omitted from M1). Model 2 was not significantly (P > 0.05) better than model 3, which shows that variance attributable to pen effects and permanent environmental effects cannot be separated. Large sampling variances of estimates of the pen component of variance for models with pen-mate effects also indicate an inability to separate pen effects from the effects of pen mates. When pen-mate genetic effects were not in the model, estimates of components of variance and the fit of the data were the same for models 4 (included both permanent environmental and pen effects), 6 (included pen effects), and 7 (included permanent environmental effects), which shows that including both pen and permanent environmental effects was no better than including one or the other. Models 4, 6, and 7 were significantly better than model 8, which did not include pen-mate effects and pen effects, implying that pen effects are important. The estimate of pen variance with model 2 was approximately (number of pen mates - 1) times the estimate of variance of pen-mate permanent environmental effects with model 3. Patterns of estimates of variance components with models 2, 5, 6, and 8 for backfat depth and LM area were similar to those for final BW. Estimates of direct genetic variance and phenotypic variance were similar for all models. Estimates of heritability for direct genetic effects were approximately 0.40 for final BW, 0.45 for backfat depth, and 0.27 for LM area. Estimates of heritability for pen-mate genetic effects were 0.001 for the 3 traits for models including either pen or permanent environmental effects. Under the management conditions for this experiment, the conclusion is that the model for genetic evaluation should include litter effects and either pen effects or pen-mate permanent environmental effects and possibly genetic pen-mate effects, in general agreement with the results of studies of different populations at other locations.


In recent years there has been a huge discussion about the IoT (Internet of Things) concept, and even more about IoT within industrial environment. The real IoT is a network of devices with local intelligence (sensors, lights, gas pumps, HVAC systems), which shares access & control mechanisms to push and pull status and command information from the networked world. However, there are still some issues, limiting the IoT diffusion: the devices involved are heterogeneous, with proprietary system of chips, protocols and interface; furthermore, there is a lack of development toolkits, enabling developers to create and evaluate IoT prototypes in simple and flexible manner. The ebbits [1] platform addressed those issues, taking advantages from the IoT vision and providing a middleware infrastructure for the integration of heterogeneous industrial devices and sensors, transforming them into web services and thus enabling their seamless integration into existing legacy systems. This paper will introduce the platform and its software architecture, describing features like semantic devices interoperability and entity virtualization. Furthermore, the paper will describe an innovative, IoT oriented, model driven development toolkit. This toolkit leverages on the semantic discovery service, allowing to dynamically selecting and locating available resources or devices, and provides a flexible instrument, including a graphical interface, that enables developers to compose mashup applications.


Abstract Automatic question generation is one of the most challenging tasks of Natural Language Processing. It requires "bidirectional" language processing: first, the system has to understand the input text (Natural Language Understanding), and it then has to generate questions also in the form of text (Natural Language Generation). In this article, we introduce our framework for generating the factual questions from unstructured text in the English language. It uses a combination of traditional linguistic approaches based on sentence patterns with several machine learning methods. We first obtain lexical, syntactic and semantic information from an input text, and we then construct a hierarchical set of patterns for each sentence. The set of features is extracted from the patterns, and it is then used for automated learning of new transformation rules. Our learning process is totally data-driven because the transformation rules are obtained from a set of initial sentence–question pairs. The advantages of this approach lie in a simple expansion of new transformation rules which allows us to generate various types of questions and also in the continuous improvement of the system by reinforcement learning. The framework also includes a question evaluation module which estimates the quality of generated questions. It serves as a filter for selecting the best questions and eliminating incorrect ones or duplicates. We have performed several experiments to evaluate the correctness of generated questions, and we have also compared our system with several state-of-the-art systems. Our results indicate that the quality of generated questions outperforms the state-of-the-art systems and our questions are also comparable to questions created by humans. We have also created and published an interface with all created data sets and evaluated questions, so it is possible to follow up on our work.


Influenza A viruses (IAVs) continue to be a threat to human health. Despite extensive studies, the mechanisms underlying the IAVs-host interactions during IAV infection remain elusive. We employed quantitative proteomic methods to systematically explore the host cell protein expression responses to IAV infection and examine the function of a critical IAV protein called NS1 by identifying its host binding partners. Specifically, we used a 2-dimentional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) based proteomic method to screen host proteins whose expression was substantially altered by IAV. One critical protein named IκB kinase-gamma (IKKγ) was found to be significantly down-regulated during IAV infection. Functional studies indicated that IKKγ and IAVs were mutually inhibitory and IKKγ might be the target for virus to inhibit IFN production. IAV protein NS1 is known to play critical roles in viral pathogenesis and host immune responses. Through 2-DE proteomic approach and mass spectrometry, we identified several novel host cellular proteins that were associated with NS1. First, we found that heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A2/B1 (hnRNP A2/B1) interacted with NS1, affected replication, transcription, expression and nucleocytoplasmic translocation of NS1 mRNA, and the eventual whole virus replication. Second, two ATPase proteins, RUVBL1 and RUVBL2, were identified to associate with NS1 for regulation of cell apoptosis in the absence of IFNs. Third, based on previous finding of the interaction between a DEAD family protein designated as DDX100 and NS1 through a more sensitive proteomic approach called SILAC (stable isotope labeling with amino acids in cell culture), we found this interaction promoted virus replication through enhancing viral NS1 gene replication, transcription, and dsRNA unwinding. In summary, through quantitative proteomic, molecular and cell biology studies, we generated the global picture of host cell protein expression responses to IAV infection. For IAV NS1, several host cellular proteins were found to interact with NS1 to regulate the host cell action and virus proliferation. This dissertation is approved for recommendation to the Graduate Council. Dissertation Director:


This paper examines a model of demand for local government-provided goods, and applies this to municipal spending in Turkey. Two sets of variables are tested: the socio-economic characteristics of the localities, and the political variables. The results are generally in line with the previous findings for a set of socio-economic variables, however none of the political variables seem to have explanatory power, probably because of the high dependence of local governments on the central government and hence the lack of local accountability. We argue that the present system motivates local politicians to prefer relying on the central government rather than the local revenue sources as a way of avoiding the tax-related political risks. Thus, a serious local tax reform could be a crossroad to create local-political accountability.


When advanced technologies of globalization that are closely associated with secular cosmopolitics are opportunistically employed by fundamentalist politico-theologies for their own particular purposes, an essential irresolution of territory, jurisdiction and programmatic projection is revealed. Where some may wish to identify an ideal correspondence between a global political sphere into which multiple differences might be adjudicated and the visual, geographic representation of a single planetary space, this conjunction is dubious and highly conditional. Instead multiple territorial projections and competing claims on space are also generative of the very qualities of the spatial as a political medium altogether. For example, the well-publicized use of satellite-based mapping and telecommunications tools, such as Google Earth, by the terrorist group that attacked Mumbai in November 2008, raises several knotty and important questions about how contrary comprehensive images of the world can make use of one another in ways that undermine the 'unitotality' of global territory. It is not that Google and Jihad are 'equivalent' or even 'translatable', but rather because they are not, they are in practice interoperable. Instead links between urbanism, cosmography, and the socialization of planetary software networks demonstrate the centrality of design to the ongoing fashioning of the territory of territories, the geoscape.


Alien plants pose significant threats to protected areas worldwide yet many studies only describe the degree to which these areas have become invaded. Research must move toward a better understanding of alien plant impacts since managers urgently require an appropriate evidence base to prioritize control/eradication targets. We analyze a global database of quantitative studies of alien plant impacts to evaluate existing knowledge of alien plant impacts within and outside protected areas. Although protected areas are a significant focus for quantitative impact studies, the biogeographic emphasis of most research effort does not coincide with the global distribution of protected areas nor the plant species or life‐forms recognized to have greatest impacts on ecosystems. While impacts were often as significant within protected areas as outside, only a minority of studies provide any subsequent management recommendations. There is therefore considerable scope to improve the evidence base on alien plant management in protected areas.


This paper outlines the development of an experimental technique in quantifying supersonic jet flows, in an attempt to avoid seeding particle problems frequently associated with particle-image velocimetry (PIV) techniques at high Mach numbers. Based on optical flow algorithms, the idea behind the technique involves using high speed cameras to capture Schlieren images of the supersonic jet shear layers, before they are subjected to an adapted optical flow algorithm based on the Horn-Schnuck method to determine the associated flow fields. The proposed method is capable of offering full-field unsteady flow information with potentially higher accuracy and resolution than existing point-measurements or PIV techniques. Preliminary study via numerical simulations of a circular de Laval jet nozzle successfully reveals flow and shock structures typically associated with supersonic jet flows, which serve as useful data for subsequent validation of the optical flow based experimental results. For experimental technique, a Z-type Schlieren setup is proposed with supersonic jet operated in cold mode, stagnation pressure of 4 bar and exit Mach of 1.5. High-speed singleframe or double-frame cameras are used to capture successive Schlieren images. As implementation of optical flow technique to supersonic flows remains rare, the current focus revolves around methodology validation through synthetic images. The results of validation test offers valuable insight into how the optical flow algorithm can be further improved to improve robustness and accuracy. Despite these challenges however, this supersonic flow measurement technique may potentially offer a simpler way to identify and quantify the fine spatial structures within the shock shear layer. Keywords—Schlieren, optical flow, supersonic jets, shock shear layer.


Abstract This paper attempts to illustrate the contribution of NGOs towards sustainable community development. NGOs have many programs, functions and roles which assist community to become empowered, and eventually attain sustainable development. This paper reviews some of these roles, functions and programs of NGOs, such as microfinance, capacity building and self-reliance. Microfinance programs improve the economic well-being of communities by job creation and income generation. In the long run, this economic empowerment will contribute to sustainable community development. NGOs, through capacity building, develop community capacities such as ability, skill and knowledge of mobilizing resources, planning and evaluating community initiation and solving problems to gain the mastery over their lives. It also motivates the community to participate in the projects and help them to improve quality of their lives. Participants are expected to coordinate meetings, plan community activities, and be practical in community initiatives. In this way, NGOs contribute towards sustainable community development. Furthermore, NGOs mobilize the communities to be self-reliant. It assists the communities to discover their own potentials and rely on their own resources. In short, this paper demonstrates that all these programs and functions of NGOs could contribute towards the realization of sustainable community development.


This article will define the familiar marriage model, discuss its historical evolution, and explore its presence in Victorian fiction. What I want to suggest here is that the central plot of the Victorian novel, the marriage plot, is about love only inasmuch as love is a problem. As Victorian novels obsessively rehearse the clash between romantic and familiar marriage, we see a culture struggling to come to terms with the event that defined its subjects' – above all, its female subjects' – lives.


The non-integrated nature of Healthcare Information Systems (HIS) is strongly associated with a reduction in the quality of care and the medical errors that occur. In particular, around 80,000 people die per year or paralyse in Australia due to problems related to medical errors and are mainly caused by the non-integrated nature of HIS. There is therefore a real need to integrate the Information Technology (IT) infrastructures, to improve the quality of care provided. During the last years much emphasis has been given on Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) technology to bridge heterogeneous systems. Although EAI is being widely used by public and private organisations, it is underutilised in the area of healthcare. Thus, it is of high importance to investigate this area and result in research that contributes towards successful adoption of EAI. Currently, much of the literature on EAI in healthcare has focused on the identification of the factors that influence its adoption. In this paper, the authors attempt to extend this research area, by identifying the actors involved in the EAI adoption process. In doing so, the paper describes the causal relationships among the healthcare actors and factors that influence its adoption. Thus, the paper results in a novel approach that: (a) identifies the healthcare actors that are involved in the EAI adoption process and (b) combines these actors with the factors influencing the adoption of EAI. The proposed approach is significant, as it (a) extends the existing models on EAI adoption by incorporating an actor-oriented analysis and (b) might enhance the decision-making process for EAI adoption by supporting a more detailed level of analysis.


In this work we shall test predictions of random wave models with microwave experiments. In wave or quantum mechanical systems, where the classical dynamic is chaotic, we can make predictions on quantities which only depend on general properties of the wave function. In our experiments on quasi two-dimensional microwave cavities we use the complete equivalence of the Schrödinger equation and the Helmholtz equation to study properties of quantum systems with electromagnetical waves. In the first part of this thesis we investigate spatial correlation functions of open billiard systems. In open quantum systems we expect running waves as the solution of the Schrödinger equation. Thus the wave function is complex and the zeros of a twodimensional complex function are nodal points and not nodal lines as we would expect for a closed system. In this work we shall investigate the spatial correlation function between nodal points of the wave function and saddle points of the phase of the wave function. For this correlation function we will additionally look for the influence of the boundary due to the finite size of the system. Another quantity one can study is the distribution of the components of the quantum stress tensor. In the second part we shall study the time dependent stability of a quantum system against a local perturbation. The time dependent stability of a quantum system is described by the fidelity, which is defined as the overlap integral of the time evolution of the same initial state under an unperturbed and a perturbed Hamiltonian. Experimentally the local perturbation has been realized by the shift of a small scatterer. We use the model of random plane waves to calculate a theoretical expression for the fidelity of a local perturbation and compare this to our experimental results. In the last part of this work we shall present an analogue experiment with microwaves to investigate the probability of extreme wave heights in the ocean. Such high amplitudes in the ocean are called freak waves, rogue waves or sometimes giant waves. Data of wave heights collected with radar satellite suggests that a random wave model surely underestimates the probability of such events. One way to explain the higher probability for freak waves is the effect of focussing of waves due to variable velocity fields. These velocity fields can be formed by current eddies or a height variation in shallow water. In our analogue study we use a potential landscape for microwaves to show the influence of focussing effects on the distribution of intensities.


An experiment was conducted to investigate methods that enable college students to learn the meaning of unknown words as they read discipline-specific academic text. Forty-one college students read specific passages aloud during three sessions. Participants were randomly assigned to three vocabulary learning interventions or a control condition. The interventions involved applying context, morphemic, and syntactic strategies; applying definitions; or applying both strategies and definitions to determine word meanings. Word learning and comprehension were measured during the interventions and in a transfer task to assess treatment effects on independent text reading. Results revealed that students in all three intervention groups outperformed controls in learning words and comprehending passages. However, the treatment groups did not differ from controls on the transfer task. Teaching both strategies and definitions was especially effective for learning unknown words and comprehending text containing those words.


The present study was an attempt to find out how the activist Persian translations published illegally as White-Cover books were resistant to the target culture. The study was based on Baker's (2006) argument about where to look for the activist translators' political work, i.e., the text selection and framing methods, including paratexts, timing of release, and place of release. For the study of the paratexts, Pellatt's (2013) typology was adapted to cover all the paratextual elements included in the corpus. The study showed that resistance was manifest in all the areas examined, but in different forms. Resistance to censorship was more evident in the text selection and the non-verbal paratexts, whereas resistance to the dominant ideologies and the state was more visible in the verbal paratexts, especially in the prefatorial materials as well as the inclusion or exclusion of the names of the translators.


Background Perforated peptic ulcer (PPU) is associated with serious health and economic outcomes. However, few studies have estimated the incidence and health outcomes of PPU using a nationally representative sample in Asia. We estimated age- and sex-specific incidence and short-term mortality from PPU among Koreans and investigated the risk factors for mortality associated with PPU development. Methods A retrospective population-based study was conducted from 2006 through 2007 using the Korean National Health Insurance claims database. A diagnostic algorithm was derived and validated to identify PPU patients, and PPU incidence rates and 30-day mortality rates were determined. Results From 2006 through 2007, the PPU incidence rate per 100 000 population was 4.4; incidence among men (7.53) was approximately 6 times that among women (1.24). Incidence significantly increased with advanced age, especially among women older than 50 years. Among 4258 PPU patients, 135 (3.15%) died within 30 days of the PPU event. The 30-day mortality rate increased with advanced age and reached almost 20% for patients older than 80 years. The 30-day mortality rate was 10% for women and 2% for men. Older age, being female, and higher comorbidity were independently associated with 30-day mortality rate among PPU patients in Korea. Conclusions Special attention should be paid to elderly women with high comorbidity who develop PPU.


This article describes the "just community" technique for moral education, proposed by Kohlberg and his collaborators at Harvard University, which is based on this author's theory of moral judgment. Starting from the older technique of hypothetical moral dilemma discussions, the article goes on to summarize observations made in a "just community" program run in a midwest school, and presents a statistical analysis which reveals significant gains in moral maturity scores of the participants. The application of such programs to the Brazilian context is also discussed.


When homo sapiens made their entrance 100,000 years ago they were confronted by a wide range of other early humans - homo erectus, who walked better and used fire; homo habilis who used tools; and of course the Neanderthals, who were brawny and strong. But shortly after their arrival, something happened that vaulted the species forward and made them the indisputable masters of the planet. This book is devoted to revealing just what that difference is. It explores how the physical traits and cognitive ability of homo sapiens distanced them from the rest of nature. Even more importantly, Masters of the Planet looks at how our early ancestors acquired these superior abilities; it shows that their strange and unprecedented mental facility is not, as most of us were taught, simply a basic competence that was refined over unimaginable eons by natural selection. Instead, it is an emergent capacity that was acquired quite recently and changed the world definitively.


Sound Candy is a device with which anyone in the world can create his/her own playground anywhere of using sounds and movements around him/her. In our daily life, we are surrounded by the "Kings of Entertainment" such as theme parks and home video game machines. However, the entertainment gives us only passively experience without our creation or creativity. In this paper, we suggest Sound Candy designed as the tool with which each user can create a new way of playing actively. In its small body, Sound Candy has two functions as follows. First, it has a recording function. Second, it has a function to integrate recorded sounds and signals from sensors, such as vibration or acceleration caused from variety of movements. Sound Candy can be attached to any part of user's body and almost objects in his/her environments. So users can convert the recorded sound to the one synchronized with various actions by selecting a play mode from four play modes including Angle, Vibration, Speed and Rotation Mode.


This study describes migration and the settlement process as it was experienced by Turkish migrants living in Melbourne, Australia. The key informants for this study were drawn from 30 family units. The major assumption is that the settlement experience reflects the pre-migration background. This leads, inexorably, to a central focus on the meaning of ethnic identity (ethnicity) in the migration situation. This shared identity is a key way in which the pre-migration background is articulated in the host society. This focus on the meaning of ethnicity also grows out of criticism of current schools of migration theory, which nave, as common elements, a tendency to treat migrants as reactors, units of labourpower and as a single gender category. Ethnic identity is socially expressed through membership of an ethnic group. A structural theory of ethnic group development is used as the major analytical tool. This theory grew out of the work of Barth (1969) and was expanded in the work of Jeffery-(1976). This perspective focusses on the nature of social relationsips that develop within the ethnic group and across the boundary of the group. These social relationships are also seen as describing the group boundary. In the migration situation ethnicity does more than articulate the pre-migration experience. Perceptions of shared identity enables individuals to maintain a coherent and continuing identity through provision of a supportive and familiar social system. The consequent security is illustrated as the ethnic identity is re-shaped to incorporate elements of the host culture. Other themes are also explored in this work. I argue that recent migrant groups are not necessarily homogeneous or undifferentiated. Neither are they wholly constituted of the unemployed and underemployed workers in the country of origin. Migrants are differentiated in a number of ways; in their pre-migration experiences, their time of arrival in Australia, their point of entry to the host society and also in terms of gender. These differences have a critical effect on the experience and understanding of the migration process. I am also critical of the presumption on the part of the government of the coincidence of its policy with the intentions of individual immigrants. Successive Australian governments have stressed a priori that immigrants are permanent settlers. It is generally assumed even by the social scientists in Australia that all immigrants share this view. The informants for this study did not, at the time of their arrival in Australia, consider that they were permanent settlers. Initially, they intended to stay in Australia for only a few years. Over time these intentions altered and informants began to see their stay in Australia as indefinite, if not permanent. The factors that contributed to this changing perspective are the subject matter of this thesis. Part I describes the parameters of the study. Part II outlines changinggovernment policies that resulted in Turkish migration to Australia. Part III describes the informants of the study. Part IV analyses the single-stranded relationships that develop across the boundaries of the ethnic group, while Part V analyses the development of multiplex social relationships within the ethnic group. Part VI contains the assessment made by informants of the migration experience.


Location is vital to the efficiency and profitability of industrial activity. Industrial Location presents a comprehensive introduction to and critical review of this field of growing academic and business interest. In business, the right choices have to be made to produce profit. Industrial location is a fixed investment, crucial to the strategy and capital investment of any organization. Location also impacts upon non-investors, directly affecting employment, the environment, and economic activity in the locale. Focusing chiefly on the United States, but drawing on an international range of cases, the authors explain the economic, social and political forces which have shaped comtemporary patterns of industrialization and examines the changing nature of production and systems.


Recent legislative initiatives from the European Commission, such as the Review of the Consumer Acquis, show an increasing tendency in favour of maximum harmonisation. This is a diversion from previous practice, where the general policy was one of minimum harmonisation, which allowed Member States to divert from the standard set by European legislation if in favour of the consumer. This article makes a critical assessment of the policy of maximum harmonisation and suggests a number of parameters that determine its chance of success. Important factors are the Community's limited legislative competence, restricted in essence to internal market policy, and the related question of where to strike the balance between business interests and consumer protection. The main concern, however, lies with the elusive nature of the concept of maximum harmonisation - the possibility of alternative legal bases for liability in European and national legislation may undermine the notion of a fully harmonised regime, as can be seen with regard to product liability law. In this light, it is suggested that the success of the current review programme may increase by a redefinition of its scope, taking account of the wider framework set by European and domestic rules of private law.


Fasting is performed in different communities with different believes and for the management of body weight but in Islam the Muslim observes fasting in the Holy Month of Ramadan as an obligation. Therefore, this study was designed to know the effect of fasting on the obesity factors for example body weight, serum adiponectin, serum lipids and body composition assesses by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). Twenty five volunteers (male & female) from the international Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) were recruited in Ramadan. Age sex, weight, height and menstrual cycle status (in case of females) were recorded on day1 of the Ramadan and body weight was also recorded on day 21. Similarly, BIA was performed on day1 and 21 for the assessment changes in body composition. Blood samples were collected on the Day1 of the Ramadan followed by another three collection of blood samples .i.e. day7, 14 & 21 respectively. The blood serum was separated and stored at -20C. From weight & height basal metabolic Index (BMI) was determined. The blood was analyzed for glucose, adiponectin and lipid profiles by Bayer Health Care Kits. After 21 days of Ramadan fasting body weight was significantly (P <0.001) reduced in the obese individuals. There was significant (P<0.01) reduction in waist hip ratios in obese male and female. In the present study BIA showed no significant change in the intra or extra cellular fluids, however there has been shift of water between the two compartments which seems to be a physiological phenomenon during fasting. Infact, there was strong positive correlation (r= 0.9) between the fat free mass and total body water and similarly there was strong negative association (r= -0.9) with total body water. This study indicates that Islamic fasting could be a useful tool for the management of body weight without having major shift in the body composition. There was a decreasing trend in blood glucose concentration from day 1-21 and the decrease was 10.00%. The blood triglyceride concentration significantly reduced and the reduction was 17.48 percent from day 1-21. The blood total-Cholesterol concentration also reduced from day 1-21 and the reduction was 15.93 percent. The blood LDL-Cholesterol concentration also significantly reduced from day 1-21 and the reduction was 21.67 percent. The blood HDL-Cholesterol concentration decreased in the first weak and second week but improving trend was observed on day 21 of the Ramadan. This study indicates that Islamic fasting could be a useful tool for the management of body weight and blood lipids without having major shift in the body composition.


Is it possible to convey spirituality through art and material culture? Is it possible to renew art within the traditional church so that it appeals and is understandable for the modern man? These are the fundamental questions of my master´s work, which has it´s starting point in a public commission for an artistic contribution to the new Pentecostal church in Kalmar. The work also addresses the question whether there is a need for symbolism, art and sacred objects also within the Pentecostal movement, a traditionally strong image hosting environment. If so, how is it possible to bring this in to the church without completely breaking with the tradition and ideology of the movement? I want to communicate the Christian message in a renewed way, and in this particular project also highlight the importance of using images also within the Pentecostal movement. The essence of this project is:  How to communicate spiritually through material culture  How to bring in a new tool of communication in to the Pentecostal movement. A visual tool that communicates in another dimension than what verbal tools does, touching other senses  How to tell the essence of the Christian message in a renewed that still relates to the history and tradition of the Pentecostal movement  How to include these aspects when creating something to the congregation in Kalmar


This paper surveys language-related extra-curricular activities (ECA) attended by university students in Canada and Russia. Very little information is available about ECA in both countries. The study aimed to gather data about extra-curricular activities in Canada and Russia and to investigate the perceived effect of participation in extra-curricular activities on language learning by universi ty students in these countries. The study employed a questionnaire-based survey as a major research method. The questionnaire constructed by the authors includ ed 'yes/no', multiple choice and open-ended questions. The total of 119 university students from both countries participated in the study. The participants' responses to yes/no and multiple choice questions were entered on SPSS charts for descriptive statistics and an analysis across the groups (chi-square tests). The responses to openended questions were analyzed using key-word method. The results indicate that only about 1/3 of university students in both countries had some experience with ECAs. Russian students were more aware of the range of ECAs available through their universities. The array of language-related ECAs was different across the countries: Canadian students mostly attended ECAs that were offered through their universities, and Russian students – outside their universities. There was an agreement between the respondents from both countries that trips abroad were the most efficient form of ECAs. The evaluation of some other specific forms of ECAs showed significant differences across the two participant groups. The majority of respondents from both countries placed a high value on ECAs and thought that ECAs were beneficial for their language skills development.


We report a novel approach to addressing the Raven's Progressive Matrices (RPM) tests, one based upon purely visual representations. Our technique introduces the calculation of confidence in an answer and the automatic adjustment of level of resolution if that confidence is insufficient. We first describe the nature of the visual analogies found on the RPM. We then exhibit our algorithm and work through a detailed example. Finally, we present the performance of our algorithm on the four major variants of the RPM tests, illustrating the impact of confidence. This is the first such account of any computational model against the entirety of the Raven's.


An innovative, interdisciplinary and far-reaching examination of the actual reality of international courts, International Court Authority (Oxford University Press, 2018) challenges fundamental preconceptions about when, why, and how international courts become important and authoritative actors in national, regional and international politics. Alter, Helfer and Madsen provide a novel framework for conceptualizing international court authority that focuses on the reactions and practices of these key audiences. Eighteen scholars from the disciplines of law, political science and sociology apply this framework to study thirteen international courts operating in Africa, Latin America and Europe, as well as on a global level. Together the contributors document and explore important and interesting variations in whether the audiences that interact with international courts around the world embrace or reject the rulings of these judicial institutions. This newly written book introduction situates our practice-based approach to studying international court authority, explaining how it differs compared to normative, sociological and compliance based studies of legal authority. We also preview the twenty-two chapters in the volume. The book expands by 40% the special issue we published in Law and Contemporary Problems, adding a new introduction and conclusion, three new empirical chapters, six commentaries and a conclusion that reconsiders how context influences the authority of international courts.


Abstract Rapidly converging maximum likelihood procedures for estimating and testing Weibull distribution parameters are presented, together with numerical examples of their applications. Goodness-of-fit comparisons based on nine sets of meteorological or hydrological data were made among the gamma, lognormal, three-parameter kappa and Weibull distributions. The Weibull distribution is shown to be a reasonable alternative to the other three distributions.


In the area of tourism destination branding, so far research has focused more on the demand-side perspective meaning the brand image. Over the last years researchers also emphasize the supply-side perspective that is the brand identity, however up to date few papers have been published. Hence, this study focuses on brand identity in tourism by making use of Icelandic horse-based tourism as a case study. As such, the emphasis is placed on the communicated brand identities of Icelandic horse-based tourism providers and the main messages and elements found within their promotion material. A content analysis of the supplier's websites is used and based on it can be said that more than one communicated brand identities exists. Moreover, throughout the promotional material distributed to potential customers, some of the brand identities are communicated not only differently but occasionally stand in conflict to each other, whereas the main messages the materials strive to deliver only display few variations. As such in general this study contributes to brand identity research in tourism while more particularly to tourism analysis of Iceland.


This timely book presents a critical examination of the developmental premises of Japan's high-growth success and its subsequent drift into recession, stagnation and piecemeal reform. The country, which within a few decades of wartime defeat mounted a serious challenge to American hegemony, appeared incapable of fully adjusting to shifting economic circumstance once the impulses of catch-up growth and the good fortune of an accommodating international environment faded.


Construction managers require innovative techniques to assist them in producing accurate planning tasks such as resource allocation and costing of activities because of unique characteristics of road construction industry. Visualisation technologies have potential to improve communications and coordination amongst the project stakeholders and to optimise onsite productivity through visual simulation of construction process and innovative planning approach. This research study introduces a framework of a 4D planning model for automatic generation of earthwork progress profiles and production cost profiles of a road section, and visualisation of the construction process throughout earthwork operations. The framework is designed and developed by integrating road design data, quantities of cut and fill sections, variable productivity data, algorithms for modelling terrain, and a road profile visualiser. The research details the model to recognise the framework outlined above and it generates progress profiles, cost histogram and a time location plan automatically for the earthwork activity. The model is validated with a real life case study in a road project and was found that the model to be beneficial in generating the terrain surfaces of progress, weekly cost profiles and a time location plan during the construction operations. The model is incorporated with the "variable" productivity data and soil characteristics for analysing with "what if" scenarios. The 4D planning model should assist to project planners and construction managers in producing efficient construction scheduling and resource planning


The Influence of Superhydrophobicity on Laminar Jet Impingement and Turbulent Flow in a Channel with Walls Exhibiting Riblets Joseph F. Prince Department of Mechanical Engineering, BYU Doctor of Philosophy The object of this work is to explore the influence superhydrophobic (SH) surfaces exert in laminar jet impingement and when they are combined with riblets in turbulent channel flow. A SH surface generates an apparent slip due to the combination of micropatterning and chemical hydrophobicity. Because of surface tension, water does not enter the cavities between the features, increasing the contact angle of a water droplet on the surface and reducing the liquid-solid contact area. An analysis based on the integral momentum approach of Karman and Pohlhausen is presented that predicts jet impingement behavior on SH surfaces. The model is first applied to the scenario where the slip at the surface is isotropic and a downstream depth is imposed such that a circular hydraulic jump occurs. The model predicts the thin film parameters downstream of the jet and the radial location of the hydraulic jump. An increase in the hydraulic jump radius occurs as slip increases, momentum of the jet increases, or the downstream depth decreases. Modifications to the model are made for the scenario where the slip at the surface varies azimuthally, as would be the case for a surface patterned with microribs. The average behavior is similar, although now an elliptically shaped jump forms with the major axis aligned parallel to the rib/cavity structures. The ellipse eccentricity increases as the slip increases, the jet momentum increases, or the downstream depth decreases. Where there is no downstream depth imposed on SH surfaces, the thin film breaks up into droplets instead of forming a hydraulic jump. Further changes are made to the model to incorporate this behavior for isotropic and anisotropic surfaces resulting in circular and elliptically shaped breakups respectively. This work also explores SH surfaces with riblets in turbulent channel flow. Pressure drop measurements across surfaces exhibiting superhydrophobicity, riblets, and surfaces with both drag reducing mechanisms are presented. The SH surface reduces drag because the effective surface area is reduced and riblets are able to reduce drag by dampening the spanwise turbulence. Photolithography was used to fabricate all surface types. An aluminum channel with a control and a test section was used for testing. Pressure transducers recorded the pressure drop across smooth silicon wafers and patterned test surfaces simultaneously allowing for computation of the friction factors.


In a traditional structural model of default it is implicitly assumed that the information used to calibrate and run the model is publicly available. In reality, model inputs and parameters are unobservable. In this article we analyze the role of information in structural models, which we specify through a model definition of the default time and a model filtration. The model definition relates the default of a firm to its assets and liabilities. The model filtration describes the information of investors relative to the model definition. It parameterizes a family of default models for a given default time. An important situation is when the default is not observable with respect to the model filtration. Examples include models with incomplete information about firm assets and models with incomplete information about the liability-dependent barrier that triggers default. Here the default time is typically totally inaccessible, as in the intensity-based, reduced-form models of default. In this case the model admits generalized reduced-form security pricing formulae in terms of the trend, which is the cumulative intensity. The trend can be explicitly characterized through the conditional default probability given the model filtration. If the trend is absolutely continuous with respect to the Lebesgue measure, then its density is the intensity and our formulae simplify to the classical intensity-based formulae. Not every incomplete information model admits an intensity. A model in which investors cannot observe the default barrier is a first example.


We present CurryBrowser, a generic analysis environment for the declarative multi-paradigm language Curry. CurryBrowser supports browsing through the program code of an application written in Curry, i.e., the main module and all directly or indirectly imported modules. Each module can be shown in different formats (e.g., source code, interface, intermediate code) and, inside each module, various properties of functions defined in this module can be analyzed. In order to support the integration of various program analyses, CurryBrowser has a generic interface to connect local and global analyses implemented in Curry. CurryBrowser is completely implemented in Curry using libraries for GUI programming and meta-programming.


We have developed an example-based machine translation (EBMT) system that uses the World Wide Web for two different purposes: First, we populate the system's memory with translations gathered from rule-based MT systems located on the Web. The source strings input to these systems were extracted automatically from an extremely small subset of the rule types in the Penn-II Treebank. In subsequent stages, the source, target translation pairs obtained are automatically transformed into a series of resources that render the translation process more successful. Despite the fact that the output from on-line MT systems is often faulty, we demonstrate in a number of experiments that when used to seed the memories of an EBMT system, they can in fact prove useful in generating translations of high quality in a robust fashion. In addition, we demonstrate the relative gain of EBMT in comparison to on-line systems. Second, despite the perception that the documents available on the Web are of questionable quality, we demonstrate in contrast that such resources are extremely useful in automatically postediting translation candidates proposed by our system.


Background: Co-existing of odontoid subluxation syringomyelia and vertebral artery abnormalities is a rare condition occurred in spinal cord, and the therapeutic approach of this disease is also rarely reported. Hence, a case of co-existing of odontoid subluxation syringomyelia and vertebral artery abnormalities was reported in this study.
Methods: A male patient, who suffered with limited head and neck functions, was described in the current study. X-ray and MRI examinations for cervical vertebra were performed to examine the conduct physical examination. Meanwhile, the basic personnel characteristics were also collected, including speech, behavior, power, and state of mind. After examinations, patient was received surgery treatment with a prone position, and the outcomes were checked using CT imaging.
Results: According to patient's narration, he had suffered from inability and pain in left lower limb accompanied with limited locomotive for more than 4 months. Further physical examinations showed that patient had a sober mind and powerful shrug, but obvious hoarse voice and blear speech, soft neck, and limited limb activity. Meanwhile, X-ray and MRI results showed obvious occipito-cervical deformity, odontoid subluxation and syringomyelia. During surgery, an obvious insertion and merge of lepospondylous arcus posterior was found in foramen magnum posterior, and no sever events had been observed. The patient recovered gradually after surgery, however long term outcomes of the treatment needed more clinical data of follow-up.
Conclusion: Limited neck and limbs activity were the main syndromes of the co-existing of odontoid subluxation syrignomyelia and vertebral artery abnormalities, and bleeding may be an important risk factor and should be significantly considered during surgery treatment.


In order to analyze the formation mechanism of iron oxide nanoparticles, we measured the heat flow of precursor with temperature, and TEM images and AC susceptibility of aliquots samples sequentially taken from the reaction solution, respectively. The thermal decomposition of two OL-chain from produced the Fe-OL monomer, which were contributed to the formation of iron oxide nanoparticles. In the initial stage of nanoparticles formation, the small iron oxide nanoparticles had structure. However, as the iron oxide nanoparticles were rapidly growth, the iron oxide nanoparticles showed -FeO core-shell structure which the FeO layer was formed on the surface of nanoparticles by insufficient oxygen supply from the reaction solution. These nanoparticles were transformed to structure by oxidation during long aging time at high temperature. Finally, the nanoparticles with high saturation magnetization and stable in the air could be easily synthesized by the thermal decomposition method.


Matched samples of saliva and blood have yielded significantly correlated hormone concentrations. However, these verified correlations are restricted to healthy women of European descent in more developed countries. This relationship does not appear to have been extensively explored for non-White women. This study examined the correlation between progesterone and oestradiol concentrations in matched saliva and serum samples among sedentee women living in Sylhet, Bangladesh, and migrant Bangladeshi and British women of European descent in London, England. Participants were aged 19-42, regularly menstruating, free from exogenous steroids with no history of thyroid or fertility problems. Thirty-nine women provided matched blood and saliva samples during the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle at least one hour after consuming food or drink. Concentrations of progesterone and oestradiol were measured by direct radioimmunoassay and examined in relation to demographic groups. The study subjects were also examined in relation to age. Bangladeshi migrant women matched British women of European descent in age (mean= 33), but sedentee women were significantly younger than both groups. Serum and salivary progesterone concentrations were highly and significantly correlated in the British group of European descent (rho=0.879, n=10, p<. 0005) and the Bangladeshi sedentees (rho=0.700, n=ll, p<. 0005), but not in the Bangladeshi migrants (rho= 0.191, n-18, p= 0.448/ Serum and salivary oestradiol were significantly positively correlated in the Bangladeshi sedentee group (r=0.678, n=l 1, p<. 0005) but not in either the British group (r= 0.431, n=10, p= 0.214) or the migrant Bangladeshi women (r=-O.I78, n=18, p= 0.479). With inconsistent correlations across the three study groups, these findings do not clarify whether hormone measurements in saliva or serum best reflects ovarian function. The current study prompts further research with a larger sample size and refined assay procedures.


Based on applications of the 1996 National Research Council (NRC) Nutrient Requirement of Beef Cattle (2000 update) model at our laboratories and on use of the model to evaluate published literature, it is our assessment that the NRC model (Level 1) represents an advancement in nutrient requirements of grazing cattle. We evaluated 8 published studies (35 treatment observations) to compare observed changes in body condition score (BCS) to those predicted by the NRC model, and to develop criteria to help with application of the model to range cattle nutrition. When in vitro organic matter disappearance (IVOMD) of grazed diets was converted to DE [DE = (1.07 × IVOMD) − 8.13] and used as a proxy for TDN, there were no differences in observed vs. predicted BCS change (P = 0.44). A critical component of the 1996 NRC model is the incorporation of the metabolizable protein system. An accurate estimate of microbial efficiency is key to application of the metabolizable 1A contribution of the Univeristy of Nebraska Agricultural Research Division, Lincoln, NE 68583. J. Series. No. 14224. 2To whom correspondence should be addressed: email@example.com protein system. We propose the use of an equation to adjust microbial efficiency for diets less that 65% TDN. The NRC model should be applied to 30-d time intervals if animal requirements or forage quality are changing rapidly. Accurate inputs for stage of gestation, days into lactation, breed, milk production, dietary TDN, and microbial efficiency are necessary for the model to yield accurate results. Work is needed to define and model microbial efficiency, nitrogen recycling, and the quality of diets selected by grazing livestock in various envi-


We examined the hypothesis that the δ13C of benthic consumers is depleted in offshore, deeper waters where kelp and benthic microalgae are absent by conducting three analyses: (1) we analyzed δ13C (and δ15N) of consumers along a nearshore‐offshore gradient in the field, (2) we analyzed δ13C (and δ15N) of consumers placed in cages at various depths and distances from shore, and (3) we reexamined published stable isotope values for consumers taken at various depths from studies around the world. In all three situations, we did not observe the predicted change in δ13C values of benthic consumers. In both the literature and in our field measurements, the δ13C values for consumers were on average separated from the values for suspended particulate organic matter by 4%, irrespective of depth, indicating that factors other than the feeding on 13C‐rich benthic primary producers may explain the enriched carbon ratios in benthic consumers (e.g., selective feeding on enriched particles). The hypothesis that the high δ13C ratio in suspension and deposit feeders reflects feeding on benthic primary producers is thus tenuous and requires further investigation.


The Master of Science program in dental public health requires 40 s.h. of course work and is designed to be completed in two academic years of full-time study. It prepares dentists and dental hygienists to be specialists in dental public health. The program emphasizes research and requires a research project culminating in the completion and defense of a thesis. Successful dentist graduates meet the educational requirements for eligibility to take the certifying examination of the American Board of Dental Public Health. Applicants must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate College.


This study investigates organisational commitment of employees in the context of Jordanian banking industry. It aims at exploring this concept and identifying the factors that may influence it. Commitment was measured by ·using the Organisational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ). Additional questions about background characteristics of subjects were also included in the questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed to 250 subjects and 144 usable responses were used. The most salient findings of this study are: 1. Bankers in Jordan are committed to their organisation. The results do not reveal any significant differences between Jordanian bankers and their counterparts in other countries in terms of level of organisational commitment. 2. Old, high salaried and experiences bankers are more committed than young low salaried and unexperienced bankers. This indicates that Jordanian bankers express the side-bet theory of commitment (calculative commitment) in which individuals exchange commitment for economic rewards or inducements. 3. Female bankers are less committed than their male counterparts.


Genetic programming is a form of evolutionary computation that evolves programs and program-like executable structures for developing reliable time -- and cost-effective applications. It does this by breeding programs over many generations, using the principles of natural selection, sexual recombination, and mutuation. This third volume of Advances in Genetic Programming highlights many of the recent technical advances in this increasingly popular field.


This paper examines and extends the debate on genocide in West Papua. Referring to the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention, examples of genocidal acts are listed: killings, causing serious bodily and mental harm, the deliberate infliction of conditions of life calculated to cause the destruction of a group, and the forcible removal of children to another group. Whereas previous examinations of the issue have failed to prove intent on the part of the Indonesian Government – a necessary pre-requisite under the Convention – this article finds that such intent exists. The authors show that West Papua has suffered a military occupation since 1962-63 under which the West Papuan people have been treated as the enemy by the Indonesian armed forces. Explicit and implicit government policy has been consistently directed towards countering and eliminating Papuan attempts to create an independent state for their nation or enjoy political freedom on a par with other Indonesians. In this tightly controlled situation genocidal acts have been undertaken as government policy, effectively thwarting the Papuan nationalists in the era when information emerging from the province(s) could be tightly controlled. In this internet age, however, this is no longer possible, as evidence of both genocidal acts and government 'intent' is emerging. This augurs poorly for Indonesia and the region as the little known, but deeply entrenched, conflict in West Papua seeps into global consciousness as a 'slow-motion' Pacific genocide.


Human resource development literature highlights that pay level is a crucial compensation design issue. The ability of the management to properly design the level of pay according to external and internal organisational factors may have a signifi cant impact on personal outcomes, i.e. job satisfaction, job commitment,and job performance. More importantly, a thorough review of such relationships
revealed that effect of pay level on personal outcomes is indirectly affected by feelings of interactional justice. Although the nature of this relationship is interesting, little is known about the influence of interactional justice in compensation programme models. Therefore, this study was conducted to measure the mediating effect of interactional justice in the relationship between
pay level and personal outcomes. A survey research method was used to gather 917 usable questionnaires from employees who have worked in Malaysian institutions of higher learning. The outcomes of stepwise regression analysis
showed three important findings: firstly, the relationship between interactional justice and pay level would increase job satisfaction. Secondly, the relationship
between interactional justice and pay level would increase job commitment.Third, relationship between interactional justice and pay level would increase job performance. This result confirmed that interactional justice does act as a
full mediating variable in the pay system model of the organisation sample. In addition, the implications of this study on compensation theory and practice,conceptual and methodological limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.


Multicarrier code division multiple access (MC-CDMA) is a very promising system for wireless communication. However, MC-CDMA signals have a high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR), which causes signal distortion because of the use of a high-power amplifier (HPA) in the transmitter. Partial transmit sequences (PTSs) represent one of the most attractive PAPR reduction methods, but its high computational complexity in finding the optimal phase vector impedes practical implementation. In this paper, we propose a PTS based on an artificial bee colony (ABC) algorithm scheme (ABC-PTS) to reduce the computational complexity of the PTS in the MC-CDMA systems. Simulation results prove that the proposed ABC-PTS scheme shows a significant improvement in PAPR reduction performance, with a low computational complexity. In addition, the bit-error-rate performance of the MC-CDMA with the ABC-PTS and the conventional PTS is compared when the HPA and the linear amplifier are used.


Based on the bilingualism and ethnolinguistic identity research, this study aims to observe the role identity and linguistic attitudes play in a minority mother language's maintenance or shifting process in early bilingualism cases in a societal bilingualism situation. The analyzed context comprises native speakers of essentially bilingual communities that migrate to an urban center like Porto Alegre, where the opportunities for minority mother language use are drastically restrained by the monolingual Portuguese context. It's asked how this language was maintained and what is the identity and linguistic attitude after the removal of the original context identified as more rural, isolated and ethnic and culturally different. The data collection derives from semi-structured interviews, recorded and subsequently transcribed. The data analysis suggests that the 'geographic' factor isn't so relevant to the maintenance/shifting of a minority language than the speaker's 'micro-decisions' to preserve the cultural and affectionate ties with their origin group, the family. Besides family group, community, school and government should be called to come together to construct new ways for the linguistic and cultural preservation of the bilingual community in Brazil. In that sense, this research intends to contribute to a wider understanding of the identity and linguistics attitudes' role in the languages' teaching and learning in general.


Deriving conditional and marginal distributions using conjugacy relationships can be time consuming and error prone. In this paper, we propose a strategy for automating such derivations. Unlike previous systems which focus on relationships between pairs of random variables, our system (which we call Autoconj) operates directly on Python functions that compute log-joint distribution functions. Autoconj provides support for conjugacy-exploiting algorithms in any Python-embedded PPL. This paves the way for accelerating development of novel inference algorithms and structure-exploiting modeling strategies. The package can be downloaded at https://github.com/google-research/autoconj.


Relying on panel data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79), this study finds that about half the study sample (N = 5,304) never experienced annual debt between 1985 and 2008, that the vast majority of those who incurred annual debt were short-term (1 year) or intermittent debtors (2-4 years), that the proportion of the study sample in debt for the most part declined over time, but also that the level of debt increased. Multinomial regression results indicated that health status and level of changes in income are robust predictors of debt in general, that age and race/ethnicity are robust predictors of short-term and intermittent debt, that locus of control, family structure during adolescence, SES, work effort, and marital status are robust predictors of intermittent and chronic debt, and that self-esteem, gender, SES, and work effort are robust predictors of chronic debt. Findings challenge blanket contentions that a culture of debt characterizes individuals and families in the U.S and they present a more nuanced portrait of debtors than the stereotype as young and single.


We introduce the Minimum Entropy Method, a simple statistical technique for constraining the Milky Way gravitational potential and simultaneously testing different gravity theories directly from 6D phase-space surveys and without adopting dynamical models. We demonstrate that orbital energy distributions that are separable (i.e., independent of position) have an associated entropy that increases under wrong assumptions about the gravitational potential and/or gravity theory. Of known objects, "cold" tidal streams from low-mass progenitors follow orbital distributions that most nearly satisfy the condition of separability. Although the orbits of tidally stripped stars are perturbed by the progenitor's self-gravity, systematic variations of the energy distribution can be quantified in terms of the cross-entropy of individual tails, giving further sensitivity to theoretical biases in the host potential. The feasibility of using the Minimum Entropy Method to test a wide range of gravity theories is illustrated by evolving restricted N-body models in a Newtonian potential and examining the changes in entropy introduced by Dirac, MONDian, and f(R) gravity modifications.


Today technology has brought in a paradigm shift in our lives. It has paved way to globalization, however, it has been pointed out that the benefits of globalization, has not
penetrated down to the lower segment of the population. Research in the area of health economics has also reinforced that healthy population is a primary input to economic
development. As quality of human capital is an important factor determining economic growth, it has become an issue of predominant importance across nations. In India, to enhance the quality of human capital, interventions have been designed, at national and state levels,
to make 'healthcare' affordable, accessible and acceptable across the strata of population. However, the healthcare system in India is confronted by many challenges that deplete the effectiveness of the interventions implemented by the Government. The objective of this paper is to exhibit that population health is an antecedent to economic growth. The paper also tries to describe the health system in India, discuss the serious concerns encountering
the health system and concludes by suggesting the key players in the health system to play an active role in enhancing population health, which would thereby trigger the economic growth of the nation.