Throughout life, new cells are generated in the mammalian brain and incorporated as functional neurons in the networks of the olfactory bulb and the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampal formation. So far proliferation and survival rates of newly generated cells in the adult DG have been investigated in commonly used and rather simple behavioral experiments like the Morris water maze, fear and trace conditioning, a running wheel and small enriched environments. Some of these studies gave evidence for an influence of single factors on neurogenesis, like physical activity, complexity of environment or associative learning. Results from laboratory experiments cannot directly be translated into the natural situation, because the relevance of these factors for animals in the wild is different from that for animals under laboratory conditions. Additionally, naturally an animal lives under a combination of several factors. Hence, we cannot derive the relevance of adult neurogenesis for wild-living animals from these studies.
The aim of this study was to examine neuronal plasticity in a naturalistic environment with respect to factors that have the capability to influence neurogenesis separately and under laboratory conditions.
Therefore, I compared cell proliferation and survival of newborn cells in DG of adult mice at different complexity levels of a naturalistic environment. Large enclosures equipped with computer-controlled water dispensers represented an environment near to nature, in which physical activity and exploration were possible and required. Foraging behavior was the basis for the investigation of the role of associative learning under naturalistic conditions. The extensive automation of the setup allowed for maximum avoidance of disruptions and interference of mouse behavior by the experimenter. With respect to this aspect, a new method for oral application of the proliferation marker BrdU via computer-controlled dispensers was established.
In a naturalistic environment, mice expressed distinct exploratory behavior and optimized their foraging following the variation of water dispenser qualities. Surprisingly, neither exploring novel water resources nor spatial learning of positions of profitable resources lead to a change in the rate of neurogenesis. From the finding, that running induced a marked increase of proliferation rate when performed in a running wheel but not when performed in a naturalistic environment, the question arose if the type physical activity is critical.
The comparison of running in a wheel with running in plane showed that the proliferation rate is independent from type of locomotion but strongly correlates with the extent of running activity. The pro-proliferative effect of running occurs acute and persists for at least 3, but not more than 5 days.
Wheel running acts as a reliable promoter of cell proliferation in mice, but also represents a rather unnatural form of physical activity. Motivation for exercise as well as extent of exercise differ substantially between running wheel and natural locomotion. The results of this work indicate that the relevance of adult neurogenesis for natural behavior should be valuated with caution. In everyday life, the lifelong production of new cells in DG seems to function for the maintenance of a certain amount of neuronal resources rather than for the situational production of new neurons.


Beyond the religious-political discourse of Le Jeune's musical publications, current academics regard his work as a key to elements of sixteenth-century compositional practice in the twelve-mode system. Le Jeune was highly regarded among his contemporaries for his modal compositions – a reputation that he purposefully exploited through the publication of modally-organized works. In the current discourse on the theory and practice of mode during the Renaissance, scholars frequently cite Le Jeune's Dodecacorde as an example of the Zarlinian theoretical-practical mixture of modal theory. An explicit analysis of Le Jeune's application of Zarlinian dodecacordal theory, however, has not yet appeared in the academic literature. A comparison of excerpts from the Dodecacorde with polyphonic examples from Zarlino's Institutione will illustrate the specific ways that Le Jeune adapts these modal practices. In attempting such a study, this paper will not only present a perspective on the concreteness of Zarlino's modal conceits, but it will also clarify the degree to which these regulations were practically (i.e., how or whether they could be applied to contemporary composition) or speculatively based. While not examining the broader relevance of Le Jeune's application of the Zarlinian system in his psalm-settings, this paper will initiate the theoretical study of modality in the Dodecacorde in relation to Zarlino's practical-speculative theory. This will hopefully allow for more in-depth forays into this area in the future.


Many everyday tasks performed by people, such as reaching, pointing or drawing, resolve redundant degrees of freedom in the arm in a similar way. In this paper we present a novel method for learning the strategy used to resolve redundancy by exploiting the variability in multiple observations of different tasks. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this method on three simulated plants: a toy example, a three link planar arm, and the KUKA lightweight arm.


An automatic polarization compensation method for low-repetition frequency short optical pulse is proposed and successfully applied to the master oscillator room (MOR) in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) systems to maintain the MOR maximum output energy. After an average of 37 shots, the MOR output energy reaches maximum value with the sudden occurrence of polarization variation in the fibers. The peak-to-peak amplitude jitter of the MOR output is 9.52% at 4 h, which meets the requirement of the ICF system.


A paper by Peter Bofinger and Mathias Ries (2017a/b) strays from the recent rethinking in monetary analysis to criticise Summers' "saving glut" explanation of the prevalence of low real interest rates. A similar critical perspective is held by Borio and Disyatat (e.g. 2011a/b, 2015), who are criticised, however, by Bofinger and Reis for their Wicksellian background. In this note, we compare and assess these two different views. Both Bofinger and Reis (B&R) and Borio and Disyatat (B&D) reject traditional "loanable fund theory" in favour of an endogenous money view of credit, but while B&R regard conventional marginalist (real) theory as inconsistent with the endogenous money view, B&D, following Wicksell, regard it as consistent. We sympathize with B&R's criticism of conventional theory, especially their Keynesian view of the interest rate as a purely monetary phenomenon. Interestingly, B&R refer to the problems of marginalist capital theory as undermining the natural interest rate concept


In this paper, we consider the problem of the steady-state fully developed magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow of a conducting fluid through a channel with arbitrary wall conductivity in the presence of a transverse external magnetic field with various inclined angles. The coupled governing equations for both axial velocity and induced magnetic field are firstly transformed into decoupled Poisson-type equations with coupled boundary conditions. Then the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM) [20] is used to solve the Poisson-type equations. As testing examples, flows in channels of three different cross-sections, rectangular, circular and triangular, are calculated. It is shown that solutions obtained by the DRBEM with constant elements are accurate for Hartmann number up to 8 and for large conductivity parameters comparing to exact solutions and solutions by the finite element method (FEM).


Background An increasing quantity of research in the domain of telemedicine show a growing popularity and acceptance of care over distance systems among both clinicians and patients. We focus on telementoring solutions, developed for providing remote guidance to less experienced surgeons. Telestration is often regarded as an extra functionality of some telementoring systems. However, we advocate that telestration must be viewed as a core feature of telementoring due to its advantages. Objective To analyze and define concepts, parameters, and measurement procedures to evaluate the impact of using telestration while telementoring. Methods A systematic review of research dealing with telestration during remote guidance sessions was performed by querying three major online research databases (MEDLINE, Association of Computing Machinery, and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) using a predefined set of keywords ("laparoscopy", "annotate", "telestrate", "telestration", "annotation", "minimally invasive", and "MIS"). Results The keyword-based search identified 117 papers. Following the guidelines for performing a systematic review, only 8 publications were considered relevant for the final study. Moreover, a gap in research defining the impacts of telestration during telementoring was identified. To fill this niche, a framework for analyzing, reporting, and measuring the impacts of telestration was proposed. Conclusions The presented framework lays the basics for the structured analysis and reporting of telestration applied to telementoring systems. It is the first step toward building an evidence knowledge base documenting the advantages of live video content annotation and supporting the presented connections between the concepts.


Abstract. Many important Cultural Heritage sites have been studied over long periods of time by different means of technical equipment, methods and intentions by different researchers. This has led to huge amounts of heterogeneous "traditional" datasets and formats. The rising popularity of 3D models in the field of Cultural Heritage in recent years has brought additional data formats and makes it even more necessary to find solutions to manage, publish and study these data in an integrated way. The MayaArch3D project aims to realize such an integrative approach by establishing a web-based research platform bringing spatial and non-spatial databases together and providing visualization and analysis tools. Especially the 3D components of the platform use hierarchical segmentation concepts to structure the data and to perform queries on semantic entities. This paper presents a database schema to organize not only segmented models but also different Levels-of-Details and other representations of the same entity. It is further implemented in a spatial database which allows the storing of georeferenced 3D data. This enables organization and queries by semantic, geometric and spatial properties. As service for the delivery of the segmented models a standardization candidate of the OpenGeospatialConsortium (OGC), the Web3DService (W3DS) has been extended to cope with the new database schema and deliver a web friendly format for WebGL rendering. Finally a generic user interface is presented which uses the segments as navigation metaphor to browse and query the semantic segmentation levels and retrieve information from an external database of the German Archaeological Institute (DAI).


The Millennium Development Goals highlights Malnutrition as one of the pnonty development issues under its framework of which malnutrition remains an important public health concern in the developing world especially Kenya (MDGs, 2008). Nutritional status and nutritional food security are a priority as malnutrition is a risk factor for morbidity and mortality, poor cognitive development and reduced productivity (Black, Allen, Bhutta, et al., 2008; Grantham-McGregor, Cheung, Cueto, et al., 2007). The aim of the study was to compare the nutritional status of orphans participating in a school feeding programme and that of orphans not participating in such a programme. The study was a cross-sectional comparative survey carried out in Kariobangi location, Korogocho slum. The population under investigation comprised of 7 schools in Kariobangi location, 3 of which were in the school feeding programme and 4 of which were not. A sample size of 160 orphans aged between 5 to 10 years was determined. Sampling techniques were a combination of purposive sampling and simple random sampling techniques. The research instrument was a questionnaire and an interview schedule. Data was analysed using SPSS, nutrisurvey and anthro plus computer packages.
The dependent variable was nutritional status measured by indexes, height for age, BMI for age, and underweight. The findings of the study revealed that school feeding programme had a higher proportion of malnourished children (underweight 20.3%, low Body mass Index for age 16.5% and stunting 19.2%) than the non school feeding programme (underweight 5%, Low Body Mass Index for age 10%, and stunting 20%) although only the low BMI for age was significantly different for the two groups at P<0.05. Calorific intake was inadequate in many of the orphans in both groups but more orphans in the non school feeding group were meeting the recommended dietary allowances for most nutrients compared to those in the school feeding group. Majority of school feeding programme group (61.4%) consumed foods of medium dietary diversity score while majority of non-school feeding programme (61%) consumed foods of high dietary diversity score.( significant at P<0.05).The levels of morbidity in terms of cold/cough and fever were significantly higher in non-school feeding programmecompared to the school feeding programme. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that orphans who stayed for a short time without their mothers were less likely to be underweight in the school feeding programme (OR: 0.78 CI 0.64- 0.94 P=0.013) and stunted in the non- school feeding programme (OR=0.72 CI 0.59-0.58 P= 0.00) than those who had stayed for a long time. In terms of low body mass index for age, orphans in the school feeding programme who consumed diets of few food groups were significantly thinner compared to those who had consumed foods of many food groups.(OR= 2.15 CI 1.04-61.32 p=0.046). The study recommended diversification of food. within the schools offering feeding programmes through urban farming of vegetables and poultry within the school compound. The Ministry of Education and partners like WFP and others NGOs with interest in school going children need to enlarge the scope of school feeding programme in Kariobangi. It is also necessary to carry out a longitudinal study on the impact of school feeding programmes on orphans.


Since the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, scholars have been preoccupied with the test that ought to be applied to abortion regulations. Debate has swirled around the question of whether laws that burden the abortion right should be reviewed with strict scrutiny, rational basis review, or some other multi-factor or categorical test and at what point during pregnancy these tests are appropriate. Moreover, since Planned Parenthood v. Casey, in which the Court replaced Roe's trimester framework with the undue burden standard, commentators have questioned the propriety of this new test. This Article argues that the most important change from Roe to the present has not been the test that the Court has used to determine the constitutionality of abortion regulations, but rather the Court's departure from the position that Roe took with regard to the moral status of the fetus. The Court in Roe either remained agnostic on the question of the fetus's moral status (the tack that the majority proclaimed to take) or decided that the fetus was not an entity of moral value (the tack that some commentators proclaim was actually taken). In stark contrast, the present Court, as demonstrated by its opinion in Gonzales v. Carhart, appears to have decided that the fetus is a morally consequential entity — a "life." Accordingly, this Article has four goals. First, it aims to elaborate the notion of "life" — conceptualized as a powerful socio-cultural idea that is not properly understood as equivalent to biological life, insofar as "life" has moral consequence and the protection and veneration of it is a moral imperative. Second, it aims to demonstrate that the undue burden standard is a balancing test, requiring courts to weigh governmental interests against individual liberties. Third, it aims to use the example of the undue burden standard to demonstrate the general problem with balancing tests in constitutional law and the need for a developed theory of governmental interests. Fourth and finally, it aims to show that the effectiveness of any balancing test designed to protect abortion rights — whether it is strict scrutiny, rational basis review, or the undue burden standard — depends on the elements that the Court plugs into the test. When the Court plugs "life" into a balancing test — that is, when the Court weighs the state's interest in protecting fetal "life" against the woman's liberty interest in obtaining an abortion — the test is guaranteed to protect the abortion right ineffectively.


Translating culture poses fundamental problems of perception and conception far deeper than matters of linguistic expression. This essay explores some of these problems by examining Fusheng liuji (Six Records of a Floating Life), a Chinese autobiographical text that has been translated into fourteen Asian and European languages. Even without going into the details of the rendered versions, one can notice various forms of intercultural mediation and reshaping in the translated titles and added subtitles. At one end is direct, partly helpless substitution: lexically flawless "float" cannot encompass the rich matrix of philosophical connotations and artistic resonances of fu in the source culture. At the other end is active reshaping: recasting, addition and omission based on interpretive (mis)reading, including a reduction of imagistic language into abstract concept (e.g., fu becomes "fleeting"). Through examining 17 renditions of the title of Fusheng liuji, this essay offers a case study that helps to cast light on the unavoidable factor of intercultural mediation in the translation process, with special focus on the translation of philosophical and aesthetic concepts. Some forms of mediation carry more significant effects than others, and there may be differences in verbal resources and orientations in various languages worthy of notice.


This skillfully written text presents the full sweep of Ottoman history from its beginnings on the Byzantine frontier in about 1300, through its development as an empire, to its late eighteenth-century confrontation with a rapidly modernizing Europe. Itzkowitz delineates the fundamental institutions of the Ottoman state, the major divisions within the society, and the basic ideas on government and social structure. Throughout, Itzkowitz emphasizes the Ottomans' own conception of their historical experience, and in so doing penetrates the surface view provided by the insights of Western observers of the Ottoman world to the core of Ottoman existence.


Although recent ecological changes are widespread in Arctic lakes, it remains unclear whether they are more strongly associated with climate warming or the deposition of reactive nitrogen (Nr) from anthropogenic sources. We developed a 3500-yr paleolimnological record from the world's northernmost lake to explore this question. Microfossils indicate that siliceous diatoms and chrysophytes were abundant initially, but disappeared 2400 yr ago in concert with Neoglacial cooling. Microfossils reappear in 20 th -century sediments and reach unprecedented concentrations in sediments deposited after ca. A.D. 1980, tracking increasing summer temperatures in the absence of evidence for atmospheric nutrient subsidies. These results indicate that current warming in northern Greenland is unprecedented in the context of the past 2400 yr, and that climate change alone is responsible for the marked biological changes observed.


Several axi-symmetric EN3B steel components differing in shape and size were forged on a 100 ton joint knuckle press. A load cell fitted under the lower die inserts recorded the total deformation forces. Job parameters were measured off the billets and the forged parts. Slug temperatures were varied and two lubricants - aqueous colloidal graphite and oil - were used. An industrial study was also conducted to check the results of the laboratory experiments. Loads were measured (with calibrated extensometers attached to the press frames) when adequately heated mild steel slugs were being forged in finishing dies. Geometric parameters relating to the jobs and the dies were obtained from works drawings. All the variables considered in the laboratory study could not, however, be investigated without disrupting production. In spite of this obvious limitation, the study confirmed that parting area is the most significant geometric factor influencing the forging load. Multiple regression analyses of the laboratory and industrial results showed that die loads increase significantly with the weights and parting areas of press forged components, and with the width to thickness ratios of the flashes formed, but diminish with increasing slug temperatures and higher billet diameter to height ratios. The analyses also showed that more complicated parts require greater loads to forge them. Die stresses, due to applied axial loads, were investigated by the photoelastic method. The three dimensional frozen stress technique was employed. Model dies were machined from cast araldite cylinders, and the slug material was simulated with plasticene. Test samples were cut from the centres of the dies after the stress freezing. Examination of the samples, and subsequent calculations, showed that the highest stresses were developed in die outer corners. This observation partly explains why corner cracking occurs frequently in industrial forging dies. Investigation of die contact during the forging operation revealed the development of very high stresses.


This article charts developments in cricket during the past decade to explore issues related to social transformation and redress in post-apartheid South Africa. It examines who is benefiting from change, whether change is driven by or being resisted by Whites, and whether there is tension among Blacks regarding transformation. This study found that the attitude of Blacks has evolved from acceptance of all-White cricket teams to calls for inclusion of some `players of colour' to demands for selection quotas and, finally, demands for African control. Cricket has failed to create an imagined South African community. Change is being forced on unwilling Whites, while there is increasing tension among Blacks regarding opportunity and resource allocation. This mirrors how the demands for transition are being negotiated in the wider society in post-apartheid South African society. The calls for Africanization have become inexorable in all sectors and organizations. Though race-based, change is significant because of the historical legacy of apartheid, and given that the economy and spatial arrangements continue to sustain racial identity in post-apartheid South Africa.


Large-scale Gaussian process inference has long faced practical challenges due to time and space complexity that is superlinear in dataset size. While sparse variational Gaussian process models are capable of learning from large-scale data, standard strategies for sparsifying the model can prevent the approximation of complex functions. In this work, we propose a novel variational Gaussian process model that decouples the representation of mean and covariance functions in reproducing kernel Hilbert space. We show that this new parametrization generalizes previous models. Furthermore, it yields a variational inference problem that can be solved by stochastic gradient ascent with time and space complexity that is only linear in the number of mean function parameters, regardless of the choice of kernels, likelihoods, and inducing points. This strategy makes the adoption of large-scale expressive Gaussian process models possible. We run several experiments on regression tasks and show that this decoupled approach greatly outperforms previous sparse variational Gaussian process inference procedures.


The decision has been made to relocate several cultural institutions in Oslo, without any existing plans for the old premises. In this article, the supportive arguments are analysed against the backdrop of the critical voices. The critics want to preserve the old buildings because they are embedded in the nation's collective memory and have value as history. The supporters of the plans argue that the new buildings are bricks in a bigger city renewal project and shall generate synergetic effects beyond just functioning as cultural institutions. Critical discourse analysis is used eclectically as a methodological framework with a specific focus on what structural patterns of social change the arguments imply. The conclusion is that economy's entry into the cultural sphere may be a threat to the cultural heritage.


The purpose of this study is to contribute knowledge about educators' work in promoting children's influence in preschool documentation. I have investigated how educators interpret the meaning of "children's influence" and how they work specifically to promote children's influence in preschool documentation. I used interview as a research method and I interviewed four educators in different preschools to share their views and perceptions of children's influence in the documentation. The result shows that educators believe that children have influence by being involved in the preschool activities through their choices and by making their voices heard. The result also shows that the educators base the process of documentation from the children's interests and preferences and that the children have a say in it in different ways. Educators believe that the iPad is an important tool in the process of documentation.


Neural networks are known to be vulnerable to adversarial examples. Carefully chosen perturbations to real images, while imperceptible to humans, induce misclassification and threaten the reliability of deep learning systems in the wild. To guard against adversarial examples, we take inspiration from game theory and cast the problem as a minimax zero-sum game between the adversary and the model. In general, for such games, the optimal strategy for both players requires a stochastic policy, also known as a mixed strategy. In this light, we propose Stochastic Activation Pruning (SAP), a mixed strategy for adversarial defense. SAP prunes a random subset of activations (preferentially pruning those with smaller magnitude) and scales up the survivors to compensate. We can apply SAP to pretrained networks, including adversarially trained models, without fine-tuning, providing robustness against adversarial examples. Experiments demonstrate that SAP confers robustness against attacks, increasing accuracy and preserving calibration.


ABSTRACT The study demonstrates how the EU contributes to a self-reinforcing administrative bias due to domestic-level organizational factors. Strong European integration without membership reinforces a politico-administrative gap and this gap expands over time. The paper applies an extreme case of high integration without formal EU membership represented by Norway. The findings suggest that the EU contributes to reinforce the administrative state through strong unintended assimilation effects. The findings are probed by a novel and comprehensive longitudinal data-set consisting of a large-N single case (N = 3562) questionnaire study among government officials at three points in the Norwegian central administration: 1996, 2006 and 2016. Theoretically, the paper examines the role of organizational factors in administrative integration and how the impact of the EU is mediated by organizational variables at the national level.


In times of increasing oil prices and a weak dollar, European companies that focus their business on the US market may find themselves in a weak position. While many businesses can hedge this kind of risk by relocating production to the US, or employing financial remedies, these strategies may not work throughout the consumer goods industry. Especially for brands whose consumption is strongly impacted by country of origin (e.g. French whine, Swiss chocolate, German beer, etc.), there are only limited possibilities to bypass these challenges. To react efficiently to these threats, managers need a precise picture of complete market mechanisms before they can set up an appropriate marketing strategy to react. We aim to enhance the understanding of market mechanisms that are caused by exogenous cost shocks for typical consumer goods. The contribution of our work is twofold: To investigate the underlying process and to derive concrete managerial suggestions. We hereby propose a combination of two different empirical frameworks to measure the effects of exchange rate variations in fast moving consumer markets. Furthermore we extend existing work in being the first to model vertical interactions with a Manufacturer-Wholesaler-Retailer Model. Within this framework we investigate how changes in local currency affect the strategic management variables of price, margin and profit in a typical consumer goods market. While it is widely known that exchange rate changes cause variations in export/import prices and numerous studies show that the effect of currency fluctuations decreases within the distribution process, recent marketing research in this area has not explicitly accounted for the mechanisms that occur within the distribution channel. Many empirical studies implicate that exogenous cost shocks, which are caused by exchange rate changes, are passed through imperfectly to final consumer prices. We therefore show that the margins of the players involved in the distribution process will be affected differently by exchange rate variation dependent on the competitive situation. Although our empirical study focuses on the effect of exchange rate variations on strategic marketing variables of a selected fast moving consumer good, our framework can be easily adapted to any other market and other sources that cause a change in production cost.


ABSTRACT The binding of human secretory immunoglobulin A (SIgA), the primary immunoglobulin in the gut, to Escherichia coli is thought to be dependent on type 1 pili. Type 1 pili are filamentous bacterial surface attachment organelles comprised principally of a single protein, the product of the fimA gene. A minor component of the pilus fiber (the product of the fimH gene, termed the adhesin) mediates attachment to a variety of host cell molecules in a mannose inhibitable interaction that has been extensively described. We found that the aggregation of E. coli K-12 by human secretory IgA (SIgA) was dependent on the presence of the pilus fiber, even in the absence of the mannose specific adhesin or in the presence of 25 mM α-CH3Man. The presence of pilus without adhesin also facilitated SIgA-mediated biofilm formation on polystyrene, although biofilm formation was stronger in the presence of the adhesin. IgM also mediated aggregation and biofilm formation in a manner dependent on pili with or without adhesin. These findings indicate that the pilus fiber, even in the absence of the adhesin, may play a role in biologically important processes. Under conditions in which E. coli was agglutinated by SIgA, the binding of SIgA to E. coli was not increased by the presence of the pili, with or without adhesin. This observation suggests that the pili, with or without adhesin, affect factors such as cell surface rigidity or electrostatic repulsion, which can affect agglutination but which do not necessarily determine the level of bound immunoglobulin.


A novel method is presented for enhancing the natural visual perception afforded by augmented reality (AR) workstations. The approach incorporates a method for simulating perspective viewing using a monitor-based AR workstation that acts as a window to the physical workspace in front of it. Although similar AR workstations are often used in industry, they do not provide natural visual perception. By incorporating user head tracking and a spherical mirror, the method proposed enhances visual perception by simulating the depth cue of perspective viewing. The method interactively adjusts the viewing parameters to provide accurate perspective viewing of both the video stream (representing the physical environment) as well as the virtual objects superimposed within it. Hence, the user gains the impression of 3D viewing of the entire AR scene when moving ones head in front of the monitor. This paper describes the hardware setup and the method for perspective simulation within an AR software application. Finally, an experimental evaluation of the accuracy of the system is described to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach.


Abstract 3,4‐Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)–assisted psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been shown to significantly reduce clinical symptomatology, but posttraumatic growth (PTG), which consists of positive changes in self‐perception, interpersonal relationships, or philosophy of life, has not been studied with this treatment. Participant data (n = 60) were pooled from three Phase 2 clinical studies employing triple‐blind crossover designs. Participants were required to meet DSM‐IV‐R criteria for PTSD with a score higher than 50 on the Clinician‐Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS‐IV) as well as previous inadequate response to pharmacological and/or psychotherapeutic treatment. Data were aggregated into two groups: an active MDMA dose group (75–125 mg of MDMA; n = 45) or placebo/active control (0–40 mg of MDMA; n = 15). Measures included the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) and the CAPS‐IV, which were administered at baseline, primary endpoint, treatment exit, and 12‐month follow‐up. At primary endpoint, the MDMA group demonstrated more PTG, Hedges' g = 1.14, 95% CI [0.49, 1.78], p < .001; and a larger reduction in PTSD symptom severity, Hedges' g = 0.88, 95% CI [−0.28, 1.50], p < .001, relative to the control group. Relative to baseline, at the 12‐month follow‐up, within‐subject PTG was higher, p < .001; PTSD symptom severity scores were lower, p < .001; and two‐thirds of participants (67.2%) no longer met criteria for PTSD. MDMA‐assisted psychotherapy for PTSD resulted in PTG and clinical symptom reductions of large‐magnitude effect sizes. Results suggest that PTG may provide a new mechanism of action warranting further study.


In this paper we present NeuViz, a data processing and visualization architecture for network measurement experiments. NeuViz has been tailored to work on the data produced by Neubot (Net Neutrality Bot), an Internet bot that performs periodic, active network performance tests. We show that NeuViz is an effective tool to navigate Neubot data to identify cases (to be investigated with more specific network tests) in which a protocol seems discriminated. Also, we suggest how the information provided by the NeuViz Web API can help to automatically detect cases in which a protocol seems discriminated, to raise warnings or trigger more specific tests.


ABSTRACT Archaeomalacological Study of El Truchiro Mesolithic Site (Omoño, Ribamontán al Monte, Cantabria). El Truchiro is one of the caves in the La Garma Archaeological Complex (Omoño, Ribamontán al Monte, Cantabria). The archaeological excavation of the deposits from this site yielded Chalcolithic and Mesolithic material, including a large number of marine and terrestrial molluscs. The second stratigraphic layer consists of a shell-midden in an excellent state of preservation sealed between two layers of speleothems. This well-preserved layer is formed mainly of marine gastropods (limpets and top shells) and terrestrial snails (Cepaea nemoralis). These species were gathered by ancient people on the coast and in the areas surrounding the cave. After being consumed the shells were discarded inside the cave. In addition, at the base of this layer one of the few Mesolithic inhumations in northern Spain was documented. The grave goods included shells of the marine molluscs Cerastoderma sp. and Trivia sp., species that are found on the north Spanish coast. This paper studies the archaeomalacological evidence in the sequence at El Truchiro from different points of view: taxonomy, taphonomy, technology, stratigraphy and spatial distribution.


This paper evaluates the most appropriate ways to model diffusion and jump features of high-frequency exchange rates in the presence of intraday periodicity in volatility. We show that periodic volatility distorts the size and power of conventional tests of Brownian motion, jumps and (in)finite activity. We propose a correction for periodicity that restores the properties of the test statistics. Empirically, the most plausible model for 1-min exchange rate data features Brownian motion and both finite activity and infinite activity jumps. Test rejection rates vary over time, however, indicating time variation in the data generating process. We discuss the implications of results for market microstructure and currency option pricing.


Calcium is the most prevalent mineral in the body and is important for many physiological processes. However, the amount of calcium in modern diets has both economic and nutritional consequences for producers. Dietary calcium has been shown to reduce the efficacy of both endogenous and exogenous phytases resulting in decreased phytate-phosphorus availability, increased phosphorus excretion as well as facilitating the formation of mineral-phytate complexes. Reducing the concentration of dietary calcium has been reported to improve phytase efficacy and phytate-phosphorus availability, however, this is often at the expense of optimal skeletal integrity. Choice feeding employs the principle that poultry have the ability to select a nutritionally balanced diet from multiple sources and previous studies have shown that poultry have a calcium specific appetite. However, the evaluation of choice feeding systems for broilers has predominantly focussed on the effects of providing separate sources of protein and energy concentrates. Though literature is available for laying hens, scant information is available pertaining to choice feeding of a separate calcium source for broilers. This paper reviews the available information on choice feeding systems in poultry with focus on the application of this in broiler production systems.


Prepared for a symposium on "Families, Fundamentalism, and the First Amendment," this essay uses the "death of God" as a frame for recent developments in law and religion in the United States. Western culture has been obsessed with the death of God at least since Nietzsche. During the 1900s, this obsession took the form of a prediction that modernization had so undercut belief that the latter would eventually disappear entirely. That prediction turned out to be spectacularly wrong in the United States; popular and academic literature is now filled with triumphant - and regretful - expositions of the contemporary vibrance and vitality of religion. God has cheated death (or, at least, Nietzsche).Or has he? The God whose death was widely predicted and the God who today is alive and well are not the same God. The God who died is the God of Christendom, who bound together western society with a universal account of the world that did not survive the advent of postmodernism; this God, indeed, is dead. The vibrant God of today is the one adapted to postmodernism; the vitality of that God is on display in contemporary American religion, especially in the spirituality movement. The most pressing religious problem now confronting the world is posed by believers who refuse to recognize the demise of the first God and the rise of the second; these "fundamentalists" continue to press for government recognition and enforcement of absolute religious truths. All three of these phenomena - the death of God, his rebirth in postmodernity, and his remnants in fundamentalism - are manifest in recent Religion Clause decisions.


The occurrence of tastes and odours (T&O) in potable water is considered one of the main problems by the drinking water companies. Thus, several treatment processes have been developed over the years to control T&O, including air stripping, activated carbon and oxidation using ozone. However, little information is available in the literature on the use of membranes for T&O removal. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to present potential of membrane processes for the removal of taste and odour-causing compounds. Several membranes were tested including ultrafiltration (UF), UF combined with powdered activated carbon (PAC), nanofiltration (NF) and low pressure reverse osmosis (LP RO) membranes. Combination of UF with PAC was found to be effective for T&O control. The use of NF or LP RO is still unclear in the objective of T&O control.


Adenovirus provides many opportunities as a vector for delivery of cytotoxic genes to tumours. Polymer coating of adenovirus is known to increase its plasma circulation kinetics, affording the possibility of active and passive targeting to tumours. Here we show that polymer-coating adenovirus (pc-virus) abrogates its normal infectivity in vitro and also in liver following intravenous injection. The coated virus accumulates within solid subcutaneous AB22 mesothelioma tumours 40-times more than unmodified virus, and mediates higher levels of transgene expression within tumours. This is the first demonstration of passive tumour targeting of polymer-coated adenoviruses administered by intravenous injection, and also the first time pc-virus has been shown to be infectious following passive targeting to tumours in vivo. This technology provides an interesting option for delivery of therapeutic viruses to disseminated tumour masses by intravenous injection.


We introduce a model of spatially distributed populations of organisms that mate and compete with others in local neighborhoods. Competition for local finite resources causes Turing instability in population distribution, possibly leading to the formation of isolated groups. In the presence of disruptive selection against genetic intermediates, this model also shows dynamically coarsening domains in genetic distribution. We examine an interplay of these two distinct dynamics, both analytically and numerically, and show that the domain coarsening process is strongly affected by the spatial separation between groups created by the Turing pattern formation process. The ratio between mating and competition ranges is found to be one of the crucial parameters to determine the long-term evolution of genetic distribution in the population.


This article explores the processes through which the 'public secrecy' of rape during the Bangladesh war of 1971 operates within the present-day ethnographic context. It examines contemporary commemorations of the war and of women who have achieved local and national fame as rape victims (euphemistically referred to as 'war heroines'). The article analyses the discrepancy between raped women's national position as icons of 'honour' and their local reception through sanctions and constant khota (sarcastic/censorious remarks expressing scorn and evoking the unpleasant events). By exploring the relationship between scorn, honour, rape, sexuality, narratives of remembrance, and the emergence of 'public secrets' – and how these are interwoven by the subjectivity of the raped – the article argues that memories of rape are simultaneously located within the ambiguities of revelation and of concealment which are indispensable to the operations of power. In the process the article establishes the relationship between secrecy and memory. Further, a focus on the intersubjective domain of memory provides methodological and ethical tools with which to engage with narratives of the past relating to wartime violence.


The rapid growth of the Internet traffic demand is bringing the current electronic switches closer to their intrinsic technological limits, which may be overcome by optical technologies. Although optical packet switching has been widely studied in academia; the limited processing and buffering capabilities available in the optical domain makes the implementation of an all optical packet switch difficult in practice. We considered a hybrid (electro/optic) switching architecture, relying on an all-optical switching fabric, aiming to understanding the tradeoffs between current photonic and electronic technologies. We consider both the classical fixed-size synchronous paradigm and the asynchronous operation mode, which may suit better to the optical technologies. Buffers organized according to either an electronic FIFO (First Input First Output) paradigm or a photonic FDL (Fiber Delay Line) mechanism are analyzed and compared.


Deep reinforcement learning has achieved many impressive results in recent years. However, tasks with sparse rewards or long horizons continue to pose significant challenges. To tackle these important problems, we propose a general framework that first learns useful skills in a pre-training environment, and then leverages the acquired skills for learning faster in downstream tasks. Our approach brings together some of the strengths of intrinsic motivation and hierarchical methods: the learning of useful skill is guided by a single proxy reward, the design of which requires very minimal domain knowledge about the downstream tasks. Then a high-level policy is trained on top of these skills, providing a significant improvement of the exploration and allowing to tackle sparse rewards in the downstream tasks. To efficiently pre-train a large span of skills, we use Stochastic Neural Networks combined with an information-theoretic regularizer. Our experiments show that this combination is effective in learning a wide span of interpretable skills in a sample-efficient way, and can significantly boost the learning performance uniformly across a wide range of downstream tasks.


Purpose The efficacy and safety of insulin degludec/insulin aspart (IDegAsp) once daily (OD) compared with insulin glargine U100 (IGlar) OD over 52 weeks in insulin-naïve adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was investigated. Methods In this open-label, parallel-group treat-to-target trial, participants were randomized (1:1) to receive IDegAsp OD (breakfast, n = 266) or IGlar OD (as per label, n = 264). Participants then entered a 26-week extension phase (IDegAsp OD, n = 192; IGlar OD, n = 221). The primary endpoint was change from baseline to Week 26 in HbA1c. Results After 26 and 52 weeks, mean HbA1c decreased to similar levels in both groups. After 52 weeks, the mean estimated treatment difference was –0.08% (–0.26, 0.09 95%CI), confirming the non-inferiority of IDegAsp OD versus IGlar OD evaluated at Week 26. After 52 weeks, there was a similar reduction in mean fasting plasma glucose in both treatment groups. The rate of confirmed hypoglycemic episodes was 86% higher (p < 0.0001) whereas the rate of nocturnal hypoglycemia was 75% lower (p < 0.0001) for IDegAsp versus IGlar. Conclusion Nocturnal-confirmed hypoglycemia was higher with IGlar whereas overall and diurnal hypoglycemia were higher with IDegAsp dosed at breakfast. These results highlight the importance of administration of IDegAsp with the main meal of the day, tailored to the individual patient's needs. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01045707 [core]) and NCT01169766 [ext]


Here is a fascinating compact history of Chinese political, economic, and cultural life, ranging from the origins of civilization in China to the beginning of the 21st century. Historian Paul Ropp combines vivid story-telling with astute analysis to shed light on some of the larger questions of Chinese history. What is distinctive about China in comparison with other civilizations? What have been the major changes and continuities in Chinese life over the past four millennia? Offering a global perspective, the book shows how China's nomadic neighbors to the north and west influenced much of the political, military, and even cultural history of China. Ropp also examines Sino-Indian relations, highlighting the impact of the thriving trade between India and China as well as the profound effect of Indian Buddhism on Chinese life. Finally, the author discusses the humiliation of China at the hands of Western powers and Japan, explaining how these recent events have shaped China's quest for wealth, power and respect today, and have colored China's perception of its own place in world history.


"Talent matters. No one denies this fact. But, there is often a gap between wanting and getting talent. Cathy Fyock's 53 'Truths' provide concrete, practical, and well-tested ideas to close the talent gap. The ideas are reasonable, grounded in research, and actionable. This is an excellent book for those who pay attention to hiring. The 53 Truths offer a roadmap for doing this important task more effectively." Dave Ulrich, Professor of Business, University of Michigan, Partner, The RBL Group "You think you knew everything you needed to know about employment until you read the most recent, catchy FT Press 'Truth' book by staffing expert Cathy Fyock. In only 224 pages Fyock effectively uses 53 'Truths' to challenge many of HR's long-standing assumptions and practices related to recruitment and selection. With everyone wanting to 'hire the best,' this quick read has a high ROI." Michael R. Losey, SPHR, CAE, Former CEO, Society for Human Resource Management "Cathy Fyock knows there is no 'silver bullet' when it comes to successful recruiting and hiringi??and that passive tactics do not provide high quality results. She knows the truth: Today's low unemployment rates combined with increasing retirements of Baby Boomers spell trouble for employers hoping to expand. Her fresh approach shows the reader that there are numerous opportunities to connect with great future employees, and she provides practical advice for tapping multiple sources simultaneously, as well as interviewing and making offers. If you want to hire the best, this book is your guide!" Nancy S. Ahlrichs, SPHR, President, EOC Strategies, LLC Great business results start with great talent. Get iti??and keep it! This book reveals 53 Proven Hiring Principles and bite-size, easy-to-use techniques that work. · The truth about finding hidden sources of talent · The truth about making great people want to work for you · The truth about interviewing: asking the right questions Getting the best people for your organization is not only difficult, but the strategies for getting the best often are not obvious. To get the best you first need to identify who the best are, then determine how to reach the best, and then decide on the best among the best you want to hire. In The Truth About Hiring the Best you will learn: it's not just a job to fill; it's your organization's future that you're creating; getting the best isn't just about asking the right questions, it's about listening for the right answers; and great people don't want to work for desperate employers. It's a war for talent, and you need to win.


A memorandum of a contract made between Felix H. Morales and Charles L. Belfi in Bexar County, Texas. The contract stated that Morales had employed Belfi as the general manager of the proposed radio station in Houston, Harris County, Texas. The contract listed the salary and commission terms Belfi was to receive as well as housing and transportation accommodations. The full term of the contract was to expire after ten years on May 10, 1957 and it was signed by both parties and notarized.


[1] An analysis of the climate of precipitation extremes as simulated by six European regional climate models (RCMs) is undertaken in order to describe/quantify future changes and to examine/interpret differences between models. Each model has adopted boundary conditions from the same ensemble of global climate model integrations for present (1961–1990) and future (2071–2100) climate under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change A2 emission scenario. The main diagnostics are multiyear return values of daily precipitation totals estimated from extreme value analysis. An evaluation of the RCMs against observations in the Alpine region shows that model biases for extremes are comparable to or even smaller than those for wet day intensity and mean precipitation. In winter, precipitation extremes tend to increase north of about 45°N, while there is an insignificant change or a decrease to the south. In northern Europe the 20-year return value of future climate corresponds to the 40- to 100-year return value of present climate. There is a good agreement between the RCMs, and the simulated change is similar to a scaling of present-day extremes by the change in average events. In contrast, there are large model differences in summer when RCM formulation contributes significantly to scenario uncertainty. The model differences are well explained by differences in the precipitation frequency and intensity process, but in all models, extremes increase more or decrease less than would be expected from the scaling of present-day extremes. There is evidence for a component of the change that affects extremes specifically and is consistent between models despite the large variation in the total response.


Live patching has become a common technique to keep longrunning system services secure and up-to-date without causing downtimes during patch application. However, to safely apply a patch, existing live-update methods require the entire process to enter a state of quiescence, which can be highly disruptive for multi-threaded programs: Having to halt all threads (e.g., at a global barrier) for patching not only hampers quality of service, but can also be tremendously difficult to implement correctly without causing deadlocks or other synchronization issues. In this paper, we present WFPATCH, a wait-free approach to inject code changes into running multi-threaded programs. Instead of having to stop the world before applying a patch, WFPATCH can gradually apply it to each thread individually at a local point of quiescence, while all other threads can make uninterrupted progress. We have implemented WFPATCH as a kernel service and user-space library for Linux 5.1 and evaluated it with OpenLDAP, Apache, Memcached, Samba, Node.js, and MariaDB on Debian 10 ("buster"). In total, we successfully applied 33 different binary patches into running programs while they were actively servicing requests; 15 patches had a CVE number or were other critical updates. Applying a patch with WFPATCH did not lead to any noticeable increase in request latencies – even under high load – while applying the same patch after reaching global quiescence increases tail latencies by a factor of up to 41× for MariaDB.


Given a set of items, a Multidimensional Computer Adaptive Test (MCAT) selects those items from the bank according to the estimated abilities of the student, resulting in an individualized test. MCATs seek to maximize the test's accuracy, based on multiple simultaneous examination abilities (unlike a Computer Adaptive Test - CAT - which evaluates a single ability) using the sequence of items previously answered. Although MCATs have been very well studied from a statistical point of view, there is no computational system that covers all the steps needed for its appropriated use such as: the use of a calibrated item bank, proposal of initial and stopping criteria for the test, criteria for estimating the ability of the examinee and criteria to select items. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (i) to present an innovative architecture of an MCAT for real users, as a Web application, and (ii) to discuss the theoretical and methodological development of such MCAT, through a new approach named here Computer-based Multidimensional Adaptive Testing (CBMAT). The proof of concept of CBMAT was an implementation called Multidimensional Adaptive Test System for Educational Purposes (MADEPT). In simulations, MADEPT proved to be a computer system suitable for applications with real users, secure, accurate and portable.


Abstract Children with specific reading comprehension difficulties were compared with control children on tests of language skill. The two groups performed at a similar level on tests requiring predominantly phonological skills, but the poor comprehenders performed less well on tests tapping semantic ability. Although the two groups were matched for decoding ability (as assessed by nonword reading), the poor comprehenders were worse at reading words with irregular spelling patterns and low-frequency words. These results show that despite having adequate phonological decoding skills, poor comprehenders have problems reading words that are typically read with support from semantics. These findings are related to connectionist models of reading development in which phonological and semantic processes interact.


To improve our understanding of chlorine chemistry indoors, reactive chlorine species such as hydrogen chloride (HCl) must be analyzed using fast time-response measurement techniques. Although well studied outdoors, sources of HCl indoors are unknown. In this study, mixing ratios of gaseous HCl were measured at 0.5 Hz in the indoor environment using a cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) instrument. The CRDS measurement rate provides a major advance in observational capability compared to other established techniques. Measurements of HCl were performed during three types of household activities: (a) floor exposure to bleach, (b) chlorinated and nonchlorinated detergent use in household dishwashers, and (c) cooking events. Surface application of bleach resulted in a reproducible increase of 0.1 ppbv in the affected room. Emissions of HCl from automated dishwashers were observed only when chlorinated detergents were used, with additional HCl emitted during the drying cycle. Increased mixing ratios of HCl were also observed during meal preparation on an electric element stovetop. These observations of HCl derived from household activities indicate either direct emission or secondary production of HCl via chlorine atoms is possible. Calculations of photolysis rate constants of chlorine atom precursors provide evidence that photolysis may contribute to indoor HCl levels.


The main task of a mobile robot is to perform navigation and positioning. Common mobile robot which employs line tracking system can only work on pre-constructed track where else infrared guided robot only can work within infrared's line of sight. In addition to that, the wheel driving system of the mobile robot plays a vital role in allowing the robot to navigate along a limited direction depending on its wheel architecture. To steer a robot in any direction and to know its precise location in the environment is the ultimate goal of mobile robot navigation. To achieve this, a methodology is laid out in this thesis. An Optical Tracking Device (OTD) module is utilized to provide the accurate coordinates of the current location of the robot virtually on many flat surfaces. A holonomic wheel system is designed to allow the robot to navigate through multiple destinations. A navigation algorithm is developed to position the robot to any point accurately on a flat surface. As a result, this will allow the robot to freely move in any direction to reach multiple target destinations without any difficulties. The navigation and the positioning device could be implemented in industrial robots that especially required navigating to different points of a workspace, such as carrying goods from one point to another, and also patrolling robots within a workspace. This thesis also covers experimented result of the OTD that could detect up to a resolution of 1000 dots per inch. Nine points were designated to test the OTD on a test grid. The testing process is repeated for 10 times. The result shows that the mobile robot is able to navigate holonomically according to preprogrammed paths with difference of not more than 0.1 inch (3 mm) from the targeted location or with less than 5% error.
This work allows a high precision positioning system design for a robot that are also less dependent to the outside environment, and utilizes the workspace with higher
efficiency compared to robots using conventional sensors.


This paper describes a method for improving the performance of a continuous speech recognizer by modelling pronunciation variation. Although the improvements obtained with this method are small, they are in line with those reported by other authors. A series of experiments was carried out to model pronunciation variation. In the first set of experiments word internal pronunciation variation was modelled by applying a set of four phonological rules to the words in the lexicon. In the second set of experiments, variation across word boundaries was also modelled. The results obtained with both methods are presented in detail. Furthermore, statistics are given on the application of the four phonological rules on the training database. We will explain why the improvements obtained with this method are small and how we intend to increase the improvements in our future research.


Rainwater harvesting is the technique of capturing the rainfall to meet some water needs in both urban and rural areas. The volume of rainwater collected from rainwater harvesting system varies from place to place and depends mainly on the climatic condition. Typically, the rainwater harvesting system is composed of the catchment (roof), gutter, rainwater pipe, and storage tank. Reliability of a rainwater harvesting system mainly depends on the collected volume in rainwater storage tank and it is also used to check whether the collected volume of rainwater can meet a specific water demand (either for potable or non-potable uses).

In the present study, a rainwater harvesting system is installed at the Faculty of Engineering, University Putra Malaysia. The system is tested using data from 24 different rain events. The collected data includes rain depth and rainwater volume. It is found that the rainwater volume ranges form 0.027 m³ to 4.03 m³. The actual data is used to produce an empirical model for predicting the collected rainwater volume. Calibration and validation processes are conducted to the proposed model and T-test shows that the model prediction is within 95% level of confidence.

Also, the water consumption for toilet flushing is monitored using water meter. Reliability of the installed rainwater harvesting system for toilet flushing is computed. It is found that the system reliability ranges from 26.61 % to 100 % depending on daily water demand and recorded rainwater depth.


DNA nanostructures, especially DNA origami, receive close interest because of the programmable control over their shape and size, precise spatial addressability, easy and high-yield preparation, mechanical flexibility, and biocompatibility. They have been used to organize a variety of nanoscale elements for specific functions, resulting in unprecedented improvements in the field of nanophotonics and nanomedical research. In this review, the discussion focuses on the employment of DNA nanostructures for the precise organization of noble metal nanoparticles to build interesting plasmonic nanoarchitectures, for the fabrication of visualized sensors and for targeted drug delivery. The effects offered by DNA nanostructures are highlighted in the areas of nanoantennas, collective plasmonic behaviors, single-molecule analysis, and cancer-cell targeting or killing. Finally, the challenges in the field of DNA nanotechnology for realistic application are discussed and insights for future directions are provided.


The design of aeronautical engines is subject to many constraints that cover performance gain as well as increasingly sensitive environmental issues. These often contradicting objectives are currently being answered through an increase in the local and global temperature in the hot stages of the engine. As a result, the solid parts encounter very high temperature levels and gradients that are critical for the engine lifespan. Combustion chamber walls in particular are subject to large thermal constraints. It is thus essential for designers to characterize accurately the local thermal state of such devices. Today, wall temperature evaluation is obtained experimentally by complex thermocolor tests. To limit such expensive experiments, efforts are currently performed to provide high fidelity numerical tools able to predict the combustion chamber wall temperature. This specific thermal field however requires the consideration of all the modes of heat transfer (convection, conduction and radiation) and the heat production (through the chemical reaction) within the burner. The resolution of such a multi-physic problem can be done numerically through the use of several dedicated numerical and algorithmic approaches. In this manuscript, the methodology relies on a partitioned coupling approach, based on a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) solver to resolve the flow motion and the chemical reactions, a Discrete Ordinate Method (DOM) radiation solver and an unsteady solid conduction code. The various issues related to computer resources distribution as well as the coupling methodology employed to deal with disparity of time and space scales present in each mode of heat transfer are addressed in this manuscript. Coupled application high performance studies, carried out both on a toy model and an industrial burner configuration evidence parameters of importance as well as potential path of improvements. The thermal coupling approach is then considered from a physical point of view on two distinct configurations. First, one addresses the impact of the methodology and the thermal equilibrium state between a reacting fluid and a solid for a simple flame holder academic case. The effect of the flame holder wall temperature on the flame stabilization pattern is addressed through fluid-only predictions. These simulations highlight interestingly three different theoretical equilibrium states. The physical relevance of these three states is then assessed through the computation of several CHT simulations for different initial solutions and solid conductivities. It is shown that only two equilibrium states are physical and that bifurcation between the two possible physical states depends both on solid conductivity and initial condition.Furthermore, the coupling methodology is shown to have no impact on the solutions within the range of parameters tested. A similar methodology is then applied to a helicopter combustor for which radiative heat transfer is additionally considered. Different computations are presented to assess the role of each heat transfer process on the temperature field: a reference adiabatic fluid-only simulation, Conjugate Heat Transfer, RadiationFluid Thermal Interaction and fully coupled simulations are performed. It is shown that coupling LES with conduction in walls is feasible in an industrial context with acceptable CPU costs and gives good trends of temperature repartition. Then, for the combustor geometry and operating point studied, computations illustrate that radiation plays an important role in the wall temperature distribution. Comparisons with thermocolor tests are globally in a better agreement when the three solvers are coupled.


Purpose: To assess overall reliability and validity of a neck-specific questionnaire, the Profile Fitness Mapping neck questionnaire (ProFitMap-neck), on three chronic neck pain groups. Method: Participating groups were as follows: whiplash associated disorders, inpatient care (IP-WAD, n = 127); nonspecific neck pain, inpatient care (IP-NS, n = 83) and nonspecific neck pain subjects (non-IP-NS, n = 104). All groups answered the ProFitMap-neck and the SF-36, whereas non-IP-NS also answered the Neck Disability Index (NDI) and the Functional Self-Efficacy Scale (SES). Internal consistency, test–retest reliability and components of convergent construct, face and content validity were determined for the ProFitMap-neck. Results: The ProFitMap-neck showed good internal consistency in all three groups, and ICC test–retest reliability (0.80–0.91). Good correlation (0.66–0.78) and highest agreement was reached with NDI. According to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, the symptom scale of the ProFitMap-neck was mainly classified to the domain of impairments–body functions, and the functional limitation scale to the activity limitation domain. Conclusion: The results indicate that the ProFitMap-neck is valid for measuring symptoms and functional limitations in people with chronic neck pain. The combination of a composite total score of symptoms and function as well as separate scores of each domain makes ProFitMap-neck suitable for research as well as in clinical practice. Implications for Rehabilitation The ProFitMap-neck can be used as a valid self-assessment tool for measuring symptoms and functional limitations in people belonging to the most prevalent categories of neck pain. The combination of the symptom and functional limitation questionnaire scores in a total score can be used for an overall clinical judgment.


This is an excellent book that presents an impressive amount of valuable information on tumours of the nose, sinuses and nasopharynx. The authors are highly respected in their field with vast combined experience. The book is well structured. The introductory chapter gives detailed information on the history and evolution of surgery of the maxilla, paranasal sinuses and skull base. The format of the chapters is excellent. Each individual chapter starts with definitions, synonyms and diagnostic strategies, including clinical, imaging and histological strategies. This is followed by treatments and complications, and ends with citations from literature for further reference. The book is divided into 2 sections, comprising a total of 26 chapters over 596 pages of text. Colour is utilised in the tables, figures, diagrams and line drawings, which are used to good effect in illustrating important points, concepts and research. The section on surgical techniques is very instructive, with good quality pre-operative, intra-operative and post-operative pictures. Coloured drawings are also used on occasion to describe some surgical procedures. The techniques of an endoscopic approach, external approach and combined transfacial-intracranial open approach are described in detail. Each approach is supplemented with key points from the authors' experiences. Section II is dedicated to the nasopharynx, and describes the management of benign and malignant pathology. The chapter on nasopharyngeal carcinoma management in particular provides a very valuable description of the treatment strategies based on current evidence. Overall, this is an excellent book. It gives clear and concise, up-to-date text, with extensive detail on tumours of the nose, paranasal sinuses and nasopharynx. Certainly, I would recommend this book, especially for registrars and fellows with a special interest in endoscopy and the anterior skull base, for head and neck oncologists, and for consultants in otolaryngology and maxillofacial surgery.


A set of integro-differential equations, called the "complete circuit equations," are derived from Maxwell's equations and applied to the solution of the parallel-wire transmission lines the double-helix transmission line, and the single helix, or helical waveguide. These equations take into account the effects of inductance and capacitance distribution, retardation, and outward radiation. A generalization of earlier concepts of distributed inductance and elastance (or inverse capacitance) is manifest in the solution of the helical lines where these quantities become functions of the phase coefficient or wavelength of propagation and are Fourier transforms of certain closed-form distribution functions. In general, phase velocity is a complicated implicit function of frequency, but under a hypothesis of "mode segregation on the basis of wavelength" the phase velocity and frequency can be obtained parametrically in terms of a third variable, called the phase parameter. Using this hypothesis, plots of phase velocity and characteristic impedance versus frequency were obtained for the double helix and the helical waveguide.


The structure of a crystal of natural melilite from San Venanzo, Umbria (Italy) of the general formula X(2)T1(T2)(2)O(7), where X = Ca(0.945)Sr(0.005)Na(0.04)K(0.01), T1 = Mg(0.92)Al(0.08) and T2 = Si(0.99)Al(0.01), has been solved and refined as an incommensurate structure in five-dimensional superspace. The structure is tetragonal, superspace group P(-)42(1)m:p4mg, cell parameters a = 7.860 (1), c = 5.024 (1) A, modulation vectors q(1) = 0.2815 (3)(a* + b*), q(2) = 0.2815 (3)(-a* + b*). The data collection was performed on a KumaCCD diffractometer. The structure was refined from 7606 reflections to final R = 0.0481. A special modification of the refinement program Jana2000 was necessary to take into account overlapping of satellite reflections m x n = +/-1, which could not be properly separated in the integration procedure. The final model includes modulations of the atomic positions as well as modulations of the thermal parameters. The latter are induced by strong differences in the neighbourhood of the actual modulated positions. The occupational modulation was neither significant for X nor for T1 sites and the sites were supposed to be occupied only by Ca and Mg, respectively. As a consequence of the Ca and O positional modulations six-, seven- and eightfold Ca coordination occur throughout the structure and the thermal ellipsoid changes its shape correspondingly. The positional modulation of the atoms causes variations in the interatomic distances which, however, do not affect bond-valence sums considerably, but induce flattening and rotation in T1 and T2 tetrahedra, respectively.


Bioinformatics for Beginners provides a coherent and friendly treatment of bioinformatics for any student or scientist within biology who has not routinely performed bioinformatic analysis.

 The book discusses relevant principles needed to understand the theoretical underpinnings of bioinformatic analysis, and demonstrates with examples targeted analysis using freely available web-based software and publicly available databases. Eschewing non-essential information, the work focuses on principles and hands-on analysis and points to many further study options.

 Avoids non-essential coverage yet fully describes the field for beginners - in approximately 200 pages of text

 Explains the molecular basis of evolution to place bioinformatic analysis in biological context

 Provides useful links to the vast resource of publicly available bioinformatic databases and analysis tools

 Over 100 figures aid in concept discovery and illustration


Advances in location-acquisition and wireless communication technologies have led to wider availability of spatio-temporal (ST) data, which has unique spatial properties (i.e. geographical hierarchy and distance) and temporal properties (i.e. closeness, period and trend). In this paper, we propose a Deep-learning-based prediction model for Spatio-Temporal data (DeepST). We leverage ST domain knowledge to design the architecture of DeepST, which is comprised of two components: spatio-temporal and global. The spatio-temporal component employs the framework of convolutional neural networks to simultaneously model spatial near and distant dependencies, and temporal closeness, period and trend. The global component is used to capture global factors, such as day of the week, weekday or weekend. Using DeepST, we build a real-time crowd flow forecasting system called UrbanFlow1. Experiment results on diverse ST datasets verify DeepST's ability to capture ST data's spatio-temporal properties, showing the advantages of DeepST beyond four baseline methods.


Absentee landowning has long been tied to economic distress in Appalachia. In this important revisionist study, Barbara Rasmussen examines the nature of landownership in five counties of West Virginia and its effects upon the counties' economic and social development. Rasmussen untangles a web of outside domination of the region that commenced before the American Revolution, creating a legacy of hardship that continues to plague Appalachia today. The owners and exploiters of the region have included Lord Fairfax, George Washington, and, most recently, the U.S. Forest Service. The overarching concern of these absentee landowners has been to control the land, the politics, the government, and the resources of the fabulously rich Appalachian Mountains. Their early and relentless domination of politics assured a land tax system that still favors absentee landholders and simultaneously impoverishes the state. Class differences, a capitalistic outlook, and an ethic of growth and development pervaded western Virginia from earliest settlement. Residents, however, were quickly outspent by wealthier, more powerful outsiders. Insecurity in landownership, Rasmussen demonstrates, is the most significant difference between early mountain farmers and early American farmers everywhere.


The rise of IoT has led to large volumes of personal data being produced at the network's edge. Most IoT applications process data in the cloud raising concerns over privacy and security. As many IoT applications are event-based and are implemented on cloud-based, serverless platforms, we've seen a number of proposals to deploy serverless solutions at the edge to address concerns over data transfer. However, conventional serverless platforms use container technology to run user-defined functions. Containers introduce their own issues regarding security - due to a large trusted computing base -, and performance issues including long initialisation times. Additionally, OpenWhisk a popular and widely used container-based serverless platform available for edge devices perform relatively poorly as we demonstrate in our evaluation. In this paper, we propose to investigate unikernel as a solution to build serverless platform at the edge, addressing in particular performance and security concerns. We present UniFaaS, a prototype edge-serverless platform which leverages unikernels - tiny library single-address-space operating systems that only contain the parts of the OS needed to run a given application - to execute functions. The result is a serverless platform with extremely low memory and CPU footprints, and excellent performance. UniFaaS has been designed to be deployed on low-powered single-board computer devices, such as Raspberry Pi or Arduino, without compromising on performance.


This paper first reviews some of the main contributions of the new institutional economics to the analysis of the process of competitive transformation of network industries. It shows that neoinstitutional analysis is complementary to the microeconomics of rational pricing, since it accounts for the decisive role of an institutional framework adapted to new transactions. It emphasizes the importance of the political reform process, which draws on the conditions of attractiveness and feasibility to define an initial reorganization of property rights in these industries. The paper then analyzes in this light some of the main challenges ahead for electricity regulation: the question of investment in generation capacities and the link to long term contracts, the regulation of wholesale market power, the support to Renewable Energy Sources for Electricity (RES-E) and the design of new regulatory authorities.


Polish accession to the EU was the main reason for the growth of internationalization of Polish food and Polish meat industry was in the process of great importance. The result is seven and half times growth in foreign trade of meat products in 2004-2013. Exports increased almost six-fold to 3.8 billion euros, while imports up to sixteen 2.1 billion euros. The excess of exports over imports increased almost three and half times to 1.7 billion euros. Growing role and importance of companies with foreign capital in the Polish meat sector. Poland through increased foreign investment and trade turns increasingly occurring process of internationalization of the economy.


Turkey's relations with the European Union (EU) are at a critical juncture. As of 2002, the process of adapting Turkey's legal framework to the EU's political membership criteria began in earnest. The legislative amendments carried out in this respect amount to one of the largest, most wide-ranging reform processes Turkey has ever experienced. At the level of legislation, it involves updating Turkey's laws to ensure that the prerequisites of a stable, pluralist democracy are in place, and that human rights are respected. In order for these amendments to be passed, however, the reforms must also be continuously justified vis-a-vis key constituencies. In this respect, the reforms are not only interesting from the perspective of EU-Turkey relations. They come at a crucial time in Turkey's domestic politics, and pose a challenge to some of the most fundamental divisions in the country's political party system. For the secularist state elite, supporting the reforms entails loosening their grip on the state, and allowing the public expression of Muslim and Kurdish identities. For the Islamic party elites, it involves modifying their anti-Western rhetoric, and reconciling their interests with the universalist norms expressed in the EU's membership criteria. Thus, successfully following through with the legal prerequisites of EU membership requires not only legal engineering, but also a radical shift in Turkey's political culture. Against this background, this thesis addresses the question of how representatives of Turkey's largest political parties have framed the reforms in public discourse. Specifically, using a qualitative and quantitative content analysis, it analyzes the debates in Turkey's Grand National Assembly regarding a selection of key adaptation packages, and measures to what extent Turkish MPs, when justifying or opposing the amendments, have distanced themselves from the antagonistic ideologies with which they have been associated in the past. The analysis finds that they have. In general, all of the parties have moderated their antagonistic discourses, and have emphasized the inherent and universal validity of the norms underlying them. The only clear exception is the far-right Nationalist Action Party, whose MPs see the reforms as a threat to Turkey's unity. Interestingly, the analysis also finds that among the more moderate parties, those traditionally associated with the secular, Westernized state elite have had the most difficulties in adapting to the EU's criteria. The Islamic parties, including the Justice and Development Party currently in government, have consistently emphasized the need for strengthening civil society and guaranteeing the freedom of speech and conscience. Although this may to some extent be a matter of self-interest, there are also indications that this is not the case.


An approach to hybrid artificial intelligence problem solving is presented in which the aim is to forecast, in real time, the physical parameter values of a complex and dynamic environment: the ocean. In situations in which the rules that determine a system are unknown or fuzzy, the prediction of the parameter values that determine the characteristic behavior of the system can be a problematic task. In such a situation, it has been found that a hybrid artificial intelligence model can provide a more effective means of performing such predictions than either connectionist or symbolic techniques used separately. The hybrid forecasting system that has been developed consists of a case-based reasoning system integrated with a radial basis function artificial neural network. The results obtained from experiments in which the system operated in real time in the oceanographic environment, are presented.


ABSTRACT Data-driven segmentation has become standard practice in strategic marketing. Typically, however, respondents are grouped only once, implicitly assuming deterministic nature of the segmentation methods applied. Once the segments are derived, background variables are used to test the significance of the difference between clusters indicating external validity of the market segments. High external validity implies a high level of trustworthiness of the solution and thus manageri-ally useful market segments to choose from. However, single runs of explorative analysis remain only a weak basis for good long-term managerial decisions. In this study a different approach is suggested to im-prove the quality of the market structure insight for decision-making: two data-driven segmentation solutions are constructed independently. Association between them is used as an additional internal validity indicator. Benefit and behavioural segmentation bases are used to illustrate the concept: surfers provided information regarding the importance of aspects of proposed surf destinations and destinations they had previously visited. Segments resulting from both bases are profiled: they notably differ in background information. Significant association between these solutions supports the validity and managerial usefulness for target segment choice for the following targeted marketing action. Using this procedure results in the identification of stable consumer groups, which in turn leads to an improved understanding of customer segments; and thus enables the industry to improve the quality by customizing the product.


Recognizing that municipalities are inherently selfish and that they would intentionally exclude certain land uses and structures, the majority of states have required that their cities and towns plan for and accommodate undesirable land uses within their borders. The planned incorporation of undesirable and desirable land uses is a fundamental attribute of states that require and enforce the preparation of coordinated and rationally developed comprehensive plans. This Article discusses the approach taken in Massachusetts—a non plan state—and its myopic and regressive mechanism for compelling the construction of affordable housing. The Article suggests that the Massachusetts example is a failure of law and policy and that the statute, both abusive and abused, must be repealed. In its stead, Massachusetts must look to the success of numerous other states that have incorporated the development of affordable housing—and other land uses—within a rationally developed, and legally meaningful, comprehensive plan.


Using recent mathematical advances, a geometric approach to rare noise-driven transition events in nonequilibrium systems is given, and an algorithm for computing the maximum likelihood transition curve is generalized to the case of state-dependent noise. It is applied to a model of electronic transport in semiconductor superlattices to investigate transitions between metastable electric field distributions. When the applied voltage $V$ is varied near a saddle-node bifurcation at $V_th$, the mean life time $ $ of the initial metastable state is shown to scale like $log \propto |V_th - V|^{3/2}$ as $V\to V_th$.


Amelioration of subsoil acidity using gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) or lime (CaCO3) was studied on sandy textured soils with low water holding capacity in a low rainfall environment. Field trials were established in 1989 at two sites on yellow sandplain soils to investigate whether different rates, sources and combinations of gypsum and lime application could be used to increase wheat and lupin yields. Gypsum increased wheat yields by up to 45% in the first two growing seasons whereas lime increased wheat yields by up to only 15% in the second season. The highest yields were generally recorded when gypsum and lime were applied together. The response of wheat to the various treatments varied both regionally and temporally and it is suggested that the inherent soil solution composition affected the magnitude and rapidity of wheat responses to gypsum. The rate of gypsum application affected the longevity of the wheat responses, with a low application rate (1 t ha-1) increasing yields for only one season. No differences in wheat yields were recorded between different sources of gypsum or application rates higher than 3 t ha-1. In contrast to wheat, lupin yields were substantially lower on gypsum-treated plots. The yield decline did not appear to be related to any simple nutritional factor and the gypsum effect was generally minimized when lime was added with the gypsum. The results indicated that lower rates of gypsum than used in previous subsoil amelioration studies were suitable for increasing wheat yields on sandy soils in low rainfall environments, and that gypsum should not be used if lupins are to be grown within at least 2 years of its application to the soil surface.


Conventional wisdom holds that there is a connection between (a) the jurisprudential commitment to legal positivism expressed in Erie R.R. v. Tompkins, and (b) Erie's holding that the common law powers of federal courts exercised in Swift v. Tyson are unconstitutional. In this essay we analyze and challenge this conventional wisdom. The conventional wisdom is sometimes expressed as an historical connection between beliefs about positivism and Erie's overruling of Swift. We think this historical claim lacks affirmative support, overlooks significant evidence to the contrary, and misleadingly views Erie's pre-history through the distorting lens of Holmes' dissents. Other times the conventional wisdom is expressed as a conceptual or normative connection between the truth of positivism and Erie's holding. We think these contentions too are wrong. Our claim here is one of irrelevance: Erie's commitment to legal positivism is conceptually and normatively independent of its constitutional holding. Legal positivism is a general theory about the nature of law. Even if true, it has no implications for the allocation of authority between the state and federal governments. This argument shows that Erie is not a decision about the nature of law, but rather reflects a particular time-bound set of constitutional and policy priorities. It helps to explain why some recent philosophical attacks on Erie are groundless. It demonstrates that the many outstanding mysteries about the practical implications of Erie's holding cannot, as many think, be resolved by recourse to legal positivism. And it presents a cautionary lesson about the dangers that inhere in attempting to derive constitutional conclusions from theories about law.


cDNA cassettes encoding the foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) structural protein precursor (P1-2A) together with the 3C protease, which cleave this molecule to 1AB, 1C and 1D, were constructed. These cassettes were introduced into vaccinia virus (VV) transfer vectors. Attempts to isolate recombinant VVs constitutively expressing these cassettes were unsuccessful. However, when the P1-2A-3C cassette was placed under the control of the bacteriophage T7 promoter, stable VV/FMDV recombinants were isolated. Co-infection with recombinant VV vTF7-3 (which expresses T7 RNA polymerase) led to the production of correctly processed FMDV capsid proteins. Analysis by sucrose gradient centrifugation showed that material which co-sedimented with natural empty capsid particles (70S) was formed. Electron microscopy revealed empty capsid-like particles with diameters of about 30 nm. Studies using monoclonal antibodies specific for conformational epitopes indicated that the antigenicity of the synthetic particles was similar to whole virions and natural empty capsid particles. Surprisingly, merely the modification of a single amino acid residue within the myristoylation consensus sequence at the N terminus of P1-2A allowed the isolation of a recombinant VV which constitutively expressed the correctly processed proteins. However, the capsid proteins expressed from this mutant cassette failed to assemble into 70S empty particles.


Piero Anversa is viewed as both a pioneer in the study of cardiac regeneration and an outspoken, controversial voice in a field full of disagreement. So when an ongoing internal investigation into his lab at Harvard Medical School's Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) came to light earlier this year, the field was shaken. BWH has not released details about its specific concerns, but in April, the journal Circulation agreed to Harvard's request to retract a paper on which Anversa collaborated, and The Lancet issued an "Expression of Concern" about another paper. Meanwhile, some are expressing doubts about a cardiac cell therapy Anversa developed, and an anonymous former lab fellow has published accusations about the group's scientific integrity.


TRansformation Induced Plasticity (TRIP) steels are promising materials to achieve a better combination of formability and strength than conventional steels due to their unique microstructural makeup. Though welding is a vital part of auto body manufacturing, the weldability of TRIP steels has some complex and poorly understood features, which has served to retard the growth of its applications in the automotive industry. In this study, autogeneous welds were carried out on Al-alloyed TRIP steel using a 4 kW diode laser. Both fusion zone solidification behavior and subsequent austenite transformation products were investigated with optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. In terms of solidification behavior, fusion zones solidified with high temperature δ-ferrite as the primary phase. Fusion zone microstructure at room temperature was composed of ferrite with a skeletal morphology characteristic of solidification, and austenite decomposition products almost all having a lath morphology. Skeletal ferrite covered about 30% fusion zone area. Upper bainite laths separated by retained austenite films comprised most of the transformed microstructure, about 65% of the fused area. Lower bainite with carbide particles dispersed in an aligned way, chunk shaped retained austenite, lath martensite and twinned martensite were also occasionally observed. The Al content was considered to be for a dominant influence on fusion zone microstructure evolution.


Operational algorithms for retrieval of aerosols from satellite observations are typically created manually based on the domain knowledge. Validation studies, where the retrievals are compared to the available ground-truth data, are periodically performed with the goal of understanding how to further improve the quality of the retrieval algorithms. This letter describes a data-mining approach aimed to facilitate this highly labor-intensive process. It is based on training a neural network for retrieval and comparing its performance with that of the operational algorithm. The situations, where a neural network is more accurate, point to the weaknesses of the operational algorithm that could be corrected. Use of decision trees is proposed to provide easily interpretable descriptions of such situations. The approach was applied on 3646 collocated Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer and AERONET observations over the continental U.S. related to the retrieval of aerosol optical thickness. The experiments showed that the approach is feasible and that it can be a valuable tool for the domain scientists working on the development of retrieval algorithms.


Automatically highlighting a text aims at identifying key portions that are the most important to a reader. In this paper, we present a web-based framework designed to efficiently and scalably crowdsource two independent but related tasks: collecting highlight annotations, and comparing the performance of automated highlighting systems. The first task is necessary to understand human preferences and train supervised automated highlighting systems. The second task yields a more accurate and fine-grained evaluation than existing automated performance metrics.


This article describes the first application of a novel path flow and origin/destination (OD) matrix estimator for iterated dynamic traffic assignment (DTA) microsimulations. The presented approach, which operates on a trip-based demand representation, is derived from an agent-based DTA calibration methodology that relies on an activity-based demand model (Flötteröd, Bierlaire, & Nagel, 2011). The objective of this work is to demonstrate the transferability of the agent-based approach to the more widely used OD matrix-based demand representation. The calibration (i) operates at the same disaggregate level as the microsimulation and (ii) has drastic computational advantages over conventional OD matrix estimators in that the demand adjustments are conducted within the iterative loop of the DTA microsimulation, which results in a running time of the calibration that is in the same order of magnitude as a plain simulation. We describe an application of this methodology to the trip-based DRACULA microsimulation and present an illustrative example that clarifies its capabilities.


Internet of Things (IoT) is composed of many IoT devices
connected throughout the Internet, that collect and share information to
represent the environment. IoT is currently restructuring the actual manufacturing to smart manufacturing. However, inherent characteristics of
IoT lead to a number of titanic challenges such as decentralization, weak
interoperability, security, etc. The artificial intelligence provides opportunities to address IoT's challenges, e.g the agent technology. This paper
presents first an overview of ML and discusses some related work. Then,
we briefly present the classic IoT architecture. Then we introduce our
proposed Intelligent IoT (IIoT) architecture. We next concentrate on introducing the approach using multi-agent DRL in IIoT. Finally, in this
promising field, we outline the open directions of future work.