This paper presents a synopsis of the findings of a valley bottom wetland monitoring study in which dominant hydrological processes maintaining the system are quantitatively defined. The Craigieburn-Manalana is a wetland subjected to technical rehabilitation, at the headwaters of the Sand River in the lowveld savanna region of South Africa. Findings include the identification of a rapid water delivery mechanism from the surrounding hillslopes to the wetland following a threshold-exceeding precipitation event, when hillslope-toe soil matric potential is close to 0, leading to a raising of the wetland water table by >0.7 m within 3 h. A summary of quantified fluxes and associated water budget of the wetland and its contributing catchment is developed. It is revealed that this wetland does not necessarily conform to the typical assumptions that wetlands augment low flows. Surface layer scintillometry shows actual wetland evapotranspiration to dominate the water budget during the dry season (2.3–3.5 mm/d) compared to its contributing catchment (0.9–2.2 mm/d), whilst stream discharge had ceased. Hydrograph separation, based on stable isotopes (18O), revealed that the wetland does not attenuate peak flows during the summer rains when the wetlands soil moisture deficit is close to 0, since more than 66% of stream discharge comprised event water. These results are discussed within the context of current hydrological understanding of southern African headwater wetlands, such as dambos. Keywords: hillslope processes, hydro-geomorphology, water budget, dambos, rehabilitation, wetlands


BACKGROUND--In fibrosing alveolitis activation of lung fibroblasts is the decisive event in the pathogenetic sequence leading to pulmonary fibrosis. Fibroblast stimulating activity was measured in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid to assess its relationship to the activity of fibrosing alveolitis. METHODS--Nine control subjects and 40 patients with fibrosing alveolitis caused by idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (n = 22) or pulmonary involvement in systemic sclerosis (n = 18) were studied. All patients were followed up by lung function testing for a minimum of six months (mean (SE) 13.3 (1.4) months). Twenty five patients received immunosuppressive therapy and 15 refused. At the beginning of follow up BAL was performed and, as a possible indicator of fibroblast stimulating mediators within the lungs, chemotactic migration of cultured human fibroblasts elicited by native BAL fluid was measured in Boyden-type chambers and expressed as a percentage of the chemoattractant effect of 25 ng/ml platelet derived growth factor. The procollagen III peptide level in BAL fluid served as a marker for collagen synthesis. RESULTS--Chemoattractant activity was elevated in the patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and systemic sclerosis compared with the control group, (mean (SE) 56.4% (8.5%)) and 72.3% (16.3%) v 12.6% (4.0%). Chemoattractant activity was inversely correlated with total lung capacity (TLC) (r = -0.45) and with vital capacity (VC) (r = -0.33). Procollagen III peptide concentrations in BAL fluid and chemoattractant activity were not significantly correlated. For further evaluation chemoattractant activity of 36% (mean value of controls +2 SD) was used to separate normal (< 36%) from elevated (> or = 36%) activity. At the end of follow up, untreated patients with high chemoattractant activity (> or = 36%) showed a significant reduction of VC, TLC, and exercise arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) and a small decrease in carbon monoxide transfer factor (TLCO), whereas a significant improvement in VC, TLC, and TLCO and a small increase of exercise PaO2 occurred in treated patients with high chemoattractant activity. Patients with low chemoattractant activity (< 36%) showed no consistent change in lung function measurements, irrespective of treatment. In contrast, lung function results and differential cell counts in BAL fluid failed to identify progressive disease. CONCLUSIONS--In patients with fibrosing alveolitis the chemoattractant activity of BAL fluid seems to be an independent indicator of lung fibroblast stimulating activity providing relevant information about disease activity, and may help to improve the clinical management of these patients.


De-industrialization, Universities underfinancing and intellectual migration: the Italian case. The aim of this paper is to analyze the link existing between the reduction of public expenditure on tertiary education and scientific research and the increase in migration on the part of young individuals with high human capital, from Southern to Northern Italy. It will be shown that the reduction of public spending on tertiary education and scientific research basically depends on the reduction of labour demand for highly skilled workers, and that this strategy proves to be counterproductive for the long-term growth of the Italian economy and for purpose of reducing interregional divergences. These arguments are dealt with in a Kaldorian theoretical perspective


Leptin, a 16kDa protein, is secreted primarily by adipose tissue. Its effects are pleiotropic, with known roles in body mass regulation, haematopoiesis, immune function and reproduction.Studies of the leptin system in females were undertaken to complement existing animal and human studies. Serum leptin levels were found to increase in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle raising the possibility of a role for leptin at the time of implantation. RT-PCR studies showed that leptin receptors were expressed in the human endometrium throughout the menstrual cycle. In these preliminary studies, these receptors appeared to be functional in response to leptin; increasing proliferation and decreasing TNF-a production in cultured endometrial cells. This implies that leptin has a local effect at the level of the endometrium.Many cytokines are bound to proteins in serum; a proportion of this binding can be attributed to a soluble cytokine receptor. Soluble receptors and binding proteins have a variety of roles, acting as scavengers, carriers, agonists and antagonists. In order to investigate this phenomenon in the leptin system, a radio-receptor assay was developed to measure leptin-binding activity (LBA). The leptin receptor has an extracellular domain that is common to all isoforms and therefore, LBA may also reflect the binding parameters of cell surface receptors. Serum leptin levels of LBA were found to be low at birth, high in early childhood, to fall steadily through puberty and remain at the post-pubertal levels throughout adult life. This suggests that leptin and LBA has an important role in the initiation of puberty. There was no significant variation in LBA during the menstrual cycle.Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) exist in the leptin receptor gene. Studies of two of these SNPs, GLN223ARG and LYS656ASN, present in the extracellular domain of the receptor were undertaken to assess if genetic changes are associated with differences in phenotype or effect ligand binding. Homozygosity of the G allele of GLN223ARG is associated with lower fat mass, BMI and leptin levels in postmenopausal Caucasian females. This polymorphism changes the binding characteristics of the receptor, with a higher LBA being associated with homozygosity of the G allele. This suggests that the actual binding of leptin to its receptor may be an important factor in the regulation of body weight and adiposity.


Two apparatuses for measuring the specific permeability of wood specimens are presented. The developed method was used to measure specific permeability to water in the longitudinal direction (of the log) for three wood species, pine (Pinus sylvestris), birch (Betula pendula), and eucalyptus (Eucalyptus grandis). The wood species were cooked to a certain degree under kraft cooking conditions. The effect of pretreatments on the specific permeability of uncooked wood was also studied. These pretreatments include boiling in water, steaming, and impregnation with cooking liquor. Wood species were cooked to a certain degree with an H factor of up to 600 for pine, 376 for birch, and 400 for eucalyptus. The average specific permeabilities to water ranged from 1 × 10−13 to 3 × 10−12 m3/m for cooked pine, from 1 × 10−13 to 1 × 10−12 m3/m for cooked birch, and from 3 × 10−11 to 5 × 10−11 m3/m for cooked eucalyptus.


1 Policies to move African economies from growth to transformation are urgently needed, but are they feasible, given typical political-economic constraints? Drawing on a multidisciplinary literature, this paper warns against the twin errors of ignoring such constraints and treating them as insuperable. There is no doubt that typical patterns of power and interest undermine the credible commitments, adequate public good provision, investment coordination, and provisions for joint learning that are crucial in economic transformation. Moreover, efforts to tackle poor economic governance comprehensively have generally failed. However, history tells us that successful economic transformation occurs in steps and is often achieved by targeted measures and focused institutional improvements in priority areas, with a good deal of context-sensitive trial and error. What is needed is a politically smart approach to the conditions for economic transformation, one that is based conceptually on the form/function distinction, empirically on the growing body of fine-grained case studies of experience at sector level, and a problem-driven learning approach to policy imple mentation.


Regression analysis is a central method of statistical data analysis, but it is often inappropriate to model the relationship between the conditional distribution of a dependent variable as a function of one or more predictors when this relationship is characterized by complex nonlinear patterns.
In such cases nonparametric regression methods are more suitable. Among nonparametric regression methods, generalized additive models have become very popular but they present a drawback when concurvity is present in the data.
Concurvity can be defined as the presence of nonlinear dependencies among transformations of the explanatory variables considered in the model and often it directly follows from the presence of collinearity among untransformed predictors. In the context of generalized additive models the presence of concurvity leads to biased estimates of the model parameters and of their standard errors.
For such reasons we focus on nonlinear categorical regression approach, applying the optimal scaling methodology as presented in the Gifi system. In the presence of collinearity among untransformed predictors, applying nonlinear transformations through optimal scaling implies that interdependence among these predictors decreases. Moreover, in the framework of nonlinear regression with optimal scaling we follow the approach proposed by Meulman (2003) of introducing in the model nonlinear prediction components, applying the basic idea of forward stagewise boosting procedure, with the aim of improving the prediction power of the model itself. We call this approach the Generalized Boosted Additive Model (GBAM).


Two types of K conductance can be distinguished in the basolateral membranes of polyene-treated colonic epithelial cells (see Germann, W. J., M. E. Lowy, S. A. Ernst, and D. C. Dawson, 1986, Journal of General Physiology, 88:237-251). The significance of these two types of K conductance was investigated by measuring the properties of the basolateral membrane under conditions that we presumed would lead to marked swelling of the epithelial cells. We compared the basolateral conductance under these conditions of osmotic stress with those observed under other conditions where changes in cell volume would be expected to be less dramatic. In the presence of a permeant salt (KCl) or nonelectrolyte (urea), amphotericin-treated colonic cell layers exhibited a quinidine-sensitive conductance. Light microscopy revealed that these conditions were also associated with pronounced swelling of the epithelial cells. Incubation of tissues in solutions containing the organic anion benzene sulfonate led to the activation of the quinidine- sensitive gK and was also associated with dramatic cell swelling. In contrast, tissues incubated with an impermeant salt (K-gluconate) or nonelectrolyte (sucrose) did not exhibit a quinidine-sensitive basolateral conductance in the presence of the polyene. Although such conditions were also associated with changes in cell volume, they did not lead to the extreme cell swelling detected under conditions that activated the quinidine-sensitive gK. The quinidine-sensitive basolateral conductance that was activated under conditions of osmotic stress was also highly selective for K over Rb, in contrast to the behavior of normal Na transport by the tissue, which was supported equally well by K or Rb and was relatively insensitive to quinidine. The results are consistent with the notion that the basolateral K conductance measured in the amphotericin-treated epithelium bathed by mucosal K-gluconate solutions or in the presence of sucrose was due to the same channels that are responsible for the basolateral K conductance under conditions of normal transport. Conditions of extreme osmotic stress, however, which led to pronounced swelling of the epithelial cells, were associated with the activation of a new conductance, which was highly selective for K over Rb and was blocked by quinidine or lidocaine.


Introduction Pooling of multicenter brain imaging data is a trend in studies on ageing related brain diseases. This poses challenges to MR-based brain segmentation. The performance across different field strengths of three widely used automated methods for brain volume measurements was assessed in the present study. Methods Ten subjects (mean age: 64 years) were scanned on 1.5T and 3T MRI on the same day. We determined robustness across field strength (i.e., whether measured volumes between 3T and 1.5T scans in the same subjects were similar) for SPM12, Freesurfer 5.3.0 and FSL 5.0.7. As a frame of reference, 3T MRI scans from 20 additional subjects (mean age: 71 years) were segmented manually to determine accuracy of the methods (i.e., whether measured volumes corresponded with expert-defined volumes). Results Total brain volume (TBV) measurements were robust across field strength for Freesurfer and FSL (mean absolute difference as % of mean volume ≤ 1%), but less so for SPM (4%). Gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) volume measurements were robust for Freesurfer (1%; 2%) and FSL (2%; 3%) but less so for SPM (5%; 4%). For intracranial volume (ICV), SPM was more robust (2%) than FSL (3%) and Freesurfer (9%). TBV measurements were accurate for SPM and FSL, but less so for Freesurfer. For GM volume, SPM was accurate, but accuracy was lower for Freesurfer and FSL. For WM volume, Freesurfer was accurate, but SPM and FSL were less accurate. For ICV, FSL was accurate, while SPM and Freesurfer were less accurate. Conclusion Brain volumes and ICV could be measured quite robustly in scans acquired at different field strengths, but performance of the methods varied depending on the assessed compartment (e.g., TBV or ICV). Selection of an appropriate method in multicenter brain imaging studies therefore depends on the compartment of interest.


In this paper, two examples of resources scheduling in well-services companies are solved by means of genetic algorithms: resources for call solving, people scheduling. The results demonstrate that the genetic algorithm approach can provide acceptable solutions to this type of call solving for scheduling in well-services companies. The suggested approach could be easily extended to various resource scheduling areas: process scheduling, transportation scheduling.


Objective-To explore the usefulness of the critical incident technique in primary care to improve policy and practice to prevent cases of suicide. Design-Inviting all primary care teams in County Durham with a patient who committed suicide between 1 June 1993 and 31 May 1994 to take part in a critical incident audit with an external facilitator. Results-49 cases of suicide were available for study, registered with 31 practices. 19 (61%) practices accounting for 27 (55%) cases agreed to take part. Case discussions showed areas where practice could be improved, but no substantive preventive measures were identified within primary care, which would reduce the number of people committing suicide. The wider social and economic context was thought to be more important. Conclusions-The use of the critical incident technique in primary care may have only a limited role in improving the management of people at risk from suicide. However, one of the potential strengths of this approach is to encourage reflection on practice in a difficult emotional area. (Quality in Health Care 1997;6:25-28)


The rapid growth and development of emerging markets have made them noteworthy actors in today's globalized world. These markets are no longer restricted to resourceful MNCs. The potential these markets represent has also been captured by an increasing number of opportunity seeking INVs. Meanwhile, INVs are different from MNCs. Hence, what influences the entry mode decision of MNCs may not be the case for INVs. Furthermore, studies on INVs present a dilemma between alternative governance structures and FDIs. The objective of this paper is therefore to examine how the different factors influence the entry mode decision of INVs in emerging markets. The factors considered are taken from the conceptual model of Lin (2000). These are entering firm, market environment, partner factor, transaction-specific factor, and competitive strategy. This paper performs qualitative research by conducting semi-structured interviews with four INVs from different emerging markets to address the objective. The findings of this paper support the use of HRC modes, especially wholly-owned subsidiaries, in emerging markets. This decision is mostly influenced by transaction-specific and competitive strategic concerns. Knowledge-based INVs have to protect against leakages and expropriation of their valuable assets. This is why partner factors are of less significance when deciding on an entry mode. The risk of losing knowledge to partners is considered greater than the benefits of sharing risks. Furthermore, local presence signifies long-term commitment and makes it easier to seize emerging opportunities. Moreover, entering firm variables are also significant influencers of the decision. An international orientation is vital for the firm to risk using complex modes in highly uncertain markets. The market environment factor is therefore of less significance because the firms acknowledge that emerging markets are inevitable for niche-serving INVs. Considering the entry mode dilemma for INVs, this paper supports the use of FDIs. INVs need to take strategically optimal choices, despite their being start-ups. Alternative governance structures are not supported due to transaction-specific and competitive strategic variables. The argument supporting alternative governance structures, namely resource and power constraints, can be overcome through leveraging on other sources. The financial constraints are also of less significance due to the low-cost nature of emerging markets. Efficiency and context-specific knowledge can be learnt over time. Meanwhile, control is important in uncertain environments marked by unpredictable conditions. Hence, extant research on this area supporting the use of alternative governance structures is discarded due to the conflicting findings, especially when considering emerging markets. However, this field needs further research to support the findings of this study. Researchers eager to explore this relatively untouched field have more than enough to keep themselves occupied with.


For the third time in forty-five years, America is talking about impeaching a president, but the impeachment provisions of the American constitution are widely misunderstood. In High Crimes and Misdemeanors, constitutional scholar Frank Bowman offers unprecedented clarity to the question of impeachment, tracing its roots to medieval England through its adoption in the Constitution and 250 years of American experience. By examining the human and political history of those who have faced impeachment, Bowman demonstrates that the framers intended impeachment to be a flexible tool, adaptable to the needs of any age. Written in a lively, engaging style, the book combines a deep historical and constitutional analysis of the impeachment clauses, a coherent theory of when impeachment should be used to protect constitutional order against presidential misconduct, and a comprehensive presentation of the case for and against impeachment of President Trump. It is an indispensable work for the present moment.


The objective of this research is to conduct a systematic measurement of hot spots formed between a gold (Au) nanodisk and an Au film using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). The dip-pen nanolithography and wet etching methods are used to fabricate sandwich structures with a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) or a polymer embedded between vertical Au nanodisks and the Au substrate. A flat polymer, which acts as a spacer, is synthesized via graft polymerization. The gap between the Au nanodisks and Au film is adjusted to the range from 2.4 to 12.1 nm by forming a SAM and repeating the graft polymerization. The SERS molecules, 4-mercaptobenzoic acid, are chemically bonded to the sidewalls of the Au nanodisks in order to observe the coupling interaction in the dipole of SERS while changing the gap size. According to the experimental results, the degree of field enhancement is greatly dependent on the dimensions of the gap. The greatest enhancement is reached when the gap distance is 3.8 nm, and no coupling effect is observed when the gap distance is more than 12 nm.


The increased neurosensory disturbances and hemorrhage after surgical
intervention in the mandibular canal region increased the demand for presurgical planning
and proper assessment to avoid those complications.
Aims: To determine the path and course of the mandibular canal of dentate Malaysian
patients, mandibular canal diameter, mandibular foramen diameter and the incidence of
bifid canal using the Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT).
Materials and Methods: The subjects for this study included imaging of 60 patients (30
males and 30 females) from the Division of Oral radiology, with ages ranging from 20 to
60 years (mean age, 47 years). The samples were selected according to gender, race and age
groups. The position of the mandibular canal and mandibular canal diameter were
measured at five different locations. Linear measurements were done in the coronal view
just posterior to the mental foramen at 10 mm interval (D1, D2, D3, D4 and D5).
Mandibular canal diameter, mandibular foramen diameter and incidence of bifid
mandibular canal were also recorded. The samples were imaged using CBCT and SimPlant
software and data analyzed through SPSS (v.12).
Results: In this study the mandibular canal was identified in all samples with 100% good
visibility. The measured data were expressed as minimum, maximum, median, K-S value
and mean ± standard deviation. The results showed that the position of the right mandibular
canal is similar to the position on the left side of the jaw.
Apicocoronal position of the mandibular canal showed that the superior measurements
were 14.85 ± 3.64 mm at D1, 13.94 ± 3.85 mm at D2, 12.99 ± 4.08 mm at D3 and 14.22 ±
xiii
1.52 mm at D4. The inferior measurements of the canal was 9.37 ± 1.69 mm at D1, 8.24 ±
1.69 mm at D2, 7.96 ± 1.93 mm at D3, 9.65 ± 2.54 at D4 and 15.21 ± 4.18 mm at D5. The
buccolingual position were 3.89 ± 1.00 mm (buccal) and 4.33 ± 1.25 mm (lingual), 5.59 ±
1.20 mm (buccal) and 3.35 ± 1.20 mm (lingual), 6.71 ± 1.34 mm (buccal) and 3.25 ± 1.32
mm (lingual), 5.68 ± 1.63 mm (buccal) and 3.08 ± 1.46 mm (lingual), 4.24 ± 1.59 mm
(buccal) and 2.12 ± 1.40 mm (lingual) at D1,D2,D3,D4 and D5 respectively.
The minimum mandibular canal diameter recorded was 2.00 mm and the maximum was
3.40 mm. In this study the average mean was 2.16 ± 0.30 mm with the least mean diameter
at D2 location (2.01 ± 0.42 mm) and the largest mean diameter at D1 (2.25 ± 0.47 mm) and
D5 (2.25 ± 0.43 mm). The average mandibular formamen diameter was measured to be
2.55 ±0.43 mm.
The incidence of bifid mandibular canal was greatest in Malays (n=18), followed by
Indians (n=9), while no bifid canal was noticed in the Chinese.
Conclusion: Position of the canal changes due to changes in the mandibular bone.
Measurements showed that the mandibular canal curves toward the lingual side the more
distal it is away from the mental foramen. Apicocoronal assessment of the canal reveals
that it is curving downward towards the inferior mandibular border until D3 and then it
curves upwards. This CBCT study reveals there are variations in the position of the
mandibular canal. It is highly recommended that careful assessment and planning using
computed tomographic imaging is done prior to any surgical intervention in the mandibular
canal region to avoid untoward complications.
Keywords: Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT), Mandibular Canal, Inferior
Alveolar Nerve (IAN), Simplant Software, Malaysian Population, Indian, Chinese, Malays


The growth of securitization made it easier for banks to sell home mortgage loans that they originated. I explore how mortgage sales affected banks in the years leading up to the financial crisis that began in 2007 and how their pre-crisis mortgage sales affected banks during the crisis. Loan sales are important because most banks sell mortgages as part of the securitization process, but few actually do the securitization. I find that stock returns increase when banks increase sales of mortgages used for refinancing rather than home purchase, suggesting that some banks scale up lending during refi booms. It is this flexibility that is both a plus and a potential minus of this model, since banks profited by scaling up during refi booms, but borrowers during refi booms were riskier than at other times, possibly adding risk to the financial system. I also find that losses during the financial crisis were related to pre-crisis mortgage sales, with the losses being roughly of the same magnitudes as the gains due to mortgage sales from 2001-2006.


Multi-agent systems have been employed to model, simulate and explore a variety of real-world scenarios. It is becoming more and more important to investigate formalisms and tools that would allow us to exploit automated reasoning in these domains. An area that has received increasing attention is the use of multi-agent systems which allow an agent to reason about the knowledge and beliefs of other agents. This type of reasoning, i.e., about agents' perception of the world and also about agents' knowledge of her and others' knowledge, is referred to as epistemic reasoning. This paper presents an updated formalization and implementation of a multi-agent epistemic planner, called EFP. In particular, the paper explores the advantages of using alternative state representations that deviate from the commonly used Kripke structures. The paper explores such alternatives in the context of an action language for multi-agent epistemic planning. The paper presents also an actual implementation of a planner that uses the novel ideas, demonstrating concrete performance improvements on benchmarks collected from the literature.


The link between human migration and climate change adaptation has predominantly been investigated in the framework of preventing or coping with climate risks. While common strategies use adaptation to prevent forced migration, migration is increasingly considered as an important response to cope with climate change (migration-as-adaptation). We propose a new conceptual framework, aimed at investigating the potential of migration-for-adaptation. New opportunities, resources and networks of migrants in the host regions can diversify the households' livelihoods, support climate adaptation and build social resilience in migrant sending countries. This contributes to improving resilience against climate change and to rebuilding regions in post-conflict situations, thus avoiding negative linkages between climate change and conflict and providing synergies in both problem areas. This framework has been tested in Western Sahel (Mali, Mauritania Senegal), using qualitative and quantitative analysis to explore the role of remittances at the national level, and micro-level analysis on the role of migrant networks in co-development projects in water, food and energy. The results from the Sahel case study will be contrasted with a case study carried out in North-Western Pakistan, for better assessing the role of (formal and less formal) institutional processes and networks in channelling diaspora's contribution to communities' resilience.


Absract Carnegie Mellon University began a re-engineering project in 1994 to review the University's student enrollment process. The Enrollment Services Department was created in July 1996, replacing the Offices of Financial Aid, Cashier, Student Employment, ID Card, and Registrar. Beginning in fall 1994, Carnegie Mellon began a reengineering project to review its University enrollment process. This review revealed three interdependent enrollment processes (registration, financial aid, and billing and collections) that were fragmented, inconvenient, time consuming, bureaucratic, labor intensive, prone to error, and inconsistent across colleges. The original organization was comprised of six distinct offices. The Enrollment Services Department was created in July 1996, and is organized by outward focused functional teams, and a vision and mission based upon the delivery of innovative student services. Each year continues to bring increased student satisfaction, new technological enhancements, a reduction in non-value added steps, and a more efficient enrollment services delivery focus. Critical succes`s factors have been: * The realignment and ownership of the prospective student financial aid process within the Office of Admission. * The development and internalization of the mission, vision, and values within Enrollment Services. * The creation of a performance evaluation tool reflecting the values and mission, which has evolved into a performance management process, enabling the growth of the new organization. * Cross-functional training initiatives and group behavioral change evolving into teams. * The implementation of technology initiatives (automated need analysis and packaging, electronic funds transfer, online registration, database query access, and automated loan certifications). * The implementation of student Web-enabled services (access to view student academic, financial, and account information, change addresses, request enrollment verifications, and graduation application). * The implementation of administrative Web-enabled processing (electronic grade submission, online graduation data maintenance, and certification). The re-engineering of Enrollment Services has represented transformational rather than incremental change for the staff, organization, and institution. It has had tremendous impact on people, processes, and technology. We experienced dramatic learning curves during the first year of implementation, and have learned that continuous training is crucial, and have made that part of our operational schedules. One of the greatest challenges is addressing the lack of the traditional supervisory relationships within the new flattened organization, and enabling groups to evolve into self-directed work teams. Technology has eliminated routine transactions, and is releasing staff time to focus on problem solving. New types of "leaders" within the organization are developing, who are becoming responsible for teaching and learning, and enabling groups to problem identify and problem solve. After our second year, the majority of our staff had acclimated to these changes and continued to grow and develop. We are currently at the end of our fourth year, and have experienced significant changes in the evolution of team culture, customer service focus, and the depth and breadth of expertise as a student services organization. The University Carnegie Mellon is a national research university of approximately 8,000 students and 3,000 faculty, research and administrative staff. Industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, who wrote the time-honored words, "My heart is in the work" founded the institution in 1900 in Pittsburgh when he donated the funds to create Carnegie Technical Schools. Carnegie's vision was to open a vocational training school for the sons and daughters of Pittsburgh's working class. …


Philosophical understanding of experimental scientific practice is impeded by disciplinary differences, notably that between philosophy and sociology of science. Severing the two limits the stock of philosophical case studies to narrowly circumscribed experimental episodes, centered on individual scientists or technologies. The complex relations between scientists and society that permeate experimental research are left unexamined. In consequence, experimental fields rich in social interactions (notably biomedicine) have received only patchy attention from philosophers of science. This paper sketches a remedy for both the symptom and its root cause. An empirical study of social interactions in an established field of biomedicine grounds a robust account of success in experimental practice. The core idea is the concept of collaboration, of participants working together on a common project toward a shared goal. The interactive social integument of experimental research is both examined and enacted in a study integrating socio-historical research and philosophical investigation. The two approaches are used in concert to explicate the concept of scientific objectivity. Their joint explication of this contested epistemic ideal demonstrates that philosophical and sociological approaches can work together toward a social epistemology of scientific practice. The explication is in three stages. First, a minimal framework for investigating collaborative activities is established. Social action is understood and evaluated in terms of the connection between shared goals that participants hope to accomplish together, and the coordinated means by which they try to do so. This connection is explicated as participation, a relation mediating between a group and its members, which includes minimal constraints of instrumental rationality. Second, this framework is fleshed out via empirical study of scientific practices. The focal case examines the intersection of immunology and stem cell research in mid-20th century biomedicine, tracing the key social interactions within and among laboratory groups, as the field of blood stem cell research emerged in the 1960s and advanced throughout the next four decades. The study yields a robust empirical result. Participants consistently recognize two aspects of scientific success: construction of improved models of blood cell development, and formation of new boundaries among scientific groups. In the third and final stage, this result is generalized to other experimental episodes and shown to fit with recent accounts of models in scientific practice. The generalized result approximates a familiar normative view of scientific knowledge. An epistemic ideal of scientific objectivity in practice is then derived from this robust general result, using the minimal constraints on rational participation. The derivation is analogous to specification of ends in moral philosophy; given the means taken and assuming some hope of success, what must the goal of scientific inquiry be like? The aim of science so conceived corresponds to a classic conception of scientific objectivity: knowledge independent of epistemic criteria specific to particular persons or groups. This result weaves together sociological and philosophical accounts of science, explicating the epistemic ideal of objectivity in relation to social aspects of scientific practice. This undercuts the entrenched dualism between normative (evaluative), vs. descriptive (comparative) approaches to scientific knowledge. Socio-historical study of science does not deflate, but vindicates, scientific objectivity. Philosophy and sociology are recast as collaborating participants in articulating social epistemology of science.


Scrutiny of food packaging environmental impacts has led to a variety of sustainability directives, but has largely focused on the direct impacts of materials. A growing awareness of the impacts of food waste warrants a recalibration of packaging environmental assessment to include the indirect effects due to influences on food waste. In this study, we model 13 food products and their typical packaging formats through a consistent life cycle assessment framework in order to demonstrate the effect of food waste on overall system greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and cumulative energy demand (CED). Starting with food waste rate estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, we calculate the effect on GHG emissions and CED of a hypothetical 10% decrease in food waste rate. This defines a limit for increases in packaging impacts from innovative packaging solutions that will still lead to net system environmental benefits. The ratio of food production to packaging production environmental impact provides a guide to predicting food waste effects on system performance. Based on a survey of the food LCA literature, this ratio for GHG emissions ranges from 0.06 (wine example) to 780 (beef example). High ratios with foods such as cereals, dairy, seafood, and meats suggest greater opportunity for net impact reductions through packaging‐based food waste reduction innovations. While this study is not intended to provide definitive LCAs for the product/package systems modeled, it does illustrate both the importance of considering food waste when comparing packaging alternatives, and the potential for using packaging to reduce overall system impacts by reducing food waste.


The Australian dollar was floated in December 1983. Since that time the exchange rate has become more volatile and has depreciated significantly. The aim of this paper is to examine the behaviour of the foreign exchange market since the float. In particular, the paper considers whether the joint hypotheses underlying the notion of speculative efficiency – namely market efficiency and risk neutrality – hold in the post-float forward market. Under the speculative efficiency hypothesis, the forward exchange rate is a rational expectation of the future spot exchange rate. The paper examines this speculative efficiency hypothesis for forward rates of different maturities, by examining whether the forward rate provides the best available forecast of the future spot rate. The paper endeavours to make full use of the data available by sampling more finely than the contract interval. This procedure, however, involves some econometric difficulties. In particular, the residuals from OLS estimation will be serially correlated, following a low order moving average process. Consequently, the estimated standard errors will be inconsistent. To overcome this, the relevant equations are estimated by first obtaining consistent parameter estimates by OLS and then estimating a consistent asymptotic covariance matrix. The findings of the paper can be summarised as follows. For the post-float period as a whole, the speculative efficiency hypothesis can be rejected for the 30-day forward market but not for the 15-day and 90-day forward markets. However, some evidence of parameter instability is found. In particular, there is evidence of a structural break in several of the reported equations after February 1985; the time of the first major depreciation. For the period after February 1985, each of the markets was found to be speculatively inefficient, in the sense that other available information improves upon the forecast of the future spot rate that is provided by the forward rate. It must be stressed that due to the joint nature of the hypothesis it is impossible to state whether the observed deviations from this definition of speculative efficiency were due to market inefficiency (i.e., agents not using available information optimally) or risk aversion (i.e., risk averse speculators may drive a risk premium or wedge between the market's expectation of the future spot rate and the current forward rate). Because of the limited sample period since the float it is difficult to conduct more sophisticated tests for the existence of particular forms of risk premia in the forward market.


Context. The Vista Variables in the Vía Láctea (VVV) ESO Public Survey is a variability survey of the Milky Way bulge and an adjacent section of the disk carried out from 2010 on ESO Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA). The VVV survey will eventually deliver a deep near-IR atlas with photometry and positions in five passbands (ZY JHKS) and a catalogue of 1−10 million variable point sources – mostly unknown – that require classifications. Aims. The main goal of the VVV Templates Project, which we introduce in this work, is to develop and test the machine-learning algorithms for the automated classification of the VVV light-curves. As VVV is the first massive, multi-epoch survey of stellar variability in the near-IR, the template light-curves that are required for training the classification algorithms are not available. In the first paper of the series we describe the construction of this comprehensive database of infrared stellar variability. Methods. First, we performed a systematic search in the literature and public data archives; second, we coordinated a worldwide observational campaign; and third, we exploited the VVV variability database itself on (optically) well-known stars to gather high-quality infrared light-curves of several hundreds of variable stars. Results. We have now collected a significant (and still increasing) number of infrared template light-curves. This database will be used as a training-set for the machine-learning algorithms that will automatically classify the light-curves produced by VVV. The results of such an automated classification will be covered in forthcoming papers of the series.


ABSTRACT Vertebrate attack accounted for 98.4% of all seed loss during the two months following dispersal. This accounted for, across all habitat types, 94% of Bursera, 76% of Spondias, 37% of Swietenia and 25% of Erythrina seeds artificially dispersed. Bursera, Spondias and Swietenia seeds in early successional habitat suffered significantly greater predation than in either older abandoned (30 y) or mature forest plots. Erythrina showed generally low loss to predation in all plots. Seeds attacked were more often removed from, rather than buried or eaten at, the dispersal site. In young secondary habitats, however, seeds of Bursera and Spondias were more frequently eaten at the site. Seeds dispersed individually rather than in larger aggregations (5, 10) were more likely to survive in mature forest and late secondary habitat. This advantage was lost in Bursera and Swietenia when they were dispersed to younger successional habitats. At the early seedling stage, recruitment of Bursera and Swietenia was highest in the older secondary habitats. Seedlings of Erythrina showed the lowest overall losses to any of the mortality factors identified during the first two months of establishment. Seeds of forest tree species arriving in secondary habitat were more vulnerable to attack by non-flying vertebrates than in mature forest. Survival of seedlings of these species was most closely related to the moisture-conserving status of the habitat.


Objective
We aimed to review data about delaying strategies for the management of hepatobiliary cancers requiring surgery during the covid-19 pandemic.

Background
Given the covid-19 pandemic, many jurisdictions, to spare resources, have limited access to operating rooms for elective surgical activity, including cancer, thus forcing deferral or cancellation of cancer surgeries. Surgery for hepatobiliary cancer is high-risk and particularly resource-intensive. Surgeons must critically appraise which patients will benefit most from surgery and which ones have other therapeutic options to delay surgery. Little guidance is currently available about potential delaying strategies for hepatobiliary cancers when surgery is not possible.

Methods
An international multidisciplinary panel reviewed the available literature to summarize data relating to standard-of-care surgical management and possible mitigating strategies to be used as a bridge to surgery for colorectal liver metastases, hepatocellular carcinoma, gallbladder cancer, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, and hilar cholangiocarcinoma.

Results
Outcomes of surgery during the covid-19 pandemic are reviewed. Resource requirements are summarized, including logistics and adverse effects profiles for hepatectomy and delaying strategies using systemic, percutaneous and radiation ablative, and liver embolic therapies. For each cancer type, the long-term oncologic outcomes of hepatectomy and the clinical tools that can be used to prognosticate for individual patients are detailed.

Conclusions
There are a variety of delaying strategies to consider if availability of operating rooms decreases. This review summarizes available data to provide guidance about possible delaying strategies depending on patient, resource, institution, and systems factors. Multidisciplinary team discussions should be leveraged to consider patient- and tumour-specific information for each individual case.


Introduction: Motivation is one of the major factors in learning that can affect on various aspects of the students behavior in an educational environments. Academic Motivation can be just causes a direct effect on academic achievement and other effective factors in success act their effects through academic motivation on the students to apply. Since motivation is the key of students learning and medical students are the most important capital of not only for the medical community but are a national asset and academic motivation is as the driving force of students activities and Managing director moves so any attempt to strengthen the students would be the most effective and important. This study aims to determine the relationship between academic motivation and associated factors of the Golestan University of Medical Sciences students.
Methods: This descriptive - analytical research was done in 2013. In this study 359 students of 2,3,4 semesters were selected by Method Census. Academic Motivation ques tionnaire was completed by the students. For Analysing of data was used Mann-Whitney and cross Kalvalys test.
Results: Results showed that academic motivation of students was at good level. There was a significant relation Between students motivation with gender and field of students female students were more motivated than male students (P=0.012) and students of Public Health and Midwifery had higher motivation and students of Environmental Health and Laboratory Sciences had lower motivation (P=0.008). There was significant relation between student's motivation with academic achievemen and this relationship is almost significant. There was no significant relationship between academic motivation with ethnicity, residence, leve l of father P>0.05 and mother education.
Conclusion: Based on the findings, the total number of students' motivation for this study was relatively good, despite the motivation of boys to girls is lower, raising the motivation of medical science students is very important that should be considered by planners and policymakers.


ABSTRACT The 1980s and 1990s witnessed a deterioration in working-time arrangements for employees in Australia, driven by globalisation, demographic and structural change and labour market deregulation. Yet, working-time arrangements in the first decade of the 2000s have either improved for employees or stayed relatively unchanged despite continued global pressures and further reforms of domestic labour law. Fewer employees are working long hours or at antisocial times, hours variability has fallen and employee control over working time has increased. This paper attempts to explain the apparent levelling out of previous downward working time trends using data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. Decomposition analysis shows that the improvement in working-time arrangements can be partly attributed to an increase in the skill level and earnings potential of the workforce and a general improvement in economic conditions. We show that the Fair Work industrial relations reforms of 2009 may have also contributed to the overall improvement in working-time arrangements, but this was partially offset by the negative effects of the global financial crisis.


The purpose was to explore the relationship and mediation effects between the Big Five personality dimensions, and political skill with military staff members' perceived performance. The sample included 185 Armed Forces International staff members from several military education facilities. The results indicated that the PSI and several personality dimensions were positively correlated with individuals' perceived performance. In addition, the personality dimension Conscientiousness acted as a statistically significant mediator between an individual's use of political skills and their perceived performance. Practical considerations and future research directions are suggested. This article has been retracted. A retraction article relating to this can be found here:  http://doi.org/10.16993/sjwop.94


An economy in which individual agents each choose their optimum strategy does not necessarily optimise the average pay-off per individual. One measure of the global inefficiency of such an economy is known as the Price of Anarchy (PoA). Many studies have considered the PoA in the context of traffic networks, in which traffic is routed along paths between origin-destination nodes and a cost or ``latency'' is incurred for traversing the edges of the network. Costs associated to edges are increasing functions of the traffic routed to the edge, creating the effect of congestion.

The majority of these studies have focussed on deriving upper bounds on the PoA under various conditions, such as polynomial edge cost functions. While these studies are useful for identifying the maximum potential inefficiency, they neglect to consider the global causes for inefficiency or how inefficiency can be reduced. Moreover, they do not consider the PoA outside of the context of traffic networks.

This thesis considers the variation of the PoA with the total traffic volume and the potential for congestion, with the results displaying new and non-trivial scaling effects. An investigative study determines the causes of the scaling effects and identifies conditions for which high levels of inefficiency occur. A method for reducing the PoA by restricting the amount of traffic on certain links is presented and analysed.

A novel context for the PoA involving the spatial, pairwise matching of agents is also considered. Motivated by the recent emergence of ride-sharing companies, this model considers the inefficiency when agents seek to pair with their nearest neighbour, compared to the optimum matching which minimises the distance between paired agents. The PoA is again analysed as a function of various system parameters. When agents enter the system at different times, it is shown that it may be more efficient to delay a matching until multiple pairs of agents have entered, and the ``Price of Impatience'' is introduced to measure the inefficiency of matching agents at their entry times.


The authors analyze the extent to which inflation-targeting frameworks should incorporate flexibility in order to respond to asset-price misalignments and other atypical events. They examine the costs and benefits of adding flexibility to the Bank's current inflation-targeting framework, and conclude that maintaining low and stable consumer price inflation is the best contribution that monetary policy can make to promoting economic and financial stability, although some flexibility in the target horizon may allow monetary policy to deal appropriately with asset-price bubbles and other atypical events. The authors suggest that monetary policy may, in principle, be better able to maintain low and stable consumer price inflation by leaning against an asset-price bubble (even though it may mean that inflation deviates longer than usual from its target), when such an event is well identified and likely to have significant real economic effects. This circumstance is likely to be rare in practice, however, because economists are far from being able to determine consistently and reliably when leaning against a particular bubble is likely to be successful. The authors also describe ongoing Bank research to better understand the transmission of asset prices to the real economy and the interaction between asset prices and optimal monetary policy.


The transport of solutes from their source to natural water systems is a critical control on the chemistry and potability of drinking water supplies. Therefore, developing a thorough understanding not only of contaminant sources, but also of the controls on the movement of solutes through catchments, is essential to providing accurate assessments of how future environmental stressors (e.g. land cover, population growth, and climate change) may affect water resources. Halogens (specifically, chloride (Cl), bromide (Br), and iodine (I)) occur naturally at low levels in terrestrial aquatic ecosystems, and may also originate from a suite of anthropogenic sources. Due to their largely conservative behavior, and preferential incorporation into mineral crystal lattices during evaporation processes resulting from differences in ionic radii, ratios of Cl/Br are used to identify sources of salinity to freshwater systems. This approach can broadly distinguish endmember sources of salinity (e.g. road salts from basin brines) from one another, although has proven ineffective in distinguishing saline endmembers originating from the same processes (e.g. formation waters of different ages), thus warranting development of alternate approaches. Elevated levels of Cl are harmful to sensitive biota, threaten riparian ecosystems, and may increase the corrosivity of affected waters. Anthropogenic practices may introduce Cl to drinking water supplies. Present-day controls on the salinization of freshwater systems have been rigorously evaluated. Although, prior to this dissertation, no future predictions of the impacts of continued deicing practices on freshwater salinization had incorporated changes in climate coupled with dynamic population and land use. Iodinated disinfection by-products (I-DBPs) form when source waters containing halogens and organic matter are disinfected via chloramination during wastewater treatment processes. Despite the emergence of I-DBPs as highly toxic, teratogenic, and potentially carcinogenic agents, controls on the transport of iodine in terrestrial aquatic environments have yet to be fully constrained. As source water iodine is a major source of iodine in the formation of I-DBPs, developing a thorough understanding of the controls on the natural cycling of iodine in paired surface water-groundwater systems is essential to providing accurate assessments for the potential of adverse environmental and health effects following modern wastewater treatment practices. Individual components of the terrestrial aquatic iodine cycle have been studied extensively, although a single study has yet to evaluate variation of total dissolved iodine concentrations at the catchment scale across both time and space. The purpose of this dissertation research was to evaluate the effects of anthropogenic and hydrogeologic processes on the fate of salinity and halogens at the catchment scale. We focus our efforts in the East and West Branches of the Tioughnioga River Watershed in Upstate New York State (NYS), USA. Spatially and temporally resolved series of major and trace halogens (Cl, Br, and I) were used in combination with graphical, statistical, and numerical approaches to elucidate controls on halogen sources and solute flow paths in headwater catchments with mixed land cover in temperate climates. Salinity in the Tioughnioga River watershed has been increasing since the late 1930's. This trend increased precipitously after the completion of a major interstate highway (Interstate-81) in the West Branch catchment area during the 1950's. We used two independent approaches to characterized sources of Cl to both East and West Branches of the Tioughnioga River over a two-year interval: (1) Cl/Br ratios to graphically separate waters impacted by road salts from other sources of contamination and (2) linear discriminant analysis (LDA) to quantitatively determine the most likely source of contamination to individual water samples. Ratios of Cl/Br suggested that road salt affected waters are present in both branches, but are more prominent in the West Branch, which has a greater percentage of urban land cover. LDA supports the results of Cl/Br in the West Branch and further reveals volumetrically minor contributions of Appalachian Basin Brines to surface waters in the East Branch. Downstream profiles of Cl concentrations in surface waters indicate that sources of pollution are concentrated around urban areas and may impact surface water chemistry year-round. We used a simple mixing model to estimate a residence time of Cl in the watershed of approximately 20 to 30 years, suggesting that stream Cl concentrations may continue to rise for several decades given no change in conditions. Assessment of the potential future impacts of continued de-icing practices is regularly evaluated using numerical and statistical models. These methods have undoubtedly advanced our understanding of the prolonged effects of de-icing practices on aquatic environments and drinking water quality. Although, these approaches have not incorporated future changes in climate that are projected to impact hydrogeology. To address this deficit, we use an INtegrated CAtchment (INCA) model to simulate Cl concentrations in the Tioughnioga River watershed. We ran the model over a baseline period (1961-1990) and over three future intervals (2010-2039; 2040-2069; 2070-2099) for future climate scenarios from a range of global climate models (GCMs). Model projections suggest that Cl concentrations in the catchment will continue to rise for several decades, before beginning to decline roughly mid-century, with all scenarios resulting in reduced winter snowfall totals and associated salt applications over the course of the 21st century. We attributed the delay in stream response to climate change and continued contribution of Cl from aquifers. By 2100, surface water Cl concentrations will decrease to below 1960's values. Decreasing trends in average surface water Cl are moderate in catchments dominated by urban lands compared to those in forested catchments. We evaluate the controls on contributions of iodine to surface water from different sources under variable hydrologic conditions across spatial and temporal scales in the Tioughnioga River watershed. Our findings reveal that iodine varies seasonally with temperature, suggesting a linkage to export of dissolved organic carbon. Iodine may be elevated temporarily during high flow events, resulting from near-stream subsurface storage during dry periods. Based on major ion analysis, LDA, and endmember mixing analysis, under low flow conditions, iodine in surface water likely originates from groundwater. Additionally, our findings illustrate that iodine varies significantly across a catchment, suggesting influence from local hydrologic controls. In addition to atmospheric deposition of iodine in rainwater, additional controls on transport may be linked to weathering of exposed rocks. Thus, we propose that terrestrial iodine fluxes in temperate forested catchments are closely tied to both surface sources and local hydrogeology and thus, suggest that waste water treatment facilities closely monitor source water iodine concentrations and adjust treatment practices accordingly. This dissertation ultimately contributes to the growing and collective body of knowledge regarding halogen transport and sources in freshwater systems and provides valuable insights to future water resources security. Evaluating the effects of hydrogeologic processes on the fate of salinity and halogens in headwater catchments by Kristina M. Gutchess A.A.S., Tompkins-Cortland Community College, 2011 B.S., State University of New York College at Cortland, 2013 Dissertation Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Earth Sciences Syracuse University May 2018 Copyright © Kristina Marie Gutchess 2018


This thesis presents a theological exploration of the problems and potentialities of speaking about Christian faith in the context of working life. It is based on a qualitative investigation of the experience of Christians working in secular institutions. The argument is that the discursive interface between work and worship raises critical questions of identity, of power and of language which challenge the integrity of Christian discipleship. The practice of articulating faith-talk in the working context is analyzed in the light of a trinitarian hermeneutic.

The thesis addresses the practical theological question: How may a Christian speak adequately and appropriately of their faith at work? This question is explored through an integration of qualitative-representational analysis and theological-evaluative critique. An ethnographic method is developed, based on extended immersion in the field of secular work, and focused in a series of research conversations and reflective meetings. Analyzed from the perspective of a Christian woman who has struggled and continues to struggle to forge an adequate and contextual articulation of faith in workplace settings, the problematic is described through the metaphor of 'a life in two languages'. A faithful resolution of the problem is approached through the contextual discovery of three trinitarian practices: of engagement, fluency and communion.

The thesis makes a contribution to academic knowledge in the practical theology of working life. By addressing the communicative dimension of working life, and exploring the experience of Christians in the workplace using the resources of cultural theory and discourse analysis, the thesis presents a contemporary and practical perspective on work. In a field which attracts a large volume of popular and motivational writing, the study contributes a sustained and critical reflection and offers a creative map for interpreting the challenge of Christian witness at work in the light of a trinitarian understanding of faithful practice.


The trace metals aluminum (Al) and manganese (Mn) were studied in the Weddell Sea in March 2008. Concentrations of dissolved Al ([Al]) were slightly elevated (0.23–0.35 nmol L−1) in the surface layer compared to the subsurface minimum (0.07–0.21 nmol L−1) observed in the winter water. Atmospheric deposition is the main source of Al to the central Weddell Sea (22 µmol m−2 yr−1), and the residence time of dissolved Al in the upper mixed layer is ∼ 0.8 yr. The flux from the shelf and slope regions equals about 50% of the atmospheric input of Al to the western Weddell Sea. The highest [Al] in the Weddell Sea bottom water (WSBW) is related to the formation of deep water, and the associated downward flux is in the range of 3–10 µmol Al m−2 yr−1. The concentrations of dissolved Mn ([Mn]) were depleted in the surface layer, likely as a result of biological uptake, as indicated by the correlation among Mn, major nutrients, and fluorescence. The significant negative relation between the ΔMn : ΔP ratio and the ambient concentration of dissolved iron indicates iron‐Mn co‐limitation. The flux of Mn from the continental margin is about 2.2 times greater than atmospheric input (1.1 µmol m−2 yr−1). The flux of both Al and Mn from the continental margin indicates melting of continental ice (icebergs) or direct continental runoff. The slightly elevated [Mn] in the WSBW is due to a relatively small flux of 1 µmol Mn m−2 yr−1 associated with WSBW formation.


Mortality rates in the United Kingdom for several cancers compare unfavourably with those in other countries,1 and this may be explained at least partly by British patients having more advanced disease at the time of treatment than their European counterparts. Morbidity and mortality can be reduced through primary and secondary prevention, including screening; by early detection; and by prompt and effective treatment. Last year, in the context of the NHS's disgracefully long waiting lists, the government pledged that patients with suspected cancer would be seen by a specialist within two weeks of referral by their general practitioner. The aim was to reduce delays between presentation, diagnosis, and treatment. The two week rule has now been implemented across a range of specialties, supported by widely distributed information about risk factors and criteria for rapid referral for suspected cancer. How is it working?

Local rapid access referral mechanisms have been established, including specially designed forms and direct electronic access to outpatient appointments for patients meeting prespecified criteria. In addition, the government established the cancer services collaborative programme, creating nine cancer networks covering about 15 million people, aimed at optimising systems of care and improving …


This study aims to enlist Rotatoria in the Anzali wetland (southwest Caspian Sea), a wetland which is listed as an international wetland in Ramsar convention (1975) and is an important ecosystem for spawning and early rearing of larvae of anadromous fishes. Samples of rotifers were collected in three regions of the Anzali wetland between  June 2015 and May 2016. A total of 29 genera of rotifers belonging to 17 family are listed and most of species was observed in this study was cosmopolitan. The most diverse genus was Brachionus, comprising 8 species which compared to previous study, have been seen some changes that may be due to change in quality of inlet water from rivers to the Anzali wetland. Overall, Many reasons could have contributed to the changes in the rotifers composition of the Anzali wetland, notably the serious environmental degradation since the early 1990s.


Abstract We discuss several well known results about Schur functions that can be proved using cancellations in alternating summations; notably we shall discuss the Pieri and Murnaghan-Nakayama rules, the JacobiTrudi identity and its dual (Von Nägelsbach-Kostka) identity, their proofs using the correspondence with lattice paths of Gessel and Viennot, and finally the Littlewood-Richardson rule. Our our goal is to show that the mentioned statements are closely related, and can be proved using variations of the same basic technique. We also want to emphasise the central part that is played by matrices over {0, 1} and over N; we show that the Littlewood-Richardson rule as generalised by Zelevinsky has elegant formulations using either type of matrix, and that in both cases it can be obtained by two successive reductions from a large signed enumeration of such matrices, where the sign depends only on the row and column sums of the matrix.


China's breakneck industrialization is placing it on a collision course with the entire world. Tomorrow's China Wars will be fought over everything from decent jobs, livable wages, and leading-edge technologies to strategic resources such as oil, copper, and steel...even food, water, and air. In The Coming China Wars, best-selling author Peter Navarro previews all these potential conflicts-and reveals the urgent, radical decisions that must be made to avoid catastrophe.You'll learn how China's thirst for oil is driving nuclear proliferation in Iran, genocide in the Sudan, even Japan's remilitarization. You'll discover China's shocking role in the drug trade and how its reborn flesh trade may help trigger tomorrow's worst AIDS crisis. Navarro also reveals how China has become the world's most ruthless imperialist...how it is promoting global environmental disaster... and, perhaps most terrifying of all, how this nuclear superpower and pirate nation may be spiraling toward internal chaos.The threat is real. We all must come to understand it and then act! Start here and now by arming yourself with the information and insights of The Coming China Wars.The "China Price": Conquering the world's export marketsThe real story behind China's "weapons of mass production"i? i? China versus U.S.: The "blood for oil" flashpointsThe coming U.S./China showdown over oili? i? Pirate Nation: China's state-sanctioned thieveryHow China's counterfeit drugs and products can literally kill youTriggering tomorrow's worst AIDS crisisChina's 21st century flesh trade: The seeds of a global health disaster"Peter Navarro has captured the breadth of areas where China and the United States have fundamental conflicts of business, economic and strategic interests.i? He puts this into a global context demonstrating where China's current development course can lead to conflict.i? His recommendations for nations to coalesce to respond to the challenges posed by China are practical.i? This book should be in the hands of every businessperson, economist and policy-maker."i??Dr. Larry M. Wortzel, Chairman, US-China Economic and Security Review Commission"The Coming China Wars is a gripping, fact-filled account of the dark side of China's rise that will be of interest to anyone interested in this complex and fascinating country. Navarro makes no pretense toward searching for the middle ground in the China debate. He issues a call to arms for China and the rest of the world to act now to address the country's mounting problemsi??pollution, public health, intellectual property piracy, resource scarcity and morei??or risk both serious instability within China and military conflict between China and other major powers."i? i??Elizabeth C. Economy, C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director of Asia Studies, Council on Foreign Relationsi? i? "What Al Gore does for climate change, Peter Navarro does for China.i? This book will hit you right between the eyes.i? A gargantuan wake-up call."i? i??Stuart L. Hart, S.C. Johnson Chair of Sustainable Global Enterprise, Cornell University, Author of "Capitalism at the Crossroads"i? "The Coming China Wars has a wealth of fascinating information about the impact of China on the world and the perils it creates.Because of China's great importance, this is a book we should all read."i? i??D. Quinn Mills, Alfred J. Weatherhead Jr. Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business Schooli? "This is a well researched and illuminating book and is a necessary counter to a large body of opinion that posits an inevitable and even peaceful rise of China and chooses to ignore most of the author's message."i??Richard Fisher, Vice President, International Assessment and Strategy Center


IZA DP No. 14327 APRIL 2021 Experiencing Booms and Busts in the Welfare State and Support for Redistribution We analyze how the exposure to adverse macroeconomic conditions during the "impressionable years" (i.e., between the age of 18 and 25), in interaction with welfare state institutions, forms political attitudes in adulthood. Based on a large panel dataset of European countries, we find that individuals who experienced high unemployment under a regime of low unemployment benefits are more in favor of redistribution later in life and state an orientation more oriented towards the left. However, negative economic shocks in an environment with a very generous unemployment insurance are related to less support of redistribution and a more rightist political attitude later on. The development of the welfare state thus seems crucial for how economic shocks affect the evolution of preferences and norms in society and thus finally feedback on institutional change. JEL Classification: E60, J65, P16, P48, Z13


We present Pika, an implemented self-explanatory simulator that is more than 5000 times faster than SimGen Mk2 [Forbus and Falkenhainer, 1992], the previous state of the art. Like SimGen, Pika automatically prepares and runs a numeric simulation of a physical device specified as a particular instantiation of a general domain theory, and it is capable of explaining its reasoning and the simulated behavior. Unlike SimGen, Pika's modeling language allows arbitrary algebraic and differential equations with no prespecified causal direction; Pika infers the appropriate causality and solves the equations as necessary to prepare for numeric integration.


Background and Objectives Thalassemia is a congenital anemia which is endemic in our region. In our country the national prevention program is followed for the couples who want to get married to be screened via CBC test; then, according to the results, complementry tests are conducted. Through this program the carriers will be diagnosed and new cases might be avoided by prenatal diagnosis. Case We had a 2.5 year old patient with anemia who came to our thalassemia clinic for exact diagnosis. In her history, her mother had minor beta thalassemia and her father had Hb D or G in Hb electrophoresis pattern. Their hematology consultation before showed that their infant will not have any chance of being affected with major thalassemia. CBC, Hb electrophoresis ( Cellulose Acetate pH:8.4) and molecular diagnosis of beta genes were performed for parents and the child. In hematological study, the patient had low Hb level, high reticoulocyte count (10%) and severe morphologic changes in smear. Hb electrophoresis pattern showed 15.9% HBA, 79 % HbF and 4.1% HbD or G. Genetic study showed IVS II-I/N for mother and Hb Lepore/N, Hb D negative for father. The patient was Hp Lepore/IVS II-I which is the combined form of Hb Lepore and  thalassemia mutation. The diagnosis indicated of hetrozygote  thalassemia and Lepore hemoglobin which is the same as intermedia thalassemia phenotype. Conclusions Hemoglobin Lepore is a variant of thalassemia syndrome with the crossing over of chromosome 11. In Hb electrophoresis, hemoglobin Lepore band is overlapped with Hb D or G and can not be differentiated by these laboratory methods. In our country, in screening program for prevention of thalassemia, we have many cases with thalassemia minor. Since Hb Lepore electrophoresis band overlaps with Hb D or G, in Hb D or G patients who want to get married with other hemoglobinopathy patients, the possibility for Hb Lepore to go undetected should be considered.


This work addresses the problem of multichannel source separation combining two powerful approaches, multichannel spectral factorization with recent monophonic deep learning (DL) based spectrum inference. Individual source spectra at different channels are estimated with a Masker-Denoiser twin network, able to model long-term temporal patterns of a musical piece. The monophonic source spectrograms are used within a spatial covariance mixing model based on complex-valued multichannel non-negative matrix factorization (CMNMF) that predicts the spatial characteristics of each source. The proposed framework is evaluated on the task of singing voice separation with a large multichannel dataset. Experimental results show that our joint DL+CMNMF method outperforms both the individual monophonic DL-based separation and the multichannel CMNMF baseline methods.


Porous carbon (PC) sorbents are synthesized from polymer precursors mixed with a chemical activation reagent and pyrolised (>500 °C). KOH is known to be the best activator for a wide range of precursors, as it creates PCs with a large surface area (1200–4000 m2 g−1). In order to determine the optimum KOH : polymer ratio for both CO2 adsorption and CO2/CH4 selectivity, we prepared a set of five S-containing porous carbon (SPC) samples from polythiophene (PTh) with increasing KOH : PTh ratio (1 to 5), and investigated CO2 and CH4 uptake measurements on carbonaceous SPC samples up to a pressure limit of 30 bar. The SPCs have been characterised by XPS, SEM, TEM and BET surface area analysis. Although the apparent surface area and total pore volume increased with increasing KOH concentration, the maximum CO2 uptake (5–30 bar) was demonstrated for samples with KOH : PTh = 3. This equates to SPC samples with a surface area and total pore volume of ∼2700 m2 g−1 and 1.5 cm3 g−1, respectively. Greater values for either parameter do not enhance the CO2 uptake, showing that it is not total porosity that is important. SPC samples formed with KOH : PTh = 3 show both a maximum C composition (85%), and a maximum fraction of micro-pores ( 2 nm). KOH : PTh = 3 is also the synthetic condition to maximise CH4 uptake (5–30 bar); however, the optimum CO2/CH4 selectivity occurred with KOH : PTh = 2. This correlates with a different surface area (2200 m2 g−1) and total pore volume (1.2 cm3 g−1) that are required for optimum CO2 uptake. These results suggest that process conditions that lead to high relative microporosity need to be considered rather than the total surface area or pore volume.


Purpose To recommend a standardized approach for measuring progress toward national goals to improve preschool children's eye health. Methods A multidisciplinary panel of experts reviewed existing measures and national vision-related goals during a series of face-to-face meetings and conference calls. The panel used a consensus process, informed by existing data related to delivery of eye and non-eye services to preschool children. Results Currently, providers of vision screening and eye examinations lack a system to provide national- or state-level estimates of the proportion of children who receive either a vision screening or an eye examination. The panel developed numerator and denominator definitions to measure rates of children "who completed a vision screening in a medical or community setting using a recommended method, or received an eye examination by an optometrist or ophthalmologist at least once between the ages of 36 to <72 months." A separate measure for children with neurodevelopmental disorders and measures for eye examination and follow-up were also developed. The panel recommended that these measures be implemented at national, state, and local levels. Conclusions Standardized performance measures that include all eye services received by a child are needed at state and national levels to measure progress toward improving preschool children's eye health.


Intrusion Detection Systems (IDSs) for Mobile Ad hoc NETworks (MANETs) are indispensable since traditional intrusion prevention based techniques are not strong enough to protect MANETs. However, the dynamic environment of MANETs makes the design and implementation of IDSs a very challenging task. In this paper, we present a non-overlapping Zone-Based Intrusion Detection System (ZBIDS) that fits the requirement of MANETs. On the local detection part, we present a general intrusion detection agent model and propose a Markov Chain based anomaly detection algorithm. We focus on the protection of MANET routing protocols and present the details regarding feature selection, data collection, data preprocess, Markov Chain construction, classifier construction and parameter tuning. We demonstrate that local detection alone cannot achieve desirable performance. Therefore, we further propose a collaboration mechanism among ZBIDS agents and an aggregation algorithm used by gateway nodes. With alert information from a wider area, gateway nodes' IDS can effectively suppress many falsified alerts and provide more diagnostic information about the occurring attacks. Security officers can have a general understanding about the attacks using the proposed MANET Intrusion Detection Message Exchange Format (MIDMEF). We carry out extensive simulation to evaluate the performance of ZBIDS at different mobility levels. SimThis paper is the extension of our conference papers [3,4].


The ancient Romans have left us far more information about themselves than has any other Western society until much more recent times. But what we know about them is sometimes bizarre, and hardly fits the conventional view of the Romans as a pragmatic people with a ruthlessly efficient army and a very logical and well ordered language. A Cabinet of Roman Curiosities is a serendipitous collection of odd facts and opinions, carefully gleaned from the wide body of evidence left to us by the Romans themselves. Each highlights a unique and curious feature of life in ancient Rome. Readers will find a plethora of trivial but fascinating facts about Rome, from the fantastical (a description of werewolves) to the quotidian (styles of chamber pots), and from the refined (dining etiquette of Pompeiians) to the crude (punishments for mutineers). The author has organized the entries around major themes-e.g., The Army, Women, Education, Foreigners, Spectacles, etc.-making the book easily accessible for quick browsing or for more deliberate consumption. Throughout, the purpose of the enterprise is to amuse and to stimulate an interest in the ancient world's most remarkable and abundantly documented empire.


Nonlinear optical single crystals of potassium dihydrogen phosphate doped Congo red dye were grown by slow evaporation method by suitable solvent. The good quality single crystals have been harvested in the period of 23 days. The lattice parameters of the crystal were confirmed by single crystal X-Ray diffraction analysis. The optical transmission observed from the specimen, FTIR confirms the presence of functional groups in the grown crystal. The solidity of the crystal has been studied by Vicker's micro hardness values. The relative second harmonic generation ability has been tested by Kurtz Perry powder technique. The thermal studies of the crystal has been studied by TGA/DTA analysis.


Excerpt} Unpacking and applying the concept of structural violence is one of the principal tasks of this book. To be clear from the outset, however, in lodging the experiences of the men and women I encountered in the larger rubric of structural violence, I do not intend to imply that we should ignore the agency exerted in the scenario I've just described, or in the scenarios that litter this book: we ought not ignore the basic fact that these scenarios are composed of humans choosing to abuse, exploit, maim, and dominate other humans. Rather, I seek to couple that basic fact with an analysis of the structural forces that cause, permit, encourage, or are in some other way involved in the production of violence between citizen and foreigner in Bahrain. In the final accounting, the episodic violence levied against foreigners in Bahrain becomes one facet of the more comprehensive structural forces that govern foreign labor in the Gulf states. The central mission of the anthropologist remains explication, and typically the explication of lives distant and different from those of the intended reader. The conceptual framework of structural violence, which I explore in detail, provides an analytic foundation from which I work outward in scope and, to some degree, backward in time. From that foundation I peer at the decisions and contexts that brought the men and women I came to know from India to the Gulf, at their experiences upon arrival in Bahrain, and at the strategies they deploy against the difficulties they face while abroad. I also examine the contours of the Bahraini state itself, the ongoing articulation of a particular idea of modernity in the Gulf, and the intricacies of the concept of citizenship as they have evolved in dialectic with the extraordinary flow of foreign labor to the island. Comments The abstract, table of contents, and first twenty-five pages are published with permission from the Cornell University Press. For ordering information, please visit the Cornell University Press This article is available at DigitalCommons@ILR: http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/books/62


Several authors have previously discussed the use of log-linear models, often called maximum entropy models, for analyzing spike train data to detect synchrony. The usual log-linear modeling techniques, however, do not allow time-varying firing rates that typically appear in stimulus-driven (or action-driven) neurons, nor do they incorporate non-Poisson history effects or covariate effects. We generalize the usual approach, combining point-process regression models of individual neuron activity with log-linear models of multiway synchronous interaction. The methods are illustrated with results found in spike trains recorded simultaneously from primary visual cortex. We then assess the amount of data needed to reliably detect multiway spiking.


The contents of this volume are not a PhD thesis in the conventional sense in
that they do not represent a single major research theme. When the author
approached the Higher Degree Committee of the University of Tasmania with
the view of counting twenty-nine published papers towards a higher degree,
he was instructed to enrol for a research higher degree (PhD), and to present a
thesis not only containing the publications but critically reviewing them in
the form of a thesis to be completed over a period of not less than one year.
The thesis thus comprises a review of twenty-nine published papers on a
common theme of "Quaternary Studies of Caves and Coasts". Most papers are
concerned with aspects of cave sediments but some are focussed on the
sedimentary history of coasts. For the sake of completeness it was found
necessary to include one paper submitted for publication but not yet published
as well as some unpublished data.
Studies of caves commenced with an investigation of bone-rich deposits,
many of which contained remains of Pleistocene megafauna. The thesis
concentrates on aspects of stratigraphy, dating and interpretation of
depositional environments. Discovery of an archaeological site led to the
realisation that interior valleys of Tasmania had been colonised by aborigines
during the Last Glacial.
Later studies concentrated on the use of speleothems as an information source
on past climates and environments and used analysis of stable isotope ratios
and minor element concentrations to study temporal variations. The study
commenced with a detailed analysis of the isotopic composition of
precipitation and seepage waters - a vital prerequisite. Oxygen isotope
composition of Tasmanian speleothems was found to be not directly
controlled by temperature but by the isotopic composition of winter
precipitation. It is best interpreted as a proxy for mean winter temperature.
Carbon isotope variations are regarded as due predominantly to variations in
plant productivity and appear to be partly controlled by the precessional cycle.
Studies of minor element variations were focussed on magnesium and
strontium with preliminary investigation of uranium and bromine. Strontium isotope analysis was used to show that some of the strontium was
derived from a non-limestone source - probably wind-borne dust derived
from continental shelf areas when sealevels were low. The magnitude of the
dating peak (h3) in electron spin resonance spectra was found to be strongly
correlated with carbon isotope ratios and concentrations of uranium,
magnesium and bromine. The signal has considerable potential as an
indicator of changes in vegetation productivity and/or fire frequency.
Coastal studies commenced with electron spin resonance analysis of marine
gastropod shell from midden sites in sea caves at Klasies River Mouth, South
Africa where the technique was developed as a relative dating method in good
agreement with the cultural and stratigraphic sequence of the sites.
Use of the method continued on coastal deposits in western Victoria,
Tasmania and the Bass Strait Islands where it was calibrated against other
dating methods especially amino acid racemisation dating. The Bass Strait
study revealed that King and Flinders Islands had been tectonically uplifted
during the Quaternary as was Tasmania, but uplift began earlier and had
ceased 125,000 years ago.
Age determination is a vital part of Quaternary studies and is reviewed in a
separate chapter. Improvements in dating techniques and calibration during
the review period are discussed and earlier age estimates have been updated.


A collection of more than 3000 accessions of triticale ( x Triticosecale Wittmack), called the North American Triticale Genetic Resources Collection (NATGRC), was assembled from 10 active and inactive breeding programs in the USA, Canada, and Mexico for the purposes of conservation, characterization, evaluation, and documentation. Since triticale has no wild ancestors and hybrid parentage is often unknown, preservation of unique gene combinations is essential for continued utilization. The origin groups that comprised the whole collection were evaluated in field plots for 2 yr at Davis, CA. Accessions were predominantly secondary hexaploid triticales having spring growth habit. The collection was classified for spike type and 38% had spikes typical of complete (Beagle type) and 30% were substituted (Armadillo type) triticale. The Shannon-Weaver diversity index (H'), computed for seven qualitative traits, was 1.275 for the whole collection. The most diverse group was from Manitoba (1.404) and the least diverse groups were from Oregon (0.822) and CIMMYT (0.867). Overtrait mean coefficients of variation for eight quantitative traits gave similar diversity ratings as H' for each of the origin groups (r = 0.74*), suggesting that simply scored traits may be useful for assessing overall diversity in large genetic resource collections. Principal components (PC) analysis of quantitative traits showed differentiation, but considerable commonality, among the Canada, Mexico, and USA groups. The CA-Davis group included hybrid derivatives from CA-Jenkins x CIMMYT groups that clustered intermediate to those groups, suggesting a genetic basis for the phenotypic clustering. The PC analysis showed that the Beagle and Armadillo types differed in several quantitative traits, showing that this classification is a useful descriptor for hexaploid triticale. The NATGRC is conserved at USDA, Aberdeen, ID, and CIMMYT, Mexico. Researchers are urged to use and contribute to this collection. The formation of a European-based collection emphasizing winter growth habit is recommended.


A pavement investment and management process has a dynamic structure with cause and effect. Better investment decisions for maintenance will increase the condition of the flexible pavement and will end up with a better level of service. Therefore, better investments decisions on pavement maintenance will increase the economic growth and global competition for the area. However, improper allocation of money and resources would end up with further deteriorations of the facilities. So asset management encourages highway maintenance managers to spend their scarce budget for the maintenance that is really needed. A well-developed pavement management simulation model will allow highway maintenance managers to consider the impact of choosing one maintenance policy alternative versus another through what-if analysis and having informed decisions. Discrete event simulation (DES) is an alternative method of analysis that offers numerous benefits in pavement management. Unlike the models currently in use, a decision support model created by utilizing the DES technique would allow fractionalizing the pavement in smaller proportions and simulating the policies on these smaller segments. Thus, users would see how their decisions would affect these specific segments in the highway network over a period of time. Furthermore, DES technique would better model the multiple resource requirements and dynamic complexity of pavement maintenance processes. The purpose for this research is to create a decision support tool utilizing discrete event simulation technique where the highway maintenance managers can foresee the outcomes of their what-if scenarios on the specific segments and whole of the highway network evaluated. Thus, can be used for both project and network level decision support. The simulation can also be used as a guiding tool on when, where and why resources are needed on needs basis. This research relies on the budget allocation results from the linear optimization model (LOM). This model is a tool that creates the optimized budget allocation scheme for a network fitting to a determined scenario. Thus by integrating the LOM and the DES model, the maintenance managers can acquire an optimized budget allocation for their district and evaluate the results in both network and project selection level. Maintenance managers can obtain the best budget allocation plan without performing the repetitive trial and error approach like the previous decision support tools. There is a vast amount data in many varieties gathered as results from the simulation model. This fact alone demonstrates how powerful the discrete event simulation model is. By the nature of this simulation technique, the resources (highway segments, annual budget) can be traced throughout the simulation and this trait allows the design of the project selection level decision support system. By examining these reports, the maintenance managers can better observe how the scenarios evolve. Thus this tool helps the maintenance managers to have better decisions on the project selection level. The discrete event simulation model established in this research carries the project selection level pavement management from a position where maintenance managers should solely depend on their engineering judgment and experience to a position where maintenance managers can have more effective and justified plans since they can foresee the results of these decisions on the segments that are forming the network. This simulation engine is created with the discrete event simulation language called STROBOSCOPE. The model consists of two parts which work like a lock and key mechanism. The first part of the model is the data feeding mechanism where information from any network is loaded. The second part is the generic engine which can evaluate any road network data it is fed. The purpose of segregating these two components of the model is to allow the user to evaluate any network regardless of length, number of segments or the location.


Jiddu .Kishnamurti's influence on the educational ethos of alternative Indian education is immense. Although he was not an educator in the narrow sense of the term, he worked incessantly in the field of education. He is appropriately described as a 'revolutionary teacher who worked tirelessly to awaken people'. He felt that if people could be awakened to their conditioning of nationality, religion and desires, which inevitably leads to conflicts, they might bring a total change in their lives. His concern for 'good society' found expression in the establishment of schools in India and abroad. Krishnamurti's approach to education was highly original and unconventional for them education should aim at the inner transformation and liberation of the human being. The function of education is to help a person from childhood not to imitate anybody, but to be true to his/her own self all the time. Freedom is the basic motto of Education. Krishnamurti emphasised the relationship between  Education and society and said that it's only after evolving a sensible policy of "right' education that we can look forward to the formation of better society. In today's context his views on education are of paramount significance. J. Krishnamurti has been an eminent philosopher and educationist of India. The impact of his philosophy on the educational ethos of alternative Indian education has been of an unquantifiable quality, although this is often not visible in the formal components of secondary school education. Krishnamurti was not an educator in the narrow or formal sense of the term, as he had no formal qualifications to either propagate or promote educational goals or establish educational institutions. Krishnamurti has been described as a revolutionary teacher who worked tirelessly to awaken people to awaken their intelligence, to awaken their sense of responsibility, to awaken aflame of discontent and this commitment to awaken the consciousness of people was undoubtedly based on a 'strong moral passion'


Background: Maintaining quality of life including physical functioning is highly prioritized among older cancer patients. Geriatric assessment is a recommended approach to identify patients with increased vulnerability to stressors (frailty). How frailty affects quality of life and physical functioning in older cancer patients has scarcely been investigated. Aim: Focusing on physical functioning and global quality of life, we investigated whether frailty identified by a geriatric assessment was associated with higher risk of quality-of-life deterioration during cancer treatment and follow-up. Design: Prospective, observational study. Patients were classified as frail or non-frail by a modified geriatric assessment. Quality of life was measured using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality-of-Life Questionnaire at inclusion, 2, 4, 6 and 12 months. Setting: Eight Norwegian outpatient cancer clinics. Participants: Patients ⩾70 years with solid tumours referred for palliative or curative systemic medical cancer treatment. Results: Among 288 patients included, 140 (49%) were frail and 148 (51%) non-frail. Frail patients consistently reported poorer scores on all functioning and symptom scales. Independent of age, gender and major cancer-related factors, frail patients had significantly poorer physical functioning and global quality of life during follow-up, and opposed to non-frail patients they had both a clinically and statistically significant decline in physical functioning from baseline until 12 months. Conclusions: Geriatric assessment identifies frail patients with increased risk of physical decline, poor functioning and high symptom burden during and following cancer treatment. Frail patients should therefore receive early supportive or palliative care.