In connection with today's competition between cities to portray an alluring image of economic and cultural success, the City of Helsinki and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation put forward a plan to establish a Guggenheim museum in Helsinki, Finland. Following the plan's release, a heated public debate emerged in the media. The present article analyzes this debate as a mediatized conflict and  aims to show in what ways the debate on the Guggenheim report affected the decision-making process concerning the Helsinki Guggenheim museum.  This debate is analyz ed within the framework of current discussions on the culture-led development of cities, by applying a methodological tool inspired by Luc Boltanski's and Laurent  Thevenot's  theory of critical judgement to analyze the various justifications that the different actors used during the debate. Further, the article interprets why the museum plan was rejected in the first deliberation. It was found that t he distance between different actors  grew  so wide th at it could not be reconciled, especially with the effect of social media.  Because the City did not encourage a discussion  and communication with the art world was neglected  at first ,  during the debate  it proved impossible to convince the art world of the benefits a Guggenheim might bring to other art institutions or artists.  Guggenheim Helsinki was planned for a small capital in northern Europe, and yet it is linked to current European politics affected by nationalistic ideology  and the question of preserving local cultures in the face of a globally shared culture.  T he article  ends with a discussion on  what can be learned from the fai lure of the Guggenheim Helsinki.


Efficient priming of adaptive immunity depends on danger signals provided by innate immune pathways. As an example, inflammasome-mediated activation of caspase-1 and IL-1β is crucial for the development of reactive T cells targeting sensitizers like dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB). Surprisingly, DNFB and dinitrothiocyanobenzene provide cross-reactive Ags yet drive opposing, sensitizing vs tolerizing, T cell responses. In this study, we show that, in mice, inflammasome-signaling levels can be modulated to turn dinitrothiocyanobenzene into a sensitizer and DNFB into a tolerizer, and that it correlates with the IL-6 and IL-12 secretion levels, affecting Th1, Th17, and regulatory T cell development. Hence, our data provide the first evidence that the inflammasome can define the type of adaptive immune response elicited by an Ag, and hint at new strategies to modulate T cell responses in vivo.


IntroductionPaper I: An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) was constructed to identify ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) and predict the need for Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI). Paper II, III and IV: Studies suggest that O2 therapy may be harmful in STEMI patients. We therefore conducted the SOCCER study to evaluate the effects of O2 therapy in STEMI patients.MethodsPaper I: 560 ambulance ECGs sent to the Cardiac Care Unit (CCU), was together with the CCU physicians interpretation and decision of conducting an acute PCI or not collected, and compared with the interpretation and PCI decision of the ANN. Paper II, III, IV: Normoxic (≥94%) STEMI patients accepted for acute PCI were in the ambulance randomized to standard care with 10 L/min O2 or room air. A subset of the patients underwent echocardiography for determination of the Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF) and the Wall Motion Score Index (WMSI). All patients had a Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging (CMRI) to evaluate Myocardial area at Risk (MaR), Infarct Size (IS) and Myocardial Salvage Index (MSI).ResultsPaper I: The area under the ANN's receiver operating characteristics curve for STEMI detection as well as predicting the need of acute PCI were very good.Paper II, III, IV: No significant differences could be shown in discussing MaR, MSI or IS between the O2 group (n=46) and the air group (n=49). Neither could any differences be shown for LVEF and WMSI at the index visit as well after six months between the O2 group (n=46) and the air group (n=41)ConclusionsPaper I: The results indicate that the number of ECGs sent to the CCU could be reduced with 2/3 as the ANN would safely identify ECGs not being STEMI.Paper II, III, IV: The results suggest that it is safe to withhold O2 therapy in normoxic, stable STEMI patients. (Less)


In contrast to larger river systems that drain relatively pristine basins, little is known about the sediment geochemistry of rivers impacted by intense human activities. In this paper, we present a systematic investigation of the anthropogenic overprints on element geochemistry in sediments of the human‐impacted Seine River, France. Most elements are fractionated by grain size, as shown by the comparison between suspended particulate matter (SPM) and riverbank deposits (RBD). The RBD are particularly coarse and enriched in carbonates and heavy minerals and thus in elements such as Ba, Ca, Cr, Hf, Mg, Na, REEs, Sr, Ti, Th, and Zr. Although the enrichment/depletion pattern of some elements (e.g., K, REEs, and Zr) can largely be explained by a binary mixture between two sources, other elements such as Ag, Bi, Cr, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Sn, W, and Zn in SPM in Paris show that a third end‐member having anthropogenic characteristics is needed to account for their enrichment at low water stage. These "anthropophile" elements, with high enrichment factors (EFs) relative to the upper continental crust (UCC), display a progressive enrichment downstream and different geochemical behaviors with respect to the hydrodynamic conditions (e.g., grain size) compared to elements having mainly a natural origin. Our findings emphasize the need for systematic studies of these anthropophile elements in other human‐impacted rivers using geochemical normalization techniques, and stress the importance of studying the chemical variability associated with hydrodynamic conditions when characterizing riverine element geochemistry and assessing their flux to the ocean.


In education management, it is very important to get the information of schools fast and reliable. In Istanbul Provincial Directorate of National Education, management of 3170 schools of 39 districts is planned in. In particular; projects such as the Fatih Project where all the schools are equipped with technological infrastructure, requires correct and fast data flow during the planning and implementation processes because of the cost of a wrong action. For example, information which taken from schools in July cannot be reached and re requested in August because of the vacation of the officer who handles the data. During data gathering process, schools do not send data, they send late, and the information provided is stored in personnel computers. So, there is no continuity of the data and some information from the schools is requested repeatedly and this situation is causing the progeny in planning and implementation. The purpose of this research is to create an educational information system in which school information is effectively managed, do not need a programmer for each information request, in which the continuity and sharing of information is ensured. The program was built using the PHP programming language and the MYSQL database system. A responsive design has been used to allow access from mobile phones, tablets and desktop computers. Some sub-systems have been developed to facilitate data collection and management. One of that sub-systems is that information stored in computers in the type of office formats can be added to the system quickly and forms can be created using the titles of these data on the fly. It is considered that data mining and machine learning algorithms can be added to the system and data mining can be done on the data for future studies.


Introduction of FMDV into Thrace by wildlife is less likely than introduction due to movement of domestic animals or animal products. Based on a systematic literature review, currently available data of surveillance in wildlife and the epidemiological model, FMD will not be sustainable in the wildlife population in Thrace although limited spread of FMDV in time and space may occur. There are several potential risk factors associated with both introduction and spread of the FMDV infection in the region. The most important of these are biosecurity, movement of live animals and animal products, swill feeding and access to landfill waste. The absence of significant clinical signs in sheep in particular, and the increased levels of livestock movements associated with particular festivals in this region, give rise to specific concerns. Active surveillance for early detection of FMDV infection in wildlife could be a useful addition to an effective passive surveillance system in domestic animals. The EFSAwbFMD model indicated that when the sampling strategy in wildlife was based on hunting alone, the time needed to detect at least one seropositive animal for an FMDV incursion in January and July would be 39 and 13 weeks after incursion of the virus into the population respectively, whilst, when regular sampling was implemented over the whole year, about one month is needed. The precise pathway for the introduction of FMDV into Bulgaria for the 2010/2011 outbreak and its subsequent spread is not known. One possible explanation based on the genetic relationships between viruses in Bulgaria is a single introduction of virus into the country from Anatolian Turkey but it is also possible that the common ancestor was introduced into Turkish Thrace and quickly moved to Bulgaria either through a single introduction or through several introductions from the same source within a relatively short time span.


This paper presents the results of a full-scale crash test into an energy absorbing lighting pole situated on an unlevel or sloped roadside. With poles representing approximately one third of single vehicle accidents involving roadside objects it is important to ascertain the performance of luminaire supports in the Australian road environment. Operational performance of some pole types in unlevel road environments seriously diminishes the safe and predictable performance of lighting poles.

This research utilises a full-scale crash test with an instrumented vehicle and dummy to determine performance of the pole. Analysis of the data acquired during the test was conducted to determine the performance of the appurtenance and effect of an unlevel roadside on the test outcome. The test results suggest that the test article is suitable for use on Australian roadsides, particularly sloped roadsides, pending some minor changes to the design. The study is limited to one full-scale test due to the inherently high cost of full-scale destructive testing. It is recommended that further testing of Australian poles be conducted to allow the refinement of Australian appurtenances making Australian roads more forgiving, reducing the number of lives lost each year in Australia due to road crashes.


Research that uses economic concepts to analyze international law has generated an impressive body of insights but, as this article will argue, it has nonetheless been limited by a pair of methodological missteps. First, law-and-economics scholarship generally assumes that the standard dilemmas of international cooperation do not apply in the case of the European Union, on the grounds that the EU represents a single super-federation rather than an agreement among sovereign states. That position has proven implausible after Brexit, however, and cannot account for the current unraveling of legal coordination across Europe. Second, the literature assumes that treaties are designed to facilitate the provision of global public goods, and has not incorporated the related economic theory of club goods. That decision is also problematic because a vast body of international agreements concern joint investments in club goods, which raise a distinct set of design problems. Thus, the two "wrong turns" in the economic analysis of international law consist of a misinterpretation of European integration and a neglect of club theory.
This article not only identifies these gaps in the scholarship but also further shows that they remedy one another when analyzed in parallel. On one hand, club theory supplies a framework that can be used to construct a unified explanation of the three recent waves of European disintegration: the Eurozone financial crisis, the collapse of Schengen Area border controls, and Brexit. This includes their underlying causes, the limits of available policy responses, and implications for the EU going forward. On the other hand, a close examination of the treaties underlying European integration proves useful for understanding how other international club good agreements work. Specifically, it reveals that the legal elements that regulate entry and exit in those agreements serve radically different functions than is otherwise predicted by the prevailing theories of treaty design. The result is to flip some classic debates in international law — such as whether treaties "screen or constrain" member states, and the extent to which "flexibility" in treaty obligations can promote international cooperation — on their heads.


In this paper an approach to develop a non-invasive glucose measured system based on the best linear approximation (BLA) and electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is presented. In order to test the advantages of the technique, three blood components at reference blood concentration are tested. In these solutions the level of glucose was varied from normal to pathological concentrations. The results show the ability of BLA-EIS to detect the glucose changes by combining the amplitude and phase behavior of the impedance.


Serum samples for cortisol, estradiol-1713 (E,), and progesterone analysis were obtained twice daily or more frequently to determine the onset of diurnal steroid patterns in the maternal circulation of pregnant rhesus monkeys. The expected a.m./p.m. fluctuations in serum cortisol (3 1.6/22.9 �zg/dI) were evident from Day 25, whereas nocturnal elevations in progesterone (9.62/16.3 1 ng/ml) were demonstrable on Day 30, and diurnal increments in E2 (283/138 pg/mI), coincident with those of cortisol, appeared about Day 40. Microscopic examination of fetal adrenals from rhesus embryos (ages 30 to 50 days) indicated that the gland differentiates and undergoes extensive development when diurnal E2 release first appears. Administration of 1.0 mg of dexamethasone twice daily to pregnant animals on Days 124 to 130 was accompanied by 1) complete suppression of cortisol release, 2) loss of the diurnal E2 pattern, which was associated with a marked reduction in serum E2, and 3) eventual loss of the nocturnal elevation in serum progesterone without altering its basal levels. Similar treatment earlier in gestation reduced serum levels of both cortisol and F2 without influencing the diurnal serum patterns of these hormones or progesterone. These results support the concept that maternal estrogen levelsdepend on a functional fetaladrenal and further suggest the hypothesis that the inversepatternsin serum cortisoland progesterone are relatedto alteredbinding of progesterone to serum proteins as adrenal activity varies throughout the day. Further evidence supporting the hypothesis of steroid-serum protein interaction was the appearance of nocturnal increments in serum progesterone in ovariectomized animals treated with Silastic capsules containing progesterone and the absence of such increments in similarly treated ovairectomized animals after pituitary stalk section to suppress circadian adrenal activity. It is now clear that diurnal rhythms in serum E3 and progesterone as well as cortisol are present during most of gestation in the rhesus macaque, but the physiological importance of such rhythms remains to be elucidated.


Recent legal and economic scholarship has recognized that the government can use structural systems as an efficient way to reduce prohibited behavior. The federal tax system employs structural mechanisms, such as withholding taxes, to foster compliance. The use of structural systems to reduce tax evasion need not be limited to tax administration, however. The Article argues that substantive federal income tax law can - and in many contexts does - foster compliance by harnessing the structural incentives of third parties. Although this phenomenon has gone largely unnoticed, third parties are routinely used by the tax system to verify the bona fides of taxpayer claims in diverse contexts involving reimbursed amounts and other receipts. Yet, third parties do not always behave in ways that are helpful for tax enforcement. The Article therefore identifies contexts in which a third party may have an incentive to collude with the taxpayer. The Article argues that these contexts are ones that the government needs to scrutinize closely and, in certain cases, obstruct with legislation. By contrast, the government can afford to free ride on the incentives of a third party in contexts in which the transfer of funds from the third party to the taxpayer is a zero-sum game.


The provision of utilities for all at an affordable price has long been regarded as a prerequisite for everyday life, generally guaranteed by the state. But in recent years, publicly owned utilities throughout Europe have come under increasing fire for their poor performance--their lack of productive efficiency, their failure to identify consumer demands, and their lack of service innovation. As a consequence, and driven by the influence of neo-liberal thought, many public monopolies have been, or are being, privatized, and utility markets are being deregulated. The experience of reform measures, instruments and institutional arrangements allows us to tentatively take stock of the situation with regard to the quality of service provision. Are the public-service goals of accessibility, security, continuity and affordability still in place in the countries that have undergone reform? If so, to what extent have they been achieved, and what are the differences between sectors and countries? What are the underlying causes? This article presents the empirical data on service provision in two sectors, rail and telecommunications, and three countries, the UK, Germany and France. Possible explanations for the level of performance are discussed. In a further step, general explanations are discussed in the light of the empirical data.


OBJECTIVES
This study aims to verify the applicability of Ambler's risk score to patients who have undergone implantation of bovine pericardial bioprosthesis at the Instituto de Cardiologia do RGS/FCU. This study also aims to quantify the risk factors.

METHODS
Retrospective study with 703 patients who had undergone implantation of bovine pericardial bioprosthesis between 1991 and 2005 at the Instituto de Cardiologia do RS. Aortic implant occurred in 392 patients, mitral in 250 and combined in 61. Primary outcome was hospital mortality. Characteristics used to estimate risk were: gender, age, body mass index (BMI), NYHA functional class, left ventricular ejection fraction, valvular lesions, systemic arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, renal function, cardiac rhythm, previous cardiac operations, and surgical priority. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was used to quantify preponderant risk factors by the odds-ratio (OR).

RESULTS
The mortality rate was 14.3%, which was higher than the estimated mortality rate (3%, according to Ambler's mean score of 6, (p<0.01)). Patients who died presented a mean score of 8.26, which was higher than the survivors' average score of 5.68. Characteristics of increased risk were emergency surgery (OR=10.87), dialysis (OR=6.10), and age higher than 80 years (OR=6.10). Our sample indicates an area under the ROC curve of 72.9% (accepted value > 70%).

CONCLUSION
The mortality predicted in Ambler's score was not reproduced in the observed results. However, the ROC curve provides evidence that this model is applicable. Preponderant risk factors were individualizated.


The increase in agricultural waste such as African locust bean pod have resulted in endangering the life of plants and animals. Researchers have found out ways that this environmental pollution can be of positive relevance by recycling the waste to be re-used or reduce to ensure a cleaner and healthier environment. African locust bean pod was ashed and the pozzolanic properties were investigated. The pod was dried, blended and ashed in a furnace at 500°C for two (2) hours; different analysis was carried out on the ash obtained to prove the pozzolanic properties, such as sieve analysis to determine the particle size distribution; reaction of calcium hydroxide with the ash in relation to time which proved that pozzolanic reactivity increases with time, comparison of hydration of Portland cement with ashed locust bean pod mixture and compressive strength test.


The authors present the process-replication protocol of Manetho, a system whose goal is to provide efficient, application-transparent fault tolerance to long-running distributed computations. Manetho uses a novel negative-acknowledgment multicast protocol to enforce the same receipt order of application messages among all replicas of a process. The protocol depends on a combination of antecedence graph maintenance, a form of sender-based message logging, and the fact that the receivers of each multicast execute the same deterministic program. This combination allows the protocol to void the delay in application message delivery that is common in existing negative-acknowledgment multicast protocols, without giving up the advantage of requiring only a small number of control messages.<<ETX>>


Forty-eight out of 53 non-insulin-dependent diabetic identical twin pairs were concordant for diabetes. In the five discordant pairs the diabetic twin had only recently been diagnosed. Oral glucose tolerance tests were carried out on the unaffected twins of the five pairs and on matched controls. Fasting concentrations of blood glucose (5.5 +/- 0.6 v 3.7 +/- 0.3 mmol/l; 99.1 +/- 10.8 v 66.6 +/- 5.4 mg/100 ml), haemoglobin A1 (mean 9.1%, range 8.8-9.2% v mean 7.9%, range 7.4-8.4%), lactate, alanine, and glycerol (0.090 +/- 0.017 v 0.045 +/- 0.008 mmol/l); and the lactate: pyruvate ratio were significantly higher in the twins than controls. After glucose challenge blood glucose, lactate, alanine, and glycerol concentrations and lactate: pyruvate ratio were increased in the twins. Insulin response was severely impaired, being almost absent in four of the five twins. The non-diabetic members of the discordant non-insulin-dependent diabetic pairs showed noticeable metabolic abnormalities which would later presumably deteriorate to frank diabetes. These findings, taken with the high concordance rate for non-insulin-dependent diabetic twins, suggest that non-insulin-dependent diabetes is predominantly, possibly entirely, inherited.


The process of image plane holography with incoherent illumination has many significant properties. The process can produce extremely high-quality, low-noise images, section slicing, image formation through inhomogeneities, and high-resolution image formation through small apertures. The process of confocal imaging has similar properties. We describe the similarities and differences between the two processes.


1. Because antiadrenergic therapy of hypertension may precipitate borderline cardiac compensation into failure, a method for detecting early cardiac insufficiency appeared desirable. 2. Eight out of thirty primary hypertensive patients were considered to be in incipient failure on the basis of the magnitude of the changes in left ventricular mean rates of systolic ejection and isovolumic pressure development after acute digitalization. 3. Antiadrenergic therapy precipitated these patients into overt failure, but did not affect cardiac performance in the others. 4. Left ventricular response to digitalis seems a reliable test in estimating cardiac reserve and in predicting the likelihood of decompensation after antiadrenergic treatment of hypertension.


We present an experimental investigation of the 60 GHz optical carrier suppressed radio over fiber systems with less than 5 dB carrier suppression. As a case study, the 60 GHz RoF signal is generated using a 12.5 Gb/s commercially available Mach-Zehnder modulator biased at its minimum point. We report on error free transmission over 20 km of standard single mode fiber and 1 m of wireless distance. Furthermore, the efficiency of photonic RF generation depending on the value of carrier suppression is reported. We argue that transport of RoF signals with low carrier suppression assisted with simplified techniques of lightwave generation, baseband data modulation, and RF downconversion might be a promising enabling technology for fiber support of close-proximity wireless terminals.


It is known that all cytophysiological processes occur on the cell ultrastructure, which is a heterogeneous (heterophase) medium. So the kinetics of metabolic processes should be considered as a structural macrokinetics of this partially ordered medium (soft matter). Our model reproduces the structural-macrokinetic aspect of a number of metabolic phenomena, based on the physico-chemical analogies with the biological cell. Thus, the semipermeability of bioorganic membranes is simulated by semiconductive polymer inorganic dynamic membranes, exergonic chemoosmotic redox processes are equivalent to cellular respiration, biomimetic self-oscillating reactions are analogues of oscillatory metabolic processes and finally the structure formation in these models is also provided by reaction-diffusion mechanisms.


Previous analysis of networking activities among SME exporters in regional NSW, Australia indicates that they tended to be isolated entrepreneurs, who relied primarily on their internal innovation and marketing capacities rather than on local networks and clusters as suggested by regional development theory (Vaessen and Keeble, 1995). Many of these firms were small, new 'born global' firms that had entered world markets with an innovative niche product and helped by the very low Australian exchange rates prevailing at that time. To be a successful exporter, the small firm must acquire sufficient resources to cover the higher risks of operating in international markets, as well as adopt strategies that are consistent with prevailing market conditions. In this study, SME exporters are divided into four categories based on their growth performance between 1996/97 and 2000/01: negative, modest, good and fast. Each group is analysed to determine the relationship between their export growth performance and a series of market orientated and internal resource variables. This analysis is performed using logistical equation models, controlling for a number of structural variables. Key findings were that export growth increased in line with export intensity. Fast and good export growth was associated with the use of partnerships and collaborations and foreign direct investment, while these factors were either insignificant or negative for the other firms. Most of the fast growth firms were new exporters or 'born global' and tended to use early stage export strategies, while for the larger good and modest growth firms, introducing equity was positively associated with export growth. Most types of R&D were positively associated with good export growth. Adapting products from the market and developing technology in partnerships were also associated with export growth. Good export growth performance was associated with strategies focusing on client service, flexible production, technical innovation and product quality. Their marketing strategies were based on innovation but also recognised the importance of price (low exchange rates) and product quality in achieving export sales.


When navigating larger virtual environments and computer games, natural walking is often unfeasible. Here, we investigate how alternatives such as joystick- or leaning-based locomotion interfaces ("human joystick") can be enhanced by adding walking-related cues following a sensory substitution approach. Using a custom-designed foot haptics system and evaluating it in a multi-part study, we show that adding walking related auditory cues (footstep sounds), visual cues (simulating bobbing head-motions from walking), and vibrotactile cues (via vibrotactile transducers and bass-shakers under participants' feet) could all enhance participants' sensation of self-motion (vection) and involement/presence. These benefits occurred similarly for seated joystick and standing leaning locomotion. Footstep sounds and vibrotactile cues also enhanced participants' self-reported ability to judge self-motion velocities and distances traveled. Compared to seated joystick control, standing leaning enhanced self-motion sensations. Combining standing leaning with a minimal walking-in-place procedure showed no benefits and reduced usability, though. Together, results highlight the potential of incorporating walking-related auditory, visual, and vibrotactile cues for improving user experience and self-motion perception in applications such as virtual reality, gaming, and tele-presence.


Sodium-aided hyperhydration has been shown to reduce rates of dehydration, improve performance, and alleviate markers of physical stress during endurance exercise in the heat. Caffeine use as an ergogenic and through casual consumption of foods is common among endurance athletes; but caffeine can have diuretic effects and its use prior to exercise may compromise hydration status and exercise performance by promoting fluid excretion. PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of caffeine consumption on sodium-aided hyperhydration. METHODS: Fifteen well-hydrated male subjects (21 ± 2 yr, 176 ± 6 cm, 80.2 ± 10.1 kg) who were free from known renal, digestive, and cardiovascular disease underwent five hyperhydration strategies. Each strategy began with a complete bladder void from which urine specific gravity was measured. The bladder void was followed immediately by ingestion of 20 mL H2O ∙ kg bm combined with either no treatment (NT), placebo (P), 5 mg caffeine ∙ kg bm (Caf), 110 mg NaCl ∙ kg bm (Na), or 5 mg caffeine ∙ kg bm plus 110 mg NaCl ∙ kg bm (CafNa) administered in a randomized, double-blind, crossover manner. Subjects then rested quietly for two hours, performing a bladder void every 15 minutes. Total urine production during the two hour collection periods for each strategy were compared using repeated measures ANOVA with Sidak post hoc analyses. Levels of significance were set a priori at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Urine specific gravity measured before each strategy (1.006 ±0.003) did not differ significantly between treatments or subjects and indicated that subjects were well and similarly hydrated at the beginning of each hyperhydration strategy. Total urine productions as a percentage of fluid consumed were 103% (NT), 102% (P), 116% (Caf), 68% (Na), and 85% (CafNa). No significant difference was detected between NT and P (P = 1.00); however, significant differences were detected between all of the other comparisons (P = 0.025 < 0.001). CONSLUSIONS: The results confirmed that hyperhydration can be attained when water consumption is accompanied by sodium ingestion but is not achieved when pure water is consumed without sodium. The current results also suggest that consumption of 5 mg caffeine ∙ kg bm with 20 mL H2O ∙ kg bm prevents hyperhydration and that co-consuming 5 mg caffeine ∙ kg bm plus 110 mg NaCl ∙ kg bm with 20 mL H2O ∙ kg bm promotes hyperhydration. However, the hyperhydration attained from the CafNa strategy is significantly less than hyperhydration levels achieved from consuming the sodium and water doses without caffeine.


In the current trend, cancer has become something like cold. Almost in every street, at least three people fight cancer. The traditional method of curing cancer includes chemotherapy and pills. But it is effective only at the early stages of cancer. Till now, no cure has been found in curing cancer completely. The principle behind chemotherapy involves the killing of cancer cells by passing high level radiation such as gamma radiation through the body. Moreover chemo causes post complications such as hair loss, weight loss etc. which makes the person's life miserable. The other problem which currently exists in the surgical area is removal of small stones (of size less than a unit sphere) in sensitive organs like uterus etc. For example, in the case of removal of uterine stones, since the tube is very small to be overloaded, a slight defocus during incision can cause severe complication and lead to the death of the patient. The size of uterine tube is really small for the incision procedure to take place. If any stone of fibrous type gets formed in the walls of this tube, it becomes really difficult to cut open the tube and remove the stone. Sometimes due to deep tear of the tube, the muscles get damaged and the person may die. So, the important problems that the doctors and the pathologists face nowadays are finding a remedy for cancer and removal of stones from sensitive areas. The solution that we could develop is something common to both the problems and this solution will be useful to cure both the problems. That is some platform which can remove stones with ease and also destroy cancer cells.


This study proposes to blend contemporary educational research in order to design an online instructional environment. The goal was to create an environment that would better educate learners about grammar use in higher education, given the complexity of the rule learning that was being asked of them. By blending approaches from tested educational research on cognitive information processing theories, schema theories, and situated cognitive theories in order to determine how language rules are best learned, eight design principles were derived for the instructional environment. A prototype of the environment was then developed. Two series of formative evaluations, one with a group of subject-matter experts (teachers, linguists, and instructional designers) and one with a group of students, were run against the instruction. Overall, it was found that a database-driven website employing user-defined variables to customize the instruction for each individual user was a useful way to achieve the goals of the study. iii Acknowledgements


Galactomannan gum isolated from the seeds of sesbania was subjected to chemical modification via carboxymethylation in non-aqueous medium using monochloroacetic acid under the catalytic action of sodium hydroxide. The obtained derivatives were subjected to measuring the degrees of substitution (D.S.), rheological properties of their pastes, and evaluated as thickeners in printing cotton fabrics with reactive dyes. Highly substituted derivatives could be used successfully as thickening agents in printing cotton fabrics either alone or in admixture with sodium alginate. Prints acquire soft handle, colour strength (K/S), and fastness properties nearly identical to corresponding samples that were printed using sodium alginate.


This article will address three fundamental issues (i) the impact and legal status of BitTorrent technology on copyright infringement of music, software and movies over the internet (ii) damages and the enforcement of intellectual property rights via the EC Directive and (iii) argue that damages should continue to be used as a form of deterrence to illegal file sharing and "torrents" download by the end users who are enticed in the first place by the "torrent" up loaders through their websites and internet service providers "ISP's" who might bear indirect liability for copyright infringement. The central point is that the same manner in which taxes are due to the state and failure to render unto "Caesar" what is due will likely result in a fine or prison sentence the same approach must be taken to internet copyright infringement through file sharing and "torrents" where there is a copyright infringement. A comparison of three recent cases that were decided on the BitTorrent technology platform will be used to bolster the arguments. The article begin with an overview of legal and economic argument in the current debate on internet copyright infringement then assess the enforcement of such infringement through the EC Directive on enforcement of intellectual property and its relations to damages and then concludes with the impact on choice of law for internet copyright infringement that takes place beyond national borders.


Abstract : The objective of this thesis is to examine the process and managerial policies used for the F-14 Standard Depot Level Maintenance (SDLM) and compare it to the processes and managerial policies for overhaul of the F/A-18 and for the United Airlines 737. Efficiencies discovered in the F/A-18 and 737 overhaul processes that can be applied to reduce F-14 SDLM Turn Around Time (TAT) are identified. The F-14 community faces the possibility of having insufficient numbers of aircraft to satisfy fleet requirements due to excessive SDLM TAT. A 50% reduction in TAT would yield an increase of 10 to 11 aircraft available for use per year. A TAT reduction of 1Q% is required by the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year 1998 in order to alleviate the premature retirement of approximately 10% of the inventory (21 F-14 aircraft). This research identifies areas for potential F14 SDLM TAT improvement pertaining to planning, pre-induction requirements, and the component management policies at NADEP Jacksonville, Florida.


Abstract Epizoanthus species are generally found in association with other marine invertebrates such as hermit crabs and gastropods. Although Epizoanthus spp. are relatively common, there is limited information about their diversity and ecology due to their habitats or hosts, often being below the depths of SCUBA diving (>~50 m). In particular, the Epizoanthus fauna of the Indo-Pacific Ocean remains poorly understood. In this study, the diversity of Epizoanthus species associated with eunicid worm tubes from shallow waters in the Pacific Ocean we investigated using molecular analyses (mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 = COI, mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA = mt 16S-rDNA, nuclear internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA = ITS-rDNA) combined with morphological and ecological data. The combined data set leads us to describe two new species; Epizoanthus inazuma sp. n. and Epizoanthus beriber sp. n. Both new species are found in low-light environments: Epizoanthus inazuma sp. n. on mesophotic coral reef slopes and reef floors, or on the sides of overhangs; Epizoanthus beriber sp. n. has only been found in caves. Morphological characteristics of these two new species are very similar to Epizoanthus illoricatus Tischbierek, 1930 but the two new species are genetically distinct. Mesentery numbers and coloration of polyps may be useful diagnostic characteristics among eunicid-associated Epizoanthus species. These results demonstrate that there is high potential for other potentially undescribed zoantharian species, particularly in underwater cave habitats.


We analyzed the V gamma and V delta gene usage in TCR-gamma/delta- bearing T cell clones isolated from human peripheral blood and postnatal thymus using V-specific mAbs and Southern and Northern analyses. In peripheral blood most of the gamma/delta cells express the V gamma 9-JP-C gamma 1 chain paired with a delta chain bearing the V delta 2 gene product. This heterodimer is very rare in the postnatal thymus, where a different and less restricted pairing of V gamma 9 and V delta 2 chains is found. These findings indicate that physical constraints cannot explain the overrepresentation of a particular V gamma 9-JP/V delta 2 heterodimer in the peripheral blood, and we discuss alternative mechanisms that may account for this differential distribution. In addition, this analysis allowed us to map the specificity of the delta TCS1 mAb to V delta 1-J delta 1 and to identify at least five different expressed V delta genes.


Abstract : The wear research presented in the work consists of results gathered from adapting a FEM based on a Holloman High Speed Test Track (HHSTT) mission executed in January 2008. The FEM consists of a VascoMax slipper sliding on a stationary AISI-1080 steel rail. The slipper is slid along the rail at speeds of 20 m/s and 40 m/s with complementary vertical velocities of -0.079 m/s and -0.059 m/s, respectively. The surface roughness caused by features such as asperities and valleys of the materials, is simulated in this model by five asperities, 1 micron to 5 microns on the rail and a slipper with a leading edge radius of 6 microns. The free space between the surfaces, caused by the interaction of the asperities and valleys, is approximated by three gap spacings of 0.5 microns, 1.0 micron, and 1.5 microns. This study also explores three different Mesh refinements in the wearing portion of slipper to uncover any mesh dependence affecting the amount of wear. Additional simulations were completed to highlight the effects of using more accurate material definitions, tables of specific heat capacities were used instead of static values and more applicable, lower strain rate Johnson Cook plasticity parameters were. In a final three simulations, asperities with a smooth root fillet are used to highlight the model behavioral differences due to this simple change.


A PM_(0.1) sampler for the evaluation of the personal exposure to nanoparticles was designed based on a novel approach to a layered mesh inertial filter. Applications to practical environments would include roadsides and highly contaminated workplaces. The separation performances of PM0.1 sampler consisting of a layered mesh inertial filter and pre-separators for the removal of coarse particles were evaluated. The influence of particle loading on the pressure drop and separation performance, which is important from a practical standpoint, was also discussed. The novel personal sampler recorded a cutoff size of 100 nm with a small pressure drop of ~5 kPa. Through the combination of a layered mesh inertial filter for the PM0.1 and pre-cut impactors for the removal of huge or coagulated particles (PM_(1.4)-TSP) along with a pre-cut inertial filter using webbed SUS fibers for the removal of fine particles (PM_(0.5)-PM_(1.4)), the present PM_(0.1) inlet for the personal sampler was practical for the chemical analysis of collected particles. This sampler was proven effective even under the limitations of a small-capacity portable battery pump, which was rated at less than the minimum change for separation performance. The novel PM_(0.1) personal sampler is compact and lightweight (under 1 kg including a portable battery pump), which is important for the practical application of a personal sampler.


ABSTRACT
Change management in the public sector over the years has been a source of worry. The aim and objective of policy-makers is to change the face of revenue mobilization by eliminating duplicated functions, improve compliance level and reduce compliance and administrative cost. This study, therefore, was aimed at examining how the integration of the revenue agencies is being managed, the challenges and how they are being managed and the lessons learnt that will guide future change managements in the public sector. In an attempt to do that, Ghana Revenue Authority was selected as a case study.

Both primary and secondary data were collected and analyzed. The mixed-method design was used where a questionnaire was administered to respondents who agreed to participate in the study. An interview was also conducted to delve into some of the issues that emerged from analysing the data from the questionnaire. A major finding of the study is that there is a lack of effective communication which is the number one vehicle to drive the change. The employees believed that the change is not well-planned and does not have momentum although they believed that when well implemented, the change will lead to enhanced revenue mobilization. Other stakeholders indicated that the change is not being implemented as it should be and communication about the change is poor.

Based on the findings, it has been recommended among others that for the modernization of the authority to be recognized as successful and creating a healthy authority, it must maintain the balance between satisfying clients and staff needs and its purpose by developing a structure and a culture that encourage.


Cichla, with the junior synonym Acharnes, is widely distributed in the Amazon, Tocantins, and Orinoco river basins, and in the smaller rivers draining the Guianas to the Atlantic Ocean. Within South America transplantations are recorded from the Parana and Paraguay river drainages in Paraguay and Brazil, and the Paraiba do Sul and Paraguacu rivers in Brazil. The genus comprises 15 species recognized by external characters of which colour pattern and meristics are most significant. In six species juveniles possess three dark blotches on the side and a dark band connecting the posterior blotch to the dark blotch at the caudal-fin base: Cichla ocellaris is known from the Guianas, including the Marowijne, Suriname, Corantijn, Demerara, and Essequibo river drainages, and also the upper Rio Branco in Brazil. Cichla orinocensis is known from the Negro and Orinoco river drainages in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. Cichla monoculus is widespread in the floodplains of the Amazon basin, in Colombia, Peru, and Brazil, and also collected from rivers of Amapa in Brazil, and the lower Oyapock River on the border between Brazil and French Guiana. Cichla nigromaculata is known from the upper Rio Orinoco in Venezuela and, tentatively, the middle Rio Negro in Brazil. Cichla kelberi, new species, is restricted to the Tocantins river basin, but also found transplanted in the Parana and Paraiba do Sul river drainages and reported from the Nordeste region of Brazil. Cichla pleiozona, new species, occurs in the Madre de Dios, Beni, and Guapore river drainages in Bolivia and Brazil, and in the Rio Jamari in Brazil. A lectotype is fixed for Cychla toucounarai which is a synonym of Cichla monoculus. Juveniles and young of the remaining nine species, in addition to the three midlateral blotches, possess a dark horizontal band extending from the head to the dark blotch at the caudal-fin base: Cichla mirianae, new species, is restricted to the upper Tapajos river drainage, in the Juruena and Teles Pires rivers, and the upper Xingu river drainage in Brazil. Cichla melaniae, new species, is restricted to the lower Xingu river drainage in Brazil. Cichla piquiti, new species, is restricted to the Tocantins river basin, but transplanted in the Parana river basin in Brazil and Paraguay. Cichla thyrorus, new species, occurs in the Rio Trombetas in Brazil, upstream from the Cachoeira Porteira. Cichla jariina, new species, occurs in the Rio Jari in Brazil, where it is so far recorded only from the region of the Santo Antonio rapids. Cichla pinima, new species, occurs in the lower parts of southern tributaries of the Rio Amazonas in Brazil (Tapajos, Curua-Una, Xingu), and the lower Tocantins and Capim rivers. Tentatively identified specimens are recorded from the Amapa, Araguari, and Canuma rivers in Brazil. Cichla pinima occurs translocated in the Rio Paraguacu in southeastern Brazil, and is reported as translocated from the northeast of Brazil. Cichla vazzoleri, new species, occurs in the Uatuma and lower Trombetas rivers in Brazil. Cichla temensis is known from the Negro and Orinoco river drainages in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. It is also recorded from blackwater rivers along the Rio Solimoes-Amazonas in Brazil (Tefe, Rio Puraquequara, Rio Uatuma, and Silves). Cichla intermedia is restricted to the Casiquiare and Orinoco river drainages in Venezuela.


Monte Carlo simulation-based uncertainty analysis techniques have been applied successfully in hydrology for quantification of the model output uncertainty. They are flexible, conceptually simple and straightforward, but provide only average measures of uncertainty based on past data. However, if one needs to estimate uncertainty of a model in a particular hydro-meteorological situation in real time application of complex models, Monte Carlo simulation becomes impractical because of the large number of model runs required. This paper presents a novel approach to encapsulating and predicting parameter uncertainty of hydrological models using machine learning techniques. Generalised likelihood uncertainty estimation method (a version of the Monte Carlo method) is first used to assess the parameter uncertainty of a hydrological model, and then the generated data are used to train three machine learning models. Inputs to these models are specially identified representative variables. The trained models are then employed to predict the model output uncertainty which is specific for the new input data. This method has been applied to two contrasting catchments. The experimental results demonstrate that the machine learning models are quite accurate. An important advantage of the proposed method is its efficiency allowing for assessing uncertainty of complex models in real time.


— This paper presents generator maintenance scheduling (GMS) and economic dispatch (ED) of the Indonesian power system based on minimization of an economic cost function for the economical and reliable operation of a power system, while satisfying crew/manpower, maintenance window, load demand, generation limits and spinning reserve constraints. Differential evolution (DE), an evolutionary computation technique and an optimization algorithm that utilizes the differential information to guide its further search, is known to effectively solve large scale optimization problems and has been widely applied in power system. In this paper, the DE approach is proposed for solving the GMS problem and the resulting optimal maintenance schedules are used by the Lambda-iteration (LI) method to calculate the ED for the 19 generating units supplying power to two major industrial parks located in Bintan and Batam in Indonesian. The simulation results show great prospect for application in control centers by solving GMS and ED problems of many utilities which seek to minimize running costs. The results obtained offer an effective alternative for solving the GMS and ED problems.


Multiple myeloma is a plasma cell malignancy that localizes to the bone. It is diagnosed in 15,000 new patients per year, making it the second most common hematologic malignancy. The major source of morbidity in these patients is due to bone destruction induced by the myeloma cells leading to severe bone pain and pathologic fractures. Bone destruction in myeloma is mediated by an increase in osteoclast activity, the cells that normally resorb bone, with a concomitant decrease in osteoblast number and function, the cells that normally rebuild bone. The cause of the decrease in osteoblasts is not well understood. Interleukin-3 (IL-3) is upregulated in myeloma compared to normal controls and can mediate osteoclast activation in myeloma. This dissertation investigates the potential role of IL-3 as an osteoblast inhibitor in myeloma. First, IL-3 blocked osteoblast differentiation in a primary murine osteoblast culture system in a dose-dependant manner. Importantly, IL-3-mediated osteoblast inhibition occurred at IL-3 levels present in bone marrow samples from patients with myeloma. IL-3 did not inhibit osteoblast differentiation in cell lines, indicating that the IL-3 effects were not direct. Conversely, IL-3 caused proliferation in CD45+ hematopoietic cells present in the primary murine cultures, and depletion of CD45+ cells from these cultures resulted in a loss of IL-3 inhibition of osteoblast differentiation. Reconstitution of cultures with CD45+ cells resulted in restoration of the ability of IL-3 to inhibit osteoblasts. These CD45+ cells were shown to be CD11b+ and in the monocyte/macrophage lineage. Further studies were conducted into the mechanism of IL-3-mediated osteoblast inhibition. Cell-to-cell contact was required between osteoblasts and CD45+ hematopoietic cells, and separation of the cell population by transwell cultures abolished IL-3 inhibition of osteoblasts. Transcript levels of several integrins expressed on osteoblasts were not increased by treatment with IL-3, indicating that increased binding of CD45+ cells to osteoblasts is not the mechanism required for osteoblast inhibition. Contact between CD45+ cells and osteoblasts could result in increased expression of a juxtacrine factor that mediates IL-3 inhibition of osteoblasts. In myeloma, IL-3 can mediate proliferation of malignant cells, stimulation of osteoclast activity, and inhibition of osteoblast activity, which ultimately leads to exacerbation of lytic lesions in these patients. Thus, IL-3 is a potential target for myeloma therapy.


Microorganisms have evolved to exist in diverse environments on earth, even under the harsh conditions of oil reservoirs several kilometres below the seafloor. The environmental conditions there are extreme in several aspects, such as high temperature, pressure, salinity, and presence heavy metals or other potentially toxic compounds. In order to live under these conditions, the microbes' enzymes have evolved to withstand the extremes. Enzymes with such traits might be utilized for several biochemical industries. In a previous project, microbial DNA from two oil reservoirs has been isolated and high throughput pyrosequencing used to create an extensive metagenomic DNA sequence database. Using bioinformatics tools, three putative gene sequences for thermostable peptidases were identified in this oil reservoir metagenomic sequence database. They showed a high degree of sequence homology to a known peptidase of the enzyme sub-classes, subtilisin-like protease, carboxypeptidase or aminopeptidases, and were named SLP01, CPT01 and ATP01. Protein production of the recombinant proteins was performed in Escherichia coli strains BL21 (DE3) CodonPlus-RIPL and ER2566, using the plasmid vector pET21, at temperatures 16 and 37 °C. Desired protein production was verified using SDS-PAGE analysis. Production of target protein was observed for the APT01 and CPT01 candidate, although in an insoluble form. Some soluble APT01 was observed when the culture had been incubated at 16 °C. Heat denaturation series was performed on the sample containing soluble APT01, at temperatures of 65 and 80 °C for a duration of 5, 15, 30, 60 and 120 minutes. The results showed APT01 to be thermostable at 65 °C, but none at 80 °C. An activity assay, using skim milk agar (MA) plates, was performed on all samples from the protein production. No activity was observed for any of the three candidates.


The use of fine-grain Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) has increased the number of distinct clock domains on a given Network-on-Chip (NoC). This necessitates robust synchronizers to prevent clock domain communication failures, even as FinFET devices have begun to replace planar devices. This paper presents simulation results and comparisons between dynamic (requiring reset) and non-dynamic synchronizer flip-flops implemented in predictive models for both planar technologies and future FinFET technologies. Results demonstrate that synchronizers built with FinFET devices 1) exhibit a tau value which continues to scale with fan-out of four delay and 2) can be improved with forward biasing, but 3) are more sensitive to temperature. Dynamic flip-flops settled metastability fastest when using standard technology voltages, but previously couldn't be used in non-dynamic systems. For this reason, a new synchronizer design is also presented which exploits the benefits of dynamic flip-flops without the need for a dedicated reset signal.


Elliptic equations on configurations W = W-1 boolean OR (. . .) boolean OR W-N with edge Y and components W-j of different dimension can be treated in the frame of pseudo-differential analysis on manifolds with geometric singularities, here edges. Starting from edge-degenerate operators on Wj, j = 1, . . . , N, we construct an algebra with extra 'transmission' conditions on Y that satisfy an analogue of the Shapiro-Lopatinskij condition. Ellipticity refers to a two-component symbolic hierarchy with an interior and an edge part; the latter one is operator- valued, operating on the union of different dimensional model cones. We construct parametrices within our calculus, where exchange of information between the various components is encoded in Green and Mellin operators that are smoothing on WY. Moreover, we obtain regularity of solutions in weighted edge spaces with asymptotics


Support vector machines (SVM) oer a theoretically well-founded approach to automated learning of pattern classifiers. They have been proven to give highly accurate results in complex classification problems, for example, gene expression analysis. The SVM algorithm is also quite intuitive with a few inputs to vary in the fitting process and several outputs that are interesting to study. For many data mining tasks (e.g., cancer prediction) finding classifiers with good predictive accuracy is important, but understanding the classifier is equally important. By studying the classifier outputs we may be able to produce a simpler classifier, learn which variables are the important discriminators between classes, and find the samples that are problematic to the classification. Visual methods for exploratory data analysis can help us to study the outputs and complement automated classification algorithms in data mining. We present the use of tour-based methods to plot aspects of the SVM classifier. This approach provides insights about the cluster structure in the data, the nature of boundaries between clusters, and problematic outliers. Furthermore, tours can be used to assess the variable importance. We show how visual methods can be used as a complement to cross-validation methods in order to find good SVM input parameters for a particular data set.


Niemann-Pick type C (NPC)1 is a rare neurodegenerative disease for which treatment options are limited. A major barrier to development of effective treatments has been the lack of validated biomarkers to monitor disease progression or serve as outcome measures in clinical trials. Using targeted metabolomics to exploit the complex lipid storage phenotype that is the hallmark of NPC1 disease, we broadly surveyed Npc1−/− mouse tissues and identified elevated species across multiple sphingolipid classes that increased with disease progression. There was a striking accumulation of sphingoid bases, monohexosylceramides (MCs), and GM2 gangliosides in liver, and sphingoid bases and GM2 and GM3 gangliosides in brain. These lipids were modestly decreased following miglustat treatment, but markedly decreased in response to treatment with 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD), two drugs that have shown efficacy in NPC1 animal models. Extending these studies to human subjects led to identification of sphingolipid classes that were significantly altered in the plasma of NPC1 patients. Plasma MCs and ceramides were elevated, whereas sphingoid bases were reduced in NPC1 subjects. Intervention with miglustat in NPC1 patients was accompanied by striking alterations in plasma (reductions in GM1 and GM3 gangliosides) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) (increased MCs) sphingolipids. Similar alterations were observed in the CSF from the NPC1 feline model following HP-β-CD treatment. Our findings suggest that these lipid biomarkers may prove useful as outcome measures for monitoring efficacy of therapy in clinical trials.


Amylases catalyze the hydrolysis of starch material and play central roles in carbohydrate metabolism. Compared with many different amylases that are able to hydrolyze only α-d-(1,4)-glycosidic bonds, maltogenic amylases exhibit catalytic versatility: hydrolysis of α-d-(1,4)- and α-d-(1,6)-glycosidic bonds and transglycosylation of oligosaccharides to C3-, C4-, or C6-hydroxyl groups of various acceptor mono- or disaccharides. It has been speculated that the catalytic property of the enzymes is linked to the additional ∼130 residues at the N terminus that are absent in other typical α-amylases. The crystal structure of a maltogenic amylase from a Thermusstrain was determined at 2.8 Å. The structure, an analytical centrifugation, and a size exclusion column chromatography proved that the enzyme is a dimer in solution. The N-terminal segment of the enzyme folds into a distinct domain and comprises the enzyme active site together with the central (α/β)8 barrel of the adjacent subunit. The active site is a narrow and deep cleft suitable for binding cyclodextrins, which are the preferred substrates to other starch materials. At the bottom of the active site cleft, an extra space, absent in the other typical α-amylases, is present whose size is comparable with that of a disaccharide. The space is most likely to host an acceptor molecule for the transglycosylation and to allow binding of a branched oligosaccharide for hydrolysis of α-d-(1,4)-glycosidic or α-d-(1,6)-glycosidic bond. The (α/β)8barrel of the enzyme is the preserved scaffold in all the known amylases. The structure represents a novel example of how an enzyme acquires a different substrate profile and a catalytic versatility from a common active site and represents a framework for explaining the catalytic activities of transglycosylation and hydrolysis of α-d-(1,6)-glycosidic bond.


This article responds to and appears alongside an article by Professor Kirsten Davis in the December 2013 issue of the Oregon Law Review. An interesting debate has arisen among legal writing faculty with respect to the primary form of communication today between attorneys, and between attorneys and clients. Although most legal writing faculty agree that teaching traditional memoranda continues to have pedagogical benefits for first-year students, there is disagreement on how to conceptualize and teach the use of email memoranda in law practice. Professor Davis argues that to think of and label "email memoranda" as something different from traditional memoranda is misguided. In contrast, this article argues that email memos are indeed different — that the medium of email has altered the nature of the message (as Marshall McLuhan might say). In other words, the process of writing email in the context of a conversation changes both the format and the nature of legal analysis. This author also believes that the question for legal writing faculty is not whether to teach traditional memoranda or email analysis but how to teach both well to prepare law students for the real world of law practice.


We address how the effectiveness of a content-based, multimedia information retrieval system can be measured, and how such a system should best use response feedback in performing searches. We propose a simple, quantifiable measure of an image retrieval system's effectiveness, "target testing", in which effectiveness is measured as the average number of images that a user must examine in searching for a given random target. We describe an initial version of PicHunter, a retrieval system designed to test a novel approach to relevance-feedback. This approach is based on a Bayesian framework that incorporates an explicit model of the user's selection process. PicHunter is intentionally designed to have a minimal, "queryless" user interface, so that its performance reflects only the performance of the relevance feedback algorithm. The algorithm, however, can easily be incorporated into more traditional, query-based systems. Employing no explicit query, and only a small amount of image processing, PicHunter is able to locate randomly selected targets in a database of 4522 images after displaying an average of only 55 groups of 4 images. This is more than 10 times better than random chance.


The paper uses quarterly GDP data for some 30 years up to and including 2001, to examine the identity and development of the European business cycle. Cycles are identified by using a band-pass filter version of the Hodrick-Prescott filter and affiliations are examined using clustering techniques and classical multidimensional scaling applied to cross-correlations and other measures of cyclical sympathy. Twenty-three (23) countries are examined, of which 15 are European. The sample is divided into three 10-year periods to examine changes in affiliation. The overall verdict is that it is quite hard to discern a homogenous or developing "European cycle" with these data. Put loosely, globalization may be proceeding as fast as Europeanization.


Changing times in terms of fees, student expectations, 'millennials' etc. all demonstrate the need for the shift in thinking that creates the call for this book. The title reflects a very practical, hands-on approach and the book delivers exactly what it says on the cover. This is achieved through case studies and tried and tested methods from a number of international institutions. Specific approaches to teaching and learning are discussed and evaluated from the perspective of librarians and associated tutor roles, although it would be applicable to anyone teaching in HE or even FE.


This article was translated from Spanish by Senior Editor Pedro Pimentel. ALBERTO FUJIMORI is President of the Republic of Peru. My perspective on the contemporary and ever-present phenomenon known as terrorism is not that of an academic. This does not mean, however, that my contact with this phenomenon precludes any knowledge of terrorism's origins, or that I cease to wonder how terrorism will adapt to new social conditions. My main source of knowledge has been and continues to be physical confrontations with subversive organizations, groups that have selected terror as their principal means of destabilizing democracies and establishing totalitarian regimes. Since 1991, Peru has successfully fought against the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) and the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA)--the two groups responsible for the breakdown of government in Peru during the 1980s. Governance, as a rational expression of power, is not merely the efficient administration of the apparatus of the state. This concept also requires the establishment and maintenance of the social and political conditions necessary for a government to attain its goals. Only then can a government channel the interests of civil society, integrating public needs with the political system to achieve economic development. In Peru, terrorist organizations have struggled for a decade to erode the democratic system and to generate the "revolutionary conditions" necessary for obtaining power. Simultaneously, the short-sightedness, inaction, and even indifference of the traditional political sectors have helped to foment conditions favorable to terrorism. In 1989, an atmosphere of confusion surrounded the Peruvian presidential campaign. Ideas about combating terrorism remained vague. Some academic circles, linked to the Peruvian left, had not yet discounted terrorism as a means of effecting change; they considered terrorists to have taken up arms against an unjust government. The traditional political class remained trapped between the pressures of the right and the left. No comprehensive counter-terrorist policy existed, and the state continuously lost ground to subversive groups. The Peruvian people found themselves caught in the crossfire between the terrorists--Shining Path or MRTA--and the military. In 1990, a fundamental reorientation of the political system occurred after the victory of the independent movement, Cambio 90. Cambio 90 strengthened the state and infused it with a new spirit. Since then, Peru's enemies have begun to understand that they no longer face a state apparatus weakened by hyperinflation, economic disorder, and graft. In addition, the country has rebounded from the nadir to which it had sunk at the hands of the traditional political class. The progressive and permanent infusion of order in all aspects of Peruvian life has created an atmosphere of trust and hope in the population, thus invigorating national institutions such as the armed forces. Clear ideas and projects, combined with sufficient political resolve, finally led to the development of a comprehensive strategy to fight terrorism. The Long Struggle During the Cold War, neither the United States nor the Soviet Union--both hegemons and nuclear powers--dared to employ nuclear weapons against one another. They knew that if they did, they would face a catastrophe potentially fatal for both their nations and the world in general. Consequently, nuclear weapons only served to produce an "equilibrium of terror": a draw. Therefore, the only option left was conventional or traditional warfare between the members of Warsaw Pact and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Since conventional warfare ran the risk of escalating and triggering the use of nuclear weapons, that particular strategy was discarded as a viable option. Socialist theorists responded to the Cold War malaise by developing their own strategy: the destabilization of democratic nations either through guerrilla warfare or manipulation of the democratic process. …


Strategic thinking, a concept applied primarily to business, can be used in any organization seeking a competitive edge. With its focus on creativity and innovation, this less formal way of drafting a vision for an organization's future differs from the linear process of developing a strategic plan. The literature on strategic thinking is divided into two camps that focus on strategic thinking as either a part of an organization's strategic planning process or as a more holistic endeavor within the organization. Both sides agree, however, that it is organizational leaders who are responsible for implementing strategic thinking. In the face of competition and change that exists in today's market, library leadership can take advantage of strategic thinking in order to move the library forward toward a new and more successful future.


We study the dynamics of two vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) mutually coupled such that the natural lasing polarization of each laser is rotated by 90 degrees and then is injected into the other laser. Simulations based on the spin-flip model show transient square-wave polarization switchings before a stationary state is reached. The influence of various model parameters on the duration of the stochastic transient time and on the lasers' dynamics in the stationary state is investigated.


"Call them digital or call them converged, there is no doubt that newsrooms in Australia and elsewhere in the world are changing. No longer are a pen and paper the only equipment a journalist needs to do their jobs: many newsrooms are employing the skills of video journalists, mobile journalists and backpack journalists, radio stations are posting web articles and TV stations are preparing video for mobile phones. Yet there is considerable debate within university institutions over how best to prepare journalism students for this new workplace — and even whether the industry knows just what it wants. This paper gives a background to a debate that is raging in US journalism schools, if only smouldering in Australian ones, and looks at an experimental convergence journalism unit at Edith Cowan University that attempts to put some of the concepts into practice without over-reaching."


The contributions of semantic processing have come under increasing attention in recent years (Yap, Pexman, Wellsby, Hargreaves, & Huff, 2012), and variables that measure the
 semantic content of words are a requirement of this increased experimental attention. The density and size of semantic
 neighborhoods derived from computational models have been shown to predict reaction times across a range of psycholinguistic tasks
 (e.g., Danguecan & Buchanan, 2016), and the distance between two words in semantic
 space has been shown to predict priming (Kenett, Levi, Anaki & Faust, 2017). The
 data to support the construction of stimulus sets that use these variables are complicated to obtain. The app that we describe
 here makes these measures of semantics available for 100,000 English words.


This work describes the homogeneous dye sensitized photooxygenations of 1,5-dihydroxynaphthalene (1,5-DHN), β-citronellol and α-terpinene in a series of low molecular weight alcohols under both artificial light (500 W halogen lamp) and natural light (sunlight) conditions. The reactions were assessed for greenness using the twelve principles of green chemistry and several key factors were identified as having a significant negative impact on this greenness. These were primarily, waste generation due to column chromatography, high water wastage due to essential cooling and high electrical energy demand.
Upon identification of these factors, sensitizers were covalently bound to a series of solid supports including; Merrifield resins, silica nano particles and magnetic iron oxide nano particles. Covalent immobilisation of sensitizers onto these solid supports allowed for their facile removal from the reaction mixture post irradiation via centrifugation or external magnetic field. This subsequently eliminated column chromatography. Recyclability studies were also performed.
Furthermore, a low energy demanding photochemical microflow bubble reactor was developed. This system, in addition to the elimination of water cooling also saw significant increases in percent conversions to products under homogeneous conditions. Furthermore, in conjunction with silica and iron oxide solid support sensitizers superior energy efficiencies and space time yields were also achieved.


Objectives To investigate the effect of adding point-of-care (POC) susceptibility testing to POC culture on appropriate use of antibiotics as well as clinical and microbiological cure for patients with suspected uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) in general practice. Design Open, individually randomised controlled trial. Setting General practice. Participants Women with suspected uncomplicated UTI, including elderly patients above 65, patients with recurrent UTI and patients with diabetes. The sample size calculation predicted 600 patients were needed. Interventions Flexicult SSI-Urinary Kit was used for POC culture and susceptibility testing and ID Flexicult was used for POC culture only. Main outcome measures Primary outcome: appropriate antibiotic prescribing on the day after consultation defined as either (1) patient with UTI: to prescribe a first-line antibiotic to which the infecting pathogen was susceptible or a second line if a first line could not be used or (2) patient without UTI: not to prescribe an antibiotic. UTI was defined by typical symptoms and significant growth in a reference urine culture performed at one of two external laboratories. Secondary outcomes: clinical cure on day five according to a 7-day symptom diary and microbiological cure on day 14. Logistic regression models taking into account clustering within practices were used for analysis. Results 20 general practices recruited 191 patients for culture and susceptibility testing and 172 for culture only. 63% of the patients had UTI and 12% of these were resistant to the most commonly used antibiotic, pivmecillinam. Patients randomised to culture only received significantly more appropriate treatment (OR: 1.44 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.99), p=0.03). There was no significant difference in clinical or microbiological cure. Conclusions Adding POC susceptibility testing to POC culture did not improve antibiotic prescribing for patients with suspected uncomplicated UTI in general practice. Susceptibility testing should be reserved for patients at high risk of resistance and complications. Trial registration number NCT02323087; Results.


Abstract New Circum-Arctic maps of magnetic and gravity anomalies have been produced by merging regional gridded data. Satellite magnetic and gravity data were used for quality control of the long wavelengths of the new compilations. The new Circum-Arctic digital compilations of magnetic, gravity and some of their derivatives have been analyzed together with other freely available regional and global data and models in order to provide a consistent view of the tectonically complex Arctic basins and surrounding continents. Sharp, linear contrasts between deeply buried basement blocks with different magnetic properties and densities that can be identified on these maps can be used, together with other geological and geophysical information, to refine the tectonic boundaries of the Arctic domain.


Context. White dwarfs are the fossils left by the evolution of low- and intermediate-mass stars, and have very long evolutionary timescales. This allows us to use them to explore the properties of old populations, like the Galactic halo.; Aims. We present a population synthesis study of the luminosity function of halo white dwarfs, aimed at investigating which information can be derived from the currently available observed data.; Methods. We employ an up-to-date population synthesis code based on Monte Carlo techniques, which incorporates the most recent and reliable cooling sequences for metal-poor progenitors as well as an accurate modeling of the observational biases.; Results. We find that because the observed sample of halo white dwarfs is restricted to the brightest stars, only the hot branch of the white dwarf luminosity function can be used for these purposes, and that its shape function is almost insensitive to the most relevant inputs, such as the adopted cooling sequences, the initial mass function, the density profile of the stellar spheroid, or the adopted fraction of unresolved binaries. Moreover, since the cutoff of the observed luminosity has not yet been determined only the lower limits to the age of the halo population can be placed.; Conclusions. We conclude that the current observed sample of the halo white dwarf population is still too small to obtain definite conclusions about the properties of the stellar halo, and the recently computed white dwarf cooling sequences, which incorporate residual hydrogen burning, should be assessed using metal-poor globular clusters


Cardiac tissue engineering will remain only a prospect unless large numbers of therapeutic cells can be provided, either from small samples of cardiac cells or from stem cell sources. In contrast to most adult cells, cardiomyocytes are terminally differentiated and cannot be expanded in culture. We explored the feasibility of enabling the in vitro expansion of primary neonatal rat cardiomyocytes by lentivector-mediated cell immortalization, and then reverting the phenotype of the expanded cells back to the cardiomyocyte state. Primary rat cardiomyocytes were transduced with simian virus 40 large T antigen (TAg), or with Bmi-1 followed by the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene; the cells were expanded; and the transduced genes were removed by adenoviral vector expressing Cre recombinase. The TAg gene was more efficient in cell transduction than the Bmi-1/hTERT gene, based on the rate of cell proliferation. Immortalized cells exhibited the morphological features of dedifferentiation (increased vimentin expression, and reduced expression of troponin I and Nkx2.5) along with the continued expression of cardiac markers (alpha-actin, connexin-43, and calcium transients). After the immortalization was reversed, cells returned to their differentiated state. This strategy for controlled expansion of primary cardiomyocytes by gene transfer has potential for providing large amounts of a patient's own cardiomyocytes for cell therapy, and the cardiomyocytes derived by this method could be a useful cellular model by which to study cardiogenesis.


Objective- This study aims to determine the efficacy of propofol in grass carp anesthesia and to examine the impact of the drug on electrocardiogram, pH and blood gases in this fish species.
Design- Experimental study.
Animals- 120 apparently healthy grass carps, weighting between 1-2 kg.
Procedure- Fishes were sorted randomly into 12 groups of 10 fish each. Five groups were anesthetized by bath method with the concentrations of 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mg/l and the other 5 groups by injection method with doses 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mg/kg, IV. Two groups were considered as control. At time of anesthesia and recovery, arterial blood samples from dorsal aorta of fish were taken and electrocardiogram (ECG) was recorded.
Results and Conclusion- In bath method groups, the arterial blood oxygen in 2 mg/l group was significantly higher than the control group. In 10 mg/l group it was significantly lower than the control. CO2 and pH showed no significant difference between groups and controls. In injection groups, the arterial blood oxygen in 2 mg/kg, IV and 10 mg/kg, IV, was significantly lower than the control group. CO2 in 6 and 8 mg/kg, IV group was significantly higher than the control but there was not any significant difference between CO2 and pH in other experimental groups and control. Moreover, it was found that the average of heart rate in all groups of propofol anesthesia was significantly higher than the control groups (p<0.05) and in all groups in ECG, r to r distance (RR) has decreased. However, in ECG, no difference in the heart rate, RR, PR, GRS, qt distances was observed among all groups of recovery and the control.
Clinical Relevance- Results of this study can be used in anesthesia of fish for decreasing stress and movement at the time of surgery, diagnosis and in fish artificial fertilization procedure.


In this paper we consider downlink resource sharing for full-duplex (FD) device-to-device (D2D) communications underlying cellular network. We aim to maximize the system throughput and increase the spectral efficiency in wireless communications by integrating the concepts of D2D and FD communications. We formulate a throughput maximization problem and then based on its constraints we analytically derive the outage probability of the sharing cellular device and the probability of success of FD D2D communications. We investigate a position-dependent resource sharing mechanism to derive a spectral efficient zone (SEZ) for resource allocation which can lead to higher spectral efficiency while guaranteeing system throughput. Numerical results show that with a proper position-based resource allocation mechanism and self-interference (SI) cancellation techniques FD D2D communications can guarantee higher spectral efficiency and overall system throughput in comparison to conventional half-duplex (HD) D2D communications.


Objective- To determine the possibility and reproducibility of three-dimensional ultrasonography (3DUS) and comparison of the achieved measurements to normal two-dimensional ultrasonography (2DCS).
Design- Descriptive study.
Animals- 10 young mixed normal dogs, age 1.5-2.5 year, weighing 9.7-12 kg.
Procedure- Renal width, length, and depth measured in coronal and transverse sections. The measurements were taken in both 2DUS and 3DUS scans. Each kidney was imaged five time s in coronal and transverse section and the measurements were recorded for each image. Statistical analysis-Descriptive analysis, paired t-test.
Results- The mean difference of the measurements obtained by 3DUS in compare with 2DUS was: 0.17em for renal length, 0.08 ernforrenal width, and 0.13 em for renal depth. There was no significant difference between 3DUS and 2DUS.
Conclusion and Clinical Relevance- In this study the correlation was seen between 3DUS and 2DUS.The3DUS method gives us extremely useful images for teaching and diagnosing purposes. The 3DUS image presentation can also be easily demonstrated in rotating 3Danimation.


Polymeric membranes for gas separation are limited in their performance by a trade-off between permeability and selectivity. New methods of design are necessary in making membranes, which can show both high permeability and selectivity. A mixed matrix membrane is one such particular design, which brings in the superior gas separation performance of inorganic membranes together with the easy processability and price of the polymers. In a mixed matrix membrane, the inorganic phase is dispersed in the polymeric continuous phase. Nanocomposite membranes have a more sophisticated design with a thin separation layer on top of a porous support. The objective of this research was to fabricate thin SWNT nanocomposite membranes for gas separation, which have both high permeability and selectivity. SWNT/polyacrylic nanocomposite membranes were fabricated by orienting the SWNTs by high vacuum filtration. The orientation of SWNTs on top of the porous support was sealed by UV polymerization. For making these membranes, the CNTs were purified and cut into small open tubes simultaneously functionalizing them with COOH groups. Gas sorption of CO2 in COOH functionalized SWNTs was lower than in purified SWNTs. Permeabilities in etched membrane were higher than Knudsen permeabilities by a factor of 8, and selectivities were similar to Knudsen selectivities. In order to increase the selectivities, SWNTs were functionalized with zwitterionic functional groups. Gas sorption in zwitterion functionalized SWNTs was very low compared to in COOH functionalized SWNTs. This result showed that the zwitterionic functional groups are kinetically blocking the gas molecules from entering the pore of the CNT. SWNT/polyamide nanocomposite membranes were fabricated using the zwitterion functionalized SWNTs by interfacial polymerization. The thickness of the separation layer was around 500nm. Gas permeabilities in the CNT membranes increased with increasing weight percentage of the SWNTs. Gas permeabilities were higher in COOH SWNT membrane than in zwitterion SWNT membrane. Gas selectivities were similar to the Knudsen selectivities, and also to the intrinsic selectivities in the pure polyamide membrane. The water flux in SWNT-polyamide membranes increased with increasing weight percentage of zwitterion functionalized SWNTs, along with a slight increase in the salt rejection. Membranes exhibited less than 1% variability in its performance over three days.


The promise to "never again" allow the crime of genocide is often made, although promises alone were not enough to protect the victims in Srebrenica and Kigali. Legal concepts such as universal jurisdiction and the Responsibility to Protect are being used, or at least considered, as ways to uphold this promise, but the Genocide Convention still remains the main means of protection. One of the Convention's tools of prevention and punishment is the criminalization of "direct and public incitement to commit genocide." The meaning of these seven controversial words will help decide where the international community draws the line between preventing the crime of crimes and protecting the fundamental right of free speech. The claims of genocide are increasing, while advocates are pushing for expanding the Convention's boundaries. No one wants to allow the next genocide. No one wants to allow perpetrators to escape punishment. This does not mean that in striving towards "never again" we sacrifice free speech as a casualty of war. Freedom of speech is "the indispensable condition of nearly every other form of freedom." A vague or overly expansive interpretation of incitement will be abused and misused by dictators in silencing artists, journalists, and genuine political opposition. A limited, well-defined interpretation will still allow for the intended purpose of prevention and punishment of genocide, yet respect the basic tenets of free expression. The upcoming appeal of Rwandan musician Simon Bikindi, who was charged with incitement to genocide in various contexts, including direct calls to action, implicit appeals, music composition, and failure to prevent radio broadcasts of his songs, will allow the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) to clarify the elements of incitement to genocide. Based upon a review of the genocide jurisprudence and the lessons learned from the American experience, I propose the following test: whether the speaker directly, seriously, and publicly urges the commission of genocide in the near future and that the message is reasonably likely to produce such action. Explicitly incorporating an imminence standard will permit incitement to genocide to serve its intended purpose of prevention while safeguarding freedom of speech. This analysis is divided into six parts. Part I reviews the background of Simon Bikindi whose case has the potential to elucidate the incitement to genocide standards. Part II tracks the development of international law in response to the Holocaust and Rwandan genocide, while Part III examines nearly a century of U.S. experience in balancing speech and security. Part IV canvasses the proposed tests leading to Part V, which explains why the proposed imminence test should become the accepted standard. Lastly, Part VI details the test's application in Bikindi's appeal.


Flexible displays present a challenging problem in terms of mechanical integrity, a result of the considerable hygro‐thermo‐mechanical contrast between the inorganic, brittle device layers and the compliant polymer substrates. This paper reviews the main approaches to study and identify the key factors, which control the mechanical stability of this class of displays. Focus is put on the analyses of residual stress and damage under tensile loading. Novel electro‐mechanical methods are used for accurate insight into critical phenomena. An important result is that the thickness and stiffness of the substrate control the critical strain for failure of the device layers.


Study and modeling of protein structures provides an opportunity to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of key biological processes, as well as interpret experimental data obtained by variety of physical methods. The main goal of my work was to develop computational algorithms for the analysis of protein structures, the docking of protein-protein interactions, the implementation of these algorithms and the correlation of protein structure analysis with the results of steady-state and kinetics fluorescence measurements. First, we developed and implemented algorithms for the decomposition of multicomponent protein fluorescence spectra and the correlation of these spectral parameters with protein structural properties. The implementation is available as on-line toolkit PFAST (Protein Fluorescence And Structural Toolkit) at http://pfast.phys.uri.edu/. The results of our work would allow researchers to extract important novel information about protein structure and dynamics, which is probed by steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy. Next, we developed and implemented a mathematical model to analyze the kinetic fluorescence data, which reflects the interaction of myosin subfragment 1 with one and two monomers of F-actin. Myosin and actin are the major proteins of muscles and acto-myosin interaction is responsible for the force generation in biological systems. By fitting experimental spectral data we have shown that the sequential binding of the myosin head initially with one actin monomer and then with the second actin monomer in F-actin can play a key role in force generation by actinmyosin and their directed movement. Finally, we performed computational rigid body docking of the atomic structures of S1 and F-actin with two fixed points corresponding to the crosslinking sites and two distinct conformations of S1 on the F-actin surface. The minimization of the binding free energy of the generated complexes was done using an empirical method developed previously, and it allowed us to select the best actomyosin models: where the myosin neck was pointed toward the barbed (model A) or the pointed (model B) ends of F-actin. The complex of model B was twice less stable than the complex of model A, which led to the conclusion that the second actin, with which S1 interacts, is located in the same strand, closer to the barbed end of F-actin. We concluded that, the formation of the actomyosin complex proceeds in ordered sequence: i) S1 initially binds to one actin; ii) rotates toward the barbed end of F-actin and binds with the second actin. The sequential mechanism of formation of actomyosin interface starting from one end and developing towards the barbed end could play an important role in force generation and directional movement in actin-myosin system.


We present a spatially resolved comparison of the stellar mass and total mass surface distributions of nine early-type galaxies. The galaxies are a subset of the Sloan Lens ACS Survey. The total mass distributions are obtained by exploring pixelated mass models that reproduce the lensed images. The stellar mass distributions are derived from population-synthesis models fit to the photometry of the lensing galaxies. Uncertainties – mainly model degeneracies – are also computed. Stars can account for all the mass in the inner regions. A Salpeter initial mass function actually gives too much stellar mass in the inner regions and hence appears ruled out. Dark matter becomes significant by the half-light radius and becomes increasingly dominant at larger radii. The stellar and dark components are closely aligned, but the actual ellipticities are not correlated. Finally, we attempt to intuitively summarize the results by rendering the density, stellar versus dark ratio, and uncertainties as false-colour maps.


Like many irrigation schemes in Central Asia, the one in Khorezm faces a two-fold challenge: on the one side, the severe problems inherited from the past need to be remedied and on the other side, the rising supply–demand gap driven by sharpening competition for water and climate change must be dealt with. Located in the lower part of the Amu Darya basin, Khorezm irrigation and drainage scheme is particularly vulnerable to supply–demand gaps. Promising solutions towards adaptation comprise modified strategies of land and water use towards higher efficiency and flexibility in combination with measures to lessen the constraints of the system itself, which was initially designed for the management of a few, large and uniform production units and not for many diverse and small units. Solutions consist of flexible, modeling-based approaches, re-arranging institutional settings and establishing economic incentive systems. Flexible modeling allows an integrated use of surface and groundwater resources avoiding or minimizing the impact of water stress on yield. Institutional settings strengthen the position of water users via improved participation and transparency of processes in Water Consumers Associations (WCAs). Economic measures support sustainable resource use strategies and improve the functioning of WCAs. The findings could be extrapolated to other regions of Central Asia with similar conditions and challenges.


Background Operant conditioning of one's slow cortical potential (SCP) or sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) can be used to control epilepsy or to manipulate external devices, as applied in BCI (Brain-Computer Interface). To be practical, a BCI-system should use as less channels as possible. For this purpose, a wireless biofeedback system was developed that allows feedback of a single EEG-channel in discrete trials. The commonly accepted view that both the SCP and SMR are a reflection of central arousal suggests a functional relationship between SCP and SMR networks. Methods A training was performed that aimed to teach 19 participants to control their SCP (n=9) or SMR (n=10) over vertex. Participants received 20 neurofeedback sessions, each comprising of 96 trials in which they had to decrease cortical arousal (SCP positivity/SMR enhancement) and 64 trials in which they had to increase cortical arousal (SCP negativity/SMR suppression). In a trial, participants were required to exceed an individual threshold level of the feedback parameter relative to a 500 ms pre-feedback baseline and hold this level for 2 seconds (SCP) or 0.5 seconds (SMR) in order to obtain reinforcement. Results Overall, 10 of the total of 19 participants achieved control over their EEG. In the SCP-trained group, 4 out of 9 participants were able to increase the differentiation between their SCP responses on positivity- required vs. negativity-required trials over the course of the experiment. Improvements in control over the SMR in suppression-required and enhancement-required trials were acquired by respectively 3 and 4 of the 10 SMR-trained participants. These SMR-trained responders did not show differentiation between their SMR responses in enhancement-required vs. suppression-required trials. Interestingly, the SMR responders did show a differentiation in their SCP response while trained on SMR. Conclusions It can be concluded from this experiment that, with the proposed method, a number of the participants are able to acquire control over their SCP or SMR. For SMR, however, bidirectional control is very difficult to achieve with the present training procedure. Furthermore, SCP positivity and SMR enhancement are easier to learn compared to their counterparts. The observed SCP differentiation while training SMR and absence of equivalent SMR changes while training SCP suggest that SMR training modulates the central arousal system, whereas SCP training invokes local effects.


Though millions of US workers have 401(k) plans, few studies evaluate participant investment performance. Using data on over 1,000 401(k) plans and their participants, we identify key portfolio investment inefficiencies and attribute them to offered investment menus versus individual portfolio choices. We show that the vast majority of 401(k) plans offers reasonable investment menus. Nevertheless, participants "undo" the efficient menu and make substantial mistakes: in a 20-year career it will reduce retirement wealth by one-fifth, in fact, more than what a naive allocation strategy would yield. We outline implications for plan sponsors and participants seeking to enhance portfolio efficiency: don't just offer or choose more funds, but help people invest smarter.