This Thesis describes the preparation and characterisation of a range of titanium imido complexes supported by a cyclopentadienyl-amidinate ligand set. Reactivity studies of these complexes towards unsaturated organic species are presented. Chapter 1 reviews transition metal complexes containing imido, cyclopentadienyl, and amidinate ligands, with an emphasis on recent work. Chapter 2 describes the synthesis and characterisation of titanium cyclopentadienyl imido amidinate complexes, along with precursor complexes which have not been previously reported. X-ray crystal structures of four imidotitanium species are described. Chapter 3 describes the reactivity of titanium cyclopentadienyl imido amidinate complexes towards carbon dioxide. An unprecedented reaction with two molecules of carbon dioxide is reported for the arylimido complexes. X-ray crystal structures of two of the arylimido dicarboxylate products are described. The kinetics of the insertion of the second molecule of carbon dioxide are investigated and reported. Chapter 4 describes the reactivity of titanium cyclopentadienyl imido amidinate complexes towards isocyanates and carbodiimides. The X-ray crystal structures of two N, O- bound ureate complexes are described. A new series of reactions involving two molecules of p-tolyl isocyanate with arylimido complexes is reported. Reactions of isocyanates with carbamate complexes are also reported. Chapter 5 explores the reactivity of titanium cyclopentadienyl imido amidinate complexes towards sulfur-containing substrates. Comparisons are drawn with the reactivity towards oxygen-bearing homologues. X-ray crystal structures of two bridging sulfido complexes are described. Chapter 6 discusses the reactivity of titanium cyclopentadienyl imido amidinate complexes towards substrates containing only one unsaturated linkage. Reactions with organic carbonyls and terminal alkynes are found to afford equilibria rather than isolable products. Chapter 7 details full experimental procedures for all syntheses and reactions described in the text. Chapter 8 contains characterising data for all new compounds reported. Full tables of crystallographic data for all new crystallographically characterised complexes described herein are presented in Appendices Aandndash;H, Jandndash;M. Appendix I contains kinetics data relating to work discussed in Chapter 3.


Recent studies on long-life flexible pavements indicate that it may be advantageous to design and construct asphalt mixtures comprising the underlying layers in such a manner that very dense mixtures are produced. This will improve not only the fatigue characteristics but also durability through a decrease in air voids. A 19.0 mm mixture was designed and tested at asphalt contents (ACs) higher than the optimum design level. Stiffer binder and recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) were employed to help maintain stiffness in order to prevent instability. The field voids were predicted to decrease approximately 1.0 to 1.5 percent for each 0.4 percent increase in AC, which would improve durability. Flexural stiffness peaked for an 0.5 percent increase in AC, and fatigue life trended upward but needed approximately 1.0 percent additional asphalt for a major beneficial effect. Permeability improved slightly as AC was increased. The researchers think that the Hamburg test would have been more appropriate for this study than the tensile strength ratio test, which indicated no improvement in stripping susceptibility with an increased AC, because it might simulate field conditions better. In addition, the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide Software (Version 0.900) was used to evaluate trial pavement designs with several design alternatives, including varying the binder performance grade, effective binder volume, and air void content to determine the resultant changes in predicted fatigue cracking and rutting of hot-mix asphalt (HMA) layers. This theoretical pavement analysis indicated that increasing the binder content of the HMA intermediate layer beyond the design optimum and increasing the stiffness of the intermediate layer by increasing the high-temperature binder performance grade slightly decreased the predicted fatigue cracking and reduced the rutting of the HMA layers. The analysis also showed that more significant reductions in the predicted fatigue cracking could be realized by increasing the binder content of the HMA base layer slightly beyond the optimum and by reducing the in-place air void content of the HMA base layer. It was recommended that VTRC should further investigate the effects of higher binder contents and lower air voids on the performance of base mixes. Further study of current void criteria to verify optimum pavement performance is also recommended. This project provides a stepping stone to achieve long-lasting perpetual-type flexible pavement. Designs with a high binder content offer the potential to reduce fatigue cracking 20 to 60 percent by incorporating additional asphalt binder and reducing the void content of asphalt base. The use of RAP to maintain the necessary stiffness for high binder contents should provide comparable stiffness to an increasingly expensive PG 70-22 binder for base material. Some effort is taking place in 2007 for reducing voids in base mixes with high RAP content; however, quantification of the economic benefits from that endeavor will be a future goal.


Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) show a poor exercise tolerance. A reduction in respiratory muscle strength has also been reported. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether reduction in exercise tolerance was related to respiratory muscle dysfunction. Twenty four multiple sclerosis patients (mean +/- SD age: 48 +/- 9 yrs, duration of illness 12.2 +/- 6 yrs, severity of illness as assessed by Expanded Disability Scale Score (EDSS) 5.3 +/- 2), underwent detailed evaluation of lung function tests, arterial blood gas analysis, respiratory muscle strength and endurance, and exercise test on an arm ergometer. Sixteen of the 24 patients were able to perform the exercise test (Group I), whilst the other eight were not (group II). Arterial blood gases and lung function tests were normal for both groups. Respiratory muscle strength as assessed both by maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP) and maximal expiratory pressure (MEP) was significantly reduced (MIP 18-76 cmH2O; MEP 16-82 cmH2O) compared to predicted values. Inspiratory muscle endurance time was significantly reduced in Group II in comparison to Group I (247 +/- 148 vs 397 +/- 154 s, respectively). Both MIP and MEP were significantly related to inspiratory muscle endurance time. Endurance time, MIP and MEP were inversely significantly related to duration of illness, whilst only endurance time was significantly related to Expanded Disability Scale Score.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


On June 30, 2010, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton, issued a memo to the agency that reflected the Obama administration's oft repeated intent to focus removal efforts on serious offenders. Morton noted: In light of the large number of administrative violations the agency is charged with addressing and the limited enforcement resources the agency has available, ICE must prioritize the use of its enforcement personnel, detention space, and removal resources to ensure that the removals the agency does conduct promote the agency's highest enforcement priorities, namely national security, public safety, and border security. Coupled with last year's announcement that ICE would not engage in the kind of major worksite raids that became common during the Bush administration, the "Morton Memo" potentially marks a new phase in the enforcement of immigration law. Moreover, the memo gives us insight into the Obama administration's approach to prosecutorial discretion in immigration enforcement. A close reading of the Morton Memo reveals, however, that it is likely to be subject to multiple interpretations, offering some guidance but little clarity for handling the hundreds of thousands of decisions made annually by ICE agents regarding the arrest, detention, and removal of individual immigrants. This report explains the key provisions of the Morton Memo, points out its strengths and weaknesses, and offers recommendations for additional guidance that should be issued to fulfill the promise of reform suggested in the memo itself.


Purpose
To describe foveal sparing (FS) in central retinal dystrophies (RD).

Methods
Participants for this retrospective study were identified from the retinal dystrophy database of the Department of Ophthalmology at Radboud University Medical Center. FS was defined as an intact foveal structure surrounded by at least 180° of chorioretinal atrophy, and a best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of <1.0 logMAR (>20/200 Snellen). Eligible eyes were identified using fundus autofluorescence (FAF) images, and FS was confirmed using near-infrared reflectance (NIR) imaging and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography when available. Clinical and demographic data were extracted from medical records. We performed quantification of FS and chorioretinal atrophic areas using semiautomated software on fundus autofluorescence and NIR images. We calculated the chronologic change using eye-wise linear regression.

Results
We identified 36 patients (56 eyes) with FS. RDs included: Stargardt disease (STGD1;20 patients), central areolar choroidal dystrophy (CACD; 7 patients), mitochondrial retinal dystrophy (MRD; 6 patients), pseudo-Stargardt pattern dystrophy (PSPD; 3 patients). Median age at first presentation was 60 (interquartile range [IQR] 54-63) years. Median BCVA at first presentation ranged from 20/25 Snellen in STGD1, to 20/38 Snellen in MRD. Progression of the chorioretinal atrophic area ranged from 0.26 (0.25-0.28) mm/year in PSPD, to 0.14 (0.11-0.22) in CACD. Change in FS area over time was similar between the different dystrophies.

Conclusions
The presence of FS in different RDs suggests a disease-independent mechanism that prolongs the survival of the fovea. The associated preservation of BCVA is important for the individual prognosis and has implications for the design of therapeutic trials for RDs.


Background: Physical activity is associated with reduced mortality and higher quality of life in breast cancer survivors; however, limited data on the prevalence of activity and long-term trends after diagnosis are available. Methods: A multiethnic cohort of 631 women (18–64 years) with stage 0 to IIIA breast cancer was followed for 10 years. Recreational aerobic activity (MET-h/wk) was ascertained for the year before diagnosis (baseline), 24 months, 5 years, and 10 years after enrollment. Women were classified according to U.S. physical activity guidelines (≥150 min/wk moderate or ≥75 min/wk vigorous activity). The OR for meeting guidelines at 5 and 10 years according to baseline factors was estimated using logistic regression. The change in MET-h/wk was predicted using linear regression. Results: Prediagnosis, 34% of women met physical activity guidelines; 34.0%, 39.5%, and 21.4% met guidelines at 24 months, 5 years, and 10 years after enrollment, respectively. Less than 8% of survivors met guidelines at all follow-up periods. Over 10 years, recreational aerobic activity decreased by a mean ± SD of 4.3 ± 16.2 MET-h/wk. Meeting guidelines pre-diagnosis was strongly associated with meeting guidelines at 5 years [OR (95% confidence interval; CI): 2.76 (1.85–4.1)] and 10 years [OR (95% CI): 3.35 (2.13–5.28)]. No other demographic or prognostic factors were significantly associated with the 10-year change in MET-h/wk. Conclusion: The vast majority of early breast cancer survivors do not meet national exercise recommendations 10 years postdiagnosis. Impact: Physical activity levels are low in breast cancer survivors across the 10 years postdiagnosis; nonetheless, the predictors of activity in this population remain poorly understood. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 22(6); 1153–61. ©2013 AACR.


The report looks at investment activity in Finland by industries and types of investment, and makes international comparisons. Investment rate (fixed investment in relation to GDP) fell in Finland in the early 1990s from an internationally high level to the average West European rate. Among key factors behind the structural change were opening up of the economy and an increase in competition. The economy transformed itself from investment-driven economy to a more innovation-driven one. The use of capital became more efficient. During the global financial and economic crisis in 2008-10 the investment rate declined in Finland as it did in most other developed countries. There are, however, some country-specific features in the Finnish case. Investment in manufacturing fell dramatically, by almost 40%, i.e. clearly more than in other EU countries. Furthermore, over the first decade of the 21st century investment in machinery and equipment has been at a substantially lower level (in relation to GDP) than in most other West European countries. On the other hand, construction investment has been relatively high in international comparison. Investments in intangible assets have steadily increased in all highly developed countries, including Finland. They have become an important source of economic growth and structural change. In Finland especially R&D expenditures have been high but their growth has stagnated. The future of R&D depends very much on the structural transformation of the ICT sector, since the sector's share in Finland's total private R&D expenditure is well above 50%.


A vector formulation is used to derive an analytical expression for the complex reflectivity of a corner-cube retroreflector, with use of the complex reflection coefficients for the s and p polarization. This expression shows that the corner-cube retroreflector modifies the incoming electric field according to the angle of incidence and the ray path through the retroreflector. The change in the electric field depends on the errors in the surface finish, the coating nonuniformity, and the nonhomogeneity in the index of refraction in the case of the solid corner-cube retroreflector. The main point is that the corner-cube retroreflector conjugates the incident beam only in the case of a plane wave with a constant amplitude incident upon a perfect corner-cube retroreflector.


The limits of the nonlinear Schrodinger equation for the description of propagation of intense laser pulses in the transparent regime of a bulk semiconductor is investigated. Qualitative differences between the nonlinear Schrodinger equation, the optical Bloch equations, and the semiconductor Bloch equations are worked out for the case where the Rabi frequency approaches the detuning between carrier frequency and material transition frequency.


Transcriptional networks have been shown to evolve very rapidly, prompting questions as to how such changes arise and are tolerated. Recent comparisons of transcriptional networks across species have implicated variations in the cis-acting DNA sequences near genes as the main cause of divergence. What is less clear is how these changes interact with trans-acting changes occurring elsewhere in the genetic circuit. Here, we report the discovery of a system of compensatory trans and cis mutations in the yeast AP-1 transcriptional network that allows for conserved transcriptional regulation despite continued genetic change. We pinpoint a single species, the fungal pathogen Candida glabrata, in which a trans mutation has occurred very recently in a single AP-1 family member, distinguishing it from its Saccharomyces ortholog. Comparison of chromatin immunoprecipitation profiles between Candida and Saccharomyces shows that, despite their different DNA-binding domains, the AP-1 orthologs regulate a conserved block of genes. This conservation is enabled by concomitant changes in the cis-regulatory motifs upstream of each gene. Thus, both trans and cis mutations have perturbed the yeast AP-1 regulatory system in such a way as to compensate for one another. This demonstrates an example of "coevolution" between a DNA-binding transcription factor and its cis-regulatory site, reminiscent of the coevolution of protein binding partners.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to examine the use of the Occupational Adaptation frame of reference in the evaluation and treatment of patients with cerebrovascular accident (CVA).

METHOD
Outcomes of functional independence and discharge environment were measured through a quasi-experimental design. Twenty-five former patients served as the control subjects, and 25 patients admitted after the programmatic implementation of Occupational Adaptation served as the treatment subjects.

RESULTS
Data analyses indicated that the Occupational Adaptation subjects achieved higher levels of functional independence and were discharged to less restrictive environments compared with the control subjects.

CONCLUSION
Use of intervention guided by the Occupational Adaptation frame of reference was associated with improved functional independence and discharge to less-restricted environments for this group of patients with CVA.


Letter by an unidentified author to David Fentress regarding sharing federal newspapers and the banning of federal newspapers in some areas. The author passes on the news of the war including the destruction of the Federal merchantmen by the Confederate fleet. He passes along world news: Russia preparing to go to War with Europe and how that could negatively affect the Confederacy. There is also speculation on the future of the war.


The electrification of hydrophobic surfaces is an intensely debated subject in physical chemistry. We theoretically study the ζ potential of hydrophobic surfaces for varying pH and salt concentration by solving the Poisson-Boltzmann and Stokes equations with individual ionic adsorption affinities. Using the ionic surface affinities extracted from the experimentally measured surface tension of the air-electrolyte interface, we first show that the interfacial adsorption and repulsion of small inorganic ions such as H3O+, OH-, HCO3-, and CO32- cannot account for the ζ potential observed in experiments because the surface affinities of these ions are too small. Even if we take hydrodynamic slip into account, the characteristic dependence of the ζ potential on pH and salt concentration cannot be reproduced. Instead, to explain the sizable experimentally measured ζ potential of hydrophobic surfaces, we assume minute amounts of impurities in the water and include the impurities' acidic and basic reactions with water. We find good agreement between our predictions and the reported experimental ζ potential data of various hydrophobic surfaces if we account for impurities that consist of a mixture of weak acids (pKa = 5 to 7) and weak bases (pKb = 12) at a concentration of the order of 10-7 M.


This article takes a close look at how the United States used the funding of scientific research in Sweden as a hegemonic and propaganda tool in the 1950s and 1960s. It shows that non-aligned Sweden functioned just as much as a node in the international science network set up by the Americans after the Second World War as did the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries. These funds were awarded mainly to an elite network of prominent Swedish scientists. The article sheds interesting light on the controversies of such funding in Sweden during the cold war and adds important knowledge about Swedish–American relations during the cold war. The article argues that this Swedish scientific elite co-produced US hegemony in Sweden by actively seeking out American military funding and by making use of it. It also argues that US funding was intended to portray the United States as an altruistic patron of science in the world and thus serve American propagandistic purposes as well.


Bridging systems biology and drug design, we propose a deep learning framework for de novo discovery of molecules tailored to bind with given protein targets. Our methodology is exemplified by the task of designing antiviral candidates to target SARS-CoV-2 related proteins. Crucially, our framework does not require fine-tuning for specific proteins but is demonstrated to generalize in proposing ligands with high predicted binding affinities against unseen targets. Coupling our framework with the automatic retrosynthesis prediction of IBM RXN for Chemistry, we demonstrate the feasibility of swift chemical synthesis of molecules with potential antiviral properties that were designed against a specific protein target. In particular, we synthesize an antiviral candidate designed against the host protein angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2); a surface receptor on human respiratory epithelial cells that facilitates SARS-CoV-2 cell entry through its spike glycoprotein. This is achieved as follows. First, we train a multimodal ligand–protein binding affinity model on predicting affinities of bioactive compounds to target proteins and couple this model with pharmacological toxicity predictors. Exploiting this multi-objective as a reward function of a conditional molecular generator that consists of two variational autoencoders (VAE), our framework steers the generation toward regions of the chemical space with high-reward molecules. Specifically, we explore a challenging setting of generating ligands against unseen protein targets by performing a leave-one-out-cross-validation on 41 SARS-CoV-2-related target proteins. Using deep reinforcement learning, it is demonstrated that in 35 out of 41 cases, the generation is biased towards sampling binding ligands, with an average increase of 83% comparing to an unbiased VAE. The generated molecules exhibit favorable properties in terms of target binding affinity, selectivity and drug-likeness. We use molecular retrosynthetic models to provide a synthetic accessibility assessment of the best generated hit molecules. Finally, with this end-to-end framework, we synthesize 3-Bromobenzylamine, a potential inhibitor of the host ACE2 protein, solely based on the recommendations of a molecular retrosynthesis model and a synthesis protocol prediction model. We hope that our framework can contribute towards swift discovery of de novo molecules with desired pharmacological properties.


The current study presents the various trends and patterns that are emerging from the Indian rural economy. The purpose is to study the change in workforce pattern of the agrarian sector. A study of change in the agrarian workforce can indicate the direction of change and trace the process of structural change in Indian agriculture. The paper has only depended on Census data to draw various conclusions using very simple statistical and graphical techniques. The study locates four important phenomena namely marginalisation of rural workers, feminisation of the agriculture, increasing importance of various subsidiary activities and finally the ongoing structural changes in the rural economy. The emergence of these phenomena has various linkages regarding the future trends of Indian agriculture.


Ultra High Performance Fiber Reinforced Concrete (UHPFRC) is beginning to revolutionize the construction industry. The research presented discusses an experimental pro gram designed toinvestigate the mechanical and structural properties of UHPFRC. The mechanical properties focused on examining the tensile behavior by testing the fracture energy, tension stiffening and shear friction properties of UHPFRC. The structural properties focused on investigating behaviors such as; flexure and shear. The tensile behavior proved to be significantly improved by the use of fibers. Results show an ultimate tensile strength twice the cracking tensile strength. The shear friction was also enhanced due to the fiber reinforcement. Improved design equation, with great accuracy when compared to experimental results are proposed. The addition of fibers, significantly improved the shear and flexure behavior of reinforced beams. The influence of the fiber reinforcement was of very significant; promoting flexural failure in reinforced beams rather than the shear failure when compared to normal and high strength concrete.


The development objective of the Irrigation Development and Support Project is to increase yields per hectare and volume of products marketed by smallholders benefitting from investments in irrigation in selected sites served by the project. Some of the negative impacts and mitigation measures include: water bowsers will be employed on site to suppress dust on all site roads; designated routes will be established on site for motor traffic; site workers will be issued with personal protective attire; all the sand or soil heaps will be removed as soon as possible to avoid nuisance dust arising from prevailing; control traffic by introducing speed-humps and elaborate road signs; road will have maintained free of mud, pot-holes, debris and other traffic obstacles; sensitize the community on general road safety to increasing traffic awareness; priority will be given to the local people. Only skills that will not be available within the local community will be sourced from other areas. Skills base for the area will be increased by training the locals especially those skills that can be mastered within a short time; and carryout a specific study to ascertain appropriate routes for animal corridors and appropriate areas needed for conservation of dambos areas.


The past thirty years have seen a dramatic rise in obesity worldwide owing to a change in dietary composition, quantity of food consumedpositive energy balance, and a more sedentary life style . Accompanied with obesity is a chronic low grade inflammatory state defined by increased circulating cytokines and an increase in gene expression promoting inflammation. Multiple health risks are associated with obesity such as cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, and type II diabetes . Advances in mass spectrometry have made wide scale proteomic studies possible and are redefining cell and molecular biology. One such area of that has become of considerable interest is protein acetylation which is observed in most cellular processes such as cell cycle regulation, gene expression, subcellular localization, metabolism, muscle contraction, protein stability, apoptosis, and more. Metabolic proteins are highly susceptible to acetylation with almost all showing the capacity to be acetylated . Our research, using an obese mouse model fed a chronic high fat diet and a lean control mouse model fed a standard chow diet, showed numerous differences in the acetylome between obese and lean animals in a fasted state. As well as, differences in the acetylome's of both animal models upon receiving a high fat meal. We showed that almost every mitochondrially located metabolic protein in obese animals is hyper-acetylated in a fasted state compared to lean animals and that upon feeding lean animals have a greater response in the change to their metabolic acetylome. We show that in the fed state lean and obese mice have almost completely different acetylomic profiles of mitochondrial and glycolytic metabolic proteins. Furthermore, we have observed possible new regulatory mechanisms utilizing acetylation to 1) determine the fate of the co-factor NADH in glycolysis and 2) control an ATP producing reaction in glycolysis.


The poor environmental performance and by extension low level of environmental disclosure evident in the annual reports of quoted Nigerian companies have aroused stakeholders concern about the condition of the environment.The main objective of this study is to x-ray the relationship between political connection, board characteristics and environmental disclosure. The quantitative approach will be adopted using data from the annual reports of the sampled companies. The theoretical framework is built on the legitimacy theory with support from the agency and managerial power theory.It is envisaged that the study will engage corporate organizations to adequately provide for environmental information in their internal policies.The study will
facilitate environmental cost reporting responsiveness and disclosure to investors and environmental regulatory bodies.


Abstract This paper provides direct evidence on the extent of monopsony power in the low-wage labor market by estimating the firm-level elasticity of labor supply for nurse aides in the long-term care (nursing home) industry. Using exogenous variation in hiring induced by the passage of a state minimum nurse staffing law, I find that facilities initially out of compliance with the new law did not have to raise their wage offers relative to their competitors in order to hire more nurses. While this is consistent with perfect competition in simple monopsony models of the labor market, I discuss how the results may be more ambiguous in more complicated models.


There are a lot of changes happening in the telecom industry now since the Telecom and Internet is converging. Another thing playing a big role is that the new technology, Web Services, is emerging. Since new technology and changes in businesses goes hand in hand, there is a need to map these changes and see how to make money of the new technology in the telecom industry.


This paper proposes a simple analytical model called M time-scale Markov Decision Process (MMDP) for hierarchically structured sequential decision making processes, where decisions in each level in the M -level hierarchy are made in M different time-scales. In this model, the state space and the control space of each level in the hierarchy are non-overlapping with those of the other levels, respectively, and the hierarchy is structured in a "pyramid" sense such that a decision made at level m (slower time-scale) state and/or the state will affect the evolutionary decision making process of the lower level m + 1 (faster time-scale) until a new decision is made at the higher level but the lower level decisions themselves do not affect the higher level's transition dynamics. The performance produced by the lower level's decisions will affect the higher level's decisions. A hierarchical objective function is defined such that the finite-horizon value of following a (nonstationary) policy at the level m+ 1 over a decision epoch of the level m plus an immediate reward at the level m is the single step reward for the level m decision making process. From this we define "multi-level optimal value function" and derive "multi-level optimality equation". We discuss how to solve MMDPs exactly or approximately and also study heuristic on-line methods to solve MMDPs. Finally, we give some example control problems that can be modeled as MMDPs.


Abstract
This study, based on our analysis of survey data from 1,242 partners and employees of a U.S. national public accounting firm, examines the impact on psychological well-being from the moderating effects of flexibility and role clarity on work-home conflict experienced by public accountants. Most prior research in public accounting deals with the antecedents and consequences of role stress and primarily focuses on job outcomes of turnover intentions and job satisfaction as dependent variables. Public accounting firms have responded to stressors with worker-friendly policies, largely by introducing flexibility and clarity in their organizational culture. Using a multi-disciplinary research model, we analyze the causal relationships of flexibility and clarity as moderators of the bi-directional nature of work-home conflict (work interference with home and home interference with work) on psychological well-being. Our study finds that perceptions of flexibility and role clarity drawn from a career position in public accounting can mitigate role conflict between work and home environments and contribute to enhanced psychological well-being. We also find that certain relationships described in the model are moderated by family status and age, but not by gender. Results of our study have implications to both individual public accountants and to their firms.


The 1997 British and 1998 German general elections showed striking parallels and distinctive differences in the way Blair and Schroeder delivered their campaigns and defeated long-sitting conservative governments. Of vital importance was a new quality of political public relations called `spin doctoring'. In this, the British Labour Party served as a kind of role model for the German Social Democratic Party. This article traces the origins and different meanings of `spin doctoring' in both countries, distinguishes between media-related and non-media-related spin activities and analyses it against the background of the specific national contexts. The aims and methods of political spin doctors in modern election campaigns are described, particularly their half antagonistic, half symbiotic relationship with journalists. A comparative content analysis of the press coverage of the last general elections reveals that the two countries' journalists dealt with political spin doctors very differently. In Great Britain, `spin doctoring high gear' predominated, in Germany it was `spin doctoring low gear'. British journalists covered their efforts extensively and critically, mainly because some of them turned to unusually aggressive methods towards the media. German journalists were less likely to report extensively on spin doctoring. This can be explained by the fact that it is still in a stage of development in Germany and — for that very reason — that German journalists are still less interested in the strategic inner perspective of the electoral campaigning.


organic/inorganic Abstract The regeneration of bone over a large area cannot occur without a structure for the bone cells to bind and divide. The use of an organic/inorganic composite bone scaffold appears to be a promising alternative to the current clinical standard of bone grafting. Bone grafting is very limited, in that the size and shape of the area are hard to replicate and the use of donor tissue can trigger an immunologic response resulting in rejection of the bone tissue. This study experimented with composite bone scaffolds which can be made to fit the shape of the area in which bone must be regenerated with high mechanical strength and properties that enhance bone growth and mineralization. Graphene oxide was functionalized with bisphosphonate (Bis-GO) to be used in the scaffolds to promote bone mineralization and increase the mechanical strength of the scaffold. Sodium-titanate nanofibers were fabricated to maintain the mechanical strength of the scaffold during biodegradation. Bis-GO and sodium-titanate nanofibers (1.3 mg/mL or 2.6 mg/mL) were integrated into chitosan at different levels, and the mechanical strength of the scaffolds was tested using Instron (Single Column 5944, USA). Compression tests of the scaffold samples showed that composite chitosan/Bis-GO/1.3 mg titanate and chitosan/Bis-GO scaffolds had a significantly higher compressive modulus (p<0.05) than the 4 scaffolds of other combinations. mechanical behaviors of organic/inorganic composite bone scaffolds


Fibrotic disease is associated with matrix deposition that results in the loss of organ function. Pericytes, the precursors of myofibroblasts, are a source of pathological matrix collagens and may be promising targets for treating fibrogenesis. Here, we have shown that pericytes activate a TLR2/4- and MyD88-dependent proinflammatory program in response to tissue injury. Similarly to classic immune cells, pericytes activate the NLRP3 inflammasome, leading to IL-1&bgr; and IL-18 secretion. Released IL-1&bgr; signals through pericyte MyD88 to amplify this response. Unexpectedly, we found that MyD88 and its downstream effector kinase IRAK4 intrinsically control pericyte migration and conversion to myofibroblasts. Specific ablation of MyD88 in pericytes or pharmacological inhibition of MyD88 signaling by an IRAK4 inhibitor in vivo protected against kidney injury by profoundly attenuating tissue injury, activation, and differentiation of myofibroblasts. Our data show that in pericytes, MyD88 and IRAK4 are key regulators of 2 major injury responses: inflammatory and fibrogenic. Moreover, these findings suggest that disruption of this MyD88-dependent pathway in pericytes might be a potential therapeutic approach to inhibit fibrogenesis and promote regeneration.


The American Association for the Advancement of Science (2011) strongly encourages a shift from traditional instructor-led courses to a student-centred teaching and learning environment where inquiry driven teaching and research-orientated active learning is favoured. Traditional undergraduate courses use didactic textbooks to inform students of what is currently known in the discipline. However, textbooks are usually broad in topic matter, superficial in content and present a false image of the reality of scientific research (Hoskins & Stevens, 2009). Consequently, they present scientific visualisations with little attention paid to the research process and the experimental techniques used to generate the data (Duncan et al., 2011). As such, textbooks may stifle the development of skills that correspond with higher order thinking (levels 4 to 6) in Bloom's taxonomy such as scientific thinking and the development of critical appraisal (Duncan et al., 2011; Krathwohl, 2002). Without these skills, reading and analysing the primary literature may appear too challenging and a point of frustration, stress and anxiety for many undergraduates (Round & Campbell, 2013).


Engineered model substrates are powerful tools for examining interactions between stem cells and their microenvironment. Using this approach, we have previously shown that restricted cell adhesion promotes terminal differentiation of human epidermal stem cells via activation of serum response factor (SRF) and transcription of AP-1 genes. Here we investigate the roles of p38 MAPK and histone acetylation. Inhibition of p38 activity impaired SRF transcriptional activity and shape-induced terminal differentiation of human keratinocytes. In addition, inhibiting p38 reduced histone H3 acetylation at the promoters of SRF target genes, FOS and JUNB. Although histone acetylation correlated with SRF transcriptional activity and target gene expression, treatment with the histone de-acetylase inhibitor, trichostatin A (TSA) blocked terminal differentiation on micro-patterned substrates and in suspension. TSA treatment simultaneously maintained expression of LRIG1, TP63, and ITGB1. Therefore, global histone de-acetylation represses stem cell maintenance genes independent of SRF. Our studies establish a novel role for extrinsic physical cues in the regulation of chromatin remodeling, transcription, and differentiation of human epidermal stem cells.


This paper examines the recent increase of the measured inflation rate to assess the degree to which the acceleration is due to problems created (largely on the supply side) by the pandemic versus pressures created on the demand side by pandemic relief. Some have attributed the inflation to excess demand, most notably Larry Summers, who had warned that the pandemic relief spending was too great. As evidence, one could point to the quick recovery of GDP and to reportedly tight labor markets. Others have variously blamed supply chain disruptions, shortages of certain inputs, OPEC's oil price increases, labor market disruptions because of COVID, and rising profit margins obtained through exercise of pricing power. We conclude that there is little evidence that excess demand is the problem, although we agree that in the absence of the relief checks, recovery would have been sufficiently slow to minimize inflation pressure. We closely examine the main contributors to rising overall prices and conclude that tighter monetary policy would not be an effective way to reduce price pressures. We also cast doubt on the expectations theory of inflation control. We present evidence that suggests there is currently little danger that higher inflation will become entrenched. If anything, rate hikes now will make it harder for the economy to adjust to current realities. The potential for lots of pain with little gain is great. The best course of action is to tackle problems on the supply side.


The sharing and retrieval of health information for an electronic health record (EHR) across distributed systems involves a range of identified entities that are possible subjects of documentation (e.g., specimen, clinical analyser). Contemporary EHR specifications limit the types of entities that can be the subject of a record to health professionals and patients, thus limiting the use of two level models in healthcare information systems that contribute information to the EHR. The literature describes several information modelling approaches for EHRs, including so called "two level models". These models differ in the amount of structure imposed on the information to be recorded, but they generally require the health documentation process for the EHR to focus exclusively on the patient as the subject of care and this definition is often a fixed one. In this thesis, the author introduces a new identity modelling approach to create a generalised reference model for sharing archetype-constrained identity information between diverse identity domains, models and services, while permitting reuse of published standard-based archetypes. The author evaluates its use for expressing the major types of existing demographic reference models in an extensible way, and show its application for standards-compliant two-level modelling alongside heterogeneous demographics models. This thesis demonstrates how the two-level modelling approach that is used for EHRs could be adapted and reapplied to provide a highly-flexible and expressive means for representing subjects of information in allied health settings that support the healthcare process, such as the laboratory domain. By relying on the two level modelling approach for representing identity, the proposed design facilitates cross-referencing and disambiguation of certain demographics standards and information models. The work also demonstrates how it can also be used to represent additional clinical identified entities such as specimen and order as subjects of clinical documentation.


Embeddings of probability measures into reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces have been proposed as a straightforward and practical means of representing and comparing probabilities. In particular, the distance between embeddings (the maximum mean discrepancy, or MMD) has several key advantages over many classical metrics on distributions, namely easy computability, fast convergence and low bias of finite sample estimates. An important requirement of the embedding RKHS is that it be characteristic: in this case, the MMD between two distributions is zero if and only if the distributions coincide. Three new results on the MMD are introduced in the present study. First, it is established that MMD corresponds to the optimal risk of a kernel classifier, thus forming a natural link between the distance between distributions and their ease of classification. An important consequence is that a kernel must be characteristic to guarantee classifiability between distributions in the RKHS. Second, the class of characteristic kernels is broadened to incorporate all strictly positive definite kernels: these include non-translation invariant kernels and kernels on non-compact domains. Third, a generalization of the MMD is proposed for families of kernels, as the supremum over MMDs on a class of kernels (for instance the Gaussian kernels with different bandwidths). This extension is necessary to obtain a single distance measure if a large selection or class of characteristic kernels is potentially appropriate. This generalization is reasonable, given that it corresponds to the problem of learning the kernel by minimizing the risk of the corresponding kernel classifier. The generalized MMD is shown to have consistent finite sample estimates, and its performance is demonstrated on a homogeneity testing example.


This article discusses the concept of zikui harabim (granting merit to the many) and attempts to show how it motivates and animates the religious renewal movements in Judaism (the teshuvah movements). I argue that zikui harabim is produced by "cycles of teshuva" in which the "repentant" person engages in facilitating the "return" of others to religious practice, even before he or she has undertaken the rigorous observance of religious commandments. I suggest that calculating rationality, often considered one of the hallmarks of modernity, is manifest in the teshuvah movement, as many teshuvah clients and entrepreneurs regard commandments, implicitly and explicitly, as a kind of currency they can amass for their own benefit. By so doing, I demonstrate how zikui harabim embeds a modern-capitalist logic, thereby showing how modernity manifests itself in religious revivalism.


Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning are without parallel in the nineteenth century: celebrated poets, they became equally famous for their marriage. Still popular more than a century after their deaths, their poetry vividly reflects the unique nature of their relationship. This collection presents the Brownings' work in the context of their lives: the early years and their initial friendship, their courtship and marriage, the fifteen happy years they spent living in Italy until Elizabeth's death. Whether in short poems such as Elizabeth's "Hector in the Garden" and Robert's "Natural Magic," or in extracts from longer works such as "Aurora Leigh" and "Pauline," the great themes they shared are all represented: love, marriage, illicit passion, England and Italy, childhood, religion, poetry, and nature. Elizabeth's famous "Sonnets from the Portuguese, "based on their love affair, is included in its entirety. The poems are augmented with a generous selection of the marvelous letters the Brownings wrote to each other.


Background: The METAVIR score, which is the most widely used score in France, was specifically elaborated and evaluated in chronic hepatitis C and has never been validated in HIV–hepatitis virus B (HBV) co-infected patients. Aims: To validate the use of the METAVIR scoring system for activity and fibrosis on liver biopsies in co-infected HIV–HBV patients. Methods: METAVIR scoring for activity and fibrosis was first conducted on both original and virtual slides by one pathologist for comparison. Then 55 biopsies turned into virtual slides were scored by three pathologists independently. Results: The scoring comparison between virtual slides and glass slides showed an almost perfect agreement for fibrosis (weighted κ (κw) 0.8) and a substantial agreement for activity (κw 0.68). The inter-observer agreement on virtual slides was moderate to almost perfect (κw 0.52 to 0.84) for fibrosis and was dependent on the pair of pathologists considered. The best agreement was obtained in scoring advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis versus significant fibrosis versus no or mild fibrosis (κw 0.70 to 0.84). The agreement for cirrhosis was rated moderate to substantial (κw 0.54 to 0.79). Agreement for activity was substantial (κw 0.66 to 0.8). Conclusions: This study validates the use of virtual slide technology to assess fibrosis and activity on liver biopsies. It also validates the use of the METAVIR score in co-infected HIV–HBV patients and illustrates the challenges in establishing the histological diagnosis of cirrhosis in the HIV–HBV context.


The WWW makes learning materials widely accessible and provides an environment where people can learn across time and space. However, the simple read-only information structure on the Web provides little or very limited guidance to learners, especially when they want to learn how to do something through interaction with computers and other people. We suggest overcoming the problem by introducing a graphical hypermedia-based process representation and cooperative process enactment support. The hypermedia-based process structure is accessible on the WWW. It contains a rich set of associated material with which people can seamlessly interact while they are systematically carrying out the process they are learning under the guidance of computers or tutors. A hypermedia based process support system and a use case are presented. The use case shows that such a system can not only provide traditional learning support, but also offers novel cooperative hypermedia based support for the learning of process knowledge.


The German Federal Tribunal (BGH) issued its decision in the long-awaited Pechstein case on June 7, 2016 ("BGH Ruling"). The core issue at stake before the BGH was the validity of the arbitration agreement between Ms. Claudia Pechstein (the Athlete), a speed skater and five-time Olympic gold medallist, and the International Skating Union (ISU). The BGH overturned the decision of the Munich Court of Appeals (OLG Munchen) and upheld the arbitration clause between the Athlete and ISU. The present note offers an account of the jurisdictional issues raised in the BGH Ruling under German law and discusses the legal dimensions and the repercussions of the decision for sports arbitration in Germany and at the international level.


Victim–offender dialogues (VODs) often take place in organizational contexts, the stakeholders of which may very well be interested in measures of program effectiveness such as completion rates. When reported, completion rates typically ranged from 40 to 60%. At the time of this study, Ohio's VOD program was completing just 25% of initiated cases and program stakeholders were unsure as to the cause(s). An archived data analysis was performed on a sample (n = 212) of the Office of Victim Services (OVS) completed and will-not-proceed files. One hypothesis and two research questions make use of archived data to explore this felony VOD context. The amount of time between the date the crime occurred and the date on which the dialogue file was initiated was not a significant predictor of dialogue completion. However, both victim-offender's pre-crime relationship and dialogue file initiator were found to significantly impact dialogue completion rates. These results are considered in light of social exchange and uncertainty reduction theories.


Employee wellness programs have often been viewed as a nice extra, not a strategic imperative. But the data demonstrate otherwise, according to Berry, of Texas A&M University; Mirabito, of Baylor University; and Baun, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Their research shows that the ROI on comprehensive, well-run employee wellness programs is impressive, sometimes as high as six to one. To achieve those kinds of results, employers cannot merely offer workers afew passes to a fitness center and nutrition information in the cafeteria. The most successful wellness programs are supported by six essential pillars: engaged leadership at multiple levels; strategic alignment with the company's identity and aspirations; a design that is broad in scope and high in relevance and quality; broad accessibility; internal and external partnerships; and effective communications. Companies in a variety of industries--including Johnson & Johnson, Lowe's, H-E-B, and Healthwise--have built their employee wellness programs on all six pillars and have reaped big rewards in the form of lower costs, greater productivity, and higher morale. Those benefits are not easy to achieve, and verifiable paybacks are never a certainty. But the track record inspires emulation, especially when you see the numbers.


Many future Internet applications supported over optical networks may require large amounts of guaranteed bandwidth between two remote end hosts, but this bandwidth may not necessarily be needed immediately. To ensure a deterministic service, Internet customers may prefer to reserve network resources, e.g., lightpaths, in advance and may indicate an approximate time window in the future during which the bandwidth should be reserved for a certain period of time; however, the exact start time of the reservation is not specified, but can slide in the predefined time window. This type of user traffic is called ldquosliding scheduled traffic.rdquo Optical network design for provisioning sliding scheduled traffic is a highly complex task that has been dealt with in the literature by two-step approaches, which first schedule user demands in time and then perform their routing and wavelength assignment (RWA). We propose a scalable integrated design for the sliding scheduling provisioning problem (SSPP), based on the Lagrangean relaxation (LR) approach, which can jointly perform the scheduling and RWA of the demands. We first develop a new mathematical model for SSPP, to which it is suitable to apply the relaxation of some of the modelpsilas constraints. We use an integrated heuristic called IPSR (integrated provisioning of sliding requests), which is next enhanced with a cost assignment based on Lagrangean multiplier information, to serve as the primal algorithm for our LR approach (named IPSR-LR). We compare our approaches with an existing two-step heuristic algorithm for SSPP and show that both IPSR and IPSR-LR are able to outperform it. In addition, our numerical results show that IPSR-LR improves over IPSR under all typical experimental cases that we considered. Furthermore, we compare our approaches with the solutions provided by an integer linear program for the SSPP, which is, however, less scalable for large problem sizes compared with our algorithms.


In the first chapter, I estimate dynamic factors from the term structure of credit spreads and the term structure of equity option implied volatilities, and I provide a comprehensive characterization of the dynamic relationships among those credit spread factors and equity volatility factors. I find strong evidence that the volatility factors, especially the volatility level factor, Granger cause credit spread levels, confirming the theoretical predictions of Merton (1974) in a significantly richer and more nuanced environment than previously achieved. Simultaneously, I also find evidence of reverse Granger causality from credit spreads to equity volatility, operating through the slope factors, consistent with the market microstructure literature such as Fleming and Remolona (1999a, 1999b), which finds that price discovery often happens first in bond markets. Hence my results extend and unify both the corporate bond pricing and market microstructure literatures, deepening our understanding of stock and bond market interaction and suggesting profitable trading strategies. In the second chapter, which is a joint work with Frank X. Diebold, we study the dynamics of the U.S. Treasury yield term structure by applying the Nelson-Siegel models introduced in Diebold and Li (2006) and its arbitrage-free version developed by Christensen, Diebold, and Rudebusch (2007). We analyze in-sample by testing the risk-neutral restrictions, which establish the absence from arbitrage, on the NelsonSiegel factors estimated under the physical measure. We thus compare the term structure modeling between the risk-neutral measure and the physical measure. Specifically, we show that the risk-neutral restrictions on the factor dynamics are well-satisfied, and those factors have the following properties: 1) the level factor is a unit-root process and does not affect the other two factors; 2) the slope and curvature factors are meanreverting processes that revert at the same rate; 3) the curvature factor forecasts the slope factor, but not conversely. Moreover, we find that utilizing these restrictions can improve out-of-sample forecast performance. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Economics First Advisor Francis X. Diebold Second Advisor David K. Musto Third Advisor Aureo de Paula This dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/209


Abstract. Peatlands have often been neglected in Earth System Models (ESMs). Where they are included, they are usually represented via a separate, prescribed grid cell fraction that is given the physical characteristics of a peat (highly organic) soil. However, in reality soils vary on a spectrum between purely mineral soil (no organic material), and purely organic soil, typically with an organic layer of variable thickness overlying mineral soil below. They are also dynamic, with organic layer thickness and its properties changing over time. Neither the spectrum of soil types nor their dynamic nature can be captured by current ESMs. Here we present a new version of an ESM land surface scheme (Joint UK Land Environment Simulator, JULES) where soil organic matter accumulation - and thus peatland formation, degradation and stability – is integrated in the vertically-resolved soil carbon scheme. We also introduce the capacity to track soil carbon age as a function of depth in JULES, and compare this to measured peat age-depth profiles. This scheme simulates dynamic feedbacks between the soil organic material and its thermal and hydraulic characteristics. We show that draining the peatlands can lead to significant carbon loss along with soil compaction and changes in peat properties. However, negative feedbacks can lead to the potential for peatlands to rewet themselves following drainage. These ecohydrological feedbacks can also lead to peatlands maintaining themselves in climates where peat formation would not otherwise initiate in the model, i.e. displaying some degree of resilience. The new model produces similar results to the original model for mineral soils, and realistic profiles of soil organic carbon for peatlands. In particular the best performing configurations had root mean squared error (RMSE) in carbon density for peat sites of 7.7–16.7 kgC m−3 depending on climate zone, when compared against typical peat profiles based on 216 sites from a global dataset of peat cores. This error is considerably smaller than the soil carbon itself (around 30–60 kgC m−3) and reduced by 35–80 % compared with standard JULES. The RMSE at mineral soil sites is also smaller in JULES-Peat than JULES itself (reduced by ~30–50 %). Thus JULES-Peat can be used as a complete scheme that simulates both organic and mineral soils. It does not require any additional input data and introduces minimal additional variables to the model. This provides a new approach for improving the simulation of organic and peatland soils, and associated carbon-cycle feedbacks in ESMs, which other land surface models could follow.


Probabilistic modeling is the most successful approach widely used in speaker recognition either for modeling the speakers in GMM-UBM structure or by serving as a prior in secondarylevel feature extraction to form i-vectors. In this paper, we introduce exemplar-based sparse representation and sparse discrimination for closed-set speaker identification in a noisy living room from very short speech segments each of 2 seconds length on average. Large spectro-temporal contexts in melfrequency band energy domain are used to build dictionary of all speakers and decomposing the observed noisy speech, the sparse activations are extracted as features for modeling stage. Sparse discriminant analysis is employed to learn sparse discriminative directions for classification stage. Experiments on the recently developed computational hearing in multi source environments (CHiME) corpus demonstrate excellent performance of the proposed approach specially in low-SNR. The speaker identification results are also reported for baseline textindependent GMM-UBM and text-dependent HMM.


Abstract The Trans-Hudson Orogen (THO) of North America is one of the earliest orogens in Earth's history that evolved through a complete Wilson Cycle. It represents c. 150 Ma of opening of the Manikewan Ocean, from c. 2.07–1.92 Ga, followed by its demise in the interval 1.92–1.80 Ga, during the final phase of growth of the Supercontinent Columbia (Nuna). It is characterized by three lithotectonic divisions: (i) Churchill margin (or peri-Churchill); (ii) Reindeer Zone; and (iii) Superior margin (or peri-Superior). The peri-Churchill realm records progressive outward continental growth by accretion of Archaean to Palaeoproterozoic micro-continents (Hearne, Meta Incognita/Core Zone, Sugluk) and eventually arc terranes (La Ronge–Lynn Lake) to the Slave-Rae nuclei, with attendant development of orogenies and basin inversions related to the specific accretion events (1.92–1.89 Ga Snowbird; 1.88–1.865 Ga Foxe; 1.87–1.865 Ga Reindeer orogenies). The Reindeer Zone is characterized by primitive to evolved oceanic arcs, back-arc basins, oceanic crust and ocean plateaus that formed during closure of the Manikewan Ocean, and accretion of a micro-continent (Sask Craton) and smaller Archaean crustal fragments. The terminal phase of the Trans–Hudson orogeny represents collision between the Superior craton, the Reindeer Zone and the composite western Churchill Province during the interval 1.83–1.80 Ga.


This research concerning "Profile Poorness And Effort of Handling in District of Bandung Sub Province Tulungagung". This research target is such to know 1) Poorness profile in district of Bandung Sub-Province of Tulungagung 2) To know what step is correct in handling of poorness problem which in District of Bandung Sub-Province of Tulungagung. This research is done by in Countryside of Suwaru, Kedungwilut, and Countryside of Sebalor by using primary data source and of sekunder. In intake of sample used by method of porposif sampling, which the intake of him taken pursuant to impecunious resident which at most accepting aids of raskin of government. Technique data collecting use interview technique, observation, and quesioner enquette). Data analysis of using descriptive analysis qualitative which presented by using graph and tables. obtained to be data to be analysed based on existing theory and also isn't it exploited the tables of. Pursuant to data analysis, obtained result of with conclusion that : 1) Poorness profile known as following : education of very low responder household head namely finish do not SD equal to (60% responder), everyday living all responders as farmer that is equal to 64% responder, responder family responsibility range from 3-4 so that the amount of responsibilities of is overall of family equal to 6 people (53% responder). Level of earnings all impecunious residents very that is under Rp 200.000 / months equal to 55% responder, low of the earnings him also will have an effect on to accomplishment will access health, which with the low earnings all impecunious residents unable to bring the family of to Hospital if pain was but cured by xself 68% responder. With earnings which is the minim hence they cannot fulfill requirement of everyday fundamental 2) Effort handling of poorness, there is 3 in perpective that is : a) Handling poorness in in perpective of Local Government, b) Handling poorness in perpective of researcher, and c) Handling poorness in perpective of researcher. Keyword : Profil Kemiskinan Dan Upaya Penanggulangannya di Kecamatan Bandung Kabupaten Tulungagung link terkait : http://skripsi.umm.ac.id/files/disk1/248/jiptummpp-gdl-s1-2008-henifitria-12386-1.+PENDA-N.pdf


Precise vehicle localization, whether performed via visual scene registration or specialized sensors such as GPS, is currently limited in robustness and accuracy. We propose a computer vision-based localization system that improves precision by matching features in small patches of asphalt or carpet imaged with a downward-facing camera. The key insight is that such images will have enough near-random detail to retrieve their correct position in the environment. In our system, the environment is first processed to construct a knowledge base. Then during the retrieval phase, we apply multilevel search to precisely localize the observed patch in the known environment. We adjust the patch registration algorithms previously developed for natural scenes to the case of ground environments with near-random textures. Our system is marker-free and robust against orientation as well as illumination changes. By combining temporal coherence with classification techniques, we can instantaneously provide accurate localization predictions. We also envision several potential applications including vehicle navigation system and precise control for 3D fabrication.


Biogeochemical methods have been widely applied for uranium mineral exploration, but there have been few applications for low-grade uranium deposits. This paper describes a biogeochemical method of exploration for U in black shale areas. Sampling was performed in October 2010 and the following May along three survey lines at 15 sampling points 30 m apart. Daimyo oak (Quercus dentata) leaves and twigs, Japanese red pine (Pinus densiflora) twigs, and soils were collected at each sampling site, and the same suite of samples from five sites in a control area. Soil samples were analysed by INAA and four-acid digestion ICP-AES, and plant samples by ICP-MS after ashing to calculate values levelled to a dry-weight basis. The range of U in soils is from 2.7 to 694 ppm (mean 91.8 ppm; median 34.5 ppm); in plant samples, the ranges in Quercus dentata leaves and twigs, and Pinus densiflora twigs are from 0.007 to 2.687 ppm (mean 0.160 ppm; median 0.063 ppm), from 0.002 to 0.53 ppm (mean 0.037 ppm; median 0.012 ppm), and from 0.002 to 0.2 ppm (mean 0.014 ppm; median 0.009 ppm), respectively. In general, profiles of U concentrations in soil and plant samples coincide relatively well with the mineralized zone, although an inferior relationship at some sites may be due to down-slope displacement of soil. Quercus dentata twigs are considered to be useful as a biogeochemical medium to explore for low-grade U deposits in the study area.


As part of a program to explore the communicative abilities of bonobo apes within the human-ape culture at the Language Research Center at Georgia State University, we made two complementary analyses of a conversation between Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and Kanzi. We made both a conversation analysis and a lexico-grammatical analysis of their interaction. The conversation analysis revealed the participants negotiating the interpersonal meanings of confrontation and support, while the lexico-grammatical analysis revealed the ideational domain of the confrontation and support. Although many of the contributions of both participants did not fully express all the relevant meanings, both participants interpreted each other's contributions in terms of their relevance to the patterns of interpersonal and ideational meanings being expressed in the conversation. We conclude that Kanzi's considerable language abilities have been underestimated. First, Kanzi (despite his limited syntax) and Sue jointly construe a recognizable social world through discourse. Second, in exchanging discourse roles with Sue, Kanzi negotiates the asymmetrical power relation between himself and Sue. Finally, Kanzi's accomplishment suggests that discourse semantics is a powerful motivation for the evolution of both interpersonal and ideational grammar.


Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlJd_Mv2ApU
Introduction: Poor oral health is a significant public health problem in Vanuatu, and in Melanesia more generally. It has a negative impact on overall health and well-being and is linked to heart disease and diabetes. Determinants of health such as poverty, poor diet, geographical remoteness, and limited oral health care are some of the contributing factors of poor oral health in Vanuatu. Vanuatu seasonal workers visit Aotearoa New Zealand annually under the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Scheme, for the purposes of fruit processing. Fruit of the Pacific (FOP), a charitable trust, has collaborated with Oral Health at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) to provide oral health care to seasonal workers since 2010. Emerging from these relationships, a community-led initiative was undertaken by returning workers to Vanuatu in collaboration with FOP involving good oral health, especially tooth-brushing.
Method: In 2016, a small-scale study was undertaken of the perceptions of Vanuatu seasonal workers' of oral health promotion in their community. An exploratory focus group discussion with seasonal workers and a contextual review of sources was undertaken. This paper discusses oral health in Vanuatu and presents the findings of the study.
Results/Discussion: The seasonal workers are well aware of the poor oral health of their communities, describing important gains from community-led sharing of oral health messages, including cultural knowledge, empathy, and appropriate forms of communication. They noted that stakeholders and funders are needed on an ongoing basis to support such mechanisms.
Conclusion: The study presents and discusses a positive case of Pacific community leaders from migrant diaspora taking action on oral health. This can inform similar actions in Vanuatu, Melanesia, and other Pacific island communities. Further research would be valuable to explore community oral health messaging in Vanuatu and in other settings. Given the potential of the 'digital dividend' for greater access to the internet in future, ehealth promotion tools alongside appropriate community programming, might provide a low cost and sustainable model of Pacific oral health promotion.


The word china (faience) appearing firstly in the Ottoman Palace has revealed the new approach defining ceramic products turning into evani (pots and pans) and kasi (glazed tile) depending on the body characteristics and on the usage aim in Islamic World. In fact, this definition being only towards siliceous body has made china ceramics, which have found great approval in Anatolia, apparent among others and gave them a special and privileged position. That today the perception way and education of tile-making art in Turkish society is carried out in Traditional Arts, not in Ceramics departments, should be the continuation and outcome of the relevant approach. As time goes on, various domain experts using the word china have widened the meaning range of this word and gave it new meanings. While today all architecture is defined as ceramic tiles by art historians, ceramists generally use the term for siliceous clay and the china artisans use it for all architecture and usage goods ceramics made of this clay. Unfortunately, this terminology problem shows itself not only in the word china but also in many terms of this art. Another aspect of the problem is that the word china is peculiar to Anatolia and stated in various ways such as "tile", "mural ceramics" and "faience" in foreign languages. In the declaration, the terminology of the tile-making will be examined in the example of the word china, and the contemporary usage and meaning attributions in different areas of science and art will be followed. The research will provide an apparent improvement on the way of forming the common ceramic tiles terminology and therefore offer opportunity for looking the event from wide historical angle and for being more objective in the future decisions. Keyword: Art of tile-making, terminology, architectural ceramics, Anatolian art


We have been approaching this presidential race the wrong way. It's not political science. It's science fiction. Something is amiss in the space-time continuum. The candidates running now are not the same ones we started out with. It's 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' all over again. We're watching the clash of the pod people. The first hint that things were not what they seemed came when Barack Obama turned into Hillary Clinton, We believe this was engineered by Hillary fans who had seen that early 'Star Trek' episode about the woman who wanted to be a starship commander so bad that she figured out a way to switch brains with Captain Kirk. (Gail Collins, 2008c, p. A19) Have the worlds of science fiction and presidential politics ever been more closely aligned than they were in 2007? This was the year when Rudolph Giuliani told a young questioner on the campaign trail that "we'll be prepared" if the United States is attacked by aliens from another planet; when Dennis Kucinich blithely confessed during a Democratic debate that he'd seen a U.F.O.; and when Mitt Romney revealed in an interview that L. Ron Hubbard's 'Battlefield Earth' was one of his favorite novels. But really, is it all that remarkable that Romney would identify with the story of a virtuous hero who saves Earth from a foreign invasion force? Or that several candidates have embraced science fiction when so many of them could benefit from its lessons? (Dave Itzkolf, 2007, p. 16) Dave Itzkoff notes that science fiction and presidential politics are closely aligned worlds. Gail Collins' piece, which is replete with science fiction contexts and references to science fiction texts, exemplifies how science fiction parlance permeates New York Times oped page columnists' prose. In order fully to understand Collins, readers must be fluent in fantastic language and cognizant of the science fiction canon. They must immediately recognize "space-time continuum" and "pod people"; they must be familiar with The Invasion of the Body Snatehers and Star Trek. By stressing science fiction language's political communicative effectiveness, Itzkoff complements Collins' content which indicates that this language is a political presence. He points to how Giuliani, Kucinich, and Romncy use science fiction tropes to describe their individual agendas. My purpose is to apply Samuel R. Delany's notion of "the language of science fiction" to the pervasive use of science fiction's linguistic presence and resonance in current political reporting parlance. I will closely read New York Times political opinion writers as well as other political commentators with an eye toward showing that the language of science fiction has become a post colonial illocutionary force that exemplifies how to do political things with science fiction words. Delam's discussion of "the language of science fiction" emphasizes that science fiction language is a distinct communicative system and, in order to understand science fiction, science fiction readers must be fluent in this system. In the manner of Creole and American black dialect, science fiction language has been positioned as a linguistic Other--a silenced, colonized, and marginalized discourse practice. Collins and Itzkoff indicate that this is no longer true. Science fiction language, in the manner of postcolonial discourse, now speaks as a major force at the nexus of current debates about national politics: it serves as an instantaneously recognizable metaphor which challenges, normalizes, and contests political debates. Postcolonial science fiction language has become the United States" new national language for navigating the political landscape. I will explain the affective value of the new postcolonial language of science fiction and its connotation in the context of national and. by implication, global politics. I will accomplish this objective by analyzing how postcolonial science fiction language functions as a major communicative force used by political opinion writers (especially Times columnists publishing between 2006 and 2010). …


India recognizes the personal laws of the various religious communities that reside in the country. At the same time all the institutions of the state in India are committed to the value of secularism. This paper has been developed on the basis of a case study that indicates the dynamics of religion in the working of the lower judiciary in India. Majority of the commentary on religion and the judiciary has focused on debates surrounding the existence and application of personal laws. This paper, through a case study in the lower judiciary, makes an attempt to examine whether the interface between religion and the judiciary goes beyond personal laws. The first part of this paper explains the history and application of personal laws in social, political and legal contexts in India. The second part examines the case study located in two courts of first instance, following into the third part which provides an analysis of the empirical evidence. The fourth part focuses on preliminary observations about why there is a hesitancy to speak about religion in relation to the working of the judicial system. Keywords—Lower Courts, India, Legal Pluralism, Personal Law.


A key molecular species in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the Aβ42 alloform of Aβ peptide, which is dominant in the amyloid plaques deposited in the brains of AD patients. Recent studies have decisively demonstrated that the prefibrillar soluble oligomers are the neurotoxic culprits and are associated with the pathology of AD. Nascent Aβ42 is predominantly disordered but samples α-helical conformations covering residues 15-24 and 29-35 in the presence of micelles and structure-inducing solvents. In this report, a focused library of oligopyridylamide based α-helical mimetics was designed to target the central α-helix subdomain of Aβ (Aβ13-26). A tripyridylamide, ADH-41, was identified as one of the most potent antagonists of Aβ fibrillation. Amyloid-assembly kinetics, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) show that ADH-41 wholly suppresses the aggregation of Aβ at a substoichiometric dose. Dot blot and ELISA assays demonstrate the inhibition of the putative neurotoxic Aβ oligomers. ADH-41 targets Aβ in a sequence and structure-specific manner, as it did not have any effect on the aggregation of islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP), a peptide which shares sequence similarity with Aβ. Spectroscopic studies using NMR and CD confirm induction of α-helicity in Aβ mediated by ADH-41. Calorimetric and fluorescence titrations yielded binding affinity in the low micromolar range. ADH-41 was also effective at inhibiting the seed-catalyzed aggregation of Aβ probably by modulating the Aβ conformation into a fiber incompetent structure. Overall, we speculate that ADH-41 directs Aβ into off-pathway structures, and thereby alters various solution based functions of Aβ. Cell-based assays to assess the effect of ADH-41 on Aβ are underway and will be presented in due course.


Despite improved survival rates of infants, higher brain dysfunction in surviving infants remains a considerable problem. Most infants with higher brain dysfunctions are born preterm. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a useful tool to detect structural brain damage and provides important information to evaluate the neurologic sequelae of such preterm infants. Although MRI can reveal detailed brain structure, it is not the best option to assess brain function in preterm infants because of various restrictions. To overcome this difficulty, a new imaging technique, called functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), can be used to evaluate brain function in preterm infants. fNIRS is a suitable method to examine infants because, unlike MRI, it is not necessary to restrict movement and it is silent. In this review, we focus on language function, an important higher human brain function and one of the most prominent difficulties among grown preterm infants. We describe the development of speech perception in infants from preterm to age 1 year. First, we discuss the development of the brain hemodynamic response to speech stimulation in full-term infants, imaged using fNIRS. Second, we discuss the functional specialization in full-term infants for speech processing in the cerebral cortex as revealed by fNIRS. Third, we discuss potential interpretations of developmental changes in brain activation during speech perception in preterm infants. We present data that reveal the development of speech processing in full-term and preterm infants. We conclude that fNIRS can aid in the anticipation of language delay in preterm infants and may facilitate early intervention and treatment of such dysfunctions.


Some hydromechanical systems are investigated by applying the dual integral equation method. In developing this method we suggest from elementary appropriate solutions of Laplace's equation, in the domain under consideration, the introduction of a potential function which provides useful combinations in cylindrical and spherical coordinates systems. Since the mixed boundary conditions and the form of the potential function are quite general, we obtain integral equations with mth-order Hankel kernels. We then discuss a kind of approximate practicable solutions. We note also that the method has important applications in situations which arise in the determination of the temperature distribution in steady-state heat-conduction problems.


We report an attempt to obtain images of the basal cerebral arteries and to measure the quantitative flow velocity in these arteries from outside the skull via the color Doppler imaging method. In 25 healthy volunteers, 22-41 years old, the transducer was positioned just superior to the zygomatic arch and anterior to the external ear canal. The absolute flow velocity was calculated by dividing the measured velocity by the cosine of the incident angle. The middle cerebral artery was readily identified in all subjects, but the anterior cerebral artery was seen in only 7/50, and the posterior cerebral artery in 27/50. The corrected mean velocity of the horizontal middle cerebral artery was 86 +/- 17 cm/sec at an average incident angle of 49 degrees. However, it was difficult to calculate the absolute flow velocity in the anterior and posterior cerebral arteries because the length of those arteries delineated was too short to read the incident angle. The reproducibility of the mean blood velocity in the middle cerebral artery was tested by two examiners on two different occasions, and showed a linear regression with a correlation coefficient of 0.93 (p less than .001) when the correction with the incident angle was made. Transcranial real-time color-flow Doppler imaging permits more accurate noninvasive quantification of cerebral hemodynamic consequences than previous methods do.


The process of transcribing a long noncoding RNA lets yeast control the response to mating signals. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can live as haploid cells or can respond to mating pheromone to mate and become diploid. The endonuclease HO initiates mating type interconversion through DNA recombination. Yeast arrested in G1 of the cell cycle because of nutrient deprivation express HO during the first cell cycle after release from arrest, whereas yeast arrested by pheromone signaling express HO in the second cell cycle after arrest. Thus, the DNA "remembers" the cause of the arrest. The 5ʹ upstream region of the gene for HO is unusually long relative to the size of other yeast genes, contains two upstream regulatory regions that bind transcriptional coactivators and chromatin remodeling complexes, and also encodes a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA). Yu et al. identified a response element for the pheromone-responsive transcription factor Ste12 that was required for expression of the pHO-lncRNA. Yeast with mutant versions of this response element did not express the pHO-lncRNA and expressed HO in the first cell cycle after release from mating pheromone. The chromatin-remodeling complex SBF mediates nucleosome eviction to enable gene expression. Whereas SBF was not bound to the 5ʹ upstream sequence of HO in yeast arrested by mating pheromone, it remained bound in pheromone-arrested yeast with the mutated Ste12 response element in the HO 5ʹ upstream sequence. To test if transcription of the pHO-lncRNA was necessary for displacement of SBF, the authors introduced a premature stop codon such that the lncRNA would terminate before the first upstream regulatory region in the HO gene. SBF remained bound in pheromone-arrested yeast containing the premature stop codon, and experiments with diploid yeast showed that the lncRNA did not function in trans but had to be expressed in cis to suppress HO expression. Introduction of chimeric gene sequences to alter nucleosome binding and depletion showed that even when pHO-lncRNA was properly expressed in response to mating pheromone, nucleosome depletion enabled the persistent binding of SBF and inappropriate first cell cycle expression of HO. Thus, the authors propose that just the process of transcribing a lncRNA can alter chromatin structure such that expression of the protein-coding portion of the gene is repressed as nucleosomes rebind following lncRNA transcription. Y. Yu, R. M. Yarrington, E. B. Chuong, N. C. Elde, D. J. Stillman, Disruption of promoter memory by synthesis of a long noncoding RNA. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 113, 9575–9580 (2016). [PubMed]


A correlation-based controller tuning method is proposed for the \Design and optimization of restricted-complexity controllers" benchmark problem. The approach originally proposed for model following is applied to solve the disturbance rejection problem. The idea is to tune the controller parameters such that the closed-loop output be uncorrelated with the measured disturbance. Since perfect decorrelation between the closed-loop output and the disturbance is not attainable with a restricted-complexity controller, the cross-correlation of these two signals is minimized. This is done iteratively using stochastic approximation. A frequency analysis of the tuning criterion allows dealing with control speci cations expressed in terms of constraints on the sensitivity functions. Application to the active suspension system of the Automatic Laboratory of Grenoble (LAG) provides a 2nd-order controller that meets the control speci cations to a large extent.


The claim to be a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (teseyyüd) was a widespread phenomenon that afflicted the Ottoman Empire from the sixteenth century onwards. Historians of the Arab lands were the first to observe the unnatural increase in the number of sadat/ashraf,1 particularly in the eighteenth century. They also observed a high degree of correlation between wealth, notability and Muham madan pedigree. It has been noted, for example, that in eighteenth-century Da mascus, the average wealth of the ashraf was three times that of the commoners, and most of them "were members of otherwise prominent families". In Aleppo, they constituted the elite of the civilian population with 58% of the notable families counted among their ranks according to one study. By the end of the eighteenth century, these families held more than 30% of the lifetime tax-farms.2 Although there is reason to expect elective


In this study an attempt is made to examine the developments in the history of Ceylon from the death of Parakramabahu I to the end of the reign of Parakramabahu II covering a period of roughly a century (c.1180 to 1270 A.D.). The unity and general prosperity which the country enjoyed under Parakramabahu I gave way to dissension and disintegration soon after his death. The forces of disintegration moved on until about four decades after Parakramabahu's death Dambadeniya emerged as a new centre of activity and of resistance to foreign invaders with the foundation of a royal residence there. The difficult problems concerning the disintegration of the Polonnaruva Kingdom so soon after reaching its culmination under Parakramabahu I, and the subsequent rise of Dambadeniya to importance under parakramabahu II form the subject of this study. In chapter I the introduction sets out some of these problems and then pro-cedes with the discussion of the sources. Apart from the Pali Chronicles, other literary works, written both in Sinhalese and Pali, will be examined with a view to estimating their historical value. After this analysis of the sources, chapter II deals with the developments which followed the death of Parakramabahu I after giving a brief outline of his reign. Here the process of the disintegration of the Polonnaruva Kingdom has been examined with an attempt to determine the possible causes. Chapter III deals with the examination of the circumstances that led to the foundation of a royal residence in Dambadeniya. This chapter discusses the role of Vijayabahu III, the founder of Dambadeniya, together with that of other local rulers in parts of Rohana and Mayarattha. The next chapter states some of the difficulties which arise from the principal sources dealing with Parakramahahu II and examines his early life. A major part of this chapter is devoted to an examination of the policies of Magha, who had invaded and occupied Rajarattha. Among foreign invaders Magha is unique in some respects, and for that reason his rule has been examined in detail. The initial stages of Parakramabahu's struggle with Magha are also examined in the same chapter. Magha was not the only foreign invader with whom Parakramabahu had to deal. His kingdom was invaded twice by the Pandyas - events not dealt with in the Pali Chronicle but brought to light by South Indian inscriptions. Ceylon was also invaded by Candrabhanu of the kingdom of Tambralinga in the Malay Peninsula. This is the first known instance of an invasion of Ceylon by a ruler from South East Asia. These events are important for the understanding of the course of the history of Ceylon in this period, and will therefore be considered in detail in chapter V. The last chapter is devoted to an examination of Parakramabahu' s restoration of the ancient cities of Rajaratttha and to a consideration of the extent of and rule and the importance of his reign in the history of Ceylon. The conclusion brings out the principal results of this study.


The paper sets out the most recent legal theory on the approach to be taken by courts to the interpretation of contracts, and examines how this approach has been applied in two recent decisions of the South African Supreme Court of Appeal and the United Kingdom Supreme Court. The new iterative approach to contractual interpretation emphasises reading language in context, as a means to achieve the contractual purpose, despite unclear contractual wording, giving preference to a business-like result.
However, legal theory of contractual interpretation disallows any reference the contracting parties' actual intentions and remains bound by the language used. Courts cannot rewrite what may turn out, in the light of changed (or unanticipated) circumstances, to be a bad bargain.
The paper examines inter-disciplinary connections between this legal theory and management studies on the substitutability/compatibility of formal contracts and relational contracts in the management of strategic relationships. Formal contracts are viewed as an inadequate, or even destructive, means to secure post-contractual cooperation between parties when adapting to changing environments. However, a recent empirical study has suggested that formal contracts can enhance post-contract cooperation when used to balance risk allocation and create trust and perceptions of fairness in strategic alliances.


A semiclassical model consisting of two noninteracting waveguide arrays along with three side-coupled waveguides is presented to demonstrate the optical analogue of double Fano resonance. The photonic system is configured so that it causes simultaneous cross coupling between two decay channels via one array and another two decay channels via the other array. Owing to the two individual interference effects, the decay-rate profile for the waveguide coupled directly to the continuum exhibits two asymmetric peaks, or dips, or a combination of one peak and one dip in the vicinity of the frequency mismatches. As far as the distribution of optical field amplitudes in the side-coupled waveguides is concerned, the present model also demonstrates the features of optical trapping (optical analogue of coherent population trapping) in side-coupled waveguides under certain symmetric parametric conditions.


The concept of incipient motion has been of continuing interest to researchers and engineers working with sediment movement in rivers. This paper takes a new look at the use of the Movability Number for the prediction of Incipient Motion – which is here defined in terms of Intensity of Motion. A relationship between Movability Number and Intensity of Motion is developed for flow with turbulent boundaries, using data from other researchers for Particle Reynolds numbers up to nearly 12 000. This allowed for a firmer definition of Incipient Motion as well as a new bedload transportation equation. Additional laboratory experimentation for Particle Reynolds number over the range 0.12-486 facilitated the improved prediction of Incipient Motion from a plot of the critical Movability Number vs. Particle Reynolds number for a wide range of boundary conditions from laminar to turbulent.


INTRODUCTION The last decade brought tremendous changes in how business is conducted, in the U.S. and globally. The last decade similarly witnessed tectonic changes in the practice of accounting, worldwide. As a result, there have been several calls for change to accounting education. In the late 1980s and early 1990s the mission of the Accounting Education Change Commission was exactly that: to encourage and facilitate curriculum change. A plethora of subsequent surveys and studies culminating in Albrecht and Sack's (2000) seminal work Accounting Education: Charting the Course through a Perilous Future repeatedly pleaded for change or threatened market obsolescence. The AACSB, the premier business and accounting accreditation body, notably revised its standards also emphasizing mission-based strategic planning and energetic continuous curriculum improvement. As mentioned specifically in the Albrecht and Sack (2000) monograph, one area where the need for change is especially acute is incorporating information technology. It is in this area that we direct subsequent comments and analyses. Many universities have begun initiatives to implement changes to incorporate technology into their programs. For example, the SAP website identifies over 400 universities that have joined their university alliance program to help introduce Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software to their students. However, our experience shows that many universities have struggled with how to implement such major changes to their courses and curriculum--even some who have joined a software alliance. This is because change necessarily involves costs: financial costs and, most importantly, personal costs--and there are few guarantees of success. In the technology area, accounting faculty have observed the costs to be especially high and confidence in success, low. This is in part due to the fact that relatively few accounting faculty have an extensive background in technology, and thus change implies a personal investment in re-education and development for most--for which rewards are unclear. Given that the costs are potentially high, what can be done to reduce the costs? Reflect first that many of the costs have receded significantly over the last decade. In a recent study, Haistings et al. (2003) surveyed 150 accounting department chairs. No longer do these chairs score the following items as significant impediments to curriculum innovation in technology: Pedagogical Goals Technology Infrastructure Administration's Support Software Availability Economic Feasibility The remaining major impediment to technology integration in accounting curricula is lack of Faculty Expertise. There are too few technology-savvy faculty to carry the load, and there are equally few "in-process" currently in doctoral programs. In this environment, it becomes critical to use existing resources wisely, and not repeat mistakes of the past. A best-case scenario would find currently technology-savvy faculty working together to develop course materials that other non-, or less, technology-savvy faculty could deploy in classes. The costs are simply too high for each institution to have to "go it alone" and develop and frequently refresh course materials. Fortunately, University Alliances established by software vendors have removed some impediments to integrating technology into the curriculum. They all make the software available to Alliance universities, and in some cases the vendors even provide (or subsidize) technology infrastructure, both of which have reduced the costs of implementing major software products. Although these initial efforts allowed some schools to begin integrating IT, each institution tended to develop its own materials, at the cost of its faculty and staff. These efforts were significant, and so even some Alliance universities were unable to successfully integrate IT into their courses. …


This chapter reports on a new language aptitude test, the High-level Language Aptitude Battery (Hi-LAB), whose development was motivated by the need for an aptitude measure for more advanced L2 speakers. Since many language learners begin as adults, critical-period constraints work against the desired outcome. All may not be lost, however, given that some individuals attain high-level, if not native, proficiency, despite a late start. We hypothesize that they possess language aptitude comprising inherent cognitive and perceptual abilities that compensate, at least in part, for the typical post-critical-period degradation in language-learning capacity. While tests currently in use were designed to predict early rate of learning in instructed settings, Hi-LAB is conceptualized to predict successful ultimate attainment. Aptitude is a measurable ceiling on language learning, holding equal all other factors. We discuss constructs and measures, reliability and validity evidence, and uses of Hi-LAB for selecting learners for language training and in aptitude-by-treatment interaction studies.


Disregard of professional boundaries is a leading cause of malpractice litigation. Boundary violations take many forms. Sexual involvement is a recurring problem that can cause serious damage. Even without erotic physical contact, material boundary crossings can, at least, destroy or interfere with therapy, and at most, injure the patient and lead to litigation. Generally, boundaries are violated by any act that alters or blurs the contours of the professional relationship.