On 31 July 2001, a distinguished Canadian jurist reported on matters of unusual significance. Sitting as a Member of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP (CPC), Mr. Justice E.N. Hughes dealt with matters that go to the heart of liberal democracy.Any investigation of alleged police misconduct is important, of course, to a country that wishes to be governed in accordance with fundamental principles of the rule of law. This is so even in the seemingly most inconsequential instances. Important principles are involved even where "small" matters are concerned. The matters before Commissioner Hughes on this occasion however raise a number of large issues that only rarely come before formal inquiries.The matter known in Canada as "the APEC affair," and Commissioner Hughes' APEC report ("Hughes Report") focus on allegations of wrongdoing by the police and the Prime Minister of Canada at the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Conference held in Vancouver in November 1997. The particular allegations, which have dominated the House of Commons and Canadian political life on several occasions, will be addressed in a moment. First, however, it is worth pausing briefly to consider some fundamental principles concerning police and politicians.


I. INTRODUCTION On January 8, 2002, President George W. Bush signed No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a law reauthorizing the Elementary and secondary Education Act (ESEA). NCLB represents one of the greatest intrusions of the federal government into education policy, an area traditionally reserved to states. Responding to the well-publicized shortcomings of education in the United States, NCLB mandates education reform on a national scale.1 In particular, NCLB requires states to develop and use standardized tests in sweeping and unprecedented ways. Previous to NCLB, states had been using standardized tests for their own purposes. For example, many states had already instituted a regime of "high stakes" testing-a practice that hinges an individual student's ability to graduate, be promoted from one grade to another, or be placed in a particular track, on the results of a standardized test.2 In addition, states had been making decisions that involve lower stakes on the basis of test scores. Decisions of this sort are more varied than high stakes decisions and include consequences like whether to award different types of diplomas.3 States are currently in the process of passing more laws that involve high stakes and lower stakes tests.4 Although NCLB also requires testing, the consequences resulting from tests under NCLB can be quite different than the consequences from tests under state law. Instead of directly affecting individual students with high stakes or lower stakes decisions, NCLB applies pressure at the state, district, and school levels.5 By accepting federal Title I funds under NCLB, states, schools, and districts become accountable for the performance of their students. If students fail to meet performance goals on certain assessments, an array of consequences awaits the schools of those students. These consequences range from participating in a system of public school choice to having entire schools restructured or run by a for-profit company. Thus, the requirements of NCLB have instituted a complex regime of testing that has the potential to drastically change the face of schooling in the United States. For this primary reason, we should ensure that the testing practices employed in the service of NCLB are valid. Unfortunately, what it takes to validate a testing practice is often unclear. As the use of tests has grown, the concept of validity has grown as well. Previously, the notion of validity could be captured with relatively simple quantitative measurements. However, the work of many modern theorists indicates that validity has evolved into a much more qualitative and argument-based concept. According to some of the more modern and influential psychometric theorists, validity relates not to the tests themselves, but to the interpretations and uses of test scores.6 While certain quantitative measurements do play a factor in evaluating the validity of interpretations or uses, these measurements are considered by many theorists to be only part of an extraordinarily multi-faceted approach. This approach centers on explicitly uncovering the assumptions of a testing practice and evaluating the tenability of each assumption. While this approach does not offer the desired "yes or no" decisions about whether certain testing practices are valid, this realistic and nuanced approach stems from modern developments in psychometric theory and practice. Accordingly, the text of NCLB includes a "validity clause." This clause states that NCLB assessments must "be used for purposes for which such assessments are valid and reliable, and be consistent with relevant, nationally recognized professional and technical standards."7 While this clause is seemingly clear in its mandate to make and maintain valid testing practices, deeper inquiry reveals that much work is needed to articulate what this clause really means. The term "validity" has a long history in both psychometrics and the law. Over time, its definition has fluctuated drastically, and the legal definition has not always matched the psychometric definition. …


Due to stigma and lack of education, mental health agencies are often the first to receive budget cuts. After conducting research on mental health policy and policy advocacy, the researcher identified an opportunity for social work practitioners to improve mental health policy advocacy, based upon their unique perspective to witness the direct impact of policies on this population. This in-depth literature review encompassed the origins of mental health advocacy, an overview of the mental health system in the United States, barriers to effective service, and best practices in the field of social work. From this research, the author developed a series of recommendations for more effective mental health policy advocacy for social work practitioners. Degree Type Open Access Senior Honors Thesis Department Social Work First Advisor Betty Brown-Chappell


Soil salt content and its relationships with crops and water table depth were investigated in this study by using remote sensing techniques and field measurements in the Yinchuan plain of China. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer-Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (MODIS NDVI) was used as an indicator of crop development, field samples were analyzed for soil salt content, and observation wells provided water table data. Comparison of crop development defined from NDVI to soil salt values indicated that crop may develop well when the surface soil salt content is lower than 0.5 g/kg. Its growth is restricted when the soil salt content is between 0.5 and 4 g/kg, and little crop growth occurs when the soil salt content is greater than 4 g/kg. Comparison of soil salinity and water table depth in the beginning of the growing season showed, that areas with water table depth between 0.9 m and 3 m are the most affected by soil salinization. This information is crucial for the optimal control of drainage and irrigation in this important cropping region of China.


More than half way into the decade, it is clear that the EU will fall short of reaching its ambitious goal to make the EU the 'most competitive economy' by 2010. This contribution looks at an aspect that is often forgotten: namely the link between skills and employment, a central element in the Lisbon goal. It shows that the key problem of Europe in terms of employment is not so much the structure of its labour markets, but the insufficient skill levels of its population. The paper finds that investing more in improving the skills of the EU's population would have, inter alia, a direct impact on the employment rate. Some progress is happening on this front as a result of a general increase in the investment in schooling that has taken place over the last decades. However, this ongoing 'automatic' improvement in skill levels is proceeding very slowly. There has been virtually no acceleration since 2000 and almost none of the more specific benchmarks set in the context of the Lisbon agenda is likely to be reached by the end of this decade.


Using a one-dimensional hierarchical model based on the Cosserat theory approach to fluid dynamics we can reduce the full 3D system of equations for the axisymmetric unsteady motion of a non-Newtonian incompressible second-grade viscous fluid to a system of equations depending on time and on a single spatial variable. From this new system we obtain the steady relationship between average pressure gradient and volume flow rate over a finite section of a straight constricted tube, and the corresponding equation for the wall shear stress.


You have a great idea, now what? That first mile--where an innovation moves from an idea on paper to the market--is often plagued by failure. In fact, less than one percent of ideas launched by big companies end up having real impact. The ideas aren't the problem. It's the process. The First Mile focuses on the critical moment when an innovator moves from planning to reality. It is a perilous place where hidden traps snare entrepreneurs and roadblocks slow innovators inside large companies. In this practical and enlightening manual, strategic adviser Scott Anthony equips innovators with new tools, questions, and examples to speed through this crucial early stage of innovation. You'll learn: * How to evaluate your idea's strengths and weaknesses using the "DEFT" process--Document, Evaluate, Focus, and Test * Fourteen recipes from an "experiment cookbook" to gain confidence in your idea or business * Why "spinouts," "wrong turns," and other challenges commonly trip up innovation--and the practical strategies you can use to avoid them * Why innovators need to seek chaos in an age of constant change--and other essential leadership skills Drawing on his decade of experience as an innovation adviser and investor, Anthony describes hard-won lessons from disruptive start-ups and global giants alike. The First Mile will give you the knowledge and confidence to travel this perilous--but ultimately promising--terrain. The first mile can be a scary place, but you don't have to traverse it alone. This book can help.


This paper investigates the association between information technology (hereafter IT) investment and internal control effectiveness based on the questionnaire survey of internal control among listed firms, which is conducted by China Securities Regulatory Commission in year 2014. The empirical results show that IT investment is significantly and positively associated with internal control effectiveness. And this positive association is more pronounced when the IT-business strategy alignment is higher or executives' IT-use is more frequent. Additionally, we find that IT improves the effectiveness of internal control mainly by enhancing the efficiency of internal monitoring, which is one of the five components of internal control. Considering the effect of state ownership, we further document that the effect of IT investment on internal control effectiveness can only be held in non-state-owned enterprises. Overall, our results indicate that IT investment can improve internal control effectiveness. Moreover, "well adaptation" between IT and business process as well as human resources can better enhance internal control and protect the interests of stakeholders.


Abstract. This paper quantifies the backward effect on the ocean currents caused by a tidal stream farm located in the open shallow sea. Recent studies in channels with 1-D models have indicated that the power potential is not given purely by the flux of kinetic energy, as has been commonly assumed. In this study, a 3-D ocean circulation model is used to estimate (i) practically extractable energy resource at different levels of rated generation capacity of the farm, (ii) changes in the strength of currents due to energy extraction, and (iii) alterations in the pattern of residual currents and the pathways of passive tracers. As well as tidal streams, the model also takes into account the wind-driven and density-driven ocean currents. Numerical modelling has been carried out for a hypothetical tidal farm located in the Celtic Sea north of Cornwall, an area known for its high level of tidal energy. Modelling results clearly indicate that the extracted power does not grow linearly with the increase in the rated capacity of the farm. For the case study covered in this paper, a 100-fold increase in the rated generation capacity of the farm results in only 7-fold increase in extracted power. In the case of a high power farm, kinetic energy of currents is altered significantly as far as 10–20 km away from the farm. At high levels of extracted energy the currents tend to avoid flowing through the farm, an effect which is not captured with 1-D models. Residual currents are altered as far as a hundred kilometres away. The magnitude of changes in the dispersion of tracers is highly sensitive to the location. Some of the passive drifters analysed in this study experience significant variations in the end-to-start distance due to energy extraction ranging from 13% to 238% while others are practically unaffected. This study shows that both energy extraction estimates and effects on region wide circulation depend on a complex combination of factors, and the specific figures given in the paper should be generally considered as first estimates.


This paper investigates the determinants of agricultural households' participation in off-farm employment. Towards this end, a logit model is employed to identify factors that determine the participation in off-farm employment. Here, determinants of participation in off-farm employment are divided into four categories – individual, household, farm and local area characteristics.With regards to the local area characteristics, the analysis is extended by including a new variable, which is the economic characteristic of the area.The results of the analysis show that the main determinants that influence the farmer's decision to participate in off-farm employment are age,gender, household size, dependency ratio, remittance, land size, types of agricultural activities, working hours allocated to the farm, the ratio of income from agricultural sources in total income of the farmer. Furthermore, this study uncovers that the economic characteristic of the area where the farmer reside is important determinant of the farmer's decision to participate in off-farm job.One of the policy implications from the finding of this study is that, if the agricultural households are to be encouraged to participate in off-farm jobs, a balanced development in the rural areas must be pursued.


We predict new nonlinear optical phenomenon, static electric polarization induced in non-polar piezoelectric by linearly polarized light owing to orientation of the impurity centers with permanent dipole moment. Microscopic model of this effect for the crystals of cubic symmetry is proposed. Estimations of the model show that the induced polarization might be much higher than that caused by optical rectification. It is shown that a transient current Jd generated under non-steady-state illumination could be observed at extremely high modulation frequency. We expect that the effect could be applied for ultrafast optical signal processing.


Age related dynamics of genotypic, phenotypic, and environmental variation, clonal repeatability, and genotypic correlations for wood density and its intra-ring components were analyzed in four poplar hybrid crosses, Populus deltoidesP. nigra, P. trichocarpaP. deltoides, P. max- imowicziiP. balsamifera, and P. balsamiferaP. nigra, as well as P. deltoides. Using X-ray densitometry, measurements were taken on increment cores sampled in four clonal trials at 10 and 12 years of age from ramets of 19 clones. Wood density of all hybrid crosses was highest at the pith and decreased with increasing cambial age. The significance of the hybrid cross effect increased with age for mean wood density, dry fiber weight, and ring width. The coefficient of genotypic variation of cumulated mean wood density was rather stable over the 10-year period at all three sites, and ranged from 4.8-6.8%. Clonal repeatability increased with age from 0.46 to 0.79, mainly because of decreasing random variation. Corresponding genotypic parameters for individual rings varied greatly with age and across sites. Significance of the site effect on wood density tended to decrease with age. Significant negative genotypic correlations between ring width and wood density were found at only two of the four sites and they weakened with age. Age-age genotypic correlations between wood densities at ages 10 and younger were strong and significant from age 6 and over. This trend suggests that selection before this age would be unreliable. poplar hybrids / clones / wood density / radial growth / age trend / genotypic variation / repeatability / genotypic correlation


Controlling natality—the ratio of births to the general population—is one of the best means a state has to control its demographic composition. However, the fact that the state has certain interests with regard to the size and composition of its population does not necessarily give it the right to set and pursue natality policies, because such policies can potentially infringe on various human rights such as the rights of women and the rights of minorities. Using a feminist perspective I first argue that even if it is illegitimate for states to try to influence people's choice as to the number of their children in order to achieve demographic change, the state may, and should, enact natality policies aimed at promoting women's right to equality, regardless of whether their end result is to achieve a demographic change. Next I examine whether states are allowed to pursue natality policies aimed at decreasing natality rates in specific cultural groups, whose cultural precepts are oppressive toward women and dictate very high natality rates. Using the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Israel as a test case, I present and reject three objections to the state's right to pursue such natality policies: the objection from free choice, the objection from free association, and the objection from culture. Rejecting these objections I conclude that not only is the state allowed, but it is indeed obligated, to pursue natality policies that aim to alleviate the oppression of women by decreasing inordinately high birth rates in illiberal communities. However, when choosing the measures for the implementation of such policies the state must take care to choose only measures that respect human rights.


Artificial Life research brings together methods from Artificial Intelligence (AI), philosophy and biology, studying the problem of evolution of complexity from what we might call a constructive point of view, trying to replicate adaptive phenomena using computers and robots.
Here we wish to shed new light on the issue by showing how computer-simulated evolutionary learning methods are capable of discovering complex emergent properties in complex domains. Our stance is that in AI the most interesting results come from the interaction between learning algorithms and real domains, leading to discovery of emergent properties, rather than from the algorithms themselves.
The theory of natural selection postulates that generate-test-regenerate dynamics, exemplified by life on earth, when coupled with the kinds of environments found in the natural world, have lead to the appearance of complex forms. But artificial evolution methods, based on this hypothesis, have only begun to be put in contact with real-world environments.
In the present thesis we explore two aspects of real-world environments as they interact with an evolutionary algorithm. In our first experimental domain (chapter 2) we show how structures can be evolved under gravitational and geometrical constraints, employing simulated physics. Structures evolve that exploit features of the interaction between brick-based structures and the physics of gravitational forces.
In a second experimental domain (chapter 3) we study how a virtual world gives rise to co-adaptation between human and agent species. In this case we look at the competitive interaction between two adaptive species. The purely reactive nature of artificial agents in this domain implies that the high level features observed cannot be explicit in the genotype but rather, they emerge from the interaction between genetic information and a changing domain.
Emergent properties, not obvious from the lower level description, amount to what we humans call complexity, but the idea stands on concepts which resist formalization such as difficulty or complicatedness. We show how simulated evolution, exploring reality, finds features of this kind which are preserved by selection, leading to complex forms and behaviors. But it does so without creating new levels of abstraction—thus the question of evolution of modularity remains open.


More than 9,000 potential deep-seated landslide sites in the mountain ranges of Taiwan have been identified by a series of renewed governmental hazard mitigation initiatives after the 2009 Morakot typhoon. Among these sites, 186 sites have protection targets where thorough mitigation strategies are to be implemented. One of the important tasks in the hazard mitigation initiative is to estimate the volume, failure interface and related quantities of each landslide site. In addition, with this number of sites, an automated tool is needed to generate predictions at low operational costs. We propose to use volume-constrained smooth minimal surfaces to approximate the landslide failure interfaces. A volume-constrained smooth minimal surface in the current context is defined as a differentiable surface that encloses a given landslide volume with the minimal surface area. Although the stratigraphy and geological structures are omitted, the smooth minimal surface method is verified with 24 known landslides and is shown to be able to generate acceptable, approximated failure interfaces. A collection of assessment indices is employed to measure the fitness of the predictions. Finally, the prediction fitness vs. the landslide scarp geometry is investigated.


There has been a rapid growth of services based on session control. Session-based services comprise multimedia conferences, Internet telephone calls, instant messaging, and similar applications consisting of one or more media types such as audio and video. Deployment examples include session control services as part of the IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), in the third-generation mobile networks. High service dependability in session control systems is achieved by introducing redundancy, e.g., through reliable server pooling (RSerPool) or clustering. Namely, session control servers are multiplied in server sets. Performance of such replicated session control servers is quantified by transaction control time. Thus, reducing transaction control time enhances performance. Server selection policies (SSP) are crucial in achieving this goal. The maximum availability (MA) SSP is proposed to improve session control performance in scenarios with server and communication failures. Based on a status vector, MA aims at maximizing the probability of successful transaction with the current transmission, thereby minimizing the average number of attempted servers until success. MA is applicable in a broad range of IP-based systems and services, and it is independent of the fault-tolerant platform. A simple protocol extension is proposed in order to integrate MA into the RSerPool fault-tolerant architecture. In addition, an analytic model is derived based on certain system model assumptions. Analytic and simulation results show that transaction control time is considerably reduced with MA as opposed to when using traditional round robin


Epigenetic regulation, such as DNA methylation plays an important role in the control of imprinting. Lsh, a member of the SNF2 family of chromatin remodeling proteins, controls DNA methylation in mice. To investigate whether Lsh affects imprinting, we examined CpG methylation and allelic expression of individual genes in Lsh-deficient embryos. We report here that loss of Lsh specifically alters expression of the Cdkn1c gene (also known as p57(Kip2)) but does not interfere with maintenance of imprints at the H19, Igf2, Igf2r, Zac1 and Meg9 genes. The reactivation of the silenced paternal Cdkn1c allele correlates closely with a loss of CpG methylation at the 5′ DMR at the Cdkn1c promoter, whereas KvDMR1 and DMRs of other imprinted genes were not significantly changed. Chromatin immunoprecipitations demonstrate a direct association of Lsh with the 5′ DMR at the Cdkn1c promoter, but not with Kv DMR1 or other imprinted loci. These data suggest that methylation of the 5′ DMR plays an important role in the imprinting of the Cdkn1c gene. Furthermore, it suggests that Lsh is not required for maintenance of imprinting marks in general, but is only crucial for imprinting at distinct genomic sites.


Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have begun to identify the common genetic component to ischaemic stroke (IS). However, IS has considerable phenotypic heterogeneity. Where clinical covariates explain a large fraction of disease risk, covariate informed designs can increase power to detect associations. As prevalence rates in IS are markedly affected by age, and younger onset cases may have higher genetic predisposition, we investigated whether an age-at-onset informed approach could detect novel associations with IS and its subtypes; cardioembolic (CE), large artery atherosclerosis (LAA) and small vessel disease (SVD) in 6,778 cases of European ancestry and 12,095 ancestry-matched controls. Regression analysis to identify SNP associations was performed on posterior liabilities after conditioning on age-at-onset and affection status. We sought further evidence of an association with LAA in 1,881 cases and 50,817 controls, and examined mRNA expression levels of the nearby genes in atherosclerotic carotid artery plaques. Secondly, we performed permutation analyses to evaluate the extent to which age-at-onset informed analysis improves significance for novel loci. We identified a novel association with an MMP12 locus in LAA (rs660599; p = 2.5×10−7), with independent replication in a second population (p = 0.0048, OR(95% CI) = 1.18(1.05–1.32); meta-analysis p = 2.6×10−8). The nearby gene, MMP12, was significantly overexpressed in carotid plaques compared to atherosclerosis-free control arteries (p = 1.2×10−15; fold change = 335.6). Permutation analyses demonstrated improved significance for associations when accounting for age-at-onset in all four stroke phenotypes (p<0.001). Our results show that a covariate-informed design, by adjusting for age-at-onset of stroke, can detect variants not identified by conventional GWAS.


This paper posits the issue of the increased fragmentation of news consumers as part of an overarching shift from mass media to "class media". To this end, the sociological thinking of Pierre Bourdieu, and the notion that media consumption is conditioned by one's social position, is particularly useful. Generally, previous research fail to account for news fragmentation as included in processes that uphold relations of power between different, more or less privileged, groups in society. In terms of news consumption, one such instance of social reproduction is that news diets become avenues for "legitimating social differences" as the media landscape diversifies. The purpose of this paper is to study this empirically by focusing on how young people with different sets and volumes of capital orient themselves in a diversifying news landscape. More specifically, the paper asks about the role of capital and habitus in relation to news related attitudes (for example what is considered newsworthy or what sense one makes of the news outlet) and behaviors (such as news avoidance). The paper will draw on focus group interviews to be conducted in the spring of 2015.


Stories about political transformation often suggest that a political community must acknowledge and grapple with its difficult past in order to move on to a sunnier future. This thesis explores the problems and possibilities of this narrative as projected in both transitional justice theory and the museum.
Several theorists in the field of transitional justice, like Ruti Teitel, Mark Osiel, and Kathryn Sikkink, organize moments of mass atrocity, transition, and the future into finite, bounded moments. By neatly confining "violence" to the past and "peace" to the future, these narratives conceptualize political communities on a clean trajectory of evolution towards democracy. As such, these theorists position criminal prosecutions, a central transitional justice mechanism, as a means through which a political community can return to, grapple with, and over-come a violent past. Here, post-war trials are figured as devices that deliver political community to a democratic order.
Political and cultural theorist, Walter Benjamin, describes discursive projections premised on notions of progress as a system that restrains, disciplines, and guides political transformation. Benjamin and Jacques Derrida claim that the violence of law's imposition and conservation is obscured by these very notions of sequential temporality which establish law as the means to projected and affective ends. I take inspiration from these thinkers and argue that transitional justice theory's "ends-oriented" rhetoric permits political communities and correlative state institutions to narrate themselves away from legacies of violence, and responsibility. Further, they attempt to foreclose the notion that political transformation is infinitely on-going.
Aesthetics sites, like the museum, may reaffirm the worlds crafted through transitional justice theory's organization of bounded time. As such, I examine three museum exhibitions in order to show how museums similarly organize time in a manner that confines periods of violence, transition, and democracy into bounded temporalities: "Memorium Nuremberg Trials" (Nuremberg, Germany); "The Nuremberg Trials: What is Justice?" The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (Washington DC, US), and; "On Trial: Auschwitz/Majdanek," Jewish Museum (Berlin, Germany). Yet the time of transitional justice projected in these exhibitions is not totalizing, and is infinitely vulnerable to spatial, material, and aesthetic disruption.


This is the story of a scientific misconduct and editor & editorial corruption. An accepted paper in Pharmacological Research (Elsevier) was withdrawn last March 8 2019 by the editor without a single reason other than non-declared conflicts of interest, fear of science and for sure pressure from external, not-revealed forces. You can read the story in the following emails and make your own conclusions. Our paper links the use of aluminum as vaccine adjuvant with behavioral changes in sheep and it must be extremely relevant to the field of vaccine safety that has forced them to behave in such a non-scientific, corrupted way. People involved in this scandalous issue are:


Commencing early in 1971, the Water Pollution Control Federation (WPCF) (now Water Environment Federation) established a series of challenge groups which would develop information essential to the completion of the narrative for the Water Quality 2000, Phase III Report. The author was invited to serve as Chair, Challenge Group III, established to identify solutions necessary to prevent contamination and degradation of aquatic habitats, fresh water or marine. The Challenge Group believed at the present, there is a plethora of legislation on the books. We felt that in many instances there had not been sufficient enforcement of legislation and regulations. The paramount idea coming from Group deliberations was that the public must have a better understanding of the need for increased water quality. The Challenge Group also discussed the current state of the economy, and its effects on water quality. It was recognized that users of terrestrial habitats increasingly demand that they be compensated for situations where, because of environmental legislation, they are deprived of profits that might be gained by 'normal' use of land masses.


The magnitude of Carboniferous sea-level fluctuations is not well known, but the estimates are important for constraining cyclothem models. In this paper we apply area-volume relations developed for Quaternary ice sheets to estimate the glacio-eustatic component of sea-level fluctuations in the Carboniferous. Utilizing the best estimate of Gondwanan ice area at the time of its greatest extent, we arrive at a figure of 60 ±15 m for the isostasy-corrected glacio-eustatic component. This value is nearer the lower limit of sea-level estimates for cyclothem fluctuations from other sources.


Soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is an element specific method to reveal local structures of liquid samples since soft X-ray below 1 keV has chemically important absorption edges such as C, N, and O K-edges, and L-edges of transition metals. In aqueous solutions, interactions of organic molecules are measured in C and N K-edges and solvent water is separately observed in O K-edge. However, it is difficult to measure XAS of liquid in transmission mode since the thickness of a liquid layer should be less than 1 µm due to large soft X-ray absorption coefficient of liquid. We have successfully developed a liquid flow cell for XAS in transmission mode, where the absorbance of liquid samples can be easily optimized by controlling the liquid thickness. In this review, we report on the temperature dependent change of hydrogen bond in liquid water by O K-edge XAS and intermolecular interactions of pyridine with water in aqueous pyridine solutions at different molar fractions by using XAS in C, N, and O K-edges. For the operando observation of electrochemical reaction, we have developed an electrochemical cell with built-in electrodes and measured Fe L-edge XAS of aqueous iron sulfate solutions during electrochemical reaction under the same scan rate as in cyclic voltammetry. For understanding the phase transition mechanism, not only the mixed phase but also liquid-liquid interfaces after phase transition should be investigated by spatially resolved XAS. We have developed a liquid flow cell that is set in a scanning transmission X-ray microscope. The mechanism of a lower critical solution temperature in aqueous triethylamine solution is studied by spatially resolved XAS of the liquid-liquid interfaces between triethylamine and water phases with the spatial resolution of 140 nm.


The maximum operation time in blood pump applications is limited by blood damage caused by mechanical stress within the pump. To overcome this limitation, a new pumping principle is introduced. It is based on wave propagation inside a flexible tube in combination with positive displacement. The tube stimulation is generated by an electromagnetic actuator. In contrast to common roller pumps, it is possible to achieve a pumping operation without a complete tube occlusion. This ensures gentle pumping without damaging the blood cells. Our measurement of the pump curve and the trajectory of the shock head confirms the pumping
operation without complete tube occlusion.


Features of the materials database system for plant facilities management are discussed here. Korea Electric Power Research Institute (KEPRI) has developed web-based materials database system for power plant engineers with an aim to give them the integrated materials information which is needed in solving material-related problems frequently occurred in plant maintenance activities. The materials database system contains more than twenty thousands material standard data of eight countries including chemical composition, mechanical properties, and their applications in the power plant facilities. Using the system, users can find useful information of equivalent material standards and physical or chemical environments where the material is applied. Integration of material data with facility data is expected to give more valuable information to plant engineers in solving their material related problems. The database system also adopted state-of-arts extensible markup language (XML) technology and was designed to share its data easily with other information systems such as plant engineering expert system, materials management system, enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and so on.


Introduction Neutron stars with masses above 1.8 solar masses (M☉), possess extreme gravitational fields, which may give rise to phenomena outside general relativity. These strong-field deviations lack experimental confrontation, because they become observable only in tight binaries containing a high-mass pulsar and where orbital decay resulting from emission of gravitational waves can be tested. Understanding the origin of such a system would also help to answer fundamental questions of close-binary evolution. Artist's impression of the PSR J0348+0432 system. The compact pulsar (with beams of radio emission) produces a strong distortion of spacetime (illustrated by the green mesh). Conversely, spacetime around its white-dwarf companion (in light blue) is substantially less curved. According to relativistic theories of gravity, the binary system is subject to energy loss by gravitational waves. Methods We report on radio-timing observations of the pulsar J0348+0432 and phase-resolved optical spectroscopy of its white-dwarf companion, which is in a 2.46-hour orbit. We used these to derive the component masses and orbital parameters, infer the system's motion, and constrain its age. Results We find that the white dwarf has a mass of 0.172 ± 0.003 M☉, which, combined with orbital velocity measurements, yields a pulsar mass of 2.01 ± 0.04 M☉. Additionally, over a span of 2 years, we observed a significant decrease in the orbital period, P ˙ b obs =−8.6±1.4 μs year−1 in our radio-timing data. Discussion Pulsar J0348+0432 is only the second neutron star with a precisely determined mass of 2 M☉ and independently confirms the existence of such massive neutron stars in nature. For these masses and orbital period, general relativity predicts a significant orbital decay, which matches the observed value, P ˙ b obs / P ˙ b GR =1.05±0.18 . The pulsar has a gravitational binding energy 60% higher than other known neutron stars in binaries where gravitational-wave damping has been detected. Because the magnitude of strong-field deviations generally depends nonlinearly on the binding energy, the measurement of orbital decay transforms the system into a gravitational laboratory for an as-yet untested gravity regime. The consistency of the observed orbital decay with general relativity therefore supports its validity, even for such extreme gravity-matter couplings, and rules out strong-field phenomena predicted by physically well-motivated alternatives. Moreover, our result supports the use of general relativity–based templates for the detection of gravitational waves from merger events with advanced ground-based detectors. Lastly, the system provides insight into pulsar-spin evolution after mass accretion. Because of its short merging time scale of 400 megayears, the system is a direct channel for the formation of an ultracompact x-ray binary, possibly leading to a pulsar-planet system or the formation of a black hole. Pulsar Tests Gravity Because of their extremely high densities, massive neutron stars can be used to test gravity. Based on spectroscopy of its white dwarf companion, Antoniadis et al. (p. 448) identified a millisecond pulsar as a neutron star twice as heavy as the Sun. The observed binary's orbital decay is consistent with that predicted by general relativity, ruling out previously untested strong-field phenomena predicted by alternative theories. The binary system has a peculiar combination of properties and poses a challenge to our understanding of stellar evolution. Observations of a pulsar confirm general relativity in the strong-field regime and reveal a perplexing stellar binary. Many physically motivated extensions to general relativity (GR) predict substantial deviations in the properties of spacetime surrounding massive neutron stars. We report the measurement of a 2.01 ± 0.04 solar mass (M☉) pulsar in a 2.46-hour orbit with a 0.172 ± 0.003 M☉ white dwarf. The high pulsar mass and the compact orbit make this system a sensitive laboratory of a previously untested strong-field gravity regime. Thus far, the observed orbital decay agrees with GR, supporting its validity even for the extreme conditions present in the system. The resulting constraints on deviations support the use of GR-based templates for ground-based gravitational wave detectors. Additionally, the system strengthens recent constraints on the properties of dense matter and provides insight to binary stellar astrophysics and pulsar recycling.


The exploration of structures made of multiple materials is a growing area of research as additive manufacturing processing technologies such as fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing allows for their fabrication. Such a technology allows for rapid prototyping of structural components with complex geometries or spatially distributed materials with different properties and functionalities. By selecting suitable spatial distribution of materials, the performance of structural components can be manipulated and enhanced as per different engineering application needs. For a low-cost design of structural prototypes using 3D printing processes, viscoelastic polymeric materials are often used, having inherent damping properties. In this research, vibration characteristics of thin plates which are axially graded with multiple polymeric materials are investigated. The goal is to understand the influence of material grading on the frequency and damping characteristics of graded plates. Although in literature, material grading along the thickness in designing composite laminates and their vibration characteristics are available, the performance of plates having axially graded viscoelastic polymers have not been investigated yet. Through systematic modeling and experimental plans, vibration characteristics of axially graded viscoelastic plates are presented here. In particular, the damping performance for different grading schemes is evaluated. It is anticipated that such analysis will allow accurate modeling and testing of design prototypes of structural components for future research, such as design and testing of graded panels for enhanced flutter characteristics.


The ubiquity of employability issues is becoming crucial in human resource development perspectives worldwide. The 2u2i program is designed to fulfill the needs of the graduate by offering flexible education in higher education as well as employability enhancement This paper proposes a conceptual model of factors that could enhance employability in work-based learning (WBL) settings. The conceptual model is based on an extensive review of past research on WBL and employability using the CareerEDGE model. To conduct the literature review, we used keywords such as employability, work-based learning, employability skills and internship. From the literature reviewed, six elements of employability have been identified which are career development learning, experience, degree subject knowledge, emotional intelligence, generic skills, and social support. The framework offers a number of propositions, which explain the proposed model of employability. The paper has adopted 5 elements from the CareerEDGE model and 1 element has been derived from literature review added to the model. Further research is suggested to test and validate the framework to provide empirical evidence. Upon model validation, the paper could offer practical interventions for HRD practitioners and academicians.


Primary aortoenteric fistulas (PAEF) are rare entities associated with a high mortality. Although several causes have been reported, their occurrence is usually due to erosion of an abdominal aortic aneurysm into the intestinal tract. The most common sites for the fistula are the third and fourth portions of duodenum. The classical triad of gastrointestinal hemorrhage, abdominal mass and abdominal or back pain, though highly suggestive for PAEF, is uncommon. The typical bleeding pattern associated with PAEF is characteristically intermittent, starting with a brief "herald bleeding" followed eventually by major gastrointestinal hemorrhage, often with fatal outcome. The pre-operative examinations are often not helpful and can lead to delayed diagnosis and surgery. In a patient with risk factors for atherosclerosis and significant upper gastrointestinal bleeding in the absence of an evident source, PAEF should be suspected. A high index of suspicion of this condition allows correct diagnosis and definitive treatment to be carried out. If PAEF is suspected and the patient is unstable the surgeon should be prepared to skip the preoperative investigations in favour of early surgical exploration. Definitive treatment includes primary duodenal repair and aortic aneurismal resection with graft "in situ" replacement. The authors present a successfully treated case and stress the importance of clinical suspicion in order to achieve correct diagnosis and treatment.


In August of 2010, Anna Salleh of the Science Unit of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation broke a story about Monsanto seeking to patent the enhancement of meat, including omega-3 fatty acids:'Enhanced port is sparking debate over the ethics of placing patents on food. Patent applications covering the enhancement of meat, including pork with omega-3 fatty acids, are stimulating debate over the ethics and legalities of claiming intellectual property over food. Monsanto has filed patents that cover the feeding of animals soybeans, which have been genetically modified by the company to contain stearidonic acid (SDA), a plant-derived omega-3 fatty acid... Omega-3s have been linked to improved cardiovascular health and there are many companies engineering them into foodstuffs. But the new patent applications have touched a raw nerve among those who see them as an attempt by the company to exert control over the food chain.'This article providers a critical evaluation of the controversy of Monsanto's patent applications, and the larger issues over patenting food. It first considers the patent portfolio of Monsanto; the nature of the patent claims; and the examination of the claims by patent examiners. Second, it examines the withdrawal and revision of the patent claims by Monsanto in the wake of criticism by patent authorities and the public disquiet over the controversial application. Third, this article considers the larger policy issues raised by Monsanto's patent applications – including the patenting of plants, animals, and foodstuffs. There is also a consideration of the impact of patents upon the administration of health-care, competition, and research.


Durotrigia daveyi gen. et sp. nov. is described from the Inferior Oolite (Early Bajocian) of Dorset, England. It is the earliest distinctly tabulated gonyaulacacean dinocyst with a precingular archaeopyle. The archaeopyle is apparently variable, involving the loss of between 1 and 5 precingular plates. This variability poses some interesting taxonomic problems, particularly the implications to the value of the archaeopyle type as a high-level classification criterion. Some possible causes of archaeopyle variability are discussed.


Summary The burial diagenesis of Eocene Wilcox sandstones differs significantly from the burial diagenesis of other Gulf Coast terrigenous clastic formations. Differences between the onshore Wilcox and Oligocene-Miocene Frio Formations are larger than regional variations within either formation. Younger, offshore units have undergone less diagenetic alteration than either of the older, onshore units, whereas Mesozoic sandstones are generally more extensively altered. Cementation by quartz and calcite was the first diagenetic modification of volumetric significance to affect either the Wilcox or Frio Formations. The average δ18O of Wilcox quartz cement is approximately +25‰ SMOW, in contrast to + 31‰ for the Frio. In both formations, quartz cement is more abundant in the overpressured zone. Calcite has an average δ18O of −10.8‰ PDB in the Wilcox Formation (compared to −7.2‰ for the Frio). 87Sr/86Sr values suggest that calcite was derived from coeval nannofossils, carbonate rock fragments of Mesozoic age, or by local input of fluids from underlying Mesozoic carbonates. Most calcite cement (and therefore quartz which pre-dates calcite cement) was apparently emplaced prior to extensive alteration of detrital silicates which would have released strontium with a high 87Sr/86Sr ratio. The most common carbonate cement in the Wilcox Formation is ankerite which replaces calcite with increasing depth. The δ13C of ankerite is essentially identical to that of calcite at the same depth, and is also similar to Frio and younger carbonate cements. In contrast, δ18O values of Wilcox ankerite (average −9.8‰) indicate emplacement at higher temperature or from more depleted water than was true of Wilcox calcite. 87Sr/86Sr values for Wilcox ankerite are very radiogenic (>0.7100), indicating that ankerite emplacement occurred during or after active silicate diagenesis. Both ankerite and dolomite are very uncommon phases in Frio and younger sandstones despite massive smectite stabilization, suggesting that the conversion of smectite to illite was not the source of iron and magnesium for the late cements. The volume of secondary porosity is similar in both Wilcox and Frio sandstones. Albitization and K-feldspar removal from both formations are essentially complete below 3000 m and essentially no unaltered detrital feldspar occurs below that depth. Differences between the Gulf Coast formations are attributed to different geothermal gradients, differences in the basinal sediments over which the units prograded, and to the changing nature of connate fluids in the units themselves. Diagenesis of the Wilcox Formation, like other Gulf Coast terrigenous wedges, is understandable only in terms of interaction with underlying units during the large-scale evolution, in both time and in space, of the Gulf Coast diagenetic system.


OBJECTIVE: To report and analyse the pattern of end-of-life decision making for terminal Chinese cancer patients. DESIGN: Retrospective descriptive study. SETTING: A cancer clinical trials unit in a large teaching hospital. PATIENTS: From April 1992 to August 1997, 177 consecutive deaths of cancer clinical trial patients were studied. MAIN MEASUREMENT: Basic demographic data, patient status at the time of signing a DNR consent, or at the moment of returning home to die are documented, and circumstances surrounding these events evaluated. RESULTS: DNR orders were written for 64.4% of patients. Patients in pain (odds ratio 0.45, 95% CI 0.22-0.89), especially if requiring opioid analgesia (odds ratio 0.40, 95% CI 0.21-0.77), were factors associated with a higher probability of such an order. Thirty-five patients were taken home to die, a more likely occurrence if the patient was over 75 years (odds ratio 0.12, 95% CI 0.04-0.34), had children (odds ratio 0.14, 95% CI 0.02-0.79), had Taiwanese as a first language (odds ratio 6.74, 95% CI 3.04-14.93), or was unable to intake orally (odds ratio 2.73, 95% CI 1.26-5.92). CPR was performed in 30 patients, none survived to discharge. CONCLUSIONS: DNR orders are instituted in a large proportion of dying Chinese cancer patients in a cancer centre, however, the order is seldom signed by the patient personally. This study also illustrates that as many as 20% of dying patients are taken home to die, in accordance with local custom.


A microspherically focused log is a focused microresistivity device used for evaluation of the electrical property of the subsurface rock formation for oil and gas exploration. The electrodes are mounted on a flexible rubber pad that is applied against the borehole wall to be in close proximity to the formation. Unlike other nonpad-focused electrode tools that are centered in the borehole such as Dual-Laterolog, the modeling of the microspherically focused log is much more complex and requires three-dimensional (3-D) code in general because the electric field is no longer axially symmetric. However, in a horizontally layered medium, the axial symmetry of the earth formation makes the problem two-and-a-half-dimensional (2.5-D), which is much simpler. In this paper, the authors apply the semi-analytic method to tackle this 2.5-D problem and establish a fast-modeling algorithm. First, they expand the Green's function as a Fourier series in order to transform the 2.5-D problem into a sequence of the axially symmetric (2-D) problems. The semi-analytic method is used to obtain the expression of the Green's function. Applying the focusing conditions of the tool and the solution of the Green's function, we then establish the boundary integral equation with respect to the current density, currents, and potentials on the electrode surfaces, and study its numerical solutions. Then, they compare results computed from the semi-analytical method with those from the finite element method (FEM) to verify its accuracy. Finally, they study the response characteristics of the tool in several different environments by the semi-analytical method.


This thesis includes three essays investigating different aspects of financial intermediation.

Chapter 1 examines the impact of banks' collective liquidity mismatch policies on the stability of the financial sector. Using a novel identification strategy exploiting the presence of partially overlapping peer groups, I show that the liquidity created by individual banks is driven by the liquidity transformation activity of their peers. These correlated liquidity mismatch decisions are asymmetric and concentrated on the asset-side component of liquidity creation. Importantly, this strategic behavior increases both the default risk of individual institutions and overall systemic risk. From a macroprudential perspective, the results highlight the importance of explicitly regulating systemic liquidity risk.

Chapter 2 analyzes the credit supply and real sector effects of bank bail-ins by exploiting the unexpected failure of a major Portuguese bank and subsequent resolution. Using a matched firm-bank dataset on credit exposures and interest rates, we show that while banks more exposed to the bail-in significantly reduced credit supply at the intensive margin, affected firms compensated the tightening of overall credit with other sources of funding. Nevertheless, SMEs were subject to a binding contraction of funds available through credit lines and reduced investment and employment. These dampening effects are explained by the pre-shock internal liquidity position of smaller firms.

Finally, Chapter 3 examines the impact of a nationwide banking expansion program on access to finance as well as first-time borrowers' transition from microfinance institutions to the formal banking sector using microdata on the universe of loans to individuals from a developing country. We show that the program increased the likelihood of obtaining credit, particularly in areas with lower financial and economic development. The overall effect is driven by the newly set-up microfinance institutions (U-SACCOs), which grant loans to unbanked individuals and allow them to build credit history. Loan size increases and loan terms improve as the bank-borrower relationship matures, but these effects are weaker for U-SACCOs than for banks. Consistent with this evidence, a significant share of first-time borrowers switch to commercial banks, which cream-skim less risky borrowers from U-SACCOs after the program implementation and grant them cheaper, larger, and longer-term loans. These borrowers are not riskier and only initially receive smaller loans than similar individuals already in the formal banking sector. These results suggest that the microfinance sector, together with a credit reference bureau, plays an essential role in mitigating information frictions in credit markets.


It is deeply troubling that an animal rights extremist campaign will stop an important line of research, and the entire scientific community should be concerned when, yet again, disruptive actions by extremists silence important, well-regulated science ("Researcher drops primate work," News In Brief, 8 May, p. [613][1]). It is unacceptable that researchers worldwide are subject to harassment, threats of violence, illegal taping, and property damage, and we urge aggressive enforcement of laws that protect responsible research, scientific institutions, and scientists.

The Society for Neuroscience has long urged research institutions to be proactive in identifying and supporting researchers who experience animal rights threats. Nonhuman primate models, the research subject in this case, are critical for advancing scientific understanding of the brain, and to improve the health and well-being of humans and nonhuman species. Research on animals, including nonhuman primates, provides the basis for breakthroughs in the treatment of cancer, heart disease, and devastating infectious diseases like HIV, Ebola, and influenza. Monkey research played a key role in the development of deep-brain stimulation for treating conditions such as Parkinson's disease, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Biomedical research operates within the laws and guidelines set by multiple oversight bodies to ensure humane treatment of animals.

For neuroscience, this troubling news will only lengthen the time needed to better understand complex neural systems, which are crucial to find treatments for more than 1000 disorders—including addiction, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease—which afflict more than 1 billion people worldwide. We urge the scientific community to make a strong stand about the irreplaceable role of animals in research, and for organizations to sign on to the international statement supporting animal research, found at the International Brain Research Organization ([ 1 ][2]).

1. [↵][3]International Brain Research Organization, Statement on the Use of Animals in Biomedical Research ( ).

 [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.348.6235.612
 [2]: #ref-1
 [3]: #xref-ref-1-1 "View reference 1 in text"


The Middle Jurassic Rattray Volcanic Province is located at the triple junction of the North Sea continental rift system. It has previously been thought to be sourced from three large central volcanoes: the Glenn, Fisher Bank and Ivanhoe volcanic centres. Re-interpretation using 3D seismic and well data shows that no volcanic centres are present and the Rattray Volcanics were instead sourced in fissure eruptions from linear vents, including the Buchan–Glenn Fissure System, a c. 25 km long zone of WSW–ENE-striking linear fissure vents and associated small volcanic edifices across the Buchan–Glenn Horst. The orientation of the fissures is broadly parallel to the Highland Boundary Fault, which intersects the Rattray Volcanics at the Buchan–Glenn Fissure System, implying that Mid-Jurassic magmatism exploited pre-existing crustal structural anisotropies established during the Caledonian Orogeny. The lack of large intrusive complexes beneath the Rattray Volcanics indicates that the pre-Middle Jurassic sedimentary sequences (e.g. the Devonian–Carboniferous Old Red Sandstone Group, the Permian Rotliegend and Zechstein groups and the Triassic Skagerrak Formation) extend further than previously supposed and therefore the presence of possible subvolcanic reservoir and source rock units within the triple junction of the Central North Sea may have been overlooked.


Human prostate was used as a source of 5 alpha reductase. Compounds were incubated with an enzyme preparation and [3H]testosterone. [3H]-dihydrotestosterone production was measured to calculate 5 alpha reductase activity. IC50 values (ng/ml) were finasteride = 1; Permixon = 5,600; Talso = 7,000; Strogen Forte = 31,000; Prostagutt = 40,000; and Tadenan = 63,000. Bazoton and Harzol had no activity at concentrations up to 500,000 ng/ml. In castrate rats stimulated with testosterone (T) or dihydrotestosterone (DHT), finasteride, but not Permixon or Bazoton, inhibited T stimulated prostate growth, while none of the three compounds inhibited DHT stimulated growth. These results demonstrate that finasteride inhibits 5 alpha reductase, while Permixon and Bazoton have neither anti-androgen nor 5 alpha reductase inhibitory activity. In addition, in a 7 day human clinical trial, finasteride, but not Permixon or placebo, decreased serum DHT in men, further confirming the lack of 5 alpha reductase inhibition by Permixon. Finasteride and the plant extracts listed above do not inhibit the binding of DHT to the rat prostatic androgen receptor (concentrations to 100 micrograms/ml). Based on these results, it is unlikely that these plant extracts would shrink the prostate by inhibiting androgen action or 5 alpha reductase.


The design and analysis of dedicated tweakable block ciphers is a quite recent and very active research field that provides an ongoing stream of new insights. For instance, results of Kranz, Leander, and Wiemer from FSE 2017 show that the addition of a tweak using a linear tweak schedule does not introduce new linear characteristics. In this paper, we consider – to the best of our knowledge – for the first time the effect of the tweak on zero-correlation linear cryptanalysis for ciphers that have a linear tweak schedule. It turns out that the tweak can often be used to get zero-correlation linear hulls covering more rounds compared to just searching zero-correlation linear hulls on the data-path of a cipher. Moreover, this also implies the existence of integral distinguishers on the same number of rounds. We have applied our technique on round reduced versions of Qarma, Mantis, and Skinny. As a result, we can present – to the best of our knowledge – the best attack (with respect to number of rounds) on a round-reduced variant of Qarma.


Liquid flowing through a thin-walled "collapsible" tube similar to a vein, inclined to any angle between vertical and slightly above horizontal, differs from the flow in rigid tubes in that: a "collapsible" tube accepts any flow presented to it without affecting the rate of flow through the system; the lateral pressure at all cross sections throughout the tube is zero and does not change as the flow changes; the cross section of the tube and the mean velocity of flow increase as the flow increases; for any particular flow, the cross section increases and the mean velocity of flow diminishes as the potential energy difference between the upper and lower ends of the tube is decreased; for any given flow and potential energy difference, an increase in the length of the tube causes an increase in the cross section and a decrease in the mean velocity; also, an increase in the perimeter of the tube causes an increase in cross section and a decrease in mean velocity, and an increase in the viscosity of the liquid causes an increase in cross section and a reduction in mean velocity. In such tubes there is no lateral pressure gradient between any two cross sections as there is in rigid tubes; instead there is a potential energy gradient which is proportional to the energy loss along the tube. Under certain conditions the flow of liquid through a collapsible tube is described with a reasonable degree of accuracy by a modification of Poiseuille's law for tubes of elliptical cross section.


ABSTRACT: The bone strength depends on its mineralization and its geometry, which depend themselves on the supported solicitations. The bone optimizes its mass and geometry in order to improve its strength. The optimization process is called bone remodeling. This phenomenon can be deteriorated by metabolic diseases like osteoporosis. This disease weakens the bone structure and causes bone fractures. Among those fractures, femoral neck fractures (hip articulation) are the most recurrent and involve the replacement of the entire hip articulation by a mechanic articulation (Total Hip Arthroplasty). In this paper, finite element models were developed to evaluate, firstly, the stress distribution within osteoporotic human femur bone tissue and secondly, the influence of the perturbation of the stress distribution by Total Hip Arthroplasty on its first stability. The geometry of the femur and the prosthesis was obtained by helicoid scanner acquisition. The bone was considered as two separate types of tissue: cortical bone and cancellous bone. The cortical bone was separated from the trabecular bone by apparent density threshold. In the case of osteoporotic femur the results obtained from the simulations suggest that the mechanism of load transmission is pertubated by the bone remodelling. The degradation of trabecular architecture causes high stresses in the antero-inferior zone of the cortical bone. For the femur with hip prosthesis, the results showed that the implant has significant effects on the stress distribution within bone tissue. High stresses, due to the implant, weak the bone tissue in the lateral zone of the proximal dyaphisis and in the medial zone of the distal part at the end of the stem.


Tourism precincts have a very relevant territorial presence in areas with the most valued landscape features, both scenic and ecological lato sensu. The rationale of their development is allocating a business value to those very same features. The design of territorial occupation tends however to fit best practices and therefore sustainability is duly taken into account. But, do developers value it in their marketing documents? Is sustainability already a settled stance which needs not to be stated, or is it worth while mentioning by developers because it is an end-users' choice criterion? By resorting to European Union tourism sustainability categories and using them to assess the sustainability discourse in the marketing statements of Portuguese recent tourism developments (precincts), we approach the answers to the abovementioned questions. The result seems to be a subdued relevance of sustainability for marketing purposes. The derived risk might be the stagnation on the path towards a more comprehensive sustainability if the latter doesn't work as a marketing differentiation tool.


Obtaining photo-realistic geometric and photometric models is an important component of image-based rendering systems that use real-world imagery as their input. Applications of such systems include novel view generation and the mixing of live imagery with synthetic computer graphics. This paper reviews a number of image-based representations (and their associated reconstruction algorithms) we have developed in the last few years. It begins by reviewing some recent approaches to the classic problem of recovering a depth map from two or more images. It then describes some of our newer representations and reconstruction algorithms, including volumetric representations, layered plane-plus-parallax representations (including the recovery of transparent and reflected layers), and multiple depth maps. The paper also presents our work in video-based rendering, in which we synthesize novel video from short sample clips by discovering their (quasi-repetive) temporal structure.


Elasticity is one of the essential characteristics for cloud computing. The presented use case is a Software as

a Service for Ambient Assisted Living that is configurable and extensible by the user. By adding or deleting

functionality to the application, the environment has to support the increase or decrease of computational

demand by scaling. This is achieved by customizing the auto scaling components of a PaaS management

platform and introducing new components to scale a distributed OSGi environment across virtual machines.

We present different scaling and load balancing scenarios to show the mechanics of the involved components.


A major component of many advanced programming courses is an open-ended "end-of-term project" assignment. Delivering and evaluating open-ended parallel programming projects for hundreds or thousands of students brings a need for broad system reconfigurability coupled with challenges of testing and development uniformity, access to esoteric hardware and programming environments, scalability, and security. We present RAI, a secure and extensible system for delivering open-ended programming assignments configured with access to different hardware and software requirements. We describe how the system was used to deliver a programming-competition-style final project in an introductory GPU programming course at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.


Mutations in either ATP-binding cassette (ABC) G5 or ABCG8 cause sitosterolemia, an autosomal recessive disorder of sterol trafficking. To determine the site of action of ABCG5 and ABCG8, we expressed recombinant, epitope-tagged mouse ABCG5 and ABCG8 in cultured cells. Both ABCG5 and ABCG8 underwent N-linked glycosylation. When either protein was expressed individually in cells, the N-linked sugars remained sensitive to Endoglycosidase H (Endo H). When ABCG5 and ABCG8 were coexpressed, the attached sugars were Endo H-resistant and neuraminidase-sensitive, indicating that the proteins were transported to the trans-Golgi complex. The mature, glycosylated forms of ABCG5 and ABCG8 coimmunoprecipitated, consistent with heterodimerization of these two proteins. The Endo H-sensitive forms of ABCG5 and ABCG8 were confined to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), whereas the mature forms were present in non-ER fractions in cultured hepatocytes. Immunoelectron microscopy revealed ABCG5 and ABCG8 on the plasma membrane of these cells. In polarized WIF-B cells, recombinant ABCG5 localized to the apical (canalicular) membrane when coexpressed with ABCG8, but not when expressed alone. To our knowledge this is the first direct demonstration that trafficking of an ABC half-transporter to the cell surface requires the presence of its dimerization partner.


Exploiting biological processes to recycle renewable carbon into high value platform chemicals provides a sustainable and greener alternative to current reliance on petrochemicals. In this regard Cupriavidus necator H16 represents a particularly promising microbial chassis due to its ability to grow on a wide range of low-cost feedstocks, including the waste gas carbon dioxide, whilst also naturally producing large quantities of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) during nutrient-limited conditions. Understanding the complex metabolic behaviour of this bacterium is a prerequisite for the design of successful engineering strategies for optimising product yields. We present a genome-scale metabolic model (GSM) of C. necator H16 (denoted iCN1361), which is directly constructed from the BioCyc database to improve the readability and reusability of the model. After the initial automated construction, we have performed extensive curation and both theoretical and experimental validation. By carrying out a genome-wide essentiality screening using a Transposon-directed Insertion site Sequencing (TraDIS) approach, we showed that the model could predict gene knockout phenotypes with a high level of accuracy. Importantly, we indicate how experimental and computational predictions can be used to improve model structure and, thus, model accuracy as well as to evaluate potential false positives identified in the experiments. Finally, by integrating transcriptomics data with iCN1361 we create a condition-specific model, which, importantly, better reflects PHB production in C. necator H16. Observed changes in the omics data and in-silico-estimated alterations in fluxes were then used to predict the regulatory control of key cellular processes. The results presented demonstrate that iCN1361 is a valuable tool for unravelling the system-level metabolic behaviour of C. necator H16 and can provide useful insights for designing metabolic engineering strategies.


We study optimal dynamic lockdowns against Covid-19 within a commuting network. Our framework combines canonical spatial epidemiology and trade models, and is applied to cities with varying initial viral spread: Seoul, Daegu and NYC-Metro. Spatial lockdowns achieve substantially smaller income losses than uniform lockdowns, and are not easily approximated by simple centrality-based rules. In NYM and Daegu -with large initial shocks- the optimal lockdown restricts inflows to central districts before gradual relaxation, while in Seoul it imposes low temporal but large spatial variation. Actual commuting responses were too weak in central locations in Daegu and NYM, and too strong across Seoul.


Variations in sea surface temperature (SST), productivity, and biogenic components such as total organic carbon (TOC), carbonate, and opal contents measured from IMAGES (International Marine Global Changes Study) core MD972142 provide information about long-term paleoceanographic changes during the past ~870000 years in the southeastern South China Sea (SCS). MD972142 U 37 -SSTs varied from 25 to 29C, paralleling the glacial to interglacial changes. MD972142 biogenic components show relatively high carbonate and opal, and low TOC contents in interglacial stages, and low carbonate and opal and high TOC contents in glacial stages, and these variations appear to be sensitive to regional terrestrial sediment input and productivity. Our analysis indicates that the MD972142 carbonate record is primarily controlled by terrestrial sediment inputs that are associated with sea level fluctuations during past glacial-interglacial stages. The TOC record reflects past glacial-interglacial changes in both monsoon-induced productivity and terrestrial organic matter input in the SCS. The TOC record exhibits several short-term peaks that are associated with lower U 37 -SSTs (especially in MIS 2 - 4, 10, 12), perhaps implying a much strengthened winter monsoon. The opal record shows relatively high content in most interglacial stages, which appears to be linked to increased summer monsoon upwelling or increased siliceous sediment input by more precipitation and river runoff during warm climate conditions. The TOC and opal contents both show long-term increasing trends since the mid-Brunhes, most noticeably from ~330 kya. The long-term trends observed in this study are most likely attributable to changes in SCS hydrography, productivity, and/or preservation in response to the increased strength of the East Asian monsoon system on possibly tectonic timescales.


In a work of splendid scholarship that reflects both a firm mastery of difficult sources and a keen intuition, one of Britain's foremost medievalists tells the story of the Christianization of Europe. It is a very large story, for conversion encompassed much more than religious belief. With it came enormous cultural change: Latin literacy and books, Roman notions of law and property, and the concept of town life, as well as new tastes in food, drink, and dress. Whether from faith or by force, from self-interest or by revelation, conversion had an immense impact that is with us even today. It is Richard Fletcher's achievement in this superb work that he makes that impact both felt and understood.


Abstract. In this paper we present a probabilistic hazard assessment for tephra fallout at Mt. Etna (Italy) associated with both short- and long-lived eruptions. Eruptive scenarios and eruption source parameters were defined based on the geological record, while an advection–diffusion–sedimentation model was used to capture the variation in wind speed and direction with time after calibration with the field data. Two different types of eruptions were considered in our analysis: eruptions associated with strong short-lived plumes and eruptions associated with weak long-lived plumes. Our probabilistic approach was based on one eruption scenario for both types and on an eruption range scenario for eruptions producing weak long-lived plumes. Due to the prevailing wind direction, the eastern flanks are the most affected by tephra deposition, with the 122 BC Plinian and 2002–2003 eruptions showing the highest impact both on infrastructures and agriculture.


Although the Internet has become a global medium, which companies use to access individuals worldwide, it is argued in this thesis that cultural issues still need to be taken into account when designing Web sites. In fact, international marketers agree that culture in terms of consumers' values and beliefs remains a significant constraint for reaching international consumers. Professional analysts and designers generally agree that well-designed user interfaces improve the performance and appeal of the Web and help in reaching large numbers of consumers across cultures. Therefore, one way of improving the user-interface is by paying attention to users' culture, which means developing culturally adapted Web sites.
The Web localisation literature addresses the users' ultural concerns by utilising some of the popular cultural models like those of Hofstede and Hall; however these tools are not appropriate for handling the cultural values affecting the online behaviour of consumers. Effective Web localisation can be achieved through an appropriate cultural
framework that incorporates the cultural values that affect the online behaviour of consumers. This thesis introduces the electronic cultural adaption framework or E-CAF, as a structure for adapting local Web interfaces. The E-CAF, constructed for the travel domain, uses six cultural dimensions derived from the observation of behaviour and identifies unique cultural variables that affect online consumer behaviour.
The E-CAF is constructed using grounded theory methodology and is then evaluated as a tool for adapting local Web interfaces. This includes discussing the applicability of the E-CAF as a tool for identifying online marketing strategies suitable for targeting consumers across cultures and using the E-CAF to assess and evaluate the cultural adaptation of three Egyptian local travel interfaces. Finally, the E-CAF is utilized as a means for developing questions that can help designers to collect the clients' designing requirements. This helps the designers to build an effective local interface based on an understanding of each client's special design requirements.


It is well-established that in diverse societies, certain groups prefer to exclude other groups from power and often from society entirely. Yet as many societies are diversifying at an increasingly rapid pace, the need for cross-group cooperation to solve collective action problems has intensified. Do preferences for exclusion inhibit the ability of individuals to cooperate and, therefore, diminish the ability for societies to collectively provide public goods? Turning to Israel, a society with multiple overlapping and politically salient cleavages, we use a large-scale lab-in-the-field design to investigate how preferences for exclusion among the Jewish majority predict discriminatory behavior toward Palestinian Citizens of Israel. We establish that preferences for exclusion are likely symbolic attitudes, and therefore stable and dominating of other attitudes; are held especially strongly by low-status majority group members; and powerfully predict costly non-cooperation. This preferences/behavior relationship appears unaffected by mitigating factors proposed in the intergroup relations literature. The demonstrated influence of symbolic attitudes on behavior calls for further examination of the social roots of exclusionary preferences.


To advance compression ignition combustion strategies, researchers have evaluated fuel property effects and their impact on achieving higher efficiencies and lower emissions levels relative to current capabilities. Within the Department of Energy's Co-Optima initiative, there has been a recent focus on understanding the influence of fuel properties on fuel injection performance. To help identify candidate fuels that can meet desired injector performance metrics, a computational fuel screening tool is under development that can link fuel properties with the tendency of a given fuel to cavitate and lead to cavitation-induced erosion. In the initial development of this tool, five liquid fuel properties were selected to represent candidate fuels, namely, density, viscosity, vapor pressure, surface tension, and heat of vaporization. A design of experiments methodology was used to generate a set of pseudofuel cases, which can represent the main effects and interactions among the fuel properties and be related to cavitation erosion predictions. Large eddy simulations were performed using a mixture modeling approach to predict the cavitation and erosion propensity of these pseudofuels in terms of the mean fuel vapor mole fraction and stored impact energy from repeated cloud collapse events. The low-order regression models generated from this study revealed the importance of liquid fuel density on cavitation formation, whereas liquid viscosity was found to have a strong negative correlation with erosion severity. The surrogate models were then used in the fuel screening tool to rank the cavitation and erosion tendency of four candidate single-component fuels: methyl decanoate, iso-octane, ethanol, and n-dodecane. While the fuel screening tool was not able to quantitatively predict the cavitation and erosion response metrics, the tool was able to accurately rank the relative cavitation and erosion propensity of the four fuels. Overall, ethanol and iso-octane were observed to produce the highest levels of cavitation and erosion, respectively.


Objectives: To inquire, whether right ventricular (RV) pacing worsens the systolic function of the right ventricle (RV) and, if need be, which position of the RV pacing lead is more favourable with regard to the RV systolic function. To test the ability of the 3D transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), to verify the position of the pacing lead Methods: 37 patients were included in the study in the period since March 2013 to March 2016. This sample was divided in to two groups: with apical and septal position of the lead. For evaluation of the systolic function of the right ventricle we have used tricuspid annulus plain systolic excursions (TAPSE) and tricuspid annulus systolic velocity (TASV) parameters. For statistical analysis we have used pair t-test. We have also studied the influence of the lead position on the difference between the first and the second measurement: We have used non-parametrical Mann-Whitney test. Results: Pair test showed that there is not a significant decrease or increase of the values of both parameters in patients with RV pacing from any site. Non-parametrical Mann-Whitney test suggests that the lead position does not influence the differences between first and second measurements in the given two groups. There was not a single patient, in whom there would be a decline of any studied parameter under the limit of normal values. In all patients, it was possible to display the ventricular lead with the use of transthoracic echo. 3D-TTE often provides better image of the pacing lead and it's insertion in to the myocardium than 2D-TTE. Conclusion: Our data suggest that RV pacing does not influence the RV systolic function. At the same time we could confirm, that 3D-TTE is a very good and possibly preferable method for verification of the ventricular lead position by its direct visualization unless the image quality is poor.


Image based reconstruction from multiple views is an interesting challenge. Recently methods of optimisation based voxel colouring have appeared which make use of incremental visibility updates. We present an alternative incremental voxel colouring algorithm in the mould of GVC-LDI, which directly associates each visible voxel with the set of rays in it's visible projection, using ray-voxel traversal as a mechanism for updates. We make some time comparisons using calibrated photographs and synthetic images, as well looking at optimisation based voxel colouring and level of detail. Results show that our method compares favourably to GVC-LDI


The growing demand for head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations, along with a global shortage of radiologists, has led to an increase in the time taken to report head MRI scans around the world. For many neurological conditions, this delay can result in increased morbidity and mortality. An automated triaging tool could reduce reporting times for abnormal examinations by identifying abnormalities at the time of imaging and prioritizing the reporting of these scans. In this work, we present a convolutional neural network for detecting clinically-relevant abnormalities in $\text{T}_2$-weighted head MRI scans. Using a validated neuroradiology report classifier, we generated a labelled dataset of 43,754 scans from two large UK hospitals for model training, and demonstrate accurate classification (area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) = 0.943) on a test set of 800 scans labelled by a team of neuroradiologists. Importantly, when trained on scans from only a single hospital the model generalized to scans from the other hospital ($\Delta$AUC $\leq$ 0.02). A simulation study demonstrated that our model would reduce the mean reporting time for abnormal examinations from 28 days to 14 days and from 9 days to 5 days at the two hospitals, demonstrating feasibility for use in a clinical triage environment.


This essay sets out to solve the strange case of the "disappearance" of the Poet Laureate, Robert Southey, in his own 1829 book of "imaginary conversations" or Colloquies with the ghost of Sir Thomas More. There is no "Southey" in the dialogue, only a figure named "Montesinos." But since the pessimistic ghost of More evidently speaks for Southey – as readers from the Westminster Review in summer 1829 onwards have noticed – then the dialogue is strangely one-sided. If More is Southey, then "who," as Mark Storey's biography asks, "is Montesinos?" This essay seeks to answer Storey's biographical question, and to put it into the wider context of Southey's ideas about national and writerly identity, and his Romantic poetics of history. The first part explores "Montesinos" as a byword for Southey's literary utopianism. The second part then attempts the resurrection of "Montesinos," tracing this figure in the detail of Southey's "Hispanist" reading and in the workings of his historical imagination.


Abstract 1. Two experiments were conducted to determine the effects on laying performance of relocating caged hens at 30, 42 and 54 weeks of age. 2. In experiment 1 with hens caged individually, treatment groups comprised relocated hens given 5 new neighbours and hens not relocated but given 0, 2 or 4 new neighbours. 3. In experiment 2 with hens housed two per cage, treatment groups comprised relocation with or without that hen which shared the cage before the move. 4. In both experiments relocated hens laid fewer eggs in the week following social reorganisation. 5. Relocated hens in experiment 1 ate less food in the week following the shift at 42 weeks of age than did hens not moved. In experiment 2 in which all hens were moved, food consumption was not affected.


Experienced information specialists expect optical disc technology to gain wide acceptance in the marketplace as an alternative to traditional electro magnetic technology and microfilm or paper-based document management systems. Archivists, librarians, records managers and computer systems managers alike, however, have expressed concern related to the legal status of records and data maintained using this technology. Specific concern relates primarily to the admissibility of optical disc records as evidence and as a consequence the acceptance of this type of electronic record by the business community, administrative agencies and other organisations. At the time of this article, no statute or regulation, or judicial decision, seemingly exists in any Australian jurisdiction which directly addresses the application of this particular technology to document reproduction and storage.


Ongoing brain activity can be recorded as electroen-cephalograph (EEG) to discover the links between emotional states and brain activity. This study applied machine-learning algorithms to categorize EEG dynamics according to subject self-reported emotional states during music listening. A framework was proposed to optimize EEG-based emotion recognition by systematically 1) seeking emotion-specific EEG features and 2) exploring the efficacy of the classifiers. Support vector machine was employed to classify four emotional states (joy, anger, sadness, and pleasure) and obtained an averaged classification accuracy of 82.29% ± 3.06% across 26 subjects. Further, this study identified 30 subject-independent features that were most relevant to emotional processing across subjects and explored the feasibility of using fewer electrodes to characterize the EEG dynamics during music listening. The identified features were primarily derived from electrodes placed near the frontal and the parietal lobes, consistent with many of the findings in the literature. This study might lead to a practical system for noninvasive assessment of the emotional states in practical or clinical applications.


Abstract We construct the holonomy groupoid of any singular foliation. In the regular case this groupoid coincides with the usual holonomy groupoid of Winkelnkemper ([H. E. Winkelnkemper, The graph of a foliation, Ann. Glob. Anal. Geom. 1 (3) (1983), 51–75.]); the same holds in the singular cases of [J. Pradines, How to define the differentiable graph of a singular foliation, C. Top. Geom. Diff. Cat. XXVI(4) (1985), 339–381.], [B. Bigonnet, J. Pradines, Graphe d'un feuilletage singulier, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris 300 (13) (1985), 439–442.], [C. Debord, Local integration of Lie algebroids, Banach Center Publ. 54 (2001), 21–33.], [C. Debord, Holonomy groupoids of singular foliations, J. Diff. Geom. 58 (2001), 467–500.], which from our point of view can be thought of as being "almost regular". In the general case, the holonomy groupoid can be quite an ill behaved geometric object. On the other hand it often has a nice longitudinal smooth structure. Nonetheless, we use this groupoid to generalize to the singular case Connes' construction of the C*-algebra of the foliation. We also outline the construction of a longitudinal pseudo-differential calculus; the analytic index of a longitudinally elliptic operator takes place in the K-theory of our C*-algebra. In our construction, the key notion is that of a bi-submersion which plays the role of a local Lie groupoid defining the foliation. Our groupoid is the quotient of germs of these bi-submersions with respect to an appropriate equivalence relation.


Hearing about the destructive compulsion of bulimia nervosa, outsiders may wonder, "How could you ever start?" Those suffering from the eating disorder ask themselves in despair, "How can I ever stop?" How do you break the cycle of bingeing, vomiting, laxative abuse, and shame? While many books describe the descent into eating disorders and the resulting emotional and physical damage, this book describes recovery. Psychologist Sheila M. Reindl has listened intently to women's accounts of recovering. Reindl argues compellingly that people with bulimia nervosa avoid turning their attention inward to consult their needs, desires, feelings, and aggressive strivings because to do so is to encounter an annihilating sense of shame. Disconnected from internal, sensed experience, bulimic women rely upon external gauges to guide their choices. To recover, bulimic women need to develop a sense of self - to attune to their physical, psychic, and social self-experience. They also need to learn that one's neediness, desire, pain, and aggression are not sources of shame to be kept hidden but essential aspects of humanity necessary for zestful life. The young women with whom Reindl speaks describe, with great feeling, their efforts to know and trust their own experience.


In the second of our reviews of 2013 we reveal our prize winners in the fields of basic science and epidemiology. As before, manuscripts arising from Imperial, Leicester and Oxford are disallowed, not because we would like to level the playing field (nice as this would be) but because of editors' conflict of interest. If you read to the end we reveal our overall winners in the traditional gold, silver and bronze positions.

The Basic Science for the Chest Physician section has proved popular with our readers according to our most recent survey. Although many of these pieces are commissioned to accompany particular articles, we also welcome uncommissioned articles and suggestions for potential subjects from readers. So, if there is an area of basic science that you would like to highlight for the respiratory community, please let us know.

Manuscripts within the basic science sphere incorporated those seeking to understand the molecular mechanism underlying lung diseases as well as those aimed at discovering novel biomarkers and preclinical testing of novel therapeutic pathways. We continue to publish models and systems designed to reflect the broad range of lung diseases that are of interest to the readers of Thorax , including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and cystic fibrosis as well as respiratory infections.

Pulmonary inflammation may occur either as a result of excessive activation of inflammatory pathways or a failure in immune regulation. Several studies this year indicated that inflammation during COPD may occur as a general failure of pulmonary immune regulation, leading to reduced regulatory T cell populations but increased proportions of effector Th cells such as those defined by interleukin 17 (IL-17) secretion.1 ,2 Similarly, aberrant epidermal growth factor receptor activity was shown to be behind the decreased expression of FoxO3A—a negative …


In the past, and, to a certain extent, even at present, immunities existed in common law against tort litigation within the family. Is it appropriate today to block such claims, or should they be considered in the same way as any other tort suit? The present essay will address this question, by examining the possibility of establishing a delicate balance between the individualistic approach, which focuses on realizing the autonomy of the individual to sue for harm done to him, and the family-collectivist approach, which attempts to determine what is best for the family as a whole, and is concerned that legal intervention in its affairs may be more detrimental than beneficial. The assumption in this essay will be that, although we are talking of a claim under tort law, rather than under family law, and that this claim may be consistent with the goals of tort law, one cannot ignore the fact that this is not a suit involving two strangers. Moreover, since these are particularly charged, emotional claims, the real remedy desired may at times not be financial compensation at all, but some other remedy, an emotional one, which the law cannot provide, but which might be provided specifically through extrajudicial proceedings. But requiring the parties to take part in such a proceeding under the auspices of the court (e.g. mandatory mediation) is itself problematic, since these are essentially voluntary proceedings. I will propose a desirable model that balances the two approaches, the individualistic and the family. This model will present a theoretical and practical framework for hearing such claims, applicable to the different stages of tort proceedings in the courts, while also making use, in the framework of such proceedings, of quasi-mandatory extrajudicial processes.


The transcription factor NFAT is a regulator of two opposing T cell responses: anergy and activation. Wu et al. provide evidence that production of regulatory T cells also involves NFAT through the formation of a complex with FOXP3, another transcription factor that is known as a regulatory T cell specification factor. Reporter gene assays with the ARRE2 element of the gene encoding interleukin 2 (IL-2) indicated that FOXP3 inhibited transcription mediated by NFAT:AP-1 complexes. FOXP1, FOXP2, and FOXP3 all bound poorly to the ARRE2 element unless the NFAT DNA binding domain was also included in the reaction, suggesting that NFAT and FOXP transcription factors form a cooperative DNA binding complex. The crystal structure of the NFAT Rel homology region (RHR, the DNA binding region) and the FOXP2 forkhead domain bound to double-stranded DNA with the ARRE2 site showed that NFAT and FOXP2 formed a complex, with NFAT binding to the 5′ portion of the promoter and FOXP2 binding to a low-affinity site in the 3′ portion of the promoter. Comparison of this structure with that of NFAT:Fos:Jun:DNA shows that the DNA adopted different shapes to maximize the interactions with each different transcription factor complex and that the binding of NFAT was very similar in each structure. Expression of FOXP3 mutants that disrupted its interaction with NFAT exhibited decreased ability of coexpressed wild-type FOXP3 to inhibit IL-2 production in murine primary T cells. The Ctla4 gene is stimulated by expression of FOXP3, and the promoter contains a consensus binding site for NFAT:AP-1 or NFAT:FOXP3. The FOXP3 interaction mutants prevented the increase in cell surface CTLA4 and CD25 stimulated by coexpressed wild-type FOXP3. Thus, the NFAT:FOXP3 complex can serve as a repressor or activator, depending on the target gene. In a mouse model of autoimmune diabetes, cotransfer of T cells expressing wild-type FOXP3, but not the interaction mutants, with the Th1 cells that trigger the diabetes prevented the onset of diabetes in the mice. Thus, FOXP3 does appear to contribute to the regulatory T cell phenotype through the formation of the NFAT:FOXP3 complex. Y. Wu, M. Borde, V. Heissmeyer, M. Feuerer, A. D. Lapan, J. C. Stroud, D. L. Bates, L. Guo, A. Han, S. F. Ziegler, D. Mathis, C. Benoist, L. Chen, A. Rao, FOXP3 controls regulatory T cell function through cooperation with NFAT. Cell 126, 375-387 (2006). [Online Journal]