In modern asset price models, stochastic volatility plays a crucial role in order to explain several stylized facts of returns. Recently, [3] introduced a class of stochastic volatility models (so called BNS SV model) based on superposition of Ornstein-Uhlenbeck processes driven by subordinators. The BNS SV model forms a flexible class, where one can easily explain heavy-tails and skewness in returns and the typical time-dependency structures seen in asset return data. In this thesis the effect of stochastic volatility on Asian options is studied. This is done by simulation studies of comparable models, one with and one without stochastic volatility. Introduction Levy processes are popular models for stock price behavior since they allow to take into account jump risk and reproduce the implied volatility smile. Barndorff-Nielsen [3] introduces a class of stochastic volatility models (BNS SV model) based on superposition of Ornstein-Uhlenbeck processes driven by subordinators (Levy processes with only positive jumps and no drift). The distribution of these subordinators will be chosen such that the log-returns of asset prices will be distributed approximately normal inverse Gaussian (NIG) in stationarity. This family of distributions has proven to fit the semi-heavy tails observed in financial time series of various kinds extremely well (see Rydberg [17], or Eberlein and Keller [9]). In the comparison of the BNS SV model, we will use an alternative model NIG Levy process model (LP model) which has NIG distributed log-returns of asset prices, with the same parameters as in the BNS SV case. Unlike the BNS SV model, this model doesn't have stochastic volatility and time-dependency of asset return data. Both models are described and provided with theoretical background. Moreover difference in pricing Asian option with the two different models will be studied. Unlike the Black-Scholes model, closed option pricing formulae are not available in exponential Levy models and one must use either deterministic numerical methods (see Carr [8] for the LP model and Benth [7] for the BNS SV model) or Monte Carlo methods. In this thesis we will restrict ourselves to Monte Carlo methods. As described in Benth [6] the best way of simulating a NIG Levy process is by a quasi-Monte Carlo method. We will use a simpler Monte-Carlo method, which needs bigger samplesize to reduce the error. Simulating from the BNS SV model involves simulating of an Inverse Gaussian Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (IG-OU) process. The oldest algorithm of simulating a IG-OU process is described in Barndorff [3]. This is a quiet bothersome algorithm, since it includes a numerical inversion of the Levy measure of the Background driving Levy process (BDLP). Therefore it has a large processing time, hence we will not deal with this algorithm. The most popular algorithm is a series representation by Rosinski [16] . The special case of the IGOU process is described in Barndorff [5]. Recently Zhang & Zhang [21] introduced an exact simulation method of an IG-OU process, using the rejection method. We will compare these last two algorithms.


Abstract From 1989 to 1994 a series of papers outlined evidence for a brief episode of climate change from arid to humid, and then back to arid, during the Carnian Stage of the late Triassic Epoch. This time of climate change was compared to marine and terrestrial biotic changes, mainly extinction and then radiation of flora and fauna. Subsequently termed, albeit incorrectly, the Carnian Pluvial Event (CPE) by successive authors, interest in this episode of climatic change has increased steadily, with new evidence being published as well as several challenges to the theory. The exact nature of this humid episode, whether reflecting widespread precipitation or more local effects, as well as its ultimate cause, remains equivocal. Bed-by-bed sampling of the Carnian in the Southern Alps (Dolomites) shows the episode began with a negative carbon isotope excursion that lasted for only part of one ammonoid zone (A. austriacum). However, that the Carnian Humid Episode represents a significantly longer period, both environmentally and biotically, is irrefutable. The evidence is strongest in the European, Middle Eastern, Himalayan, North American and Japanese successions, but not always so clear in South America, Antarctica and Australia. The eruption of the Wrangellia Large Igneous Province and global warming (causing increased evaporation in the Tethyan and Panthalassic oceans) are suggested as causes for the humid episode.


Being short is a natural diversity of the human race. In 2003, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of growth hormone (GH) for the treatment of idiopathic short stature (ISS) in children. Research has shown that GH therapy in children with ISS has a variable effect on increasing height. However, the literature has not shown the efficacy in improving psychosocial function to justify the costs and potential adverse effects. GH use in children with ISS is a subject of great ethical debate. Ethical implications including beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, and justice are discussed. ISS requires thoughtful consideration by the patient, parents, and healthcare professionals. Well-designed long-term studies are needed to determine the benefits of such treatment.


Emerging countries are central to the climate change policy, in which the transport system plays a key role. These countries still have the majority of their traffic infrastructure based on individual-mobility meaning that public transport and alternative means of transport are not a priority yet for many reasons. As a consequence, rising CO2 emissions remain an important constraint towards sustainability in these regions. Taking into consideration the Brazilian example, this study analyzes the Brazilian experience in developing and producing flex-fuel vehicles (FFV) which are cars that can run with both gasoline and bioethanol produced from sugarcane with the so-called advanced engines. It is argued here that the FFV technology developed in Brazil is an important mitigation initiative towards low-carbon urban centers and a great example of innovation in the Brazilian automotive sector. This research uses the organizational learning literature and applies the case study method to demonstrate how the process of technology transfer occurs among companies involved with this Brazilian technology, showing case-particularities and factors that facilitate or hinder the knowledge transfer process. For example, results show that some institutional aspects in the Brazilian bioethanol industry were crucial to turn this technology – initially developed to contribute to the country´s energy security – into a very successful example of mitigation in the national mobility sector. Interactions among the actors within the chain, labor mobility, effective participation of research institutions and the leader role of the automaker's suppliers all enabled the rise of learning processes which were essential to the technology transfer process.


Abstract. A 3-D chemistry-transport model has been applied to the Mexico City metropolitan area to investigate the origin of elevated levels of non-fossil (NF) carbonaceous aerosols observed in this highly urbanized region. High time resolution measurements of the fine aerosol concentration and composition, and 12 or 24 h integrated 14C measurements of aerosol modern carbon have been performed in and near Mexico City during the March 2006 MILAGRO field experiment. The non-fossil carbon fraction (fNF), which is lower than the measured modern fraction (fM) due to the elevated 14C in the atmosphere caused by nuclear bomb testing, is estimated from the measured fM and the source-dependent information on modern carbon enrichment. The fNF contained in PM1 total carbon analyzed by a US team (fNFTC) ranged from 0.37 to 0.67 at the downtown location, and from 0.50 to 0.86 at the suburban site. Substantially lower values (i.e. 0.24–0.49) were found for PM10 filters downtown by an independent set of measurements (Swiss team), which are inconsistent with the modeled and known differences between the size ranges, suggesting higher than expected uncertainties in the measurement techniques of 14C. An increase in the non-fossil organic carbon (OC) fraction (fNFOC) by 0.10–0.15 was observed for both sets of filters during periods with enhanced wildfire activity in comparison to periods when fires were suppressed by rain, which is consistent with the wildfire impacts estimated with other methods. Model results show that the relatively high fraction of non-fossil carbon found in Mexico City seems to arise from the combination in about equal proportions of regional biogenic SOA, biomass burning POA and SOA, as well as non-fossil urban POA and SOA. Predicted spatial and temporal variations for fNFOCare similar to those in the measurements between the urban vs. suburban sites, and high-fire vs. low-fire periods. The absolute modeled values of fNFOC are consistent with the Swiss dataset but lower than the US dataset. Resolving the 14C measurement discrepancies is necessary for further progress in model evaluation. The model simulations that included secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from semi-volatile and intermediate volatility (S/IVOC) vapors showed improved closure for the total OA mass compared to simulations which only included SOA from VOCs, providing a more realistic basis to evaluate the fNF predictions. fNFOC urban sources of modern carbon are important in reducing or removing the difference in fNF between model and measurements, even though they are often neglected on the interpretation of 14C datasets. An underprediction of biomass burning POA by the model during some mornings also explains a part of the model-measurement differences. The fNF of urban POA and SOA precursors is an important parameter that needs to be better constrained by measurements. Performing faster (≤3 h) 14C measurements in future campaigns is critical to further progress in this area. To our knowledge this is the first time that radiocarbon measurements are used together with aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) organic components to assess the performance of a regional model for organic aerosols.


When you need practical hands-on support for Active Directory, the updated edition of this extremely popular Cookbook provides quick solutions to more than 300 common (and uncommon) problems you might encounter when deploying, administering, and automating Microsoft's network directory service. For the third edition, Active Directory expert Laura E. Hunter offers troubleshooting recipes based on valuable input from Windows administrators, in addition to her own experience. You'll find solutions for the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), ADAM (Active Directory Application Mode), multi-master replication, Domain Name System (DNS), Group Policy, the Active Directory Schema, and many other features. The Active Directory Cookbook will help you: Perform Active Directory tasks from the command line Use scripting technologies to automate Active Directory tasks Manage new Active Directory features, such as Read-Only Domain Controllers, fine-grained password policies, and more Create domains and trusts Locate users whose passwords are about to expire Apply a security filter to group policy objects Check for potential replication problems Restrict hosts from performing LDAP queries View DNS server performance statistics Each recipe includes a discussion explaining how and why the solution works, so you can adapt the problem-solving techniques to similar situations. Active Directory Cookbook is ideal for any IT professional using Windows Server 2008, Exchange 2007, and Identity Lifecycle Manager 2007, including Active Directory administrators looking to automate task-based solutions. "It is rare for me to visit a customer site and not see a copy of Active Directory Cookbook on ashelf somewhere, which is a testament to its usefulness. The Cookbook takes the pain out of everyday AD tasks by providing concise, clear and relevant recipes. The fact that the recipes are provided using different methods (graphical user interface, command line and scripting) means that the book is suitable for anyone working with AD on a day-to-day basis. The introduction of PowerShell examples in this latest edition will be of particular interest for those looking to transition from VBScript. Laura has also done a great job in extending the Cookbook in this edition to encompass the broad range of changes to AD in Windows Server 2008." --Tony Murray, Founder of Activedir.org and Directory Services MVP "If you already understand Active Directory fundamentals and are looking for a quick solution to common Active Directory related tasks, look no further, you have found the book that you need." --joe Richards, Directory Services MVP "The Active Directory Cookbook is the real deal... a soup-to-nuts catalog of every administrative task an Active Directory administrator needs to perform. If you administer an Active Directory installation, this is the very first book you have to put on your shelf." --Gil Kirkpatrick, Chief Architect, Active Directory and Identity Management, Quest Software and Directory Services MVP


The Use of Function in Infant Concept Acquisition The use of function for concept formation in 5 and 8 month old infants was studied in an experiment employing a conceptual adaptation of the stan dard habituation paradigm. A total of 64 male and female infants were shown videoptaped presentations which involved changes in form and functional attri butes of selected stimuli. The stimuli consisted of striped figures which could vary in form (shmoo-shaped or H-shaped) and function (side-to-side move ments or up-down movements). During habituation, all infants were shown multi exemplars of a specific figure performing a single movement pattern; the figures varied only in color. During test trials, the infants were shown (1) a change only in form, (2) a change only in movement, (3) a change in movement contrasted with a change in form, or (4) a change in movement contrasted with a combined movement/form change. Total visual fixation times to the various changes in sti muli presented during test trials were compared. The results provide partial, but not conclusive, support for the hypothesis that function serves as the central core for concept acquisition in infancy at both 5 and 8 months of age. The results do not, however, point to a developmental age trend towards either increased or decreased use of functional attributes for concept acquisition.


We consider the Motzkin paths which are simple combinatorial objects appearing in many contexts. They are counted by the Motzkin numbers, related to the well known Catalan numbers.  Associated with the Motzkin paths, we introduce the Motzkin polynomial, which is a multi-variable polynomial "counting" all Motzkin paths of a certain type. Motzkin polynomials (also called Jacobi-Rogers polynomials) have been studied before, but here we deduce some properties based on recurrence relations. The recurrence relations proved here also allow an efficient computation of the Motzkin polynomials. Finally, we show that the matrix entries of powers of an arbitrary tridiagonal matrix are essentially given by Motzkin polynomials, a property commonly known but usually stated without proof.


BACKGROUND
Hilar cholangiocarcinoma presents both diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. While establishing a diagnosis is important for patients considering aggressive treatment, a transperitoneal fine needle aspiration (FNA) may lead to seeding of the tumour. The aim of the present study was to determine whether patients who have undergone transperitoneal FNA of the primary tumour have a higher incidence of metastases.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Outcomes of 191 patients enrolled in a neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by liver transplantation (LT) from 1 October 1992 to 1 January 2010 were analysed. The incidence of metastases was compared between those who did or did not undergo a transperitoneal FNA biopsy of the primary tumour.

RESULTS
A total of 16 patients underwent FNA biopsy. There were six patients with biopsies positive for adenocarcinoma and 5/6 (83%) had peritoneal metastases at operative staging. Nine patients had biopsies, which did not demonstrate a tumour, and had no evidence of metastasis. One patient had an equivocal biopsy. Of those who did not undergo a transperitoneal biopsy, the incidence of peritoneal metastasis was 8% (14/175), P= 0.0097 vs. positive staging (83%) in those with a diagnostic transperitoneal FNA. Survival at 5 years for those who underwent LT was 74%.

CONCLUSION
Transperitoneal biopsy of hilar cholangiocarcinoma is associated with a higher rate of peritoneal metastases, and it should not be performed if a curative approach such as LT is available.


The Research Interests Narrative essay is assigned at the beginning of the semester, along with the Discipline Awareness Project, and is usually due by Week 4, providing the foundation for the major research project in the class, a literature review. The paper evolves from class discussions of assigned readings*, small group work with students of related majors, and in-class writing, all of which encourage students to reflect on experiences that have shaped their current academic or professional interests and to identify questions that have motivated and guided them, including one that they would like to pursue for their literature review. This assignment is suitable for all versions of English 302, but may be particularly meaningful to 302M students, who often lack significant research experience in their major or have some ambivalence about their major. It is designed to help students identify a research topic that truly interests them early in the semester so that they are engaged and invested in the work required for their major research assignments. It supports the core English 302 SaS learning outcome: "Articulate and refine a question, problem, or challenge."
Included files: Research Interests Narrative essay assignment (KingAssignment), Instructor's Notes, including suggestions for assigned readings (KingInstructorsNotes), a handout guiding students through consideration of the assigned readings (KingActivity1), and a prompt for the in-class writing exercise (KingActivity2).


Water issues in Uttar Pradesh are stressed due to rising population and climate change. The studies showed that in future the changing climate and intense human activities would complicate the situation endangering the water and soil resources. To support sustainable uses of these resources an appropriate model is required in this area, and to develop such model runoff, evapotranspiration and soil erosion modeling is essential. In this paper Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is used to model hydrological processes of a watershed in ganga basin. Ten years of daily meteorological data, soil data procured from National Bureau of Soil Survey(NBSS), Digital Elevation Model of ninety-meter resolution and Landsat 8 satellite imagery are used as inputs. The watershed was divided into 39 subbasin for analysis and modeling. The Sufi-2 algorithm was used for validation and calibration. The data was divided into two halves of five years each. First half was used for calibration and second half foe validation of model.The results revealed that more than half of the annual precipitation Water is lost in evapotranspiration and runoff. Sediment yield of various soil erosion-prone areas was estimated. The results from modeling were further used to propose and model multiple water conservation and Sediment filtration basin structures in the flood and soil erosion impacted areas This study also revealed that how SWAT model is valid to be used in Hydrological and soil erosion Modeling. These results can be further implemented for water conservation structure, drainage management of Varanasi.


New estimates of the S-wave velocity structure of the crust and upper mantle beneath the Kenya Rift and surrounding Kenya Highlands have been obtained by jointly inverting P wave receiver functions and Rayleigh wave phase and group velocities. The joint inversion was performed for seven broadband seismic stations, five that were part of the Kenya broadband seismic experiment and two belonging to the Global Seismic Network. 1-D S-wave velocity models obtained from the inversions have been compared to similar models for Tanzania and Ethiopia to identify differences in lithospheric structure beneath the East African and Ethiopian Plateaus. The S-wave velocity structure of the upper mantle to at least 100 to 150 km depth beneath the Kenya Highlands is similar to structure under the East African Plateau in Tanzania. It therefore appears that the plateau lithosphere under the Kenya Highlands has not been affected thermally to any greater extent than the plateau lithosphere beneath Tanzania. Under the Kenya Rift, however, the lithosphere has been substantially modified. S-wave velocities at depths of 80 to 150 km beneath the rift are 8 to 10% lower compared to under the Kenya Highlands, which may be a sufficiently large change to indicate the presence of partial melt. There is little similarity between the plateau lithosphere in East Africa and Ethiopia. The lithosphere under the Ethiopian Plateau is thin, extending to a depth of no more than about 80 to 90 km depth, compared to 100 to 150 km beneath Tanzania and the Kenya Highlands. The maximum S-wave velocity in the lithosphere is also very low, reaching only to 4.2 to 4.3 km/s, compared to 4.6 to 4.7 km/s beneath Tanzania and the Kenya Highlands. These differences indicate that the buoyant support for the plateau elevation in East Africa, including the Kenya Highlands, resides at deeper depths in the mantle than beneath the Ethiopian Plateau.


Philippine President Duterte has been active in responding to the "One Belt One Road" initiative since he came into power in June 2016. The Philippines joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as the 57th founding member. President Duterte attended the "Belt and Road Forum" held in May 2017. The two countries signed a number of cooperation agreements. This paper attempts to analyze the cooperation areas and the potential development space between the two countries under the framework of the "One Belt One Road," combined with the advantages of the Filipino-Chinese entrepreneurs. It is concluded that the Filipino-Chinese entrepreneurs will acquire more rare opportunities for development. On the other hand, under the One Belt One Road initiative, the Filipino-Chinese entrepreneurs will face more challenges because of the drastic competition with foreign entrepreneurs at home or abroad. Under the One Belt One Road initiative, the Filipino-Chinese entrepreneurs will have bright prospects, but should raise awareness of the crisis, and take actions to face the challenges.


This paper presents results regarding the analysis of activities of coal mining companies operating in Poland in terms of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), with a particular emphasis focused on the area of community involvement. This sphere is extremely important for entities operating in the sector due to the scale of the impact on the social environment and the potential threat of resistance from local communities. Mining companies have developed forms of action in this area and are subject to a number of legal regulations, especially in such critical points as mining damages or acquiring concessions for mining operations. Therefore, it is worth analysing these issues from the perspective of the CSR formula, and the way in which mining companies build a relationship with stakeholder groups which are undoubtedly the local communities. This represents a specific challenge for mining companies and requires a change in management approach based on the acceptance of responsibility for the impact they have and to seek solutions that will benefit both the companies themselves and their surroundings. It should also affect the change in approach for building relationships with local groups beyond just the legal requirements.


This paper examines the impact of efficiency on profitability using a panel of 11728 UK manufacturing firms for the period 1993-2007. A key contribution is estimation of the relationship between firm efficiency and profitability in a new way. Part of this novelty involves direct estimation of firm efficiency using a stochastic frontier method rather than inferences being made about the impact of efficiency based on anticipated firm and market behaviour. Two key aspects of the discussion are (1) the shape of the relationship between efficiency and profitability and (2) the way in which this changes in the short and long runs. A simple theoretical model is developed that predicts a 4th order polynomial for efficiency on the right hand side of a profit equation in levels. This model also predicts short-run and long-run impacts that can involve a switching in the sign of the impact of efficiency. Estimation of this model suggests a threshold effect of efficiency on profitability. Below the threshold efficiency has effectively no effect on profitability, but above the threshold the impact is positive in the short-run but negative in the long-run. This switching is consistent with theoretical expectations.


1. Certain measurements made on pigeons flying horizontally in a wind-tunnel are described. 2. A method, based on helicopter theory, for calculating the power required to fly at any given speed is explained. Induced, profile and parasite power are calculated separately. 3. It is concluded that the pigeon can fly horizontally without incurring an oxygen debt at speeds from 3 to 16 m./sec. The minimum power speed is 8-9 m./sec. The maximum continuous power output is estimated to be 10.5 W., and the corresponding oxygen consumption about 170 ml./min. The maximum (sprint) power is estimated to be 20.4 W., from observations of vertical climb after take-off. 4. The estimated best lift: drag ratio in horizontal flight is 5.9, giving a range of 11.8 km./g. of fat oxidized for a 400 g. pigeon. 5. It is argued from considerations of structural strength that the early part of the downstroke is used mainly to impart angular velocity to the wing, and that air loads are only developed after most of the angular acceleration has taken place. The tension in the pectoralis insertion may exceed 60% of the breaking tension in fast horizontal flight. 6. The power calculation was repeated for the ruby-throated hummingbird, using published data. Estimated best range is about 900 km./g. of fat oxidized, achieved at 9 m./sec. The corresponding effective lift:drag ratio is 4.1. 7. The variation of power required and power available with size is considered, and the effect on hovering and take-off performance of different birds deduced. 8. Performance estimates for the pigeon and ruby-throated hummingbird are very poor by engineering standards, but consistent with these birds9 known abilities, and are in general agreement with estimates of effective lift:drag ratio derived from published data on other species.


Risk management as a component of the internal control mechanism of any organisation is as important as the reason for the existence of that organisation. This is because any organisation without a risk management system in place may as well not be in existence since they may lose the profit and the whole capital together. Every organisation needs to put in place risk management and internal control systems in order to achieve the ultimate objectives of the organisation. This research work sought to examine the implications of risk management, particularly the effectiveness of internal controls as a risk management tool in improving bank performance. Specifically to identify risk associated with providing banking services, to explore the viability of Intercontinental Bank's internal control systems as risk management tool, to access the impact of internal control as risk management tool on IBG's performance. The Financial Sector was chosen as according to information from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the financial services sector contributed 56.7 percent by way of total assets to the gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of January 2008. This represented a significant growth from 31.9 percent at the end of December 31, 2005 and the sector is likely to be more prone to risk (Yeboah, 2008). Purposive sampling technique was used in choosing Intercontinental bank as a case study and also the availability of research information was considered. Employees of the bank were surveyed on various internal control mechanisms that must be in operation and their effectiveness. The management of the bank were also interviewed since they are the regulators, implementers and supervisors of those internal control systems. Some of the risk associated with providing banking services identified were: availability of organisational objectives, availability of competent staff, and provision of resources, risk management policies and technology. The findings showed that the bank was doing well in putting all the internal control mechanisms that must be in place and the supervision of the control mechanisms was quite strong. However, their weakest point was the allocations of resources to enable personell perform certain risk sensitive duties like advancing credit to customers in SME (small and Medium Scale) business category. It was recommended that risk management policies of the bank must be updated regularly to avoid them to getting irrelevant with time. Also, the bank must make the effort to resource all departments/units of the bank with the right number of experienced and trained staff for them to be able to carry out their task in a manner that avoids the occurrence of unnecessary risk.


Among different alternatives, dielectric capacitance sensors may provide simultaneous readings of the volumetric water content and the soil solution electrical conductivity in the same sample volume at low cost. Reliability of capacitive sensors may be questioned, however, due to the low signal frequency at which they work, and also because of soil electrical conductivity effects on the water content estimation. In this study we evaluated the commercial capacitive WET Sensor (Delta‐T Devices Ltd., Burwell, UK) compared with time domain reflectometry (TDR) in three volcanic soils with different textures. Although the WET Sensor uses internally the Hilhorst approach for describing the relationship between soil moisture and bulk and pore water electrical conductivity, results suggest that the Vogeler model is a better choice for the soils studied. The sensor provides good estimation of the bulk electrical conductivity, but determination of soil water content is biased. Thus, we propose an alternative empirical equation to determine the volumetric water content from the WET Sensor readings, the soil bulk density, and an estimate of the sensor's effective frequency.


Formal approaches to modelling argumentation provide ways to present arguments and counterarguments, and to evaluate which arguments are, in a formal sense, warranted. While these proposals allow for evaluating object-level arguments and counterarguments, they do not give sufficient consideration to evaluating the proponents of the arguments. Yet in everyday life we consider both the contents of an argument and its proponent. So if we do not trust a proponent, we may choose to not trust their arguments. Or if we are faced with an argument that we do not have the expertise to assess (for example when deciding whether to agree to having a particular surgical operation), we tend to agree to an argument by someone who is an expert. In general, we see that for each argument, we need to determine the appropriateness of the proponent for it. So for an argument about our health, our doctor is normally an appropriate proponent, but for an argument about our investments, our doctor is normally not an appropriate proponent. In this way, a celebrity is rarely an appropriate proponent for an argument, and a liar is not necessarily an inappropriate proponent for an argument. In this paper, we provide a logic-based framework for evaluating arguments in terms of the appropriateness of the proponents.


Collaborative writing has been found to lead to more productive writing processes and enhanced final products in terms of a richer vocabulary, more accurate grammar, and better organization. The present study expands on this research strand by exploring if different group writing processes affect the quality of wiki texts composed by groups of intermediate German L2 learners. Defining true collaborative writing as involving both a balanced workload and a joint responsibility for the product from all group members, it measured collaboration in two ways. Results indicate that most of the 19 groups in this study had a somewhat unbalanced workload with wide variability in editing group members' contributions. Although the wiki texts differed greatly with regard to quantitative measures of length, accuracy and cohesion, no correlation was found in terms of workload or co-ownership. While holistic ratings of the texts concerning accuracy and cohesion seemed at times incongruent with the analytic measures, the raters' comments provided a perspective that captured facets and nuances of a text that the analytic indicators did not.


Managerial documents for the national school system in Sweden have emphasised taking students' voices as a starting point in forming education, and several previous studies have indicated the benefits of giving students opportunities to participate in school. This study aimed to explore students' reflections on what they would do if they were to decide how to make school the best place for learning. A total of 200 students aged 11 to 15 years from four schools (rural and urban) in two municipalities in the northern part of Sweden participated. The empirical data consisted of the students' written reflections. The findings fall within four themes: (i) influencing educational settings; (ii) striving for reciprocity; (iii) managing time struggles; and (iv) satisfying well-being needs. Tensions between the students' previous experiences and future visions appeared. The findings can offer direction regarding aspects of the learning environment in school that could be improved.


This paper explores a general validity of the prevalent Accounting Equation in determining the real wealth and accountability discharge through contemporary financial reporting. In so doing, an augmented accounting framework is developed in order to indicate the gaps that may arise in the Accounting Equation; which is inherent in the system if compared among different layers – sign to alleged to referent (Buarillard 1983, 1994; MacIntosh 2000, Ijiri 1986, and Mattessich 2003). We argue that this augmented framework will help in enhancing our understanding, at least at the level of pedagogy and for corporate governance and discharging social responsibility, about the missing elements and the nature of financial reporting including the determination of fair values and therefore, reduce the blaming games of maintaining objectivity and neutrality about information provision for an augmented reality of wealth (economic or otherwise) for an entity.


Abstract Data about the magnitude and time of occurrence of palaeofloods from the lower Colorado River basin enable us to test two long-standing hypotheses which have affected many studies and applications in the field of flood hydrology. The two hypotheses are (a) the existence of an upper boundary to flood magnitudes and whether there is a possibility of determining it from the existing data, and (b) the random occurrence versus clustering of the large floods through time. Earlier observations on regional flood envelope curves indicated the existence of an upper limit for flood magnitudes, but these studies limited their conclusions because of the short length of the systematic gauged data. This limitation is overcome here because palaeoflood data cover a much longer period of observation. Palaeoflood studies provide information about the largest individual floods experienced in many rivers in a specific region occurring over the last millennia. In the southwestern US, this information demonstrates that, even when the length of observational data increases to centuries and millennia, there is no change in the stabilized, regional envelope curves constructed from gauged and historical flood records. This pattern supports the hypothesis of an upper limit to flood magnitudes and points to a method for testing this hypothesis in other regions. There are surprising similarities between the envelope curve of the palaeoflood data and the envelope curve for the gauged and historical data in the lower Colorado River basin. These similarities indicate that in regions of the world where flood data is sparse envelop curves based on palaeoflood studies can provide basic data for engineering design purposes and other hydrological applications. The random occurrence of large floods in time is tested by constructing chronologies for the largest palaeofloods in several basins in the lower Colorado River basin. These chronologies indicate a clustering of the large floods in specific time periods. The similarity between the various time periods characterized by high- and low-flooding and other palaeoclimatic indicators from the southwestern United States seems best explained by a climatic control on flood frequency over the last 5000 years.


OBJECTIVE To determine the impact of a health system–wide primary care diabetes management system, which included targeted guidelines for type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and prediabetes (dysglycemia) screening, on detection of previously undiagnosed dysglycemia cases. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Intervention included electronic health record (EHR)–based decision support and standardized providers and staff training for using the American Diabetes Association guidelines for dysglycemia screening. Using EHR data, we identified 40,456 adults without T2DM or recent screening with a face-to-face visit (March 2011–December 2013) in five urban clinics. Interrupted time series analyses examined the impact of the intervention on trends in three outcomes: 1) monthly proportion of eligible patients receiving dysglycemia testing, 2) two negative comparison conditions (dysglycemia testing among ineligible patients and cholesterol screening), and 3) yield of undiagnosed dysglycemia among those tested. RESULTS Baseline monthly proportion of eligible patients receiving testing was 7.4–10.4%. After the intervention, screening doubled (mean increase + 11.0% [95% CI 9.0, 13.0], proportion range 18.6–25.3%). The proportion of ineligible patients tested also increased (+5.0% [95% CI 3.0, 8.0]) with no concurrent change in cholesterol testing (+0% [95% CI −0.02, 0.05]). About 59% of test results in eligible patients showed dysglycemia both before and after the intervention. CONCLUSIONS Implementation of a policy for systematic dysglycemia screening including formal training and EHR templates in urban academic primary care clinics resulted in a doubling of appropriate testing and the number of patients who could be targeted for treatment to prevent or delay T2DM.


Inspired by a recent graphical formalism for lambda-calculus based on linear logic technology, we introduce an untyped structural lambda-calculus, called lambda j, which combines actions at a distance with exponential rules decomposing the substitution by means of weakening, contraction and derelicition. First, we prove some fundamental properties of lambda j such as confluence and preservation of beta-strong normalisation. Second, we add a strong bisimulation to lambda j by means of an equational theory which captures in particular Regnier's sigma-equivalence. We then complete this bisimulation with two more equations for (de)composition of substitutions and we prove that the resulting calculus still preserves beta-strong normalization. Finally, we discuss some consequences of our results.


Phosphorus (P) deficiency and low water supply are major environmental constraints for agricultural production in many regions. Compared to cereal crops, the soybean (Glycine max.L.) is more susceptible to phosphorus insufficiency and drought. A soil pot experiment was conducted in the greenhouse to investigate the effects of phosphorus deficiency and pseudomonas florescence and azotobacter chroococcum strains on phosphorus uptake by soybean grown under temporary drought conditions. Soybean cultivars Zodiac and Horboveanca were grown on soil-sand mixture with P deficiency at two water regimes - 70% water holding capacity of soil (WHC) and 35% WHC. Plants were harvested and analyzed for P contents in each organ after 12 days of water deficit at the setting pod stage. Phosphorus deficiency significantly decreased nutrient uptake by all plant parts especially in drought conditions. Leaves have shown a higher sensitivity to P deficiency than roots. Application of rhizobacteria induced P uptake in both cultivars but their effects were more pronounced in Horboveanca under both well watered and dry soil conditions. Phosphorus fertilization alone of plants significantly increased P accumulation irrespective of soil moisture regime and Horboveanca displayed a higher response than Zodiac cultivar. The P accumulation in the roots of both cultivars and in the pods of Zodiac enhanced after the application of bacteria or P fertilizer under temporary drought. Interactive effects of applied bacterial strains and water soil regime depend on the cultivar used. From the results of the present experiment it can be concluded that biofertilizers seem to be particularly beneficial to P uptake in normal as well as in water limiting environment.


This dissertation describes a study that investigated the perceptions of foster/whänau caregivers of support and training provisions in Canterbury, New Zealand. The study used both qualitative and quantitative methods. The qualitative component consisted of six questions presented to caregivers at individual or couple interviews. Major themes identified in the response to these questions indicated that participants are generally feeling under-supported and disrespected by social services staff, overwhelmed by the range, severity and difficulty of their children's behaviours, isolated in their role, unable to access relief care and a lack of provision and support for training in local areas. Participants also indicated a desire for training on the etiology and management of difficult child behaviours, managing birth family contact and legal issues relating to allegations and permanency. Areas of current support that caregivers indicated are useful included the support provided by Caregiver Liaison Social Workers, school and early childhood education staff, general practitioners, and other caregivers The quantitative component consisted of a survey covering basic demographic information. A modified child behavioural checklist, containing selected items from the 'Child Behaviour Checklist' and the 'Assessment Checklist for Children' was constructed to assess the range of problematic child behaviours caregivers are experiencing and how prepared they felt in dealing with them. Findings indicated that the participants are experiencing a range of severe behaviours well outside the normal experience of parents but are consistent with those reported in the international literature for children in care. The PSI was used to assess caregiver's stress levels relating to their parenting role. Participants reported high levels of stress particularly in the child domain of the PSI with sub-scales in the high to clinical range across this domain. Implications of theses results are discussed including implications for the caregivers, social welfare practices and the development of future training packages for caregivers.


This encyclopedic study is the fruit of twenty years of collecting, research, and study of the most significant American costume jewelry from 1930-1950. It offers readers a meticulous, reliable instrument to knowing these gems, which are often true and proper little works of art. In the two volumes, over 966 photographs show hundreds of jewelry items in full color, with an additional 729 illustrations of patents, advertisements, and historic photos. Thirty-seven companies are included, with addtional chapters on "jelly belly" jewelry and patriotic jewelry in the second volume. In-depth research of the companies makes this the best source on the American costume jewelry industry. The first volume, A-M, covers the companies from Accessocraft to Mosell, and includes Boucher, Coro, Eisenberg, Miriam Haskell, Hobe and others. The second volume N-Z, continues with Norma Jewelry Corp., through Rebajes, Reja, Trifari, to Uncas Manufacturing, with chapters on jelly belly jewelry and American patriotic jewelry.


The battle of the covers. That was the beginning. I had just taken over as Editor-in-Chief of CACM in 1969. Don Madden was then ACM's Executive Director. With undoubtedly some justification, he was concerned that the covers of CACM were too drab and were not attractive to an increasingly broad base of membership. He wanted to brighten them up.


Land surface albedo is dependent on atmospheric state and hence is difficult to validate. Over the UK persistent cloud cover and land cover heterogeneity at moderate (km-scale) spatial resolution can also complicate comparison of field-measured albedo with that derived from instruments such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS). A practical method of comparing moderate resolution satellite-derived albedo with ground-based measurements over an agricultural site in the UK is presented. Point measurements of albedo made on the ground are scaled up to the MODIS resolution (1 km) through reflectance data obtained at a range of spatial scales. The point measurements of albedo agreed in magnitude with MODIS values over the test site to within a few per cent, despite problems such as persistent cloud cover and the difficulties of comparing measurements made during different years. Albedo values derived from airborne and field-measured data were generally lower than the corresponding satellite-derived values. This is thought to be due to assumptions made regarding the ratio of direct to diffuse illumination used when calculating albedo from reflectance. Measurements of albedo calculated for specific times fitted closely to the trajectories of temporal albedo derived from both Systeme pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) Vegetation (VGT) and MODIS instruments.


It has been observed in the present study that when spores of Trichoderma harzianum (Th-2) isolate were applied in the sandy clay loam soil and continuously incubated for 4 months at 25 degrees C and 35 degrees C and at three water potentials, -0.03 MPa, -0.3 MPa and <-50 MPa, it has resulted in significantly reduced (P<0.05), growth of Fusarium oxysporum ciceri (Foc) on branches of chickpea plant. The pathogen population was greatly reduced in the moist soil (43 MPa) when compared with the wet soil (-0.03 MPa) at both temperatures which was indicated by greater colonization and growth of T. harzanum-2 on the branch pieces of chickpea plants. The pathogen was completely eradicated from the chickpea branch pieces, after 6 months at 35 degrees C in the moist soil. In air-dry soil (<-50 MPa), Foc survived in 100% of the branch pieces even after 6 months at both temperatures. When chickpea plant branch pieces having pathogen was sprayed with Th-2 antagonistic isolates of Trichoderma spp., the Th-2 isolate killed the pathogen up to minimum level (10-12%) after 5 months at 35 degrees C in the sandy clay loam soil. It can be concluded that in chickpea growing rainfed areas of Pakistan having sandy clay loam soil, Foc can be controlled by using specific Trichoderma spp., especially in the summer season as after harvest of the crop the temperature increased up and there is rainfall during this period which makes the soil moist. This practice will be able to reduce the inoculum of Foc during this hot period as field remain fallow till next crop is sown in most of the chickpea growing rainfed areas of Pakistan.


Over time, the necessary economic reforms have become so obvious that they have become politically possible in most places. The great problem has become the establishment of real property rights. By and large, Central and Eastern Europe have managed to accomplish that not least thanks to support from the European Union. In the former Soviet Union, however, only Georgia succeeded in that endeavor. The big question today is whether Ukraine will manage to do so, or whether it will be caught in a low-economic-growth trap. The three main elements that are needed are independent courts, autonomous prosecutors, and a law-abiding law enforcement, while no old secret police structures should be allowed to sabotage them.


Few issues attract greater concern and censure than those that surround youth 'gangs'. Paradoxically, youth researchers have conventionally been reluctant to even use the term 'gang' but, more recently, such reluctance has receded. Indeed, it is increasingly claimed that – in particular urban 'territories' – youth gangs are commonplace, some young people are deeply immersed in violence and the carrying and use of weapons (particularly knives and firearms) is routine.

Comprizing a series of essays from leading national and international researchers, this book subjects such claims to rigorous critical scrutiny. It provides a challenging and authoritative account of complex questions pertaining to urban youth identities, crime and social order.

This book:

•locates the question of 'gangs' in both historical and contemporary contexts
•engages a spectrum of theoretical perspectives and analytical positions
•presents and analyzes cutting-edge empirical research
•addresses a range of previously neglected questions, including those pertaining to girls, young women and 'gangs'.
Youth in Crisis? provides a vital resource for researchers, educators, policy-makers and practitioners with an interest in key questions facing criminology, sociology and social policy


A number of scenarios have been proposed for the origin of the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) that are found in the centres of most galaxies. Many such scenarios predict a high-redshift population of massive black holes (MBHs), with masses in the range 10 to 10 times that of the Sun. When the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) is finally operational, it is likely that it will detect on the order of 100 of these MBH binaries as they merge. The differences between proposed population models produce appreciable effects in the portion of the population which is detectable by LISA, so it is likely that the LISA observations will allow us to place constraints on them. However, gravitational wave detectors such as LISA will not be able to detect all such mergers nor assign precise black hole parameters to the merger, due to weak gravitational wave signal strengths. This dissertation explores LISA's ability to distinguish between several MBH population models. In this way, we go beyond predicting a LISA observed population and consider the extent to which LISA observations could inform astrophysical modelers. The errors in LISA parameter estimation are applied in two ways, with an 'Error Kernel' that is marginalized over astrophysically uninteresting 'sample' parameters, and with a more direct method which generates random sample parameters for each source in a population realization. We consider how the distinguishability varies depending on the choice of source parameters (1 or 2 parameters chosen from masses, redshift or spins) used to characterize the model distributions, with confidence levels determined by 1 or 2-dimensional tests based on the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test.


This paper aims to assess the gas turbine operability and overall hybrid electric propulsion system performance for a parallel configuration applied to a 150 passenger single-aisle aircraft. Two arrangements are considered: one where the low pressure shaft is boosted and one where the high pressure shaft is boosted. For identifying limits in the hybridization strategy steady state and transient operation are considered and the hybridization effect on compressor operability is determined.
 Having established the electric power on-take limits with respect to gas turbine operation the systems performance at aircraft level is quantified for the relevant cases. Different power management strategies are applied for the two arrangements and for different power degrees of hybridization.
 The results indicate that despite the fact that pollutant emission and fuel consumption may improved for hybrid propulsion, this comes at the cost of reduced payload and operability margins. Boosting the low pressure shaft may give the highest engine performance benefits but with a significant weight penalty, while the low pressure compressor system operability is negatively affected. On the other hand boosting the high pressure shaft provides lower engine performance benefits but with smaller weight penalty and with less operability concerns.


WOOLSON, CONSTANCE FENIMORE (5 March 1840-24 January 1894), author, was born in Claremont, New Hampshire, to Charles Jarvis and Hannah Pomeroy Woolson. The family moved to Cleveland later that year after scarlet fever killed three of her sibling in three weeks. While living in Cleveland, Constance came to know the Lake County region and Tuscarawas Valley, which would later appear in her books. She graduated from Madame Chegary's School in New York City in 1858. "Two Women," was Woolson's first published poem (1862). It was her father's death in 1869 that prompted Woolson to discover her roots from her father, who was interested in literature, and her great-uncle, James Fenimore Cooper. In 1871, the family moved South, to the Carolinas and Florida. Eight years later, Woolson and her sister went to England. Woolson eventually settled in Venice where she met Henry James and William Dean Howells. Woolson began publishing descriptive articles in magazines (Harpers, Atlantic Monthly, Galaxy) a year after her father's death. She wrote a children's book, The Old Stone House, under the name Anne March in 1873; published her first book of short stories, Castle Nowhere: Lake County Sketches, in 1875; and a second collection, Rodman the Keeper: Southern Sketches, in 1880. Woolson's first novel, Anne (1883), was a great success and might well be considered a feminist statement. Woolson wrote four more novels, For the Major, East Angel, Jupiter Lights, and Horace Chase (1894). Woolson never married and died in Venice, Italy. She was buried in the Protestant Cemetery in Rome, Italy. Kern, John. Constance Fenimore Woolson, Literary Pioneer (1934).Moore, Rayburn S. Constance Fenimore Woolson (1963).Torsney, Cheryl B. Constance Fenimore Woolson: The Grief of Artistry (1989). Torsney, Cheryl B., ed. Critical Essays on Constance Fenimore Woolson (1992).


Abstract. Immediate conservation measures for world-wide freshwater resources are of eminent importance. This is particularly true for so-called ancient lakes. While these lakes are famous for being evolutionary theatres, often displaying an extraordinarily high degree of biodiversity and endemism, in many cases these biota are also experiencing extreme anthropogenic impact. Lake Ohrid, a major European biodiversity hotspot situated in a trans-frontier setting on the Balkans, is a prime example for a lake with a magnitude of narrow range endemic taxa that are under increasing anthropogenic pressure. Unfortunately, evidence for a "creeping biodiversity crisis" has accumulated over the last decades, and major socio-political changes have gone along with human-mediated environmental changes. Based on field surveys, monitoring data, published records, and expert interviews, we aimed to (1) assess threats to Lake Ohrids' (endemic) biodiversity, (2) summarize existing conservation activities and strategies, and (3) outline future conservation needs for Lake Ohrid. We compiled threats to both specific taxa (and in cases to particular species) as well as to the lake ecosystems itself. Major conservation concerns identified for Lake Ohrid are: (1) watershed impacts, (2) agriculture and forestry, (3) tourism and population growth, (4) non-indigenous species, (5) habitat alteration or loss, (6) unsustainable exploitation of fisheries, and (7) global climate change. Among the major (well-known) threats with high impact are nutrient input (particularly of phosphorus), habitat conversion and silt load. Other threats are potentially of high impact but less well known. Such threats include pollution with hazardous substances (from sources such as mines, former industries, agriculture) or climate change. We review and discuss institutional responsibilities, environmental monitoring and ecosystem management, existing parks and reserves, biodiversity and species measures, international conservation activities, and ongoing research on conservation and raising of public awareness. Following this summary, we evaluate the status quo and future of Lake Ohrid and its biota. A comprehensive conservation strategy should include measures that result in an immediate reduction of nutrient input, particularly with phosphorus, in order to slow down the ongoing eutrophication process. The existing watershed management should become more effective. Implementation and particularly with a view to the enforcement of national laws should be enhanced. Increased research on the lakes' limnology, biodiversity, and conservation management practices are necessary. The latter research should identify conservation priorities. Public awareness should be enhanced. Facing these parallel needs to protect the unique biodiversity of Lake Ohrid, we suggest urging (a) implementation and enforcement of the General Management Plan that would ensure long-term integrated and sustainable use of the lake and its watershed, (b) scientific studies on ecology, biodiversity and effects of human impact, (c) the establishment of Core Conservation areas (CCA), including underwater reserves, and (d) Coastal Zone Management (CZM) areas that would constitute buffer zones for the CCAs around the lake. Given the number of identified threats, it is clear that only concerted international action can stop or at least slow down further degradation of Lake Ohrid and the creeping biodiversity crisis already evident. All conservation activities should, among others, ultimately lead to a trans-boundary major conservation area of the Ohrid-Prespa region that would allow long-term integration of both humans and nature.


Wastewater treatment (WWT) is generally efficient in removing nanoparticles (NPs) from sewage effluent, but the variety in removal rates has not yet been explained. WWT parameters such as the activated sludge (AS) concentration, shear rate and ionic strength were varied in kinetic batch attachment and sedimentation studies using silver NPs having nominal 20 or 80 nm sizes and citrate or PEG coatings. The fitted attachment and detachment rate constants and the resulting distribution ratios at steady state varied with WWT process parameters, but most notably with the NP size, which was also found to influence the settling rates most. The NP coating molecules had a limited or no effect. A meta-analysis of literature distribution ratios (attached/detached concentration) of NPs composed of Ag and other materials showed the NP (aggregate) size as the only significant parameter. However, while the distribution ratio of silver NPs to AS increased linearly with AS concentration, the final effect of NP effluent concentrations is partly offset by decreased sedimentation rates. The results thus confirm that a WWT process is efficient in removing NPs from wastewater, but relatively small (<20 nm) non-aggregated NPs are somewhat more likely to exit a WWT process via the effluent into aquatic compartments compared to relatively larger NPs, which nearly entirely leave the WWT plants with the AS towards soils, incineration plants or landfills.


GridVine is a semantic overlay infrastructure based on a peer-to-peer (P2P) access structure. Built following the principle of data independence, it separates a logical layer - in which data, schemas, and schema mappings are managed - from a physical layer consisting of a structured P2P network supporting decentralized indexing, key load-balancing, and efficient routing. The system is decentralized, yet fosters semantic interoperability through pair-wise schema mappings and query reformulation. GridVine's heterogeneous but semantically related information sources can be queried transparently using iterative query reformulation. The authors discuss a reference implementation of the system and several mechanisms for resolving queries collaboratively.


Aggregative games provide a rich abstraction to model strategic multi-agent interactions. We focus on learning local aggregative games, where the payoff of each player is a function of its own action and the aggregate behavior of its neighbors in a connected digraph. We show the existence of a pure strategy epsilon-Nash equilibrium in such games when the payoff functions are convex or sub-modular. We prove an information theoretic lower bound, in a value oracle model, on approximating the structure of the digraph with non-negative monotone sub-modular cost functions on the edge set cardinality. We also introduce gamma-aggregative games that generalize local aggregative games, and admit epsilon-Nash equilibrium that are stable with respect to small changes in some specified graph property. Moreover, we provide estimation algorithms for the game theoretic model that can meaningfully recover the underlying structure and payoff functions from real voting data.


Selective growth behavior of {110} grains has been studied utilizing the temperature gradient annealing method. As grains grow, the average deviation angle from the ideal {110} orientation becomes smaller and orientation distribution changes corresponding to that of coincidence grains in the matrix. Secondary recrystallization temperature depends on the orientation of secondary recrystallized grain and sharper {110} grains grow preferentially at lower temperatures. These phenomena are explained by modified Hillert's model of grain growth, which takes the grain boundary characteristics into account. Sharper {110} grains, which have higher frequency of coincidence grains in the primary recrystallized matrix, suffer lower pinning force from the precipitates and thus grow preferentially at lower temperatures.


A matrix metalloprotease activates phosphoinositide 3-kinase signaling to regulate immune responses independently of its protease activity. Matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) are often associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling and tissue invasion by cells such as macrophages and cancer cells. Shimizu-Hirota et al. report that MT1-MMP, a membrane-anchored MMP that enables invasion of collagen-rich tissues by various cell types, is required in macrophages as a regulator of gene expression. Despite showing reduced protease activity in vitro, macrophages from MT1-MMP–/– mice had normal migratory, chemotactic, and invasive activities in both 2D and 3D culture and invaded tissues normally in vivo, indicating that MT1-MMP was not solely responsible for ECM remodeling by macrophages. After treatment with bacterial lipopolysaccharide in vitro or in mice, MT1-MMP–/– macrophages showed a proinflammatory phenotype characterized by increased expression of proinflammatory genes that are normally repressed by the chromatin remodeling complex Mi-2/NuRD and decreased expression of IL-10 (which encodes an anti-inflammatory cytokine) relative to wild-type (WT) macrophages. Expression of transcripts encoding components of the Mi-2/NuRD complex was reduced in MT1-MMP–/– macrophages, and Mi-2 was detected at the promoter of the gene encoding the proinflammatory cytokine IL-12b. Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)–Akt signaling is also an important modulator of inflammatory responses, and expression of p110δ, which encodes the catalytic subunit of PI3Kδ, was reduced in MT1-MMP–/– macrophages. Pharmacological inhibition of PI3K signaling in WT macrophages phenocopied the MT1-MMP–/– proinflammatory phenotype. The protease activity of MT1-MMP was dispensable for gene regulation because an MMP inhibitor had no effect on p110δ expression in WT macrophages, and expression of catalytically inactive forms of MT1-MMP rescued the proinflammatory phenotype of MT1-MMP–/– macrophages. Full-length and various mutant forms of MT1-MMP rescued transcriptional responses in MT1-MMP–/– macrophages, and each form translocated to the nucleus in both WT and MT1-MMP–/– macrophages. In contrast, a secreted form of MT1-MMP did not rescue the transcriptional response or translocate to nuclei. MT1-MMP was detected at the p110δ promoter and stimulated expression of a p110δ reporter, suggesting that it acted as a transcriptional coactivator. Thus, in addition to participating in ECM remodeling, MT1-MMP stimulates expression of a PI3K signaling component to modulate expression of immune response genes under control of the Mi-2/NuRD complex. R. Shimizu-Hirota, W. Xiong, B. T. Baxter, S. L. Kunkel, I. Maillard, X.-W. Chen, F. Sabeh, R. Liu, X.-Y. Li, S. J. Weiss, MT1-MMP regulates the PI3Kδ·Mi-2/NuRD-dependent control of macrophage immune function. Genes Dev. 26, 395–413 (2012). [Abstract] [Full Text]


Abstract. The study presents a statistically based seasonal precipitation forecast model, which automatically identifies suitable predictors from globally gridded sea surface temperature (SST) and climate variables by means of an extensive data-mining procedure and explicitly avoids the utilization of typical large-scale climate indices. This leads to an enhanced flexibility of the model and enables its automatic calibration for any target area without any prior assumption concerning adequate predictor variables. Potential predictor variables are derived by means of a cell-wise correlation analysis of precipitation anomalies with gridded global climate variables under consideration of varying lead times. Significantly correlated grid cells are subsequently aggregated to predictor regions by means of a variability-based cluster analysis. Finally, for every month and lead time, an individual random-forest-based forecast model is constructed, by means of the preliminary generated predictor variables. Monthly predictions are aggregated to running 3-month periods in order to generate a seasonal precipitation forecast. The model is applied and evaluated for selected target regions in central and south Asia. Particularly for winter and spring in westerly-dominated central Asia, correlation coefficients between forecasted and observed precipitation reach values up to 0.48, although the variability of precipitation rates is strongly underestimated. Likewise, for the monsoonal precipitation amounts in the south Asian target area, correlations of up to 0.5 were detected. The skill of the model for the dry winter season over south Asia is found to be low. A sensitivity analysis with well-known climate indices, such as the El Nino– Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the East Atlantic (EA) pattern, reveals the major large-scale controlling mechanisms of the seasonal precipitation climate for each target area. For the central Asian target areas, both ENSO and NAO are identified as important controlling factors for precipitation totals during moist winter and spring seasons. Drought conditions are found to be triggered by a cold ENSO phase in combination with a positive state of NAO in northern central Asia, and by cold ENSO conditions in combination with a negative NAO phase in southern central Asia. For the monsoonal summer precipitation amounts over southern Asia, the model suggests a distinct negative response to El Nino events.


STUDY OBJECTIVE
The effectiveness of bilateral lung volume reduction surgery (BLVRS) in the improvement of functional state in severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has not been reported. This study examined the effects of BLVRS on subjective and objective measures of functional state (FS) and compared these effects with those gained from pulmonary rehabilitation (PR).

METHODS
Twenty-eight consecutive patients were studied. Of 13 BLVRS and 15 PR patients enrolled in the study, 12 and 13 patients, respectively, completed the 6-month protocol. Pulmonary function (FEV1, FVC, and FEF25-75) was measured by spirometry. Subjective FS was measured with the activity component of the Pulmonary Functional Status and Dyspnea Questionnaire (PFSDQ) and objective FS was determined as the 6-min walk distance (6mwD). Additionally, the maximal dyspnea intensity measured with the Borg scale during the 6-min test was recorded. All outcomes were recorded prior to, and six months following treatment.

RESULTS
In patients undergoing BLVRS, FEV1 and FVC increased (17.3% and 16.8%) while in those treated with PR alone, FEV1 and FVC decreased (7.6% and 16.1%,p < 0.05). The subjective functional state (PFSDQ) was also significantly different between BLVRS and PR alone (PFSDQ = -49.4% vs. +4.7%, p < 0.05). Although the absolute distance walked over 6 min did not reach statistical significance, the BLVRS group increased the distance by 20% while the PR alone group had a decrease (-28%). Both groups demonstrated a reduction in dyspnea with exercise but the volume reduction patients showed a significantly greater reduction (PR = -1.0; BLVRS = -2.6, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
BLVRS results in greater improvement in pulmonary function, dyspnea with exercise, and subjective FS when compared to PR 6 months after surgery.


Chinese Law on SARS, by Chenglin Liu, is a marvelous example of fresh scholarship about a new and important feature of the Chinese legal system. The book analyzes the Chinese response to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ("SARS") epidemic in 2003. Most notably, it examines the government's passing of two new laws and the implementation of other legal steps to bolster the nation's public health system.
Liu's scholarly examination of the SARS legislation is instructive, not merely because it explains the current laws in China relating to SARS, but also because it offers insight into what a country should (and should not) do when faced with the problem of an unprecedented, deadly, and potentially devastating threat to public health. Chinese Law on SARS is a valuable addition to English-language literature about the Chinese legal system, and deserves to be read, considered, and debated.


Teti'aroa is the only atoll in the Windward group of the Society Islands, French Polynesia. It has been described in the ethnohistorical record as a secondary place of residence for the Tahitian royal family of Pare in the 18th Century. However, Teti'aroa's history beyond this remains relatively unknown as the atoll is archaeologically understudied. Here we report the preliminary results of a project, started in 2015, which aims at documenting the long-term occupation of Teti'aroa. We present the survey and mapping of the archaeological remains and discuss the monumental architecture, the relationships with neighbouring and distant communities, and investigations of the historical copra plantation.


Architectural education is not simply the imparting of knowledge and skills necessary for practice, but involves the development of values and philosophical positions. Based on an examination of an educational program in India, I argue that this program implemented a positivistic philosophical position and neglected viable and important alternate positions. This enabled the fledgling architects to form long-term attachments to global professional values and to the worldwide professional fraternity of architects, but it also distanced them from the potential occupants of the buildings, their social contexts, the local people, and their social and human problems. It established First World–Third World connections and became an instrument of cultural hegemony, subordinating multiple cultures and their values.


Throughout the developing world, there is a desperate quest for a way out of the financial predicament confronting the rural poor. In most countries of the developing regions, especially South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, the rural population forms the larger proportion of the entire population and poverty is prevalent among them. According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD 2001), in an assessment of poverty in West and Central Africa, poverty in West and Central Africa is essentially a rural phenomenon with three quarters of the population being located in rural areas. Following the theoretical methodology, this study has examined the role of microfinance in developing countries and has described some measures which can enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of microfinance as an instrument for reducing rural poverty in developing countries. The thesis of this study is that with a well planned and coordinated institutionalized microfinance system operating within the appropriate legal and policy framework, the rural poor may be able to get out of the chronic poverty trap that plagues their lives. By means of a review of relevant literature and a conceptual framework on poverty in general, rural poverty in particular and microfinance services and institutions in the developing countries (using the cases of selected countries), the increase in popularity of microfinance as an instrument for addressing the problem of rural poverty in most developing countries was discovered. Although there is empirical evidence that microfinance can contribute immensely to improving the lives of the rural poor, much evidence points to the fact that the impact of microfinance on the lives of the poorest of the poor is yet to be up to the expectations of developers. Existing evidence also indicate that microfinance services, such as savings, insurance, money transfers, entrepreneurial training and so on, which are more attractive to this class of clients, are yet to be provided. Regulation and supervision is deemed to inhibit the operation of the market but in the case of rural microfinance provision a reasonable amount of regulation and supervision is discovered to be necessary, particularly to protect the mostly illiterate rural poor, from usury interest rates, for example. In all the selected countries and most other developing countries, government regulation and supervision of microfinance operations are present, either directly or indirectly. This paper is sub-divided into five chapters. In Chapter one, the problem, objectives, study area and the research questions of the study are presented. In Chapter two, the research is operationalized through the formulation of a framework of the research methodology. The case study approach which is the major analysis approach for this study is discussed in-depth in this section. Existing literature and studies on rural poverty and microfinance are reviewed in Chapter three. Also in this chapter, microfinance practices in four countries in the developing regions, Bolivia, Ethiopia, Ghana and the Philippines, selected at random are discussed. Chapter Four examines the contribution of microfinance to rural poverty reduction under the various categories of services which include credit, savings, insurance and money transfers. In Chapter five, recommendations are advanced for improving on the provision of microfinance in order for its full impact on rural poverty to be realized.


Ellen Mickiewicz. Changing Channels. Television and the Struggle for Power in Russia. 2nd ed. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1999. 374 pp. Index. $23.95, paper.This has become a very widely cited book. Almost everyone, writing on media issues in the post-communist world after 1999, refers to this study at some point or another. So do many other scholars writing on the wider aspects of Russian politics and society. This revised edition of Ellen Mickiewicz's study takes the story of Russian television up to 1998. The book is a detailed account of how the relationship between media and politics changed in Russia during the glasnost years and the first decade of the post-communist era. In Mickiewicz's own words, she "seeks to illuminate the critical role television played at key times and with key political actors and institutions" (p. xiii).One of the book's many strengths is the sources. As an established authority on media issues in that part of the world, Mickiewicz was able to interview most of the major decision makers in Russia. This includes well-known figures such as Mikhail Gorbachev, Alexander Yakovlev, Yegor Ligachev, as well as the less well-known actors in the television sphere, such as Igor Kirillov, Leonid Kravchenko, and Eduard Sagalayev. Since she was director of the Commission on Radio and Television Policy, she had the opportunity to interact with a wide range of media leaders, academics, and government experts. Also, her participation in working groups of the Aspen Institute allowed her to collect data from ordinary television viewers in Russia, from diverse socio-economic backgrounds.The book follows a chronological structure. After an introduction, chapters 2-6 deal with the Soviet period. Chapter 7, called "Between Putsch and Revolt," serves as a bridge between the two eras, and chapters 8-12 discuss the new, post-communist Russia. This second revised addition has a new chapter, the Afterword, which takes the story up to the 1998 crisis, and a new preface.Mickiewicz is strongest in her analysis of the glasnost period and early 1990s. This is the material she seems thoroughly familiar with and for which she has the best personal contacts. She records the events in great detail, conveys the sense of atmosphere in which the story unfolded, and makes the characters come alive. The reader feels her/himself transported to the feverish days of glasnost when things changed rapidly, and optimism interlaced with fear were the norm. For example, on p. 103, "At six o'clock in the morning on 19 August 1991, TASS announced that Mikhail Gorbachev was unable to perform his duties as president because of health problems and the government was in the hands of the State Committee for the State of Emergency." It is clear that she has the insider's view when she relates stories of how, "at one meeting with Yeltsin, Yakovlev told the president that he had gone to Gorbachev's dacha for dinner. …


Stable isotope labeling coupled with high precision isotope ratio measurements by multiple collector-ICP-MS is effective for tracing zinc from zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) in complex media and against a high zinc background. Using this technique, a previous study detected a slightly enhanced uptake of Zn in the blood of human females following dermal exposure to a sunscreen containing ZnO NPs, relative to a sunscreen of the same formulation but with larger ZnO particles ('bulk' material). Until now, the results of these exposures and the accuracy of the analyses, which require the resolution of subtle differences in Zn isotope ratios, have not been independently confirmed. Here we compare data from the previous study with results obtained in new, independent analyses of the same and additional samples, that were performed using similar techniques and instrumentation but in a different laboratory. The data sets are in good agreement, with a Pearson correlation coefficient of r ≈ 0.98, thus establishing the usefulness of the methods for tracing engineered ZnO NPs (and other anthropogenic sources of Zn) in Zn-rich biological materials. Previously unanalyzed blood samples from the earlier study provide further evidence for the increased uptake of Zn from ZnO NPs relative to bulk ZnO and they confirm that uptake rates decrease once sunscreen application has ceased.


The volatility that gripped the market during the latter half of 2008 led many traders to change their trading behavior. The relative volume of block trades that were executed in the market decreased during this period. Many traders moved away from trading large blocks, to trading strategies that enabled them to spread their orders throughout the trading day, closer to a VWAP style, in order to reduce their risk. From an implementation shortfall perspective, however, the risk of spreading the order throughout the day is higher than executing the order quickly, as in the case of executing a large block. The author suggests that the fundamental reason for the difference in risk perspectives among traders, and the theoretical risk based on implementation shortfall measures, is the way traders are measured and compensated. Traders measured versus a VWAP benchmark see a greater variance in their performance in more volatile markets. In order to manage their career risk, they seek to match their trading behavior with their performance benchmark. The increased volatility in the market exacerbated the problem. The article compares the incurred risk of several strategies to demonstrate that less-aggressive strategies, such as VWAP, incur more risk than aggressive strategies that trade blocks opportunistically as they become available. The author suggests that the best way to address the misalignment between the investment objectives of the firm and the trading objectives of the desk is to measure traders' performance using an implementation shortfall benchmark rather than a VWAP benchmark. He also suggests that incorporating risk into the post-trade measurement process leads to a harmonization of the objectives of traders and portfolio managers.


Aging is associated with episodic memory decline and alterations in memory-related brain function. However, it remains unclear if age-related memory decline is associated with similar patterns of brain aging in women and men. In the current task fMRI study, we tested the hypothesis that there are sex differences in the effect of age and memory performance on brain activity during episodic encoding and retrieval of face–location associations (spatial context memory). Forty-one women and 41 men between the ages of 21 and 76 years participated in this study. Between-group multivariate partial least squares analysis of the fMRI data was conducted to directly test for sex differences and similarities in age-related and performance-related patterns of brain activity. Our behavioral analysis indicated no significant sex differences in retrieval accuracy on the fMRI tasks. In relation to performance effects, we observed similarities and differences in how retrieval accuracy related to brain activity in women and men. Both sexes activated dorsal and lateral PFC, inferior parietal cortex, and left parahippocampal gyrus at encoding, and this supported subsequent memory performance. However, there were sex differences in retrieval activity in these same regions and in lateral occipital-temporal and ventrolateral PFC. In relation to age effects, we observed sex differences in the effect of age on memory-related activity within PFC, inferior parietal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus, and lateral occipital-temporal cortices. Overall, our findings suggest that the neural correlates of age-related spatial context memory decline differ in women compared with men.


Over a long academic and political career Woodrow Wilson struggled with the question of how to achieve vigorous leadership and effective administration in a democracy. As a theoretician, he proposed a dramatic expansion of administrative powers and responsibilities, yet he constantly worried about the dangers implicit in his own ideas. As president, he presided over an enormous increase in administrative authority during World War I, but at the end of his term he insisted that the wartime structure be dismantled. The paradoxes of his thought and practice define the American dilemma with administrative authority.(1) Wilson first approached "the Study of Administration" in an 1887 article in which he argued that it would be safe to adopt methods of administration developed in European monarchies to make American democracy more efficient and economical. "If I see a murderous fellow sharpening a knife cleverly, I can borrow his way of sharpening the knife Without borrowing his probable intention to commit murder with it," he wrote.(2) The problem that preoccupied Wilson in the mid-1880s was the paralysis of American government resulting, in his opinion, from the separation of powers. Administrative reform was only one of several ideas that occurred to him as having promise of making government more responsible and efficient. Believing that a government created for a nation "homogeneous and rural" must be modified to serve a country now "heterogeneous and crowded into cities,"(3) he sought ways to achieve that end quickly and simply. At first, he believed that it might be necessary to convert the federal government into a parliamentary system to foster cooperation between the executive and the legislature, but further thought persuaded him that the "elasticity and adaptability" of the Constitution permitted change without radical amendment of the existing system.(4) In his second book, The State, published in 1889, Wilson argued that government's sole purpose was "to accomplish the objects of organized society," and to do that "there must be constant adjustment of governmental assistance to the needs of a changing social and industrial organization."(5) Specifically, Wilson believed that industrialization had "so distorted competition as to put it into the power of some to tyrannize over many, as to enable the rich and the strong to combine against the poor and the weak."(6) If government was to "accomplish the objects of organized society," it must be able to correct the conditions that allowed the few to benefit, while the many suffered. He came to believe that administrative reform could give government that power without constitutional changes. "Ministrant" and "Constituent" Functions of Government Reforms that would deal with the abuses of industrialization fell into a category that Wilson defined as the "ministrant" functions of government, as opposed to those functions he called "constituent." Constituent functions he defined as the protection of life, liberty, and property. Such functions were essential to survival of the society and were thus common to all governments. Ministrant functions, on the other hand, were "undertaken, not by way of governing, but by way of advancing the general interests of society,--functions which are optional, being necessary only according to standards of convenience or expediency, and not according to standards of existence."(7) One might assume that the constituent functions of government would be the proper domain for apolitical administrators, while the more controversial ministrant functions would be the realm of political leadership, but Wilson asserted just the opposite. Ministrant functions such as the regulation of labor and industry, maintenance of transportation, communications and public utilities, education, care of the "poor and incapable," and conservation of natural resources, arose, he argued, not out of political whims but out of "altered historical circumstances. …


Aim: We hypothesize that both type-1 ryanodine receptor (RyR1) and IP3-receptor (IP3R) calcium channels are necessary for the mitochondrial Ca2+ increase caused by membrane depolarization induced by potassium (or by electrical stimulation) of single skeletal muscle fibers; this calcium increase would couple muscle fiber excitation to an increase in metabolic output from mitochondria (excitation-metabolism coupling). Methods: Mitochondria matrix and cytoplasmic Ca2+ levels were evaluated in fibers isolated from flexor digitorium brevis muscle using plasmids for the expression of a mitochondrial Ca2+ sensor (CEPIA3mt) or a cytoplasmic Ca2+ sensor (RCaMP). The role of intracellular Ca2+ channels was evaluated using both specific pharmacological inhibitors (xestospongin B for IP3R and Dantrolene for RyR1) and a genetic approach (shIP3R1-RFP). O2 consumption was detected using Seahorse Extracellular Flux Analyzer. Results: In isolated muscle fibers cell membrane depolarization increased both cytoplasmic and mitochondrial Ca2+ levels. Mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake required functional inositol IP3R and RyR1 channels. Inhibition of either channel decreased basal O2 consumption rate but only RyR1 inhibition decreased ATP-linked O2 consumption. Cell membrane depolarization-induced Ca2+ signals in sub-sarcolemmal mitochondria were accompanied by a reduction in mitochondrial membrane potential; Ca2+ signals propagated toward intermyofibrillar mitochondria, which displayed increased membrane potential. These results are compatible with slow, Ca2+-dependent propagation of mitochondrial membrane potential from the surface toward the center of the fiber. Conclusion: Ca2+-dependent changes in mitochondrial membrane potential have different kinetics in the surface vs. the center of the fiber; these differences are likely to play a critical role in the control of mitochondrial metabolism, both at rest and after membrane depolarization as part of an "excitation-metabolism" coupling process in skeletal muscle fibers.


Allometric equations are currently used to estimate above‐ground biomass (AGB) based on the indirect relationship with tree parameters. Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) can measure the canopy structure in 3D with high detail. In this study, we develop an approach to estimate AGB from TLS data, which does not need any prior information about allometry. We compare these estimates against destructively harvested AGB estimates and AGB derived from allometric equations. We also evaluate tree parameters, diameter at breast height (DBH) and tree height, estimated from traditional field inventory and TLS data. Tree height, DBH and AGB data are collected through traditional forest inventory, TLS and destructive sampling of 65 trees in a native Eucalypt Open Forest in Victoria, Australia. Single trees are extracted from the TLS data and quantitative structure models are used to estimate the tree volume directly from the point cloud data. AGB is inferred from these volumes and basic density information and is then compared with the estimates derived from allometric equations and destructive sampling. AGB estimates derived from TLS show a high agreement with the reference values from destructive sampling, with a concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) of 0·98. The agreement between AGB estimates from allometric equations and the reference is lower (CCC = 0·68–0·78). Our TLS approach shows a total AGB overestimation of 9·68% compared to an underestimation of 36·57–29·85% for the allometric equations. The error for AGB estimates using allometric equations increases exponentially with increasing DBH, whereas the error for AGB estimates from TLS is not dependent on DBH. The TLS method does not rely on indirect relationships with tree parameters or calibration data and shows better agreement with the reference data compared to estimates from allometric equations. Using 3D data also enables us to look at the height distributions of AGB, and we demonstrate that 80% of the AGB at plot level is located in the lower 60% of the trees for a Eucalypt Open Forest. This method can be applied in many forest types and can assist in the calibration and validation of broad‐scale biomass maps.


Beef consumers in Indonesia are generally more familiar with the term of traditional processed meat such as rendang and semur compared to the standard commercial cuts. Those terms of beef cuts are usually used in meat trading as a communication language. The study aimed to evaluate the yield and economic value of traditional beef cuts including rendang, semur and tetelan derived from different types of standard commercial cuts. A total of 298.7 kg of beef consisting of 60 commercial cuts of topside and blade were used in this study. Each of commercial cuts was then broken down into common traditional common market name such as rendang, semur and tetelan cuts. The observed parameters consisted of the weights and percentages of the cuts and their economic values, including the cost of goods manufactured (COGM). The differences between topside and blade cuts in their yield and economic value were compared by t-test analysis using the R statistical program version 4.0.0. The results showed that the weight of topside cut was significantly lower than that blade (P <0.05). However, the topside cut produced significantly higher amount and percentage of rendang and significantly lower amount and percentage of semur and tetelan compared to the blade (P<0.05). Economically, the value of blade cut was higher than that of topside for each kg of the traditional beef cuts (rendang, semur, tetelan) produced. It could, therefore, be concluded that the topside cut is economically more efficient than the blade in producing the traditional beef cuts.


Sturgeons had played an important role in the history of Hungarian fisheries, but over-fishing, followed by extensive river regulations and deterioration of habitat quality have caused a decrease in populations to the verge of extinction in the middle Danube and its tributaries. Stellate sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus) and great sturgeon (Huso huso) are practically vanished from the Hungarian waters and Russian sturgeon (A. gueldenstaedti) and ship sturgeon (A. nudiventris) have sporadic occurrence only, while Atlantic sturgeon (A. sturio) was never resident of this stretch of the Danube River. Sterlet (A. ruthenus) is the only common species caught for commercial and recreational purposes. The paper describes the past and recent status of the Middle Danubian sturgeon populations and emphasizes problems of restricted availability or lack of essential spawning and nursery habitats. Impacts of floods on sterlet population dynamics are demonstrated by long-term data of commercial fishery. Existing conservation measures, restocking and fishing regulations in Hungary are evaluated.


Many firm level studies rely on readily available databases as COMPUSTAT, based on published balance sheets. While bigger firms are quite reliable described in this data set, small and medium sized firms (SMEs) are not covered, bearing the danger that the conclusions might be biased. To include SMEs into firm-level analysis, the EUKLEED data set for Germany is created. EUKLEED is a comprehensive integrated micro data set on employment, investment, and output for about 1.6 million German establishments, with around 40 million employment cases per year. The data set is combining three sources. The main source (SIS) is a linked employer employee data set (LEED). It supplies firm level information with respect to employment, employment characteristics, labour compensation by type of labour, and establishment characteristics. The remaining two sources are used to calibrate the firm level information on the aggregated data of the National Accounts. Although this calibration is performed for 70 industries and 16 Federal States, EUKLEED has to be applied with care. In the analysis conducted here, it serves merely as a tool for sensitivity calculations.


Biochemical, molecular chemical and molecular genetic studies were performed on seven unidentified gram-positive, rod-shaped organisms recovered from eagles. The strains were provisionally identified as Corynebacterium jeikeium with the commercial API Coryne system, but they were able to grow under anaerobic conditions and were non-lipophilic. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing studies demonstrated that the isolates belonged phylogenetically to the genus Corynebacterium. Three strains were identified genotypically as Corynebacterium falsenii; the remaining four strains corresponded to a hitherto unknown lineage within the genus Corynebacterium, associated with a small subcluster of species that included Corynebacterium diphtheriae and its close relatives. The unknown bacterial strains were readily distinguished from these and other species of the genus by biochemical tests. Based on both phenotypic and phylogenetic evidence, it is proposed that the unknown bacterial strains from eagles should be classified as Corynebacterium aquilae sp. nov. (type strain is S-613T = CECT 5993T = CCUG 46511T).


The need to achieve energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission decreases within the building sector requires the implementation of a supportive legal framework. To fulfil this requirement, a building certification system must be developed that is easily understandable for end users. In Poland, assessments of the energy performance of buildings are based on primary energy indicator verification. However, this parameter is difficult to understand for building owners or for tenants. Therefore, in this study, energy efficiency class limits and a heating indicator for energy needs indicator have been estimated for multi-family buildings in Poland. To achieve this purpose, a reference building was used and 180 calculation variants were developed, which considered the following variables: 3 types of climate data, 4 values of building shape ratios, 3 types of ventilation, 3 thermal transmittance standards and 3 windows area ratios to the external wall. The results showed that the greatest influences on the need for energy used for heating were the type of ventilation used and the local climate. This study shows that the methodology used is adequate for energy efficiency class limits estimations involving multi-family buildings in Poland.