There is an expanding body of evidence indicating that cognitive factors contribute to the prediction of disability resulting from chronic pain. Indeed, some research amongst chronic low back pain sufferers has demonstrated that pain-related fear is actually more disabling than pain itself (Crombez, Vlaeyen, Heuts, & Lysens, 1999). The present study utilised a sample comprising individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and occupational overuse syndrome (OOS), and an asymptomatic comparison group. There were three broad aims: The first aim was to evaluate between group differences in pain-related and cognitive variables; and the second, was to assess the relevance of the fear component of the model proposed by Ylaeyen, Kole-Snijders, Boeren, and van Eek (1995) for this sample. The third aim, related to the second, was to explore the relationship between pain and disability, considering the effects of fear of movement, catastrophising, and vigilance for pain. Symptomatic individuals (n = 68) completed measures of pain, fear of movement, vigilance for pain, disability, catastrophising, and cognitive errors. The comparison group (n = 24) completed only the last two measures. Medical assessment, including tender point examination, was also carried out on all participants. There were no differences between individuals with OOS and FMS in relation to current pain, catastrophising, vigilance, or fear of movement. However, significant differences were revealed between participants with FMS and the comparison group in terms of somatic cognitive errors, but not general cognitive errors. Multiple regression using data from symptomatic participants demonstrated that although pain had the largest impact on disability, fear of movement and vigilance also contributed uniquely to this outcome. However, further analysis revealed that catastrophising moderated the relationship between pain and disability. Catastrophising did not impact on disability reporting amongst women experiencing high levels of pain, but amongst women with low levels of pain high catastrophising was associated with more disability reporting than low catastrophising. Furthermore, the association between pain and catastrophising rendered the contribution of fear of movement to disability non significant. Theoretical and methodological implications of these results are discussed.


Objective: Volatiles oils from three Elsholtzia plants (E. capituligera C.Y.Wu, E. fruticosa (D.Don) Rehd. and E. bodinieri Vaniot) were extracted by simultaneous distillation extraction device (SDE). Their volatile compounds were isolated and characterized by GC-MS, in order to provide a theoretical basis for its further development and utilization.
Methods: Under the same conditions, the main volatile compounds were identified by WILEY and NIST and the relative percentage of volatile oil were determined by using the normalization method.
Results: The main volatile compounds for each species were Eucalyptol (Relative content: 31.55%), (-)-Verbenone (Relative content: 25.36%) and 2, 5-dimethyl-2-Isopropenyl-1-cyclohexanone (Relative content:12.26%) in Elsholtzia capituligera C.Y.Wu; 2, 5-dimethyl-2-Isopropenyl-1-cyclohexanone (Relative content: 60.78%) and (-)-Verbenone (Relative content: 19.78%) in Elsholtzia Fruticosa (D.Don) Rehd; Eucalyptol (Relative content: 55.08%) and Terpinyl acetate (Relative content: 5.64%) in Elsholtzia bodinieri Vaniot.
Conclusion: Comparing of volatile compounds of these three samples showed that the volatiles oil of these genus plants have some differences, the reason might be determined by genotype. This study not only provides a lot of valuable experimental data, but also greatly promoted the volatiles oil research for other researchers.


This study explores the full 3D earthquake location for the Australian continent, exploiting the recent 3D Australian Seismological Reference Model (AuSREM). Seismic velocities from AuSREM were used as input to precompute finely spaced P ‐ and S ‐travel‐time grids for each station in the Australian National Seismograph Network using the multistage fast marching method. Travel times from anywhere in the grid to the corresponding station can then be computed by interpolation. The location search using these travel times is based on matching observed and computed arrival times using the neighborhood algorithm. All computations involved can be performed in practical time frames on a single processor computer.

The performance of the 3D approach relative to location using the 1D global ak135 velocity model was assessed by locating a set of recent earthquakes. The arrival‐time residuals for P and S arrivals are significantly smaller when using the 3D AuSREM model. The improvements over ak135 are especially large in the 10°–18° distance range, in which a distance bias is strongly reduced and for those paths where the ak135 residuals are large. A small set of six ground‐truth events was used to assess to what extent the reduction in travel‐time residuals leads to better absolute location accuracy. The 3D location offset from the ground‐truth position is typically half that of the ak135 offset. The patterns of offsets suggest that the already fast mantle wavespeeds in western Australia need to be even faster than in AuSREM.


An important aspect of managing social platforms, online games and virtual worlds is the analysis of user characteristics related to subscriptions and virtual goods purchases. The results of such a process could be adopted in decision support applications that build on top of users' behavior provide efficient strategies for the virtual world's management. One of the research questions in this area is related to the factors affecting purchases and their relation to the activity within social networks as well as the ability to use past data to make reasoning about future behaviors. Complex online systems are hard to analyze when adopting legacy methodologies due to the huge amount of data generated by users' activity and changes in their behavior over time. In this paper, we discuss an analysis of the characteristics of users performing purchases for virtual products. We adopt a Neuro-Fuzzy system which has the ability to process data under uncertainty towards better decisions related to parameterization of the virtual retail system. The proposed Fuzzy Logic (FL) inference model focuses on the analysis of purchases based on the types of past transactions and social activity as inputs. The proposed system results values for specific parameters affecting/depicting users� behavior like own purchases, gifting and virtual products usage as output. Our results could be adopted for decision support of online platform operators and show the relations between less and more experienced users in terms of frequency and value of purchases, engagement with the use of virtual goods and gifting behaviors. Models based on the social activity with distinguished inbound and outbound social connections show increased interest in virtual goods among users with a higher number of inbound connections as a possible tool for building social position.


This Article addresses Congress's prerogative to implement non-self-executing treaties. In construing Congress's Necessary and Proper Clause authority in this area, most commentators have argued that it is either virtually plenary or virtually nugatory. I explore part of the vast middle ground. I assume as true Justice Scalia's key argument in Bond v. United States, that implementing a treaty cannot be necessary and proper to making it, for it is completely made once the president ratifies it. Though this appears to eliminate congressional authority, I argue that Congress derives treaty-implementation power from the Necessary and Proper Clause because implementing current treaties facilitates making future beneficial treaties. Implementing a treaty need not be necessary and proper to making that treaty because it is necessary and proper to making future ones. Congress's power to implement treaties is not unlimited, however, and the approach herein expects it to account for its efforts to accommodate state interests.


the fast development of Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) leads to the popularity of General-purpose usage of GPU (GPGPU). So far, most modern computers are CPU-GPGPU heterogeneous architecture and CPU is used as host processor. In this work, we promote a multithread file chunking prototype system, which is able to exploit the hardware organization of the CPU-GPGPU heterogeneous computer and determine which device should be used to chunk the file to accelerate the content based file chunking operation of deduplication. We built rules for the system to choose which device should be used to chunk file and also found the optimal choice of other related parameters of both CPU and GPGPU subsystem like segment size and block dimension. This prototype was implemented and tested. The result of using GTX460(336 cores) and Intel i5 (four cores) shows that this system can increase the chunking speed 63% compared to using GPGPU alone and 80% compared to using CPU alone.


Abstract. In a globalised world, the transfer of carbon between regions, either physically or embodied in production, represents a substantial fraction of global carbon emissions. The resulting emission transfers are important for balancing regional carbon budgets and for understanding the drivers of emissions. In this paper we synthesise current understanding in two parts: (1) CO2 emissions embodied in goods and services that are produced in one country but consumed in others, and (2) carbon physically present in fossil fuels, petroleum-derived products, harvested wood products, crops, and livestock products. We describe the key differences between studies and provide a consistent set of estimates using the same definitions, modelling framework, and consistent data. We find the largest trade flows of carbon in international trade in 2004 were fossil fuels (2673 MtC, 37 % of global emissions), CO2 embodied in traded goods and services (1661 MtC, 22 % of global emissions), crops (522 MtC, 31 % of total harvested crop carbon), petroleum-based products (183 MtC, 50 % of their total production), harvested wood products (149 MtC, 40 % of total roundwood extraction), and livestock products (28 MtC, 22 % of total livestock carbon). We find that for embodied CO2 emissions, estimates from independent studies are robust, and that differences between individual studies are not a reflection of the uncertainty in consumption-based estimates, but rather these differences result from the use of different production-based emissions input data and different definitions for allocating emissions to international trade. After adjusting for these issues, results across independent studies converge to give less uncertainty than previously assumed. For physical carbon flows there are relatively few studies to be synthesised, but differences between existing studies are due to the method of allocating to international trade, with some studies using "apparent consumption" as opposed to "final consumption". While results across studies are sufficiently robust to be used in further applications, more research is needed to understand differences and to harmonise definitions for particular applications.


The stress-strain behaviour of large (165 mm diameter, 270 mm length) specimens of mudstone has been studied in the triaxial compression test. The specimens were prepared from vertical and inclined zf cores obtained from close to the Kielder experimental tunnel in County Durham, England. All specimens were tested under effective stress conditions; some multi-stage and some single stage tests were carried out; and the cell pressures used were consistent with the stress conditions developed around underground excavations. In addition to axial strain, volumetric strain was measured. It is considered that the large specimen size in relation to the spacing of bedding plane partings and joints in the rock means that the rock mass properties which are important from the engineering point of view, rather than the rock material properties have been determined. The measurement of volumetric strain during the test allowed the results from one specimen to be analysed using critical state theory, in particular to see if the measured strain vectors complied with the condition of normality of the associated flow rule. (Author/TRRL)


Quantum random sampling is the leading proposal for demonstrating a computational advantage of quantum computers over classical computers. Recently, first large-scale implementations of quantum random sampling have arguably surpassed the boundary of what can be simulated on existing classical hardware. In this article, we comprehensively review the theoretical underpinning of quantum random sampling in terms of computational complexity and verifiability, as well as the practical aspects of its experimental implementation using superconducting and photonic devices and its classical simulation. We discuss in detail open questions in the field and provide perspectives for the road ahead, including potential applications of quantum random sampling.


Exogenous state variables and rewards can slow down reinforcement learning by injecting uncontrolled variation into the reward signal. We formalize exogenous state variables and rewards and identify conditions under which an MDP with exogenous state can be decomposed into an exogenous Markov Reward Process involving only the exogenous state+reward and an endogenous Markov Decision Process defined with respect to only the endogenous rewards. We also derive a variance-covariance condition under which Monte Carlo policy evaluation on the endogenous MDP is accelerated compared to using the full MDP. Similar speedups are likely to carry over to all RL algorithms. We develop two algorithms for discovering the exogenous variables and test them on several MDPs. Results show that the algorithms are practical and can significantly speed up reinforcement learning.


This course is designed for high-intermediate ESL students who need to develop better listening comprehension and oral skills, which will primarily be achieved by detailed instructions on pronunciation. Our focus will be on (1) producing accurate and intelligible English, (2) becoming more comfortable listening to rapidly spoken English, and (3) learning common expressions, gambits, and idioms used in both formal and informal contexts.


Ionic Liquids (ILs) are the subject of increased diverse research worldwide due to many attractive inherent characteristics such as high thermal stability, negligible
vapour pressure and physical and chemical diversity due to the many permutations possible1.
We have studied the IL [P6,6,6,14][DCA] as a self-indicating, simultaneous, multianalyte recognition system for heavy metal ions such as Cu2+ and Co2+. When
incorporated into a polymer membrane, this system maintains all these attractive features with the added bonus of the IL now being self-plasticizing. The optical response is obtained via co-ordination of the heavy metal to the anion [DCA]-.2
A system like this can be viewed as a building block for future chemical sensing platforms; where the system itself is responsive toward an analyte, thereby eliminating
the need for a reactive chromophore. The resulting system can also be viewed as an optode containing only two components (polymer and plasticizer) as opposed to a
classical 5-component optode (polymer, plasticizer, ionophore, ion-exchanger, dye).
This simplification of components shows potential for further studies in electrochemical-based sensors (ISE's).
Our aim will be to present the results obtained thus far from both optical and structural characterization studies.
1. Wilkes, J. S., Green Chemistry, 2002, 4, (2), 73-80.
2. Vangdal, B.; Carranza, J.; Lloret, F.; Julve, M.; Sletten, J., Journal of the Chemical Society-Dalton Transactions 2002, (4), 566-574.


Reproductive investment is a central life history variable that influences all aspects of life. Hormones coordinate reproduction in multicellular organisms, but the mechanisms controlling the collective reproductive investment of social insects are largely unexplored. One important aspect of honey bee (Apis mellifera) reproductive investment consists of raising female‐destined larvae into new queens by alloparental care of nurse bees in form of royal jelly provisioning. Artificial selection for commercial royal jelly production over 40 years has increased this reproductive investment by an order of magnitude. In a cross‐fostering experiment, we establish that this shift in social phenotype is caused by nurse bees. We find no evidence for changes in larval signalling. Instead, the antennae of the nurse bees of the selected stock are more responsive to brood pheromones than control bees. Correspondingly, the selected royal jelly bee nurses are more attracted to brood pheromones than unselected control nurses. Comparative proteomics of the antennae from the selected and unselected stocks indicate putative molecular mechanisms, primarily changes in chemosensation and energy metabolism. We report expression differences of several candidate genes that correlate with the differences in reproductive investment. The functional relevance of these genes is supported by demonstrating that the corresponding proteins can competitively bind one previously described and one newly discovered brood pheromone. Thus, we suggest several chemosensory genes, most prominently OBP16 and CSP4, as candidate mechanisms controlling queen rearing, a key reproductive investment, in honey bees. These findings reveal novel aspects of pheromonal communication in honey bees and explain how sensory changes affect communication and lead to a drastic shift in colony‐level resource allocation to sexual reproduction. Thus, pheromonal and hormonal communication may play similar roles for reproductive investment in superorganisms and multicellular organisms, respectively.


For many years Tanzania was the darling of international aid agencies. During the 1970s it received more assistance per capita than any other nation in the world. And yet, the economy performed dismally: growth was negative, exports collapsed, and poverty increased massively. In the mid 1980s, however, the international community changed tacks and developed an approach based on conditionality and 'program ownership'. Since 1996 the country has grown steadily, and social conditions have improved significantly. This book provides an economic history of Tanzania, since independence in 1961. It covers the policies of African Socialism and the Arusha Declaration, the collapse of the early 1980s, the rocky relationships with the IMF, and the reforms of the 1990s and 2000s.


In this paper we review the design of a sequential object oriented linear algebra library, O<sc>O</sc>L<sc>A</sc>L<sc>A</sc>. Several designs are proposed and used to classify existing sequential object oriented libraries. The classification is based on the way that matrices and matrix operations are represented. O<sc>O</sc>L<sc>A</sc>L<sc>A</sc>'s representation of matrices is capable of dealing with certain matrix operations that, although mathematically valid, are not handled correctly by existing libraries. O<sc>O</sc>L<sc>A</sc>L<sc>A</sc> also enables implementations of matrix calculations at various abstraction levels ranging from the relatively low-level abstraction of a Fortran BLAS-like implementation to higher-level abstractions that hide many implementation details. O<sc>O</sc>L<sc>A</sc>L<sc>A</sc> addresses a wide range of numerical linear algebra functionality while the reviewed object oriented libraries concen trate on parts of such functionality. We include some preliminary performance results for a Java implementation of O<sc>O</sc>L<sc>A</sc>L<sc>A</sc>.


Expression of the macrophage mannose receptor is inhibited by interferon gamma (IFN-gamma), a T helper type 1 (Th-1)-derived lymphokine. Interleukin 4 (IL-4), a Th-2 lymphocyte product, upregulates major histocompatibility class II antigen expression but inhibits inflammatory cytokine production by macrophages. We have studied the effect of IL-4 on expression of the macrophage mannose receptor (MMR) by elicited peritoneal macrophages. We found that recombinant murine IL-4 enhances MMR surface expression (10-fold) and activity (15-fold), as measured by the respective binding and degradation of 125I-mannose-bovine serum albumin. Polymerase chain reaction analysis of cDNAs from purified primary macrophage populations revealed that MMR, but not lysozyme or tumor necrosis factor alpha, mRNA levels were markedly increased by IL-4. The above effects were associated with morphologic changes. These data establish IL-4 as a potent and selective enhancer of murine MMR activity in vitro. IL-4 induces inflammatory macrophages to adopt an alternative activation phenotype, distinct from that induced by IFN-gamma, characterized by a high capacity for endocytic clearance of mannosylated ligands, enhanced (albeit restricted) MHC class II antigen expression, and reduced proinflammatory cytokine secretion.


We provide a comprehensive characterization of the relationship between optimal capacity and the degree of product substitution/complementarity under price/production postponement, considering different business practices (holdback versus clearance, negative price policies) and different demand models. Specifically, we consider a firm that produces two products, which can be substitutable or complementary. The demand of each product is a linear function of the prices of both products (with the relationship depending on the substitution/complementarity structure), and is subject to an additive stochastic shock. We consider two types of linear demand functions that are commonly used in the economics and operations management literature. The firm operates in a monopolistic setting and acts as a price-setter for both products. Overall the firm needs to make three sets of decisions: capacity, production quantities, and prices. While the capacity investment decision has to be made ex-ante observation of demand curves, price and/or quantity decisions can be postponed until after demand curves are observed. We consider two postponement strategies: price and quantity postponement, and price postponement only. We characterize the optimal pricing/production/investment decisions for each postponement strategy. Using these characterizations, we show that product substitution/complementarity is a key demand characteristic, which has a large impact on the optimal capacity. Our results show that how the optimal capacity behaves in substitution/complementarity parameter is quite similar under both postponement strategies, and under holdback and clearance. However, this behavior depends highly on other underlying assumptions (i.e., whether or not negative prices are allowed) and on the demand model used. This work received support from National Science Foundation (NSF) under Grant#s DMI0010032 and DMI-0245643.


Since the end of the Cold War, the idea of human rights has been made into a justification for intervention by the world's leading economic and military powers-above all, the United States-in countries that are vulnerable to their attacks. The criteria for such intervention have become more arbitrary and self-serving, and their form more destructive, from Yugoslavia to Afghanistan to Iraq. Until the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the large parts of the left was often complicit in this ideology of intervention-discovering new "Hitlers" as the need arose, and denouncing antiwar arguments as appeasement on the model of Munich in 1938. Jean Bricmont's Humanitarian Imperialism is both a historical account of this development and a powerful political and moral critique. It seeks to restore the critique of imperialism to its rightful place in the defense of human rights. It describes the leading role of the United States in initiating military and other interventions, but also on the obvious support given to it by European powers and NATO. It outlines an alternative approach to the question of human rights, based on the genuine recognition of the equal rights of people in poor and wealthy countries. Timely, topical, and rigorously argued, Jean Bricmont's book establishes a firm basis for resistance to global war with no end in sight.


Abstract. Satellite observations are used to obtain vertical profiles of variance
scaling of temperature ( T ) and specific humidity ( q ) in the atmosphere. A
higher spatial resolution nadir retrieval at 13.5 km complements previous
Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) investigations with 45 km resolution
retrievals and enables the derivation of power law scaling exponents to
length scales as small as 55 km. We introduce a variable-sized circular-area
Monte Carlo methodology to compute exponents instantaneously within the swath
of AIRS that yields additional insight into scaling behavior. While this
method is approximate and some biases are likely to exist within non-Gaussian
portions of the satellite observational swaths of T and q , this method
enables the estimation of scale-dependent behavior within instantaneous
swaths for individual tropical and extratropical systems of interest. Scaling
exponents are shown to fluctuate between β = - 1 and − 3 at scales
 ≥500  km, while at scales ≤500  km they are typically near β ≈ - 2 , with q slightly lower than T at the smallest scales observed. In
the extratropics, the large-scale β is near − 3. Within the tropics,
however, the large-scale β for T is closer to − 1 as small-scale moist
convective processes dominate. In the tropics, q exhibits large-scale β
between − 2 and − 3. The values of β are generally consistent with
previous works of either time-averaged spatial variance estimates, or
aircraft observations that require averaging over numerous flight
observational segments. The instantaneous variance scaling methodology is
relevant for cloud parameterization development and the assessment of time
variability of scaling exponents.


ABSRACT: This investigation was set up to study the effect of different levels of manure application from three sources, namely, cattle, sheep and poultry on rate of aggregate disintegration of a wide spectrum of soils with different textures. The drop test technique was followed to measure the rate of soil aggregate disintegration using three types of water (rainfall, spring and artificial saline waters). The results indicated there is a gradual increase the amount of energy required to disintegrate soil aggregates over a range of soil organic content from natural soil organic matter content to about 9%, beyond which a slight decrease in the amount of required energy was observed in most of the investigated soils. Among the manure sources sheep manure offered the highest performance. By contrast the cattle manure offered the least performance. The results also indicated that the amount of the required energy for disintegration tended to increase with clay content and with increase in the electrical conductivity of the applied waters. It can be concluded from the obtained results that the nearly all types of manures can be applied to reduce soil erosion risk up to an organic matter level of 9%. Additionally, there is no risk of soil sealing and erosion upon application of saline water with EC of < 2.2 dSm -1 via sprinkle irrigation.


A754 is a well-observed cluster of galaxies (z = 0.054) that exhibits a variety of morphological peculiarities. These include a bar of X-ray emission that is offset significantly from the galaxy distribution, an elongated X-ray surface brightness distribution extending between two distinct peaks in the galaxy distribution, and an extremely nonisothermal and asymmetric intracluster medium temperature morphology. Using these observational constraints, we present a numerical hydro/N-body model of A754 in which two clusters (2.5:1 mass ratio) have merged nearly in the plane of the sky less than 0.5 Gyr ago with an impact parameter of ~120 kpc and an impact velocity of ~2500 km s-1 (roughly the escape velocity of the primary cluster). Our models allow us to identify the origin of A754's peculiar X-ray and temperature morphologies, the underlying hydrodynamical processes that shape them, and their future evolution. We make detailed predictions for future high-resolution X-ray spectroscopic observations (e.g., Astro-E). We discuss general properties of our models that will be characteristic of off-axis mergers. In particular, we find significant nonthermal pressure support within the central region that could bias cluster mass estimates. We find significant angular momentum imparted on the gas distribution in the cluster. We find that mixing of the subcluster gas components is an inefficient process, particularly at large radii. Finally, we find that subsequent dark matter core passages result in an extended relaxation timescale.


The fundamental aim of this paper is to position the opportunities and challenges for adopting Named Data Networking (NDN) in the specific context of military coalition operations and tactical networks. The characteristic properties of tactical networks include high dynamics in multiple dimensions: bandwidth, network congestion, frequent topological changes, geographical mobility of assets, as well as dynamic changes in information access policies. Furthermore, coalition networks must provide secure and efficient communication across coalition boundaries and mitigate the impact of adversarial entities attempting to obstruct the mission. In this paper, we elaborate on the basic NDN architecture characteristics, including robust data discovery and retrieval over ad hoc and intermittent connectivity, inherent security, efficient content distribution, and automatic in-network caching; we also articulate how the above properties can all be utilized to enable resilient and secure data collection, improve the analytics capacity of the network, and to speed up and improve the quality of distributed decision making in challenging coalition environments.


We have studied Cd/n-Si (33 dots) Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs). Si surfaces have been prepared by the usual chemical etching, and the evaporation of metal has been carried out in a conventional vacuum system. The effective Schottky barrier heights (SBHs) and ideality factors obtained from the current–voltage (I–V) characteristics differ from diode to diode although the samples were identically prepared. The SBH for the Cd/n-Si diodes ranged from 0.605 eV to 0.701 eV, and ideality factor n from 1.213 to 1.913. The reason for that the experimental data differ from diode to diode has been analyzed by applying thermionic emission theory (TET) of inhomogeneous Schottky contacts together with standard TET and thus the effect of series resistance on the relationship between barrier heights and ideality factors of the inhomogeneous SBDs has clearly been shown. A laterally homogeneous SBH value of approximately 0.770 eV for Cd/n-Si SDs has been obtained by the barrier inhomogeneity model.


Until now, a disease-modifying therapy (DMT) that has an ability to slow or arrest Alzheimer's disease (AD) progression has not been developed, and all clinical trials involving AD patients enrolled by clinical assessment alone also have not been successful. Given the growing consensus that the DMT is likely to require treatment initiation well before full-blown dementia emerges, the early detection of AD will provide opportunities to successfully identify new drugs that slow the course of AD pathology. Recent advances in early detection of AD and prediction of progression of the disease using various biomarkers, including cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ1-42, total tau and p-tau181 levels, and imagining biomarkers, are now being actively integrated into the designs of AD clinical trials. In terms of therapeutic mechanisms, monitoring these markers may be helpful for go/no-go decision making as well as surrogate markers for disease severity or progression. Furthermore, CSF biomarkers can be used as a tool to enrich patients for clinical trials with prospect of increasing statistical power and reducing costs in drug development. However, the standardization of technical aspects of analysis of these biomarkers is an essential prerequisite to the clinical uses. To accomplish this, global efforts are underway to standardize CSF biomarker measurements and a quality control program supported by the Alzheimer's Association. The current review summarizes therapeutic targets of developing drugs in AD pathophysiology, and provides the most recent advances in the


This article describes four current provincial developments in civil, court-connected mediation within Canada. The nature of Canada's constitution has resulted in civil court processes, and their linked dispute resolution initiatives, being organized on a province-by-province basis. Even though some statutes, such as the Divorce Act, 1985 are enacted by the federal government and apply throughout Canada, the Supreme Court (also known as the Superior Court or Court of Queen's Bench) of each province has jurisdiction over most disputes, including divorce. For these reasons, an examination of mediation developments in Canada necessarily involves reviewing initiatives in several provinces.


Background: Heart failure (HF) is considered a significant public health issue with a substantial and growing epidemiologic and economic burden in relation to longer life expectancy and aging global population. Aims: To determine cost-of-disease of heart failure (HF) in Turkey from the payer perspective. Study Design: Cross-sectional cost of disease study. Methods: In this cost-of-disease study, annual direct and indirect costs of management of HF were determined based on epidemiological, clinical and lost productivity inputs provided by a Delphi panel consisted of 11 experts in HF with respect to ejection fraction (EF) status (HF patients with reduced EF (HFrEF), mid-range EF (HFmrEF) and preserved EF (HFpEF)) and New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification. Direct medical costs included cost items on outpatient management, inpatient management, medications, and non-pharmaceutical treatments. Indirect cost was calculated based on the lost productivity due to absenteeism and presenteeism. Results: 51.4%, 19.5%, and 29.1% of the patients were estimated to be HFrEF, HFmrEF, and HFpEF patients, respectively. The total annual direct medical cost per patient was $887 and non-pharmaceutical treatments ($373, 42.1%) were the major direct cost driver. Since an estimated nationwide number of HF patients is 1,128,000 in 2021, the total annual national economic burden of HF is estimated to be $1 billion in 2021. The direct medical cost was higher in patients with HFrEF than in those with HFmrEF or HFpEF ($1,147 vs. $555 and $649, respectively). Average indirect cost per patient was calculated to be $3,386 and was similar across HFrEF, HFmrEF and HFpEF groups, but increased with advanced NYHA stage. Conclusion: Our findings confirm the substantial economic burden of HF in terms of both direct and indirect costs and indicate that the non-pharmaceutical cost is the major direct medical cost driver in HF management, regardless of the EF status of HF patients.


The diversity of phytophagous scarabaeid beetles from various geographical locations of India and crops (arecanut, coconut, groundnut, millets, mulberry, neem, soybean, sugarcane and vegetables) was explored. The beetles were morphologically identified and characterized for COI gene fragment using specific primers. Sequence analysis and divergence among the species was assessed. Genbank accession numbers were obtained for the species. Molecular sequence information from NCBI revealed relatedness in all the collected scarabaeids, accurately as revealed by their morphological characters. Phylogenetic tree based on Maximum-Likelihood method was drawn on the basis of multiple sequence alignment to assess the genetic relatedness, with those reported elsewhere in the world. The genus Anomala and Protaeta sp. formed distinct clades with high boot strap values. The studies indicate the relevance of DNA sequencing to match different forms of beetles and address ambiguities in morphological identification, while the information on species diversity and abundance would help plan strategies for pest management.


"Elegant, deeply learned, and intellectually adventurous, its implications extend far beyond the boundaries of the Stuart and Caroline masque. It is an indispensable, exploration of political art and aestheticized politics...a classic." (Stephen Greenblatt, University of California, Berkeley). "A triumph of scholarship, insight, and explication, Oregel's book is truly a classic in the field of Renaissance studies. Anyone interested in Renaissance culture will find here a masterful analysis of its celebration of royal power." (Coppelia Kahn, Brown University). "As knowing of art, theatrical and political history as it is sensitive to poetry, Orgel's book is learned, lively, and beautifully clear." (John Hollander, Yale University). "A foundational text for the New Historicist Perspective in English Renaissance literary and cultural studies...as informative and suggestive as it was when new; in the clarity and grace of its writing, the breadth and precision of its arguments, the aptness and resonance of its examples, it is unsurpassed as an introduction to the dialectic of theatrical illusion and state authority - of play and power - in the culture of Elizabethan and Stuart England." (Louis Montrose, University of California, San Diego).


Globalisation together with technological advances have dramatically changed the process of value creation at the end of this century. Nowadays, more and more companies are being organised as networks of different units and are therefore becoming global businesses covering multiple manufacturing sites consisting of different shop floors, subcontractors and suppliers. The concept of Virtual Enterprise was born in this environment. The aim of this paper is to present the Virtual Enterprise as a new organisational paradigm and to explore the tight relationship with the information and communication technologies. Our research has shown that traditional enterprise information systems do not suitably cope with some of the new demanding requirements of a distributed and heterogeneous manufacturing environment. In this context, this paper presents a set of requirements that supports this new organisational paradigm.


What are the effects of the pandemic on body well-being? What are the criticalities and which are the processes that can represent educational opportunities? These are the questions of this call for papers which intends to range from the change of some specific life situations, such as the condition of being student through e-learning, to the change of everyday times, much less marked by being active with the body, by moving to change our own field of experience. The concentration of multiple experiences in a strongly reduced body space is a fundamental consequence of the pandemic that has forced to replace the interactions among bodies with virtual interactions which, if, in some ways, reduce and impoverish the quality of communication, in others it accentuate some dimensions, first and foremost which favours verbal language. In the educational relationship, the impossibility of a synchronic interaction with other bodies could increase the self-referential working group educational and didactic character, where the presence of the other is no longer immediately prompting adjustments or changes in direction on the cognitive, emotional and relationship side in general. Within family context, the expansion of the cohabitation times can force a persistent sharing of the same environments with the consequence of an overexposure of the bodies. Overall, the existence of bodies appears to have been widely modified in the pandemic situation, with the danger of struggling to find oneself again, of not being able to manage changes, of making room for forms of malaise rather than new temporary balances. How could the discomfort linked to the pandemic situation have the body dimension as its theatre? What could be the indicators of increasing difficulties in children, adolescents and adults? Other criticalities are inherent the inevitable neglect of their health/disease states, not giving themselves and their bodies the attention and care that they would also need; putting a large part of primary and secondary prevention on standby spreads a "waiting" thinking and feeling and people wait for the end of the pandemic to resume taking care of the well-being of their bodies, resigning themselves to living with small or more serious problems and, in some way, to sacrifice oneself in the name of a greater danger, which for too many has become a dramatic personal history. How, then, could these most lonely and "suspended" bodies, the bodies of the most fragile people, could benefit from the educational work of parents, teachers, educators, instructors and coaches? All this in the awareness that education has no interruptions whatsoever and that our choices and non-choices, even and above all in this era of pandemic, far from being neutral, have had and will have a decisive power in conditioning towards more existences, resigned, less vital and creative, or happier.


Declarative models help improve the reliability of software systems: models can be used to convey requirements, analyze system designs and verify implementation properties. Alloy is a commonly used modeling language. A key strength of Alloy is the Analyzer, Alloy's integrated development environment (IDE), which allows users to write and execute models by leveraging a fully automatic SAT based analysis engine. Unfortunately, writing correct constraints of complex properties is difficult. To help users identify fault locations, AlloyFL is a fault localization technique that takes as input a faulty Alloy model and a fault-revealing test suite. As output, AlloyFL returns a ranked list of locations from most to least suspicious. This paper describes our Java implementation of AlloyFL as an extension to the Analyzer. Our experimental results show AlloyFL is capable of detecting the location of real world faults and works in the presence of multiple faulty locations. The demo video for AlloyFL can be found at https://youtu.be/ZwgP58Nsbx8.


Shareholder agreements reflect a reassertion of contractualism in corporate law at a time when statutory regulation is more extensive than ever. Though not displacing the s140 statutory contract between members, shareholder agreements have a role to play both in direct contract between parties but also in setting reasonable expectations that may play a role in oppression actions or winding up on the just and equitable basis. As contracts they are prima facie enforceable but also subject to statutory overlays in the form of the laws of misleading and deceptive conduct and unconscionable conduct. Finally they are subject to some limitation in that the common law suggests that a company cannot in a shareholder agreement deprive itself of its power to alter its own constitution. There is also some doubt about the extent to which directors' duties can be attenuated by shareholder agreement and whether shareholder disputes can be made the subject exclusively of commercial arbitration and kept out of the courts. This article is available in Bond Law Review: http://epublications.bond.edu.au/blr/vol20/iss2/1 SHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENTS AND SHAREHOLDERS' REMEDIES CONTRACT VERSUS STATUTE?


The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of three days of foam rolling on the hamstrings range of motion in comparison with static stretching. Lower extremity injuries are prevalent in strength training and sports today. Poor flexibility has been found to increase the risk of overuse injuries and significantly affect the individual's level of function and performance. Self myofascial release (SMR), foam rolling, is a recent modality clinically used to increase flexibility. On the other hand, there are few research studies on the technique. Twenty college students participated in this study. Ten participants were in the static stretching group, while ten participants were in the SMR group. Participants received the treatment three times in one week with at least 48 hours between treatments. The treatments were static stretching and SMR for three minutes of stretching the hamstrings muscles. The wall sit-and-reach test was used to measure hamstrings range of motion. Measurements were made at the beginning of the study and after each treatment. iv The acute stretching programs increased hamstrings range of motion in the self myofascial release group (28.9%) and static group (33.2%) respectively. The Group by Time ANOVA for flexibility revealed that there was no main effect of Group (F(1,18) = 3.629, p = 0.0729), but that there was a main effect of Time (F(3,54) = 32.130, p =.0001). At the same time there was no Group by Time interaction (F(3,54) = 1.152, p =.3366). These data suggest that self myofascial release compared to static stretching did not have a greater effect on hamstrings range of motion, but both groups increased range of motion from pretest to posttest.


Detecting the sentiment expressed by a document is a key task for many applications, e.g., modeling user preferences, monitoring consumer behaviors, assessing product quality. Traditionally, the sentiment analysis task primarily relies on textual content. Fueled by the rise of mobile phones that are often the only cameras on hand, documents on the Web (e.g., reviews, blog posts, tweets) are increasingly multimodal in nature, with photos in addition to textual content. A question arises whether the visual component could be useful for sentiment analysis as well. In this work, we propose Visual Aspect Attention Network or VistaNet, leveraging both textual and visual components. We observe that in many cases, with respect to sentiment detection, images play a supporting role to text, highlighting the salient aspects of an entity, rather than expressing sentiments independently of the text. Therefore, instead of using visual information as features, VistaNet relies on visual information as alignment for pointing out the important sentences of a document using attention. Experiments on restaurant reviews showcase the effectiveness of visual aspect attention, vis-à-vis visual features or textual attention.


This thesis describes an extensive study of the optical properties of In(Ga)As/Ga(Al)As quantum dots, both singularly and in laser devices. For the optical characterisation, the spectroscopic techniques of photoluminescence (PL), photoluminescence-excitation (PLE) and electroluminescence (EL) have been used. Additionally, for studying submicron structures, sophisticated micro-PL techniques allowed excitation, and detection, of a single quantum dot. A variety of special growth and fabrication techniques were used to isolate a single quantum dot from the rest of the ensemble. Firstly, a submicron mesa that isolated a single quantum dot was fabricated using e-beam lithography and dry etching techniques. Excitation intensity and wavelength dependence of the emission provided information about the nature of the exciton complexes in the dot and the absorption and relaxation of carriers in the structure. The linewidth of the single exciton, and the variation with temperature, was measured. Secondly, samples consisting of a single layer of InGaAs quantum dots incorporated within the intrinsic region of a GaAs/AlGaAs Metal-Insulator-Semiconductor type Schottky structure allowed sequential dot charging via variation of the gate bias. Both n- and p- type samples, grown under similar conditions, were investigated. Single quantum dots were probed through submicron apertures opened in the top metal contact using electron beam lithography and dry etching. The emission undergoes several pronounced changes as additional carriers are sequentially loaded into the dot. The results reveal direct information regarding Coulomb interaction and correlation effects in dots containing a controlled number of excess electrons (up to four) or holes (up to two). Magneto- optical results reveal further information about the few-particle wave functions. A detailed study of the device performance and physical processes in In(Ga)As- Ga(Al)As self-assembled quantum dot lasers showed that these lasers offer several potential advantages over conventional quantum well lasers including low threshold current density, temperature insensitive threshold current density and high differential gain. Device performance (threshold current density and its variation with temperature) has been studied as a function of a number of parameters, including dot density, dot composition and dot confinement potential. The application of large (<14T) magnetic fields has been used to study carrier transport and dot carrier capture effects. When applied along the growth axis, such fields result in an increase in the threshold current density and a decrease in the external quantum efficiency. These effects are attributed to inhibited inplane carrier transport resulting in an increase in the carrier capture efficiency by non-lasing dots. Spontaneously emitted light, recorded via small windows formed in the top metallic contact, has been studied as a function of injection current and temperature. Analysis of this data provides information on non-radiative loss mechanisms and dot carrier dynamics.


Steampunk is an aesthetic and ideological system that revolves around the appropriation, (re)creation, and (re)design of select aspects of the documented past. Steampunk is a generic complex. It is a form of literature and thus narrative, a design aesthetic, and a mode of material production and consumption. Within this work, the author explores the relationship between materiality and textuality within steampunk and suggest that material-semiotic hybridity, that is to say the ongoing processes through which stories and objects mutually inform, delimit, or shape one another, is central to the genre's "form-shaping ideology" (Bakhtin 1984:92). In doing so, the author suggests that materiality (in other words, substance) and textuality (or concept) are neither separate, nor are they pure categorizes, but that they are, in fact, entangled and co-productive forces.


Global Analysis of Gene Networks to Solve complex Abiotic Stress responses, K Shinozaki, RIKEN Tsukuba Institute, Japan and K Yamaguchi-Shinozaki, Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences, Japan The CBF Cold Response Pathways of Arabidopsis and Tomato, J T Vogel, Michigan State University, USA, D Cook, Mississippi State University, USA, S G Fowler and M F Thomashow, Michigan State University, USA Barley Contains a Large CBF Gene Family Associated with Quantitative Cold Tolerance Traits, J S Skinner, J von Zitzewitz, L Marquez-Cedillo, T Filichkin, Oregon State University, USA, P Szucs, Agricultural Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Hungary, K Amundsen, Michigan State University, USA, E Stockinger, Ohio State University, USA, M F Thomashow, Michigan State University, USA, T H H Chen, and P M Hayes, Oregon State University, USA Structural Organization of Barley CBF Genes Coincident with QTLs for Cold Hardiness, E J Stockinger, H Cheng, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China and J Skinner The genetic basis of vernalization response in barley, L L D Cooper, Oregon State University, USA, J von Zitzewitz, J S Skinner, P Szucs, I Karsai, Agriculturtal Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Hungary, E Francia, A M Stanca, Experimental Institute for Cereal Resources, Italy, N Pecchioni, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Italy, D A Laurie, John Innes Research Centre, UK T H H Chen, and P M Hayes Vernalization Genes in Winter Cereals, N A Kane, J Danyluk, and F Sarhan, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, Canada A Bulk Segregant Approach to Identify Genetic Polymorphisms Associated with Cold Tolerance in Alfalfa, Y Castonguay, J Cloutier, S Laberge, A Bertrand and R Michaud, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Canada Ectopic Over-expression of AtCBFI in Potato Enhances Freezing Tolerance, M T Pino, J S Skinner, Z Jeknic, E J Park, Oregon State University, USA, P M Hayes, and T H H Chen Over-expression of a Heat-inducible apx Gene Confers Chilling Tolerance to Rice Plants, Y Sato, National Agricultural Research Center for Hokkaido Region, Japan, and H Saruyama, Hokkaido Green-Bio Institute, Japan Physiological and Morphological Alterations Associated with Development of Freezing Tolerance in The Moss Physcomitrella patens, A Minami, M Nagao, Iwate University, Japan, K Arakawa, S Fujikawa, Hokkaido University and D Takezawa, Saitama University, Japan Control of Growth and Cold Acclimation in Silver Birch, M K Aalto and E T Palva, Viikki Biocenter, Finland The Role of the CBF-Dependent Signalling Pathway in Woody Perennials, C Benedict, Umea University, Sweden, J S Skinner, R Meng, Y Chang, Oregon State University, USA, R Bhalerao, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden, C Finn, USDA-ARS, USA, T H H Chen, V Hurry, Umea University, Sweden Functional Role of Winter-accumulating Proteins from Mulberry Tree in adaptation to Winter-induced Stresses, S Fujikawa, N Ukaji, Hokkaido University, Japan, M Nagao, K Yamane, Hokkaido University, Japan, D Takezawa, and K Arakawa The Role of Compatible Solutes in Plant Freezing Tolerance: A Case Study on Raffinose, D K Hincha, E Zuther, M Hundertmark, A G Heyer, Max-Planck-Institut fur Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Germany Dehydration in model membranes and protoplasts: contrasting effects at low, intermediate and high hydrations, K L Koster, University of South Dakota, USA, and G Bryant, RMIT University, Australia Effect of Plasma Membrane-associated Proteins on Acquisition of Freezing Tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana, Y Tominaga, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, Canada, C Nakagawara, Y Kawamura and M Uemura, Iwate University, Japan.


We have designed and fabricated an out-of-plane coupler for butt-coupling from fiber to compact planar waveguides. The coupler is based on a short second-order grating or photonic crystal, etched in a waveguide with a low-index oxide cladding. The coupler is optimized using mode expansion-based simulations. Simulations using a 2-D model show that up to 74% coupling efficiency between single-mode fiber and a 240-nm-thick GaAs-AlO/sub x/ waveguide is possible. We have measured 19% coupling efficiency on test structures.


Many insects use a fairly well‐defined set of host plants, but are occasionally observed on an atypical host. The seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus (F.) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae) has rarely been reported to attack lentil, which is distantly related to its usual legume hosts. An initial assay of an Asian beetle population revealed that none of the 100 larvae entering lentil seeds survived to adult emergence. Nevertheless, three attempts at mass selection, in which more than 2 000 adults were added to lentil seeds, eventually yielded self‐sustaining populations. In each case, a severe bottleneck was followed by a rapid increase in survival, which exceeded 65% after only five generations and surpassed 85% in <20 generations. Subsequent large‐scale experiments indicated that survival in lentil is initially <2% and that most larvae die before they have completely entered a seed. The only potential trade‐off associated with rapid adaptation to lentil was a modest increase in the time required to develop in the ancestral host, mung bean. Reciprocal crosses between a lentil‐adapted line (F10) and a mung‐bean line produced offspring with intermediate survival, very long development times, and small size. Although the Asian population has been kept under uniform laboratory conditions for more than 200 generations, it appears to maintain rare alleles that permit the colonization of an extremely poor host. Such standing genetic variation can account for the sporadic appearance of unusual 'biotypes' among herbivorous insects.


Background: Aspect-oriented programming (AOP) is an emerging programming paradigm whose focus is about improving modularity, with an emphasis on the modularization of crosscutting concerns.
Objective: The goal of this paper is to assess the extent to which an AOP language -ObjectTeams/Java (OT/J) -improves the modularity of a software system. This improvement has been claimed but, to the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first attempting to present quantitative evidence of it.
Method: We compare functionally-equivalent implementations of the Gang-of-Four design patterns, developed in Java and OT/J, using software metrics.
Results: The results of our comparison support the modularity improvement claims made in the literature. For six of the seven metrics used, the OT/J versions of the patterns obtained significantly better results.
Limitations: This work uses a set of metrics originally defined for object-oriented (OO) systems. It may be the case that the metrics are biased, in that they were created in the context of OO programming (OOP), before the advent of AOP. We consider this comparison a stepping stone as, ultimately, we plan to assess the modularity improvements with paradigm independent metrics, which will conceivably eliminate the bias. Each individual example from the sample used in this paper is small. In future, we plan to replicate this experiment using larger systems, where the benefits of AOP may be more noticeable.
Conclusion: This work contributes with evidence to fill gaps in the body of quantitative results supporting alleged benefits to software modularity brought by AOP languages, namely OT/J.


The self-organization of cells into a living organism is a very intricate process. Under the surface of orchestrating regulatory networks there are physical processes which make the information processing possible, that is required to organize such a multitude of individual entities. We use a quantitative information theoretic approach to assess self-organization of a collective system. In particular we consider an interacting particle system, that roughly mimics biological cells by exhibiting differential adhesion behavior. Employing techniques related to shape analysis, we show that these systems in most cases exhibit self-organization. Moreover, we consider spatial constraints of interactions, and additionaly show that particle systems can self-organize without the emergence of pattern-like structures. However, we will see that regular pattern-like structures help to overcome limitations of self-organization that are imposed by the spatial structure of interactions.


The Laboratory Manual To Accompany Hacker Techniques, Tools, And Incident Handling Is The Lab Companion To Sean-Philip Oriyano's Text, Hacker Techniques, Tools, And Incident Handling. It Provides Hands-On Exercises Using The Jones & Bartlett Learning Virtual Security Cloud Labs, That Provide Real-World Experience With Measurable Learning Outcomes. About The Series Visit Www.Issaseries.Com For A Complete Look At The Series! The Jones & Bartlett Learning Information System & Assurance Series Delivers Fundamental IT Security Principles Packed With Real-World Applications And Examples For IT Security, Cybersecurity, Information Assurance, And Information Systems Security Programs. Authored By Certified Information Systems Security Professionals (Cissps), And Reviewed By Leading Technical Experts In The Field, These Books Are Current, Forward-Thinking Resources That Enable Readers To Solve The Cybersecurity Challenges Of Today And Tomorrow.


The Digital Twin (DT) is a promising concept which aims at creating a virtual replica of an individual system, that can provide information otherwise not available. This paper presents a DT of a vertical transportation system, focusing on how to model this DT, and using it to evaluate the system condition and potential corrective solutions. Exploiting the advantages of object-oriented modeling, this DT has been built ensuring that it may be dynamically adapted to different monitoring scenarios. Moreover, its adaptability is tested showing that reduced models behave similarly. The resulting reduced models are used to estimate installation parameters in a bottom-up way, using the measurements of a scaled test bench. The estimated parameters are used to update a high-fidelity model and simulate the effect of corrective actions.


This paper studies why PhDs in France take longer to find stable jobs than engineers. Using data from CEREQ's "Generation 2004" survey, we show that job finding rates of PhDs are lower than those of engineers and document the differences in their observable characteristics and fields of study. We show that this phenomenon is due to multiple factors: heterogeneity in student characteristics along observable (but not unobservable) dimensions and fields of study, directed search toward public sector positions (especially professors) among PhDs and reservation wages of PhDs for private sector jobs that are "too high" relative to their value of marginal product.


A comparative evaluation of several pitch determination algorithms (PDAs) is presented. Fundamental frequency estimates, F0, are compared with laryngeal frequency estimates , Lx. An algorithm is presented which enables Lx contours to be generated from laryngograph data. We seek the most accurate method of F0 extraction in order to minimise errors propagating into subsequent prosodic analysis. The super resolution pitch determinator 3] performs well relative to the other PDAs studied. Modiica-tions made to this algorithm are described, which radically reduce the number of gross F0 errors and improve the clas-siication of voiced and unvoiced sections of speech. The raw F0 contours produced by this enhanced algorithm are processed to form schematised contours used in computer aided intonation teaching. The series of processes used in the schematisation is described.


The advent of ubiquitous computing and proliferation of portable computing devices have raised the importance of mobile and wireless networking. A major challenge lies in adapting multicast communication to environments where mobility is unlimited and failures are frequent. This paper investigates the performance of multicast routing protocols aimed specifically at fully Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANET), the multicast protocol studied in this work are, On-Demand Multicast Routing Protocols (ODMRP), Adaptive Demand Driven Multicast Routing Protocol (ADMR) and Flooding in different mobility conditions e.g. Uniform, Manhattan, Exhibition, Random way point and Battlefield. This paper demonstrates that difference in protocol mechanics and different mobility patterns lead to performance differentials.


Social media allow consumers to easily share positive or negative information about a brand with other consumers, for instance, through Twitter. Such Twitter use is a source of information that may affect the brand reputation. Therefore, it is important to gain more understanding of how Twitter is employed to evaluate brands and to communicate these evaluations with others. Previous research on Twitter use has shown that tweets about brands are more likely to be positive than negative. The present study integrates an agenda-setting perspective with studies on word of mouth and services marketing, which have suggested that this finding may be different for services than for goods. A quantitative content analysis of 1,920 Dutch tweets for 24 different brands was performed. The analysis showed that services received significantly more negative sentiment tweets than products. Implications of these results for monitoring consumers are discussed.


An International brand, APLI label office product entered Indonesian market as a premium product. Cooperate with the local company to market in any channel; force them to always create the best way to get close to the customer. This research uses quantitative data to analyze the problems using SEM from the AMOS statistic software package. The result shows that advertising and selling promotion give the biggest contribution to the repeat buying intention, means that the company should pay more attention to that important factor. To have more detail information, the readers are welcome to read this report, and the writer hopes this FAR could give useful contribution for any parties who concerns about the essential thing in the marketing world.


Entitlement conditions are a little explored dimension of unemployment insurance (UI) schemes. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive evaluation of a reform that softened the minimum employment record condition to qualify for UI benefits in France after 2009. Using administrative panel data matching employment and unemployment spells, we first provide clear evidence that the reform induced a separation response at the eligibility threshold. It appears both at the micro level – through a jump in transitions from employment to unemployment – and at the macro level – through the scheduling of shorter contracts, in line with the new eli- gibility requirements. Exploiting the reform as well as relevant sample restrictions, we then estimate the effects of receiving UI benefits on subsequent labour market outcomes using a regression discontinuity design. Our findings point to a large negative impact of UI benefits receipt on employment probability up to 21 months after meeting the eligibility criterion, which is not counterbalanced by an increase in job quality.


INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Recently, SuperPulse Thulium (Tm) fiber laser (NPO IRE-Polus) with wavelength of 1.94 µm was introduced as a promising lithotripsy tool. In preclinical study, we have found its efficacy to be higher than the leading Ho:YAG laser for fragmentation (x1.7 times) and dusting (x2.3 to 4 times) for equal energy and repetition rate settings. In this work, we report results of the on-going clinical study aimed at comprehensive evaluation of safety and efficacy of the new laser. METHODS: The SuperPulse Tm fiber laser device has been cleared for clinical use by the Ministry of Health of Russian Federation and the protocol has been approved by the institutional Ethical Review committee. We prospectively analyzed 268 patients (173 kidney, 80 ureteral, 15 bladder stones) who underwent SuperPulse Tm fiber laser lithotripsy. Stone size, its density, operative and aser on time (LOT) were measured. Based on surgeon's feedback, retropulsion and intraoperative visibility were assessed. RESULTS: For kidney stones, the average size was 11.4 mm (7–25 mm), for ureteral stones 7.6 mm (3–18 mm), for bladder stones 22.2 mm (9–36 mm). The average stone density for kidney stones was 987 HU (330–1960 HU), for ureteral stones - 995 HU (460–1700 HU), for bladder stones 980 HU (860–1050 HU). The average time to complete renal stone fragmentation (to dust or small fragments) was 27.2 min, for ureteral stones 17.1 min, for bladder stones 19 min. LOT was 24.3; 12.7 and 14.5 min for kidney, ureter and bladder stones, respectively. The retropulsion was insignificant in all cases with energy level less than 0.5 J. Visibility was estimated as optimal by surgeons in most cases. Fragmentation mode with energy level 2 to 5J and repetition rate 5-10 Hz was most suitable for bladder stone disintegration. Overall, the settings of 0.1-0.2J/15-30W; 0.2-0.5J/10-15W and 2-5J/30-50W were identified as optimal for kidney (dusting), ureter (dusting and fragmentation), and bladder (fragmentation) stones, respectively. No urinary tract injuries and optic or working channel damages were observed. There were no complications graded higher then IIIa according to Clavien-Dindo classification in this cohort. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the analysis of data on 268 subjects available today, the SuperPulse Tm fiber laser is safe and efficacious for all types of urinary stones in all relevant anatomic locations. Source of Funding: none


The aim of this study was to investigate the ameliorative effect of Broccoli against lead acetate (PbA) hepatotoxicity by some physiological and histological indicators. The results showed that intraperitoneal (I.P.) injection by 12 mg/kg body weight of lead acetate once a week for 8 weeks led to an increase in the activity of Glutamate pyruvate transaminase (GPT), Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (GOT), Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Acid phosphatase (ACP), Total serum protein (TP) and Total serum bilirubin (TSB). Liver's histological sections of lead acetate injected rats showed infiltration of inflammatory cells with sinusoid dilation, necrosis, and apoptosis of Kupffer cells. Broccoli has an ameliorative effect, that the physiological parameters and histological examination have been showed an improvement. In conclusion, lead acetate produces hepatic disorder and the potential use of Broccoli as a source of natural antioxidants or nutraceuticals protects against lead acetate hepatic toxicity.


AbstractAutosomal recessive interleukin (IL)-12 p40 (IL-12p40) deficiency is a rare genetic etiology of Mendelian susceptibility to mycobacterial disease (MSMD). We report the genetic, immunologic, and clinical features of 49 patients from 30 kindreds originating from 5 countries (India, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia). There are only 9 different mutant alleles of the IL12B gene: 2 small insertions, 3 small deletions, 2 splice site mutations, and 1 large deletion, each causing a frameshift and leading to a premature stop codon, and 1 nonsense mutation. Four of these 9 variants are recurrent, affecting 25 of the 30 reported kindreds, due to founder effects in specific countries. All patients are homozygous and display complete IL-12p40 deficiency. As a result, the patients lack detectable IL-12p70 and IL-12p40 and have low levels of interferon gamma (IFN-&ggr;). The clinical features are characterized by childhood onset of bacille Calmette-Guérin (attenuated Mycobacterium bovis strain) (BCG) and Salmonella infections, with recurrences of salmonellosis (36.4%) more common than recurrences of mycobacterial disease (25%). BCG vaccination led to BCG disease in 40 of the 41 patients vaccinated (97.5%). Multiple mycobacterial infections were rare, observed in only 3 patients, whereas the association of salmonellosis and mycobacteriosis was observed in 9 patients. A few other infections were diagnosed, including chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis (n = 3), nocardiosis (n = 2), and klebsiellosis (n = 1). IL-12p40 deficiency has a high but incomplete clinical penetrance, with 33.3% of genetically affected relatives of index cases showing no symptoms. However, the prognosis is poor, with mortality rates of up to 28.6%. Overall, the clinical phenotype of IL-12p40 deficiency closely resembles that of interleukin 12 receptor &bgr;1 (IL-12R&bgr;1) deficiency.In conclusion, IL-12p40 deficiency is more common than initially thought and should be considered worldwide in patients with MSMD and other intramacrophagic infectious diseases, salmonellosis in particular.


The uprising demands for electrical power and electrification requires advanced dielectric functionalities including high capacitance density, high energy density, high current handling capability, high voltage, high temperature, high thermal conductivity, light weight, and environmental reliability. Nanodielectric engineering emerges and attracts extensive efforts from many countries as a result. Unlike prior reviews focusing on lab scale nanocomposite study, this review focuses on recent innovations in polymer‐based nanodielectric design on a large scale and their film scale‐up efforts for advanced capacitors. The unconventional polymer‐nanofiller engineering and their process in the last two decades are discussed. The nanofunctionalized polymers on a molecular level for high dielectric constants and high dielectric strength are briefly described. The challenge associated with film scale‐up and retention of nanodielectric properties are then pointed out to be crucial toward a transfer of dielectric and capacitor technology. Several important attempts at scaling up dielectric films and capacitors recently supported by the US government and industry are reviewed. An alternative strategic approach to achieving high performance polymer films is introduced by leveraging 2D surface coating on commercially mature large‐scale polymer films. Future pathways for high quality scalable dielectric films exhibiting desirable dielectric properties and feasibility for capacitor manufacturing are suggested.


Transfusion of blood components is a common and essential part of clinical care; however it is also an area in which evidence to inform practice is lacking, where understanding of current practice is limited and where effects on patient outcomes remain unclear. Transfusion is different from other medical interventions in that its provision relies on donations by non-remunerated volunteers, and the short shelf life of blood products mean that supply must be closely aligned to clinical demand. For these reasons, improved understanding of transfusion practice is required to ensure both optimal use of this limited resource and our ongoing ability to meet clinical demand as our population changes. The research presented in this thesis was designed to explore whether existing sources of routinely and systematically collected data, if linked appropriately, could be used to inform health care policy. The work focused on three areas: cardiac surgery (CS), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and overall clinical red blood cell (RBC) demand. CS was included due to its high use of blood products, the requirement for standardisation of practice, the need for data to inform clinical studies and the availability of an established national registry. MDS was included due to the need for improved population-level data on disease burden and transfusion requirements. Overall clinical RBC demand was selected, as there is a clear requirement for improved data and modelling to assist governments and blood services in clinical supply and contingency planning. The Australian and New Zealand Society of Cardiac and Thoracic Surgeons national CS registry was linked with laboratory information system data to identify predictors for bleeding and transfusion in CS, develop predictive models of RBC transfusion to monitor risk-adjusted transfusion rates, and to evaluate effects of universal leucodepletion in Australian CS patients. To investigate transfusion practice in MDS, the Victorian Admitted Episode Dataset, containing information on all hospital admissions within Victorian hospitals, was linked with the Victorian Cancer Registry. The main findings were a higher incidence of MDS compared with cancer registry reports alone, an increase in hospitalisations with RBC transfusion during the study period, and the association of end organ complications with chronic transfusion. The research highlighted the limitations of cancer registry data for monitoring disease burden in MDS, and the value in linking cancer registry with other population-level data to provide information on healthcare utilisation and patterns of blood use over time. Various data sources that contained information about the indication and urgency of requirement for transfusion were combined to develop a model of RBC clinical demand, which allowed exploration of how triage strategies in shortages of different durations may affect overall RBC use. In the scenario of a 21-day shortage, deferral of transfusion for the least urgent RBC category and elective surgery resulted in only an approximate 10% reduction in RBC demand. The findings of this research provide new information on current Australian transfusion practice, predictors for transfusion and clinical demand for RBCs. This methodology could also be applied to other clinical areas with established national clinical outcome registries or with population-level data.


"An experiment with liquid nitrogen gave anomalous results, I proposed proton-ordered ice had contracted to accommodate water molecules' irregular tetrahedral shape. Recent reports of ice XIc at 72 K, below the ferroelectric transition temperature, confirmed it. Temperature fluctuations on primordial Earth's poles released ice XIc's latent energy as ~4 m infrared laser light. After reflection by ice in clouds and on Earth's surface, it energized deoxynucleotides, turning Darwin's warm tropical waters to DNA noodle soup.
"tRNA analogues, transport DNAs lined proto-cell membrane pores with H-bonds. Laser light drove a ratchet pump mechanism, concentrating substrates and promoting synthetic reactions within. Replicate t-DNAs marked life's origin. They elude detection, chromosomal DNA masks ~2,000/cell. A report of DNA particles around the entry of sperm to ovum might be verified. Differentiation DNAs selecting tDNAs determine tissue cell diet and metabolism, c.f. mRNAs selecting tRNAs for protein synthesis. Adequate trace elements tDNAs employ govern survival.
"Twenty-one flat protein hairpins bind 189 base-pairs forming a ring, nine rings complete a minion. Minions pack chromosomes and ensure error-free replication. Their roles as biological clocks and chips in the brain explain psychology. Computers modeled on them promise human-friendly intelligence. They control nine metabolic pathways, predating enzyme synthesis. Adequate trace element nutrition promises better mental and physical health and longevity, public assurance of their safety is vital.
"ATP's Pi~Pi bond stores~4 m wavelength energy, e.g. sarcomeres form ½-wave resonant cavities for muscle contraction. Oscillating H-bond chains accelerate protons along adjacent minion tunnels fast enough to fuse with obstructing nuclei. Trapping the g-rays released could provide clean power, resolving global warming. My proposals restore the simplicity and public trust in science prevailing c 1900 AD, reinterpreting quantum weirdness and cosmology would redirect funds to conservation, humanitarian projects and diplomacy, ensuring a happy future."


The paper discusses and suggests alternative methodological paradigms to approach the problem "marketing to nonmarketers". First, the paper describes the issue of "marketing to nonmarketers" and proposes the purpose of this article. Then it presents methodological issues in management science and describes four major research paradigms: the logico-positivist/empiricist paradigm, constructivism, critical theory, and the pluralist paradigm. Finally, it concludes that pluralist approach will benefit and enrich both the management science and non-profit field. Using as a case methodological development of nonprofit marketing concept and followed controversy over "marketing to nonmarketers" controversy paper traces evolution of the issue in context of research methodology. Paper concludes that traditional approach it based on logico-positivist paradigm. Article suggests adaptation of alternative methodological approaches and research paradigms to approach the problem "marketing to nonmarketers".


This paper examines the potential role of metaphors in helping healthcare professionals to communicate honestly with patients and in helping patients gain a richer and more nuanced understanding of what is being explained. One of the ways in which doctors and nurses may intentionally, or unintentionally, avoid telling the truth to patients is either by using metaphors that obscure the truth or by failing to deploy appropriately powerful and revealing metaphors in their discussions. This failure to tell the truth may partly account for the observation by clinicians that patients sometimes make decisions that, from the perspective of their clinician, and given all that the clinician knows, seem unwise. For example, patients with advanced cancer may choose to undergo further, aggressive, treatment despite the fact that they are likely to accrue little or no benefit as a result. While acknowledging that the immediate task of telling patients the truth can be difficult for all those concerned, I argue that the long-term consequences of denying patients autonomy at the end of life can be harmful to patients and can leave doctors and nurses distressed and confused.


This paper investigates the empirical relevance of both the hysteresis and the natural rate hypothesis on unemployment in three major economies, namely the UK, the US and Japan, by estimating the degree of dependence in the unemployment series. Both univariate and multivariate long memory methods are used. The results vary depending on whether the former or the latter approach is followed. Specifically, when taking a univariate approach, the unit root null cannot be rejected in case of the UK and Japanese unemployment series, and some degree of mean reversion (d < 1) is found in the case of the US unemployment rate. When applying multivariate methods instead, higher orders of integration are still found for the UK and Japanese series, but the natural rate hypothesis cannot be rejected in the case of the US.


Genocide and ethnic cleansing have alltoo-clearly demonstrated the dangers of failing to protect minority groups. A "kin-state" with strong ethnic, cultural, religious or linguistic links to a minority population abroad, may be well-placed to assist in its protection. But unilateral interference by kin-states can raise tensions with host-states, endangering international peace and security. If a state neglects its primary responsibility to protect minorities under its jurisdiction, the subsidiary responsibility lies with the international community as a whole, not the kinstate in particular. Kin-state interest in minorities abroad must be pursued through constructive engagement, rather than unilateral interference. At the same time, international and regional organizations must build domestic state capacity while strengthening the tools and political will to deliver timely collective responses when states fail in their responsibilities. Bilateral and multilateral mechanisms alike can counter nationalist rhetoric and policies by emphasising that a diverse, well integrated society is in the interest of both the majority and minorities.


In this paper, an analysis of images of the retinal fundus by means of a combination of soft-computing techniques is carried out in order to extract from blood vessels their bifurcation and crossover points. These retinal features are unique for each individual and therefore they are useful for a successive process of personal identification. In particular, the implemented method is based on four steps. In the first step, a pre-processing of the input image by using, in sequence, several filters is carried out: the retinal image is processed by means of pixel to pixel elaboration algorithms to obtain a black and white image representing the template of retinal veins and arteries. In the second step, applying to the so obtained image a genetic algorithm, the edges' template is extracted. To this point, in the third step, the method continues with a skeleton process of the contours making use of an empirical algorithm. Finally, in the last step, the goal is caught up by characterising the searched points by means of a tracking algorithm.


Abstract
This chapter is based on a self-study of teacher education practices (S-STEP) project that explored the pedagogical practices of a teacher educator and the impact of such practices on a teacher candidate engaged in the process of becoming a translingual teacher. This S-STEP study includes David, a professor in a teacher education program in the greater New York City metropolitan area, and Mary, a teacher candidate enrolled in the program. The purpose of the study was to discover how different class activities influenced the philosophical and pedagogical views of one teacher candidate in the program. The following are the two research questions of the study:

How did the class experiences that a teacher education professor, David, designed help teacher candidates conceptualize translingual approach to language and literacy development?

How did a monolingual teacher candidate, Mary, develop her role as a translingual English teacher through the completion of these experiences?

The findings of this S-STEP project demonstrate that the Sociocultural Reflection, the Community Study, and the Linguistic Landscape fostered a translingual approach to language and literacy in the classroom. Moreover, the findings suggest that upon the completion of the projects, one teacher education candidate was able to better define translingualism as a phenomenon of study, ideology, and pedagogy.

Since this investigation is based on a S-STEP project of a single teacher educator and a single teacher candidate, more research with larger populations is needed. Practical implications for teacher educators and teacher candidates in other settings are explored.


This paper reviews the studies of solar photospheric magnetic field evolution in active regions and its relationship to solar flares. It is divided into two topics, the magnetic structure and evolution leading to solar eruptions and rapid changes in the photospheric magnetic field associated with eruptions. For the first topic, we describe the magnetic complexity, new flux emergence, flux cancelation, shear motions, sunspot rotation and magnetic helicity injection, which may all contribute to the storage and buildup of energy that trigger solar eruptions. For the second topic, we concentrate on the observations of rapid and irreversible changes of the photospheric magnetic field associated with flares, and the implication on the restructuring of the three-dimensional magnetic field. In particular, we emphasize the recent advances in observations of the photospheric magnetic field, as state-of-the-art observing facilities (such as Hinode and Solar Dynamics Observatory) have become available. The linkages between observations, theories and future prospectives in this research area are also discussed.


High-tech development—which lies at the very heart of the processes of economic growth—has been recognised by many developed and developing countries as a strategic instrument to enhance and sustain their competitiveness in the global economic network. Although the concept of high-tech development differs between countries, many share the underlying assumption that the core of high-tech development is to create a sound environment where innovation thrives. This ideology implies a definite spatial dimension. As a result, various spatial strategies have been formulated and implemented to support high-tech development. This has had intentional and unintentional effects on the economy, society and space. Numerous studies have been devoted to exploring, analysing and theorising this global phenomenon. However, there has been less attention given to the role spatial planning may play in the process of high-tech development and to the factors that shape the spatial planning approaches to high-tech development in a particular place. The major objectives of this research are to advance the knowledge of the role of spatial planning in the process of high-tech development, and to establish an analytical framework that helps reveal the major institutional factors that shape spatial planning mechanisms for dealing with the spatial issues of high-tech development in different places. This contributes to the field of high-tech spatial policies transfer and lesson-drawing. In order to explore the major factors that shape the practices of spatial planning in hightech development, a comparative approach is applied in this research. The Eindhoven city-region in the Netherlands and the Hsinchu city-region in Taiwan are selected as case study areas. Both city-regions can be recognised as success stories of high-tech development not only on a national scale but also on a global scale, despite the fact that they apply different approaches. In the Eindhoven city-region, the governments act as supporters and governors. High-tech development in the city-region is a result of close collaboration between different levels of government and other parties. In contrast, in the Hsinchu city-region the governments act as providers in high-tech development. By critically reviewing relevant literature, the research begins with the identification of principal components of high-tech development and their spatial dimensions, and with the establishment of a set of comparative frameworks, which are built upon the concepts of institutionalism and previous comparative studies of spatial planning systems. On the basis of the frameworks, the comparative study is conducted. Four major conclusions are drawn in this research. First, R&D capital, relational capital and human capital can be identified as the principal components of high-tech development, but the conception of the principal components is not static. It may change through time and space, and be influenced by contemporary technological development and dominant discourses about high-tech development. Additionally, how governments in a particular place conceptualise the principal components will influence the content of their strategies for high-tech development. Second, how governments in a particular place use their spatial planning system and tools to conduct, facilitate and/or coordinate the development of high-tech spaces is influenced by the socio-political context (e.g. model of society, administration system and conceptualisation of rights in land), conceptualisation of the principal components, dominant style of spatial planning, but also by their historical roots and contemporary technological capacities. At the city-regional level, the particular culture characteristics and historical experience of a city-region also have effects on the approach to spatial governance. Third, it is common that governments recognise the necessity of collaborating with knowledge institutes and high-tech firms in the process of high-tech spatial development, because they have access to a wide range of know-how and crucial resources. The creation of new institutional arenas to invite institutes and firms to participate in the process of decision-making is a good strategy for governments, although they must assure that the decision-making process is transparent and accountable, and meets the principles of social justice. Finally, the two cases have shown that a successful high-tech spatial development would have spatial effects on the surrounding areas, such as traffic congestion, imbalance between land supply and demand for housing and/or industrial land, and so on. It is necessary to anticipate and monitor continuously the externalities of the development from a more comprehensive perspective and to leave room for adjustment to the spatial planning and governance approaches. The analytical framework built upon the institutional concepts of Ostrom and Scharpf worked well in this research, but in the process of conducting the empirical study I found that the framework of institutional analysis I established for the empirical study implied a temporarily fixed situation for analysis. Such a framework did create an easier situation for analysis, but proved difficult to use to investigate and explain the dynamic interrelationships between the changing institutional contexts and the decision making of high-tech spatial planning at a specific place and time. While considering this limitation, I adopted a diachronic approach to complement the empirical study of part three, in order to understand the influences of prior institutional developments and specific episodes on later policy/decision making and action taking. In the future, if other studies consider applying the frameworks of this research, the effect of historical path dependency has to be taken into consideration.


Given the protracted nature of the crisis in Syria, the large caseload of Syrian refugee patients with non-communicable diseases, and the high costs of providing non-communicable disease care, implications for Lebanon's health system are vast.To provide a profile of the health status of diabetes and hypertension patients enrolled in a longitudinal cohort study in Lebanon.A longitudinal cohort study was implemented from January 2015 through August 2016 to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment guidelines and an mHealth application on the quality of care and health outcomes for patients in primary health care facilities in Lebanon offering low-cost services serving both Syrian refugees and Lebanese host communities. This paper presents baseline characteristics of enrolled patients, providing an overall health status profile.Among participants, 11.5% of patients with hypertension and 9.7% of patients with diabetes were previously undiagnosed. Quality of care, measured as the proportion of patients with biometrics reported and whose condition is controlled, is less than ideal and varied by geographic location. Controlled blood pressure measurements were observed in 64.2% of patients with hypertension; HbA1C values indicated diabetes control in 43.5% of the patients.Differences in diagnostic history and disease control between Syrian and Lebanese patients and across geographic regions were observed, which could be applied to inform strategies aimed at improving diagnosis and quality of care for hypertension and diabetes in primary care settings in Lebanon.


Modeling diversity of sets of items is important in many applications such as product recommendation and data summarization. Probabilistic submodular models, a family of models including the determinantal point process, form a natural class of distributions, encouraging eects such as diversity, repulsion and coverage. Current models, however, are limited to small and medium number of items due to the high time complexity for learning and inference. In this paper, we propose FLID, a novel log-submodular diversity model that scales to large numbers of items and can be eciently learned using noise contrastive estimation. We show that our model achieves state of the art performance in terms of model t, but can be also learned orders of magnitude faster. We demonstrate the wide applicability of our model using several experiments.


World and UK energy resources and use are reviewed and the role of energy conservation in energy policy identified. In considering various energy conservation measures, a distinction is made between energy intensive and non-intensive industries and also between direct and indirect uses of energy. Particular attention is given to the non-intensive user of energy. Energy use on one such industrial site has been studied to determine the most effective energy saving measures in the short term. Here it is estimated that over 65% of energy is consumed for indirect purposes, mainly for heating and lighting buildings. Emphasis is placed on energy auditing techniques and those energy saving measures requiring greater technical, economic and organisational resources to secure their implementation. Energy auditing techniques include the use of aerial thermography and snow formation surveys to detect heat losses. Qualitative and quantitative interpretations are carried out, but restricted mainly to evaluating building roof heat losses. From the energy auditing exercise, it is confirmed that the intermittent heating of buildings is the largest and most cost effective fuel saving measure. This was implemented on the site and a heat monitoring programme established to verify results. Industrial combined heat and power generation is investigated. A proposal for the site demonstrates that there are several obstacles to its successful implementation. By adopting an alternative financial rationale, a way of overcoming these obstacles is suggested. A useful by-product of the study is the classification of industrial sites according to the nature of industrial energy demand patterns. Finally, energy saving measures implemented on the site are quantlfied using comparative verification methods. Overall fuel savings of 13% are indicated. Cumulative savings in heating fuel amount to 26% over four years although heated area increased by approximately 25%.


Exploring the Antibacterial, Antioxidant, and Anticancer Properties of Lichen Metabolites Gajendra Shrestha Department of Biology, BYU Doctor of Philosophy Natural products have been a significant source of new drugs, especially in treating cancer, infectious diseases, hypertension, and neurological disorders. Although many natural metabolites have been screened and yielded pharmaceutically important drugs, many potential sources of natural product drug therapies still need to be investigated, including lichens. Lichens are symbiotic systems consisting of a filamentous fungus and a photosynthetic partner (an eukaryotic alga and/or cyanobacterium). Lichens produce an impressive variety of unique secondary compounds and have been used as ingredients in folk medicines for centuries. Demonstrated biological roles based on lichen chemistry include: antibiotics, anti-proliferative, antioxidants, anti-HIV, anti-cancer, immunomodulation, and anti-protozoans. Although North America is home to an impressive variety of lichen species, there is limited research to examine the biological potentials of these lichens. The core goal of this dissertation research has been to investigate some of the biological roles including, antibiotic, antioxidant, and anticancer potentials using lichen crude extracts and their metabolites collected from various locations in the United States. Antibiotic screening of crude extracts of 36 lichen species demonstrated inhibitory effects against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Methicillinresistant S. aureus (MRSA). Generally, acetone extractions were found to be more effective than methanol extractions. It has also been shown that L. vulpina extract was bacteriocidal against MRSA with a relatively slow kill rate that disrupts cell membrane integrity and cell division as possible modes of action. Antioxidant screening of extracts from 11 lichen species, using the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) assay, showed that lichen extracts inhibited the oxidative degradation of the fluorescent molecule (fluorescein-sodium salt) by the oxygen free radical initiator AAPH (2,2'-azobis(2-aminidopropane) dihydrochloride Acetone extracts as well as pure compounds from lichen species showed cytotoxic effects against Burkitt's lymphoma (Raji) cells and a colon cancer cell line (HT29 and SW620). They decreased proliferation, arrested cell cycle at various stages and force the cell to undergo apoptosis. The tested extracts or pure compounds were not toxic to normal cells. In colon cancer apoptosis took place independent of casapase-3. The results of this dissertation showed that lichen compounds merits for further investigation.