Pre-harvest pod-shattering in Brassica napus (Oilseed Rape) is a serious agricultural and economic problem, with losses of 11-25% reported (Price et al., 1996) resulting in lost revenues of an estimated £66 million per annum for the U.K. alone. Reductions in this loss will provide benefits for both society and the environment. Lines from a doubled haploid B. napus mapping population, segregating for Pod Shatter Resistance (PSR), termed POSH 1-3 exhibited a range of shatter resistance phenotypes. A Random Impact Test (RIT) was used to measure the difference between levels of PSR in population lines. An assessment of pod physiology among these lines revealed that PSR is associated with increases in the amount of vasculature and changes in vascular orientation as reported in the resistant DK142 parent line (Child et al.2003). PSR was also found to result from differences in degradation of a key tissue required for valve separation in both B. napus and Arabidopsis. A genetic linkage map has been produced for the population and includes a number of candidate gene markers with established roles in fruit development in Arabidopsis. The linkage map was used as a basis to perform a QTL analysis where a number of loci associated with increases in PSR in B. napus have been identified. Genetic markers linked to these loci could provide a valuable tool for marker assisted selection (MAS) to improve pre-harvest pod shatter in B. napus. A novel assay has also been developed to investigate differences in PSR between Arabidopsis ecotypes. Shatter resistant ecotypes have been identified within the accessions tested. This could enable the differences between the model and crop species to be compared to assess if factors regulating such traits are conserved. This may also provide insight into new candidates to modulate preharvest pod shatter for agronomic improvement of Brassica species.


State fiscal conditions continued to improve in 2012, although many state budgets have not recovered to prerecession levels. Revenues from corporate income taxes remain down nearly 25 percent over 2008 levels when adjusted for inflation. Between 2008 and 2012, three states—Illinois, Oregon and West Virginia—raised corporate income tax rates, while five states— Kentucky, New York, North Dakota, Massachusetts and Maryland—lowered rates. During this same time period, states had to rely less on corporate income taxes in their general fund budgets; revenue from those taxes are estimated to make up about 6.4 percent of general fund revenue in 2012, lower than the 7.6 percent they comprised in 2008.


Polarization in social media networks is a fact in several scenarios such as political debates and other contexts such as same-sex marriage, abortion and gun control. Understanding and quantifying polarization is a long-term challenge to researchers from several areas, also being a key information for tasks such as opinion analysis. In this paper, we perform a systematic comparison between social networks that arise from both polarized and non-polarized contexts. This comparison shows that the traditional polarization metric -modularity - is not a direct measure of antagonism between groups, since non-polarized networks may be also divided into fairly modular communities. To bridge this conceptual gap, we propose a novel polarization metric based on the analysis of the boundary of a pair of (potentially polarized) communities, which better captures the notions of antagonism and polarization. We then characterize polarized and non-polarized social networks according to the concentration of high-degree nodes in the boundary of communities, and found that polarized networks tend to exhibit low concentration of popular nodes along the boundary. To demonstrate the usefulness of our polarization measures, we analyze opinions expressed on Twitter on the gun control issue in the United States, and conclude that our novel metrics help making sense of opinions expressed on online media.


This paper reviews the main lessons from existing social protection programmes in low-income countries for the development of social protection in these countries. It is taken for granted that introducing social protection in low income countries is that much harder due to constraints arising from underdevelopment, fragmented political and policy processes, reduced tax base, and weak administrative capacity. The paper examines existing social protection programmes in order to illuminate on the strength of these constraints, and the nature of potential remedies. The paper concludes that the experience of low-income countries shows there are many policy options available to them. It also concludes that while deficits in finance and operational capacity are much less tractable, global partnerships can work effectively to lift these constraints.


Post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) stars are key objects for the study of the dramatic morphological changes of low- to intermediate-mass stars on their evolution from the AGB towards the planetary nebula stage. There is growing evidence that binary interaction processes may very well have a determining role in the shaping process of many objects, but so far direct evidence is still weak. We aim at a systematic study of the dust distribution around a large sample of post-AGB stars as a probe of the symmetry breaking in the nebulae around these systems. We used imaging in the mid-infrared to study the inner part of these evolved stars to probe direct emission from dusty structures in the core of post-AGB stars in order to better understand their shaping mechanisms. We imaged a sample of 93 evolved stars and nebulae in the mid-infrared using VLT spectrometer and imager for the mid-infrared (VISIR)/VLT, T-Recs/Gemini-South and Michelle/Gemini-North. We found that all the proto-planetary nebulae we resolved show a clear departure from spherical symmetry. 59 out of the 93 observed targets appear to be non-resolved. The resolved targets can be divided into two categories. (i) The nebulae with a dense central core, that are either bipolar and multipolar and (ii) the nebulae with no central core, with an elliptical morphology. The dense central torus observed likely hosts binary systems which triggered fast outflows that shaped the nebulae.


Gebze has gained its industrial identity by the decentralization of industrial firms from Istanbul throughout the years and become one of the most important industrial centers in Turkey. But recently, transformation of industrial areas has come to the urban agenda in Gebze. In this context, the aim is to decentralize the industrial areas and to transform into qualified residential - urban facility areas. There are numerous examples of transformation of industrial areas in Istanbul and in other major cities in the literature. The area in Gebze (D-100 Road and its immediate surroundings), however, is a special case for including active manufacturing units and for the size of its scale. Such transformation will modify not only the industrial facility areas but also the social structure, production relations in the industry and employment structure in the region. Thus, the regional industry is expected to transform into high technology sectors. "The Information Valley" is about to established in addition to existing research institutions such as Gebze Technical University, GTU-TEKMER, TUBITAK-MAM and also GOSB Technopark. This area has been declared as a "special project zone" in various urban and regional planning documents but the priority of such transformation on the other hand has not been clarified yet. The purpose of this study is to discuss the effects of urban transformation offered as a real estate development project on the city of Gebze. Following the introduction chapter presenting a theoretical framework for urban transformation, the second chapter reviews planning documents and compares foresights about Gebze. Interviews with the Chamber of Commerce and other local actors are presented in the third chapter. This chapter is organized in three headings. These are effects on production relations, modification of the labor structure and social vulnerabilities. The final chapter presents evaluations and recommendations for policy makers. It is important to demonstrate positive and negative aspects of possible effects of urban transformation on Gebze and to create an environment of discussion which ensures participation of local players. It is not possible to succeed in such a large scale transformation without the contributions of local actors.


We review recent results of SPH simulations of gravitational instability in gaseous protoplanetary disks,emphasizing the role of thermodynamics in both isolated and binary systems. Contradictory results appeared in the literature regarding disk fragmentation at tens of AU from the central star are likely due to the different treatment of radiation physics as well as reflecting different initial conditions. Further progress on the subject requires extensive comparisons between different codes with the requirement that the same initial conditions are adopted. It is discussed how the local conditions of the disks undergoing fragmentation at $R < 25$ AU in recent SPH simulations are in rough agreement with the prediction of analytical models, with small differences being likely related to the inability of analytical models to account for the dynamics and thermodynamics of three-dimensional spiral shocks. We report that radically different adaptive hydrodynamical codes, SPH and adaptive mesh refinement (AMR), yield very similar results on disk fragmentation at comparable resolution in the simple case of an isothermal equation of state. A high number of refinements in AMR codes is necessary but not sufficient to correctly follow fragmentation, rather an initial resolution of the grid high enough to capture the wavelength of the strongest spiral modes when they are still barely nonlinear is essential. These tests represent a useful benchmark and a starting point for a forthcoming code comparison with realistic radiation physics.


Does the First Amendment shield politically tinged corporate speech from the compelled disclosure and reporting requirements embedded in the U.S. securities laws? The question arises in the securities regulation context because of an impending jurisprudential train wreck between the Supreme Court's commercial speech doctrine and its approach to corporate political speech. As corporations begin mixing commercial messages with political commentary, First Amendment jurisprudence simply provides insufficient guidance on the role government should play in regulating that speech. Although First Amendment jurisprudence generally counsels against governmental restrictions on corporate political speech without regard to the truth or falsity of the message, a different branch of that same jurisprudence suggests governmental regulation of commercial speech remains essential to ensure consumers receive accurate information and to maintain market efficiency. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court has never articulated sufficiently clear definitions of "commercial" or "political" speech, or the boundaries between them, to address claims of politically tinged corporate speech. Because the securities laws essentially operate through content based regulation of compelled speech, which often touches inherently political matters, the securities laws seem especially vulnerable to constitutional attack. Considering the limitations of current speech jurisprudence, this Article examines whether the "institutional approach" to the First Amendment advocated by Frederick Schauer provides a theoretical basis for maintaining a robust securities regulation regime. Following that approach, a determination of speech rights in any particular institutional setting should depend on an assessment of the societal importance of the institution as well as the relationship between speech rights and the institution's basic role. The Article concludes that an institutional approach to First Amendment jurisprudence not only provides sufficiently strong reasons for insulating the securities regulation regime from the First Amendment's reach, but also lends strong support for embracing a new institutional approach to First Amendment jurisprudence itself.


ABSTRACT Mammalian ATR and ATM checkpoint kinases modulate chromatin structures near DNA breaks by phosphorylating a serine residue in the carboxy-terminal tail SQE motif of histone H2AX. Histone H2A is similarly regulated in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The phosphorylated forms of H2AX and H2A, known as γ-H2AX and γ-H2A, are thought to be important for DNA repair, although their evolutionarily conserved roles are unknown. Here, we investigate γ-H2A in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. We show that formation of γ-H2A redundantly requires the ATR/ATM-related kinases Rad3 and Tel1. Mutation of the SQE motif to AQE (H2A-AQE) in the two histone H2A genes caused sensitivity to a wide range of genotoxic agents, increased spontaneous DNA damage, and impaired checkpoint maintenance. The H2A-AQE mutations displayed a striking synergistic interaction with rad22Δ (Rad52 homolog) in ionizing radiation (IR) survival. These phenotypes correlated with defective phosphorylation of the checkpoint proteins Crb2 and Chk1 and a failure to recruit large amounts of Crb2 to damaged DNA. Surprisingly, the H2A-AQE mutations substantially suppressed the IR hypersensitivity of crb2Δ cells by a mechanism that required the RecQ-like DNA helicase Rqh1. We propose that γ-H2A modulates checkpoint and DNA repair through large-scale recruitment of Crb2 to damaged DNA. This function correlates with evidence that γ-H2AX regulates recruitment of several BRCA1 carboxyl terminus domain-containing proteins (NBS1, 53BP1, MDC1/NFBD1, and BRCA1) in mammals.


Abstract Reconstructed soft-tissues of the craniocervical region of dyrosaurids are analysed under functional aspects to determine their prey-catching capabilities. Jaw adductors and jaw abductors are enlarged and possess longer muscle fibres that are increased by a long retroarticular process. This muscle enlargement resulted in a more forceful and quicker contraction, effective for movement of the long rostrum. The occipital joint and the cervical ribs, the long retroarticular process and the high cervical neural spines of dyrosaurids suggest a higher dorsoventral flexibility of the craniocervical region, whereas lateromedial flexibility was reduced. The epaxial muscles of the neck and scapular muscles were enlarged, and the supraspinal ligament most likely fanned out into a nuchal ligament. Suspension of the neck and skull of dyrosaurids was achieved by the scapular muscles, dorsal neck ligaments and epaxial muscles, whereas ventral bracing was reduced. From the reconstructed specializations of the feeding apparatus, an enhanced capability for movements in the vertical plane is postulated for dyrosaurids, together with reduced lateral movements of the craniocervical region. Besides laterally directed strokes for fish-catching, behaviours such as poking in the substrate, bottom feeding, multidirectional prey-catching strokes and improvement of diving skills were options for dyrosaurids and suggest a possible expansion of their diet. The longirostrine skull limited prey size, but the dentition allowed shelly prey items. The specialization of the food-capturing system in dyrosaurids and the resulting expansion of their food spectrum is one possible explanation for their evolutionary success, including their undisturbed transition of the Cretaceous–Palaeogene boundary.


This study develops models for predicting the economic lifetime of drilling machines used in mining. It uses three cases, each represented by a MATLAB code, to develop an optimisation model. The resulting ORT is fed as input to an artificial neural network (ANN) and the results translated into a relatively simple equation. The study finds that increasing the purchase price and decreasing the operating and maintenance costs will increase a machine's ORT linearly. Decreased maintenance cost has the largest impact on ORT, followed by increased purchase price and decreased operating cost. The ANN method gives a series of basic weight and response functions which can be made available to any engineer without the use of complicated software. It also helps decision-makers determine the best time economically to replace an old machine with a new one; thus, it can be extended to more general applications in the mining industry.


Background: Maternal and neonatal outcome is an index of quality of health and life in human society. To predict serious outcomes in pregnancy various parameters are being researched so that pregnant women who are at risk are identified early and measures taken to ensure a good outcome of pregnancy. Studies have shown an association between microalbuminuria and adverse pregnancy outcome. This study was undertaken to compare obstetric outcome in pregnant women with and without microalbuminuria. Materials and Methods: A prospective cohort study was performed on 69 pregnant women between 20 and 28 weeks of gestation. Urine tests for albuminuria and creatinine measurements were performed in all women and the albumin to creatinine ratio was calculated. The women with microalbuminuria and those without microalbuminuria were monitored until the end of their pregnancy and compared for pregnancy outcome. Results: The age distribution in the two groups was found to be similar and comparable. Preterm labor was strongly associated with microalbuminuria group (P = 0.001**)strongly significant. Incidence of maternal complications were more with microalbuminuria group (P < 0.001**). Fetal complications were significantly more in terms of intrauterine growth restriction, prematurity, low birth weight, low Apgar score and more incidence of neonatal intensive care unit admission with microalbuminuria group (P = 0.010*)moderately significant. Conclusion: It was found that fetal complications were more associated with babies of pregnant women with microalbuminuria. Though maternal complications were more associated with microalbuminuria group, individual events like premature rupture of membrane, preterm premature rupture of membrane had no statistically significant association with microalbuminuria except preterm labor. However, occurrence of pre-eclampsia was more with microalbuminuria, though it didn't carry any statistical significance.


All chemical transport models require an estimation of the vertical distribution of smoke particles near the source. This study quantitatively examines the strengths and weaknesses of several fire products for characterizing plume buoyancy and injection heights in the North American boreal forest during 2004–2005. Observations from the Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer show that 21% of smoke plumes are injected more than 500 m above the boundary layer (BL500) and 8% exceed 2.5 km above ground level. Corresponding observations from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) show that probability of injection above the BL500 exceeds 60% for pixel‐based fire radiative power (FRPp) values above ~2500 MW. Increasing values of subpixel‐retrieved fire area and temperature also correspond to higher injections but only after removing fire pixels with a weak 11 µm fire signal and clustering. The probability of injection above the BL500 reaches 50% when the subpixel radiant flux (FRPf flux) exceeds 20 kW/m2, highlighting its potential for estimating plume buoyancy. However, these data have limitations similar to FRPp, where the highest probability of injection corresponds to a small percentage of the data set (5–18%), and many high‐altitude injections occur with lower values. Examinations of individual smoke plumes highlight the importance of combining pixel‐level and subpixel outputs and show that plume injection is also sensitive to the fire pixel spatial distribution and meteorology. Therefore, an optimal method for predicting high‐altitude injections will require some combination of injection climatology, FRPp, FRPf flux, and meteorology, but each variable's importance will depend on fire event characteristics.


PROBLEM
Tourette's syndrome (TS) is a neuropsychiatric disorder associated with adverse outcomes. High rates of comorbidity (80-90%) complicate presentation, yet the relationship among TS, common comorbid diagnoses, and adversity is not well understood. This research investigated the impact of comorbidity, and the discrete effects of common comorbid diagnoses, on quality of life (QoL) and functioning of youth with TS.

METHODS
A community sample of parents of youth with TS (n = 86) participated in this survey-based study. Differences in QoL (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory) and rates of psychological, behavioral, and social difficulties (Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire) reported for youth with or without comorbid disorder were determined, in addition to outcomes associated with individual disorders.

FINDINGS
Parametric and nonparametric analyses revealed strong associations between comorbidity and decreased global QoL, impaired emotional and school functioning, and increased emotional symptomatology (p < .001). The impact of individual comorbid disorders was restricted and disorder specific, and TS was uniquely associated with impaired social functioning and peer relationship problems.

CONCLUSIONS
Understanding the risks associated with TS, particularly to psychosocial well-being, and the specific risks accompanying individual comorbid disorders, may improve assessment, prioritization of treatment goals, and interventions targeting the individual, multidimensional needs of youth with TS.


© 2013 by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences LESLIE C. BERLOWITZ is the 45th President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She has been a Fellow of the American Academy since 2004. The essays in this volume were collected as part of an ongoing American Academy project, Stewarding America: Civic Institutions and the Public Good. The project brings together leading scholars and experts to analyze the institutions that are critical for inspiring good citizenship. Institutions such as Congress, the courts, the media, the military, corporations, unions, the nonpro1⁄2t sector, and the education system are held in public trust. They provide a continuity of law and procedure, of practice and participation, and of information and knowledge from one generation to the next. When they serve the short-term interests of particular individuals or groups, they erode public trust; they erode the faith of citizens in the longest functioning constitutional democracy. Several of the essays suggest ways for our government, our schools, and our businesses to pursue the "common good." They demonstrate what it would take, personally as well as collectively, to inspire a greater commitment to good citizenship. This volume is intended to promote a much-needed public conversation about how to reclaim a sense of decency in American politics and American life. We are grateful to Norman Ornstein, of the American Enterprise Institute, for leading this Academy effort; to William Galston, of the Brookings Institution, for coediting this issue of Dædalus with Norman; to the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation for inspiring and supporting our work; and to the distinguished authors in this volume who have contributed their thinking about our nation and its future.


This book is designed to serve as a textbook for students and a reference for todays engineering officers, port engineers, superintendent engineers, and other maritime professionals. Steam turbine propulsion systems are included, but the coverage has been reduced in recognition of the popularity of main propulsion diesel engines, covered in volume 2, and the anticipated increasing applications of aeroderivative gas turbines. Reciprocating steam engines have been eliminated. Pumps, pumping systems, and heat exchangers are given extensive coverage. Computer applications for machinery and system management are presented, including an entire chapter on maintenance management. Relevant material on international and national laws, classification society requirements, and standards, such as ISO 9000 series and the ISM code, are included in the text. The characteristics of fuels are presented along with a discussion of fuel testing and analysis, and a section on bunkering. A chapter on safety and management discusses shipboard engineering operations, shipyard repair planning and economics, and safety management. Each chapter includes review questions and references for additional study.


The effect of varying amounts of extraneous element upon the line intensity of different elements has been investigated. Slavin's total energy method was used to make possible a more direct correlation than has been achieved using the internal standard method. The results of this study indicate that the effect of the extraneous element varies with the amount of extraneous element, but not in a simple linear fashion. The effect of an extraneous element on a group of lines of an element ending at the same energy level or beginning at the same energy level, is the same.The experimental results show that the elements can be arranged in a series bases on their interelement effects in the d.c. arc. An arrangement of the elements in a series based on their boiling points and excitation potentials is in agreement with that found experimentally.


Identifying the determinants of entrepreneurship is an important research and policy goal, especially in emerging market economies where lack of capital and supporting infrastructure often imposes stringent constraints on business growth. This paper studies the impact of a comprehensive business and financial literacy program on firm outcomes of young entrepreneurs in an emerging post-conflict economy, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The authors conduct a randomized control trial and find that while the training program did not influence business survival, it significantly improved business practices, investments, and loan terms for surviving businesses. Entrepreneurs with higher ex-ante financial literacy further exhibited some improvements in business performance and sales.


As the author states in her introduction, Space, the City and Social Theory is not intended to be read as an overview of either urban sociology or urban studies, but is instead concerned with providing an account of how social theory has encountered and illuminated the city. It takes its cue from two main bodies of literature. The first is the Chicago School of urban sociology, especially the work of Robert Park and Louis Wirth, while the second is European social theory and, in particular, the contributions of Simmel, Benjamin, Lefebvre, Michel de Certeau and Roland Barthes. As can be seen from this list of authors, the book has a tendency to focus upon small-scale social interactions and how the city is subjectively experienced, for example via the urban archetype of the flaneur as discussed at length in chapter 6. The book contains seven substantive chapters beginning in chapter 1 with the quintessential urban dialectic of community and solitude. Chapter 2 concerns itself with socio-spatial divisions and differences, focusing on such well-worn themes as the ghetto and social disorganization, but also including a useful discussion of social capital. The politics of urban space is examined in chapter 3. This is done, first, via a discussion of urban social movements, largely based upon a reading of Castells and Lefebvre, and, second, via an examination of the 'micro-politics of urban life', focusing upon the street as a site of social encounters and contestation. Chapter 4 deals with gentrification, whilst chapter 5 considers the embodied nature of the city in relation to gender and sexuality, themes which tend to be marginalized in traditional urban textbooks. Chapter 5 includes topics such as prostitution, lesbian and gay geographies, and women's dual sense of urban freedom and fear of violence. Chapter 6 provides a sustained discussion of the subjective experience of the city via an analysis of Simmel, Benjamin and de Certeau. The latter reappears in chapter 7, which examines the ways that the spatial order of the city can be disrupted. This is seen with reference to Foucault's concept of heterotopia, Barthes' semiology of the city and de Certeau's notion of spatial tactics. The latter is very nicely illustrated by a discussion of urban graffiti and skateboarding.


This book sets out the evidence for burial practices in the southern and western Peloponnese of Greece during the middle Helladic and early Mycenaean periods (c. 2000-1400 BC), and to interpret the evidence in terms of human action. In the first section, the book details the scope of the research, whereas the remaining chapters present an analysis of the evidence to answer a range of generic questions on mortuary practices. The conclusions are interpreted in terms of the use of burial practices in the study of 'Mycenaean civilisation', confirming that variations in time and space suggest that a closer study of local and regional archaeologies should be a priority in future research aims. The Appendices contain detailed information on the sites that form the basis of the study. (This book will also appeal to those non-specialists with a serious interest in the region as a fascinating, archaeological reference work or 'guide'.)


Abstract. Rheological models for granular materials play an important role in the numerical simulation of dry dense snow avalanches. This article describes the application of a physically based model from the field of kinetic theory to snow avalanche simulations. The fundamental structure of the so-called extended kinetic theory is outlined and the decisive model behavior for avalanches is identified. A simplified relation, covering the basic features of the extended kinetic theory, is developed and implemented into an operational avalanche simulation software. To test the obtained friction relation, simulation results are compared to velocity and runout observations of avalanches, recorded from different field tests. As reference we utilize a classic phenomenological friction relation, which is commonly applied for hazard estimation. The quantitative comparison is based on the combination of normalized residuals of different observation variables in order to take into account the quality of the simulations in various regards. It is demonstrated that the extended kinetic theory provides a physically based explanation for the structure of phenomenological friction relations. The friction relation derived with the help of the extended kinetic theory shows advantages to the classic phenomenological friction, in particular when different events and various observation variables are investigated.


Investigation and presentation of comprehensive life history mitigation is at the heart of successful capital litigation that has contributed to a steady decline in capital sentences. Noncapital incarceration rates have also begun to level, and various legal developments have signaled a re-ascent of more individualized noncapital sentencing proceedings. This return to individualized sentencing invites consideration of whether life history mitigation may, as it has in capital cases, hasten a turn away from mostly retributive punishment resulting in disproportionately harsh noncapital sentencing to a more merciful rehabilitative approach. The robust capital mitigation practice required by today's prevailing professional capital defense norms developed following the Supreme Court's Eighth Amendment doctrine requiring individualized capital sentences that account for the unique characteristics of the offender. No such doctrinal imperative applies to noncapital sentencing. As a result, professional noncapital defense sentencing standards, while providing a general basis for various aspects of sentencing advocacy, remain relatively underdeveloped, though the same bases for ameliorating punishment in capital cases should apply with equal practical force to noncapital cases.At the same time, institutional and doctrinal barriers -- including high caseloads and lack of resources, the prevalence of plea bargaining, and the Supreme Court's "death is different" precedent -- present formidable challenges to routine presentation of life history mitigation in noncapital cases. Therefore, the regular presentation of life history mitigation, lacking a constitutional mandate and operating in a structure different from that of capital sentencing, will depend in the immediate term on the initiative of criminal defense lawyers with the will to consistently present it in noncapital cases. A more widespread adoption of comprehensive noncapital mitigation practice will benefit individual clients, change the expectations of sentencing courts concerning what information they should have available before ordering punishment, and provide insight into the social causes of various types of crimes. Over time, as it has in capital cases, familiarity with the mitigating force of social history may serve as a powerful basis for empathy and amelioration of overly punitive noncapital punishment.


In this paper we introduce a new sparseness inducing prior which does not involve any (hyper) parameters that need to be adjusted or estimated. Although other applications are possible, we focus here on supervised learning problems: regression and classification. Experiments with several publicly available benchmark data sets show that the proposed approach yields state-of-the-art performance. In particular, our method outperforms support vector machines and performs competitively with the best alternative techniques, both in terms of error rates and sparseness, although it involves no tuning or adjusting of sparseness-controlling hyper-parameters.


OBJECTIVES
Performance measurement is used by health care providers, payers, and patients. Historically accomplished using administrative data, registries are used increasingly to track and improve care. We assess how measured diabetes care quality differs when calculated using claims versus registry.

DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING
Cross-sectional analysis of administrative claims and electronic health records (EHRs) of patients in a multispecialty integrated health system in 2012 (n = 368,883).

STUDY DESIGN
We calculated percent of patients attaining glycohemoglobin <8.0 percent, LDL cholesterol <100 mg/dL, blood pressure <140/90 mmHg, and nonsmoking (D4) in cohorts, identified by Medicare Accountable Care Organization/Minnesota Community Measures (ACO-MNCM; claims-based), Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS; claims-based), and registry (EHR-based).

DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS
Claims were linked to EHR to create a dataset of performance-eligible patients.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
ACO-MNCM, HEDIS, and registry identified 6,475, 6,989, and 6,425 measurement-eligible patients. Half were common among the methods; discrepancies were due to attribution, age restriction, and encounter requirements. D4 attainment was lower in ACO-MNCM (36.09 percent) and HEDIS (37.51 percent) compared to registry (43.74 percent) cohorts.

CONCLUSIONS
Registry- and claims-based performance measurement methods identify different patients, resulting in different rates of quality metric attainment with implications for innovative population health management.


The effects of data time-step on the accuracy of calibrated parameters in a discrete-time conceptual rainfall–streamflow model are reviewed and further investigated. A quick-flow decay time constant of 19.9 hr, calibrated for the 10.6 km2 Wye at Cefn Brwyn using daily data, massively overestimates a reference value of 3.76 hr calibrated using hourly data (an inaccuracy of 16.1 hr or 429%). About 42 and 58% of the inaccuracy are accounted for by loss of information in the effective rainfall and streamflow data, respectively. A slow-flow decay time constant is inaccurate by about +111%, of which about 94 and 17 percentage points (85 and 15% of the absolute inaccuracy) are due to loss of information in the effective rainfall and streamflow data, respectively. Discrete-time rainfall–streamflow model parameter inaccuracy caused by data time-step effects is discussed in terms of its implications for parameter regionalisation (including database aspects) and catchment-scale process studies.


PURPOSE
To test feasibility of proton arc therapy (PAT) in the treatment of para-aortic lymph node tumor and compare its dosimetric properties with advanced radiotherapy techniques such as intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and conventional 3D conformal proton beam therapy (PBT).

METHODS
The treatment plans for para-aortic lymph node tumor were planned for 9 patients treated at our institution using IMRT, PBT, and PAT. Feasibility test and dosimetric evaluation were based on comparisons of dose volume histograms (DVHs) which reveal mean dose, D30%, D60%, D90%, V30%, V60%, V90%, organ equivalent doses (OEDs), normal tissue complication probability (NTCP), homogeneity index (HI) and conformity index (CI).

RESULTS
The average doses delivered by PAT to the liver, kidney, small bowel, duodenum, stomach were 7.6%, 3%, 17.3%, 26.7%, and 14.4%, of the prescription dose (PD), respectively, which is higher than the doses delivered by IMRT (0.4%, 7.2%, 14.2%, 15.9%, and 12.8%, respectively) and PBT (4.9%, 0.5%, 14.12%, 16.1% 9.9%, respectively). The average homogeneity index and conformity index of tumor using PAT were 12.1 and 1.21, respectively which were much better than IMRT (21.5 and 1.47, respectively) and comparable to PBT (13.1 and 1.23, respectively). The Result shows that both NTCP and OED of PAT are generally lower than IMRT and PBT.

CONCLUSIONS
This study demonstrates that PAT is better in target conformity and homogeneity than IMRT and PBT but worse than IMRT and PBT for most of dosimetric factor which indicate that PAT is not recommended for the treatment of para-aortic lymph node tumor.


Description: First–line managers have to maintain the integrity of facilities, control manufacturing processes, and handle unusual or emergency situations, as well as respond to the pressures of production demand. On a daily basis, they are closest to the operating personnel who may be injured by a process accident, and they are in the best position to spot problem conditions and to act to contain them. This book offers these managers "how–to" information on process safety management program execution in the operations and maintenance departments, recommending technical and administrative process safety activities for the entire life cycle of the plant. Helpful tables and references add to the value of this process safety resource.


This is the initial installment of a two-part story narrating the process of embedding the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm (IPP) into the curriculum of four core courses in the College of Professional Studies at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This article provides a template for faculty development when integrating the IPP into undergraduate courses at a Jesuit University. The trainer followed the recommendation of the 1989 International Commission on the Apostolate of Jesuit Education (ICAJE), which states "Teachers need much more than a cognitive introduction to the Paradigm. They require practical training that engages and enables them to reflect on the experience of using these new methods confidently and effectively." The first part of this article provides the reader with the trainer's immersion and utilization of the IPP by using the IPP constructs of context, experience, reflections, actions, and evaluation. In the second part of this article the four participants share their reflections regarding the challenges of understanding the IPP as well as the benefits of adapting their teaching, curriculum, and rubrics to insure the successful integration of the IPP into their courses. The second part of this article reports the participants' thoughts and activities related to comprehending and developing the major constructs of the IPP: Context, Experience, Reflection, Action, and Evaluation. Therefore, it has a conversational tone of a shared learning experience to illustrate for the reader the deeply reflective process each participant experienced in becoming an IPP learning community. It includes a description of the process used to collect data to determine the impact of the IPP on the instructor as the courses were taught. A future article will describe the data analysis, conclusions and recommendations.


Objective: To assess the effects of five‐drug combination therapy on HIV‐1 load in lymph nodes and subsequent maintenance with four and three drugs. Methods: Ten pharmacotherapeutically naive patients received a combination of zidovudine, lamivudine, didanosine, ritonavir, and saquinavir for 24 weeks, then zidovudine, lamivudine, didanosine, and saquinavir for the next 24 weeks, and finally zidovudine, lamivudine, and saquinavir for the last 24 weeks. HIV‐1 RNA in lymph nodes was measured using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) at baseline, after 12, 24, 48, and 78 weeks. Plasma HIV‐1 RNA, proviral DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), circulating lymphocyte subsets, and protease inhibitor levels in blood were also regularly measured. Genotypic resistance was assessed in the different compartments in 2 patients who were failed by therapy. Results: HIV‐1 RNA decreased in lymph nodes in 9 patients and was stable in 1 despite initial control of plasma replication <20 copies/ml in each patient. Lymph node levels rebounded in 1 patient at week 72 as a result of lack of adherence and remained stable in the 8 others despite maintenance regimens. This represents a mean drop of ‐3.17 log in lymph nodes for the 8 patients maintaining undetectable viremia at 72 weeks. In the patient with stable lymph node viral RNA, selection of the M184V mutation was demonstrated at this level before detection in plasma and low blood saquinavir levels were found throughout the study. Continuous improvements in immune parameters were observed in all cases, although PBMC proviral DNA levels either showed a continuous decrease or stabilized to a plateau. Conclusions: More complex regimens do not perform better in lymph nodes than classic triple therapy. The persistence of HIV‐1 RNA in lymph nodes could be related with cellular resistance mechanisms rather than an insufficient potency of the regimens.


Research applying institutional theory to corporate social responsibility (CSR) has experienced remarkable momentum. Institutional theory-based CSR research illustrates the role of values in guiding both agentic choices for CSR and the influence of institutional structures on CSR agency. Although values have been explored in this literature, systematic studies of values that seek to gain insights into the mutual relationship between agentic choices and structures are lacking. Such insights are crucial for exploring whether and how CSR is enabled or constrained. We thus ask two interrelated questions: (1) What is the role of values in institutional theory-based CSR research? (2) How and along which avenues should future institutional theory-based CSR research that focuses on values be mobilised? Based on our analysis of this line of literature from 1989 until 2021, first, we take stock of established institutional theory perspectives on CSR and disentangle what role values have played in this literature. Second, we outline how to mobilise values in future institutional CSR research based on four promising but under-investigated areas. From our literature analysis, two central functions emerge (which we label 'bridging' and 'referencing') that values can perform in the institutional analysis of CSR. Based on these two functions, our values-focused framework will help scholars examine the moral foundations that inform business–society interactions as well as understand how companies can responsibly manage those interactions with societal stakeholders.


Yeast use a wandering polarity patch to track chemical gradients and identify appropriate mating partners. In order to mate, both the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe polarize their growth toward cells of the opposite mating type and preferentially mate with nonsister cells. Polarized growth ("shmooing") is oriented into the gradient of mating pheromone that emanates from potential partners and may be initiated anywhere on the cell surface. Pheromone-mediated activation of G protein–coupled receptors frees Gβγ, which recruits the Rho-family guanosine triphosphatase Cdc42. Cdc42 modifies the actin cytoskeleton to direct the exocytic events that drive growth. Polarity patches, which are clusters of polarity regulators that include Cdc42, have been observed to move around the periphery of mutant cells that are defective in pheromone perception or budding, but it has been unclear whether such "wandering" polarity patches play any role in mating under normal conditions. Dyer et al. and Bendezú et al. reported that polarity patches wandered in wild-type yeasts and appeared to help the cells locate appropriate mating partners. Using fluorescently labeled versions of Cdc42 and its associated scaffolding protein Bem1, Dyer et al. found that movement of polarity patches in S. cerevisiae occurred mainly on the side of the cell facing a pheromone source and that, before shmooing, polarity patches moved over a larger area in low, as compared to high, uniform pheromone concentrations. Movement of the polarity patches required the actin cytoskeleton, and vesicle trafficking proteins colocalized with polarity patches. Computational modeling and experiments with mutant and transgenic cells suggested that directed exocytosis at polarity patches dilutes polarity factors to promote their movement, thus enabling S. cerevisiae to track a shallow gradient. Bendezú et al. reported that Cdc42 and its associated partners also participated in polarity patch movement in S. pombe. In low uniform concentrations of mating pheromone, active Cdc42, the Cdc42 guanine nucleotide exchange factor Scd1, the scaffolding protein Scd2, and downstream components involved in actin reorganization and exocytosis colocalized in dynamic patches that moved around the cell periphery until shmooing was initiated. Enzymes required for the synthesis of cell wall components localized to the patches after the wandering phase to promote polarized growth. Imaging analysis indicated that these patches formed by repeated cycles of assembly and disassembly rather than by sliding. High concentrations of synthetic pheromone or mutations that increased pheromone signaling eliminated polarity patch wandering and instead promoted growth at the poles of these rod-shaped cells and mating with sister cells. The data from both papers point to a model in which low concentrations of mating pheromone induce the formation of wandering polarity patches, which sample the cell periphery to identify the source of the signal, and then the cells grow toward that source. As discussed in commentary by Arkowitz, this method enables these nonmotile cells to track a shallow chemical gradient, such as they would encounter in nature, to find a suitable mate. J. M. Dyer, N. S. Savage, M. Jin, T. R. Zyla, T. C. Elston, D. J. Lew, Tracking shallow chemical gradients by actin-driven wandering of the polarization site. Curr. Biol. 23, 32–41 (2013). [PubMed] F. O. Bendezú, S. G. Martin, Cdc42 explores the cell periphery for mate selection in fission yeast. Curr. Biol. 23, 42–47 (2013). [PubMed] R. A. Arkowitz, Cell polarity: Wanderful exploration in yeast sex. Curr. Biol. 23, R10–R12 (2013). [Online Journal]


Computer modeling and simulation are crucial in understanding and controlling structure-property relations by explaining experimental data and by revealing critical conceptual issues about the underlying mechanisms whose resolution requires excessive experimentation. There is a great increasing demand in methodological development due to a high complexity of real-life nanotechnology systems of interest in industrial research. In such cases, multiscale modeling is a promising approach combining different levels of description addressing the coupled phenomena at specific length and time scales. Multiscale modeling is particularly important in integrated computational materials engineering since it allows one to predict material properties or system behaviour, based on the knowledge of atomistic structure and elementary processes. The most difficult part is modeling of the interaction between subsystems at different scales. We have developed several models of molecular electronics, heterogeneous nanocatalytic, and biological systems, which utilize coupled quantum-chemical, statistical-mechanical, and molecular-mechanical tools to efficiently predict their properties. In this presentation, we are giving our recent results for quantum transport in molecular electronics juctions, reactivity of zeolite nanocatalysts in heavy oil upgrading, and self-assembly and conformational stability of large biomolecular nanoarchitectures.


Answering questions with data is a difficult and time-consuming process. Visual dashboards and templates make it easy to get started, but asking more sophisticated questions often requires learning a tool designed for expert analysts. Natural language interaction allows users to ask questions directly in complex programs without having to learn how to use an interface. However, natural language is often ambiguous. In this work we propose a mixed-initiative approach to managing ambiguity in natural language interfaces for data visualization. We model ambiguity throughout the process of turning a natural language query into a visualization and use algorithmic disambiguation coupled with interactive ambiguity widgets. These widgets allow the user to resolve ambiguities by surfacing system decisions at the point where the ambiguity matters. Corrections are stored as constraints and influence subsequent queries. We have implemented these ideas in a system, DataTone. In a comparative study, we find that DataTone is easy to learn and lets users ask questions without worrying about syntax and proper question form.


In 2001, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency derived a reference dose (RfD) for methylmercury, which is a daily intake that is likely to be without appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime. This derivation used a series of benchmark dose (BMD) analyses provided by a National Research Council (NRC) panel convened to assess the health effects of methylmercury. Analyses were performed for a number of endpoints from three large longitudinal cohort studies of the neuropsychological consequences of in utero exposure to methylmercury: the Faroe Islands, Seychelles Islands, and New Zealand studies. Adverse effects were identified in the Faroe Islands and New Zealand studies, but not in the Seychelles Islands. The NRC also performed an integrative analysis of all three studies. The EPA applied a total uncertainty factor (UF) of 10 for intrahuman toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic variability and uncertainty. Dose conversion from cord blood mercury concentrations to maternal methylmercury intake was performed using a one‐compartment model. Derivation of potential RfDs from a number of endpoints from the Faroe Islands study converged on 0.1 μg/kg/day, as did the integrative analysis of all three studies. EPA identified several areas for which further information or analyses is needed. Perhaps the most immediately relevant is the ratio of cord:maternal blood mercury concentration, as well as the variability around this ratio. EPA assumed in its dose conversion that the ratio was 1.0; however, available data suggest it is perhaps 1.5–2.0. Verification of a deviation from unity presumably would be translated directly into comparable reduction in the RfD. Other areas that EPA identified as significant areas requiring further attention are cardiovascular consequences of methylmercury exposure and delayed neurotoxicity during aging as a result of previous developmental or adult exposure.


Abstract. We present a
10-year (January 2007–December 2016) time series of continuous in situ
measurements of methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrous
oxide (N2O) made by an in situ Fourier transform infrared trace
gas and isotope analyser (FTIR) operated at Lauder, New Zealand (45.04 S,
169.68 E, 370 m a. m. s. l.). Being the longest continuous deployed
operational FTIR system of this type, we are in an ideal position to perform
a practical evaluation of the multi-year performance of the analyser. The
operational methodology, measurement precision, reproducibility, accuracy and
instrument reliability are reported. We find the FTIR has a measurement repeatability of the order of 0.37 ppb
(1σ standard deviation) for CH4, 0.31 ppb for CO and
0.12 ppb for N2O. Regular target cylinder measurements provide a
reproducibility estimate of 1.19 ppb for CH4, 0.74 ppb for CO and
0.27 ppb for N2O. FTIR measurements are compared to co-located
ambient air flask samples acquired at Lauder since May 2009, which allows a
long-term assessment of the FTIR data set across annual and seasonal
composition changes. Comparing FTIR and co-located flask measurements show
that the bias (FTIR minus flask) for CH4 of
−1.02 ± 2.61 ppb and CO of −0.43 ± 1.60 ppb are within the Global
Atmospheric Watch (GAW)-recommended compatibility goals of 2 ppb. The
N2O FTIR flask bias of −0.01 ± 0.77 ppb is within the GAW-recommended compatibility goals of 0.1 ppb and should be viewed as a
serendipitous result due to the large standard deviation along with known
systematic differences in the measurement sets. Uncertainty budgets for each
gas are also constructed based on instrument precision, reproducibility and
accuracy. In the case of CH4, systematic uncertainty dominates,
whilst for CO and N2O it is comparable to the random uncertainty
component. The long-term instrument stability, precision estimates and flask comparison
results indicate the FTIR CH4 and CO time series meet the GAW
compatibility recommendations across multiple years of operation (and
instrument changes) and are sufficient to capture annual trends and seasonal
cycles observed at Lauder. The differences between FTIR and flask
N2O measurements need to be reconciled. Trend analysis of the
10-year time series captures seasonal cycles and the secular upward trend of
CH4 and N2O. The CH4 and CO time series have
the required precision and accuracy at a high enough temporal resolution to
be used in inversion models in a data-sparse region of the world.


The paper presents the problem of control in self-directed language learning. The necessity for the registers of learners' progress is expressed both by teachers and students and the conclusion to frame learning process is drawn. On the basis of some widely spread methods fostering the development of self-directed language learning, that is problem-based learning, project method, case-based learning, several registers for students progress could be introduced in second language learning environment The article analysis some types of progress registers: learning journals and logs, reflective diaries and language learning portfolio with the main focus on learning journals.


This study investigates the Markov-switching regression model on economic variable using time series data spanning from 1985-2014. The stock data are regime dependent and the two regime multivariate Markov switching vector autoregressive (MSVAR) model is used to examine the structure of the Nigeria stock index prices. It is found that MSVAR model with two regimes detect shifts in the return series and shows evidence of switching in the stock market return series. It is also found that the return series are well fitted by MSVAR model and filtered probabilities can be extracted from the data to evaluate the strength of moving from one state to another. Also, MSVAR model captures the sudden changes in the stock data using exogenous variable which is unobserved and follow a stochastic process. It is recommended that the investors on the stock market should be cautious because the stock market is unstable.


Estimates of life expectancy are useful in assessing whether different prevention strategies are appropriate in different populations. We developed sex-specific Cox proportional-hazard models that use Medicare claims data to predict life expectancy and risk of death at up to 10 years for older adults. We identified a cohort of Medicare beneficiaries 66 – 90 years of age from the 5% Medicare claims data in 2000 ( n = 1,137,311) and tracked each sub-ject ' s vital status until December 31, 2009. Subjects were split randomly into training and validation samples. Models were developed from the training sample and validated by comparison of predicted to actual survival in the validation sample. The C statistics for the models including predictors of age and Elixhauser comorbidities were 0.76 – 0.79 for men and women for prediction of death at the 1-, 5-, 7-, and 10-year follow-up periods. More than 80% of subjects with <25% risk of death at 5, 7, and 10 years survived longer than the chosen cutoff years. More than 80% of subjects with ≥ 75% risk of death at 5, 7, and 10 years died by those cutoff years. The models overesti-mated the risk of death at 1 year for the high-risk groups. Sex-specific models that use age and Elixhauser comorbidities can accurately predict patient life expectancy and risk of death at 5 – 10 years. Abbreviations:


Anne-Marie Slaughter has described the "new world order" as characterized by some "conceptual shifts," including an increasing cooperation of domestic courts across nation-state boundaries. The cross-jurisdictional referencing of legal norms and decisions, as Slaughter holds, would lead into a "global community of courts." This article takes issue with that observation. We argue that for such a community to emerge, cross-referencing would need to be followed by an effective transmission of meaning from one (legal) context to another. Following recent insights in the field of International Relations norm research, however, we can expect such meanings to be contested—in particular, when different cultural repertoires operate on either side of the interactive processes. Therefore, a need for translation ensues (i.e., a translation of constitutional norms or concepts from one legal order into another). The conditions of a "global community of courts" are thus not easily met. In this respect, the aim of the article is to put Slaughter's thesis to an empirical test. To extrapolate the "normative structures of meaning-in-use" the article builds on the analysis of semi-structured interviews with legal practitioners who were involved in the jurisprudence on anti-terrorism measures in two countries, Canada and Germany. During this empirical work, we found a "global community of courts" not yet emerged. Although the concept of community does matter as an explanatory reference for research on legal cross-referencing across national borders, our research suggests that practice of cross-referencing is still more "culturally" fragmented than unified, and normative references are more regionally diverse than globally shared. Moreover, the normative context within which referencing takes place remains strong, so that the meaning of "foreign" concepts is often constructed by means of contestation rather than transferred from one contest into another.


Therapeutic resistance is a major obstacle in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Such resistance has been associated with rapid drug efflux mediated by the multidrug resistance gene 1 (MDR1; encoding P-glycoprotein) and more recently with expression of other novel proteins conferring multidrug resistance such as MRP1 (multidrug resistance-associated protein 1) and LRP (lung resistance protein). To determine the frequency and clinical significance of MDR1, MRP1, and LRP in younger AML patients, we developed multiparameter flow cytometric assays to quantify expression of these proteins in pretreatment leukemic blasts from 352 newly diagnosed AML patients (median age, 44 years) registered to a single clinical trial (SWOG 8600). Protein expression was further correlated with functional efflux by leukemic blasts [assessed using two substrates: Di(OC)(2) and Rhodamine 123] and with the ability of MDR-reversing agents to inhibit efflux in vitro. MDR1/P-glycoprotein expression, which was highly correlated with cyclosporine-inhibited efflux, was noted in only 35% of these younger AML patients, distinctly lower than the frequency of 71% we previously reported in AML in the elderly (Blood 89:3323, 1997). Interestingly, MDR1 expression and functional drug efflux increased with patient age, from a frequency of only 17% in patients less than 35 years old to 39% in patients aged 50 years (P =.010). In contrast, MRP1 was expressed in only 10% of cases and decreased with patient age (P =. 024). LRP was detected in 43% of cases and increased significantly with increasing white blood cell counts (P =.0015). LRP was also marginally associated with favorable cytogenetics (P =.012) and French-American-British (FAB) AML FAB subtypes (P =.013), being particularly frequent in M4/M5 cases. Only MDR1/P-glycoprotein expression and cyclosporine-inhibited efflux were significantly associated with complete remission (CR) rate (P(MDR1) =.012; P(efflux) =.039) and resistant disease (RD; P(MDR1) =.0007; P(efflux) =.0092). No such correlations were observed for MRP1 (P(CR) =.93; P(RD) =.55) or LRP (P(CR) =.50; P(RD) =.53). None of these parameters were associated with overall or relapse-free survival. Unexpectedly, a distinct and nonoverlapping phenotype was detected in 18% of these cases: cyclosporine-resistant efflux not associated with MDR1, MRP1, or LRP expression, implying the existence of other as yet undefined efflux mechanisms in AML. In summary, MDR1 is less frequent in younger AML patients, which may in part explain their better response to therapy. Neither MRP1 nor LRP are significant predictors of outcome in this patient group. Thus, inclusion of MDR1-modulators alone may benefit younger AML patients with MDR1(+) disease.


The middle Miocene climate transition (MMCT) is characterized
by an abrupt 1‰ increase in benthic foraminiferal oxygen isotopes
at ca. 13.8 Ma, marking expansion of the Antarctic Ice Sheet and
transition of Earth9s climate to a cooler, relatively stable glacial state.
Also occurring during this period is a globally recognized positive
carbon isotope excursion (16.9–13.5 Ma) in benthic and planktonic
foraminifera with shorter carbon isotope maxima (CM) events, linking
hypotheses for climate change at the time with the carbon cycle.
In order to test whether export production in the eastern equatorial
Pacific is related to the largest such event (CM6), coincident with
Antarctic Ice Sheet expansion, a high-resolution (<5 k.y.) record of
export production at Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1337
spanning the MMCT (14.02–13.43 Ma) was produced using marine
pelagic barite mass accumulation rates. Export production is elevated
with an extended period of more than double present-day values.
These variations are not orbitally paced and provide evidence for a
reorganization of nutrients supplied to the eastern equatorial Pacific
in the Miocene and intensification of upwelling. If such changes are
representative of the entire region, then this mechanism could sequester
enough carbon to have a significant effect on atmospheric p CO 2 .
However, continual delivery of nutrients to the surface waters of
the eastern equatorial Pacific is required in order to sustain export
production without depleting the surface ocean of limiting nutrients.
This might be accomplished by a change in ocean circulation or a
combination of other processes requiring further study.


This report describes nine stories of six women and three men who recently exited a human trafficking
situation and, at the time of this research, resided in a shelter for foreign victims of trafficking
in the Netherlands. It speaks about their hopes and dreams, their fears and frustrations, and
describes how they feel social and health care might be improved. The report's aim is to shed more
light on service users' views on post-trafficking service provision for everyone directly (e.g. social
workers, psychologists and general practitioners) and indirectly (e.g. managers and policymakers)
involved with providing care to this group.
The main message from the report is that victims of human trafficking in a post-trafficking shelter
can be expected to exhibit a strong desire to move forward and establish a meaningful life with a
job, a family and friends. This is an important conclusion: it shows that besides the 'trauma'-narrative
that is often stressed in the literature as being important among trafficking survivors, the
'future'-narrative is as important and should be taken into account in developing social and health
services for this group. Despite the importance of being able to pursue a meaningful life to them,
service users in this study were often stunted in doing just that. Through barriers in finding work,
education and a place to live, often caused by their residency status, a feeling of being ostracized
in Dutch society and shelter policies, service users often felt 'in limbo': standing still, without being
able to change that situation. Regardless of this, and seemingly against all odds, service users still
pursued their goals, by engaging in Dutch language courses, participating in vocational skills training
and engaging in volunteer work. These activities were described as useful by participants and therefore
preferable over other activities. Service users found them useful because they provided them
with opportunities to work towards their envisioned futures.
Hoping for the fulfilment of their goals and pursuing them in these ways likely allowed service users
to better cope with their problems in the present and improved their well-being. For this reason,
it is essential that social and health provision for this group supports and facilitates service users'
forwards-facing, future-orientated views, in addition to providing trauma-informed services. But
do not take our word for it: please read the stories in this report and get to know these men and
women, and read about what they, in their own words, feel service provision ought to look like in a
post-trafficking shelter.


Dynamically written and richly illustrated, the Routledge International Handbook of Visual Criminology offers the first foundational primer on visual criminology. Spanning a variety of media and visual modes, this volume assembles established researchers whose work is essential to understanding the role of the visual in criminology and emergent thinkers whose work is taking visual criminology in new directions. This book is divided into five parts that each highlight a key aspect of visual criminology, exploring the diversity of methods, techniques and theoretical approaches currently shaping the field: Part I introduces formative positions in the developments of visual criminology and explores the different disciplines that have contributed to analysing images. Part II explores visual representations of crime across film, graphic art, documentary, police photography, press coverage and graffiti and urban aesthetics. Part III discusses the relationship of visual criminology to criminal justice institutions like policing, punishment and law. Part IV focuses on the distinctive ethical problems posed by the image, reflecting on the historical development, theoretical disputes and methodological issues involved. Part V identifies new frameworks and emergent perspectives and reflects upon the distinctive challenges and limits that can be seen in this emerging field. This book includes a vibrant colour plate section and over a hundred black and white images, breaking down the barriers between original photography and artwork, historic paintings and illustrations and modern comics and films. This interdisciplinary book will be of interest to criminologists, sociologists, visual ethnographers, art historians and those engaged with media studies.


Context. The hierarchical model of galaxy formation, despite its many successes, still overpredicts the baryons fraction locked in galaxies as a condensed phase. The efficiency of supernovae feedback, proposed a long time ago as a possible solution for this so-called "overcooling" problem, is still under debate, mainly because modelling supernovae explosions within a turbulent interstellar medium, while capturing realistic large scale flows around the galaxy is a very demanding task. Aims. Our goal is to study the effect of supernovae feedback on a disc galaxy, taking into account the impact of infalling gas on both the star formation history and the corresponding outflow structure, the apparition of a supernovae-driven wind being highly sensitive to the halo mass, the galaxy spin and the star formation efficiency. Methods. We model our galaxies as cooling and collapsing NFW spheres. The dark matter component is modelled as a static external potential, while the baryon component is described by the Euler equations using the AMR code RAMSES. Metal-dependent cooling and supernovae-heating are also implemented using state-of-the-art recipes coming from cosmological simulations. We allow for three parameters to vary: the halo circular velocity, the spin parameter and the star formation efficiency. Results. We found that the ram pressure of infalling material is the key factor limiting the apparition of galactic winds. We obtain a very low feedback efficiency, with supernovae to wind energy conversion factor around one percent, so that only low circular velocity galaxies give rise to strong winds. For massive galaxies, we obtain a galactic fountain, for which we discuss the observational properties. Conclusions. We conclude that for quiescent isolated galaxies, galactic winds appear only in very low mass systems. Although this can quite efficiently enrich the IGM with metals, they do not carry away enough cold material to solve the overcooling problem.


The problem of image correspondence measure selection for image comparison and matching is addressed. Many practical applications require image matching "just by shape" with no dependence on the concrete intensity or color values. Most popular technique for image shape comparison utilizes the mutual information measure based on probabilistic reasoning and information theory background. Another approach was proposed by Pytiev (so called "Pytiev morphology") based on geometrical and algebraic reasoning. In this framework images are considered as piecewise-constant 2D functions, tessellation of image frame by the set of non-intersected connected regions determines the "shape" of image and the projection of image onto the shape of other image is determined. Morphological image comparison is performed using the normalized morphological correlation coefficients. These coefficients estimate the closeness of one image to the shape of other image. Such image analysis technique can be characterized as an ""ntensity-to-geometry" matching. This paper generalizes the Pytiev morphological approach for obtaining the pure "geometry-to-geometry" matching techniques. The generalized intensity-geometrical correlation coefficient is proposed including the linear correlation coefficient and the square of Pytiev correlation coefficient as its partial cases. The morphological shape correlation coefficient is proposed based on the statistical averaging of images with the same shape. Centered morphological correlation coefficient is obtained under the condition of intensity centering of averaged images. Two types of symmetric geometrical normalized correlation coefficients are proposed for comparison of shape-tessellations. The technique for correlation and matching of shapes with ordered intensities is proposed with correlation measures invariant to monotonous intensity transformations. The quality of proposed geometrical correlation measures is experimentally estimated in the task of visual (TV) and infrared (IR) image matching. First experimental results demonstrate competitive quality and better computational performance relative to state-of-art mutual information measure.


Most linguistic studies of Judeo-Arabic, the ensemble of dialects spoken and written by Jews in Arab lands, are qualitative in nature and rely on laborious manual annotation work, and are therefore limited in scale. In this work, we develop automatic methods for morpho-syntactic tagging of Algerian Judeo-Arabic texts published by Algerian Jews in the 19th–20th centuries, based on a linguistically tagged corpus. First, we describe our semi-automatic approach for preprocessing these texts. Then, we experiment with both an off-the-shelf morphological tagger and several specially designed neural network taggers. Finally, we perform a real-world evaluation of new texts that were never tagged before in comparison with human expert annotators. Our experimental results demonstrate that these methods can dramatically speed up and improve the linguistic research pipeline, enabling linguists to study these dialects on a much greater scale.


What is whiteness? Why is it worth using as a tool in the social sciences?

Making sociological sense of the idea of whiteness, this book skilfully argues how this concept can help us understand contemporary societies. If one of sociology's objectives is to make the familiar unfamiliar in order to gain heightened understanding, then whiteness offers a perfect opportunity to do so.

Leaning firstly on the North American corpus, this key book critically engages with writings on the formation of white identities in Britain, Ireland and the Americas, using multidisciplinary sources. Empirical work done in the UK, including the author's own, is developed in order to suggest how whiteness functions in Britain.

Bringing an emphasis on empirical work to a heavily theorized area, this important text synthesizes and reviews existing work, incorporates multidisciplinary sources of interest to those outside the sociology sphere, and features concise chapters which will engage undergraduates. Garner deftly argues that whiteness is a multifaceted, contingent and fluid identity, and that it must be incorporated into any contemporary understandings of racism as a system of power relationships in both its local and global forms.


Manufacturing firms buy transport services with the aim of minimizing their total logistics cost. There is a large amount of literature analyzing how shippers value the various characteristics of a transport service, mostly performed by collecting stated-preference data and estimating discrete choice models. Most of the empirical studies specify the deterministic part of the utility functions as linear in the observed attributes. This implicitly constrains the characteristics of the analyzed transport service to be perfect substitutes, and to have a constant substitutability ratio. Such an assumption is inconsistent with the standard microeconomic theory, typically assuming inputs' decreasing marginal productivity, and may not be realistic. The paper tests the linearity assumption for freight rate, travel time, probability of having damaged and lost freight, frequency, flexibility, mode and punctuality on a sample of Italian small- and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (SME). Our findings suggest that the linearity-in-the-attributes assumption should be rejected and that the marginal impact on the utility-of-profit of the attributes is not constant. More specifically travel time and freight rate produce decreasing marginal reductions of the utility-of-profit; while safety (percentage of not damaged or lost shipments) and punctuality (percentage of shipments on time) are responsible for increasing marginal contributions to the utility-of-profit. The substitutability ratios between (a) freight rate and loss and damage, (b) freight rate and travel time, (c) freight rate and punctuality, (d) travel time and damage and loss and (e) travel time and punctuality are estimated and found not constant. Finally, it is found that the willingness to pay for the qualitative attributes obtained with a linearly specified model tend to be overestimated.


Wastewater discharges to the Assabet River contribute substantial amounts of phosphorus, which support accumulations of nuisance aquatic plants that are most evident in the river's impounded reaches during the growing season. To restore the Assabet River's water quality and aesthetics, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency required the major wastewater-treatment plants in the drainage basin to reduce the amount of phosphorus discharged to the river by 2012. From October 2008 to December 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and in support of the requirements of the Total Maximum Daily Load for Phosphorus, collected weekly flow-proportional, composite samples for analysis of concentrations of total phosphorus and orthophosphorus upstream and downstream from each of the Assabet River's two largest impoundments: Hudson and Ben Smith. The purpose of this monitoring effort was to evaluate conditions in the river before enhanced treatment-plant technologies had effected reductions in phosphorus loads, thereby defining baseline conditions for comparison with conditions following the mandated load reductions. The locations of sampling sites with respect to the impoundments enabled examination of the impoundments' effects on phosphorus sequestration and on the transformation of phosphorus between particulate and dissolved forms. The study evaluated the differences between loads upstream and downstream from the impoundments throughout the sampling period and compared differences during two seasonal periods of relevance to aquatic plants: April 1 through October 31, the growing season, and November 1 through March 31, the nongrowing season, when existing permit limits allowed average monthly wastewatertreatment-plant-effluent concentrations of 0.75 milligram per liter (growing season) or 1.0 milligram per liter (nongrowing season) for total phosphorus. At the four sampling sites during the growing season, median weekly total phosphorus loads ranged from 110 to 190 kilograms (kg) and median weekly orthophosphorus loads ranged from 17 to 41 kg. During the nongrowing season, median weekly total phosphorus loads ranged from 240 to 280 kg and median weekly orthophosphorus loads ranged from 56 to 66 kg. During periods of low and moderate streamflow, estimated loads of total phosphorus upstream from the Hudson impoundment generally exceeded those downstream during the same sampling periods throughout the study; orthophosphorus loads downstream from the impoundment were typically larger than those upstream. When storm runoff substantially increased the streamflow, loads of total phosphorus and orthophosphorus both tended to be larger downstream than upstream. At the Ben Smith impoundment, both total phosphorus and orthophosphorus loads were generally larger downstream than upstream during low and moderate streamflow, but the differences were not as pronounced as they were at the Hudson impoundment. High flows were also associated with substantially larger total phosphorus and orthophosphorus loads downstream than those entering the impoundment from upstream. In comparing periods of growingand nongrowingseason loads, the same patterns of loads entering and leaving were observed at both impoundments. That is, at the Hudson impoundment, total phosphorus loads entering the impoundment were greater than those leaving it, and orthophosphorus loads leaving the impoundment were greater than those entering it. At the Ben Smith impoundment, both total phosphorus and orthophosphorus loads leaving the impoundment were greater than those entering it. However, the loads were greater during the nongrowing seasons than during the growing seasons, and the net differences between upstream and downstream loads were about the same. The results indicate that some of the particulate fraction of the total phosphorus loads is sequestered in the Hudson impoundment, where particulate phosphorus probably undergoes some physical and biogeochemical transformations to the dissolved form orthophosphorus. The orthophosphorus may be taken up by aquatic plants or transported out of the impoundments. The results for the Ben Smith impoundment are less clear and suggest net export of total phosphorus and orthophosphorus. Differences between results from the two impoundments may be attributable in part to differences in 2 Phosphorus Loads, 2008 through 2010, in the Assabet River, Massachusetts their sizes, morphology, unmonitored tributaries, riparian land use, and processes within the impoundments that have not been quantified for this study.


Information security issues are characterized with interdependence. Particularly, cyber criminals can easily cross national boundaries and exploit jurisdictional limitations between countries. Thus, whether cyber attacks are spatially autocorrelated is a strategic issue for government authorities and a tactic issue for insurance companies. Through an empirical study of cyber attacks across 62 countries during the period 2003-2007, we find little evidence on the spatial autocorrelation of cyber attacks at any week. However, after considering economic opportunity, IT infrastructure, international collaboration in enforcement and conventional crimes, we find strong evidence that cyber attacks were indeed spatially autocorrelated as they moved over time. The policy and managerial implication is that physical boundary should be an important factor in addressing strategic cyber attacks and their potential risks.


Are we on the verge of an apartheid by algorithm? Will the age of big data lead to decisions that unfairly favor one race over others, or men over women? At the dawn of the Information Age, legal scholars are sounding warnings about the ubiquity of automated algorithms that increasingly govern our lives. In his new book, The Black Box Society: The Hidden Algorithms Behind Money and Information, Frank Pasquale forcefully argues that human beings are increasingly relying on computerized algorithms that make decisions about what information we receive, how much we can borrow, where we go for dinner, or even whom we date. Pasquale's central claim is that these algorithms will mask invidious discrimination, undermining democracy and worsening inequality. In this review, I rebut this prominent claim. I argue that any fair assessment of algorithms must be made against their alternative. Algorithms are certainly obscure and mysterious, but often no more so than the committees or individuals they replace. The ultimate black box is the human mind. Relying on contemporary theories of unconscious discrimination, I show that the consciously racist or sexist algorithm is less likely than the consciously or unconsciously racist or sexist human decision-maker it replaces. The principal problem of algorithmic discrimination lies elsewhere, in a process I label viral discrimination: algorithms trained or operated on a world pervaded by discriminatory effects are likely to reproduce that discrimination.I argue that the solution to this problem lies in a kind of algorithmic affirmative action. This would require training algorithms on data that includes diverse communities and continually assessing the results for disparate impacts. Instead of insisting on race or gender neutrality and blindness, this would require decision-makers to approach algorithmic design and assessment in a race and gender conscious manner.


This new edition of the Modern Italian Grammar is an innovative reference guide to Italian, combining traditional and function-based grammar in a single volume. With a strong emphasis on contemporary usage, all grammar points and functions are richly illustrated with examples.

Implementing feedback from users of the first edition, this text includes clearer explanations, as well as a greater emphasis on areas of particular difficulty for learners of Italian. Divided into two sections, the book covers:

traditional grammatical categories such as word order, nouns, verbs and adjectives
language functions and notions such as giving and seeking information, describing processes and results, and expressing likes, dislikes and preferences.
This is the ideal reference grammar for learners of Italian at all levels, from beginner to advanced. No prior knowledge of grammatical terminology is needed and a glossary of grammatical terms is provided. This Grammar is complemented by the Modern Italian Grammar Workbook Second Edition which features related exercises and activities.


In Sweden, sex workers are often viewed as 'victims in denial' by public health authorities. As a result, Swedish sexual health interventions have traditionally focused on women and utilised face-to-face interventions and exit strategies. Unmistakably, interventions targeting male and/or transgender sex workers that utilise harm reduction approaches or low threshold on-line interventions remain marginalised or non-existent. This stands in opposition to recent Swedish research on the sexual health of men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people (TG). This research stresses the need for targeted community-based sexual health services. Recent Swedish research also highlights the success of innovative on-line approaches that help male sex workers and TG understand personal risk to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), their legal rights and how to access community-based health services. Responding to the research and not viewing sex workers as victims, this paper outlines the design of Sweden's first bespoke online platform targeting male and transgender sex workers. We outline our unique approach and the steps we undertook to design the Röda Paraplyet webpage (http://www.rodaparaplyet.org) in collaboration with male sex workers and Rose Alliance, a leading sex worker organisation. We argue the voices of sex workers are essential to shifting the Swedish discourse around sex work from one of victimisation that limits sex workers access to Sweden's extensive evidence-based health care to one that is empowering and increases the safety of sex work, explores how to negotiate condom use and educates sex workers about their rights. In conclusion we illustrate how a broad coalition between organised and non-organised sex workers, LGBTQ organisations, academics and the health care system is essential for creating a sustainable platform of multi-disciplinary knowledge to improve the sexual health and legal rights of sex workers in Sweden and globally.


Educational priority policy schools differ in the learning outcomes they achieve with second language learners. School effectiveness research suggests that teachers can make a difference, but fails to make clear exactly how they can do so. This quasi-experimental study combines a comparison group design with a control group design to answer the research question "How effective are five primary school teachers in creating powerful learning environments for knowledge construction and academic language learning?" This article focuses on which types of students benefit the most from a classroom intervention, called The case DNA. The case DNA is a task-based lesson unit containing eight clear lesson objectives and the necessary lesson materials and learning activities to realize these lesson objectives. The teachers were free to adapt the lesson unit to their own teaching styles. The results of the students on the pre-test, post-test and delayed post-test DNA were analysed using multilevel analysis. Results show that socio-economic status, language proficiency, number of turns, teacher expectations and home language Turkish predict differential learning outcomes.


Alcohol and other drug abuse is a major problem for children and families involved with public child welfare. Substance abuse compromises appropriate parenting practices and increases the risk of child maltreatment. A substantial proportion of substantiated child abuse and neglect reports involve parental substance abuse. Once in the system, children of substance-abusing families experience significantly longer stays in foster care and significantly lower rates of reunification. To address these problems, child welfare systems are developing service integration models that incorporate both substance abuse and child welfare services. This study provides an initial examination of the effectiveness of one service integration model that emphasizes the provision of intensive case management to link substance abuse and child welfare services. The authors used an experimental design and focused particular attention on two outcomes: access to substance abuse services and family reunification. The findings indicate that the families assigned to the experimental group used substance abuse services at a significantly higher rate and were more likely to achieve family reunification than were families in the control group. KEY WORDS: case management; families; reunification; substance abuse ********** The effective collaboration of multiple service systems to deal with parental alcohol and other drug abuse (AODA) continues to challenge government efforts to ensure family permanence and the safety and well-being of neglected and abused children. Research has documented the heavy toll that parental drug addiction exacts on families and children who come to the attention of state child protection authorities. According to Young and colleagues (1998), at least 50% of the nearly 1 million children indicated for child abuse and neglect in 1995 had caregivers who abused alcohol or other drugs. A 1994 report issued by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) estimated that the percentage of foster home placements resulting in part from parental drug use rose from 52% to 78% between 1986 and 1991 in the cities of Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia (GAO, 1994). A 1998 GAO study of child protection systems in Los Angeles and Cook County, Illinois, documented that substance use was a problem in more than 70% of active foster care cases (GAO, 1998). If child welfare systems are to achieve desirable permanency and safety outcomes, the development of innovative service strategies and agency partnerships are necessary. Parental substance abuse often compromises appropriate parenting practices, creates problems in the parent--child relationship, and significantly increases the risk of child maltreatment (Famularo, Kincherff, & Fenton, 1992; Jaudes, Ekwo, & Van Voorhis, 1995; Kelleher, Chaffin, Hollenberg, & Fisher, 1994; Nurco, Blatchley, Hanlon, O'Grady, & McCarren, 1998). Once involved in the child welfare system, substance-abusing parents are more likely to experience subsequent allegations of maltreatment compared with non-substance-abusing parents (Smith & Testa, 2002). In addition to the increased risk of maltreatment, access to and engagement with treatment providers is often limited (Maluccio & Ainsworth, 2003). Consequently, children of substance-abusing parents remain in substitute care for significantly longer periods of time and experience significantly lower rates of family reunification relative to almost every other subgroup of families in the child welfare system (GAO, 1998). Access and Engagement Access to substance abuse treatment is limited for substance-abusing parents. Overall, in the United States approximately one-third of all individuals who need treatment receive it (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 1997). The supply of treatment services for women with children is especially inadequate (Price, 1997). …


This article provides a framework for the analysis of the relationship between different macroeconomic, sector and commodity policies and the multiplier effects of agriculture. It starts with a listing of the macroeconomic, sector and commodity policies that have been included in the analysis. These should be considered in conjunction with the likely roles of agriculture along each of the dimensions of the social, poverty and cultural roles of agriculture. These policies and roles should be conceptualised as the vertical and horizontal axes respectively of a 'policy role' matrix. The 'cells' of this matrix – the policy role interactions – are discussed with respect to the immediate macroeconomic, agricultural, economic, institutional and social impact of the policy change on the agricultural sector at farm, regional, national and multinational levels, and thereafter on the role of agriculture in terms of each of the dimensions identified above.


Spent nuclear fuel transported in large casks must remain subcritical in all credible configurations for normal operation and hypothetical accident conditions. The effects on spent nuclear fuel reactivity from "worst-case" accident scenarios were surveyed in NUREG/CR-6835, "Effects of Fuel Failure on Criticality Safety and Radiation Dose for Spent Fuel Casks." The survey used scenarios that were postulated to provide theoretical upper limits for reactivity effects of fuel relocation, although they were described as going "beyond credible conditions." These scenarios involved physical changes either to fuel assembly rod arrays or to collections of fuel pellets with the fuel skeleton removed. To provide more credible estimates of the probability and maximum reactivity changes, a process is presented that deconstructs each scenario into a set of subscenarios and identifies the physical phenomena required to create the subscenario. The boundary between credible but unlikely scenarios and incredible scenarios is more easily discernible with this process. For marginally credible worst-case scenarios, it is concluded that the maximum reasonable reactivity increase either is less than the mandated administrative nuclear criticality safety margin for scenarios involving physical changes to fuel assembly rod arrays or is a substantial reactivity decrease for scenarios involving collections of fuel pellets. A cask designer could apply scenario deconstruction to evaluate the physical limits that apply to a particular transportation cask, and perform calculations specific to a particular cask design to show that criticality safety requirements are met.


Abstract. The widely used community model GEOS-Chem 12.0.0 and previous versions have been recognized to significantly overestimate the concentrations of gaseous nitric acid, aerosol nitrate, and aerosol ammonium over the United States. The concentrations of nitric acid are also significantly over-predicted in most global models participating a recent model inter-comparison study. In this study, we show that most or all of this overestimation issue appears to be associated with wet scavenging processes. Replacement of constant in-cloud condensation water (ICCW) assumed in GEOS-Chem standard versions with one varying with location and time from the assimilated meteorology significantly reduces mass loadings of nitrate and ammonium during the wintertime, while the employment of an empirical washout rate for nitric acid significantly decreases mass concentrations of nitric acid and ammonium during the summertime. Compared to the standard version, GEOS-Chem with updated ICCW and washout rate significantly reduces the simulated annual mean mass concentrations of nitric acid, nitrate, and ammonium at surface mentoring network sites in US, from 2.04 to 1.03 μg m-3, 1.89 to 0.88 μg m-3, 1.09 to 0.68 μg m-3, respectively, in much better agreement with corresponding observed values of 0.83, 0.70, and 0.60 μg m-3, respectively. In addition, the agreement of model simulated seasonal variations of corresponding species with measurements is also improved. The updated wet scavenging scheme improves the skill of the model in predicting nitric acid, nitrate, and ammonium concentrations which are important species for air quality and climate.


Machinability assessment of two ceramic materials was carried out using uncoated carbide tool inserts under dry conditions. The materials investigated were Macor and Boron nitride and the machining operation was a continuous operation (turning). The objectives of this investigation were to generate reliable machining data in terms of surface finish, tool life and cutting force in relation to cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut. The cutting tests were carried out using one-variable-at-a-time and design of experiments.

For one variable at-a-time experiment, surface finish, cutting forces and tool life were measured. In these tests the cutting variables i.e, cutting speed, feed rate, depth of cut and nose radius were varied to study their effects on the surface finish, tool life and cutting forces. With the design of experiments, the combined effects of the cutting variables were investigated on the machining responses.

The experimental data on the design of experiments were analysed by the response surface methodology. Using the mathematical models for different responses, a computerized machinability data base system was developed to facilitate the optimum selection of cutting parameters.


In nature, white-rot fungi and some bacteria secrete powerful oxidative enzymes such as peroxidases and laccases to break down lignin and lignin products. These enzymes, together with different chemical mediators, form a chemo-enzymatic system for delignifying biomass so that the microbes can gain access to the polysaccharides. Ligninolytic oxidoreductases have been widely studied in terms of their unique reaction mechanisms and industrial applicability (largely related to production and stability issues). In the context of an integrated biorefinery, both ligninolytic organisms and ligninolytic enzymes may have a role to play for delignification and lignin valorization. This chapter reviews microbial degradation of lignin from an enzymatic perspective, discusses the recent discoveries and advances in a global context including genomic and structure/function information, and provides a perspective on the potential for its utilization in different green chemistry transformations.