Aims With the continued success of treating children and adolescents with congenital (CHD) or acquired heart disease, we now need to assess quality of life (QoL) outcomes rather than simple mortality. The Pediatric Cardiac Quality of Life Inventory (PCQLI) is a new self-administered disease-specific QoL measure, comprising both patient and parent–proxy reporting and recently shown to be reliable and valid in the USA. The purpose of the current trial was to assess reliability and validity of the PCQLI scores in the UK. Methods Three UK tertiary paediatric cardiac centres recruited patients aged 8–18 years with congenital or acquired heart disease. Patient–parent pairs completed the PCQLI, a generic QoL measure (PedsQL4.0) and non-QoL instruments (Self Perception Profile for Children/Adolescents (SPPC/A); Achenbach Youth Self Report Form and Child Behavior Checklist). Test-retest reliability was performed by administering the PCQLI at two time points and assessed by correlation coefficients. Validity was assessed by correlation of PCQLI scores between patients and parents and with severity of CHD, medical care utilisation, and PedsQL, SPPC/A and Achenbach scores. Results This preliminary study was completed by 125 child-parent pairs and 125 adolescent-parent pairs. Diagnostic categories were biventricular repair (40%), Fontan palliation (20%), unrepaired CHD (20%), heart transplantation (2.8%) and acquired heart disease (17.8%). Correlations evaluating test-retest reliability ranged from 0.64–0.9. Correlations for patient and parent scores were moderate for both child and adolescent groups (0.49–0.72). Lower PCQLI scores were associated with Fontan palliation (p<0.001) and increasing number of hospitalisations (p<.005) and cardiac catheterisations (p<.001). Scores for the PCQLI and generic QoL measure were highly correlated (0.66–0.77). Lower PCQLI total scores were associated with lower global self-worth on the SPPC/A (p<.001) and lower total competency scores on the Achenbach measures (p<.001). Conclusions Preliminary analysis of PCQLI data collected in the UK suggests that it is a reliable and valid disease-specific QoL measure for children and adolescents with congenital or acquired heart disease. This novel tool will allow for outcomes assessment in the paediatric cardiac population.


For nearly a century, lawyers and engineers have struggled to make workable behavioral rules for the complicated and, literally, ethereal problem of radio spectrum interference and its negative impact on value of the spectrum resource to all. One counter current has been the Federal Communications Commission's rules governing unlicensed operation. For 70 years, these rules have, with increasing success, achieved a balance among stability, flexibility, and development. The rules permit radio operation on a sufferance basis in broad swaths of the radio spectrum this is not allocated specifically to unlicensed use. In 1938, then-FCC Chief Engineer, Ewell Jett argued that argued if certain RF emissions which were sufficiently weak and short ranged so as to not be considered measurable, and would therefore, not rise to the level of harmful interference. The FCC set about to promulgate rules to manage such devices based on this jurisprudence.While the unlicensed rules may lack a glorious and romantic past, licensed operation holds great interest for spectrum policy wonks as well as rich issues for in the spectrum policy debate. Much of the policy debate in last decade has been couched in terms of how spectrum rights are defined. The regulatory change since the early part of this decade has been a deliberate review of policy options, fuelled by theoretical economics and multidisciplinary research. Nonetheless, the origin and evolution of unlicensed rules has eschewed such an esoteric discussion. Rather, the rules concentrate on the effective power and modulation characteristic of the radio devices themselves. When the services offered by wireless communications are not well defined or are not knowable at the time rules are created (and they never are), an unlicensed regime holds certain advantages, such as competition, product innovation, and user investment in wireless networks. Since unlicensed devices have historically represented a smaller part of radio services and given the richness of the current debate, an understanding of the history development of the rules can serve to inform the future. The rules have been effective due to the fact they focus on fundamental property: irradiated power which is the direct cause of harmful interference. The rules establish parameters not standards and market forces are free to operate within these constraints.In sum, the jurisprudence underlying the rules is that unlicensed spectrum is not spectrum at all. Perhaps this is the next great idea for all spectrum policy: Spectrum does not really exist. It is merely an idea - a concept - a way of describing and organizing the physical world in our minds and in our actions. Spectrum is a legal and engineering construct to control for an immutable fundamental physical property. When multiple electromagnetic waves, used as carrier waves to transmit information are incident in time, harmonic in frequency, and alight on the same reception antenna, they degrade one another's ability to transmit information. If we can accept that spectrum does not exist, then perhaps we can free ourselves from a century of thinking and search for more modern, more nibble solutions. More flexible modes of regulation might focus on dealing with interference, not necessarily avoiding it, and coordinating uses.


This study explores the place of children through the lenses of generational and gender relationships in Awra Amba community, Northern Ethiopia. It discusses what children's life from gender and generational perspective look like in Awra Amba community. The study is based on the following research questions. What are the social values and roles of children in the community? What does gender relationship among children and between children and adults look like in Awra Amba community? What is "special" about children of Awra Amba Community? To document the place of children through answering these questions, the study employs qualitative research methods such as in-depth interview, focus group discussion observation, informal dialogue and home visit. These qualitative methods were used as the issue to be explored needed a complex and detailed understanding. In other words, the research project was qualitative in its nature because the researcher needed an intricate and thorough understanding of the issue. Children whose age ranges from12-15 years and their parents (both mothers and fathers) whose age ranges from 32-40 and 48-72 respectively including the founder and the leader of the community, Zumra Nuru, were included in the study as participants (research subjects). The study is informed by social constructivism through viewing children's place and childhood among the Awura Amba community from discursive construction, structural construction, generational construction and children as social actors perspectives. The study observes children's place among the community from three angles: gender equality, social order and intergenerational relationships. It argues that children are active participants in activation and perpetuation of gender equity, social order and egalitarian intergenerational relationships. Such perspectives of children indicate that children are well aware of the collective values among the community and are exercising them as part of their everyday lives.


The aim of this thesis is to provide an insight into the potential effects that follow the use of compulsory licensing in developing countries. Compulsory licensing is implemented in World Trade Organization's agreement of trade related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPS) and attempts to strike a balance between creating access to existing drugs and promoting the research and development of new ones. Pharmaceutical patent holders argue that this measure will reduce their incentive to provide the world with future needed drugs. Humanitarian organizations along with the developing world underline the importance of compulsory licensing as a measure to secure life-saving medicines to people who otherwise would not afford them. Thus, depending on whose perspective one takes, compulsory licensing could be viewed as either a harmful or beneficial policy measure. One might also see possible effects on the level of innovation within the countries that use the compulsory license, as the license may provide knowledge transfer that motivates innovation. A negative effect, however, could be possible sanctions in foreign direct investments as a response to the use of compulsory licensing. The amount of empirical literature trying to investigate these effects is scarce. Most compulsory licenses issued through the TRIPS agreement are on HIV/AIDS drugs. Further, there is a possibility that depending on different characteristics of the country issuing the compulsory license, the effects on innovation and foreign direct investments may vary. Such characteristics could be national policies in the country, importance of their market for the rights holder and characteristics belonging to the patented drug. These characteristics should be considered implemented in future research.


The value of prophylactic antibiotics in the treatment of animal bites is uncertain. A prospective double blind stratified trial was performed comparing a broad spectrum antibiotic amoxycillin/clavulanate with placebo in full thickness animal bite wounds in a series of 185 consecutive patients. In wounds less than 9 h old, no significant benefit was found with the antibiotic. In older wounds, presenting 9-24 h after injury, the infection rate was reduced significantly (P = 0.023), although the numbers were small. We recommend the use of such an antibiotic on wounds 9-24 h old and query its use in more recent injuries, unless tendons or joints are likely to be involved.


A total of 192 largemouth bass were caught at Lake Ray Roberts, Texas (1995) to investigate five controversial bass angling techniques relative to hooking mortality. The bait types were Texas-rigged scented and non-scented plastic worms, Carolina-rigged scented and non-scented plastic worms, and live golden shiners. Overall hooking mortality was 21.87% and mortality was dependent upon bait type. Highest mortality resulted from the Texas-rigged scented lures, while the lowest mortality was generated by live golden shiners. A creel survey indicated that few anglers were having success with the investigated baits. Factors that had a confirmed effect on hooking mortality were hooking location and water temperature. Hooking mortality was not excessive compared to other similar studies.


With the aim of contextualising the evolution of state regulation in the South African insolvency law, this article briefly discusses the history of insolvency law in general, and considers the historical development of state regulation in Roman, Roman-Dutch and English law. Although it could be argued that the establishment of the Desolate Boedelkamer and subsequent founding of the office of the Master of the Supreme Court could be classified as the most significant events in the history of this field of law, at the time, adequate attention had not been paid to the process of policy development nor to the implications of the merger of the two institutions. Hopefully, as the South African law- and policymakers are at present contemplating the introduction of significant new insolvency legislation, the importance of a policy-driven approach based on lessons learned and insights gained from research conducted into the historical context surrounding insolvency law would be recognised.


As a young man early in the 20th century, Robert H. Jackson lived and practiced law in Buffalo, New York, and developed strong ties to that leading United States city, its people, its legal profession and its University.By the mid-1940s, Jackson's life path reached high levels in U.S. government, including acclaimed service as Solicitor General, as Attorney General, and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. In spring 1945 as Hitler's Germany was being defeated militarily, President Truman appointed Justice Jackson to represent the U.S. in what became the international prosecution and adjudication, in Nuremberg, of the principal Nazi war criminals. During Jackson's 1945-46 service as U.S. chief prosecutor at Nuremberg, he was away from the U.S. and missed an entire Supreme Court term.In fall 1946, Justice Jackson returned from Nuremberg to the Supreme Court by way of Buffalo. At the invitation of the University of Buffalo (UB) as it celebrated its centennial, Jackson accepted an honorary degree, the first it had ever awarded. Jackson then delivered, at the centennial's closing convocation, an address explicating his just-completed work at Nuremberg. Jackson described the Nuremberg trial as a significant step in global education and international law development and he discussed its connection to national systems of constitutional law. Although Jackson's 1946 UB address was widely published and discussed in its era, it was not published in a law journal and, over the years, it was generally forgotten. On October 4, 2011, SUNY Buffalo Law School devoted its prominent annual James McCormick Mitchell Lecture to a program commemorating Justice Jackson's 1946 UB centennial address. This Essay, based on a Mitchell Lecture that was part of that 65th anniversary program, traces Jackson's path, including his law practice and friendships in Buffalo and his sojourns from there to Washington to Nuremberg and, in October 1946, back to Buffalo. The Essay describes UB's spring 1946 offer to Jackson of an honorary degree; his initial acceptance; his subsequent offer to withdraw after he created, in June 1946, public controversy about Supreme Court justice ethics; UB's reaffirmation of its decision to honor Jackson; his speech writing as he waited for the Nuremberg judgment; his last-minute travel from Nuremberg to Buffalo; and the 1946 UB centennial events that culminated in his significant address.This Essay and other components growing out of SUNY Buffalo's 2011 Mitchell Lecture program — an introductory Essay by Professors Alfred S. Konefsky and Tara J. Melish; Justice Robert H. Jackson's 1946 centennial address; and Mitchell Lectures by Professors Eric L. Muller and Mary L. Dudziak — are published in Volume 60 of the Buffalo Law Review (in print and online). The Konefsky & Melish, Muller, and Dudziak essays also are posted on SSRN.


OBJECTIVE: To assess the cost-effectiveness of a primary care based intervention aimed at increasing levels of physical activity in inactive people aged 45-74. METHODS: A total of 714 inactive people aged 45-74, taken from two west London general practices, were randomised into two groups. Intervention subjects were invited to a consultation with an exercise development officer, and offered a personalised 10 week programme to increase their level of regular physical activity, combining leisure centre and home based activities. Control subjects were sent information on local leisure centres. All subjects were followed up at eight months. RESULTS: There was a net 10.6% (95% confidence interval 4.5 to 16.9%) reduction in the proportion of people classified as sedentary in the intervention group compared with the control group, eight months after the intervention. The intervention group also reported an increase in the mean number of episodes of physical activity per week, as compared with the control group (an additional 1.52 episodes (95% confidence interval 1.14 to 1.95)). The cost of moving a person out of the sedentary group was shown to be less than 650 Pounds. The cost of moving someone to the now commonly recommended level was estimated at almost 2500 Pounds. CONCLUSIONS: Moderate physical activity can be successfully encouraged in previously sedentary men and women aged 45-74 through a primary care based intervention. The process of recruitment was the most important variable cost. A high uptake rate would maximise cost-effectiveness, and sensitivity analysis suggests that unit costs could be halved with a more effective recruitment strategy.


Objective To summarize the clinical manifestation, laboratory examination, radiological and pathological characteristics of idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis in children and discusses the diagnosis,treatment and prognosis. Methods The patient for laboratory, imaging, deep sucking phlegm parallel histopathological examination confirmed, corticosteroid and followed-up, discusse the patient and combined domestic and foreign literature review reports. Results Clinical manifestations of main were recurrent haemoptysis,cough, anemia, partial bosom frowsty, flustered, feeble, no obvious signs in lungs. Radiculopathy lung diffuse ground-glass appearance was changed, relevant immunological tests (e. g, antinuclear antibodies, neutrophils patina antibodies) were negative, blood analysis was a hypochromic microcytic anemia, elevated bilirubin, serum iron reduces, deep sputum containing blood can be found macrophages. Conclusion Children idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderin clinical manifestations of diversity, with iron deficiency anemia, bronchopneumonia, tuberculosis, it is easy to be misdiagnosed, distinguish repeatedly, the diagnosis of gastric juice and bronchoaleolar laage biopsy can improve the rate of disease, should strengthen the cognition, early diagnosis and intervention. Long-range cocorticoid therapy can make an illness in a stable state. The poor prognosis.

Key words:
Idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis; Children; Literature review


Throughout the last years, the trend in HPC is towards heterogeneous cluster architectures that make use of accelerators to speed up computations. For this purpose, many current HPC systems are equipped with Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). These deliver a high floating-point performance, which is important to accelerate compute-intensive applications. This thesis aims to analyze the suitability of CPUs and GPUs for graph algorithms, which can be classified as data-intensive applications. These types of applications perform fewer computations per data element and strongly rely on fast memory access. The analysis is based on two multi-node implementations of the Graph500 benchmark, which execute a number of Breadth-first Searches (BFS) on a large-scale graph. To enable a fair comparison, the same parallel BFS algorithm has been implemented for the CPU and the GPU version. The final evaluation does not only include the performance results but the programming effort that was necessary to achieve the result as well as the cost and energy efficiency. Comparable performance results have been found for both the versions of Graph500, but a significant difference in the programming effort has been detected. The main reason for the high programming effort of the GPU implementation is that complex optimizations are necessary to achieve an acceptable performance in the first place. These require detailed knowledge of the GPU hardware architecture. All in all, the results of this thesis lead to the conclusion that the higher energy efficiency and, depending on the point of view, cost efficiency of the GPUs do not outweigh the lower programming effort for the implementation of graph algorithms on CPUs.


Title of Document: INVESTIGATION OF STRATEGIES FOR DRUG DELIVERY BY COMBINATION TARGETING OF NANOCARRIERS TO MULTIPLE EPITOPES OR RECEPTORS Iason Titos Papademetriou, Doctor of Philosophy, 2013 Directed By: Associate Professor Silvia Muro, Fischell Department of Bioengineering & Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research Development of drug delivery systems (ie. nanocarriers) with controllable composition, architecture, and functionalities is heavily investigated in the field of drug delivery in order to improve clinical interventions. Designing drug nanocarriers which possess targeting properties is critical to enable them to reach the intended site of intervention in the body. To achieve this goal, the surface of drug nanocarriers can be modified with targeting moieties (antibodies, peptides, etc.) addressed to cell surface molecules expressed on the diseased tissues and cells. If these molecules are receptors capable of internalizing bound ligands via endocytosis, targeting can then enable drug transport into cells or across cellular barriers in the body. Yet, addressing nanocarriers to single targets presents limited control over cellular interactions and biodistribution. Since most cell-surface markers are not exclusively expressed in a precise site in vivo, high affinity of targeted nanocarriers may lead to non-desired accumulation in regions of the body associated with low expression. Modification of nanocarriers to achieve combined-targeting (binding to more than one cell-surface receptor) may help modulate binding to cells and also endocytosis, since cell receptors possess distinct functions and features affecting these parameters, such as their expression, location on the plasmalemma, activation in disease, mechanism of endocytosis, etc. Further, targeting nanocarriers to multiple epitopes of the same receptor, a strategy which has never been tested, may also modulate these parameters since they are highly epitope specific. In this dissertation, we investigate the effect of targeting model polymer nanocarriers to: (1) multiple receptors of similar function (intercellular-, platelet-endothelial-, and/or vascularcell adhesion molecules), (2) multiple receptors of different function (intercellular adhesion molecule 1 and transferrin receptor), or (3) multiple epitopes of the same receptor (transferrin receptor epitopes 8D3 and R17). Binding to cells, endocytosis within cells, and biodistribution in mice were tested. Results indicate that combination targeting enhanced performance of nanocarriers with regard to these three parameters as compared to non-targeted nanocarriers and modulated their outcome relative to single-targeted nanocarriers. This modulation was observed as enhanced, intermediate, or diminished interaction with cells, accumulation in particular organs, and specificity for diseased sites relative to single-targeted nanocarriers. These results were general to strategies 1-3 and were difficult to foresee a priori due to the complex nature of said interactions. Importantly, outcomes depended on the multiplicity (dualvs. triple-targeting) and/or combination of affinity moieties displayed on the nanocarrier surface, as well as the physiological/pathological state of cells and tissues. Modulation of the delivery of a model therapeutic cargo in mice relative to single-targeted nanocarriers demonstrated the potential of these strategies to control the biodistribution of therapeutic agents. Therefore, these findings illustrate that combination-targeting enables modulation over cellular interactions and biodistribution of nanocarriers, which may aid the development of nanocarriers tailored for particular therapeutic needs. INVESTIGATION OF STRATEGIES FOR DRUG DELIVERY BY COMBINATION TARGETING OF NANOCARRIERS TO MULTIPLE EPITOPES OR RECEPTORS


Presently, digitalisation has moved beyond a desktop paradigm to one of ubiquitous computing; by introducing new possibilities and dynamic materials to various design fields, e.g. product design and architecture, it allows future spaces to be envisioned. Prior to being incorporated in the housing of the future, however, the hybrid character of computational materials raises questions with regard to the development of the appropriate design methods to allow them to be used in the production of space. Thus, merging physical and digital attributes in the material design process and expression not only enables a better understanding of materials through design, but also requires a cross-disciplinary methodology to be articulated in order to allow different perspectives on e.g. material, interaction, and architecture to interweave in the design process. Based on a practice-based research methodology, this paper proposes a cross-disciplinary framework where the notion of temporal scalability – enabled by the character of computation as a design material – is discussed in relation to form and material in architecture. The framework is illustrated by two different design examples, Repetition and Tactile Glow, and the methods behind their creation – merging time, material, and surface aesthetics – are discussed.


The information gained when practicing curiosity promotes well-being over extended timescales. The open-ended and internally driven nature of curiosity, however, makes characterizing the diverse styles of information seeking that accompany it a daunting endeavor. A recently developed historicophilosophical taxonomy of curious practice distinguishes between the collection of disparate, loosely connected pieces of information and the seeking of related, tightly connected pieces of information. With this taxonomy, we use a novel knowledge network building framework of curiosity to capture styles of curious information seeking in 149 participants as they explore Wikipedia for over 5 hours spanning 21 days. We create knowledge networks in which nodes consist of distinct concepts (unique Wikipedia pages) and edges represent the similarity between the content of Wikipedia pages. We quantify the tightness of each participants' knowledge networks using graph theoretical indices and use a generative model of network growth to explore mechanisms underlying the observed information seeking. We find that participants create knowledge networks with small-world and modular structure. Deprivation sensitivity, the tendency to seek information that eliminates knowledge gaps, is associated with the creation of relatively tight networks and a relatively greater tendency to return to previously-visited concepts. We further show that there is substantial within-person variability in knowledge network building over time and that building looser networks than usual is linked with higher than usual sensation seeking. With this framework in hand, future research can quantify the information collected during curious practice and examine its association with well-being.


Plasma astrophysics deals with collective plasma processes in astrophysical scenarios. As observational astronomy pushes towards unprecedented resolutions in space and time, the focus of theoretical research necessarily ventures towards a description of the plasma microphysics. On microphysical scales the plasma is pervasively collisionless and the magnetohydrodynamic approximation breaks down. Consequently theoretical concepts rely on a kinetic plasma description as the most sophisticated plasma model. The present work discusses some fundamental kinetic plasma processes in relativistic astrophysics: Fast Magnetic Reconnection (FMR) associated with discontinuities in the magnetic field topology, and the Coupled Two-Stream-Weibel instability (CTW) in the wake of collisionless shocks. Both processes are ubiquitous in astrophysical sites, prevail over competing plasma modes because of dominant growth rates, experience significant relativistic modifications, and develop essential features solely in the highly non-linear regime. The computational representation invokes the entire 6D phase space. These characteristics distinguish
FMR and the CTW as distinctively critical processes.
FMR and the CTW are studied here in the framework of self-consistent, relativistic and fully electromagnetic Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulations. Typical scenarios comprise ensembles of 10^9 particles and endure for several 10^4 time steps. The computational task is challenging and completely in the realm of the massively parallelized architectures of state-of-the-art supercomputers.
We present the first self-consistent 3D simulations of FMR in relativistic pair plasma. Focusing on the mechanism of particle acceleration we show that the highly dynamic evolution of the current sheet in the non-linear regime is the essential stage. Therein non-stationary acceleration zones arise in the superposition of the relativistic tearing and the relativistic drift kink mode as competing current sheet instabilities. Though the topology of electromagnetic fields is highly turbulent, the FMR process shows the remarkable quality to generate smooth and stable power-laws in the particle distribution function (PDF) out of an initial Maxwellian. The upper PDF cut-off in relativistic energy is determined by the ratio of light to Alfven velocity c/v_A. The power-law index assumes s~-1 within the reconnection X-zone irrespective of parameter variations. Intriguingly the power-law index appears as the universal characteristic of the source process. The associated synchrotron spectra provide a valid description of the extremely hard spectra and rapid variabilities of `Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars'.
Conceptual Gamma-Ray Burst (GRB) synchrotron emission models depend on a plasma process which ensures efficient magnetic field generation. The CTW converts bulk-kinetic energy of counter-streaming plasma shells into Weibel magnetic fields. Pivoted by the linear analysis of the CTW, the PIC simulations confirm the correspondence between saturation magnetic fields and bulk-kinetic energy. Plasma shell collisions in GRBs are either associated with internal or external shocks. As direct consequence of the energy dependence the CTW evolves from a complex 3D topology in internal collisions towards quasi-2D, Weibel-dominated conformalizations at the higher external shock energies. The PIC results prove that the Weibel fields are sufficiently strong to sustain synchrotron emission scenarios, particularly in external shocks. By determining the first lifetime limits we show that Weibel fields are also sufficiently long-lived with respect to typical synchrotron cooling times. We further identify the stability-limiting diffusion process as of `Bohm'-type, i.e. the diffusion coefficient exhibits the T/B-dependence and herewith represents a conservative stability criterion. The CTW generates stable power-law spectra in the magnetic fields implying power-law shaped PDFs as self-similar solutions for diffusive particle scattering. This suggests a universal power-law index as the characteristic of the CTW process.
Imposing a magnetic guide field of well-defined strength suppresses the Weibel contributions of the CTW in favour of the electrostatic Two-Stream instability (TSI). The pulsar magnetosphere is the paradigmatic scenario in which we discuss the mechanism of Coherent Collisionless Bremsstrahlung (CCB) triggered by the TSI. The PIC simulations show that the CCB mechanism provides a valid description of the phenomenon of `Giant Radio Pulses' as recently observed from the Crab pulsar.


Technologies used to represent texts are not hermeneutically neutral. Since technologies have illocutionary force, we should ask of any text, whether print or digital, In what ways are the associated technologies conveying meaning? In this article, the question will be asked of liturgical texts. For the past few years, the Church of England has published some of its Common Worship liturgical resources, including Daily Prayer and the Common Worship Lectionary, as mobile Android and iOS apps. While the content of the resources is generally the same in its printed and digital forms, a number of interesting differences in how the resources can be used in these respective formats are apparent. Further, it is the contention of this article that these differences have discernable hermeneutical effects on the reader/user experience. After offering a framework for understanding the ways in which technologies influence the interpretation of their texts, this article will describe and interpret the differences between the print and digital versions of Daily Prayer. Finally, implications for users/readers and various other stakeholders in the religious apps space will be offered.


This study describes the usage of subclauses and participial clauses in Xenophon's Hellenica and Anabasis, with additional examples from other texts by Xenophon, providing new insights into the distribution of these clauses by adopting a text grammar-oriented approach.


Most of the current academic and professional work requires collaboration between the members of a working group. Groupware tools play a prevailing role in supporting this collaborative work, often from different locations and at the same time. The research field of CSCW (Computer-Supported Cooperative Work) studies how to design effective groupware tools. To increase their potential, groupware systems must be flexible and have the capacity to adapt themselves to multiple tasks and situations. In order to provide answers to these challenges, in this article we propose the use of meta-models and XML-based languages to specify the most important characteristics of a groupware modeling system, such as the application domain, the requirements of the tasks to be carried out, how communication takes place and the regulation of the shared workspace. These models and techniques have been used to develop a specific groupware system called SPACE-DESIGN (SPecification and Automatic Construction of collaborative Environments of DESIGN), a CSCW tool with support for synchronous distributed collaborative work that adapts and re-configures itself as a result of processing the domain specification, the task, the communication and the system working norms.


Lead (Pb) is a toxic heavy metal that is ubiquitous in our environment. Exposure to Pb is a threat not only to humans and other organisms but to the entire environment as well. This study assessed the Pb-bioaccumulation and bioconcentration abilities of eight plant species in Pb-contaminated sites. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) results indicated that higher Pb concentrations were determined in the root tissues of plants compared with the shoot tissues. Species with high amount of Pb in root tissues were Mimosa pudica (1495.45 ppm), Centrosema pufescens (1149.1 ppm), Eleusine indica (916.65 ppm), Panicum antidotale R.(756.35 ppm), Cyperus rotundus (534.4 ppm), Cynodon dactylon (516.35) and Dichantium sericeum (397.55 ppm). More so, C. dactylon accumulated the highest shoot Pb (8.05 ppm), followed by M. pudica (4.4 ppm), D. sericeum (4.3 ppm), C. pufescens (2.15 ppm), P. antidotale (2.15 ppm), E. indica (3.3 ppm) and R. communis (1.95 ppm). Among these species, C. pufescens had the highest bioconcentration factor (BCF) and thus, can efficiently bioconcentrate Pb. These results revealed the ability of these eight species to bioaccumulate Pb in their tissues. Finally, plant species that can efficiently concentrate Pb from the soil into the root and shoot tissues are the promising species for phytoremediation of Pbcontaminated sites.


This paper performs a rhetorical analysis of the science-fiction program, Doctor Who, using theories from Kenneth Burke. Series Five of the show is analyzed using Burke's theory of identification, the representative anecdote and the dramatistic pentad. The analysis with identification theory exemplifies the show's ability to create identification with the audience that, in turn, drives the audience to watch. While the identification connects the audience to the show, the pentad explains how the characters of the show are driven by a pursuit of idealistic humanism rooted in individuality. The final analysis demonstrates that the program embraces more of a representative anecdote, as it can offer tools for living, rather than a deflective one.


The sensory and neural mechanisms underlying postural control have received much attention in recent decades but remain poorly understood. Our objectives were 1) to establish the decerebrate cat as an appropriate model for further research into the sensory mechanisms of postural control and 2) to observe what elements of the postural response can be generated by the brain stem and spinal cord. Ten animals were decerebrated using a modified premammillary technique, which consists of a premammillary decerebration that is modified with a vertical transection near the subthalamic nucleus to eliminate spontaneous locomotion. Horizontal support surface perturbations were applied to all four limbs and electromyographic recordings were collected from 14 muscles of the right hindlimb. Muscle activation was quantified with tuning curves, which compared increases and decreases in muscle activity to background and graphed the difference against perturbation direction. Parallels were drawn between these tuning curves, which were further quantified with a principal direction and breadth (range of directions of muscle activation), and data collected by other researchers from the intact animal. We found a strong similarity in the direction and breadth of the tuning curves generated in the decerebrate and intact cat. These results support our hypothesis that directionally specific tuning of muscles in response to support surface perturbations does not require the cortex, further indicating a strong role for the brain stem and spinal cord circuits in mediating directionally appropriate muscle activation patterns.


Gender inequalities are shaping how the HIV epidemic evolves and in order to engage men as 'part of the solution' we must deal with issues of male power. Work on women's equality is centrally concerned with structures of male power within society and how social, economic and political institutions reproduce them. These structures still predominate in most societies and gendered analyses of women's vulnerability in HIV transmission and its impacts show that change is needed. IN FOCUS


The agricultural sector is a dominant one in the Greek economy and thus attracts the scientific interest. Water is significant for a cultivation's productivity and consequently for the agricultural income. Water pricing as a result has become a subject of extended study. The present study refers to the Greek agricultural economy and suggests a macroeconomic model, through which the optimisation of water pricing is surveyed as the sole policy instrument tool implemented.


In most real-world situations, a robot is interacting with multiple people. In this case, understanding of the dialogs is essential. However, dialog scene analysis is missing in most existing systems of human-robot interaction. In such systems, only one speaker can talk with the robot or each speaker wears an attached microphone or a headset. The target of Computational AudioVisual Scene Analysis (CAVSA) is therefore making dialogs between humans and robots more natural and flexible. The CAVSA system is able to learn how many speakers are in the scenario, where the speakers are and who is currently speaking. CAVSA is a challenging task due to the complexity of dialogue scenarios. First, speakers are unknown in advance, thus a database for training high-level features beforehand to recognize faces or voices is not available. Second, people can dynamically come into and leave the scene, may move all the time and even change their locations outside the camera field of view. Third, the robot can not see all the people at the same time due to limited camera field of view and head movements. Moreover, a sound could be related to a person who stands outside the camera field of view and has never been seen. I will show that the CAVSA system is able to assign words to corresponding speakers. A speaker is recognized again when he leaves and enters the scene, or changes his position even with a newly appearing person.


ABSTRACT Strains of Pseudomonas fluorescens producing the antibiotic 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol (2,4-DAPG) are biocontrol agents which play a key role in the suppressiveness of some soils against soilborne pathogens. We evaluated the effect of the host plant genotype on rhizosphere colonization by both indigenous and introduced 2,4-DAPG-producing P. fluorescens. First, population densities of indigenous 2,4-DAPG producers in the rhizospheres of alfalfa, barley, bean, flax, lentil, lupine, oat, pea, and wheat grown in a Fusarium wilt-suppressive Puget silt loam were determined. Population densities differed among the various crops and among pea cultivars, with lentil and oat supporting the highest and lowest densities of 2,4-DAPG producers, respectively. Second, to determine the interactions among 2,4-DAPG producers in the rhizosphere, a Shano sandy loam was inoculated individually and with all possible combinations of P. fluorescens Q8r1-96 (genotype D), F113 (genotype K), and MVP1-4 (genotype P) and sown to wheat or pea, and the rhizosphere population dynamics of each strain was monitored. All three strains were similar in ability to colonize the rhizosphere of wheat and pea when introduced alone into the soil; however, when introduced together in equal densities, the outcome of the interactions differed according to the host crop. In the wheat rhizosphere, the population density of strain F113 was significantly greater than that of Q8r1-96 in the mixed inoculation studies, but no significant differences were observed on pea. The population density of strain Q8r1-96 was greater than that of MVP1-4 in the mixed inoculation on wheat, but the opposite occurred on pea. In the wheat rhizosphere, the population of MVP1-4 dropped below the detection limit (log 3.26 CFU g(-1) of root) in the presence of F113; however, on pea, the population density of MVP1-4 was higher than that of F113. When all three strains were present together, F113 had the greatest density in the wheat rhizosphere, but MVP1-4 was dominant in the pea rhizosphere. Finally, eight pea cultivars were grown in soil inoculated with either MVP1-4 or Q8r1-96. The effect of the pea cultivar on rhizosphere colonization was dependent on the bacterial strain inoculated. Rhizosphere population densities of MVP1-4 did not differ significantly among pea cultivars, whereas population densities of Q8r1-96 did. We conclude from these studies that the host crop plays a key role in modulating both rhizosphere colonization by 2,4-DAPG-producing P. fluorescens and the interactions among different genotypes present in the same rhizosphere.


Reducing power dissipation is the ultimate objective in the world of VLSI circuit design. Conventional logic dissipates more power by losing bits of information whereas reversibility recovers bit loss from the unique input-output mapping. Thus reversible logic has become immensely popular research area and its applications have spread in various technologies. In this paper we have proposed the compact design of reversible circuits for a data acquisition and storage system. The design comprises with a compact reversible analog-todigital converter and a reversible address register. In the way of designing this data acquisition and storage system we have proposed a reversible J-K flip-flop with asynchronous inputs, a reversible D flipflop and a reversible three state buffer register. All the reversible designs individually have less number of gates, garbage outputs and quantum cost compared with the existing ones and have outperformed those described in the literature. Moreover we have proposed some lower bounds for designing these reversible components of the compact data acquisition and storage system.


In this thesis we discuss mathematical aspects of extreme water wave generation in a hydrodynamic laboratory. The original problem comes from the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) to generate large amplitude and non-breaking waves to test ship and offshore construction. We choose the spatial nonlinear Schrodinger (NLS) equation as a mathematical model for this problem and concentrate on the study of one family of exact solutions of this equation that describes extreme wave events in a wave basin.


By the 1890s, mining had slowed down and New Zealand in general was economically depressed. Large amounts of capital could only be obtained from London, where exploration companies were formed to investigate potential goldfields, but, as usual, most investors were after quick profits. The mining boom started in 1894 on the Rand in South Africa, then attention turned to Western Australia in the following year, and by 1896 it was New Zealand's turn, where overseas capital was made very welcome, for without it large-scale mining development was not possible. As both vendors and investors sought to exploit the industry for their own benefit, there were fears that a brief boom would handicap rather than assist it. Over-capitalized companies were formed, with vendors and company promoters exploiting the system, including by insider trading, although because of the risks involved some did not make the profits expected. Overseas 'experts' were used to puff mines, as many investors understood, for in England there was no rush by ordinary investors to acquire shares. In New Zealand speculators made quick profits by gambling on the share market in a manner compared to horse racing. The New Zealand boom is traced from its beginnings in 1895 to its fading away as wild cats collapsed in 1897. Although some people blamed government policy for the boom not continuing, more commonly the gambling fever was seen as the cause, for many mining properties placed on the market had no possibility of success. Yet in the short term there were benefits for the industry, sometimes because lessons were learnt and mistakes understood. In general, it was a pegging-out boom rather than a mining boom.


In this thesis we consider effective models of quantum chromodynamics to learn about the chiral- and deconfinement phase transitions. In Chapter 1 we review basic properties of strongly interacting matter and the foundations of finite temperature field theory. We review furthermore the nonperturbative functional renormalization group (FRG) approach. In Chapter 2 we introduce the quark-meson (QM) model and its extensions including the Polyakov-loop variables and repulsive vector interactions between quarks. We then discuss features of the model both in the mean-field approximation and in the renormalization group treatment. A novel method to solve the renormalization group equations based on the Chebyshev polynomials is presented at the end of the chapter.

In Chapter 3 the scaling behavior of the order parameter at the chiral phase transition is studied within effective models.
We explore universal and nonuniversal structures near the critical point. These include the scaling functions, the leading corrections to scaling and the corresponding size of the scaling window as well as their dependence on an external symmetry breaking field. We consider two models in the mean-field approximation, the QM and the Polyakov-loop-extended quark-meson (PQM) models, and compare their critical properties with a purely bosonic theory, the O(N) linear sigma model in the N → ∞ limit. In these models the order parameter scaling function is found analytically using the high temperature expansion of the thermodynamic potential. The effects of a gluonic background on the nonuniversal scaling parameters are studied within the PQM model. Furthermore, numerical calculations of the scaling function and the scaling window are performed in the QM model using the FRG.

Chapter 4 contains a study of the critical properties of net-baryon-number fluctuations at the chiral restoration transition
in a medium at finite temperature and net baryon density.
The chiral dynamics of quantum chromodynamics is modeled by the PQM Lagrangian, that includes the coupling of quarks to vector meson and temporal gauge fields. The FRG is employed to properly account for the O(4) criticality at the phase boundary. We focus on the properties and systematics of ratios of the net-baryon-number cumulants near the phase boundary.
The results are presented in the context of the recent experimental data of the STAR Collaboration on fluctuations of the net proton number in heavy-ion collisions at RHIC. We show that the model results for the energy dependence of the cumulant ratios are in good overall agreement with the data, with one exception. At center-of-mass energies below 19.6 GeV, we find that the measured fourth-order cumulant deviates considerably from the model results, which incorporate the expected O(4) and Z(2) criticality. We assess the influence of model assumptions and in particular of repulsive vector-interactions, which are used to modify the location of the critical endpoint in the model, on the cumulants ratios.

Then finally in Chapter 5 we explore the influence of finite-volume effects on baryon-number fluctuations in the quark-meson model. We employ the FRG in a finite volume, using
a smooth regulator function in momentum space.
We compare the results for a smooth regulator with those for a sharp (or Litim) regulator,
and show that in a finite volume, the latter may produce unwanted artifacts.
In a finite volume there are only apparent critical points, about which we
compute the ratio of the fourth- to the second-order cumulant of quark number fluctuations.
When the volume is sufficiently small the system has two apparent critical points;
as the system size decreases, the location of the apparent critical point can move to higher temperature and lower chemical potential.

At the end of the thesis, conventions are collected in Appendix A. Basic properties of the unitary groups are presented in Appendix B. In Appendix C, definition and relations of Chebyshev polynomials are provided. Finally, in Appendix D initial conditions and model parameters are given.


Environment-dependent variation in the morphological, physiological, or behavioural ex- pression of a genotype is termed phenotypic plasticity. To test for small-scale morphological plasticity in the Indo-Pacific massive corals Favia speciosa (Dana, 1846) and Diploastrea heliopora (Lamark, 1816), fragments (clone-mates) from 12 colonies of each species were reciprocally transplanted among 6 new habitats located within 2 environmental gradients: a depth cline and a nearshore-to-offshore gradient in sedimentation rates and total suspended solids (TSS). After 7 mo, all fragments were col- lected, cleared of tissue, and 10 morphometric characters extracted from randomly chosen corallites. Reaction norms, analysis of variance, and canonical discriminant analysis describe environment- induced changes in corallite architecture. These changes are more pronounced in the depth cline than along the sediment gradient. Similarity of response is suggested by exploratory factor analysis where, for both species, size attributes dominate the first factor, antisymmetry the second, and corallite exser- tion the third. Highly significant genotype × environment interactions for F. speciosa indicate that, for this species, genotypes vary in the level of plasticity expressed. Light and TSS emerge as the primary correlates influencing morphological change, although other parameters might act additively, syner- gystically or antagonistically with them. In shallow waters, increased corallite exsertion may enhance light capture or, alternatively, protect the central (oral disc) area of each polyp from harmful UV radi- ation. Morphological variability, combined with environment-induced changes in pigmentation, could impede accurate identification of these taxa.


Most contemporary work assumes that dissimilation is motivated by featural co-occurrence constraints: a process that maps /X...X/ to [X...Y] (for example) is explained by positing a ban on co-occurring [X]s (e.g. Alderete 1997, Suzuki 1998; though cf. Bennett 2015). I show how this approach can be extended to analyze the typology of segmental blocking effects in long-distance consonant dissimilation, and provide evidence from lexical statistics in support of the analysis. Preliminary results indicate that the proposed analysis makes more accurately restrictive predictions than available alternatives.


removed by differential centrifugation after a 30-min phagocytosis period, staphylococci associated with rabbit polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocytes were completely protected from the effects of benzyl penicillin 1 pg/ml, but not completely protected from the effects of 5 pg/ml. When unphagocytosed bacteria were lysed with lysostaphin, effective protection could be observed over a range of penicillin concentrations from 0.25 to 200 pg/ml. 14C-benzyl penicillin failed to accumulate in rabbit PMN leukocytes, whether or not they had previously phagocytosed staphylococci, in conditions in which mouse peritoneal macrophages readily accumulated penicillin. Mixed granule extracts prepared from the PMN leukocytes interacted synergically with penicillin against staphylococci at physiological pH (7.2) but failed to show synergy at an intraphagolysosomal pH of 5.0 unless the bacteria were first sublethally treated with penicillin. Experiments in which the pH value of culture media was changed either from 7.2 to 5.0 or from 5.0 to 7.2 indicated that the partial nature of the protective effect of the intraphagolysosomal environment could be attributed to the growthlimiting effects of the low phagolysosomal pH, which prevents full expression of the synergic potential of granule contents and penicillin. The concentration-dependent nature of the protection and its incompleteness are explained by supposing that a proportion of the staphylococci not ingested during the 30-min phagocytosis period are modified by penicillin in a way that opsonises them and potentiates the intrinsic bactericidal mechanisms of the PMN leukocytes when the bacteria are subsequently ingested.


The current procedures for calculating pressure-temperature (P/T) limits for normal reactor startup and shutdown are defined by deterministic fracture mechanics methodology in the ASME Code, Appendix G (in both Section XI and Section III). The recent pressurized thermal shock (PTS) re-evaluation effort used a very thorough probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) evaluation to develop a technical basis to increase the PTS screening criteria. The feasibility of applying this same PFM methodology to evaluate normal startup and shutdown operation for both pressurized water reactor (PWR) and boiling water reactor (BWR) pressure vessels is described in this paper. The approach taken in this study was to define a new risk-informed margin term to be applied to the stress intensity factor for membrane tension (KIm) in Appendix G. The margin on KIm was determined by finding the value that results in a vessel failure frequency equal to 10−6 failures/reactor-year when the reactor operates up to the pressure-temperature limits calculated using the risk-informed margin. This simple approach was selected because it results in a minimum change to the current ASME Code procedure, is easy to apply when revising plant operating P/T limits, and allows for an increase in the allowable P/T limits by as much as would be provided by any alternate procedure. The results from this initial study indicate the margin on KIm in Appendix G can be reduced from 2 to 1.5 for PWR vessels for shutdown and potentially reduced from 2 to as low as 1 for startup. The results indicate the margin on KIm in Appendix G can be reduced from 2 to approximately 1 for BWR vessels for shutdown and potentially startup. Additional analyses for PWR and BWR vessels will be needed to develop a comprehensive risk-informed basis for any revisions to the ASME Code, Appendix G.


Maio and Esses (2001) developed an individual difference measure of the Need for Affect. This construct reflects the individual's motivation to approach or avoid emotion-inducing situations. In the present research, we sought further support for validity of the measure among Italian groups. Different groups of participants were analyzed (total = 1159), with age ranging from 15 to 75. The factor structure of the scale was tested, and compared with results reported by developers of the instrument. Factorial invariance of the measure was investigated across gender and across age levels. We thus sought to replicate and extend previous results on convergent and discriminant validity of the need for affect measure. Results support the validity of the Need for Affect Scales in Italian groups.


The need to be and stay competitive has corporations reassessing their organisation and management processes. Productivity, performance management and motivation include
goals as one of their basic building blocks. These concepts, when operationalised, highlight the role and effectiveness of first-line managers, who directly control the majority of human resources. Changes in organisational design such as leaner and flatter management structure, combined with employee empowerment, further underscore the
pivotal role of first-line managers. They represent a key link in the management chain. Yet, it is evident that the focus or nature of goals, specifically at the first-line
management level, is left largely untouched in the literature.

Many disciplines explore the topic of goals. The number of variables that affect the outcome explodes as each field conveys its own perspective. Existing research either
investigates goals in a controlled environment, anecdotal by relating corporate practices or case studies of a general nature, or posits a paradigm from the perspective of the author's discipline. Some research addresses the features of goals whilst others concentrate on the factors affecting outcome. This situation has raised the question as to the nature and focus of goals: the 'end' or the 'means'? It is acknowledged that there is a
lack of research dealing with the 'actual' focus of goals. The objective of this thesis is to fill this gap in the literature with respect to the first-line manager's perception of goals.

This study aims to ascertain the nature of goals as perceived by first-line managers. A survey conducted in Canada and Japan contrasts first-line managers' responses as well as provides a valuable insight on the effect that different management practices have on the nature of goals. It is evident that much has been written about Japanese practices at the corporate level as a whole, but little information is available on individual performance
orientation, particularly at the first-line management level. The data collected in this research furnishes a deeper insight on goals and some factors that affect performance, as perceived by first-line managers.

Goals can take a variety of forms and focus. As such, it was deemed imperative not to bias responses by producing pre-selected categories but to employ open-ended questions.
The use of phenomenological mapping is not intended to test a particular hypothesis but aims to understand the situation by allowing the data to speak for itself. The results supply a first-hand understanding as to the actual focus of first-line managers, unadulterated by theories and speculations.

A number of fmdings have evolved. The choice between 'end' or 'means' goals is related to basic management philosophies which are characteristic of the two populations. The general conclusion is that the values of the organisation are reflected in the type of goals being pursued. The same values are also reflected in the training
received - or absence of it - and, eventually, are evident in the nature of goals being set. This duality of perspective is also found in the literature. On one hand, goal or outcome oriented employees willing to make tough decisions are key managerial characteristics to be displayed by individuals who want to progress within the organisation. On the other hand, many preach the basic philosophy that employees are a key resource which should
be developed to achieve better results. These two concepts are expounded independently of each other in the literature. The general field of research does not provide any criteria to measure the superiority of one System over the other; their mutual exclusivity is usually implied. It suffices to say that output goals are necessary under both Systems but not sufficient to assure adequate attention to the human side of the equation.

The research does widen the existing literature in a number of areas. Firstly, it illustrates how corporate managerial practices and values influence the outlook of first-line
managers; while such a phenomenon has been postulated in the past. The results of the survey demonstrate it categorically. Secondly, it demonstrates how two viable
perspectives of goals, the 'end' or the 'means', are as present in the academic thinking as, they are in the work environment. Thirdly, the goal perspective of first-line managers, indicates that a different focus may be necessary to be commensurate with their respective roles and responsibilities as compared to the rest of the organisation.

The apparent dichotomy in the literature, between 'end' goals and 'means' goals, is also found between the responses of the two populations. The results clearly show that there is a need to rethink corporate practices in the area of human development, especially at the first-line management level. In addition to providing insights on goals, adequacy and recognition, this research implicitly raises the issue of the role which corporations should
play in moulding human behaviour, and more specifically that of first-line managers. Conversely, there is the question of the degree to which individuality and personal
responsibility for skill development should be left to the individual to decide. Better understanding of the nature of goals in the mind of first-line managers should enable
organisations to effectively address the practice of goal setting and the management process entailed.

There are some limitations within the research. The qualitative nature of the research, due to the use of open-ended questions, requires interpretative analysis of responses. The choice of categories, while free-flowing from the data, could also be considered as subjective. However, external audit of the tabulation, through the independent evaluation performed by an interrater, proved the process to be consistent. Through triangulation between existing published practices, plant visits and interviews as well as the internal consistency between the responses to different questions, the results of the tabulation exhibit congruity.

The thesis comprises fifteen chapters, organised into four major sections. Part I contains the theoretical content of the research. It provides the backdrop for the importance of
goals and the relationship with productivity, the different paradigms being put forth, a detailed discussion on the nature of goals and the key role of first-line managers. Part II describes the design of the survey and the analytical procedures employed. Part III presents the actual tabulation of the data with observations related to the results. Part IV analyses and discusses the major findings in context with the theories expounded and as
well, provides conclusions and recommendations for future research.


Pollicipes pollicipes (Crustacea: Scalpelliformes) is a highly prized food in Portugal and Spain and consequently a species of considerable interest to aquaculture. Surprisingly, however, larval culture conditions for this barnacle have not been optimized. This study investigated the effects of temperature, diet, photoperiod and salinity on the growth and survival of P. pollicipes larvae. Temperature had a significant effect on specific growth rate (2.6–5.9% total width per day, from 11 to 24°C), reducing mean development time to the cyprid from 25 days at 11 °C to 10 days at 24°C, although this was accompanied by a significant increase in mortality to over 90% above 22°C. Mid-range temperatures (15–20°C) maximized total survival (19–31% respectively). Algal diets of Tetraselmis suecica, T. suecica/Skeletonema marinoi and S. marinoi/Isochrysis galbana did not affect specific growth rate significantly, but survival (on average 39% in 15 days) and the proportion of high-quality healthy cyprids was significantly higher on the latter two diets (11–15% of initial number of larvae). Photoperiod did not significantly affect the survival, although specific growth rate was significantly higher at 24:0 and 16:8 L:D. Salinity (20–40 g L−1 range) did not affect growth and survival significantly. The best growth and survival were accomplished using rearing temperatures of 15–20°C, daily feeding with T. suecica/S. marinoi or I. galbana/S. marinoi and a photoperiod of 24:0 L:D.


The Mayoralty of London offers a powerful electoral platform but weak powers to lead a city regarded as 'ungovernable' (Travers 2004). This paper adapts the criteria of Hambleton and Sweeting (2004) to look at the first two Mayors' mandate and vision, style of leadership and policies.
Ken Livingstone and Boris Johnson were both party rebels, mavericks and skilled media operators. However, their differences are key. As mayor, Livingstone had a powerful vision that translated into a set of clear policy aims while Johnson had a weaker more cautious approach shaped by his desire for higher office. Livingstone built coalitions but proved divisive whereas Johnson was remarkably popular. While Livingstone bought experience and skill, Johnson delegated detail to others. Both their mayoralties courted controversy and faced charges of corruption and cronyism.
Both mayors used publicity to make up for weak powers. They also found themselves pushed by their powers towards transport and planning while struggling with deeper issues such as housing. In policy terms Livingstone pushed ahead with the radical congestion charge and a series of symbolic policies. Johnson was far more modest, championing cycling and revelling in the 2012 Olympics while avoiding difficult decisions. The two mayors used their office to negotiate but also challenge central government. Livingstone's Mayoralty was a platform for personalised change-Johnson's one for personal ambition.


Slow acetylators of the polymorphic N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2, EC 220.127.116.11) suffer more often from side-effects of NAT-substrates than fast acetylators. Since concomitant administration of drugs may inhibit NAT2, we studied the influence of acetaminophen on NAT2 in human hepatic cytosol in vitro and in healthy individuals. In-vitro acetylation was assessed in liver homogenate of one fast and one slow acetylator using sulfamethazine as a test substrate. Acetaminophen competitively inhibited sulfamethazine acetylation in fast and slow acetylator liver samples with Ki values of acetaminophen of 2144 micromol/l and 712 micromol/l, respectively. In additional experiments, exposure of human liver cytosol to p-aminophenol, a putative precursor of acetaminophen in this reaction, revealed production of substantial amounts of acetaminophen, which indirectly suggests that acetaminophen may bind to the active site of NAT2. In-vivo acetylation was quantified with a urinary caffeine assay in 20 healthy volunteers at baseline and after repetitive oral administration of 1000 mg acetaminophen every 6 h for 1 day. The ratio of the acetylated caffeine metabolite acetyl-amino-6-formylamino-3-methyluracil to 1-methylxanthine was reduced by 30.9% (range 11.0-50.1%) in fast acetylators (n = 10) and by 19.3% (range 0.2-36.5%) in slow acetylators (n = 10). Acetaminophen, a widely used over-the-counter drug, which shares structural similarities with acetylated products, inhibits NAT2 both in vitro and in vivo. These findings suggest that even compounds which are not metabolized by NAT2 may inhibit the enzyme and reduce its metabolic capacity.


Abstract
NO (nitric oxide) is an intermediate of respiratory denitrification and is one of the
toxic species released by macrophages of the immune system in the defence against
invading pathogenic bacteria. In Escherichia coli, the expression of the Nitric Oxide
(NO) reductase (NorVW) is tightly regulated by NorR, a member of the bacterial
Enhancer Binding Protein (bEBP)-family that activates σ54-dependent transcription of
the norVW genes under conditions of nitrosative stress. Binding of NorR to three
conserved enhancer sites upstream of the norVW promoter is essential for
transcriptional activation and promotes the formation of a stable higher-order
nucleoprotein complex. NorR falls into a class of bEBPs that are negatively regulated
– the regulatory (GAF) domain represses the activity of the ATPase (AAA+) domain
in the absence of NO. NO binds to the non-heme iron centre of the GAF domain,
stimulating ATP hydrolysis by the AAA+ domain and establishing an interaction
between the activator and σ54 that leads to the remodelling of the closed promoter
complex. However, the route by which NorR couples signal sensing to substrate
remodelling is unknown. Here, the mechanism of interdomain repression in NorR has
been investigated by characterising substitutions in the AAA+ domain that bypass
repression by the regulatory domain. Most of these substitutions are located in the
vicinity of the surface-exposed loops that engage σ54 during the ATP hydrolysis cycle
or in the highly conserved GAFTGA motif that directly contacts σ54. A combination
of genetic and biochemical approaches were used to show that the regulatory domain
of NorR is unlikely to control AAA+ activity using previously characterised
mechanisms, employed by related bEBPs. Instead, this work identifies a novel
mechanism in which the σ54-interaction surface of the AAA+ domain is a target of the
GAF-mediated repression mechanism. This hypothesis is further supported by EMreconstructions
of two characterised escape-variants in their on-states, one of which
represents the first structure of a bEBP bound to enhancer DNA. In the case of NorR,
regulation at the point of σ54-interaction may be linked to the pre-assembly of an
inactive hexamer, "poised" at the enhancer sites, enabling the cell to rapidly respond
to nitrosative stress.


These days dakwah is not only interpreted as transformation of a pure religious value, but also transformation of a more relevant value including many aspects in digital era. Digital era is when society succumbed into the flow of information causing cultural shock and difficulties on synthesizing meaning from those scattered information. Dakwah on Digital age must accommodate societal needs which tend to move into a mass society. It results in strategy and more humane and innovative dakwah methods. One of innovative dakwah methods is conducted dakwah activities through digital media,with the consequences of this is that da'i must developed soft skill and technological capabilities. Another beneficial comes from this is that dakwah could become more modern and practical in terms of methods and material. On the other hand, citizen Journalism as a mass cultural product and the results of technological development, gives an opportunity for da'i to able to record the entire activities, including the dynamics of islamic life. In terms of learning curriculum, dakwah in digital format must be included, so then the intellectual and cultural spirit which flourished in pesantren could be adapted and competed in a global world.


Relevance Feedback has proven very effective for improving retrieval accuracy. A difficult yet important problem in all relevance feedback methods is how to optimally balance the original query and feedback information. In the current feedback methods, the balance parameter is usually set to a fixed value across all the queries and collections. However, due to the difference in queries and feedback documents, this balance parameter should be optimized for each query and each set of feedback documents. In this paper, we present a learning approach to adaptively predict the optimal balance coefficient for each query and each collection. We propose three heuristics to characterize the balance between query and feedback information. Taking these three heuristics as a road map, we explore a number of features and combine them using a regression approach to predict the balance coefficient. Our experiments show that the proposed adaptive relevance feedback is more robust and effective than the regular fixed-coefficient feedback.


Plants belonging to Euphorbiaceae family are widely used in rural India since it has important secondary metabolites like flavonoids, phenols, triterpenes, polysterols, etc. The objective of the ethnomedicinal survey was to study the different plants of the Euphorbiaceae family that are used by the Santhal tribe of Santhal Pargana. In this study 10 plants were found to be effective against many human diseases. The different plants surveyed included Jatropha gossypifolia , Euphorbia species , Phyllanthus species, Tragia involucarata and Ricinus communis . These plants are being used for the treatment of various ailments like dental problems, eye infection, cough and cold, cancer, ulcers, wounds, jaundice, etc. Ricinus communis and Jatropha gossypifolia are used for treating rheumatism, Phyllanthus nirurii and P. amarus for diarrhea and jaundice. For treating skin infection and other related diseases Euphorbia neriifolia , E. hirta and E. thymifolia are used by the Santhals. Euphorbia neriifolia is even used for the treatment of their cattle. The various parts used are leaves, stem, flowers, bark, roots, seeds and latex. The medicinal plants used by them can form huge source of therapeutic compounds for different scientific purposes.


As human population increases, the need for water increases in domestic, agricultural, industrial and urban sectors. Wastewater reuse after treatment is gaining acceptance world wide, as availability of fresh water sources decreases. However, it is also important to point out social and cultural differences that still exist in different pars of the world including those where reuse of wastewater for food production or any domestic use is not yet acceptable. The major concerns with effluent reuse are primarily its impact on human health and environmental risk. As a result, effluent reuse should be undertaken with caution after careful consideration of the potential impacts and risks.

This thesis examined the potential to use the hydroponics nutrient film technique to grow commercially important crops using secondary-treated domestic wastewater. The crops chosen were a fruit crop (Lycopersicon esculantum - tomato), a leafy crop (Beta vulgaris ssp. cicla - silver beet) and a flower crop (Dianthus caryophyllus - carnation). Secondary-treated domestic wastewater was chosen because of the reduced risk of pathogen and heavy metal contamination in the crops and due to the guideline requirements for use of treated effluent for food crops. The possibility of using the effluent after the hydroponics treatment for further irrigation was also studied.

The ability of secondary-treated effluent to supply adequate nutrients to the crops was assessed relative to a commercially available hydroponics solution (Chapter 3). The amount of time the solution was left in the system (nutrient solution retention time) was dependant on the plant uptake of the solution. The results obtained showed that the nutrients in secondary treated effluent was adequate for the carnations, but not for the food crops. The food crops from both treatments were compared to the produce purchased from a supermarket. The food crops showed signs of nutrient deficiency, particularly nitrogen.

Based on the findings of the first experiment, the nutrient solution retention time was amended to 14 days. The carnations were not tested with the shorter nutrient solution retention time (NSRT) because they performed well in the previous trial with the longer nutrient solution retention time. The edible food crops performed better and did not show signs of nutrient deficiency when the nutrient solution retention time was reduced to 14 days.

Further statistical analysis was conducted with the data from Chapters 3 and 4. Nutrient and water balances were calculated and the possible reason that the plants grown in the 14-day nutrient solution retention time took up more water, was a result of increased nutrients and better growth. A simple model was constructed to calculate height of the plants using multiple regression. The model was validated against the data collected from this study.

The experiment conducted in Chapter 6 determined the nutritional quality of the food crops. The harvests from the wastewater and commercially available hydroponics solution were compared to produce purchased from a supermarket and tested for total caroteniods, total soluble solids and ascorbic acid concentrations. The nutritional quality of the wastewater grown produce was comparable to those grown in the hydroponic solution and those purchased.

The risk of pathogen contamination to food crops and the die-off of pathogens in the hydroponic channels were studied in Chapter 7. This was tested by spiking the commercial hydroponic medium with Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium and monitoring bacterial pathogen die-off in the secondary treated domestic wastewater. The pathogen quality of the crop was tested in all treatments as well as on organically grown produce found at a local supermarket. The results of this experiment did not show any contamination on the surface of the food crops or within the food crops.

This study demonstrated that growing tomatoes, silver beet and carnations using secondary-treated domestic wastewater was successful when the nutrient solution retention time was adjusted to the optimum level. In arid, developing and remote communities, this system is ideal as it conserves and reuses water for commercially important crops without compromising the health of the environment or of human beings. It can also be implemented in urban areas, as the system can be scaled according to the availability of space. In addition to this, the effluent after going through this system can be used for open irrigation as it meets the World Health Organisation guidelines.

However, a number of additional concerns need further investigation. They include the transmission risk of other types of pathogen, which depends on the source of wastewater, and the effects of hormones and antibiotics on food crops and their effect on human health.


Shawn Levy, author of 'Rat Pack Confidential' brings alive London in the swinging Sixties with a gripping, groovy story of those who created the scene that changed the world. For a few years in the 1960s, London was the coolest city on earth: a spontaneous, dizzying stew of pop music, fashion, film, scandal, drugs & sex, crime, the avant garde underground and the tabloid obsession with fame. The rest of the world watched in awe. Snaking through it are such eminent swinging Londoners as The Dreamer (actor Terence Stamp), The Chameleon (Rolling Stone Mick Jagger), The Loner (Beatles manager Brian Epstein), The Snapper (photographer David Bailey) and The Blue Blood (art dealer Robert Fraser), as well as such figures as comedian Peter Cook; hairdresser Vidal Sassoon; singer Marianne Faithfull; fashion designer Mary Quant; supermodels Jean Shrimpton and Twiggy; gangsters Ron and Reggie Kray; actor Michael Caine; actresses Catherine Deneuve, Lynn Redgrave and Julie Christie; pop groups The Beatles, The Who and The Kinks; filmmakers Roman Polanski, Richard Lester and Michelangelo Antonioni; as well as the various participants in the Profumo scandal, the Great Train Robbery, the rise of LSD, the radical underground, the heyday of the gambling club and the fashion boutique and various and sundry scandals, scenes and sensations. Due to a combination of massive talent and sheer luck, they dominated the world scene. But the party was to end - after seven short years it seemed that everyone was now a Swinging Londoner and the same vibe was found in Paris, New York and San Francisco. 'Ready, Steady, Go' recreates the whole show and contrasts a series of emblematic lives with the great events that shaped the time. Through these stories, Shawn Levy, author of 'Rat Pack Confidential', shows how the city reinvented cool and then seemed to lose its swing altogether.


Abstract Mining frequent itemsets through static Databases has been extensively studied and used and is always considered a highly challenging task. For this reason it is interesting to extend it to data streams field. In the streaming case, the frequent patterns' mining has much more information to track and much greater complexity to manage. Infrequent items can become frequent later on and hence cannot be ignored. The output structure needs to be dynamically incremented to reflect the evolution of itemset frequencies over time. In this paper, we study this problem and specifically the methodology of mining time-sensitive data streams. We tried to improve an existing algorithm by increasing the temporal accuracy and discarding the out-of-date data by adding a new concept called the "Shaking Point". We presented as well some experiments illustrating the time and space required. Keywords: frequent pattern, , stream data mining, time-sensitive data stream.1. Introduction


Abstract : The Department of Defense (DoD) is the largest organization in the world, with operations that span a broad range of agencies, activities, and commands. With an annual budget over $500 billion, DoD employs millions of people that operate worldwide and maintains an inventory system that is an order of magnitude larger than any other in the world. However, the business systems used to manage these resources are outdated and inefficient. DoD relies on several thousand, non-integrated, and non-interoperable legacy systems, that are error prone, redundant, and do not provide the enterprise visibility necessary to make sound management decisions. In order to meet current and future challenges, DoD needs business systems that enable it to be flexible, adaptive, and accountable. Transformation of business systems and process will not only reduce costs and improve performance, it is critical for improving warfighter support. Recognizing this, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld began a business transformation initiative in July 2001. This report is divided into two parts. Part I evaluates DoD's business systems transformation effort, identifies lessons learned, and make recommendations to improve the prospects for success of the current business transformation effort. Part II includes several cases studies of business systems transformation in the federal public sector, at the Business Transformation Agency (BTA), and in the Military Services. Each case describes a specific transformation initiative and identifies lessons learned from the experience.


Entropy Search (ES) and Predictive Entropy Search (PES) are popular and empirically successful Bayesian Optimization techniques. Both rely on a compelling information-theoretic motivation, and maximize the information gained about the $\arg\max$ of the unknown function; yet, both are plagued by the expensive computation for estimating entropies. We propose a new criterion, Max-value Entropy Search (MES), that instead uses the information about the maximum function value. We show relations of MES to other Bayesian optimization methods, and establish a regret bound. We observe that MES maintains or improves the good empirical performance of ES/PES, while tremendously lightening the computational burden. In particular, MES is much more robust to the number of samples used for computing the entropy, and hence more efficient for higher dimensional problems.


Background Strategies to reduce DTB (door-to-balloon) time have been previously described. However, there is no well-established data-monitoring system that can be used for prompt feedback. The aims of this study were to use statistical process control (SPC) methodology to measure current processes, to provide real-time feedback on the impact of a change in service delivery and to identify individual outliers for specific investigation. Methods A prospective study was conducted in a tertiary centre in North England. Data were collected for 841 consecutive STEMI patients from the local district undergoing PPCI. The impact on median DTB time after changes in protocols were prospectively determined. Results Median DTB times fell significantly as a result of changes in protocol. The upper control limit (UCL) decreased from 209 to 86 min and narrower control limits indicated improved performance. The main outliers included patients presenting to the Accident and Emergency department and patients who developed STEMI while being treated in non-cardiology wards for other reasons (18.3% of the study population). Conclusions SPC provides a statistically robust mechanism for assessing the effect of process redesign interventions, and in this context provides a clear visual representation of DTB times for individual patients. Identification of significant outliers allows investigation of any variation with a special cause. It allows a unit to identify when a system of service delivery, albeit stable, is inadequate and needs redesign and can monitor the impact of changes in protocol.


Cloud computing and Future Internet promise a new ecosystem where everything is "as a service", reachable and connectable anywhere and anytime, everyone succeeding to get a service composition that meets his needs. But do we have the structure and the appropriate properties to design the service components and do we have the means to manage, at run-time, the personalized compositions corresponding to Service Level Agreement ? In this article we introduce an entity of service composition called Self-Controlled Component (SCC), including, since the design step, functional and non-functional specifications. SCCs benefit both from the strong structure, explicit composition, and autonomic management of component oriented programming, and from the highly dynamic composition, and discovery capacities of service-oriented computing. Selfcontrol mechanisms are then attached automatically to SCCs to enable autonomic application management during execution.
The objective of this new concept is to provide strong Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees of composed applications. We illustrate the approach using an example called Springoo, to how in the context of a legacy application the contributions and benefits of our solution. For the management of the service composition we propose the concept of Virtual Private Service Network (VPSN) and Virtual Service Community (VSC) that allows us to model the personalised Service Level Agreement (SLA) where user requirements and provider offers converge on a QoS contract.


Bacteriophages infecting Salmonella spp. were isolated from sewage using soft agar overlays containing three Salmonella serovars and assessed with regard to their potential to control food-borne salmonellae. Two distinct phages, as defined by plaque morphology, structure and host range, were obtained from a single sample of screened sewage. Phage FGCSSa1 had the broadest host range infecting six of eight Salmonella isolates and neither of two Escherichia coli isolates. Under optimal growth conditions for S. Enteritidis PT160, phage infection resulted in a burst size of 139 PFU but was apparently inactive at a temperature typical of stored foods (5 degrees C), even at multiplicity of infection values in excess of 10 000. While neither isolate had characteristics that would make them candidates for biocontrol of Salmonella spp. in foods, phage FGCSSa1 behaved unusually when grown on two Salmonella serotypes at 37 degrees C in that the addition of phages appeared to retard growth of the host, presumably by the lysis of a fraction of the host cell population.


In a consistent framework, both the antitrust and intellectual property laws should point toward the same goal: the maximization of social welfare. The attainment of this goal suggests that both sets of laws should be harmonized to attain this common goal and come to a joint solution with respect to the use/creation tradeoff. This paper examines the state of antitrust and intellectual property right protection for software, and finds little evidence that both sets of laws are being applied in a consistent manner. An examination of how the antitrust laws are applied to intellectual property industries finds little consideration of the unique appropriability and free riding problems that face intellectual property owners. As a result, antitrust enforcement has been hostile to intellectual property contracting and intellectual property industries, and to the maximization of dynamic efficiency. Further, static, ex-post competition arguments are now being used in support of weakening copyright protection. The outcome of this two-pronged attack is unlikely to yield a rational solution to the use/creation tradeoff.


Abstract An analytic model was adopted to calculate bedding-normal, dry elastic moduli of rocks enriched with solid organic matter — kerogen. Elastic stiffnesses in the model are functions of solid matrix moduli, total porosity, pore-shape factor, and crack density. Crack density is taken to be an exponential decay function of stress, which was calibrated using ultrasonic core measurements, whereas pore-shape factor was calibrated using sonic logs. Bedding-normal, fluid-saturated moduli were computed by means of Gassmann's equation, i.e., ignoring anisotropy. As a result, a model to calculate elastic moduli of organic shales was constructed and used for sonic-velocity prediction and pore-pressure calibration. Among other things, the model established the fact that the saturating fluid effect on elastic properties in organic shales can be noticeable, especially at extremely low effective stress. However, it is the kerogen content that is largely responsible for the anomalous deviation of log data points fr...


Upper Triassic strata, termed the Chinle Formation or Group, reveal a complex sedimentologic history, which has led to numerous modifications to the lithostratigraphic nomenclature for this unit. Recent revisions to Chinle nomenclature in New Mexico are based on local stratigraphic section inspection. The utility of some stratigraphic subdivisions, especially at formation rank, are problematic when mapping units away from type areas. New magnetostratigraphic records for the Chinle Group, as well as 1:24,000-scale mapping, stratigraphic section logs, and sedimentologic analyses support the following revisions to current nomenclature of the Chinle: (1) formally raising Chinle strata to group status in New Mexico; (2) abandoning the term Zuni Mountains Formation for lower Chinle strata in the Chama Basin; (3) including the lower member of the Salitral Formation in the Shinarump Formation; and (4) reassigning strata termed Rock Point Formation in the Chama Basin to the Moenave Formation. Sedimentologic and basin-analysis interpretations utilized in earlier studies of the Chinle should be resurrected. The revised stratigraphic nomenclature for the Chinle Group and sedimentologic analyses, both old and new, greatly expands our understanding of depositional changes in the Chinle Basin of northern New Mexico. The trunk stream for Chinle deposition in New Mexico coursed westward through the site of the modern Sierra Nacimiento of north-central New Mexico during Shinarump time (?late Carnian or early Norian), then moved northward to flow to the west in the area of the modern Chama Basin. In addition, north-central New Mexico was probably a topographic high during the time of Owl Rock and Rock Point deposition in the late Norian, and thus no uppermost Triassic (late Norian to early Rhaetian) strata were deposited in the area of the modern Chama Basin.


A long-standing debate about the existence of coconut in Panama in pre-Columbian times has recently been revived and its presence, as well as the ability of the first Spanish explorers to correctly identify coconut, has been questioned. Baudouin et al. (pp. 1–5) consult original sources and confirm that the Spanish chronicler Oviedo (1478–1557) effectively distinguished coconuts from other similar palm fruits based on their sizes. A drawing attributed to Oviedo that has been argued as being an inaccurate depiction of coconut is shown actually to be a representation of a cluster of fruits of a native Bactris, with the mis-identification only occurring after Oviedo's death. In addition, Mártir de Anglerı́a (1457–1526) is shown to have described tidal seed dispersion of coconut at a site in Panama.


In this paper, a study on the suitability of an appearance based model, specifically PCA based model, for the purpose of recognising fingerspelling (sign language) alphabets is made. Its recognition performance on a large and varied real time dataset is analysed. In order to enhance the performance of a PCA based model, we suggest to incorporate a sort of pre-processing operation both during training and recognition. An exhaustive experiment conducted on a large number of fingerspelling alphabet images taken from 20 different individuals in real environment has revealed that the suggested pre-processing has a drastic impact in improving the performance of a conventional PCA based model.


Voluntary staff turnover has been a major problem in hospitality and many hospitality employers are concerned how staff retention can be improved in an industry which is characterised by narrow profit margins, fluctuating customer demand, low pay, unsocial hours and a predominantly young, transient workforce. One New Zealand hotel has recently improved its overall turnover rates, has many long-tenure staff and has been regarded as one of the 'Best Places to Work'. Besides presenting survey findings on management strategies to enhance workplace culture and communication, it is also discussed whether this workplace example may illustrate a possible way forward in the quest to embedding sustainable employment practices in the hospitality industry.


This essay explores some of the techniques employed to present new infrastructural formations to a general reading public through close examination of writings about the postal system and the hospital in Dickens's popular general interest magazine, Household Words. Reading these articles against Marc Augé's account of late twentieth-century 'supermodernity', I argue that the newly extended reach of such systems is presented as a way out of chaotic overabundances of detail, especially in busy urban environments, as well as a means to acquire a greater mastery over the world. Yet at the same time, these articles also seek to reform the role of the individual in relation to these systems, subjugating individual agency to the primacy of systemic control. This essay aims to deepen our understanding of the reception and portrayal of infrastructural industrialisation in Household Words specifically, and the periodical press more broadly, in the years immediately following the Great Exhibition.


Driven by the increasing availability of low-cost sensing hardware, gesture-based input is quickly becoming a viable form of interaction for a variety of applications. Electronic presentations (e.g., PowerPoint, Keynote) have long been seen as a natural fit for this form of interaction. However, despite 20 years of prototyping such systems, little is known about how gesture-based input affects presentation dynamics, or how it can be best applied in this context. Instead, past work has focused almost exclusively on recognition algorithms. This paper explicitly addresses these gaps in the literature. Through observations of real-world practices, we first describe the types of gestures presenters naturally make and the purposes these gestures serve when presenting content. We then introduce Maestro, a gesture-based presentation system explicitly designed to support and enhance these existing practices. Finally, we describe the results of a real-world field study in which Maestro was evaluated in a classroom setting for several weeks. Our results indicate that gestures which enable direct interaction with slide content are the most natural fit for this input modality. In contrast, we found that using gestures to navigate slides (the most common implementation in all prior systems) has significant drawbacks. Our results also show how gesture-based input can noticeably alter presentation dynamics, often in ways that are not desirable.


Abstract Objectives: To evaluate the estimated dietary intake of children at population level who consume fortified staple foods. Methods: In this study, a secondary data analysis of the database of the National Food Consumption Survey (NFCS; 1999) on dietary data of a nationally representative sample of children (n = 2 200) in South Africa was performed. Prior to 2003 there was no mandatory fortification of staple foods, with the exception of iodine added to salt. Mandatory fortification of maize and wheat flour was introduced in October 2003. Micronutrient values of fortified wheat and maize food sources were determined by chemical analyses of these foods. These values were then interpolated in the original staple food nutrient analysis determined in the primary analysis of the NFCS database. Findings: The findings of the present study indicated that the addition of micronutrients to staple foods made a significant difference to the intake of vitamin A, thiamine, niacin, vitamin B6, folic acid and iron. These improvements were particularly important in rural areas where children have the lowest mean dietary micronutrient intake. Conclusions: Based on the results of the secondary data analysis of the national dietary data together with the chemical analyses of fortified foods, it would appear that fortification of two of the most commonly eaten staple foods in the country will significantly improve the micronutrient intake of children under nine years of age and will improve the overall micronutrient density of their diets. It is recommended that appropriate educational messages on the fortification of staple foods in the country should be utilised to improve children's dietary intake at population level, provided such messages facilitate the consumption of the fortified staples by children.