In wireless sensor networks, multipath routing is used to alleviate reliability degradation due to multihop transmissions over error-prone wireless channels. However, multipath routing is not energy-efficient, as it requires all the nodes in the network to always be awake. To prolong the network lifetime while maintaining a certain reliability performance, we propose Sleeping Multipath Routing, which selects the minimum number of disjoint paths to achieve a given reliability requirement and puts the rest of the network to sleep. Simulation results show that Sleeping Multipath Routing can significantly extend the network lifetime, and it can trade off reliability for lifetime.


We demonstrate here an alternative dielectric elastomer actuator (DEA) structure, which relies on the compliant nature of elastomer membranes but does not require any electric field in the elastomer. Our elastomer zipping device is a macroscopic version of the electrostatic zipping actuators common in silicon MEMS. It consists of a cm-sized metallic bottom electrode, covered by a thin insulator, on which the elastomer membrane is bonded, enclosing a tapered air gap. A compliant electrode is patterned on the lower face of the elastomer membrane. Applying a voltage between solid bottom electrode and compliant electrode leads to controlled pull-in in movement, comparable to the closing of a zipper, thus giving large strokes and forces with no electrical requirements on the elastomer since no voltage is applied across the membrane. The compliant electrodes (20 mm diameter) are produced by metal ion-implantation into the elastomer membranes. The bottom metal electrodes are coated with 10 to 30 μm of Al2O3. We report on our experimental study of membrane deflection and dynamics and discuss the effect of design parameters such as elastomer mechanical properties and actuator geometry. Membrane deflection of up to 1.4 mm was reached at only 200 V actuation voltage. The large membrane deformation achieved with this zipping actuation can be applied to applications such as pumps or tunable liquid lenses. The out-of plane movement of the membrane can be used for linear actuation.


Pathogen spread can cause population declines and even species extinctions. Nonetheless, in the absence of tailored monitoring schemes, documenting pathogen spread can be difficult. In the case of worldwide amphibian declines the best present understanding is that the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) has recently spread, causing amphibian declines and extinction in the process. However, good evidence demonstrating pathogen arrival followed by amphibian decline is rare, and analysis of putative evidence is often inadequate. Here we attempt to examine the relationship between Bd arrival and amphibian decline across north-eastern Australia, using sites where a wave-like pattern of amphibian decline was first noticed and at which intensive research has since been conducted. We develop an analytical framework that allows rigorous estimation of pathogen arrival date, which can then be used to test for a correlation between the time of pathogen arrival and amphibian decline across sites. Our results show that, with the current dataset, the earliest possible arrival date of Bd in north-eastern Australia is completely unresolved; Bd could have arrived immediately before sampling commenced or may have arrived thousands of years earlier, the present data simply cannot say. The currently available data are thus insufficient to assess the link between timing of pathogen arrival and population decline in this part of the world. This data insufficiency is surprising given that there have been decades of research on chytridiomycosis in Australia and that there is a general belief that the link between Bd arrival and population decline is well resolved in this region. The lack of data on Bd arrival currently acts as a major impediment to determining the role of environmental factors in driving the global amphibian declines, and should be a major focus of future research.


The brain of gastropod mollusks contains many giant neurons with polyploid genomic DNAs. Such DNAs are generated through repeated DNA endoreplication during body growth. However, it is not known what triggers DNA endoreplication in neurons. There are two possibilities: (1) DNAs are replicated in response to some unknown molecules in the hemolymph that reflect the nutritive status of the animal; or (2) DNAs are replicated in response to some unknown factors that are retrogradely transported through axons from the innervated target organs. We first tested whether hemolymph with rich nutrition could induce DNA endoreplication. We tested whether the transplanted brain exhibits enhanced DNA endoreplication like an endogenous brain does when transplanted into the homocoel of the body of a slug whose body growth is promoted by an increased food supply. However, no enhancement was observed in the frequency of DNA endoreplication when we compared the transplanted brains in the growth-promoted and growth-suppressed host slugs, suggesting that the humoral environment is irrelevant to triggering the body growth-dependent DNA endoreplication. Next, we tested the requirement of target innervation by surgically dissecting a unilateral posterior pedal nerve of an endogenous brain. Substantially lower number of neurons exhibited DNA endoreplication in the pedal ganglion ipsilateral to the dissected nerve. These results support the view that enhanced DNA endoreplication is mediated by target innervation and is not brought about through the direct effect of humoral factors in the hemolymph during body growth. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol, 2013.


Curation is the act of selecting, organizing, and presenting content most often guided by professional or expert knowledge. While many popular applications have attempted to emulate this process by turning users into curators, we put an accent on a recommendation system which can leverage multiple data sources to accomplish the curation task. We introduce QBook, a recommender that acts as a personal docent by identifying and suggesting books tailored to the various preferences of each individual user. The goal of the designed system is to address several limitations often associated with recommenders in order to provide diverse and personalized book recommendations that can foster trust, effectiveness of the system, and improve the decision making process. QBook considers multiple perspectives, from analyzing user reviews, user historical data, and items' metadata, to considering experts' reviews and constantly evolving users' preferences, to enhance the recommendation process, as well as quality and usability of the suggestions. QBook pairs each generated suggestion with an explanation that (i) showcases why a particular book was recommended and (ii) helps users decide which items, among the ones recommended, will best suit their individual interests. Empirical studies conducted using the Amazon/LibraryThing benchmark corpus demonstrate the correctness of the proposed methodology and QBook's ability to outperform baseline and state-of-the-art methodologies for book recommendations.


This study is an ethnographic account of the Jewish community of Thessaloniki and a description and analysis of oral histories gathered during my fieldwork in 1994. The thesis looks at the intersection of history, memory, and identity by analysing how identities and memories are shaped by historical experiences and how identities shape memories of historical experiences. Thessaloniki has undergone tremendous changes in the twentieth century. The demographic, political, and architectural landscape has radically altered. In the context of my thesis, the most relevant changes concern the ethnic and religious composition of Thessaloniki's population, the city's incorporation into the Greek nation-state (1912), the subsequent introduction of nationalism, and the annihilation of 48,000 Salonikan Jews during the Second World War. The thesis explores how these historical changes and 'events' are represented in individual narratives of Jews in Thessaloniki and in the realm of Jewish communal memory, how these historical changes have affected the formulations of Jewish communal and individual identity and memory, and how Jewish memory relates to the general landscape of memory in contemporary Greece. In chapters one and two, I discuss the theoretical framework and methodology of this thesis. Discussions on ethnicity, nationalism, memory, and certain themes of the 'anthropology of Greece' form the theoretical background of this study. The methodology applied consists of ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviewing. Chapter three presents a historical overview of the history of Thessaloniki and its Jewish community, and discusses the position of minorities in contemporary Greece. I describe the current structure and organisation of the community and look at some demographic developments of the Salonikan Jewish population in chapter four. I then proceed to a detailed account of the interviews which constitutes the main part of the thesis. Chapter five deals with the pre-war past, chapters six and seven with the experience of the war, and chapter eight with the post-war period. In chapter nine I look at perception of boundaries and notions of 'us' and 'them' among Salonikan Jews. In the conclusions, I examine the changes of post-war Jewish memorial practices in the context of the changing 'memory-scape' of the city of Thessaloniki.


Non‐virally inactivated cryoprecipitate prepared by blood banks is still used in many countries, especially in the developing world, for the treatment of bleeding disorders due to factor VIII (FVIII), von Willebrand factor (VWF), or fibrinogen deficiency. As a consequence, patients receiving cryoprecipitate are at high risk of being infected by plasma‐borne viruses, such as HIV, and hepatitis B virus (HBV) or C virus (HCV). It is therefore urgent to develop easy‐to‐use, affordable and efficient methods for the viral inactivation of cryoprecipitate under conditions that ensure good maintenance of its haemostatic properties. Preparation of cryoprecipitate from large‐pool solvent‐detergent (SD) plasma seems not economically or technically feasible in developing countries. Cryoprecipitate prepared from single‐donor plasma virally inactivated by methylene‐blue/illumination has significantly reduced content of factor VIII and fibrinogen. There are no data on the quality of cryoprecipitate produced from plasma virally inactivated by techniques in development such as S‐51 psoralen/UV irradiation or by riboflavin/UV irradiation, but loss of FVIII and fibrinogen is reported in S‐51/UV‐treated plasma. Dry‐heat treatments of smallpool cryoprecipitate or intermediate‐purity factor VIII have been developed for use by blood banks, but they are not much used and some have not stopped the risk of transmission of HCV. Recently, a mini‐pool process and a closed bag system to perform SD treatment of cryoprecipitate have been developed for use by blood banks. Recovery of factor VIII, VWF, and fibrinogen is over 95%. Viral validation studies revealed reduction factors of > 4·17, > 4·73, and > 4·72 for HIV, BVDV, and PRV, respectively, within a few minutes of treatment. The SD bag system is in the process of CE‐marking and field testing should start in the near future.


The vertical rectus abdominis (VRAM) flap has been used for reconstruction of sternal defects, particularly in the inferior third, since it was first described 20 years ago. We describe 12 patients with mediastinitis or chronic sternal osteomyelitis after sternotomy treated between 1994 and 1997, nine performed at the Royal Hospitals Trust, London. Sternal osteomyelitis and mediastinitis after median sternotomy is an uncommon (0.4%–8.4%) but often fatal condition. Vascularised pedicles are the treatment of choice, and VRAM flaps were used in all cases. We report good long-term outcome with a follow up of 2–5 years, and no long-term morbidity relating to the VRAM reconstruction. We had only one partial failure of a flap. The operations were largely done in hospitals away from the plastic surgical unit in extremely sick patients, which illustrates the importance of multidisciplinary management to reduce hospital stay, mortality, and morbidity. We argue that early involvement of plastic surgical specialists in the treatment of sternal dehiscence is essential to ensure a successful outcome.


Traditional dwellings located in the hot arid zones of the Arabian regions are well known for their sensitive
architectural response to the region's climatic conditions and socio-cultural norms. The majority of these dwellings
are well recognized for their courtyard arrangement and perforated fenestration system that evolved to control the
harsh solar, climatic conditions without compromising the aesthetic quality of space and occupants' wellbeing. The
unique visual characteristics of these structures cannot be fully appreciated by assessing the visual performance of
buildings in isolation from their urban context given the fact that much of the character of the traditional settlements of this region came from the collective visual perception of their architectural components as well as urban patterns. This paper presents a methodology that can be used to assess daylight behaviour at an architectural level as well as at an urban scale. The work examines the daylight behaviour of a well-known historic alleyway and of a courtyard house in the old city of Cairo. The variability in the visual perception and comfort for a typical pedestrian street and the occupants of the house was predicted using Radiance IES simulation modelling tool and a scaled model under an artificial sky dome. A comparative analysis between simulated results and measured values at target points was conducted and the results reveal a reasonable agreement with the simulation results. Preliminary results from the first phase of modeling are presented that give an insight into the overall visual experience in the traditional settlements in the Old City of Cairo where daylight has contributed to the place unique sense of identity.


textabstractPhotodynamic therapy (PDT) is an emerging clinical treatment modality, which utilizes
light, oxygen and a light sensitive drug (the photosensitizer), for curative and palliative
treatment of a variety of malignant and non-malignant conditions tumors. PDT is
frequently used in the clinic for treatment of superficial skin lesions by superficial
illumination of the lesion after the topical administration of a photosensitizer or its precursor.
However, PDT is also under investigation for treatment of larger tumors
volumes in regions such as the head and neck1,2 and the prostate3 by inserting opticfibers
in the tumor volume for the delivery of the treatment light.
The therapeutic effect in PDT is induced by the interaction between the tissue and
reactive oxygen radicals. These reactive oxygen radicals, predominantly singlet
oxygen, are formed by the interaction of photosensitizer, light (of an appropriate
wavelength) and oxygen in the tissue. The deposited PDT dose is the amount of light
that actually interacts with the photosensitizer that leads to formation of reactive
oxygen species responsible for inducing tissue response. Note that this is different
from the actual amount of light delivered to the tissue since not all of the light delivered
interacts with the photosensitizer scattering and absorption of the tissue. In addition,
based on the photosensitizer's ability to form reactive oxygen species (ROS) only a
percentage of light that interacts with the photosensitizer lead to formation of ROS.
Also there is a difference between the actual delivered light dose and the intended
delivered light dose. Where the intended delivered light dose is set by the clinician to
be delivered. Only by measuring the amount of light in situ it is possible to determine
the actual delivered light dose. So although this intended light dose is kept the same in
individuals undergoing treatment, the actual delivered light dose and the deposited
PDT dose can vary due to biological variation and the dynamic interaction between
light, photosensitizer and oxygen in tissue. Inter individual variations in deposited PDTdose
yield variations in induced tissue response and treatment outcome. For this
reason it is necessary to determine and monitor the deposited PDT dose during
therapeutic illumination.


Mindful of theoretical discourses developed in anthropology, folklore, and material culture studies, this article uses preliminary findings from an ethnographic case study conducted in Bloomington, Indiana amongst recent college graduates to examine not only the "why" of keeping unworn clothing in America, but more importantly the "how." Previous studies of kept clothing—as well as of saved belongings more generally—have almost exclusively highlighted the positive emotional and existential benefits of keeping for owners. This article complicates that picture by focusing on objects characterized by their owners as burdens. By attending closely to the historical, geographical, and socially-situated reality of its subjects, this exploratory investigation offers new insights into practical strategies for manipulating normative values attached to clothing and easing feelings of ambivalence connected with their continued accommodation.


Large content providers build points of presence around the world, each connected to tens or hundreds of networks. Ideally, this connectivity lets providers better serve users, but providers cannot obtain enough capacity on some preferred peering paths to handle peak traffic demands. These capacity constraints, coupled with volatile traffic and performance and the limitations of the 20 year old BGP protocol, make it difficult to best use this connectivity. We present Edge Fabric, an SDN-based system we built and deployed to tackle these challenges for Facebook, which serves over two billion users from dozens of points of presence on six continents. We provide the first public details on the connectivity of a provider of this scale, including opportunities and challenges. We describe how Edge Fabric operates in near real-time to avoid congesting links at the edge of Facebook's network. Our evaluation on production traffic worldwide demonstrates that Edge Fabric efficiently uses interconnections without congesting them and degrading performance. We also present real-time performance measurements of available routes and investigate incorporating them into routing decisions. We relate challenges, solutions, and lessons from four years of operating and evolving Edge Fabric.


Recent technological advances in robotic sensing and actuation methods have prompted development of a range of new medical training simulators with multiple feedback modalities. Learning to interpret facial expressions of a patient during medical examinations or procedures has been one of the key focus areas in medical training. This article reviews facial expression rendering systems in medical training simulators that have been reported to date. Facial expression rendering approaches in other domains are also summarized to incorporate the knowledge from those works into developing systems for medical training simulators. Classifications and comparisons of medical training simulators with facial expression rendering are presented, and important design features, merits and limitations are outlined. Medical educators, students and developers are identified as the three key stakeholders involved with these systems and their considerations and needs are presented. Physical-virtual (hybrid) approaches provide multimodal feedback, present accurate facial expression rendering, and can simulate patients of different age, gender and ethnicity group; makes it more versatile than virtual and physical systems. The overall findings of this review and proposed future directions are beneficial to researchers interested in initiating or developing such facial expression rendering systems in medical training simulators.


The literature dealing with farmland preservation has concentrated on program effectiveness and legal aspects. Equity issues, and to a lesser extent political issues have been neglected in these discussions. This major paper discusses equity issues involved with this topic: Basically who benefits and who is adversely effected by implementing farmland preservation measures. It relates these equity issues to both the legal and political issues of farmland preservation. It is argued in this major paper that to understand any one of these issues, all three must be fully addressed. The paper starts out by describing the following farmland preservation techniques: Exclusive agricultural zoning, large-lot zoning, fixed-area based zoning, slide-scale zoning, cluster zoning, Urban Growth Boundaries (UGBs), Purchase of Development Rights (PDRs), Transfer of Development Rights (TDRs), conservation easements, Smart Growth programs, usevalue taxation, and agricultural districting. It also describes their relative effectiveness. The next section describes the equity, legal, and political issues and relates these issues to the preservation techniques previously described. This section is followed by a conclusion that brings the previous two sections together and comes up with a final effectiveness rating for each farmland preservation technique.


In a market in which firms have market power, the impact of a change in wages on labour demand is not easily determined. Indeed, if after a decrease in wages one firm chooses to increase labour demand for producing more, this reduces the output price; this in turn may lead other firms to decrease their production and their demand for labour. We show that this ambiguity at the firm level is likely to be resolved at the aggregate level of the industry: under some empirically testable restrictions an increase in wages is likely to trigger a decrease in labour demand. The Le Chatelier principle states that the sensitivity of input demands with respect to own price variations is smaller when the output level is held constant than when it is adjusted. It holds whether competition on the output market is perfect or imperfect, provided the production level of competitors is held constant. A first aim of this paper is to extend the Le Chatelier principle to the case where the production levels of competitors are allowed to vary. For a given level of production, a cost minimizing firm has an incentive to use more intensively the factors of production whose price decreases and to substitute the other factors by the cheaper one (substitution effect). When the firm is able to set its production level in order to maximize profit, it benefits from the factor price reduction even further (expansion effect). With a competitive output market this expansion effect leads to a further increase in the demand for the factor that becomes cheaper. With imperfect competitive output markets the direction of the effect is less clear: if all competing firms increase production to exploit the reduction in factor price, the output price must fall, and this reduces each firm's incentives to expand its level of production and factor demand. We study whether aggregate factor demands are decreasing in markets with a particular type of imperfect competition, termed Cournot competition. Despite the ambiguous result at the firm level, we show that under some conditions the aggregate expansion effect is likely to be negative. We complete this paper with an empirical investigation of its theoretical results. In order to identify the Le Chatelier principle with aggregate data, and for decomposing the impact of input price changes on input demands into a substitution and an expansion effect, it is necessary to propose an adequate empirical specification compatible with heterogeneous firms. Instead of relying on a representative firm setup which implies estimation biases when firms are too heterogeneous, we define the aggregate cost function as the conditional expectation of the microeconomic cost function, given the available aggregate information. In this context, we show that it is possible to identify the conditional expectation of the substitution and expansion effects using aggregate data only. We propose a simple test for the validity of the representative firm model. The empirical application relies on a panel for 18 two-digit US manufacturing industries over the period 1949 to 2001. We obtain several results relative to the rate of returns to scale, the price-cost margin, the short and long run adjustment of input demand to input price change, and the impact of input price changes on output adjustment and inflation. The empirical findings confirm the validity of the Le Chatelier principle. We also find evidence for both increasing and constant returns to scale.


The aim of this thesis was to isolate the compounds responsible for the antibacterial activity of cell extracts of the marine diatom, Phaeodactylum tricornutum. Marine microalgae are not only important primary producers but, due to their phylogenetic diversity, they are also a potential source of novel bioactive compounds. The marine diatom, P. tricornutum, was selected for study because its cell extracts are known to be antibacterial but the compounds responsible have not been isolated. In this thesis, the compounds responsible for the antibacterial activity are isolated from aqueous methanol P. tricornutum cell extracts by column chromatography and reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography using a bioassay-guided approach. The compounds in three active fractions were identified by mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy as the unsaturated fatty acids (5Z, 8Z, 11Z, 14Z, 17Z)-eicosapentaenoic acid, (9Z)-hexadecenoic acid and (6Z, 9Z, 12Z)-hexadecatrienoic acid. The fatty acids were found to be antibacterial against Staphylococcus aureus at micromolar concentrations. P. tricornutum exists in different cell morphs and, interestingly, extracts prepared from cultures in the fusiform morph were found to have greater antibacterial activity than extracts from oval cultures. This is explained by greater levels of the three antibacterial fatty acids in the fusiform cell extracts. The antibacterial fatty acids are proposed to be released by enzyme action when the diatom cells lose their integrity. The release of free fatty acids by diatoms is suggested to be a simple, very low cost population-level activated defence mechanism against potential pathogenic bacteria triggered when the cell loses its integrity. Further, this pathway may act against multiple threats to the microalga, including grazers, as fatty acids exhibit activity in diverse


Solution-processable single-crystalline inorganic semiconducting nanowires are excellent
building blocks for printable electronics requiring high performance of semiconducting
components. Excellent charge carrier mobilities of crystalline nanowires combined
with solvent-based nanowire processing open up possibilities for low-cost nanowire
electronics targeting a variety of applications ranging from flexible circuits to chemical
and biological sensors. Nanowire field-effect transistors are key devices for most of such
applications. Recent developments in controllable nanowire positioning and orientation
on the substrates and electrical property selection provide the necessary technological
breakthroughs enabling the fabrications of reproducible nanowire transistors. In this
chapter, we discuss the nanowire assembly methods and high-spatial-resolution scanning
probe microscopy techniques towards scalable fabrication of high-performance
printable nanowire field-effect transistors.


The detection problem of a target based on radio-frequency (RF) and infrared (IR) data sources is addressed in this dissertation. The target is assumed to radiate an RF signal to multiple widely distributed sensors in space and is concurrently imaged using multiple frames of an IR sensor whose field-of-view is fixed with respect to the background. The observations contain additive noise in both sources due to the physical nature of the problem and sensor imperfections.
First, we define accurate signal models to be used in hypothesis testing for the RF and IR data sources. Second, the generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) statistics for both RF and IR detection problem are derived. Once the GLRT statistics are found, the optimal integration of test statistics is done to obtain the integrated GLRT detector. Although the integration is done optimally, the integrated GLRT requires; the joint maximization of a highly nonlinear statistic over target motion parameters, which is computationally expensive, and the submission of all RF data observed at local sensors to the central processor (CP), which requires high communication bandwidth and a CP having large memory. The random basis functions (RBF) approach is proposed as a computationally efficient method to reduce the computational complexity and data compression techniques are proposed for the distributed detection of the RF signal.
The RBF approach is applied to IR image sequences and it is shown that the reduction in computations is substantial as the dimension of the unknown parameter space is high. However, it causes some performance loss when compared to GLRT detector, thus, the approach requires higher signal-to-noise ratio to operate. Another possible use of the RBF approach is to apply it to reduce down the search space for the RF detector instead of applying it until convergence. Then, the GLRT for the RF data is run over the reduced down search space to obtain the multimodal estimates of the target motion parameters. This alternative representation of the multimodal detector is also implemented and the localization performance is tested. It is seen that the multimodal detector is more robust to partial occlusion when compared to detection using RF sensors only.
For the RF signal detection problem, the GLRT requires the submission of all data obtained at local sensors to the CP where the maximization takes place. Although this classical centralized detector has asymptotically optimal detection performance, submission of all observed data to the CP is practically infeasible as the RF detection problem is typically based on large data records. Therefore, distributed detection methods are considered for this problem and novel approaches based on Taylor expansions are proposed. Observed data is compressed into local test statistics at each sensor and transmitted to the CP for the formation of overall test statistic. The GLRT detector performance is used as the upper bound to assess the performance of the proposed compression techniques in this work.


In this paper, the algebraic independence of values of the functionG d (z) := h≥0 z d h /(1 − z d h), d > 1 a fixed integer, at non-zero algebraic points in the unit disk is studied. Whereas the case of multiplicatively independent points has been resolved some time ago, a particularly interesting case of multiplicatively dependent points is considered here, and similar results are obtained for more general functions. The main tool is Mahler's method reducing the investigation of the algebraic independence of numbers (over Q) to the one of functions (over the rational function field) if these satisfy certain types of functional equations.


This paper analyzes how social structure and social reinforcement affect the diffusion of an idea in a population of human agents. A percolation approach is used to model the diffusion process. This framework assumes that information is local and embedded in a social network. We introduce social reinforcement in the model by softening the condition to adopt when the number of adopting neighbors increases. Our numerical analysis shows that social reinforcement severely affects the output of the process. Some ideas with an original value so low that it would never get diffused can be spread due to the strength of social reinforcement. This effect also interacts with the structure of the network, with a more sizeable impact on small worlds with a low rewiring probability. Also, social reinforcement completely changes the effect of clustering links, because sequential adoption of neighbors can make one agent adopt at later stages.


The Radiative Transfer Equation in Photoacoustic Imaging Lee Patrolia Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Gunther A. Uhlmann Department of Mathematics Photoacoustic tomography is a rapidly developing medical imaging technique that combines optical and ultrasound imaging to exploit the high contrast and high resolution of the respective individual modalities. Mathematically, photoacoustic tomography is divided into two steps. In the first step, one solves an inverse problem for the wave equation to determine how tissue absorbs light as a result of a boundary illumination. The second step is generally modeled by either diffusion or transport equations, and involves recovering the optical properties of the region being imaged. In this paper we, we provide an overview of mathematical progress in photoacoustic and thermoacoustic tomography, as well as inverse problems for the radiative transfer equation. We then address quantitative photoacoustic tomography modeled by the radiative transfer equation, and in particular, we show that the absorption coefficient in the stationary transport equation can be recovered given certain internal information about the solution. Our new result will consider the variable index of refraction case, which will correspond to an inverse transport problem on a Riemannian manifold with internal data and a known metric. We will prove a stability estimate for a functional of the absorption coefficient of the medium by finding a singular decomposition for the distribution kernel of the measurement operator. Finally, we will use this estimate to recover the desired absorption properties.


This study explains the factors that influence the acceptance of blended learning and the level of
acceptance of the features of blended learning by undergraduate students in Landmark University.
Questionnaires were used as the data collection instrument and the acceptance of blended learning was
tested using UTAUT model. Data was analyzed using SPSS .Frequencies; Principal Component Analysis
and Regression Analysis were used in analysis. The study found that Performance expectance and
Facilitating conditions significantly influenced the acceptance of blended learning. In understanding the
acceptance of blended learning features, the student's shows more interest in course-related readings
and course materials available on the learning management system and less interest on discussion with
lecturers and discussion with classmates. Performance expectancy was a major determinant on the
acceptance of blended learning by students. It was also discovered that there is no relationship between
the learning style of students and intention to adopt blended learning. This study has implications for
university administrators on the importance of academic improvement and supporting features in the
introduction of blended learning in educational institutions.


Joint report by Eleos Justice and Capital Punishment Justice Project Many readers will take for granted the acceptability of consensual sexual activity between persons of the same sex, and the total inappropriateness of the state interfering with—let alone prohibiting—such behaviour. It may come as a surprise, then, that around the world, numerous states are complicit in the most extreme response to sexual diversity: homicide.This report examines the extent to which states sanction the killing of sexual minorities. We look beyond those countries that impose the death penalty for same-sex intimacy to the far greater number of countries in which state actors commission, condone, endorse and enable such killings. We argue that the state-sanctioned killing of sexual minorities is often perpetrated well beyond the boundaries of the law, and even in countries that do not criminalise such conduct.


An efficient numerical ice sheet model, including time dependence and full thermo-mechanical coupling, has been developed to investigate the thermal regime and overall configuration of apolar ice sheet with respect to changing environmental conditions. From basic sensitivity experiments, in which a schematic East-Antarctic Ice Sheet is forced with a typicalglacial-interglacial climatic shift, it is found that (i):the mutual interaction of temperature and deformation has a stabilizing effect on its steady state configuration and (ii) in the transientmode, this climatic transition initially leads to increased ice thickness due to enhanced accumulation, whereafter this trend is reversed due to a warmer base. Time scales for this reversal areof the order of 10 3 years in marginal zones and of 10 4 years in interior parts. Time-dependent modelling of the Vostok flowline, indicates that the Vostok Station area has risen about 95m since the beginning of the present interglacial due to thermo-mechanical effects, which is of particular interest in interpreting the palaeoclimatic signal of the obtained ice core there.


In common with other areas of the prefrontal cortex, activity in frontopolar area 10 is probably modulated by dopamine. We studied the dopaminergic innervation of monkey prefrontal area 10 by immunostaining with tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) antibodies. TH‐positive axons in layer 3 were examined by electron microscopy of series of ultrathin sections. TH‐positive boutons containing vesicles were sparse (2 × 10−4 per μm3) and the majority (94%, n = 52) had no identifiable synaptic specialization, which supports the hypothesis that dopamine is released non‐synaptically and raises the question of whether the local microenvironment surrounding the boutons is special. Compared with unlabelled boutons TH‐positive boutons had a higher proportion of their perimeter in contact with dendritic shafts and were more often in continuous contact with pairs of pre‐ and postsynaptic structures. However, this may result from exclusion from sites preferred by glutamatergic and GABAergic synapses as the density of all synapses in the closer vicinity was no different from any randomly selected site in the neuropil. This quantitative ultrastructural study presents basic features of the dopaminergic innervation in prefrontal area 10 and provides a more detailed understanding of the structural basis of dopamine signalling in the cortex.


SUMMARY Cytochemical staining methods and immunofluorescence techniques have been used to follow the release of proteins, including the allergen Antigen E, from whole pollen of ragweeds (Ambrosia spp.) and Cosmos bipinnatus (Compositae). These proteins have been detected in 2 sites in the wall: in the inner cellulosic intine layer especially at the germinal apertures, and in the cavea and the cavities of the outer exine layer, the sexine. It was found that the release of exine-associated proteins, including the allergenic fraction, begins within 2 8 of contact with aqueous media, the loss being mainly through the micropores of the tectum at the bases of the sexine spines. The intine proteins were emitted more slowly, discharge beginning at the colpi after 1 min of moistening. So far as can be judged from the methods used, most of the mobile protein lost from the pollen of Cosmos on hydration comes from the exine and is therefore sporophvtic in origin, while in the ragweeds the bulk comes from the intine in the neighbourhood of the germinal apertures, and so is gametophytic.


or Benzene hydroxyl, is a toxic aromatic hydrocarbon which finds its way into the environment and water resources as a serious environmental hazard in the effluent from a number of industrial processes. The objective of this investigation was to compare the efficiency of advanced oxidation methods with that of O3 and UV radiation in Phenol degradation. For this purpose, a reaction chamber with a capacity of 3 liters (laboratory scale) was used. A photolytic cell system with a 125W UV lamp was designed and manufactured. The ozone used in the reaction was produced at a rate of 1g/h in a COG-OM ozonizer before entering the reactor. A set of experiments was carried out at pH levels of 5, 7, 9, and 11 to investigate the effect of pH on phenol degradation rate. Samples were then collected for analysis by a spectrophotometer. Our findings show that phenol is degradable at a basic pH of 11 with ozone application and at an acidic pH of 5 with UV radiation. Using a 125 WUV- light source, phenol degradation after one hour was 32.4% while it reached 93.6% after the same period when using ozone. Due to their desirable health and environmental impacts as well as their high efficiency, advanced oxidation processes are expected to be a promising technology for the removal of phenol and other similar pollutants from water and wastewater.


A significant body of literature in information systems, marketing, and economics has shown the important implication of the distinction between experience products and search products ("product type") on consumer information search, marketplace design, and firm strategy. However, how to empirically measure product types remains a challenge, and this challenge is further complicated by the growth of online commerce and the increasing availability of online reviews that have transformed the nature of many products and altered the traditional perception of these products. The objective of this research is to propose an online product review-based measure that could accurately reflect consumers' perception of a product, as search or experience dominated product. Based on the definitions of search and experience products — whether information can be easily transferred or not — we propose a data-driven method that can be used to infer product type from statistical analyses of online product reviews. Our theoretical analyses indicate that the variance of the ratings should decrease as more consumers rate a pure search product; for experience products however, the variance of the ratings may remain constant or increase depending on the importance of the experience attributes in determining consumer utility. We demonstrate the empirical applications of this approach at the category, product, and attribute levels using product reviews data from Amazon.com, Yelp.com, and Ctrip.com, respectively. In addition, a user study conducted on Amazon Mechanical Turk shows our review-based measure to outperform Nelson's (1970) product classification, which historically has been the standard in determining product type. Overall, this new measure provides an easy to implement, less subjective and more accurate measure of product type. Therefore, researchers and practitioners can use this measure to better understand how consumers perceive products and to design strategies accordingly.


The conventional antitrust wisdom is that buyer side market power or monopsony is so unusual and so rarely anticompetitive that it should not merit more than a scholarly afterthought. Moreover, these brief mentions typically say it is essentially the mirror image of seller power or that, while seller-side power is suspect since it leads to higher consumer prices, buyer-side power is usually benign, because the public should not care which layer of a distribution channel gets any potential savings that can arise. This short article discusses how buyer power can be anticompetitive. It also discusses how buyer power or monopsony power is not the reciprocal of seller power or monopoly power, and summarizes an American Antitrust Institute conference on the subject.


Abstract The olistostromes form two belts within the Pieniny Klippen Belt (PKB) in the Northern Carpathians. They mark an early stage of the development of the accretionary prism. The first belt was formed during Late Cretaceous time as a result of subduction of the southern part of the Alpine Tethys. The fore-arc basin originated along this subduction zone, with synorogenic flysch deposits. Huge olistoliths deposited within the Cretaceous–Palaeogene flysch of the Złatne Basin, presently located in the vicinity of the Haligovce village (eastern Slovakia), provide a good example of the fore-arc olistostrome setting. The second belt is related to the movement of the accretionary prism, which overrode the Czorsztyn Ridge during Late Cretaceous–Paleocene time. The destruction of this ridge led to the formation of submarine slumps and olistoliths along the southern margin of the Magura Basin. The Upper Cretaceous – Paleocene flysch sequences of the Magura Basin constitute the matrix of olistostromes. The large Homole block in the Jaworki village represents the best example of the Magura Basin olistolith. Numerous examples of olistoliths were documented in western Slovakia, Poland, eastern Slovakia and Ukraine. The olistostromes formed within the Złatne and Magura basins orginated during the tectonic process, forming the olistostrome belts along the strike of the PKB structure.


BACKGROUND
 The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the mental health of university students.

 OBJECTIVE
 This study examined the psychological responses toward COVID-19 among university students from 3 countries—Indonesia, Taiwan, and Thailand.

 METHODS
 We used a web-based, cross-sectional survey to recruit 1985 university students from 5 public universities (2 in Indonesia, 1 in Thailand, and 1 in Taiwan) via popular social media platforms such as Facebook, LINE, WhatsApp, and broadcast. All students (n=938 in Indonesia, n=734 in Thailand, and n=313 in Taiwan) answered questions concerning their anxiety, suicidal thoughts (or sadness), confidence in pandemic control, risk perception of susceptibility to infection, perceived support, resources for fighting infection, and sources of information in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 RESULTS
 Among the 3 student groups, Thai students had the highest levels of anxiety but the lowest levels of confidence in pandemic control and available resources for fighting COVID-19. Factors associated with higher anxiety differed across countries. Less perceived satisfactory support was associated with more suicidal thoughts among Indonesian students. On the other hand, Taiwanese students were more negatively affected by information gathered from the internet and from medical staff than were Indonesian or Thai students.

 CONCLUSIONS
 Our findings suggest that health care providers in Thailand may need to pay special attention to Thai university students given that high levels of anxiety were observed in this study population. In addition, health care providers should establish a good support system for university students, as the results of this study indicate a negative association between support and suicidal thoughts.


In the past several years, the general public has had concerns about hacking and identity theft. Headlines in news media include computer system breaches at popular and respected companies like Target and universities like The University of California at Berkeley.
This paper explores options available for providing the general public with the benefits of the information age while mitigating against the security risks. We begin with a discussion of it is reasonable for the general public to expect organizations engaged primarily in commerce to provide for their cybersecurity. We then look at how electronic transactions are currently secured. We conclude with a consideration of the "protocols" or "institutions" that might provide for security for consumers.


INTRODUCTION
Early onset blindness is associated with enhanced auditory abilities, which may be supported by plasticity within auditory and/or occipital cortex. We previously reported auditory frequency selectivity within occipital cortex of early blind subjects, accompanied by significantly narrower tuning bandwidths within auditory cortex. To assess the functional role of these group differences, we now examine whether it is possible to predict individual auditory frequency discrimination thresholds based on estimates of frequency tuning within auditory and/or occipital cortex.

METHOD
Tonotopic mapping was carried out in auditory and occipital cortex in 4 early blind and 4 sighted controls using fMRI. Stimuli were pure tones ranging from 88 to 8000 Hz, presented in pseudo-randomized sequences. Using methods developed by Thomas et al. (2014), we estimated a one dimensional Gaussian sensitivity profile on a log auditory frequency axis for each voxel within anatomically defined regions of interest. We next measured auditory frequency discrimination thresholds for the same subjects in a separate session using 6 pure tones with baseline frequencies ranging between 200 and 6400 Hz. Frequency discrimination thresholds were then estimated for each of these baseline frequencies by finding the increment in frequency that produced a criterion change in expected BOLD response across voxels. This allowed us to predict psychophysical frequency discrimination performance for each subject based on cortical responses with a single free parameter.

RESULTS
For both blind and sighted subjects, discrimination thresholds as a function of baseline frequency were well predicted from estimated frequency tuning within auditory cortex. In contrast, frequency tuning within occipital regions (found only in the blind group) did not predict behavioral performance well, either alone or in combination with auditory cortex. Our findings suggest that, despite showing frequency tuning, auditory responses within occipital cortex may support auditory tasks more complex than simple frequency discrimination. Meeting abstract presented at VSS 2015.


Humans commonly harvest animals based on their expression of secondary sexual traits such as horns or antlers. This selective harvest is thought to have little effect on harvested populations because offtake rates are low and usually only the males are targeted. These arguments do not, however, take the relationship between secondary sexual trait expression and animal condition into account: there is increasing evidence that in many cases the degree of expression of such traits is correlated with an animal's overall well-being, which is partly determined by their genetic match to the environment. Using an individual-based model, we find that when there is directional environmental change, selective harvest of males with the largest secondary sexual traits can lead to extinction in otherwise resilient populations. When harvest is not selective, the males best suited to a new environment gain the majority of matings and beneficial alleles spread rapidly. When these best-adapted males are removed, however, their beneficial alleles are lost, leading to extinction. Given the current changes happening globally, these results suggest that trophy hunting and other cases of selective harvest (such as certain types of insect collection) should be managed with extreme care whenever populations are faced with changing conditions.


1 Hospital Felício Rocho, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. 2 Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Conflicts of interest: none. Introduction: Since the 1980s, with Illouz, liposuction has gained popularity and represents one of the most commonly performed procedures in the world today. Some of the complications are serious and potentially lethal. Nevertheless, uniformity in its practice or the manner in which it is taught does not exist. Evaluating techniques employed by plastic surgeons may be the start toward standardization. Methods: A questionnaire on liposuction was given to plastic surgeons of different age groups and from regions of Brazil who were present at the 52nd Brazilian Conference for Plastic Surgery. Results: Two hundred forty-three questionnaires were filled out (n = 243). The average number of incisions was 9 (2–16). Two hundred fortyone surgeons (99%) made incisions along the anterior median/ paramedian line, and 236 (97%) made incisions on the posterior median/paramedian line. Approximately half of those surveyed utilized general anesthesia. Two hundred nine surgeons (86%) placed the patient in the prone position during the procedure. One hundred forty-six (60%) interviewees performed superficial liposuction, with 22 (9%) performing liposuction only on this adipose layer. Eighty-five (35%) participants reported controlling the apparatus's pressure during the procedure. Conclusion: Liposuction procedures performed in Brazil have significant technical variations. This finding encourages us to reflect on the need to standardize liposuction practice and the manner in which it is taught so as to increase control over the procedure and its safety. ■ ABSTRACT


As our lived reality becomes ever more mobile and networked, society and business has adopted cultures and practices to embrace the creation of temporary interstitial 'pop-up' environments. These spaces, which can take the form of work environments (e.g. the UK Innovation Charity Nesta's 'Productive Coffee Breaks'), training (e.g. workshops), knowledge exchange (e.g. sandpits, culture hacks), and social environments (e.g. festivals), require us to examine the role of the temporal ethnographer. Our paper explores the changing and challenging roles that researchers must adopt and move between (from organizer, facilitator, participant, observer, and analyst) by examining four empirical case studies in a range of research contexts. Furthermore, we consider how short-term studies in such temporary, 'pop-up' environments can contribute to and be enriched by ethnographic practices.


Abstract The crustal structure of the Equatorial Atlantic conjugate margins (South America and West Africa) has been investigated using 3D gravity anomaly inversion, which allows for (1) the elevated geothermal gradient of the lithosphere following rifting and break-up and (2) magmatic addition to the crust during rifting and break-up. It is therefore particularly suitable for the analysis of rifted margins and their associated ocean basins. Maps of crustal thickness and conjugate-margin stretching, derived from gravity anomaly inversion, are used to illustrate how the Equatorial Atlantic opened as a set of stepped rift-transform segments, rather than as a simple orthogonal rifted margin. The influence of the transform faults and associated oceanic fracture zones is particularly clear when the results of the gravity anomaly inversion are combined with a shaded-relief display of the free-air gravity anomaly. A set of crustal cross-sections has been extracted from the results of the gravity inversion along both equatorial margins. These illustrate the crustal structure of both rifted-margin segments and transform-margin segments. The maps and cross-sections are used to delineate crustal type on the margins as (1) inboard, entirely continental, (2) outboard, entirely oceanic and (3) the ocean–continent transition in between where mixed continental and magmatic crust is likely to be present. For a given parameterization of melt generation the amount of magmatic addition within the ocean–continent transition is predicted by the gravity inversion. One of the strengths of the gravity-inversion technique is that these predictions can be made in the absence of any other directly acquired data. On both margins anomalously thick crust is resolved close to a number of oceanic fracture zones. On the South American margin we believe that this thick crust is probably the result of post-break-up magmatism within what was originally normal-thickness oceanic crust. On the West African margin, however, three possible origins are discussed: (1) continental crust extended oceanwards along the fracture zones; (2) oceanic crust magmatically thickened at the fracture zones; and (3) oceanic crust thickened by transpression along the fracture zones. Gravity inversion alone cannot discriminate between these possibilities. The cross-sections also show that, while 'normal thickness' oceanic crust (c. 7 km) predominates regionally, local areas of thinner (c. 5 km) and thicker (c. 10 km) oceanic crust are also present along both margins. Finally, using maps of crustal thickness and thinning factor as input to plate reconstructions, the regional palaeogeography of the Equatorial Atlantic during and after break-up is displayed at 10 Ma increments.


Africa's high dependence on natural resources makes its people vulnerable to environmental change. Acknowledging this, UNEP and START initiated a study in Feb. 2003 - (Vulnerability of Water Resources to Environmental Change in Afica). In the publication 4 regional groups of researchers address the vulnerability issue in Southern, Eastern, Western and Northern Africa by means of selected river/lake/groundwater,basins according to natural (physuigraphic) anthropogenic (socio-economic) and management criteria. The basin was selected as a key unit for assessment because it balances resource protection and utilisation and it considers all components of the hydrological cycle. Finally, the assessments undertaken clearly show that water resounces in Africa are at risk, now and even more in the future.


Abstract:Projected to accommodate at least 22,500 households by 2023, Lufhereng is called the City of Johannesburg's biggest integrated development. Emphasising both mixed income housing and economic activity, the provincial authority considers Lufhereng 'a blue-print', showcasing 'exactly the type of ground-breaking project that Gauteng Province needs to lead sustainable economic growth and ensure future prosperity'. Located on the western edge of Soweto the development is argued by Provincial planners to be a natural extension of the township originating under segregationist South Africa, yet from a City perspective it has been an outlying locale of low development priority. To counter its spatial disconnect from significant employment nodes the Province and the City propose inter alia both subsistence farming and commercial agriculture to 'become an economic catalyst for the region'. A significant proportion of Lufhereng's population will be at the very bottom of the income spectrum in fully state subsidized houses. Drawing on studies of lived experiences of subsidized housing in South Africa this paper shows the relevance for megaprojects of the concepts of 'invented co-production' and 'incubator urbanism'. Invented co-production refers to residents' unplanned modifications of their built environment or reshaping of their household, evident in other low income housing interactions and likely to emerge in megaprojects despite their highly planned and controlled ambitions. Incubator urbanism re-centres attention on the importance of underlying infrastructure to poor households despite locational and economic disconnects. These two concepts, apparent in Lufhereng, both challenge yet also feed into the conceptualizations of forthcoming megaprojects.


Each year at Cal Poly, the student community loses at least one student to suicide; many more suffer from depression and its effects. The students who started the Love Out Loud Campaign saw a need for awareness about the aforementioned topics. The campaign raises awareness about depression and its effects, as well as attempts to change the stigma associated with the issue. This paper addresses the need for student initiated suicide prevention campaigns on college campuses, as well as the ways in which the field of public relations can be utilized in said campaigns. The importance of depression awareness is addressed, as well as issues that arise with sensitive subjects such as suicide. There is a focus on two-way communication and addressing tough situations in a positive manner.


Organizational information system users (OISUs) that are open to cyber threats vectors are contributing to major financial and information losses for individuals, businesses, and governments. Moreover, technical cybersecurity controls may be rendered useless due to a lack of cybersecurity competency of OISUs. The main goal of this research study was to propose and validate, using subject matter experts (SMEs), a reliable handson assessment prototype tool for measuring the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that comprise the cybersecurity competency of an OISU. Primarily using the Delphi methodology, this study implemented four phases of data collection using cybersecurity SMEs for proposing and validating OISU: (a) KSAs, (b) KSA measures, (c) KSA measure weights, and (d) cybersecurity competency threshold. A fifth phase of data collection occurred measuring the cybersecurity competency of 54 participants. Phase 1 proposed and validated three OISU cybersecurity abilities, 23 OISU cybersecurity knowledge units (KU), and 22 OISU cybersecurity skill areas (SA). Phase 2 proposed and validated 90 KSA measures for 47 knowledge topics (KT) and 43 skill tasks (ST). Phase 3 proposed and validated the weights for four knowledge categories (KC) and four skill categories (SC). Phase 4 proposed and validated an OISU cybersecurity competency threshold (index score) of 80%. Phase 5 of this study measured the cybersecurity competency of 54 OISUs using the MyCyberKSAsTM prototype cybersecurity competency assessment tool. Phase 5 conducted data analysis by computing levels of dispersion and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), which indicated that annual cybersecurity training and job function are significant, providing evidences for significant differences in OISU cybersecurity competency.


Purpose: The main purpose of this article is to conduct a comparative analysis of the electronic freight exchanges in the United States and in Europe by means of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) method Promethee. Design/Methodology/Approach: MCDM Promethee method with the use of secondary data based on industry and branch reports from Europe and the United States as well as available statistical data and the analysis of relevant literature. The article is addressed, both to EFEs providers as well as their users. Findings: On the market of European and American open electronic freight exchanges there is a dispersed entity structure that promotes the occurrence of price competition. The differences, however, relate in particular to the number of users, geographic domination within the markets served, the period and nature of cooperation and the motives for its implementation, the integration of users' IT systems and the role of freight exchange operators in the construction and functioning of the supply chain. Practical Implications: The indication of the fundamental differences between European and American exchanges, which comprise the area for further improvements. Research limitations: The analysis is based on secondary data. No possibility of obtaining primary data from the largest players on the market of electronic freight exchanges in Europe and the USA, which constitute confidential business information Originality/value: tool development with the use of MCDM method for a comparative analysis of electronic freight exchanges. The tool can support electronic freight exchanges in the identification of strengths and weaknesses of their services as well as can be used in the process of formulation of their development strategies.


With the proliferation of highly specialized embedded computer systems has come a diversification of workloads for computing devices. General-purpose processors are struggling to efficiently meet these applications' disparate needs, and custom hardware is rarely feasible. According to the authors, reconfigurable computing, which combines the flexibility of general-purpose processors with the efficiency of custom hardware, can provide the alternative. PipeRench and its associated compiler comprise the authors' new architecture for reconfigurable computing. Combined with a traditional digital signal processor, microcontroller or general-purpose processor, PipeRench can support a system's various computing needs without requiring custom hardware. The authors describe the PipeRench architecture and how it solves some of the pre-existing problems with FPGA architectures, such as logic granularity, configuration time, forward compatibility, hard constraints and compilation time.


In this data-driven world, where our perception of reality is indeed digital-mediated, Text and Data Mining (TDM) represents a very helpful tool. This umbrella term describes a wide range of researching techniques able to select and assess enormous quantities of sources, extracting from them new and valuable information. TDM applications are on the rise, and are spreading in many fields, e.g. biomedical research, social media, corporate governance, governmental organizations.
In many cases, TDM presupposes processing, copying and extracting of information that needs to be assessed. Those acts, according to current copyright law, fall within the author's exclusive rights and therefore require prior authorization. On the contrary, unless an exception applies, unauthorized acts may amount to copyright infringements. As known, in Europe there is a closed list of exceptions, which, in the majority of cases, is optionally implemented.
Whether TDM may be adjusted by one of these exceptions has been discussed over the last decade and has recently led to a new Proposal from the European Commission, on a new digital single market, which among other exceptions, introduces a mandatory and specific exception for TDM.
This dissertation aims to explore copyright issues related to TDM, showing if and how TDM can fit within the current legal framework of rights and limitations. A three-step-test analysis will be provided, justifying the introduction of a more flexible, technology-neutral exception for TDM, in light of the public interest to free access to research information. Lastly the new legislative proposal will be assessed.


Abstract. The Solar Backscattered Ultraviolet (SBUV) observing system consists of a series of instruments that have been measuring both total ozone and the ozone profile since 1970. SBUV measures the profile in the upper stratosphere with a resolution that is adequate to resolve most of the important features of that region. In the lower stratosphere the limited vertical resolution of the SBUV system means that there are components of the profile variability that SBUV cannot measure. The smoothing error, as defined in the optimal estimation retrieval method, describes the components of the profile variability that the SBUV observing system cannot measure. In this paper we provide a simple visual interpretation of the SBUV smoothing error by comparing SBUV ozone anomalies in the lower tropical stratosphere associated with the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) to anomalies obtained from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS). We describe a methodology for estimating the SBUV smoothing error for monthly zonal mean (mzm) profiles. We construct covariance matrices that describe the statistics of the inter-annual ozone variability using a 6 yr record of Aura MLS and ozonesonde data. We find that the smoothing error is of the order of 1% between 10 and 1 hPa, increasing up to 15–20% in the troposphere and up to 5% in the mesosphere. The smoothing error for total ozone columns is small, mostly less than 0.5%. We demonstrate that by merging the partial ozone columns from several layers in the lower stratosphere/troposphere into one thick layer, we can minimize the smoothing error. We recommend using the following layer combinations to reduce the smoothing error to about 1%: surface to 25 hPa (16 hPa) outside (inside) of the narrow equatorial zone 20° S–20° N.


A density functional theory study of experimentally reported [M](C3E2) complexes ([M] = Ir, Ni, Pt surrounded by ligands such as phosphines and halides; E = O, S, Se) suggests that the behaviors of C3O2 and C3E2 (E = S, Se) as ligands in transition metal complexes differ significantly. The lowest energy structures for the [M](C3O2) complexes have the C3O2 ligand bonded to the transition metal through a CC double bond. However, the lowest energy structures for the [M](C3E2) (E = S, Se) complexes have the C3E2 ligand bonded to the transition metal through a CE double bond. The latter structures are confirmed by comparison of the experimental infrared frequencies arising from the C3E2 ligand with our theoretical results.


This paper employs quarterly time series data to endogenously determine the timing of structural breaks for various macroeconomic variables in the Korean economy. The Innovational Outlier (IO) as well as Additive Outlier models (Perron, 1997) are then used to test for non-stationarity of the Korean macroeconomic data. After accounting for the single most significant structural break the results from the (AO) model clearly indicate that the null of a unit root cannot be rejected for all of the series under investigation. This finding is consistent with our finding based on the conventional unit root test. However, by applying the IO procedure in the presence of a structural break we find the interesting result that two of the variables under investigation become trend stationary (have no unit roots). The timing of structural breaks for key macroeconomic data under the IO and AO approaches appear to be quite different. Using the IO approach seven of the ten macroeconomic variables focused upon have important structural breaks corresponding with the timing of the Asian financial crisis of 1997. On the other hand, using the AO approach, only one of the ten variables appears to have a structural break related to the Asian financial crisis, while the remaining nine variables have quite diverse structural breaks that depend on key policy changes or other factors contributing to economic turbulence.


Learning from a few examples remains a key challenge in machine learning. Despite recent advances in important domains such as vision and language, the standard supervised deep learning paradigm does not offer a satisfactory solution for learning new concepts rapidly from little data. In this work, we employ ideas from metric learning based on deep neural features and from recent advances that augment neural networks with external memories. Our framework learns a network that maps a small labelled support set and an unlabelled example to its label, obviating the need for fine-tuning to adapt to new class types. We then define one-shot learning problems on vision (using Omniglot, ImageNet) and language tasks. Our algorithm improves one-shot accuracy on ImageNet from 87.6% to 93.2% and from 88.0% to 93.8% on Omniglot compared to competing approaches. We also demonstrate the usefulness of the same model on language modeling by introducing a one-shot task on the Penn Treebank.


Although many cities are engaged in efforts to calculate and reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, most are accounting for "scope one" emissions i.e., GHGs produced within urban boundaries (for example, following the protocol of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives). Cities should also account for the emissions associated with goods, services and materials consumed within their boundaries, "scope three" emissions. The emissions related to urban consumption patterns and choices greatly influence overall emissions that can be associated with an urban area. However, data constraints and GHG accounting complexity present challenges. In this paper we propose one approach that cities can take to measure the GHG emissions of their material consumption: the solid waste life cycle assessment (LCA) based approach. We used this approach to identify a set of materials commonly consumed within cities, and reviewed published life cycle assessment data to determine the GHG emissions associated with production of each. Our review reveals that among fourteen commonly consumed materials, textiles and aluminum are associated with the highest GHG emissions per tonne of production. Paper and plastics have relatively lower production emissions, but a potentially higher impact on overall emissions owing to their large proportions, by weight, in the consumption stream.


— A hybrid finite element method/method of moments (FEM/MoM) technique is used to analyze a printed circuit board power bus structure where the source and observation points are in the near field. The FEM is used to model the lossy region between the planes of the board including the source. The MoM is used to model the region outside the planes and provide a radiation boundary condition to terminate the FEM mesh. Numerical results for a bridged power bus structure are compared with measurements. A nonphysical interior resonance of the electric field integral equation is observed. The problem can be avoided by using a hybrid technique based on a combined field integral equation.


This paper studies the effects of competition in a destination market on the product sales distribution of Belgian multi-product firms using the framework of Mayer et al. (2014). We show that in high competition markets multi-product firms export relatively more of their core products thus skewing the sales distribution towards the best-performing varieties of the firm. A calibrated fit indicates that the general productivity effects that are associated with this skewness reaction are potentially large as firms adjust their production process to accommodate the increased demand for its core products. The skewness effect of high competition markets is only observed for products that the firm eventually drops, underlining the importance of the product extensive margin adjustment. The effect is not limited to manufacturing firms, but also extends to intermediaries in trade and is shown to depend on the type of good that is exported.


This paper provides evidence that regulatory contracts affect firms' accounting choices and risk management decisions. Specifically, we investigate whether an exogenous shock to regulatory risk induced by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115 "Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities," (SFAS 115) encouraged U.S. banks to deviate from portfolio and risk benchmarks when they adopted the standard. Because we cannot observe relevant benchmarks, we model portfolio and risk decisions as functions of macroeconomic and firm-specific factors using data from a period when regulatory capital was immune to SFAS 115 accounting. We examine a sample of 230 publicly-traded banks and find that 1) irrespective of adoption timing, banks classified too few securities as AFS relative to estimated benchmarks, 2) weaker banks that adopted the standard early classified far more securities as AFS relative to benchmarks, 3) banks altered the size of their securities portfolios along with the levels of interest risk and credit risk as regulatory capital decreased, and 4) the level of interest risk on banks' loan portfolios increased at the time of SFAS 115 adoption. We also explore the 1995 FASB amnesty when firms could "re-adopt" SFAS 115. We find that banks used the 1995 FASB amnesty to undo strategic initial SFAS 115 adoption decisions. Taken together, our findings suggest that SFAS 115 caused some of the accounting and economic consequences predicted by bankers, analysts, and academics.


Background to the debate: Current guidelines recommend that all fever episodes in African children be treated presumptively with antimalarial drugs. But declining malarial transmission in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, declining proportions of fevers due to malaria, and the availability of rapid diagnostic tests mean it may be time for this policy to change. This debate examines whether enough evidence exists to support abandoning presumptive treatment and whether African health systems have the capacity to support a shift toward laboratory-confirmed rather than presumptive diagnosis and treatment of malaria in children under five.


In this work, an in-depth analysis of crystalline characteristics has been performed for a unique set of strictly monodisperse poly-e-caprolactone (PCL) oligomers. The molecules have different sets of end groups with various degrees of bulkiness and hydrogen bonding potential, affecting their aptitude to pack in ordered crystal structures. The oligomers also have different numbers of repeating units (n = 2-64), affecting the degree to which end groups influence overall molecular characteristics. The presence of bulky end groups leads to an innate confinement effect on crystallisation which in turn makes it possible to utilize the set of PCL oligomers to study confined space crystallisation. Confined space crystallisation is explored as a route to gain further understanding about the early metastable phases in crystal formation. The monodisperse nature of the samples made it possible to collect very precise small-angle and wide-angle X-ray scattering data (SAXS and WAXS) as well as calorimetric data. Computer modeling studies were performed to support experimental findings. It was shown that end groups strongly affected crystallisation features for the shorter oligomers (n ≤ 8) but to a lesser extend for the longer oligomers (n ≥ 16). The presence of a bulky end group at one end of an oligomer could inhibit the formation of hydrogen bonds on the other end. Short oligomers (n = 8) with OH-end groups exhibited novel packing characteristics. At one isothermal crystallisation temperature the molecules exhibited not only lamellar ordering but also an additional, likely rectangular or slanted, ordering. The sample was packed in a unique structure with molecular chains lying parallel but not aligned head to head with each other. At a higher crystallisation temperature the molecules packed in a double layered structure and at an even higher temperature in a typical non-folded but tilted single-molecular layer pattern. Unit cell determination was performed for a short oligomer with two bulky end groups, showing the existence of a tetragonal unit cell with different dimensions than the orthorhombic unit cells previously reported for linear PCL without end groups. To gain greater insight into the earliest stages of molecular packing, in situ WAXS measurements were performed using a synchrotron radiation beam and measuring data each 12 s whilst very slowly going from melt to isothermal crystallisation. It was shown that the crystal unit cell was distorted during the first minutes of slow crystallisation, which might either represent a metastable phase or else a highly distorted orthorhombic phase.


Full coverage of functional programming and all OCA Java Programmer exam objectives OCA, Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide, Exam 1Z0-808 is a comprehensive study guide for those taking the Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I exam (1Z0-808). With complete coverage of 100% of the exam objectives, this book provides everything you need to know to confidently take the exam. The release of Java 8 brought the language's biggest changes to date, and for the first time, candidates are required to learn functional programming to pass the exam. This study guide has you covered, with thorough functional programming explanation and information on all key topic areas Java programmers need to know. You'll cover Java inside and out, and learn how to apply it efficiently and effectively to create solutions applicable to real-world scenarios. * Work confidently with operators, conditionals, and loops * Understand object-oriented design principles and patterns * Master functional programming fundamentals


Urban regions are places where people live, work, consume, and entertain. In this study, we investigate the problem of learning an embedding space for regions. Studying the representations of regions can help us to better understand the patterns, structures, and dynamics of cities, support urban planning, and, ultimately, to make our cities more livable and sustainable. While some efforts have been made for learning the embeddings of regions, existing methods can be improved by incorporating locality-constrained spatial autocorrelations into an encode-decode framework. Such embedding strategy is capable of taking into account both intra-region structural information and inter-region spatial autocorrelations. To this end, we propose to learn the representations of regions via a new embedding strategy with awareness of locality-constrained spatial autocorrelations. Specifically, we first construct multi-view (i.e., distance and mobility connectivity) POI-POI networks to represent regions. In addition, we introduce two properties into region embedding: (i) spatial autocorrelations: a global similarity between regions; (ii) top-k locality: spatial autocorrelations locally and approximately reside on top k most autocorrelated regions. We propose a new encoder-decoder based formulation that preserves the two properties while remaining efficient. As an application, we exploit the learned embeddings to predict the mobile checkin popularity of regions. Finally, extensive experiments with real-world urban region data demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of our method.


We argue that the superlative modifiers at least and at most quantify over a scale of answers to the current question under discussion (and in this sense, resolve issues), and that they draw attention to the individual possibilities along the scale (and in this sense, raise issues for discussion). The point of departure is a simple analysis on which at least denotes what only presupposes, and at most denotes what only contributes as its ordinary atissue content. This analysis captures the truth conditions, focus-sensitivity, and distribution of superlative modifiers but leaves some pragmatic facts unexplained. We enrich the simple account with unrestricted inquisitive semantics in order to explain the fact that superlative modifiers give rise to ignorance implicatures while comparative modifiers like more and less do not, the fact that superlative modifiers do not give rise to scalar implicatures, and two puzzles concerning the interaction between superlative modifiers and deontic modals. We argue that this proposal provides the most empirically successful published account of superlative modifiers to date.

http://dx.doi.org/10.3765/sp.6.3

 BibTeX info


A linear stability analysis of Rayleigh–Bénard convection in a Newtonian nanofluid is carried out using most general boundary conditions. A single-phase description of nanofluids is adopted in the study. The nanofluids used for the study are water–alumina and water–copper nanofluids in order to analyze how a choice between them can be made. The values of thermophysical quantities of nanofluids are calculated using the mixture theory and phenomenological-laws. The paper applies the Maclaurin series in solving the boundary-eigenvalue-problem through a simple and innovative approach. A single-term Galerkin technique is adopted to obtain the guess value of the critical Rayleigh number and the wave number. Further, improved values of the Rayleigh number and the wave number are obtained using the solution of a system of three linear-algebraic equations. A detailed discussion is made on the effect of rough-boundaries and Robin-boundary conditions for temperature on the onset of convection. A comparative study between the results of two nanofluids is made and the destabilizing effect of nanoparticles in the Newtonian carrier-fluid on the onset of convection is studied.


Background The rapid increase in the availability of genome information has created considerable demand for both comparative and ab initio predictive bioinformatic analyses. The biology laid bare in the genomes of many organisms is often novel, presenting new challenges for bioinformatic interrogation. A paradigm for this is the collected genomes of the kinetoplastid parasites, a group which includes Trypanosoma brucei the causative agent of human African trypanosomiasis. These genomes, though outwardly simple in organisation and gene content, have historically challenged many theories for gene expression regulation in eukaryotes. Methodology/Principle Findings Here we utilise a Bayesian approach to identify local changes in nucleotide composition in the genome of T. brucei. We show that there are several elements which are found at the starts and ends of multicopy gene arrays and that there are compositional elements that are common to all intergenic regions. We also show that there is a composition-inversion element that occurs at the position of the trans-splice site. Conclusions/Significance The nature of the elements discovered reinforces the hypothesis that context dependant RNA secondary structure has an important influence on gene expression regulation in Trypanosoma brucei.


Male same-sex intimate partner violence is a
preventable and serious social problem worldwide, including in the United
States. Conflicting data sets posit that members of the LGBT community are at
higher risk to be perpetrators and victims of intimate partner violence. The
current and rapid ascendency of the COVID-19 virus has thrust the United States
into uncharted territory concerning shelter-in-place orders, which may be
construed as quarantines. In addition, the current panic level of many
individuals in the United States has contributed to food and supply hoarding
and has increased the stress level of many Americans. These shelter-in-place
orders can provide catastrophic results for those that are in a relationship
that is rife with domestic violence. The potential for risk of abuse is
compounded by not just staying at home with the abuser, but also thwarting crucial
social supports who cannot be in close proximity or who are only accessible
through phone calls or texts. Moreover, mental health practitioners are now utilizing tele-medicine that does not guarantee confidentiality or protection for the
victims, further enabling hopelessness for the abused. It is urgent that we
address this situation in the social literature.


This study focuses on the optimization of sensor placement with respect to the source identification and event detection. A multi-objective algorithm is used to solve the optimization problem. The numbers of possible source nodes for contamination events associated with the solutions on the Pareto fronts from the proposed method and benchmark method are calculated under the same configuration and compared. The comparison showed that the proposed method performs better than the benchmark method in detecting a contamination event and identifying its possible source.


We develop and use a spectral empirical Green's function approach to estimate the relative source amplitudes of earthquakes near San Juan Bautista, California. We isolate the source amplitudes from path effects by comparing the recorded spectra of pairs of events with similar location and focal mechanism, without computing the path effect. With this method, we estimate the relative moments of 1600 M  1.5–4 local earthquakes, and we use these moments to recalibrate the duration magnitude scale in this region. The estimated moments of these small earthquakes increase with catalog magnitude M D roughly proportionally to 101.1 M D, slightly more slowly than a moment‐magnitude scaling of 101.5 M w. This more accurate magnitude scaling can be used in analyses of the local earthquakes, such as comparisons between the seismic moments and geodetic observations.

[Electronic Supplement:][1] Additional description and figures showing estimated source amplitudes obtained with different parameters, and observed amplitudes of some earthquakes with large misfits.

 [1]: http://www.bssaonline.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1785/0120160141/-/DC1


The effects of private equity buyouts on employment, productivity, and job reallocation vary tremendously with macroeconomic and credit conditions, across private equity groups, and by type of buyout. We reach this conclusion by examining the most extensive database of U.S. buyouts ever compiled, encompassing thousands of buyout targets from 1980 to 2013 and millions of control firms. Employment shrinks 13% over two years after buyouts of publicly listed firms – on average, and relative to control firms – but expands 13% after buyouts of privately held firms. Post-buyout productivity gains at target firms are large on average and much larger yet for deals executed amidst tight credit conditions. A post-buyout tightening of credit conditions or slowing of GDP growth curtails employment growth and intra-firm job reallocation at target firms. We also show that buyout effects differ across the private equity groups that sponsor buyouts, and these differences persist over time at the group level. Rapid upscaling in deal flow at the group level brings lower employment growth at target firms.


An autonomous energy source within a human body is of key importance in the development of medical implants. This work deals with the modelling and the validation of an energy harvesting device which converts the myocardial contractions into electrical energy. The mechanism consists of a clockwork from a commercially available wrist watch. We developed a physical model which is able to predict the total amount of energy generated when applying an external excitation. For the validation of the model, a custom-made hexapod robot was used to accelerate the harvesting device along a given trajectory. We applied forward kinematics to determine the actual motion experienced by the harvesting device. The motion provides translational as well as rotational motion information for accurate simulations in three-dimensional space. The physical model could be successfully validated.


Modification of thin metallic films using ultrashort laser pulses involves interplay of numerous physical processes. Finding a right combination of laser parameters is essential for achieving the desired modification of a thin film deposited on a substrate. Numerical modeling is a convenient tool for gaining insights into ultrafast evolution of material properties and to predict an optimal range of irradiation parameters. In this work, a mathematical model is presented that describes the ultrafast laser heating and temperature relaxation in a thin molybdenum film deposited on a glass substrate. The laser energy absorption by molybdenum is described using a two-temperature model. The model takes into account the heat exchange between the film and the substrate through a boundary condition applied on the lattice temperature. The implicit numerical scheme employed for simulations was verified in respect of energy conservation. The model has been validated by comparison with experimental data on melting threshold fluences.


Phase microscopy has been adapted for observing specularly reflecting specimens with the vertical illuminator. The specimen is illuminated by light, preferably monochromatic, issuing from an annular opening in a diaphragm placed at the entrance pupil of an optical system consisting of the field lens, the microscope objective, and the reflecting surface of the specimen. The diaphragm is imaged on a diffraction plate placed at the exit pupil of this optical system. Stray light and illumination losses are minimized by locating the exit pupil between the beam splitter and the eyepiece. The method can be used advantageously to examine those surface irregularities which give rise to small differences in optical path or in phase between the reflected-ray bundles. Both bright and dark contrast with excellent definition may be obtained by the use of suitable diffraction plates. The advantage of this method disappears when the specimen diffuses the incident light.


The Auger Engineering Radio Array, an extension of the Pierre Auger Observatory with antennas in the MHz range, requires to monitor the atmospheric conditions, which have a large influence on the radio emission of air showers. In particular, amplified signals up to an order of magnitude have been detected as an affect of thunderstorms. For a more detailed investigation and more generally, for detecting thunderstorms, a new lightning detection system has been installed at the Pierre Auger Observatory in Argentina. In addition, an electric-field mill measures the field strength on ground level at the antenna array. With these measurements, data periods affected by thunderstorms can be identified. Additionally, a lightning trigger for the water-Cherenkov detectors was developed to read out individual stations when a lightning was detected nearby. With these data, a possible correlation between the formation of lightning and cosmic rays can be investigated even at low energies of about 1015 eV. The structure and functionality of the lightning detection are described and first data analyses are shown.


Caldwell (2001. Hodgson on Hayek: a critique, Cambridge Journal of Economics, vol. 25, 541--55) raises a number of criticisms of Hodgson's (1993. Economics and Evolution: Bringing Life Back into Economics, Cambridge, UK and Ann Arbor, MI, Polity Press and University of Michigan Press) analysis of Hayek. This reply acknowledges the passages in The Constitution of Liberty where Hayek discusses evolutionary ideas. It is also agreed that the description in the secondary literature of Hayek as a 'methodological individualist' is misleading or flawed. However, it is argued that Hayek's neglect of Malthus remains real and problematic. This neglect is connected to Hayek's underestimation of the scale of the Darwinian intellectual revolution. It is also argued here that Caldwell's attempt to justify Hayek's analytical assumption of the given individual is unconvincing. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.


This paper presents the findings of a recent research project which explored the perceptions of youth workers in Northern Ireland of the nature and purpose of their work and their attitudes towards a number of important current issues, including the role of youth work in combating social exclusion, the measurability of youth work outcomes, the relationships between trained professional workers and volunteers, the place of youth work in schools and the tensions associated with practising youth work in a 'post-conflict' society.The paper reveals that while youth workers attach immense importance to relationship-building and attending to process, they appear to have difficulty identifying more concrete or measurable outcomes from their work with young people. The youth workers see their practice as being increasingly shaped by external factors such as the funding environment, policies for formal education, social exclusion measures and the persistence of sectarian social divisions. The authors suggest that youth workers have an opportunity to secure greater recognition for the value of their work by articulating its benefits more clearly, but they caution that funders and policy-makers should be realistic in their expectations given the scale of disadvantage and disaffection experienced by many young people.


Probation is the most commonly imposed criminal sentence in the United States, with nearly four million adults currently under supervision. Yet the law of probation has not been the focus of sustained research or analysis. This Article examines the standard conditions of probation in the sixteen jurisdictions that use probation most expansively. A detailed analysis of these conditions is important, because the extent of the state's authority to control and punish probationers depends on the substance of the conditions imposed. Based on the results of my analysis, I argue that the standard conditions of probation, which make a wide variety of noncriminal conduct punishable with criminal sanctions, construct a definition of recidivism that contributes to overcriminalization. At the same time, probationary systems concentrate adjudicative and legislative power in probation officers, often to the detriment of the socially disadvantaged. Although probation is frequently invoked as a potential solution to the problem of overincarceration, I argue that it instead should be analyzed as part of the continuum of excessive penal control.


BACKGROUND
The inability to obtain consent remains one of the major obstacles to organ donation. The presence of in-house coordinators (IHCs) from organ procurement organizations (OPOs) might substantially improve donation rates.

OBJECTIVE
To review the preliminary results of the effect of the presence of an IHC on organ donation rates at our center.

METHODS
This is a retrospective analysis of patients referred to the regional OPO for possible organ donation. An IHC program was started at our hospital in late 2001. Data regarding organ donation demographics and family consent rates were compared before (Pre-IHC, 1998-2001) and after (Post-IHC, 2002-2005) the institution of an IHC program. The conversion rate was calculated as the number of actual donors divided by the number of potential donors and is represented as a percentage. The function of the IHC was to assist in donor surveillance, ensure timely referral, provide hospital staff education, assist with family consent and donor management, and provide family support.

RESULTS
There were a total of 495 potential donors and 195 actual donors during the 8-year time period. Post-IHC was associated with a significantly higher consent rate (52% vs. 35%, p < 0.01), a significantly higher conversion rate (50% vs. 34%, p < 0.01), and a 17% increase in organs donated compared with Pre-IHC.

CONCLUSION
The presence of an IHC program significantly improves consent and conversion rates for organ donation. An IHC program should be considered as a viable option to bridge the gap between organ supply and organ demand.