Abstract Human population in the XXI century is struggling with the increasing incidence of such diseases as obesity, diabetes, cancers, food allergies and many others. Recent studies have shown that oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species and free radicals, may underlie the occurrence of many diseases. Probiotics are known for their beneficial effects on health and are established as dietary adjuncts. Researchers are trying to find potential probiotic strains which can exhibit antioxidant properties along other health benefits. In vitro and in vivo studies have indicated that probiotics exhibit antioxidant potential. Also, many studies have shown that consumption of probiotics as dietary supplements, may reduce oxidative damage and modify activity of crucial antioxidative enzymes in human cells. Incorporation of probiotics in foods can provide a good strategy to supply dietary antioxidants, but more studies are needed to standardize the methods and evaluate antioxidant properties of probiotics before they can be recommended for their antioxidant potential. This paper presents the latest news related to probiotics and their antioxidative potential. 1. Introduction. 2. Antioxidants from food. 3. Probiotics. 4. Methods for antioxidative activity testing. 5. Probiotics antioxidative potential. 5.1. Food products containing probiotics. 6. In vivo studies – animal models. 7. Clinical trials. 8. Probiotics as antioxidants. 9. Conclusions 1. Wprowadzenie. 2. Antyoksydanty pochodzące z żywności. 3. Probiotyki. 4. Metody analizy właściwości antyoksydacyjnych. 5. Potencjał antyoksydacyjny probiotyków. 5.1. Produkty spożywcze zawierające probiotyki. 6. Doświadczenia in vivo – modele zwierzęce. 7. Badania kliniczne. 8. Mechanizm działania probiotyków jako antyoksydantów. 9. Podsumowanie


In her paper on the "operatic scandal of the singing body" for The Cambridge Opera Journal, Michelle Duncan points out how difficult it is to give an account of the experience of listening to opera, especially while considering the performer's body:[...] opera studies persist in thinking of the voice as extra-corporeal. Carnal voices are either lacking or absent, marked by what they do not do, operative through failure and negativity, or envisioned as supra-objects that are off the scale, excessively loud (and thus impossible to register or to be perceived as material) and potentially "violent". As for the body of the singer, opera studies has tended to ignore it altogether unless it possesses currency as the object of desire or of a fetish. And when this happens, both the body and voice become secondary to the affect or erotic desire of the spectator. (Duncan 2004: 285)Duncan underlines that the singing voice, in opera studies, is not considered in and of itself. Even when it is imbued with some positive qualities, it is still considered as an element that is "off the scale", that always goes further, or even too far from our musical experience of listening. As such, it could only be grasped indirectly by the effects it projects upon the listener. This is the reason why the singing body disappears in opera studies: the real way the sound has been produced, by a real body, is not as important as the way it meets the listener's desire, which refers to a mysterious locus of risk and freedom within the listening subject.To apprehend the voice as an excess is to experience the voice as almost magically transcending the body of the performer, as formidable and disciplined as that body may be. We know how psychoanalytic theory illuminates this scenario: by considering the voice as an objet (petit) a, replacing the maternal body as the unique and originating object of true affection, Jacques Lacan opened the way to understanding the experience of opera as jouissance (Lacan 1981). The voice would be the pure signal of what is before and also beyond the listening subject, before and beyond the self. Thus opera, especially with the role it gives to the female voice, as the summit of what is impossibly symbolised, would be dedicated entirely to this excessive, transgressive and affectively ambivalent quest. There is no doubt that today, this model of interpretation is the most acknowledged in studies concerning the lyrical voice (see, for instance, Poizat 1986; Quignard 1996; Vives 2002). However, we also know that this model is attached to a specific moment, to a specific musical style: being "grand opera" of the nineteenth century, or in Nicholas Till's terms, opera as "metaphysical", an extraordinary system intended to glorify the voice, and thus lose the singing body through the alternatives of presence and absence, pleasure and understanding. But, in other places, at other moments, it is obviously distinct: for instance, we know that at the birth of the opera, the Florentine Camerata preoccupied itself with its words, with the clarity of their pronunciation; or in more recent twentieth century history, how Broadway musicals require bodies that sing and dance simultaneously, and even more recently we can hear how some contemporary performers try to "de-aestheticise" the female voice (Dunn and Jones 1997: 4): Laurie Anderson with the use of the vocoder, or Diamanda Galas with the scream. By considering the voice as the poetic1 centre of the work, and naturalising the conditions of its presentation and production, and thus almost erasing them in order to overcome the listener, the nineteenth-century grand operatic tradition, whose legacy is still very evident in repertoires and expectations today, is without doubt a particularly striking moment in the history of music theatre, but nevertheless, a limited one.Does that mean that we could rediscover the singing body by looking to operatic forms other than the nineteenth-century model of "grand opera"? …


The tissue localization of multilamellar vesicles (MLV) (size 0.5-5.0 microns) composed of dimyristoylphosphatidyl choline (DMPC) and dimyristoylphosphatidyl glycerol (DMPG) (molar ratio 7:3) containing a lipophilic cisplatin analogue (NDDP) was studied in mice by freeze fracture (FF) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Liposomes were observed within cytoplasmic vacuoles of hepatocytes and Kupffer cells in normal mice as early as 5 minutes after intravenous (iv) administration of MLV-NDDP. Liposomes within hepatocytes were more numerous but smaller in diameter (0.5-2.0 microns) than those within Kupffer cells (2.0-4.0 microns). In normal lung examined by FF or TEM at 5 minutes after MLV-NDDP administration, liposomes were only observed in the intravascular space. Liposomes could not be identified within Type I or II pneumocytes nor within the alveolar space. Two hours after iv administration, the distribution within the liver showed an increased number of liposomes in the hepatocytes with some evidence of liposome decomposition. The distribution in the lung was virtually identical to that observed at 5 minutes. The pattern of tissue localization within lung and liver of empty MLV 5 minutes and 2 hours after iv administration was identical to that of MLV-NDDP. In mice bearing gross liver metastases of M5076 reticulosarcoma, liposomes were present in the cytoplasm of tumor cells as well as normal cells 5 minutes and 2 hours after the iv administration of MLV-NDDP. These studies suggest that MLV composed of DMPC and DMPG containing NDDP are able to cross the liver sinusoidal capillaries and gain access to both hepatocytes from normal liver and malignant cells of M5076 reticulosarcoma from liver metastases.


Two species of acanthocephalans are reported from fishes collected during the summer of 1996 in the southeast arm of Lake Malawi (Lake Nyasa), East Africa. The common Acanthogyrus (Acanthosentis) tilapiae (Baylis, 1948) had infected 18 cichlid and 1 bagrid host species (all new host records) netted by divers wearing scuba gear around Harbor Island or caught by hook and line in deep water. The specimens of this parasite were some of the smallest ever reported for that species. Two males of a new species, Acanthogyrus (Acanthosentis) malawiensis, are described from 2 male Labeo cylindricus (Cyprinidae). This is the fifth species of this genus and subgenus described in Africa. It is distinguished from the other 4 African and 33 mostly Asian species in that the proboscis hooks of the middle circle are longer than those of the anterior circle. The new species further differs from the other African species in proboscis and hook size, posterior hook root, trunk spination, and lemniscal form. Observations on host and geographical distribution, prevalence, and developmental stages of A. (A.) tilapiae are also reported.


After World War II at the height of decolonization, the analysis of the underlying process of economic growth became a topic of high priority. The neo-classical, Solowian, growth theory, with all its limitations, was embraced by economists and historians alike, resulting in countless growth accounting studies and further research into country-specific institutional developments. Later, however, especially with the introduction of new growth theories, economics and other social sciences have drifted somewhat apart. Economics preserved its focus on both the theory and empirics of economic growth, while the focus on country-specific institutional development remained largely absent. This practice, however, set a limit to the possibilities to apply new growth theories to the real-world economic development. Also, given its strong relationship with the Solowian growth theory, it is not surprising that even within economics one may encounter the view that the new growth theories have nothing new to offer after all. Before drawing such a premature conclusion, however, it is advisable to establish a link among new growth theories and History in order to find out whether the latter offers new insights into the root of differences in economic performance. This thesis focuses on three Asian countries, a successful (Japan) and two less successful economic developers (India and Indonesia). Our main question is whether the new growth theories can explain why Japan was successful in economic development relative to India and Indonesia. Besides the theoretics and empirics of economic growth, matters which are extensively treated in the economic literature, it is important to focus on what human capital, the main engine in the new growth theories, actually is, and what effect country-specific institutions have. Our main conclusions are that the some of the more commonly used human capital proxies only capture human capital to a certain extent. As they either underestimate the growth of human capital or proxy the growth, instead of the level, of human capital, they (falsely) bias the choice of the new growth theories towards the Romer (1990) model. But even when using the applicable stock if human capital and the applicable growth theory, still there are considerable differences in economic growth among countries. Circa 50% of these differences in income levels among India, Indonesia, and Japan resulted from differences in country-specific human capital forming institutions. These differences can be traced back to the construction of their education systems. In Japan, as in most Western countries, the education system arose in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century from the need for economic development and was responsive to the special characteristics of the respective societies. In India and Indonesia, on the other hand, similarly to most developing economies, it were largely ideas of 'creating an indigenous class of literati', a 'moral duty of the colonizer country', nationalism, and, after World War II, the 'idea of progress by education', 'lack of finances', and 'policies of international organisations' that drove educational development. In other words, the education systems of India and Indonesia were influenced by global, or at least external, factors.


INTRODUCTION The dominant trend in metropolitan America today is the decentralization of people and jobs. This trend is evidenced by an exploding exurban fringe, coupled with slow or no growth in the urban core. The trend is mostly evident in Northeastern and Midwestern metropolitan areas like Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Norfolk, where suburbs are gaining residents and central cities are losing them. The trend is also evident in Ohio, where suburban job growth in the late 1990s outpaced central business districts by nearly 300 to one. (1) The suburbs have emerged as key players in American life: their residents constitute over half of the nation's population and their elected officials occupy the majority of congressional seats. While much has been written about suburbs in general, there is little research relating to the conditions of older, inner-ring or "first" suburbs. What is the state of first suburbs? Are they growing, stagnating, or declining? Are they facing challenges similar to central cities and newer suburbs, or are their challenges unique? Some Northeastern and Midwestern first suburbs are finding they have more in common with central cities than newly developing suburbs. Both cities and first suburbs are coping with population and job loss; declining household incomes and tax bases; changing demographics; aging housing and infrastructure; and general instability. That being said, not all first suburbs are declining. Some of the most stable and affluent communities in the country are first suburban areas. Many first suburbs, however, missed out on the nation's recent economic prosperity and reinvestment. This has rendered some of them stagnant. First suburbs often begin to decline as younger, wealthier residents, employers, and retail businesses move further out in search of a perceived higher quality of life. Left behind are those without the fiscal resources to contribute to the public coffers (in terms of augmenting the tax base) and the elderly, who may lack the physical ability to maintain their homes and communities. Attenuating tax bases, rising expenditures, and lack of investments make first suburban infrastructure difficult to maintain. These problems are compounded by the fact that government investments favor newly developing exurbs with new schools, roadways, and other infrastructure. (2) Regardless of whether a suburb is healthy or declining, a new urban policy that reconsiders old notions of "cities" and "suburbs" is required. 1950s-style, Ozzie & Harriet suburbanization no longer accurately describes either first suburbs or new exurbs. Suburbs are no longer homogeneous affluent bedroom communities: they are very diverse in terms of employment, income, and racial composition. This piece refers throughout to "first suburbs" and "first suburban areas." Since there is no national typology, many different monikers are used to describe such suburbs, such as "older" and "inner-ring" suburbs. First suburbs are older than the newly developing suburbs: they grew up before and immediately after World War II. They are the closest suburbs to the central cities, often beginning as bedroom communities for central city workers. Compared to center cities and outer suburbs, they have smaller populations and weaker governments. They have little land for development and are heavily dependent on residential taxes to provide basic services. At the same time, newly developing communities on the suburban fringe are pushing outward at an incredible rate, taking with them jobs and wealthier central city and first suburban residents. As companies and middle-class families leave, the tax bases of first suburbs shrink, leaving them without the wherewithal to combat working poverty, disinvestment, and failing schools. But unlike central cities, first suburbs generally lack a sophisticated government infrastructure to cope with such problems. …


Locate nations on the J Curve - left for authoritarian, right for democratic. Then figure out how to force those on the left to open their societies, rather than encouraging them to shut them tighter by further isolating them. The West's isolation of Kim Jong-il's North Korea gives him the cover he needs to extend his brutal regime (the mistake the U.S. made for a long time with Saddam Hussein and Castro); in Saudi Arabia, western governments should encourage manageable change before the country breaks apart; they should help strengthen China's economy so it can further liberalize; they must encourage Israel to decide what kind of country it will be. Filled with imaginative and surprising examples of how to correct outworn political ideas, THE J CURVE points the way for western governments to lead the way to a realistic political balance and a healthier economic future.


It has long been assumed that Sumatran forests are of higher quality for orangutans than Bornean forests, and that this is both the proximate and ultimate cause of many of the differences in socio-ecology between the two orangutan species. Yet this hypothesis has remained untested. This chapter presents data on the phenology and floristics of eight Bornean and three Sumatran forest sites where orangutans have been studied to examine the effects of floristic composition, habitat productivity, and seasonality on orangutan population density. The alternative hypotheses that higher orangutan densities in Sumatra are due to overall higher levels of plant productivity, the increased availability of preferred foods, the presence of more fallback foods, or differences in floristic composition between the two islands are tested empirically.


The new ksar of Tafilelt situated in Ghardaia in southern Algeria has attracted a lot of interest in scientific work, being a « neo traditional » urban model that reproduces the principles of composition and spatial organization of the ksour in the pentapolis of Ghardaia. This ksar embodies the adaptation between tradition and modernity: it refers to the local setting of the ksourien space production, contribute to the valorization of these ancient centers that date back to the XIth century. In parallel to the work of thesis undertaken on « the neo traditional models of reference in Algeria for the new cities », we ask the following questions according to the case of Tafilelt: Is this ksar really a model? Does it take the traditional model fully? Is this indeed a new city? In addition, speaking about the concept of multifunctionality. How to detect this integral reproduction in the urban spaces between the old and the new ksar? This work will be an analytical reading of the spaces of this ksar according to the four concepts above, namely: the urban model of reference, the criteria of the new city, the criteria of the former ksour and the multi-use character of their spaces. We will try to apply the concept of multi-functionality on urban spaces in different scales to assess the multi-functionality of the ksar's spaces in a comparative approach between the old and the new ksour. JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY URBAN AFFAIRS (2019), 3(2), 99-107. Doi: https://doi.org/10.25034/ijcua.2018.4706 www.ijcua.com Copyright © 2018 Journal Of Contemporary Urban Affairs. All rights reserved.


Surface and bottom currents in the surf zone were measured at 15 equally spaced points along two straight beaches with approximately parallel bottom contours. The measurements showed that offshore currents predominate over onshore currents at the bottom, while at the surface there is a slight predominance in the onshore direction. With regard to the longshore component, it was found that surface and bottom currents have a similar velocity distribution. The variability of the longshore component as measured by its standard deviation is equal to or larger than the mean longshore velocity. This wide variation in longshore currents indicates the impracticability of estimating the mean velocity from a single observation of longshore current. It was found that the momentum approach to the prediction of longshore currents by Putnam, Munk and Traylor (1949) leads to useful forecasts provided the beach friction coefficient k is permitted to vary with the longshore velocity, V. The indicated relation is k~v^(-3/2).


The objective of the article is to empirically verify the impact of assessing one's own competences on the transition of recent university geography graduates from education to employment. The article also looks at the role of competences in predicting graduates' situation on the job market. A Poland-wide survey (N = 1120) was conducted which collected detailed data on self-assessment of one's competences by students nearing graduation. A follow-up survey six months after graduation showed that only a high assessment of one's own specialised competences had a somewhat significant impact on finding a job that would match one's degree, pay reasonably well and give independence in exercising one's duties at work. Discriminant function analysis was used to establish that the skills which had the greatest impact on whether the geographer remains unemployed or finds employment included socio-emotional and generic competences such as public speaking, team cooperation, precision, attention to detail and interpersonal communication skills. The research suggests, however, that given the current situation on the Polish labour market, these competences are not a key determining feature in the respondents' transition to employment. Moreover, the set of competences does not comprise of variables that allow us to easily predict graduates' situation on the labour market.


Concern about the threats posed by natural proliferation of animal-borne human diseases like BSE ("mad cow disease") and by the possible use of animals as disease vectors in bioterrorism, have spurred heightened interest in the development of methods for rapid automated identification of individual animals of various societally and commercially important mammalian species. Just as fingerprints have been used successfully for more than a century to uniquely identify human individuals, evidence suggests that the noseprints of many mammalian species are also unique to individual animals and therefore could function as a reliable basis for identification. Unfortunately, animal noseprints do not in general exhibit the "core" and "delta" features that are always present in human fingerprints and are used to define the intrinsic coordinate system upon which modern minutiaebased fingerprint analysis is based. Therefore conventional automated fingerprint analysis technology cannot be used for animal noseprint identification. In 2004, FBI Special Agent Steven Kozma, in a master's thesis project conducted at San Diego State University, proved that 2D image correlation, a pattern matching method widely used in other contexts, can be used to match canine and bovine noseprints with high accuracy. However, the execution time of Kozma's software when run on typical commercial off-the-shelf hardware was too great to make it practical for real-world applications. This thesis project encompassed design, coding, and testing of a CUDA-based parallelization of Kozma's algorithm, including proof-of-concept testing for a new variant incorporating Hotellingtransform-based rotational and translational image registration, with the goal of achieving a speedup of Kozma's original algorithm sufficient to render it practical for use in real-world applications.


Abstract. Thanks to the efforts of the various globe digitising projects, nowadays there are plenty of old globes that can be examined as 3D models on the computer screen. These globes usually contain a lot of interesting details that an average observer would not entirely discover for the first time. The authors developed a website that can display annotations for such digitised globes. These annotations help observers of the globe to discover all the important, interesting details. Annotations consist of a plain text title, a HTML formatted descriptive text and a corresponding polygon and are stored in KML format. The website is powered by the Cesium virtual globe engine.


The interdependence of international events is obvious to even casual observers of global politics. History is replete with examples of events repeating within states and/or being influenced by outcomes in other states. Despite this, much of the current literature in International Relations either mishandles or outright neglects this dependence, thereby threatening the credibility of our inferences. In large part, this stems from the difficulty of modeling such dependence when one's data are binary and rare, as they often are for many of the most widely-studied phenomena in IR (e.g., violent conflict, economic crises, etc\ldots). For data of this type, commonly-used strategies to capture dependence are frequently ill-suited and, as such, new approaches are required. Therefore, this thesis aims to clarify the empirical challenges which arise from these data, detail the problems with existing approaches, and offer alternatives which should be preferred.

The focus is principally on two potential (and related) sources of bias which may arise within binary time-series cross-sectional (b-TSCS) data: true (inter-)dependence and unit heterogeneity. In the first, the outcomes, actions, and/or choices of some unit-times depend directly on those of other unit-times. To model both spatial and serial dependence in such data, a spatiotemporal-lag probit model estimated using maximum-simulated-likelihood using recursive-importance-sampling (MSL-by-RIS) is presented. This allows us to directly model the dependence of the lagged-latent outcomes, which is shown to have several advantages over models using the observed indicator (e.g., model consistency, effects estimation, predictive accuracy). The second main focus is on the threat of unobserved unit heterogeneity, that is, when time-invariant unit-characteristics influence the outcome, action, choice, but go unmodeled. While fixed effects estimators are traditionally the solution to this issue, such models have received heavy criticism in political science applications with b-TSCS data. In light of these criticisms, a penalized-maximum-likelihood fixed-effects (PML-FE) model is proposed which suffers from few of these drawbacks and permits the estimation of novel unit-specific substantive effects. In addition, original analyses into intrastate conflict and financial crises are offered to highlight the value of these approaches for testing existing, and motivating new, theories of international behavior.


OBJECTIVES
This report presents preliminary U.S. data on deaths, death rates, life expectancy, leading causes of death, and infant mortality for 2011 by selected characteristics such as age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin.

METHODS
Data in this report are based on death records comprising more than 98 percent of the demographic and medical files for all deaths in the United States in 2011. The records are weighted to independent control counts for 2011. Comparisons are made with 2010 final data.

RESULTS
The age-adjusted death rate decreased from 747.0 deaths per 100,000 population in 2010 to 740.6 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011. From 2010 to 2011, age-adjusted death rates decreased significantly for 5 of the 15 leading causes of death: Diseases of heart, Malignant neoplasms, Cerebrovascular diseases, Alzheimer's disease, and Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis. The age-adjusted death rate increased for six leading causes of death: Chronic lower respiratory diseases, Diabetes mellitus, Influenza and pneumonia, Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, Parkinson's disease, and Pneumonitis due to solids and liquids. Life expectancy remained the same in 2011 as it had been in 2010 at 78.7 years.


BACKGROUND Genetic disorders are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in infants. Rapid Whole Genome Sequencing (rWGS) can diagnose genetic disorders in time to change acute medical or surgical management (clinical utility) and improve outcomes in acutely ill infants. METHODS Retrospective cohort study of acutely ill inpatient infants in a regional children's hospital from July 2016–March 2017. Forty-two families received rWGS for etiologic diagnosis of genetic disorders. Probands received standard genetic testing as clinically indicated. Primary end-points were rate of diagnosis, clinical utility, and healthcare utilization. The latter was modelled in six infants by comparing actual utilization with matched historical controls and/or counterfactual utilization had rWGS been performed at different time points. FINDINGS The diagnostic sensitivity was 43% (eighteen of 42 infants) for rWGS and 10% (four of 42 infants) for standard of care (P=.0005). The rate of clinical utility for rWGS (31%, thirteen of 42 infants) was significantly greater than for standard of care (2%, one of 42; P=.0015). Eleven (26%) infants with diagnostic rWGS avoided morbidity, one had 43% reduction in likelihood of mortality, and one started palliative care. In six of the eleven infants, the changes in management reduced inpatient cost by $800, 000 to $2,000,000. DISCUSSION These findings replicate a prior study of the clinical utility of rWGS in acutely ill inpatient infants, and demonstrate improved outcomes and net healthcare savings. rWGS merits consideration as a first tier test in this setting.


Hydrogen (H2) and oxidants (O2 and H2O2) are naturally produced by radiolysis of water in any environment where water is bombarded by α, β, and γ radiation generated during radioactive decay. The production of radiolytic H2 in aqueous solutions and in some monomineral-water mixtures has been extensively studied. However, yields of radiolytic products in natural materials remain largely unexplored. Quantification of radiolytic production in common geological materials is critical to assess the importance of water radiolysis as source of microbial reductants and oxidants in water-containing subsurface environments. Knowledge of radiolytic production is also fundamental for the nuclear industry, as maintenance and development of nuclear reactors, long-term disposal of radioactive waste and management of mixedwaste storage tanks are intricately associated with radiolysis products. We experimentally quantified H2 yields for αand γ-irradiation of pure water, seawater, and slurries of marine sediment, montmorillonite, and two natural zeolites (mordenite and clinoptilolite) widely used in the nuclear industry. The sediment samples include the dominant types found in the global ocean (abyssal clay, nannofossil-bearing clay [marl], clay-bearing diatom ooze, and nannofossil ooze). These experiments demonstrate that all common types of marine sediment and both zeolites catalyze radiolytic H2 production. Hydrogen yields [G(H2)] from water radiolysis differ from one geological material to another. They range between 3.43 and 37.54 molecules H2 100eV -1 for α-particles and and 0.27 and 1.96 molecules H2 100eV -1 for γ-rays. Abyssal clay, earth's most widespread marine sediment type, exhibits the highest yield amplification when exposed to α-particles with an average factor increase of 18 relative to pure water. Siliceous ooze and abyssal clay exhibit the highest H2 yields when exposed to γ-rays, increasing production by factors of up to 8 and 4, respectively. Calcareous ooze (factor 5 amplification) and lithogeneous sediment (17% amplification) exhibit the smallest yield amplification under α-particle and γ-rays irradiation, respectively. Zeolite mineral slurries increase G(H2) for αand γ-irradiation by factors of 13 and 4, respectively (similar to abyssal clay). Our results show that substrate chemistry and specific surface area are the main factors that control radiolytic H2 production. The mineral-catalysis of radiolytic H2 production has significant implications for: (i) sustenance of Earth's subsurface microbial ecosystems (ii) habitability of other planetary bodies, and (iii) nuclear industrial activities. In electron equivalents per unit area, radiolytic H2 production in marine sediment locally produces as much electron donor (food) as photosynthetic carbon fixation in the ocean. Although small relative to global photosynthetic biomass production, sedimentcatalyzed production of radiolytic products is significant in the subseafloor. Our analysis of 9 sites in the North Atlantic, North and South Pacific suggests that H2 is the primary microbial fuel in oxic organic-poor sediment older than a few million years. At these sites, calculated radiolytic H2 consumption rates are more than an order of magnitude higher than in situ organic-matter oxidation rates. Radiolytic H2 is also a significant microbial electron donor in anoxic marine sediment older than a few million years. Oxidants from water radiolysis (O2 and H2O2) are significant electron acceptors in both oxic and anoxic sediment throughout the ocean. Discovery and quantification of the catalytic effect of clays and zeolites on radiolytic H2 production reveals the potential risk of using geological materials for remediation and long-term disposal of nuclear waste without consideration of their catalytic potential.


Within the multiagent community, agent programming languages and theories of agent teamwork are used together to create teams of cooperative agents to achieve goals in dynamic environments. Multi-robotic research studies robots working together in a team to perform a task and achieve a goal. In this thesis we propose a set of programming constraints for multi-robotic cooperation. We then use these programming constraints to build a multi-robotic cooperation framework. This framework is a bridge between multiagent programming languages and multi-robotic teamwork. The framework uses the natural and intuitive programming style that AgentSpeak provides for multiagent cooper ation to create multi-robotic teams. We then use a group of LEGO® NXT 2.0 robots to test the proposed programming constraints, implemented in AgentSpeak, to operate a search and rescue scenario.


Deposition of a conformal nanoscale polymer coating was characterized using a fiber SPR sensor. The sensor platform consisted of an unmodified gold-coated single mode fiber where SPR was excited through the coupling of the core mode into the cladding modes using a Tilted Fiber Bragg Grating. The results from this study show how the sensor can monitor in real time the formation of polyelectrolyte coatings during a process consisting of several stages of immersion. The experimental data was further calibrated by simulations and Atomic Force Microscope imaging allowing us to determine the thickness and refractive index of the adsorbed polyelectrolyte.


This paper analyzes the link between young people's sense (locus) of control over their lives and their investments in education. We find that young people with a more internal locus of control have a higher probability of finishing secondary school and, conditional on completion, meeting the requirements to obtain a university entrance rank. Moreover, those with an internal locus of control who obtain a university entrance rank achieve somewhat higher rankings than do their peers who have a more external locus of control. Not surprisingly, there is a negative relationship between growing up in disadvantage and educational outcomes. However, this effect does not appear to operate indirectly by increasing the likelihood of having a more external locus of control. In particular, we find no significant relationship between family welfare history and young people's locus of control.


The article considers basic theoretical and methodological approaches to scenario planning. The comparative analysis is made in relation to the traditional and scenario approaches to strategic planning. The urgency of applying methods and tools of strategic planning in the mineral resources sector is stipulated.Peculiarities of applying the scenario planning in the context of the mineral resources sector areas functioning are revealed. The block diagram of comprehensive strategic analysis as the first stage of the scenario planning to develop economic systems is shown.The research results support three of the basic scenarios of developing the mineral resources sector as a large system forming a general economic system.These scenarios are characterized in terms of general macro- and microeconomic prerequisites of applying them, basic economic factors that characterize them, peculiarities of state regulation under this development scenario, basic parameters of social and economic development and state, of the mineral resources sector.


Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a rare and aggressive extranodal non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that is confined to the brain, eyes, spinal cord, or leptomeninges without systemic involvement. The overall prognosis, diagnosis, and management of PCNSL differ from those for other types of NHL. Prompt diagnosis and initiation of treatment are vital for improving clinical outcomes. PCNSL is responsive to radiation therapy; however, whole‐brain radiotherapy (WBRT) inadequately controls the disease when it is used alone, and its delayed neurotoxicity causes neurocognitive impairment, especially in elderly patients. High‐dose methotrexate (HD‐MTX)–based induction chemotherapy with or without autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) or reduced‐dose WBRT leads to durable disease control and less neurotoxicity. The optimal treatment has yet to be defined; however, HD‐MTX–based induction chemotherapy is considered standard for newly diagnosed PCNSL. Ongoing randomized trials are addressing the roles of rituximab and consolidative treatment with ASCT or reduced‐dose WBRT. Despite high tumor response rates with the initial treatment, many patients relapse with a very poor prognosis. The optimal treatment for refractory or relapsed PCNSL is poorly defined. The choice of salvage treatment depends on a patient's age, previous treatment and response, performance status, and comorbidities at the time of relapse. This review provides an overview of the clinical features, diagnosis, pathology, and management of PCNSL in immunocompetent patients, and it focuses on recent advances in treatment. Cancer 2017;123:4314‐24. © 2017 American Cancer Society.


The aim of this thesis was to identify the factors determining reproductive success and breeding density in a rural population of blackbirds occupying contiguous woodland and farmland habitats. Once these factors were identified, an attempt was made to assess the quality of the two habitats in terms of reproductive success. Predation was the major factor affecting reproductive success. There were no significant effects of habitat on predation when habitat was defined as farmland, woodland and woodland edge. When defined in terms of nesting density, high density 'hot-spot' areas had significantly greater nesting cover and lower predation rates than territories in farmland or in the rest of the wood. Parents could adjust their provisioning rates according to chick demand. Consequently chicks in larger broods were not significantly different in weight to chicks in smaller broods. The seasonal change in clutch size is therefore well adapted to conditions for raising nestlings, although there was indirect evidence that female condition may limit clutch size early in the season. The nestlings were fed two main diet types, earthworms and caterpillars, the availability of the former being related to rainfall and temperature and the latter occurring in a seasonal peak. Nestlings fed on predominantly earthworm diets were significantly heavier, thus caterpillars are probably a lower quality prey. Starvation was a minor cause of nestling mortality. There was some evidence that farmland birds were more dependent on earthworms than woodland birds, and consequently only farmland broods showed a significant relationship between weight and rainfall. This conferred no disadvantage to farmland broods, although this may have implications for reproductive success in very dry years. Farmland breeders showed some characteristics of a population in a suboptimal habitat. Breeding density was low on farmland compared with woodland. This in part may have been due to lack of suitable nesting cover. An experiment with artificial nests indicated that predation would be proportionately higher on farmland if nesting density was increased. Year-to-year variations in density across the whole study site paralleled the relative harshness of the preceding winter. Food supplementation prior to the breeding season had no effect on subsequent breeding density or clutch size. It is concluded that farmland is potentially a sub-optimal habitat if subject to different conditions of weather or breeding density than those observed during the three years of this study.


Rising inequality in the United States has raised concerns about potentially widening gaps in educational achievement by socio-economic status (SES). Using assessments from LTT-NAEP, Main-NAEP, TIMSS, and PISA that are psychometrically linked over time, we trace trends in achievement for U.S. student cohorts born between 1954 and 2001. Achievement gaps between the top and bottom quartiles of the SES distribution have been large and remarkably constant for a near half century. These unwavering gaps have not been offset by improved achievement levels, which have risen at age 14 but have remained unchanged at age 17 for the past quarter century.


Although many psychometric tests, like Raven's Progressive Matrices, are commonly evaluated according to total score, additional variables can lend insight into the underlying cognitive processes. We examine conceptual errors on the Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM) test. We present a complete classification of error types on the SPM using a two-kind coding scheme, yielding � 95% inter-rater reliability. We also examine how to extract error data from a computational model, and we present a method for measuring errors through systematic ablation to create a "population" of models whose performance can be examined as a group. We present a preliminary analysis of error patterns on the SPM from typically developing individuals, individuals diagnosed with autism, and a computational model called ASTI. We discuss what the error patterns suggest regarding cognition on the SPM and routes towards improving the ASTI model.


How can we resist the repugnant conclusion? James Griffin has suggested that part way through the sequence we may reach a world—let us call it "J"— in which the lives are lexically superior to those that follow. If it would be better to live a single life in J than through any number of lives in the next one ("K"), we may judge the smaller world preferable, as if aggregating the lives in the larger world intrapersonally. I argue that the mere addition paradox arises because adding new people with separate preferences renders such lexical rankings untenable. Whereas in comparing J and K we could legitimately infer that the former was lexically preferable, we cannot "suspend addition" when comparing J+ and K. Instead, for half of these worlds' populations, it will be preferable to move to K. When one ranking suspends addition and the other does not, the result is an intransitive value judgement: J < J+ < K < J, producing the mere addition paradox.


Most of the current intermodal traveller information applications still consider one-way journeys only. For the calculation of a roundtrip two simple one-way trips are taken into account. However, most of the journeys do not consist of simple one-way trips, as a traveller usually returns to the starting point (home, office for business trips, etc.). Also, arc cost – travel time in general – tend to be time dependent, which means that the cost of the optimum roundtrip is not necessarily the double of the cost of the optimum one-way trip. The diverse arc cost values can be based on dynamic and/or historic data. A lot of effort is spent in order to obtain and store this type of data, which is necessary for describing real-time traffic states and to make forecasts. So the next step is to make better use of this data by integrating them into the calculation of trips that take place in the future. A multimodal information service usually works as follows: The traveller indicates his starting point, his destination and the desired time of departure or arrival. The system then computes the optimum trips for private modes (car, bicycle, etc.) and public transport (all modes). It is up to the user to compare the different possibilities and to decide which one to take. Dynamic data are integrated where available. The possibility of switching between different transportation modes during the trip is rarely offered. The main reasons are the difference in the models (different graphic levels are used for different modes) and the different parameters for describing the arc cost for the different modes. Roundtrips can usually be computed for certain modes, especially for public transport, which relies on static timetable data. In this case, the intermodality is limited to some or several public transport modes of a certain region. More and more service providers offer the possibility to optimise a door-to-door trip, taking into account the time necessary to reach the first transport mode used, as well as the time to reach the destination from the last stop. This paper describes the importance of computing entire intermodal roundtrips rather than two one-way trips, as arc cost tend to vary depending on different parameters (time of the day, special events, etc.). Having more and more dynamic and historic data at hand, it should be used to the maximum possible, in order to optimise mobility habits. Computing intermodal roundtrips also means taking into account several constraints that may arise on the way, like the dependence on a certain mode or leaving behind a private vehicle at certain nodes of the network. The main constraints are pointed out, along with their importance for the calculation.


This study aims to evaluate the removal efficiency of microbial contaminants, including total cell counts, antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB), antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs, e.g. tetO, tetZ, sul1 and sul2) and integrase genes (e.g. intl1 and intl2), by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) operated on-site of two hospitals (i.e., SH WWTP and IH WWTP). Both SH and IH WWTPs utilize the conventional activated sludge process but differences in the removal efficiencies were observed. Over the 2 week sampling period, IH WWTP outperformed SH WWTP, and achieved an approximate 0.388 to 2.49-log log removal values (LRVs) for total cell counts compared to the 0.010 to 0.162-log removal in SH WWTP. Although ARB were present in the hospital influent, the treatment process of both hospitals effectively removed ARB from most of the effluent samples. In instances where ARB were recovered in the effluent, none of the viable isolates were identified to be opportunistic pathogenic species based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing. However, sul1 and intl1 genes remained detectable at up to 105 copies per mL or 8 × 10−1 copies per 16S rRNA gene in the treated effluent, with an LRV of less than 1.2. When the treated effluent is discharged from hospital WWTPs into the public sewer for further treatment as per requirement in many countries, the detected amount of ARGs and integrase genes in the hospital effluent can become a potential source of horizontal gene dissemination in the municipal WWTP. Proper on-site wastewater treatment and surveillance of the effluent quality for emerging contaminants are therefore highly recommended.


Attitude about extra-curricular activity is a student's respond to a stimulus, which was their extra-curricular. Their extra-curricular activity aimed to develop their personality into a health in physic and psychic student, belief to Almighty God, has responsibility and care to social environment, culture and the nature, Implementing attitude as good and responsible citizens through many positive activities under the school responsibility. There hoped by the extra-curricular activity, student's personality could be developed better, discipline, responsible, has ability to analyze and solve the problem,interacting with the environment and result to the change of positive behavior. The research aimed to find out the student's attitude to their extra-curricular. The research used descriptive method by quantitative approach. The population were 417 junior high school 18 malang students who following extra-curricular activity.While the samples consisted of 42 students. The sampling method used to took data was by used close questionaire with 18 items. The research was done in February 2008 to May 2008. From the research there could be found that the students have positive attitude to extra-curricular activity, it could be found from answers in questionaire. In supporting aspects, the attitude form
of students to extra-curricular showed the highest positive attitude in hobby and interest in cognitive component for 95 % and the highest negative attitude was the students attitude in hobbies and interests at conative component 52 %.


The aim of this paper is to (re)(e)value(ate) current micro- and macropolicies and politics that shape – and are shaped by – conceptualisations of and, in consequence, practices towards young children in a range of institutions/figurations. The 'geopolitical' location for our investigation is Europe, understood as conceptual space(s) as well as (geographical) territory. Whilst we begin by focusing attention on events within an English context, we nevertheless move beyond geographical boundaries. We argue that movements that are currently being undertaken in England are not individual activities. Rather, England is infected and affected by European and global histories, practices, policies, philosophies and epistemologies. We argue that it is the oscillations between different components within a broad European assemblage (human and nonhuman) that makes something happen. Subsequently, we detail and question whether 'happenings' that are occurring in England can be considered as possible creative openings where early childhood education/care could be reassembled 'differently'.


Employment E and pay rolls in those industries for which current data are available declined between the middle of December and the corresponding period of January. The reduction resulted mainly from the seasonal losses in nonmanufacturing industries. These data do not include the workers employed on C.W.A. projects. The number so employed averaged higher in January than in December. Available preliminary statistics for February indicate a gain in private employment and pay rolls as compared with January. The decline in factory employment during January was slight, and was in accord with the usual seasonal trend, terminating the greater-than-seasonal declines which characterized the final quarter of 1933. Factory pay rolls during the month receded by only four tenths of 1 percent which is considerably less than the average drop during this month for the past 10 years. In January, factory employment and pay rolls were each about 8 percent below the 1933 high reached in September. Compared with a year ago, employment and pay rolls were 21 percent and 35 percent higher, respectively. Among manufacturing industries, the transportation equipment group revealed a 17-percent gain in employment and a 21-percent rise in pay rolls, due entirely to increases of 22 percent and 27 percent, respectively, in the automobile industry. As a result of the marked improvement in the boot and shoe industry, the leather group reported a 5.1-percent increase in the number employed accompanied by a 10-percent increase in pay rolls in January as compared with December. Large seasonal variations characterized the employment and pay-roll changes in many of the nonmanufacturing industries. Employment in retail trade declined nearly 20 percent, substantially the same proportionate drop as occurred between the months of December and January a year ago. Seasonal declines of over 10 percent in employment also were reported in the quarrying and nonmetallic mining, canning and preserving, and building construction industries. Increased activity in anthracite mining brought about an 18-percent rise in employment and a 65-percent gain in pay rolls for the month. It was reported that during the third week in January over 60 millions of dollars were disbursed in wages in connection with the Civil Works program. The number employed for the same week was slightly over 4,000,000. As this amount was equivalent to approximately one half of the estimated weekly factory pay roll in January, its significance in terms of workers' income may be readily appreciated. The process of gradually decreasing the number employed on C.W.A. projects was begun around the middle of February and the program calls for more to be released each week. The 377,500 dropped as of March 2, reduced the total to 2,770,000, including 160,000 engaged on Federal projects and under the emergency education program. Employment increased from December to January in 10 of the 48 States, according to the data collected by the Department of Labor. Michigan reported the largest gain—an increase of 11 percent, due mostly to the greater activity in the automobile industry.


Purpose: This paper aims to investigate the human resource development (HRD) practices amongst migrant workers using a cross-national survey. The literature review has shown that there is a need to provide a comprehensive understanding of the significance of HRD in the hotel sector and its role in developing migrant workers skills. Moreover, hotels that have training and development opportunities tend to support their employees in training their people-to-people and other soft skills.

Design/methodology/approach: This study adopted a quantitative approach using a self-administered questionnaire, employing a purposive sampling strategy to target key participants (hotel managers/supervisor/owners) across Cyprus.

Findings: The findings show that most hotels only provide operational, informal level training to all their migrant workers. The key findings present a sector that currently does not plan for sustainable HRD practices and learning with casualisation being the dominant strategy to cope with changing demand for labour. Those few hotels that do have long-term HRD practices have seen an impact on their organisational performance as well as increased migrant workers skills.

Practical implications: In practice, Cypriot hotels need to focus their attention on their long-term strategic goals. The development of their migrant employees may help enhance organisational performance in the long-term. However, further research is needed to explore current perceptions amongst migrant workers and how they perceive their long-term role in the industry.

Originality/value: This paper contributes to the existing HRD literature since the training and development of migrant employees in Cypriot hotels have not been researched during the recession. HRD insights will enable policy makers and employers to improve current training infrastructure for migrant workers and add to the debate around the importance of HRD strategy in advancing organisational performance in such a transformational business environment.


Purpose

The paper aims to identify and address matching problems in leader development and to propose how these problems can be dealt with.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on previous research, traditional leadership development (LD) is criticized and alternative approaches are suggested.

Findings

This research identifies two major matching problems in traditional LD – between participant and development effort and between development effort and realities of managerial work. A context-sensitive and emergent view of LD is suggested to address these matching problems.

Practical implications

The paper illustrates the need of leader development that is addressing the complex nature of managerial work in a more holistic way and to help participants to understand how such complexities can be dealt with.

Originality/value

An alternative view of leader development is identified. It matches managers' diversities and the realities of managerial work better than traditional leader development does.


--Habitat manipulations were initiated on the Wick Brothers big Game Winter range in southern Wyoming to alter traditional movement patterns of Rocky Mountain Elk ( Cervus elaphus nelsonii ). Manipulations included spraying with 2-4-D and follow-up fertilization of the same plot in successive years with ammonium nitrate at the rate of 40 lbs. (18 kg.) free nitrogen per acre. Burning hay meadows and upland sagebrush sites and salting were used in combination with the other treatments. Elk distribution shifted to the treated plots in response to the increased quality and quantity of the grass production on these areas. Spring distribution of elk shifted to Department lands and away from private lands. This shift in spring elk distribution should augment efforts to enhance calving habitat and develop a migration corridor south of the unit through silvicultural treatments on adjacent National Forest land.


BACKGROUND: Emetic symptoms are frequent and undesirable perioperative events in patients undergoing caesarean delivery under spinal anaesthesia. Many drugs have been tried, with varying degrees of successes in preventing intraoperative nausea and vomiting. These symptoms are distressing to patients intraoperatively and in the postoperative period, hence prophylaxis is recommended.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study comparing the effectiveness of single dose intravenous cyclizine, metoclopramide, and placebo in preventing emetic symptoms among parturient undergoing caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia. Each of the 116 parturient of American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) I-II undergoing elective caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia was randomly allocated into three groups: 39 patients in group I, 39 patients in group II, and 38 patients in group III. Before establishing spinal anaesthesia, patients in group I were given 2 ml of 0.9% saline intravenously, patients in group II were given 10 mg of metoclopramide in 2 ml intravenously, while those in group III were given 50 mg of cyclizine diluted with water for injection to 2 ml and given intravenously. Patients were monitored and records of emetic symptoms, vital signs and side effects of drugs were documented. Neonatal APGAR scores were also recorded.
RESULTS: Emetic symptoms experienced intraoperatively were nausea, retching and vomiting. Nausea occurred in 14(35.9%) patients in group I, 6(15.4%) patients in group II and 1(2.6%) patient in group III, P = 0.001.  Retching occurred in 7(17.9%) patients in group I, 2(5.1%)  patients in group II and none in group III, with a P = 0.010. Vomiting occurred in 5(12.8%) patients in group I, 2(5.1%) patients in group II and none in group III, P = 0.059. 4(10.3%) patients had severe nausea in group I, 3(7.7%) patients in group II, and none in group III, P = 0.017. Use of rescue antiemetics was similarly less in group III, P = 0.006. Sedation was associated more with group III, P = 0.001, but no respiratory depression. Also newborn APGAR scores were similar, and no signs of depression recorded among the babies delivered by the patients in any of the groups.
CONCLUSION: Cyclizine is superior to metoclopramide in preventing nausea and vomiting in women undergoing caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia.


A noise pattern analysis is used to demonstrate how water quality events can be classified. The algorithm presented mimics a random walk process in order to measure the level and type of noise in the water quality data. The resulting curve is analyzed and four different cases are identified. i.e. sensor problem, water source change, operational change and contamination. For each problem, the algorithm identifies a different pattern. This pattern can be used later to reduce the level of false alarms in the monitoring system.


Wood products from Milletia grandis (E. Mey) skeels (umSimbithi), a prominent tree in the
coastal scarp forests ofPondoland, form an important economic base for the craft workers in
Urnzimvubu District ofthe Eastern Cape. The local carving industry draws considerable income
in a place where employment opportunities are scarce, poverty is rife and financial burden and
dependency is high. Despite the curio trade being perceived as important by the local
communities, little is known about this craft work industry or its impact on the forest especially
the sustainability of the wood resource base.
Resource availability and impacts of harvesting were assessed at Mount Thesiger Forest
Reserve (MTFR) through sampling plots and social surveys oflocal carvers and curio traders.
Stem size-class distributions ofstanding trees and stumps were used to investigate the present
quantity, past harvesting patterns and distribution ofM grandis within the forests. Line
transects sampling confirmed umSimbithi as a forest margin species penetrating to about 50
metres into the forest from the edge and its. current use was found to be unsustainable.
Current monitoring and management of most State forests in the Eastern Cape is inadequate,
and although a harvest ban has been served, it has only led to and encouraged poaching. Social
surveys indicated that the quality of monitoring and sustainability of wood stocks in the
Headmen forests appear better than in State forests and this raises hope for successful comanagement
structures in the area.
Craftwood production and derived income varied from one month to another depending on
wood availability, size and shape of stems, with straight stems being most preferred. MontWy
income per carver was estimated between R960 to RIIOO while the annual yield for the
estimated 100 carvers in the communities surrounding MTFR approximated RI.l million. It
was observed that higher sales could be obtained if (1) the amount of wood wasted during
harvests and carving could be minimised and (2) the craft products were marketed in the
lucrative up markets such as Johannesburg, Durban and Maseru.
Interviews with 30 carvers pointed to several problems most of them originating from the
stoppage of harvest permits following the ban on umSimbithi. Various recommendations
addressing carver's needs and promoting sustainable resource management are proposed.
These include (1) establishing an appropriate land tenure system, (2) reviewing the permit
system, (3) strengthening the institutional capacity ofthe Forest Department and (4) enhancing
efforts on community forest outreach through the extension system. Above all, and to achieve
sustainable forest management in Pondoland, tenurial rights needs to be addressed and the
options of co-management, community management and privatisation are discussed. It was
noted that for sustainable development to be realised in Pondoland, co-management ofnatural
resources is important and this must be supported by introduction ofother economic activities
that would alleviate pressure off…


In the Software Engineering (SE) research field, several efforts are underway aimed at developing appropriate meta-models for SE methodologies. Meta-models are meant to check and verify both the software development process and the completeness and expressiveness of methodologies. In this context, in order to provide a uniform way to represent, compare and reuse methodologies, Software Process Engineering Meta-model (SPEM) -- an OMG object-oriented standard -- is a natural candidate.
 In order to put the SPEM meta-modelling power to test, and emphasise its benefits and limitations, in this paper we apply SPEM to a more articulated context than the object-oriented one where it was initially conceived -- that is, Agent-Oriented Software Engineering (AOSE) methodologies. In particular, we take the SODA methodology as a significant case study in order to assess strengths and limitations of SPEM, given the peculiar SODA focus on the modelling and engineering of (i) social issues and (ii) application environment -- essential aspects in the engineering of complex software systems.


Before the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) of 2003, it was not clear the extent to which state departments of corrections (DOCs) were addressing sexual violence in systematic ways. Little information existed about what strategies were being put into practice in prison systems across the country. PREA has changed the way DOCs are addressing prison sexual violence (PSV). The purpose of the current project was to provide a national snapshot of DOC initiatives to address PSV, as well as to identify specific practices that seemed to be, in the absence of formal evaluations, particularly promising or innovative in nature. Practices were identified related to policy development, prevention, investigation and prosecution, victim services, staff training, documenting incidents, and funding.


From the Publisher:
With this text, you gain an understanding of the fundamental concepts of algorithms, the very heart of computer science. It introduces the basic data structures and programming techniques often used in efficient algorithms. Covers use of lists, push-down stacks, queues, trees, and graphs. Later chapters go into sorting, searching and graphing algorithms, the string-matching algorithms, and the Schonhage-Strassen integer-multiplication algorithm. Provides numerous graded exercises at the end of each chapter.

0201000296B04062001


This thesis addresses the problem of information hiding in low dimensional digital data focussing on issues of privacy and security in Electronic Patient Health Records (EPHRs). The thesis proposes a new security protocol based on data hiding techniques for EPHRs. This thesis contends that embedding of sensitive patient information inside the EPHR is the most appropriate solution currently available to resolve the issues of security in EPHRs. Watermarking techniques are applied to one-dimensional time series data such as the electroencephalogram (EEG) to show that they add a level of confidence (in terms of privacy and security) in an individual's diverse bio-profile (the digital fingerprint of an individual's medical history), ensure belief that the data being analysed does indeed belong to the correct person, and also that it is not being accessed by unauthorised personnel. Embedding information inside single channel biomedical time series data is more difficult than the standard application for images due to the reduced redundancy. A data hiding approach which has an in built capability to protect against illegal data snooping is developed. The capability of this secure method is enhanced by embedding not just a single message but multiple messages into an example one-dimensional EEG signal. Embedding multiple messages of similar characteristics, for example identities of clinicians accessing the medical record helps in creating a log of access while embedding multiple messages of dissimilar characteristics into an EPHR enhances confidence in the use of the EPHR. The novel method of embedding multiple messages of both similar and dissimilar characteristics into a single channel EEG demonstrated in this thesis shows how this embedding of data boosts the implementation and use of the EPHR securely.


In the eighteenth century, educational opportunities for women existed largely in
separate single-sex institutions especially in the South. In 1884, Mississippi established
the first all-female public university in the country, the Industrial Institute and College
(now Mississippi University for Women). Other states across the South, such as North
Carolina and Georgia, soon created similar schools. By the 1970s, however, all of the
single-sex public colleges for women had adopted coeducation except for Mississippi
University for Women (MUW). In 1980, MUW found itself at the center of a legal battle
over single-sex admission policies when Joe Hogan, a male nurse, sued the public
institution. The case revealed a splintering between two distinct factions, traditionalists
who wished to maintain the cultural status quo and social reformers who pushed for
transformations. The splintering that occurred at MUW is a microcosm of the larger
societal shift that occurred between ideological forces over the transformation from
single-sex education to coeducation across the South.


Pollen productivity estimates of individual plant taxa are necessary when determining changes of vegetation cover during the Holocene. To date, studies describing this parameter in lowland temperate Europe have been carried out in cultural landscapes showing low forest cover and dominated by human activities. However, these may be of limited use when applied to reconstruct past land cover, for instance, from pre-agricultural landscapes. The aim of this paper is to ascertain whether pollen productivity from the closed-canopy old-growth forest in the Białowieża National Park, Poland, where human impact has been minimal for nearly a century, is different from that calculated in much more open landscapes. We ask: how much does forest antiquity and structure influence the amount of pollen released from particular taxa? We implemented maximum likelihood estimation of relative pollen productivity for seven tree species and for Poaceae using 18 modern pollen assemblages and distance-weighted plant abundances. Our results demonstrate that the ratio of pollen productivity between high producers (Pinus sylvestris and Quercus robur) and low producers (Poaceae, Corylus avellana) is on an average six times greater in Białowieża than across other European cultural landscapes. Pollen from forest Poaceae and C. avellana is six times more under-represented in old-growth forest than hitherto estimated from cultural landscapes. This finding reinforces the idea that pollen productivity can vary in response to changes in the prevailing environmental settings and we present for the first time a quantification of this variability, likely induced by differences in light availability.


Following the trails of Hawai'i's snails to explore the simultaneously biological and cultural significance of extinction. In this time of extinctions, the humble snail rarely gets a mention. And yet snails are disappearing faster than any other species. In A World in a Shell, Thom van Dooren offers a collection of snail stories from Hawai'i—once home to more than 750 species of land snails, almost two-thirds of which are now gone. Following snail trails through forests, laboratories, museums, and even a military training facility, and meeting with scientists and Native Hawaiians, van Dooren explores ongoing processes of ecological and cultural loss as they are woven through with possibilities for hope, care, mourning, and resilience.
 Van Dooren recounts the fascinating history of snail decline in the Hawaiian Islands: from deforestation for agriculture, timber, and more, through the nineteenth century shell collecting mania of missionary settlers, and on to the contemporary impacts of introduced predators. Along the way he asks how both snail loss and conservation efforts have been tangled up with larger processes of colonization, militarization, and globalization. These snail stories provide a potent window into ongoing global process of environmental and cultural change, including the largely unnoticed disappearance of countless snails, insects, and other less charismatic species. Ultimately, van Dooren seeks to cultivate a sense of wonder and appreciation for our damaged planet, revealing the world of possibilities and relationships that lies coiled within a snail's shell.


The benefits of working in a research group are clear: students develop domain expertise, gain an understanding and appreciation of the research process and its practice, and acquire team, communication, problem‐solving, and higher‐level thinking skills. Students with this experience are better equipped to make informed judgements about technical matters and to communicate and work in teams to solve complex problems. Clearly, this type of research experience must be made available to a broader population. This paper discusses how the Systems and Software Engineering Affinity Research Group model provides a socialization mechanism and infrastructure that supports the development and management of large research groups that engage undergraduate and graduate students, who have a wide range of skill levels and experiences, in research and projects. This non‐hierarchical model, which is based on the cooperative paradigm, integrates students into small research groups and an encompassing large research group, and uses structured activities to develop their research, technical, communication, and group skills.


PURPOSE
In scanning laser polarimetry with variable corneal compensation (SLP-VCC), the macula is used as an intraocular polarimeter to calculate and neutralize corneal birefringence based on an intact Henle's layer. The purpose of this investigation was to validate this strategy in eyes with macular structural disease.

METHODS
A nerve fiber analyzer was modified to enable the measurement of corneal polarization axis and magnitude so that compensation for corneal birefringence was eye specific. Normal subjects and patients with a variety of pathologic macular conditions underwent complete ocular examination, SLP-VCC, and direct measurement of the corneal polarization axis (CPA), with a slit-lamp-mounted corneal polarimeter. Macular birefringence patterns were classified as well defined, weak, or indeterminate bow ties. A new "screen" method is described that determines the anterior segment birefringence without relying on the presence of macular bow-tie patterns.

RESULTS
Forty-seven eyes (20 normal, 27 with maculopathy) of 47 patients (mean age, 59.0 +/- 19.0 years; range, 24-88) were enrolled. The correlation between CPA measured with corneal polarimetry (CPA by P(IV) [fourth Purkinje image]) and SLP-VCC was less in eyes with macular disease (R(2) = 0.22, P = 0.024) compared with normal eyes (R(2) = 0.72, P < 0.0001). Eyes with macular disease had significantly (P = 0.007) more indeterminate macular bow ties (8/27; 29%) than did normal eyes (0/20). The magnitude of difference between CPA by P(IV) and CPA by SLP-VCC was significantly (P = 0.0007) greater in eyes with indeterminate bow-tie patterns than in weak and well-defined patterns. Although no relationship was observed between CPA and 12 retardation parameters obtained with SLP-VCC in normal eyes (P > 0.05), eyes with macular disease showed a significant association between CPA and average thickness (R(2) = 0.27, P = 0.005), ellipse average (R(2) = 0.24, P = 0.0085), superior average (R(2) = 0.24, P = 0.009), inferior average (R(2) = 0.28, P = 0.004), and superior integral (R(2) = 0.37, P = 0.0008), suggesting incomplete corneal compensation. Greater correlation between CPA by P(IV) and CPA derived by SLP-VCC was found by using the screen method (R(2) = 0.83, P < 0.0001) compared with the bow-tie method (R(2) = 0.22, P = 0.024) in eyes with maculopathy.

CONCLUSIONS
Macular strategies for neutralization of corneal birefringence using SLP-VCC can fail if Henle's layer is disrupted by macular disease. The screen method provides a more robust measure of the anterior segment birefringence in some eyes with macular disease.


This study examined the criterion validity of the Behavior Rating Inventory for Executive Functioning (BRIEF; Gioia Isquith Guy & Kenworthy 2000) and the Behavior Assessment System for Children 2nd Edition (BASC-2; Reynold & Kamphaus 2004) for children and adolescents with sickle cell disease (SCD) in a clinically referred pediatric SCD population. It was predicted that criterion validity would be supported for the BRIEF and BASC-2 as evidenced by the participants from the clinically referred sample having elevated levels of executive dysfunction on the BRIEF's Behavior Regulation Index and Metacognitive Index as compared to the normative sample of the BRIEF and elevated levels of behavioral and emotional problems and lowered adaptive functioning on the BASC-2's internalizing externalizing and adaptive domains as compared to the normative sample of the BASC-2. It was also predicted that criterion validity would be supported for the BRIEF and BASC-2 as evidenced by the participants from the clinically referred sample with SCD and stroke evidencing more executive dysfunction and behavioral problems as compared to those with SCD and without stroke. Comparisons of mean scores were made between pediatric SCD patients and the criterion T-score of 50 and between pediatric SCD patients with and without stroke. The percentage of participants' ratings in the at-risk and clinical ranges on the BRIEF and BASC-2 were compared to 16% which is the standard percentage of the normative sample within these classifications and they were also compared to the percentage of participants with SCD and without stroke. Results from t-test analyses indicated that the mean of the participants' T-scores on the BRI and MI of the BRIEF and externalizing internalizing and adaptive scales BASC-2 were significantly different than the criterion T-score of 50 in every comparison. No significant differences were found with regards to stroke status. Results from chi-square analyses indicated a higher percent of participants with SCD fell in the at-risk and clinical ranges on the BRIEF and BASC-2 when compared to 16% in every comparison but not in regards to stroke status. These results suggest that the BRIEF and BASC-2 can detect deficits in executive functioning and behavior among children and adolescents with sickle cell disease but more research is needed to determine if these measures can detect differences between participants with SCD with and without stroke.


Comparative Study of a Drug Release from a Textile to Skin
Objective
The achievement of a therapeutic dose of the hydrocortisone acetate (HCr) for coetaneous affections by using: i) a cyclodextrine derivative and ii) a hydrogel, in the systems fixing the drug on a textile material and then releases it in vitro towards the dermis under the action of a perspiration kit.
Methods
The formation of a temporary deposit of HCr on a cotton knitted fabric in the variants: 1) covalent grafting with monochloro triazinyl-beta-cyclodextrine (MCT-β-CD) by complexation in the hydrophobic cavity of the CD; 2) through the inclusion of Na2SO4 in ionic crosslinked chitosan-based hydrogel. Upon the release of HCr in vitro, a perspiration kit has been used.
Results
The two medicine release systems can release the therapeutic dose for coetaneous disorders.
Conclusion
The comparison of the two systems improves the understanding of the release mechanisms which may provide useful insights when designing medical textiles.


This paper postulates the existence of a growth imperative in capitalist economies. The argument is based on a simple circular flow model of a pure credit economy, where production takes time. In this economy, positive growth rates are necessary in the long run in order to enable firms to make profits in the aggregate. If the growth rate falls below a certain positive threshold level, firms will make losses. Under these circumstances, they will go out of business, which moves the whole economy into a downward spiral. According to the model presented, capitalist economies can either grow (at a sufficiently high rate) or shrink if the growth rate falls below the positive threshold level. Therefore, a zero growth economy is not feasible in the long run.


Police vehicles burn a great deal of fuel while patrolling continuously. Various approaches have been proven to significantly reduce the amount of fuel used and its cost. Hybrid vehicles typically get two-three times higher mileage per gallon than conventional vehicles and have proven viable for policing, in many cities, including New York. Computers in vehicles that reduce trips back to stations, fuel-saving driving techniques (such as reducing idling), good vehicle maintenance (such as maintaining proper tire pressures), use of on-line reporting and other strategies such as community policing that require fewer vehicle trips also can reduce fuel consumption.


How does online social networking and 'screen-based media' influence young people's wellbeing, and how should policymakers respond? Research from the University of Essex found a range of negative relationships between adolescent wellbeing and technology. The analysis, using data from Understanding Society (USoc), found associations between usage of screen-based media (SBM), online social networking sites (SNS) and various measures of wellbeing and socio-emotional difficulties. In this discussion paper, the Strategic Society Centre responds to the research, exploring its implications for public health and evaluating a range of potential policy responses. Screened Out recommends the government to: Issue national guidelines for volume of SBM and SNS usage among young people Empower young people through public health campaigns and compulsory school programmes by educating them about how SBM and SNS usage may affect their wellbeing Compel technology and Internet companies to acknowledge their responsibilities, engage with the risks posed to young people's wellbeing and, where necessary, re-design hardware and online experiences to 'nudge' young people's behaviour Ensure more research into the link between wellbeing, SNS and SBM


Background: Pricing strategies are mentioned frequently as a potentially effective tool to stimulate healthy eating, mainly for consumers with a low socio-economic status. Still, it is not known how these consumers perceive pricing strategies, which pricing strategies are favoured and what contextual factors are important in achieving the anticipated effects. Methods: We conducted seven focus groups among 59 residents of deprived neighbourhoods in two large Dutch cities. The focus group topics were based on insights from Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations Theory and consisted of four parts: 1) discussion on factors in food selection; 2) attitudes and perceptions towards food prices; 3) thinking up pricing strategies; 4) attitudes and perceptions regarding nine pricing strategies that were nominated by experts in a former Delphi Study. Analyses were conducted with Atlas.ti 5.2 computer software, using the framework approach. Results: Qualitative analyses revealed that this group of consumers consider price to be a core factor in food choice and that they experience financial barriers against buying certain foods. Price was also experienced as a proficient tool to stimulate healthier food choices. Yet, consumers indicated that significant effects could only be achieved by combining price with information and promotion techniques. In general, pricing strategies focusing on encouraging healthy eating were valued to be more helpful than pricing strategies which focused on discouraging unhealthy eating. Suggested high reward strategies were: reducing the price of healthier options of comparable products (e.g., whole meal bread) compared to unhealthier options (e.g., white bread); providing a healthy food discount card for low-income groups; and combining price discounts on healthier foods with other marketing techniques such as displaying cheap and healthy foods at the cash desk. Conclusion: This focus group study provides important new insights regarding the use of pricing strategies to stimulate healthy eating. The observed perceptions and attitudes of residents of deprived neighbourhoods can be integrated into future experimental studies and be used to reveal if and how pricing strategies are effective in stimulating healthy eating. on the effect of price incentives on food purchasing behaviour in a real-life setting. This study found significant effects of discounts on the


A novel technique for studying photon propagation in scattering media is proposed and demonstrated, as is believed, for the first time. Photons propagating through the medium, from a frequency-ramped single-mode diode laser, meet a reference beam from the same source, at a common detector, and beat frequencies corresponding to various temporal delays are observed by heterodyne techniques. Fourier transformation directly yields the temporal dispersion curve. Proof-of-principle experiments on polystyrene foam and a tissue phantom suggest, that the new method, when fully developed, may favorably compete with the more complex time-correlated single-photon counting (TCSPC) and the phase-shift methods, now much employed.


People tend to judge what is typical as also good and appropriate—as what ought to be. What accounts for the prevalence of these judgments, given that their validity is at best uncertain? We hypothesized that the tendency to reason from "is" to "ought" is due in part to a systematic bias in people's (nonmoral) explanations, whereby regularities (e.g., giving roses on Valentine's Day) are explained predominantly via inherent or intrinsic facts (e.g., roses are beautiful). In turn, these inherence-biased explanations lead to value-laden downstream conclusions (e.g., it is good to give roses). Consistent with this proposal, results from five studies (N = 629 children and adults) suggested that, from an early age, the bias toward inherence in explanations fosters inferences that imbue observed reality with value. Given that explanations fundamentally determine how people understand the world, the bias toward inherence in these judgments is likely to exert substantial influence over sociomoral understanding.


Variational inequalities in general and saddle point problems in particular are increasingly relevant in machine learning applications, including adversarial learning, GANs, transport and robust optimization. With increasing data and problem sizes necessary to train high performing models across various applications, we need to rely on parallel and distributed computing. However, in distributed training, communication among the compute nodes is a key bottleneck during training, and this problem is exacerbated for high dimensional and over-parameterized models. Due to these considerations, it is important to equip existing methods with strategies that would allow to reduce the volume of transmitted information during training while obtaining a model of comparable quality. In this paper, we present the first theoretically grounded distributed methods for solving variational inequalities and saddle point problems using compressed communication: MASHA1 and MASHA2. Our theory and methods allow for the use of both unbiased (such as Rand$k$; MASHA1) and contractive (such as Top$k$; MASHA2) compressors. New algorithms support bidirectional compressions, and also can be modified for stochastic setting with batches and for federated learning with partial participation of clients. We empirically validated our conclusions using two experimental setups: a standard bilinear min-max problem, and large-scale distributed adversarial training of transformers.


The main technical problem with background independent approaches to quantum gravity is inapplicability of standard quantum field theory methods. New methods are needed which would be adapted to the basic principles of General Relativity. Topological field theory is a model which provides natural tools for background independent quantum gravity. It is exactly soluble and, at the same time, diffeomorphism invariant. Applications of topological field theory to quantum gravity include description of boundary states of quantum General Relativity, formulation of quantum gravity as a constrained topological field theory, and a new perturbation theory which uses topological field theory as a starting point. The later is the central theme of the thesis. Unlike the traditional perturbation theory it does not require splitting metric into a background and fluctuations, it is exactly diffeomorphism invariant order by order, and the coupling constant of this theory is dimensionless. We describe the basic ideas and techniques of this perturbation theory as well as inclusion of matter particles, boundary states, and other necessary tools for studying scattering problem in background independent quantum gravity.


The growing amount and environmental impact of offshore oily wastewater especially offshore produced water (OPW) have drawn significant attention in recent years. The petroleum hydrocarbons in wastewater can have severe negative effects in a long term on coastal and marine ecosystems if without sufficient treatment before discharge. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as a representative of dissolved chemical compounds or environmental pollutants in oily wastewater have been a major issue of marine environments due to their carcinogenic or mutagenic, toxic, persistent and bio-accumulative properties. To reduce the negative impact of produced water to the marine ecosystem, it is required to remove all toxicants especially PAHs before discharge. Various challenges have been identified in implementing conventional technologies (e.g., physical separation, chemical oxidation and biological remediation) for treating the dissolved organic pollutants (e.g., PAHs). Therefore, the research and development of more effective technologies to address these concerns are much desired. Photocatalysis generates powerful oxidative radicals which can rapidly mineralize organics especially aromatic compounds, offering a great potential use in removing PAHs from oily wastewater. However, the photocatalytic degradation of organics can be dramatically inhibited by the complex matrix of OPW. Limited in-depth studies were reported on the behaviors and interactions of different components in produced water during photocatalysis. The mechanisms of the interferences are of utmost importance to the development of highly efficiency treatment technologies. The generation of intermediates caused by the complex matrix and inhibited treatment process could further lead to the increase in the toxicity of treated effluent to the marine ecosystem, and consequently reduce its potential in natural attenuation. In addressing these challenges and fulfill the knowledge gaps, this research is focused on the evaluation of the key factors and the mechanisms of OPW matrix in photocatalysis, and the development of enhanced photocatalytic oxidation processes to aid the OPW treatment, thus can achieve both high efficiency in removal of PAHs, and low toxicity and high biodegradability of the effluent.
The matrix effect was first investigated in a suspensive photocatalytic oxidation system, in which the synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles were used. It is indicated that the degradation of PAHs was inhibited by the impurities in OPW matrix in many ways: the alkaline-earth cations caused the flocculation of the particle; the insoluble particulate matters competed with PAHs in the adsorption on TiO2; the competition and the fouling effect of other dissolved organic matters were deteriorating the process.
To enhance the treatment process, immobilized TiO2 was used instead and it was compared with the TiO2 nano-particles. Improvements were found in both naphthalene adsorption and degradation in the immobilized photocatalytic oxidation system, indicating immobilized TiO2 was more efficient and durable than TiO2 nanoparticles in oily wastewater treatment. The competition of hydrocarbons especially phenols played a key role in the degradation of PAHs. The fouling on the catalyst surface was verified by the scaling of alkaline-earth metals and the deposition of organic matters.
Further improvement was aimed at developing a novel UV-light-emitted diode (UV-LED)/TiO2 nanotube array (TNA)/ozonation process for treating OPW. The involvement of ozone was to reduce the competition of other organics and enhance the degradation efficiency. The TNA with hollow 1-D tubular nano-structures was applied because of the combined advantage of nano-particle and immobilization, as well as high quantum yield. UV-LED has the advantage of high energy efficiency and long-life time. In the integrated system, the removal of PAHs can be achieved within 30-min treatment with the half-lives reduced to less than 10 mins. Factorial analysis demonstrates that the best dose of TNA is 0.2 g/L. Light intensity affects the generation of iodine radicals, which is a strong scavenger of ozone thus reduces the efficiency of PAHs removal. Ozone dose is a dominated factor that promotes the degradation. Further results indicate that the degradation of phenols and PAHs with higher solubility favors to undergo to ozone-inducted oxidation, while PAHs with lower solubility are more likely oxidized on the catalyst surface.
The toxicity and biodegradability of OPW treated by photocatalytic oxidation were investigated during and after the treatment. Studies on the intermediates formed during the photocatalytic ozonation treatment in the presence of halogen ions reveal the mechanism and various reaction pathways of aromatic compounds. Iodization and bromination were the dominant interfering reactions in sequential stages. Two multivariable regression models were developed to quantify the contributions of key toxicants (e.g., total PAHs, total phenols, dibromo-pentane and bromoform) to the acute toxicity of OPW during the treatment processes. It was observed that by removing the total PAHs and total phenols, the acute toxicity was increased from 3% to 57%, and the biodegradability (BOD₂₈/COD ratio) was doubled more than 80% by the integrated UV-LED/TNA/ozonation process. Further, the biodegradation rate of bromoform was much faster than those of phenols, indicating that the proposed technology features high efficiency and has low impact on marine environment.
In this research, I have investigated the matrix effect of OPW on photocatalysis and the impacts to the suspended and immobilized TiO₂. A novel integrated UV-LED/TNA/ozonation process was developed to treat OPW. The efficiency of the process, the effects of operational parameters, the intermediates and degradation pathways, and their contribution to the acute toxicity and biodegradability of treated effluent were investigated.
The scientific contributions of the research are: 1) revealing and summarizing the key mechanisms of OPW matrix and their key effects on photocatalysis, 2) understanding the interactions of OPW composition with catalyst surface, 3) fulfilling the knowledge gaps on the removal of PAHs from OPW by the UV-A (365 nm) photocatalytic ozonation process, including the interactive mechanisms of the adsorption and photocatalytic oxidation, the behaviors of halogenic ions, and the effects of the operational factors, 4) proposing the altered photodegradation pathways of aromatic organic matter in the presence of halogen ions, and 5) proposing toxicity contribution models targeted on the most toxic compounds in OPW with/without photocatalytic ozonation.
The findings of this thesis work also help 1) develop a better strategy to countermeasure the difficulties in the application of photocatalytic oxidation for treating OPW, 2) develop an advanced alternative option for the OPW management, and 3) monitor the composition and toxicity changes during the process and hence the production of by-products in the OPW treatment practice.


Lead-halide perovskites are promising materials for opto-electronic applications. Recent reports indicated that their mechanical and electronic properties are strongly affected by the lattice vibrations. Herein we report far-infrared spectroscopy measurements of CH3NH3Pb(I/Br/Cl)3 thin films and single crystals at room temperature and a detailed quantitative analysis of the spectra. We find strong broadening and anharmonicity of the lattice vibrations for all three halide perovskites, which indicates dynamic disorder of the lead-halide cage at room temperature. We determine the frequencies of the transversal and longitudinal optical phonons, and use them to calculate, via appropriate models, the static dielectric constants, polaron masses, electron–phonon coupling constants, and upper limits for the phonon-scattering limited charge carrier mobilities. Within the limitations of the model used, we can place an upper limit of 200 cm2 V−1 s−1 for the room temperature charge carrier mobility in MAPbI3 single crystals. Our findings are important for the basic understanding of charge transport processes and mechanical properties in metal halide perovskites.


This book offers the first sustained attempt to read the Gospel of Mark both as an ancient biography and as a form of ancient rhetoric. Ben Witherington applies to Mark the socio-rhetorical approach for which he is well known, opening a fresh new perspective on the earliest Gospel. Written when the fledging Christian faith was experiencing a major crisis during the Jewish war, Mark provides us with the first window on how the life and teachings of Jesus were presented to a largely non-Jewish audience. According to Witherington, the structure of Mark demonstrates that this Gospel is biographically focused on the identity of Jesus and the importance of knowing who he is--the Christ, the Son of God. This finding reveals that Christology stood at the heart of the earliest Christians' faith. It also shows how important it was to these earliest Christians to persuade others about the nature of Jesus, both as a historical figure and as the Savior of the world.