SUMMARY: A latent, non-specific phosphatase of Hartmannella castellanii with an optimum pH of 4·0 has been investigated. The latency could be released in cell-free homogenates by treatment with Triton x 100, freezing and thawing, refrigeration or carbon tetrachloride. It seems likely that this enzyme is attached to a sub-cellular organelle as it was largely sedimentable when homogenates were prepared in media containing sucrose.
During encystation of the amoebae under controlled conditions there was no appreciable change in the levels of total phosphatase activity measured in frozen-thawed extracts, but there were quite large increases in free activities of fresh, unfrozen preparations. Inhibitors and promoters of encystation were also found to affect the levels of phosphatase activity in the amoebae but did not affect its sedimentability which persisted throughout the initial degradative phase of encystment.
Incubation of homogenates of Hartmannella decreased the latency of the acid phosphatase but this activation could be modified by substances which are known to affect the encystation responses of the amoebae.
It is concluded that the degradative phase of encystation is due to the activation of hydrolytic enzymes within sedimentable compartments of the amoebae and is not the result of hydrolases being released from these compartments. It seems likely that agents which are capable of promoting encystation may do so by inducing activation of lysosomal enzymes.


 Abstract—Using the statistics from General Statistical Office, the paper will present the findings of birth rate and the proportion of Vietnamese women having a third child in the period 1999 - 2009. The birth rate has substantially declined (from 2.33 children in 1999 to 2.03 children in 2009) and reached the sub-replacement fertility rate over the past years. The fertility rate in rural areas decreases faster than in urban one, however it is still higher (1.81 children in urban versus 2.14 children in rural in 2009). The Central Highlands has the highest fertility rate in the country (2.65 children in 2009), and Mekong River Delta has the lowest rate (1.84 children in 2009). In recent years, the fertility rate of ethnic minorities is not a very big difference compared with that of Kinh group, apart from the excessively higher fertility rate of H'Mong women. Similarly, there only exists a slight difference in the fertility rate of different religious groups. Women's education level has an obvious impact on the fertility rate. The higher their education level is, the lower the fertility rate is and vice versa. Women with high school graduation had the lowest of fertility rate (1.64 children), whereas the highest (2.65 children) was of illiterate women. Fertility rate is also directly proportional to the rate of using contraceptive methods. The more couples use contraceptive methods, the lower the fertility rate becomes. In terms of age specific fertility rate, it can be clearly recognized that Vietnam's fertility model has continued transforming from "early" fertility to "late" fertility. During the last years, Vietnam has tried their best to encourage families to stop giving birth to a third child. We have obtained some certain success such as awarded by the United Nations for the fast decline of population development rate in 1999, however there still exists the problem of couple giving birth to a third child, especially in some geographic regions: Northern Midlands and Mountainous (Northeast and Northwest), and the Central Highlands, this rate tends to increase.


Purpose There's no consensus about what defines a conversion for laparoscopic-assisted colorectal resection (LACR). This study's goal was to assess the utility of a strict incision length (IL) definition of conversion (incision > 7 cm) and compare it with results obtained when the surgeon determined (SD) if a LACR had been successfully completed. Methods. The demographic and perioperative data for 580 elective LACRs were reviewed. The short-term outcomes for each conversion definition were determined and compared. Results. Conversion rates were 22% using the IL definition and 16% via the SD method. Both methods detected significant differences between completed and converted groups regarding the following: incision size, hospital stay, time to flatus, bowel movement, and regular diet as well as rate of wound infection and ileus. The IL method alone detected significant differences in the rate of pulmonary complications and BMI between the completed and converted groups. Conclusions . The 2 methods yielded similar results for most parameters. The IL method better separated the patients in regard to 2 parameters. This method is objective and easy to apply; however, it may discriminate against obese patients whose extraction incisions are often longer. A conversion definition that considers BMI and IL is needed.


Comparative data are presented on feeding, growth, respiration, mortality, adult emer- gence and fecundity, egg development, and calorimetry for Ephemerella subvaria, E. dorothea, E. verisimilis, E. funeralis, E. serrata, and E. deficiens in White Clay Creek (WCC), Pennsylvania, USA. All species are univoltine in WCC. The larvae of most species hatch from eggs in late summer- early fall and complete their growth by the following spring or early summer. The magnitude and rate of larval growth for each species appears to be affected largely by seasonal variation in both stream temperature and food quality. Net growth efficiencies (NGE) tend to be positively correlated with larval size for most species. NGE ranged from 3.5 to 81.6% for Ephemerella species. The timing of adult emergence and the size and fecundity of adults appears to be determined largely by the magnitude and pattern of temperatures that are experienced during the larval growth period. An hypothesis is presented to explain the interaction of temperature, insect developmental processes, and physiology in determining both the timing of adult emergence and the resultant size and fecundity of individuals. Empirical data are presented to support the hypothesis. Quantitative data concerning seasonal variation of larval densities are given for all species except E. funeralis. Results indicate that the remaining five species all coexist in riffle habitat in WCC (as opposed to pool habitat). There is also minimal overlap in the relative abundance of consubgeneric species. It is suggested that competition between pairs of consubgeneric species may be reduced somewhat by having the relative abundance and body size, as well as resource requirements (i.e., biomass production), of each pair segregated temporally.


Spine care has come under increased scrutiny due to its substantial contribution to our unfavorable healthcare cost development. This has brought a growing awareness to the question of the relationship of the costs relative to benefits derived from spine interventions. Undoubtedly, this is probably the most pressing "hot button" topic in spine surgery around the world. While there is a general consensus that the current healthcare cost trajectories are unsustainable for just about any of the global economies, the specific methods for the calculation of value of spine care is less than straightforward as valid measurements for outcomes are just beginning to become more well defined, and calculations of cost in health remain surprisingly difficult to establish—especially when the impact of observation time frames is becoming increasingly apparent.1

In this issue of Evidence-Based Spine-Care Journal (EBSJ), our readership will find several articles that address the issue of value in spine care directly or indirectly. For instance, the impact of potentially unnecessary studies and surgical techniques (magnetic resonance imaging in adolescents and electrical stimulation to enhance spinal fusions) and a critical reflection on the safety of performing spine surgery in an outpatient setting are examples of opportunities to achieve meaningful cost savings by being more selective in our application of resources. Specifically, outpatient spine surgery performed in specialized ambulatory surgery centers has become an increasingly appealing choice in many countries for certain spine procedures in an effort to minimize the major cost factor in spine-care delivery hospitals.2

As we are looking for ways to measure outcomes, the frequently vague window of follow-up is becoming an increasingly relevant concern. In the study by Aichmair et al,3 attempts were made to reconnect with discectomy patients up to 10 years later. Despite some methodological limitations of achieving sizeable follow-up numbers in one of the most diverse metropolitan areas in the world—New York—with its notorious horizontal migration patterns, one of the cardinal insights of this study underscores the importance of defining follow-up parameters relative to outcomes assessments. Finally, a critical "Science in Spine" article points out the limitations and potential of "big data" mined from increasingly readily available administrative databases. These types of databases have recently gained popularity for value-related studies on spine surgery. It is important to realize what information can be gleaned from these types of investigations and where their shortcomings lie.

Staying with the theme of "value in spine care," the EBSJ readership might find interest in a prospectively randomized study that looked at 400 patients treated with epidural injections with and without steroids for lumbar spinal stenosis. In what is destined to become a hotly debated future landmark study, the widespread use of epidural steroid injections may very well be called in question as the study group who received steroids and the control group who received lidocaine alone showed no differences by 6 weeks, with higher complications reported for the technically more challenging transforaminal injections compared with interlaminar injections.4 Compared with surgery, nonoperative modalities represent a far larger component of costs in spine care. The impact of this study on reimbursement and ultimately utilization of epidural steroid injections will be interesting to see in years to come.

Finally, EBSJ would like to point its readership to the Fall 2014 Spine focus issue, created by members of AOSpine North America. The focus is on "Value-Based Health Care," and it will hopefully contribute to an enhanced understanding of this truly "hot-button" topic to spine surgeons around the world.


Consider the dual pressures toward a more tightly integrated workstation window system: 1) the need to eeciently handle high bandwidth services such as video, audio, and three-dimensional graphics; and 2) the desire to achieve the under-realized potential for local window system performance in X11. This paper proposes a new window system architecture called D11 that seeks higher performance while preserving compatibility with the industry-standard X11 window system. D11 reinvents the X11 client/server architecture using a new operating system facility similar in concept to the Unix kernel's traditional implementation but designed for user-level execution. This new architecture allows local D11 programs to execute within the D11 window system kernel without compromising the window system's integrity. This scheme minimizes context switching, eliminates protocol packing and unpacking, and greatly reduces data copying. D11 programs fall back to the X11 protocol when running remote or connecting to an X11 server. A special D11 program acts as an X11 protocol translator to allow X11 programs to utilize a D11 window system.


Over the last two decades the expanding role of Southern countries as development partners has led to tectonic shifts in global development ideas, practices, norms and actors. Researchers are faced with new questions around identity, power and positionality in global development. Researching South-South Development Cooperation examines this rapidly growing and complex phenomenon, asking to what extent existing assumptions, conceptual frameworks and definitions of 'development' need to be reframed in the context of researching this new landscape. This interdisciplinary book draws on voices from across the Global South and North to explore the epistemological and related methodological challenges and opportunities associated with researching South-South development cooperation, asking what these trends mean for the politics of knowledge production. Chapters are interspersed with shorter vignettes, which aim to share examples from first-hand participation in and observation of South-South development cooperation initiatives. This book will be of interest to anyone conducting research on development in the Global South, whether they are a practitioner or policy maker, or a student or researcher in politics, international development, area studies, or international relations.


Incorporating reading and discussing primary articles in undergraduate courses has been shown to enhance students' learning, stimulate their interests in science, and retain them as science majors. While instructors diligently coach students to scrutinize every section in an article thoroughly and critically, the author byline is often overlooked. In this study, the author bylines of primary articles were used to illustrate the connectedness of scientists and the collaborative nature of science. First year college students first learned how to construct a concept map and used concept maps to connect 14 scientists with 14 primary articles that these scientists authored. In doing so, students visualized and understood science as human activity and science progresses as a community effort. Pre- and post-activity questionnaires were used to evaluate whether the activity objectives were met. Students further examined the structure and organization of a primary article after the activity and they were engaged in discussions such as how research ideas developed and evolved, the advantages and disadvantages of collaborative research, the ethics of authorships, graduate schools, and careers in science. Hopefully, perceiving the authors of primary articles as real people in a social network and science as the collaborative efforts may help students see themselves being a part of the scientific advancement and inspire them to pursue careers in science.


This paper examines how the welfare services of the municipality of Venice deal with lone-mother clients in a welfare system that has no provisions specifically for lone mothers. The analysis is based on interviews with six social workers operating in different districts of the city. The paper interprets discursive and ideological dimensions of social policies, highlighting the mechanisms by which the welfare programs and practices define the needs of lone mothers. It outlines the dynamics of negotiation in the welfare services, which try to reconcile the legislative and administrative norms with the social workers' professional practices and the lone mothers' claims.|The analysis rejects the commonplace view that social welfare beneficiaries are exclusively people in 'extreme discomfort', and presents two biographical pathways through which lone mothers turn to welfare services. The social workers' image of the two subcultures of lone mothers influences their attitudes and the strategies they set in motion for lone mothers.| Despite the Veneto region's universal law on social assistance, access to economic support is determined more selectively through proving a 'qualifying need'. Interpreting lone mothers? claims as qualifying needs along psycho-social and educational dimensions serves to transform their expressed claims into claims that can be dealt with institutionally. Social workers prefer to supply 'professional' psycho-social support for lone mothers, using their major discretion in that area. They explicitly aim at helping mothers to recover their resources so that they are able to maintain themselves and their children through paid work. Lone mothers seem to acquire a specific position among users of welfare services, as social workers perceive their problems as more complex and sound than those of other users. Therefore lone mothers are provided with a broader range of discretionary support.


Abstract The last ten years of archaeological research on convict sites in NSW has seen a wealth of new discoveries thanks to unprecedented access to urban settings as a result of the development boom in the greater Sydney area. Not surprisingly, the direction of research has therefore largely been dictated by the nature of these mitigation projects and consequently favors greater understanding of convict urban landscapes. However, the pressure to complete successive large scale projects, limited funding for post-excavation analysis and interpretation, a growing body of incomplete reports, and the lack of an overall framework for NSW convict archaeological studies has seen an uneven advance in our knowledge of convict life since the last review by Denis Gojak in 2001. This paper reports on some of the main discoveries and describes efforts by academic and professional archaeologists to collaborate and facilitate further convict research in NSW, especially further analysis and syntheses of material, through the Archaeology of Sydney Research Group, the NSW Archaeology Online grey literature project and targeted student research. Keywords: convict, historical archaeology, urban archaeology, emancipist, convict industry ********** The operation and consequences of the convict system remains one of the most enduring and powerful themes within Australian historical archaeology, embracing a diverse range of possible research trajectories and interpretive stances. Approaches to the archaeology of convictism have been subject to shifting interests, sometimes as a result of dialogues taking place within allied disciplines, but also as a result of opportunities to access relevant sites which have emerged as a result of commercial archaeological mitigation work. In 2001 Denis Gojak reviewed the state of convict archaeology in New South Wales and proposed several directions for future research (Gojak 2001). This paper updates the status of convict research until 2011 and considers some of the emergent problems from the last decade, especially the glut of data resulting from archaeological investigations arising as a consequence of the development boom. It also reports on collaborative efforts between university and professional archaeologists to advance the convict research agenda including some of the recent projects undertaken by students as part of the Archaeology of Sydney Research Group's convict sub-project. History of convicts in NSW Convicts formed a significant proportion of the founding European population of Australia, with transportation of criminals from the United Kingdom continuing until 1868. The convicts and their descendants played a significant economic and social role in the development of the country although the nature of these contributions and the transformations from penal colony to free settlement continues to be a subject for historical and archaeological exploration (Smith 2008; Karskens 2009). In NSW the system operated from 1788 to 1840 at which time transportation ended, although in the following decades there were still convicts completing their sentences. The historical background of transportation and the convict system in NSW is available from many other sources, with a brief outline of its operation provided here as context for considering the potential for archaeological research (see Kerr 1984, 1988; Hughes 1987). The convict system operated on the basis of a graduated hierarchy, where through good behavior in various forms of gang, assigned, or largely self-managed labour a convict could progressively enjoy increasing levels of freedom within the colony and ultimately receive a full pardon (Kerr 1984). Conversely, poor behavior would see the removal of these privileges, various forms of restriction, confinement to prison, corporal punishment and in extreme cases capital punishment. While the major establishments and nodes for convict administration were present in the main settlements, mostly the NSW convict system was dispersed through the various urban and rural settled areas. …


This article examines the impact of unemployment on social participation using German panel data. We find negative and lasting effects for public social activities but also a retreat of individuals into private life. Issues of selection and endogeneity are addressed by using plant closures as exogenous entries into unemployment. Social norms and labour market prospects are shown to be relevant for explaining these findings. Our results advance the understanding of the consequences of unemployment for human well-being, highlight an hitherto unexplored channel through which unemployment influences economic outcomes (via changes in social capital) and point to an alternative explanation of unemployment hysteresis based on access to information.


This paper considers the average symbol error probability of square Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) coherent signaling over flat fading channels subject to additive generalized Gaussian noise. More specifically, a generic closed-form expression in terms of the Fox H function and the bivariate Fox H function is offered for the extended generalized-K fading case. Simplifications for some special fading distributions such as generalized-K fading, Nakagami-m fading, and Rayleigh fading and special additive noise distributions such as Gaussian and Laplacian noise are then presented. Finally, the mathematical formalism is illustrated by some numerical examples verified by computer based simulations for a variety of fading and additive noise parameters.


Increasing usage of non-medicinal methods (NMMs) to control sea louse infestations on salmon farms has raised questions about whether sea lice may be able to evolve tolerance of NMMs. Of particular concern is the potential for sea lice to evolve freshwater tolerance as a result of freshwater treatments. Wild trout and some juvenile salmonids swim into freshwater to control infestations and regain ionic balance after disruption by sea lice; freshwater tolerance would compromise this potentially adaptive behavior. Here we evaluated the potential for freshwater tolerance to evolve in the sea louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis. When exposed to low-salinity water, parasitic stages of sea lice are able to osmoregulate through the host, while larval planktonic stages are not. Transcriptomic work suggests that sea lice mount a costly polygenic stress response when exposed to brackish water. The population structure of sea lice is panmictic in both the Pacific and Atlantic, making it conducive to rapid evolutionary responses. It is unknown how much heritable genetic variation these panmictic populations have for freshwater treatments. While usage of freshwater treatments on wellboats is increasing, it is unclear whether the freshwater itself is a strong selective force; during the freshwater exposure, sea lice can die from physical disruption during pumping and filtration on the wellboat. Future studies are advised to quantify the heritable variation in freshwater tolerance in sea louse populations, characterize mechanisms for freshwater tolerance in planktonic and attached sea lice, and assess the risk of freshwater tolerance evolution under different management strategies.


This study was conducted to determine the LD50 and effect of gamma ray on germination percentage, plant height, survival percentage, root length, root dry weight and shoot dry weight of seedlings derived from seeds of long bean (Vigna sesquipedalis). Seeds of this crop were treated with 300, 400, 500, 600 and 800 Gy gamma rays at Malaysian Institute of Nuclear Technology (MINT). The treated seeds including control were sown in sand beds in size 4.6 x 0.7 m2 in a greenhouse at Horticulture Unit, Universiti Putra Malaysia Bintulu Campus (UPMKB). After germination, plants were transferred into polybags. Each polybag contained 1.2 kg blended growth medium with top soil, sand, and processed chicken dung ratio of 3:2:1. Standard procedures were used to observe and record the variables studied in this research. The experiment was designed as a 4 x 6 factorial Completely Randomized Design with 3 replications. Lethal dose 50 % of population (LD50) was assayed. The study revealed that germination percentage, plant height, survival percentage, root length, root dry weight and shoot dry weight decreased with increasing dose of gamma ray. The 800 Gy gamma ray dose in particular had a pronounced effect on these morphological characteristics probably because of injury it might have caused to the seeds of the long bean. As a result, poor growth and development was noticed. The LD50 for survival and height ranged between 600-800 Gy and 400-500 Gy, respectively. Generally, higher gamma ray doses particularly 800 Gy significantly affected the morphological characteristics of long bean seedlings obtained from irradiated seeds.


Abstract. Upper Svaneti (Georgia) is a territory in almost permanent isolation amid the Caucasus mountain range. This strategic position, along with the military nature of its settlements made its defence so effective that Svaneti served as Georgia`s safehouse, protecting its chief historical and religious relics in times of crisis. This isolation also ensured the preservation of archaic cultural traditions and ancient rituals, such as animal sacrifices, ritual shaving and blood feuds, establishing what is known as popular religion. Some of these rituals, mainly those performed by women, take place in the domestic space. This paper, developed under the scope of the 3DPast project, aims to interpret the symbolic use of space in vernacular houses of Upper Svaneti. The methodological strategy combines architectonic survey with documental analysis and brings forward an interpretation of this vernacular house from a space anthropology perspective. The traditional svanetian house (machubi), is composed of a single volume, of rough quadrangular plan. The ground floor (machub) houses, during winter, the family and the cattle, while the upper floor (darbazi) was mostly used as the family residence during warmer periods. This analysis will focus specifically on the machub, where there are traces of the symbolic use of domestic space. The machub is composed of a single space with a central fireplace. This element is the axis of segmentation of female and male spaces inside the house. The present paper will address this gender-differentiated symbolic use of the domestic space through the scope of anthropology and of the Svanetian history.


This study examines different representations of adolescents conveyed by adolescent discourse in French and German first language reading books. It is based on a comparison of 12 ninth grade schoolbooks by means of an approach called « comparative discourse linguistics ». The results of the investigation show that whereas French schoolbooks represent the adolescent as a (future) citizen of an intergenerational well-read community, German reading books convey an image of the adolescent trying to construct him/herself, defining him/herself by his/her age group, in conflict with adults.


Often the successful performance of a project is problematic. The Lean Construction community has approached this issue by emphasizing variability reduction of the production process using the Last Planner System (LPS). In this context, we suggest that the variability characterization of managerial actions along the LPS process itself is an improvement opportunity. We used the concept of conversations from Linguistic Action Perspective (LAP) and the premise that the Bullwhip Effect (BWE) exists between the LPS variables to explore the variability impact of managerial actions during the LPS process. This paper reports the characterization of BWE of LAP conversations between LPS variables and its impact on planning reliability in five projects in the construction stage. Evidence collected suggests that BWE exists between the LPS variables and its existence may be related to the degradation of planning reliability. Although additional work will be required to corroborate these initial findings, this outcome seems useful to quantify management-efforts variability during the LPS process. It is expected that further exploration of these results could help to act proactively to prevent variability generation during the LPS process, where they can be used as a systemic-feedforward variables of disturbance related to the project social-domain.


Keeping up to date with research developments is a central activity of academic researchers, but researchers face difficulties in managing the rapid growth of available scientific information. This study examined how researchers stay up to date, using the information journey model as a framework for analysis and investigating which dimensions influence information behaviors. We designed a 2‐round study involving semistructured interviews and prototype testing with 61 researchers with 3 levels of seniority (PhD student to professor). Data were analyzed following a semistructured qualitative approach. Five key dimensions that influence information behaviors were identified: level of seniority, information sources, state of the project, level of familiarity, and how well defined the relevant community is. These dimensions are interrelated and their values determine the flow of the information journey. Across all levels of professional expertise, researchers used similar hard (formal) sources to access content, while soft (interpersonal) sources were used to filter information. An important "pain point" that future information tools should address is helping researchers filter information at the point of need.


Exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism have become common terms for sorting out different responses to religious diversity that have appeared within the Christian tradition. In this study, I argue that each of these responses is a different form of what could be called "unity in diversity." Religious unity in diversity understands every different religious form as a variant of one religious form. The different responses to religious diversity make sense when it is understood that they derive from different ideas about what the unifying religious form is. The connection between the conception of unity and the resultant perception of diversity is so strong that we can go so far as to say that exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism are all rooted in a particular conception of what religion is. And to repeat, it is these ideas about what religion is that precipitate different ideas about what all religions are. At the heart of this study are five case studies of different attempts, within the Christian tradition, to make sense of religious diversity; the conclusions above are derived from these case studies. Although every form of unity in diversity reduces all forms to one, no form of unity in diversity should be rejected if it works, and this can be determined by applying it. The only situation that no form of religious unity in diversity can handle is one in which there truly are different forms of religion. This situation, if it exists, shows the limitation of every possible form of religious unity in diversity.


Previous research has revealed much global convergence over the past several decades in life expectancy at birth and in infant mortality, which are closely linked. But trends in the variance of length of life, and in the variance of length of adult life in particular, are less well understood. I examine life-span inequality in a broad, balanced panel of 180 rich and poor countries observed in 1970 and 2000. Convergence in infant mortality has unambiguously reduced world inequality in total length of life starting from birth, but world inequality in length of adult life has remained stagnant. Underlying both of these trends is a growing share of total inequality that is attributable to between-country variation. Especially among developed countries, the absolute level of between-country inequality has risen over time. The sources of widening inequality in length of life between countries remain unclear, but signs point away from trends in income, leaving patterns of knowledge diffusion as a potential candidate.


ABSTRACT Tecchiato, S., Buosi C., Ibba, A., Ryan, D.A., and De Muro, S., 2016. A Comparison of Geomorphic Settings, Sediment Facies and Benthic Habitats of Two Carbonate Systems of Western Mediterranean Sea and South Western Australia: Implications for Coastal Management. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 562–566. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. A similarity exists between the coastal areas of South Western Australia and South Sardinia (Italy-Western Mediterranean Sea), as temperate water carbonate sedimentation dominates the inner shelf at these locations. The seagrass carbonate factory regulates the deposition of modern bioclasts, and the distribution of seagrass meadows and accumulation of bioclasts is controlled by similar processes at the study sites. These biogenic components are mixed to quartz-feldspar sands producing significantly comparable sediment facies, which have been previously documented for Esperance Bay (South Western Australia) and off Porto Pino beaches (Sardinia). Whilst the geological settings of these areas show similar outcropping lithologies, the clastic component of these mixed biogenic and quartz-feldpar sand facies is transported by different agents in the Australian and Sardinian site. In this paper, the similarity between sediment facies is highlighted and their comparison has produced new insights into the processes regulating sediment accumulation in two hydrodynamically different embayments. The characteristics of seagrass beds and their link to the beach system are also compared and set within the context of Mediterranean and South Australian bioregions. These outcomes are relevant for beach management, as European and Australian environmental regulations are compared herein.


Durable resistance against fungal pathogens is highly valuable for disease management in agriculture. For its sustainable use, and to avoid pathogen adaptation, it is important to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms. Many studies on durable disease resistance in plants have focused exclusively on the host plant, whereas possible reactions and adaptations of pathogens exposed to this type of resistance have not been well researched. The wheat Lr34 gene, encoding a putative ABC-transporter, provides broad-spectrum and durable resistance against multiple fungal pathogens in wheat and is functional as a transgene in all major cereals. Lr34-based resistance is partial, meaning pathogens can grow and reproduce to some degree on Lr34-containing plants. Therefore, Lr34-expressing plants are ideal for studying the response of pathogens to partial resistance. Here, transcriptomic responses of the two fungal pathogens Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei (barley powdery mildew) and Puccinia triticina (wheat leaf rust) during growth on their respective host plants containing Lr34 were compared to their responses on control plants without Lr34. Two different time points after inoculation were chosen for analysis of powdery mildew on barley and one time point for wheat leaf rust. Transcriptome analyses revealed that there were no differences in the expression patterns of the two pathogens growing on susceptible versus partially resistant plants, even though pathogen growth was reduced in the presence of Lr34. This reflects the absence of observable reaction in the pathogen to the presence of the Lr34 resistance gene and, consequently, no major alteration of fungal pathogen metabolism.


Current standardization activities in the aeronautical community are paving the way to using multifrequency multiconstellation GNSS as a primary means of aircraft navigation. The increase in the number of satellites from different constellations as well as the increasing use of multiple frequency GNSS receivers promise improvements in the achievable accuracy in GNSS positioning. The effects of receiver antennas shall be investigated because of the stronger impact of possible imperfections on the overall error budget for multifrequency combinations.

The scope of this paper is to show the possibility of properly modeling and indeed characterizing the antenna-induced GNSS pseudorange errors, through simulations and electromagnetic measurement. An insight into antenna characteristics giving rise to such errors will be given, by analyzing the impact of the feeding technique on the achievable pattern uniformity and hence on antenna-related pseudorange errors. The technique is then validated through GNSS field measurement.


We examine the risk characteristics of each portion of IO/PO mortgage strips, present results of a valuation model of these securities, and examine market prices of both the interest-only and principal-only portions of mortgage pools. We show that IO/PO securities are highly sensitive to the prepayment behavior of the underlying mortgage pool. Because that behavior varies systematically with the interest rate, and because prepayments affect the values of I0 and PO components in opposite ways, the interest-rate risk of strip securities can differ substantially from that of the underlying mortgage pool. The PO component has much longer duration than the underlying mortgage pool. In contrast, the IO component typically will have a negative duration, at least in ranges for which interest-rate movements induce meaningful changes in mortgage prepayment behavior. We also show how market prices of partially-stripped MBSs that are actively traded on secondary markets can be used to infer market values of pure IO/PO strips. Recent market data is fully consistent with the theoretical insights offered by our valuation model. When interest rates spiked last April, PO values fell far more dramatically than those of the underlying mortgage pool while IO values actually rose.


Restoration of coastal ecosystems provides opportunities to simultaneously restore historical fisheries and ancillary ecosystem and social benefits that were historically derived from functioning ecosystems. In Maine, dam removal and other ecosystem restoration efforts have positively impacted anadromous fish, with local populations of alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) rapidly recovering to near historical population abundances in some locations. This research investigates the social benefits conferred by the restoration of habitat connectivity, fish populations, and local small-scale fisheries. Using municipal fisheries data and interviews with stakeholders in coastal Maine, it describes a suite of both direct and indirect benefits: a reversal of the "shifting baselines syndrome" and a motivation to manage fisheries sustainably, diversification of local economies and fisheries, community building and an increased sense of local pride, a demographic broadening of the conservation community, and enhanced ecosystem services and recreational opportunities. As well, it identifies a positive feedback between economic benefits and other social benefits, with revenue earned from alewife fisheries enhancing community engagement and providing motivation for further restoration. Placing ecological restoration efforts into this larger social context—rather than simply evaluating them based on immediate economic benefits—provides a broader framework to assess overall societal benefits derived from restoration efforts.


e role of the microbial processes governing methane emissions from tundra ecosystem is receiving increasing attention. Recently, cooperation between methanotrophic bacteria and submerged Sphagnum was shown to reduce methane emissions but also to supply CO2 for photosynthesis for the plant. Although this process was shown to be important in the laboratory, the differences that exist in methane emissions from inundated vegetation types with or without Sphagnum in the field have not been linked to these bacteria before. In this study, chamber flux measurements, an incubation study and flux modeling were used to investigate the drivers and controls on the relative difference in methane emissions between a submerged Sphagnum/sedge vegetation and an inundated sedge vegetation without Sphagnum. It was found that methane emissions in the Sphagnum dominated vegetation type were 50% lower than in the vegetation type without Sphagnum. A model sensitivity analysis showed that these differences could not sufficiently be explained by differences in methane production and plant transport. e model, combined with an incubation study, indicated that methane oxidation by endophytic bacteria, living in cooperation with submerged Sphagnum, plays a significant role in methane cycling at this site. is result is important for spatial upscaling spatially as oxidation by these bacteria plays a large role in 15% of the net methane emissions at this tundra site. Our findings support the notion that methane oxidizing bacteria are an important factor in understanding the processes behind methane emissions in tundra. 1e content of this chapter has been submitted as "e role of endophytic methane oxidizing bacteria in submerged Sphagnum in determining methane emissions of Northeastern Siberian tundra" to Biogeosciences


Title of Document: AN OPTOFLUIDIC SURFACE ENHANCED RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY MICROSYSTEM FOR SENSITIVE DETECTION OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL MOLECULES Soroush Hossein Yazdi, Doctor of Philosophy, 2013 Directed By: Professor Ian M. White, Fischell Department of Bioengineering As the human population grows, there is an increasing demand for early detection of a variety of analytes in different fields. This demand mainly includes early and sensitive detection of pathogens, disease biomarkers, pesticides, food contaminants, and explosives. To address this, lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technology has emerged as a tool to improve portability, automation and sensitivity of sensors by taking advantage of integrated laboratory functions on a miniaturized chip. It is agreed that LOC has the potential to make various sensing modules practical for realworld applications. In this work, we have developed a highly sensitive, portable, and automated optofluidic surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) microsystem for chemical and biological detection. SERS is a powerful molecular identification technique that combines laser spectroscopy with optical properties of metal nanoparticles. Optofluidic SERS is defined as the synergistic use of microfluidic functions to improve the performance of SERS. By leveraging microfluidic functions, the optofluidic SERS microsystem mixes and concentrates the sample and nanoparticles resulting in an improved performance as compared to conventional open microfluidic SERS systems. The device requires low sample volume and has multiplexed detection capabilities. Moreover, it is suitable for on-site detection of analytes in the field because of its improved automation and portability due to the integrated fiber optics. The final device consists of two regions of packed silica beads inside microchannels for biomolecular interaction as well as sample concentration for SERS measurements. Additionally, an on-chip micromixer and fiber optics are integrated into the device. Optical fibers aligned to the detection zone make the biosensor alignment-free, which greatly improves automation. Practical applications for the detection of real-world analytes (e.g., pesticides, fungicides, food contaminants, and DNA sequences) are demonstrated utilizing our optofluidic SERS microsystem. Detection of biological samples could be extended to proteins and proteolytic enzymes through displacement assays. Consequently, the integration of microfluidic functions, including a microporous reaction zone, a nanoparticle concentration zone, and a micromixer, combined with the use of integrated fiber optics and portable spectrometers, make our microsystem suitable for on-site detection of analytes at trace levels. AN OPTOFLUIDIC SURFACE ENHANCED RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY MICROSYSTEM FOR SENSITIVE DETECTION OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL MOLECULES


Early phase clinical trials are conducted with limited time and patient resources. Despite design restrictions, patient safety must be prioritised and trial conclusions must be accurate; maximising a promising treatment's chance of success in later largescale, long-term trials. Increasing the efficiency of early phase clinical trials, through utilising available data more effectively, can lead to improved decision making during, and as a result of, the trial. This thesis contains three distinct pieces of research; each of which proposes a novel, early phase clinical trial design with this overall objective. The initial focus of the thesis is on dose-escalation. In the single-agent setting, subgroups of the population, between which the reaction to treatment may differ, are accounted for in dose-escalation. This is achieved using a Bayesian model-based approach to dose-escalation with spike and slab priors in order to identify a recommended dose of the treatment (for use in later trials) in each subgroup. Accounting for a potential subgroup effect in a dose-escalation trial can yield safety benefits for patients within, and post- trial due to subgorup-specific dosing which should improve the benefit-risk ratio of the treatment.Dual-agent dose-escalation is considered next. In the dual-agent setting, singleagent data, including toxicity and pharmacokinetic exposure information, is available. This information is used to define escalation rules that combine the outputs of independent dose-toxicity and dose-exposure models which are fitted to emerging trial data. This solution is practical to implement and reduces the subjectivity that currently surrounds the use of exposure data in dose-escalation. In addition, escalation decisions and consistency of the final recommended dose-pair are improved. The focus of the third piece of research changes. In this work, Bayesian sample size calculations for single-arm and randomised phase II trials with time-to-event endpoints are considered. Calculation of the sample size required for a trial is based on a proportional hazards assumption and utilises historical data on the control (and experimental) treatments. The sample sizes obtained are consistent with those currently used in practice while better accounting for available information and uncertainty in parameter estimates of the time-to-event distribution. Investigating allocation ratio's in the randomised setting provides a basis for deciding whether a control arm is indeed necessary. That is, in a randomised trial, whether it is necessary for any patients to be randomised to the control treatment arm.


The millennial generation, or people born roughly between 1980 and 2000, have surpassed the Baby Boomers as America's largest living generation. Therefore, a topic worthy of study is how the opinions and actions of millennials are shaping public policy. This thesis explores the views on terrorism of millennials, specifically the college-age cohort (born between 1995 and 1998), as compared with those of other generations. Two datasets (one collected from a survey of the Appalachian State University student cohort and another from the Chicago Council on Global Affairs) were utilized to support the claim that the millennial generation, specifically the college-age cohort, view terrorism less seriously than non-millennials. The hypothesis was based on an examination of the influence of several factors: the generational effect and socialization, education, and mass media. The data also dispelled a commonly held belief that millennials are generally apathetic as they were found to be just as passionate about such other issues as climate change and the protection of U.S. jobs. Interestingly, the research also discovered that the college-age student cohort, specifically, are relatively more interested in combating international terrorism. This apparent contradiction suggests one of many possibilities for future research.


ABSTRACT Pertussis has shown a striking resurgence in the United States, with a return to record numbers of reported cases as last observed in the 1950s. Bordetella pertussis isolates lacking pertactin, a key antigen component of the acellular pertussis vaccine, have been observed, suggesting that B. pertussis is losing pertactin in response to vaccine immunity. Screening of 1,300 isolates from outbreak and surveillance studies (historical isolates collected from 1935 up to 2009, isolates from the 2010 California pertussis outbreak, U.S. isolates from routine surveillance between 2010-2012, and isolates from the 2012 Washington pertussis outbreak) by conventional PCR and later by Western blotting and prn sequencing analyses ultimately identified 306 pertactin-deficient isolates. Of these pertactin-deficient strains, 276 were identified as having an IS481 in the prn gene (prnIS481 positive). The first prnIS481-positive isolate was found in 1994, and the next prnIS481-positive isolates were not detected until 2010. The prevalence of pertactin-deficient isolates increased substantially to more than 50% of collected isolates in 2012. Sequence analysis of pertactin-deficient isolates revealed various types of mutations in the prn gene, including two deletions, single nucleotide substitutions resulting in a stop codon, an inversion in the promoter, and a single nucleotide insertion resulting in a frameshift mutation. All but one mutation type were found in prn2 alleles. CDC 013 was a predominant pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) profile in the pertactin-positive isolates (203/994) but was found in only 5% (16/306) of the pertactin-deficient isolates. Interestingly, PFGE profiles CDC 002 and CDC 237 represented 55% (167/306) of the identified pertactin-deficient isolates. These results indicate that there has been a recent dramatic increase in pertactin-deficient B. pertussis isolates throughout the United States.


Information on co-adherence of different oral bacterial species is important for understanding interspecies interactions within oral microbial community. Current knowledge on this topic is heavily based on pariwise coaggregation of known, cultivable species. In this study, we employed a membrane binding assay coupled with polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) to systematically analyze the co-adherence profiles of oral bacterial species, and achieved a more profound knowledge beyond pairwise coaggregation. Two oral bacterial species were selected to serve as "bait": Fusobacterium nucleatum (F. nucleatum) whose ability to adhere to a multitude of oral bacterial species has been extensively studied for pairwise interactions and Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) whose interacting partners are largely unknown. To enable screening of interacting partner species within bacterial mixtures, cells of the "bait" oral bacterium were immobilized on nitrocellulose membranes which were washed and blocked to prevent unspecific binding. The "prey" bacterial mixtures (including known species or natural saliva samples) were added, unbound cells were washed off after the incubation period and the remaining cells were eluted using 0.2 mol·L -1 glycine. Genomic DNA was extracted, subjected to 16S rRNA PCR amplification and separation of the resulting PCR products by DGGE. Selected bands were recovered from the gel, sequenced and identified via Nucleotide BLAST searches against different databases. While few bacterial species bound to S. mutans, consistent with previous findings F. nucleatum adhered to a variety of bacterial species including uncultivable and uncharacterized ones. This new approach can more effectively analyze the co-adherence profiles of oral bacteria, and could facilitate the systematic study of interbacterial binding of oral microbial species.


This work presents a new algorithm based on a combination of fuzzy (FUZ), dynamic programming (DP), and genetic algorithm (GA) approach for capacitor allocation in distribution feeders. The problem formulation considers two distinct objectives related to total cost of power loss and total cost of capacitors including the purchase and installation costs. The novel formulation is a multi-objective and non-differentiable optimization problem. The proposed method of this article uses fuzzy reasoning for sitting of capacitors in radial distribution feeders, DP for sizing and finally GA for finding the optimum shape of membership functions which are used in fuzzy reasoning stage. The proposed method has been implemented in a software package and its effectiveness has been verified through a 9-bus radial distribution feeder for the sake of conclusions supports. A comparison has been done among the proposed method of this paper and similar methods in other research works that shows the effectiveness of the proposed method of this paper for solving optimum capacitor planning problem.


This paper uses a data-rich environment to produce direct econometric estimates of macroeconomic and financial uncertainty in the United Kingdom for the period 1991–2016. These indices exhibit significant independent variation from popular proxies for macroeconomic and financial uncertainty. We identify the impact of uncertainty shocks using narrative sign restrictions, which allow us to exploit individual historic events to separate the impact of macroeconomic, financial and credit shocks on real variables. Using only traditional sign restrictions, we find that the real effects of macroeconomic uncertainty shocks are generally weaker than proxies suggest and that the effects depend on a subsequent rise in financial uncertainty and credit spreads to have a negative impact on GDP. Exploiting narrative events such as the disorderly exit from the Exchange Rate Mechanism, the dot-com recession and the financial crisis support this finding. However, conditioning on narrative events more closely associated with political uncertainty, ie tight general elections, suggests a stronger impact response of GDP to macro uncertainty shocks. We find these results are robust to controlling for both financial and global uncertainty.


As part of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency/National Science Foundation study on human-robot interaction (HRI), over sixty representatives from academia, government, and industry participated in an interdisciplinary workshop, which allowed roboticists to interact with psychologists, sociologists, cognitive scientists, communication experts and human-computer interaction specialists to discuss common interests in the field of HRI, and to establish a dialogue across the disciplines for future collaborations. We include initial work that was done in preparation for the workshop, links to keynote and other presentations, and a summary of the findings, outcomes, and recommendations that were generated by the participants. Findings of the study include-the need for more extensive interdisciplinary interaction, identification of basic taxonomies and research issues, social informatics, establishment of a small number of common application domains, and field experience for members of the HRI community. An overall conclusion of the workshop was expressed as the following-HRI is a cross-disciplinary area, which poses barriers to meaningful research, synthesis, and technology transfer. The vocabularies, experiences, methodologies, and metrics of the communities are sufficiently different that cross-disciplinary research is unlikely to happen without sustained funding and an infrastructure to establish a new HRI community.


Over the full visual field, contrast sensitivity is fairly well described by a linear decline in log sensitivity as a function of eccentricity (expressed in grating cycles). However, many psychophysical studies of spatial visual function concentrate on the central ±4.5 deg (or so) of the visual field. As the details of the variation in sensitivity have not been well documented in this region we did so for small patches of target contrast at several spatial frequencies (0.7-4 c/deg), meridians (horizontal, vertical, and oblique), orientations (horizontal, vertical, and oblique), and eccentricities (0-18 cycles). To reduce the potential effects of stimulus uncertainty, circular markers surrounded the targets. Our analysis shows that the decline in binocular log sensitivity within the central visual field is bilinear: The initial decline is steep, whereas the later decline is shallow and much closer to the classical results. The bilinear decline was approximately symmetrical in the horizontal meridian and declined most steeply in the superior visual field. Further analyses showed our results to be scale-invariant and that this property could not be predicted from cone densities. We used the results from the cardinal meridians to radially interpolate an attenuation surface with the shape of a witch's hat that provided good predictions for the results from the oblique meridians. The witch's hat provides a convenient starting point from which to build models of contrast sensitivity, including those designed to investigate signal summation and neuronal convergence of the image contrast signal. Finally, we provide Matlab code for constructing the witch's hat.


Antisense transcription is widespread in genomes. Despite large differences in gene size and architecture, we find that yeast and human genes share a unique, antisense transcription‐associated chromatin signature. We asked whether this signature is related to a biological function for antisense transcription. Using quantitative RNA‐FISH, we observed changes in sense transcript distributions in nuclei and cytoplasm as antisense transcript levels were altered. To determine the mechanistic differences underlying these distributions, we developed a mathematical framework describing transcription from initiation to transcript degradation. At GAL1, high levels of antisense transcription alter sense transcription dynamics, reducing rates of transcript production and processing, while increasing transcript stability. This relationship with transcript stability is also observed as a genome‐wide association. Establishing the antisense transcription‐associated chromatin signature through disruption of the Set3C histone deacetylase activity is sufficient to similarly change these rates even in the absence of antisense transcription. Thus, antisense transcription alters sense transcription dynamics in a chromatin‐dependent manner.


Civil aviation transportation has been growing since the early forties and has become today a massive and unique transport system for people across continents and large countries. First age propeller airliners flew at low altitude and were often subjected to dangerous atmospheric and cloud hazards. Low visibility, heavy precipitation, severe turbulence, wind shear, icing and lightning are common weather hazards that are a challenge for flight safety. Among those weather hazards, lightning was the most unrecognized and misunderstood. Damages to aircraft due to lightning strike were frequently noticed; they range from arc spots on metal to centimeter-size holes in the fuselage, and dielectric radome and antenna destruction. Some cases of catastrophic events are directly attributed to lightning [1], [2]. Experimental in-situ studies were initiated no later than the early sixties [3], but the main in-flight research efforts were undertaken at the beginning of the eighties, when the perspective of a massive use of composite material in aviation was identified for a near future. Three major in-flight test programs were initiated in the USA and Europe by NASA, the Air Force, the FAA and the French Civil and Military Aviation Authorities, associated with Research Organizations. This paper is a review of the in-flight lightning strike experiments performed during that period. Information on aircraft missions, performances and instrumentation is given. Available results and proposed interpretations are presented. The main outcomes of those experiments are emphasized and knowledge gaps and missing information are mentioned.


Received opinion holds that pro-ana are "sites that promote anorexia". In this paper, I will describe the stigmatization process operating in digital environments and the evolution of pro-ana identities in the light of the theories that view eating disorders (EDs) as culture-bound syndromes. I will then illustrate the findings of an ethnographic study of the ana-mia (from the contraction of anorexia and bulimia) culture that has emerged on Italian social media (blogs and visual SNSs such as Instagram). Analyzing the forms of self-representation drew back the curtains on the "popular discourse" of the ana-mias, whose digital bodies express the need for self-discipline typical of post-feminist identity in neoliberal societies. Ana-mias represent themselves as #anawarriors: their life is an ongoing battle against their illness and to defend themselves from outsiders, but is some cases also to gain visibility and reach the status of microcelebrities.


The study examined the socio-economic determinants of upland rice production among farmers in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Purposive sampling technique was used to select four communities out of which 120 respondents were selected for the study. Interview schedule was use to collect data from the respondents. Data collected were analyzed using frequency counts, percentages and regression. The results showed that socio-economics characteristics such as age, farm size, educational status and ownership of farmland are the most prominent factors that affect the production of upland rice in the study area. It was found that farmers are seriously faced with problems such as rainfall fluctuation, attack of birds and rodents, pest and diseases infestation, availability and accessibility of labour and inadequate fund. It is recommended that Research institutes should develop and transfer sustainable technologies on rice cultivation, processing, packaging and marketing using other method of information dissemination other than print to the farmers. There should be provision of irrigation facilities for the farmers so that they can be able to produce rice throughout the year. Keywords : upland rice production, farmers Global Approaches to Extension Practice Vol. 3 (2) 2007: pp. 37-43


BACKGROUND: The systematic implementation of evidence-based practice through the use of guidelines, checklists, and protocols mitigates the risks associated with mechanical ventilation, yet variation in practice remains prevalent. Recent advances in software and hardware have allowed for the development and deployment of an enhanced visualization tool that identifies mechanical ventilation goal variance. Our aim was to assess the utility of daily goal establishment and a computer-aided visualization of variance. METHODS: This study was composed of 3 phases: a retrospective observational phase (baseline) followed by 2 prospective sequential interventions. Phase I intervention comprised daily goal establishment of mechanical ventilation. Phase II intervention was the setting and monitoring of daily goals of mechanical ventilation with a web-based data visualization system (T3). A single score of mechanical ventilation was developed to evaluate the outcome. RESULTS: The baseline phase evaluated 130 subjects, phase I enrolled 31 subjects, and phase II enrolled 36 subjects. There were no differences in demographic characteristics between cohorts. A total of 171 verbalizations of goals of mechanical ventilation were completed in phase I. The use of T3 increased by 87% from phase I. Mechanical ventilation score improved by 8.4% in phase I and 11.3% in phase II from baseline (P = .032). The largest effect was in the low risk VT category, with a 40.3% improvement from baseline in phase I, which was maintained at 39% improvement from baseline in phase II (P = .01). mechanical ventilation score was 9% higher on average in those who survived. CONCLUSIONS: Daily goal formation and computer-enhanced visualization of mechanical ventilation variance were associated with an improvement in goal attainment by evidence of an improved mechanical ventilation score. Further research is needed to determine whether improvements in mechanical ventilation score through a targeted, process-oriented intervention will lead to improved patient outcomes. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration NCT02184208.)


The herbicide, glufosinate ammonium is widely used as crop protection for food crops and also in oil palm plantations. The herbicide is used to control weeds and also as a dessicant agent for land clearing. In this work, glufosinate ammonium was extracted from crude palm oil (CPO) samples using a modified QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) method. This method was based on a simultaneous extraction and clean-up steps which required minimum sample handling. The extraction was performed using 5.0 ml deionised water, (0.1% formic acid) and dichloromethane. The glufosinate ammonium residue was extracted from CPO samples using a mini shaker and centrifuged for 10 min at 2500 rcf. The extracts, following pre-concentration were clean enough for direct injection into the LC-MS/ MS. Quantitative recoveries from 84%-109% were obtained for samples spiked with three concentration levels of 0.005, 0.05 and 0.5 µg ml -1 . The correlation variation (CV) percentage for reproducibility and repeatability of replicate extractions were less than 13% and 10% respectively. The limit of detection and limit of quantification was 0.002 µg litre -1 and 0.025 µg kg -1 respectively. The results obtained demonstrated that the method has achieved the requirements of the criteria for acceptance of single laboratory method validation. Determination of glufosinate ammonium residues in Malaysian CPO samples were carried out and the residues were not detected in the analysed samples.


Bedload transport is a complicated phenomenon in gravel-bed streams. Several factors account for this complication, including the different hydrologic regime under which different stream types operate and the wide range of particle sizes of channel bed material. Based on the hydrologic regime, there are two common types of gravel-bed streams: perennial and ephemeral. In terms of channel bed material, a gravel bed may have either unimodal or bimodal sediment. This study examines more closely some aspects of bedload transport in gravel-bed streams and proposes explanations based on fluvial mechanics. First, a comparison between perennial and ephemeral gravel-bed streams is conducted. This comparison demonstrates that under a wide range of Shields stresses, the trends exhibited by the bedload transport data of the two stream types collapse into one continuous curve, thus a unified approach is warranted. Second, an empirical bedload transport relation that accounts for the variation in the make-up of the surface material within a wide range of Shields stresses is developed. The accuracy of the relation is tested using available bedload transport data from streams with unimodal sediment. The relation is also compared against other formulae available in the literature that are commonly used for predicting bedload transport in gravel-bed streams. Third, an approach is proposed for transforming the bimodal sediment into two independent unimodal fractions, one for sand and another for gravel. This transformation makes it possible to carry out two separate computations of bedload transport rate using the bedload relation developed in this study for unimodal sediment. The total bedload transport rate is estimated by adding together the two contributions.


Many cyclophanes have been investigated in dilute solution, where their internal cavities are accessible for supramolecular interactions. However, their photophysical properties in the solid state remain largely unexplored. We here report a new mechano- and thermoresponsive luminescent cyclophane that is comprised of two 9,10-bis(phenylethynyl)anthracene moieties and features two hexaethylene glycol bridges. The compound was found to exhibit a nematic liquid-crystalline phase at elevated temperature. X-ray diffraction patterns confirm that thermal and mechanical treatments induce changes in the molecular assembly, which are the basis for the observed photoluminescent color variations. The stimuli-responsive behavior of the new compound is quite different from that of a previously reported cyclophane with similar structure but shorter bridges. Thus, merely changing the ring size is an effective tool to tailor the stimuli-responsiveness and the phase behaviour of luminescent cyclophanes.


The main products of this graduation are a new pattern language to map difficult/technical interventions in spatial tiles, a GIS model for assessing urban metabolism potentials and restrictions and a new approach for applying urban metabolism measurements on neighbourhood level. A personal motivation for me is the relation between the urban metabolism analysis and the impact it has on the urban design. Important questions are 'where in the city should the urban designer or planner do something?' and 'how big does the intervention need to be?' Often these questions are not addressed properly related to the theory of urban metabolism. The spatial component is often lacking and therefore the impact of urban metabolism on urban design is not well established. This graduation project focuses on bridging that gap. The testcase for this project is the city of Amsterdam.Amsterdam wants to be one of the frontier cities in the subject of circularity. This ambition is shown by the reports the city of Amsterdam has made. However it stays unclear how the analysis and the interventions relate to the context of Amsterdam. Where in the city would which measurements be implemented? And how that would change the city, how would it look? This leads to the research question: What is the spatial impact of the meaningful sustainable measurements, for key urban flows, which create a more circular city of Amsterdam? The studied flows in this graduation project are electricity, heat, drink water and phosphate. The project creates an inventory of twelve spatial intervention in creating circularity for the flows. The inventory contains the 1) spatial requirements and 2) theoretical potential. Based on the spatial requirements an allocation tool is created. This GIS based model for assessing urban metabolism potentials and restrictions is one of the outcomes of this graduation project. This model is not only an analytical step towards the urban design, but an outcome in itself. However the goal of the graduation project was to see what is the spatial impact of urban metabolism. For this a location was chosen based partially on the GIS model. For this location spatial exploration is made The exploration shows the possible potential of each measurement and their spatial impact. By comparing all the possible interventions we get a design brief for the location. Then a more in depth design experiment is made for an area in Slotervaart. This to see how the design can not only be a technical solution but also add to the urban quality. The design zoom-in contains 3 elements which can be replicated in the area of Slotervaart in similar areas. These elements are 1) a housing block with row housing, 2) housing block with high density housing, 3) neighbourhood nutrient hub. The design impressions show how the elements look, work together and add value to the site. Showing the relation between how much the interventions solve and their spatial impact. This shows the real spatial impact of the interventions related to the potential circularity. The used process is a new approach for applying urban metabolism measurements on neighbourhood level.


Annual Editions is a series of over 65 volumes, each designed to provide convenient, inexpensive access to a wide range of current articles from some of the most respected magazines, newspapers, and journals published today. Annual Editions are updated on a regular basis through a continuous monitoring of over 300 periodical sources. The articles selected are authored by prominent scholars, researchers, and commentators writing for a general audience. The Annual Editions volumes have a number of common organizational features designed to make them particularly useful in the classroom: a general introduction; an annotated table of contents; a topic guide; an annotated listing of selected World Wide Web sites; and a brief overview for each section. Each volume also offers an online "Instructor's Resource Guide" with testing materials. "Using Annual Editions in the Classroom" is offered as a practical guide for instructors and is available in print or online. Visit www.mhcls.com for more details.


The objective of this work is to propose a study from the constructivist environmental sociology of water in the municipality of Salvatierra, Guanajuato, Mexico, assuming that exist a sociopolitical construction of pollution, overexploitation and the scarcity of water that is linked to a several rural development policies that could be reconstructed based on the way that a variety of social actors perceive and build them. It is assumed that these constructions are an expression of values, norms and social and political interests prevailing in a range of social actors and in the municipal authorities in charge of promoting rural development based on a specific social construction on the use, management and socio-environmental problems of water.


Phytate is an important antinutritional component of legume seeds, which chelates minerals that are essential to the human diet such as iron and zinc. Phytate levels are often correlated with total seed phosphorus (P). The objective of this research was to evaluate quantitative trait loci (QTL) for seed P and phytate content in an inter-gene pool (G2333 x G19839) recombinant inbred line population of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) planted at medium and high levels of soil P in randomized complete block experiments. Seed P and phytate content were quantified with spectrophotometric methods based on acid digestion with molybdenum blue and Wade reagents, respectively, and net seed P and net phytate content were calculated on a per-seed basis using seed weights for each experiment. Total seed P varied from 2.8 to 6.1 g kg -1 and phytates varied from 0.29 to 1.78% across fertilization levels. A total of six QTL were found for total or net seed P, while three were found for percentage or net seed phytates. The QTL for seed P and percent phytates were located independently on linkage groups B2 and B11 vs. B6, respectively. Meanwhile, the QTL for net seed P or phytate content were related to seed weight QTL on linkage groups B6, B7, and B10, with one additional net phytate QTL on B5. The results suggest that bean plants can adapt to different initial supplies of P and that seed P and phytate levels in common bean can be modified through plant breeding.


The magnitude of and heterogeneity in systematic earnings risk has important implications for various theories in macro, labor, and financial economics. Using administrative data, we document how the aggregate risk exposure of individual earnings to GDP and stock returns varies across gender, age, the worker's earnings level, and industry. Aggregate risk exposure is U-shaped with respect to the earnings level. In the middle of the earnings distribution, aggregate risk exposure is higher for males, younger workers, and those in construction and durable manufacturing. At the top of the earnings distribution, aggregate risk exposure is higher for older workers and those in finance. Workers in larger employers are less exposed to aggregate risk, but they are more exposed to a common factor in employer-level earnings, especially at the top of the earnings distribution. Within an employer, higher-paid workers have higher exposure to the employer-level risk than lower-paid workers.


The recently described pathogen Erwinia pyrifoliae, isolated from Nashi pear fruit trees in Korea, resembles the fire blight pathogen Erwinia amylovora in some of its properties. The two pathogens were classified into different species by DNA hybridization kinetics and microbiological criteria. From the nucleotide sequences of the 16S rRNA and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region as well as extracellular polysaccharide (EPS)-encoding genes, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primers were designed that specifically detect E. pyrifoliae but not the fire blight pathogen Erwinia amylovora, and these primers were also applied to identify E. pyrifoliae in necrotic plant material. The genomes of several strains were digested with the restriction enzyme SpeI, and the DNA fragments were analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Three groups of patterns could be distinguished for the isolated E. pyrifoliae strains, all different from various E. amylovora strains, which produce a relatively homogeneous PFGE pattern after SpeI digests. Typical fire blight host plants were assayed in a growth chamber or an experimental field for their susceptibility to E. pyrifoliae. A strong preference was found for pear varieties, whereas apple, cotoneaster, hawthorn, or raspberry rarely produced necrotic symptoms. E. pyrifoliae was readily detected in samples from pear orchards in South Korea during 1995 to 1998; however, the Asian pear pathogen was not recovered in necrotic plant tissue from 1999 and 2000.


Focusing on the use of desert targets for solar channel calibration of geostationary satellites located in the west Pacific region, a desert target in Simpson Desert, Australia, was selected and used for the development of a calibration algorithm based upon radiative transfer modeling. The surface spectral reflectance required for radiative transfer calculation was obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)-bidirectional reflectance distribution functions after tuning against the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) spectral data. Top of the atmosphere radiance simulations were conducted over the desert target, and comparisons with MODISand Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS)-measured visible channel radiances revealed that the developed calibration method using the target over the Simpson Desert can be used to calibrate the geostationary visible channel within a 5% level of uncertainty. Application of the developed algorithm to Multi-Functional Transport Satellite (MTSAT-1R) visible channel measurements suggested that the MTSAT-1R operational calibration for the visible sensor appeared to be within a 5% error, but over the lower count value range.


Network inference approaches are now widely used in biological applications to probe regulatory relationships between molecular components such as genes or proteins. Many methods have been proposed for this setting, but the connections and differences between their statistical formulations have received less attention. In this paper, we show how a broad class of statistical network inference methods, including a number of existing approaches, can be described in terms of variable selection for the linear model. This reveals some subtle but important differences between the methods, including the treatment of time intervals in discretely observed data. In developing a general formulation, we also explore the relationship between single-cell stochastic dynamics and network inference on averages over cells. This clarifies the link between biochemical networks as they operate at the cellular level and network inference as carried out on data that are averages over populations of cells. We present empirical results, comparing thirty-two network inference methods that are instances of the general formulation we describe, using two published dynamical models. Our investigation sheds light on the applicability and limitations of network inference and provides guidance for practitioners and suggestions for experimental design.


Acute pancreatitis is an important current problem with a growing frequency and a potentially severe or even fatal evolution in some cases. In recent years, an increase in the incidence of acute pancreatitis has been observed in the population, which emphasizes the importance of establishing optimal therapeutic behavior. We performed a descriptive, retrospective clinical study, from January 2015 to November 2018, single-center, on a number of 57 patients with the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis. The presentation characteristics of patients with acute pancreatitis are largely consistent with the literature, with patient sex being the sure parameter that highlights a signifi cant difference, with a greater number of women being diagnosed with acute pancreatitis.


The experiment was conducted on a conventional direct injection diesel engine. Performance test was carried out to evaluate the performance and emission characteristics of a conventional diesel engine that operates on ethanol-diesel blends. The test procedure was performed by coupling the diesel engine on the eddy current dynamometer. Fuel consumption was measured using the AVL Fuel Balance, and a hotwire anemometer was used to measure the air consumption. Some of the emission test devices were mounted on the exhaust pipe. The test of fuel variations started from 100% diesel fuel (D100) to 2.5% (DE2.5), 5% (DE5), 7.5% (DE7.5), and 10% (DE10) ethanol additions. Performance test was conducted at 1500 rpm with load variations from 0 to 60 Nm by increasing the load on each level by 10 Nm. The addition of 5% ethanol to diesel (DE5) increased the average pressure of combustion chamber indication to 48% as well as reduced the specific fuel consumption to 9.5%. There were better exhaust emission characteristics at this mixture ratio than diesel engine which used pure diesel fuel (D100), the reduction of CO to 37%, HC to 44% and opacity to 15.9%.


Corruption as social phenomenon is studied by a variety of disciplines?? anthropology, criminology, development theory, economics, political science, psychology, sociology. Each of them has developed its own scientific traditions associated with different methods of collecting and analyzing empirical data, such as participant observation in anthropology or sociological interviews.In this paper we describe experimental methods, which in recent years have emerged as an important tool for interdisciplinary social analysis. In the first part of our work, we describe and confront experimental methods to other tools of social analysis, and characterize their relative strengths and weaknesses. In the second part, we turn to the experience of using experiments to study corruption and show their power and applicability whenever other methods are powerless. These conclusions are illustrated by the material of a unique laboratory study involving police officers of middle rank as experimental subjects, conducted by A. Belianin and L. Kosals in Moscow. We model corruption as a public good for potentially corrupt participants and measure their attitude towards this institution under different experimental conditions, especially those when its existence is pointless from individual and social rationality viewpoint. Our results speak in favour of combination of various research tools and methodologies for the study of complex social phenomena.


AIM
To compare the amount of debris extruded apically during root canal retreatment using ProTaper, Mtwo and Reciproc instruments with hand H-files.

METHODOLOGY
In total, 60 freshly extracted human mandibular incisor teeth were used. All root canals were prepared with a Reciproc R25 file than filled with Gutta-percha and AH Plus sealer using cold lateral condensation before being assigned randomly to four groups (n = 15 each). In group 1, root fillings were removed with the Protaper Universal retreatment system; ProTaper Universal F3 and F4 instruments were used for the final preparation. In group 2, root fillings were removed with the Mtwo retreatment system; Mtwo size 30, .06 taper, size 35, .06 taper and size 40, .06 taper files were used for the final preparation. In group 3, root fillings were removed with Reciproc R25 instruments; Reciproc R40 instruments were used for the final preparation. In group 4, the root fillings were removed with Gates Glidden burs and sizes 35, 30 and 25 H-files; for final preparation, a size 40 H-file was used. Glass vials were used for debris collection. The vials were weighed before and after Gutta-percha removal. Additionally, the times required for the retreatment procedures were recorded. Data were analysed statistically using one-way analysis of variance.

RESULTS
The Reciproc system produced significantly smaller amounts of apical extruded debris than the other groups (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the Mtwo, H-file and ProTaper groups. The ProTaper and Reciproc groups required significantly less time than the Mtwo and H-file groups (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS
Use of the reciprocating single file system resulted in the extrusion of significantly less debris compared with the full-sequence rotary NiTi instruments and hand filing. Use of the ProTaper and Reciproc instruments required less time for retreatment procedures than use of the Mtwo or H-file.


Objective: This paper describes a new pyrolysis instrument (LIPS: "Laser Induced Pyrolysis System") performing high resolution (centimetric or less) logs of organic carbon on ancient sediment cores . Stakes: the usual methods for determining the quantity of carbon in sediment samples (Rock-Eval, Leco, analysis of thin sections, etc.) are quite expensive, provide low resolution results (typically: one sample every 30cm to 2m) and are time and sample consuming. The processing of geophysical well logs provides low-resolution logs (about 30-50 cm). The characterization of organic carbon on cores needs high resolution, because its abundance may show huge variations at the millimetre or centimetre scale. One of the parameters driving the organic carbon quantity in ancient sediment is the climate. Principle: The LIPS performs automatic core analysis of organic carbon. The principle of the instrument consists in the pyrolysis of organic carbon using a beam of an infrared radiation emitted by power laser diodes focused on a small area of core (up to 20 MW/m2). Different power ranges can be used to adapt the instrument to the material analyzed. The organic vapors, oxidized compounds, micro- and nano-particles emitted during the very short impact (typically, 1-2 seconds) can be detected by various detectors (Photo ionization Detector, Flame Ionization Detector, Mass Spectrometer, Gas Analyzer, etc.) allowing high resolution logs of organic carbon. One hundred data points on a 1 meter core can be acquired in less than one hour. In order to obtain logs of organic carbon the method requires a calibration on a few points using, for instance, Rock-Eval or Organic Carbon Analyser on a limited number of samples. This new instrument consists in 4 main parts: 1/Bench for core examination and for acquiring the X,Y,Z coordinates of the laser impact on the core surface, 2/Core Box Storage Unit (CBSU), allowing to store up to 30 core boxes, 3/Core Box Sampler, used to carry the core boxes from CBSU to Acquisition Unit and vice-versa, 4/Acquisition Unit, including laser gun, detector(s), mechanism for moving the laser head and device for extracting organic vapors. Results: Initially developed for unconventional resources and tarmat in reservoirs, the LIPS is successfully applied for palaeoclimate recording.


ABSTRACT Cultural heritage sites are important tourist attractions for many tourism-oriented countries worldwide. As for Sarawak in Borneo, the traditional longhouses have been one of the key selling points of the in-bound tour operators nationwide and worldwide. Many tourists go to Sarawak to gain the unique experiences with these longhouses. This paper presents the findings of a survey which aimed to identify the dimensions of tourist satisfaction on the longhouses in Sarawak. Structured questionnaires were distributed to the visitors to gauge their perceptions towards the longhouses that they recently visited. The findings from 280 usable questionnaires show that the tourist satisfaction dimensions include the travel services, access, nature, safety, the longhouses' facilities, cleanliness, food and beverage, culture, people and overall longhouse experience. Implications for the cultural heritage site marketing (focusing on longhouses) and future research directions are also discussed. Keywords: Tourist satisfaction, cultural destination, longhouses, Sarawak. I. INTRODUCTION Heritage sites which are rich in cultural value are commonly recognized as important tourist attractions and they continue to be a powerful motivator in tourists' journeys (Laws, 1998). However, managing them for maximized tourist satisfaction and loyalty is challenging. It is believed that the tourist satisfaction determinants need to be appropriately and holistically identified for more effective management. In Asia, specifically the Southeast Asia region, there are many cultural heritage sites which in-bound tourists enjoy visiting and will like to revisit as well. The built heritage like museums, temples, ethnic houses have contributed significantly as attractions. In Borneo, the Longhouses have been the traditional tourist attractions. Specifically, they are very important for Sarawak ecotourism. The traditional longhouses of the Dayaks in Sarawak have been one of the key selling points of the tour operators. Undoubtedly, many tourists especially the adventurous ones, come to Sarawak because of wanting to see and experience the unique longhouses in Sarawak. The process of going to the longhouses also can be a memorable and eye-opening experience to most tourists. To a lot of foreign tourists, these unique longhouse experiences are only available in Borneo. Nevertheless, the different facets of the said wonderful or even terrible experiences need to be appropriate understood and used for effective and sustainable ecotourism development as well as the marketing purposes. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to identify, in a more holistic manner, the dimensions of tourist satisfaction on longhouses in Sarawak for more effective longhouse marketing. A reliable and valid measuring instrument for longhouse satisfaction is developed. Visitor Orientation and Visitor Service for Satisfactory Longhouse Experience The longhouse visitors are considered as the customers and their needs and wants have to be well understood and responded accordingly to maximize satisfaction and loyalty. The philosophy of organizing the organization's activities around a good understanding of customer needs is not recent (Deshpande, 1999). The marketing concept emphasizes satisfying customers' needs, through the concerted or integrated efforts of all functional units in an organization, for the sake of the organization's performance or profitability. Customer orientation is one of the major components of market orientation theory (e.g. Narver and Slater, 1990) that can effectively impact the performance of organisations like longhouses. A customer orientation requires that a seller understand a buyer's entire value chain (e.g. Narver and Slater, 1990). Recently, Yilmaz and Bititci (2006) even called for a value chain oriented performance measurement in order to measure and manage the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the tourism products and services in a more holistic manner. …


IN THEIR RESPONSE, AS IN THEIR PAPER, BYRNE AND THOMPSON elide the implausible assumptions that drive their model. Consider their statement: "Only a fraction of the population need view organ donation as costly for our results to hold.†Since I agree that survey evidence "unambiguously shows†that some people do not want to be organ donors it would seem they have proven their case. Yet, they have omitted the most important aspects of their model. For their perverse supply result to occur, not only must some people who truly find the prospect of organ donation distasteful nevertheless sign their organ donor cards in response to a monetary incentive, but, also, a significant portion of families must, in an attempt to discern the donor's "true†intentions, decide not to allow organ harvesting, reversing the express intent indicated on the card. Because of their love for the potential donor, the families will try to have their cake and eat it too—that is, receive the reward for signing the organ donor card and also receive the reward of not donating the organs.


Substantial evidence indicates that incentive value depends on an anticipation of rewards within a given context. However, the computations underlying this context sensitivity remain unknown. To address this question, we introduce a normative (Bayesian) account of how rewards map to incentive values. This assumes that the brain inverts a model of how rewards are generated. Key features of our account include (i) an influence of prior beliefs about the context in which rewards are delivered (weighted by their reliability in a Bayes-optimal fashion), (ii) the notion that incentive values correspond to precision-weighted prediction errors, (iii) and contextual information unfolding at different hierarchical levels. This formulation implies that incentive value is intrinsically context-dependent. We provide empirical support for this model by showing that incentive value is influenced by context variability and by hierarchically nested contexts. The perspective we introduce generates new empirical predictions that might help explaining psychopathologies, such as addiction. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.16127.001


This paper presents a 2-year review and an evaluation of the performance of fiber-reinforced polymer-modified asphalt concrete (FPMAC). A comparison is made of its characteristics with polymer-modified asphalt concrete (PMAC) through laboratory experiments and field observations. Polymers are believed to enhance the binding properties of the asphalt pavements to increase their engineering properties. Some researchers and highway agencies in the cold regions have considered adding fibers in the currently used polymer-modified asphalt concrete to produce FPMAC to be used in pavement construction. FPMAC has the potential to enhance asphalt pavement properties, such as increasing stiffness, resistance to deformation, and stability. An asphalt paving project made of PMAC and FPMAC was implemented in Flagstaff, Arizona, with a goal of evaluating the effect of fiber reinforcement in the performance enhancement of FPMAC. FPMAC and PMAC samples were collected at the job site and shipped back to the materials laboratories at both Northern Arizona University and Arizona State University for experimentations. Throughout the thermal cracking tests and dynamic modulus tests, all data indicated that FPMAC has better performance. After 2-year field visits, FPMAC has showed fewer cracks (with accumulative crack length of 11.2 ft) as compared with PMAC (with accumulative crack length of 123.2 ft). FPMAC has successfully demonstrated its abilities to resist thermal cracking, freeze–thaw cycling, and rutting deformation.


WISH XML Query Composer is a tool for composing form-based queries and their associated reports for relational databases. This tool incorporates two industry standards to generate user-friendly customizable queries and reports. The Structured Query Language (SQL) has been a universal standard for accessing data in relational databases since 1989. The Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a relatively new standard documented by World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that supports data exchange on the World Wide Web. Today, many different Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS) utilize SQL as the primary means for accessing and manipulating data. The design of the WISH XML Query Composer is an attempt to use the very simple but flexible XML semantics to represent database schemas, SQL queries and result datasets, regardless of in what RDBMS the data is stored. This thesis describes the design and implementation of the WISH XML Query Composer. The tool is written in Java programming language with Swing components, and connects to the database through Java Database Connectivity (JDBC). Java Architecture for XML Binding (JAXB) is used to automate the mapping between XML documents and Java objects.


Long neglected by European historians, the unspeakable atrocities of Franco's Spain are finally brought to tragic light in this definitive work. The remains of General Francisco Franco lie in an immense mausoleum near Madrid, built with the blood and sweat of twenty thousand slave laborers. His enemies, however, met less-exalted fates. Besides those killed on the battlefield, tens of thousands were officially executed between 1936 and 1945, and as many again became "non-persons." As Spain finally reclaims its historical memory, a full picture can now be given of the Spanish Holocaust-ranging from judicial murders to the abuse of women and children. The story of the victims of Franco's reign of terror is framed by the activities of four key men-General Mola, Quiepo de Llano, Major Vallejo Najera, and Captain Don Gonzalo Aguilera-whose dogma of eugenics, terrorization, domination, and mind control horrifyingly mirror the fascism of Italy and Germany. Evoking such classics as Gulag and The Great Terror, The Spanish Holocaust sheds crucial light on one of the darkest and most unexamined eras of modern European history.


This book provides the reader with a comprehensive overview of the new open source programming language Go (in its first stable and maintained release Go 1) from Google. The language is devised with Java / C#-like syntax so as to feel familiar to the bulk of programmers today, but Go code is much cleaner and simpler to read, thus increasing the productivity of developers. You will see how Go: simplifies programming with slices, maps, structs and interfaces incorporates functional programming makes error-handling easy and secure simplifies concurrent and parallel programming with goroutines and channels And you will learn how to: make use of Go's excellent standard library program Go the idiomatic way using patterns and best practices in over 225 working examples and 135 exercises This book focuses on the aspects that the reader needs to take part in the coming software revolution using Go.