We describe four women who presented with systemic sclerosis several years after cosmetic augmentation mammoplasty with silicone-gel implants. The interval between implantation mammoplasty and the onset of systemic sclerosis ranged from 6 to 15 years. All patients fulfilled the criteria established by the American Rheumatism Association for systemic sclerosis and had Raynaud phenomenon, arthralgia, and evidence of pulmonary or gastrointestinal involvement. Enlargement of lymph nodes draining the prostheses was noted in two patients. Antinuclear antibodies were detected in three patients and showed speckled or nucleolar patterns. Removal of the prostheses in two cases did not result in improvement of systemic sclerosis. Evidence of silicone leakage from the implants included the following. The observation by light microscopy of refractile particles in tissues distant from the prostheses, the observation by electron microscopy of electron-dense structures consistent with silica, and the definitive identification of the element silicon by energy-dispersive analysis in these electron-dense structures. A marked, chronic inflammatory infiltrate containing lymphocytes, "foamy" histiocytes, and larger numbers of multi-nucleated giant cells with vacuoles and asteroid bodies was found at the same sites. Our demonstration that silicone escapes from elastomer-silicone-gel breast implants and appears to be closely associated with a chronic inflammatory reaction suggests that silicone plays a role in the development of certain cases of systemic sclerosis.


Shahnama Studies III offers new insights into the reception of the Shahnama or Book of Kings, composed by the Persian poet Firdausi in the 10th-11th century in eastern Iran.


The Polymer Film Tensile Experiment (PFTE) was flown as part of Materials International Space Station Experiment 6 (MISSE 6). The purpose of the experiment was to expose a variety of polymer films to the low Earth orbital environment under both relaxed and tension conditions. The polymers selected are those commonly used for spacecraft thermal control and those under consideration for use in spacecraft applications such as sunshields, solar sails, and inflatable and deployable structures. The dog-bone shaped samples of polymers that were flown were exposed on both the side of the MISSE 6 Passive Experiment Container (PEC) that was facing into the ram direction (receiving atomic oxygen, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, ionizing radiation, and thermal cycling) and the wake facing side (which was supposed to have experienced predominantly the same environmental effects except for atomic oxygen which was present due to reorientation of the International Space Station). A few of the tensile samples were coated with vapor deposited aluminum on the back and wired to determine the point in the flight when the tensile sample broke as recorded by a change in voltage that was stored on battery powered data loggers for post flight retrieval and analysis. The data returned on the data loggers was not usable. However, post retrieval observation and analysis of the samples was performed. This paper describes the preliminary analysis and observations of the polymers exposed on the MISSE 6 PFTE.


Specimens of Bolivina argentea and Bulimina marginata , two widely distributed temperate benthic foraminiferal species, were cultured at constant temperature and controlled p CO2 (ambient, 1000 ppmv, and 2000 ppmv) for six weeks to assess the effect of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations on survival and fitness using Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) analyses and on shell microfabric using high-resolution SEM and image analysis. To characterize the carbonate chemistry of the incubation seawater, total alkalinity and dissolved inorganic carbon were measured approximately every two weeks. Survival and fitness were not directly affected by elevated p CO2 and the concomitant decrease in seawater pH and calcite saturation states (Ωc), even when seawater was undersaturated with respect to calcite. These results differ from some previous observations that ocean acidification can cause a variety of effects on benthic foraminifera, including test dissolution, decreased growth, and mottling (loss of symbiont color in symbiont-bearing species), suggesting that the benthic foraminiferal response to ocean acidification may be species specific. If so, this implies that ocean acidification may lead to ecological winners and losers even within the same taxonomic group.


Design is usually focussed around the development or improvement of innovative commercial services or products, society is encouraged to purchase goods and services eto improve our lifestyles. Design promotes and creates desires and aspirations for particular lifestyles, it affects how people/society live and work, it sustains cultural identity. Design and creativity is an important tool for sustaining economies, encouraging consumers to spend. Design is a powerful tool. This project will use design skills and expertise to challenge public opinion and lifestyles with regard to consumerism and social well-being. This proposal will enrich design students education by introducing issues that all countries/cultures are having to address: climate change – the result of lifestyles across the globe and the change of demographic: a higher percentage of elderly people within society as people (in developed countries) are living longer. Design students will generate responses/ideas and concepts through identifying, comparing and understanding different cultural practices or responses within a number of countries to these two themes – "Innovation through Cross Cultural Fusion". The focus for the project centers around different cultural practices developed in response to topics that impact across boarders and cultures:
Climate change/environmental/sustainable lifestyles (the reduction of carbon gas output), and
Social Well-being – what impact can design have on the changing demographic of the population/society? How can design help maintain independent living for an increasing elderly population? Countries across the globe are addressing these themes as a result of different political, social, economic and demographic frames of reference and this project will be a celebration of of different cultural practices by synthesising and identifying good practices. This proposal will provide both UG & PG students from different countries with an opportunity to work together, students will form international groups and learn how different cultures have responded to common themes. The international network/partners will include:
Sheffield Hallam University – England, UK
Ecole De Nantes Atlantique, France
Akademia Sztuk Pienych W Katowicach - Poland


Simple additive weighting is a well-known method for scoring and ranking alternative options based on multiple attributes. However, the pitfalls associated with this approach are not widely appreciated. For example, the apparently innocuous step of normalizing the various attribute data in order to obtain comparable figures leads to markedly different rankings depending on which normalization is chosen. When the criteria are aggregated using multiplication, such difficulties are avoided because normalization is no longer required. This removes an important source of subjectivity in the analysis because the analyst no longer has to make a choice of normalization type. Moreover, it also permits the modelling of more realistic preference behaviour, such as diminishing marginal utility, which simple additive weighting does not provide. The multiplicative approach also has advantages when aggregating the ratings of panel members. This method is not new but has been ignored for too long by both practitioners and teachers. We aim to present it in a nontechnical way and illustrate its use with data on business schools.


Western Australia's non-tidal waters provide refuges to many unique fishes. Here we provide an overview to synthesise contemporary knowledge on these species with the aim of providing readers with an understanding of their biological, ecological and conservation significance. Western Australian inland aquatic ecosystems provide critical habitats for many obligate freshwater fishes as well as diadromous species that rely on fresh water to complete their life-cycle. Five of Australia's 10 ichthyological provinces are found within the State, three in their entirety. Notable species from evolutionary and biogeographic perspectives include the enigmatic Gondwanan relic Lepidogalaxias salamandroides (Salamanderfish) and the ancient jawless fish, the anadromous Geotria australis (Pouched Lamprey) in the Southwestern Province. The Pilbara Province supports Australia's only known obligate vertebrate stygofauna, including one of the world's largest stygofauna species, Ophisternon candidum (Blind Cave Eel), and two blind eleotrids (Milyeringa spp.). The freshwaters of the Kimberley region support three elasmobranchs including Pristis pristis (Largetooth or Freshwater Sawfish) and features high species richness and endemicity in the Terapontidae and Eleotridae. The Paleo Province encompasses much of the arid interior of the State, and has very few records of fishes. Western Australian rivers also provide habitat for a small number of euryhaline elasmobranchs that have become vulnerable to extinction elsewhere, and other fishes that utilise these habitats as nurseries. The State supports many fishes that are nationally and internationally listed as threatened or of conservation concern and an increasing number of alien fishes. We collated a total of 102 native fish species that are found within fresh waters of the State, of which 66 are obligate freshwater fish species, three are stygofauna, and a further two have amphidromous and potamodromous populations. In addition, several estuarine species are able to breed in fresh waters, the remainder being diadromous or 'wanderers' that are freshwater vagrants.


In This study , the large amplitude vibration analysis of laminated composite beam under thermal stress with axially fixed ends is investigated with symmetric and asymmetric layup orientations by using the Rayleigh–Ritz (R–R) method. An exhaustive set of beam boundary condition are studied, namely, hinged-hinged, clamped-clamped, hinged- clamped, hinged-guided and clamped-guided beam in order to prove the efficacy of the present formulation. The composite beam is studied in this paper based on Euler-Bernoulli assumption together with von-Karman's strain-displacement relation. The simple and efficient closed-form solutions are obtained for the nonlinear harmonic radian frequency as function of central amplitude of the beam using the R–R method. Comparison between results of the present study and those available in literature shows the accuracy of presented closed-form solutions.


This study analyzed the characteristics of Small businesses (SBs) in Lagos, Nigeria and examined factors influencing the capacity of SMEs to create employment in Lagos in Southwest, Nigeria. Primary data were used for this study. The target population was all small businesses in Lagos State. The choice of the study area was based on size and concentration of SMEs. Data were collected using questionnaires from a sample of 180 small firms. The selection of respondents was done using two- stage stratified sampling procedures. In the first stage, five local governments with highest number of SMEs concentration were selected. In the second stage, using systematic sampling on the list of all the SMEs in the selected local governments, a total 36 SBs were selected systematically from each local government area in the five LGAs in Lagos state. The data collected were analysed using appropriate descriptive statistics and inferential techniques. The results showed that majority (75%) of surveyed SMEs operating in the study area were microenterprises employing less than 10 workers while only (19%) and (6%) of the respondents engaged in small scale and medium scale enterprises employing between 10 and 50 workers respectively. The results also showed that there was substantial increase (133%) in number of SMEs owners that have grown in terms of employment generation from microenterprises to small scale and medium firms over the span of five years. The result showed further that business registration, business size, nature of business, sources of capital, were the major factors determining both income and employment generation potentials of SMEs. The study concluded that age of business, education, and sources of raw materials were only significant in influencing the capacity of SME to generate employment.


There is increasing emphasis on personal outcomes in social work and social care services in the UK and internationally. Outcomes based working can offer real potential to revisit social work values and to ensure that disabled people are more effectively included in decision-making about their lives. There is evidence that outcomes based working supports a shift in focus from matching individual deficits to a limited range of service options, to building on the strengths and capacities of each individual and to more creative ways of achieving outcomes. There is also potential to use aggregated information about individual outcomes to influence service planning and design at the locality level. Whilst the considerable improvement potential of the approach is emerging, it is apparent that there are different understandings and interpretations of outcomes at play in both policy and practice terms. Based on more than five years experience of developing and implementing an outcomes approach to Scotland, this paper locates the new focus on outcomes in its recent policy context and considers key barriers to implementation. It explores understandings of outcomes from the perspectives of service stakeholders ranging from service users and carers to policy-makers, and emphasises the need for a common perspective. This work has shown that there are two core outcomes paradigms are currently at play: the improving agenda as described above, and the 'proving' agenda. While the improving agenda involves putting the person at the centre with a change management agenda which focuses on culture, relationship building and flexible approaches to communication, the proving agenda is more consistent with managerialism. It centres on evaluating and evidencing improvement to external stakeholders, leaning towards measurement and standardisation, and has a focus on tools and processes. It is essential to strike the right balance between these approaches. While there is potential for a focus on outcomes to result in improved inclusion of people with disabilities in decision-making, this requires that the improvement agenda should remain paramount.


Improper string manipulations are an important cause of software defects, which make them a target for program analysis by hackers and developers alike. Symbolic execution based program analysis techniques that systematically explore paths through stringintensive programs require reasoning about string and bit-vector constraints cohesively. The current state of the art symbolic execution engines for programs written in C/C++ languages track constraints on a bit-level and use bit-vector solver to reason about the collected path constraints. However, string functions incur high-performance penalties and lead to path explosion in the symbolic execution engine. The current state of the art string solvers are written primarily for the analysis of web applications with underlying support for the theory of strings and integers, which limits their use in the analysis of low-level programs. Therefore, we designed a decision procedure for the theory of strings and bit-vectors in Z3-str2, a decision procedure for strings and integers, to efficiently solve word equations and length functions over bit-vectors. The new theory combination has a significant role in the detection of integer overflows and memory corruption vulnerabilities associated with string operations. In addition, we introduced a new search space pruning technique for string lengths based on a binary search approach, which enabled our decision procedure to solve constraints involving large strings. We evaluated our decision procedure on a set of real security vulnerabilities collected from Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database and compared the result against the Z3-str2 string-integer solver. The experiments show that our decision procedure is orders of magnitude faster than Z3-str2 string-integer. The techniques we developed have the potential to dramatically improve the efficiency of symbolic execution of string-intensive programs. In addition to designing and implementing a string bit-vector solver, we also addressed the problem of automated remote exploit construction. In this context, we introduce a practical approach for automating remote exploitation using information leakage vulnerability and show that current protection schemes against control-flow hijack attacks are not always very effective. To demonstrate the efficacy of our technique, we performed an over-the-network format string exploitation followed by a return-to-libc attack against a pre-forking concurrent server to gain remote access to a shell. Our attack managed to defeat various protections including ASLR, DEP, PIE, stack canary and RELRO.


Lignin is a potential renewable material for the production of bio-sourced aromatic chemicals. We present the first hydrotreatment of lignin pyrolysis vapors, before any condensation, using inexpensive and sustainable iron-silica (Fe/SiO2 ) and iron-activated carbon (Fe/AC) catalysts. Lignin pyrolysis was conducted in a tubular reactor and vapors were injected in a fixed bed of catalysts (673 K, 1 bar) with stacks to investigate the profile of coke deposit. More than 170 GC-analyzable compounds were identified by GCxGC (heart cutting)/flame ionization detector mass spectrometry. Lignin oligomers were analyzed by very high resolution mass spectrometry, called the "petroleomic" method. They are trapped by the catalytic fixed bed and, in particular, by the AC. The catalysts showed a good selectivity for the hydrodeoxygenation of real lignin vapors to benzene, toluene, xylenes, phenol, cresols, and alkyl phenols. The spent catalysts were characterized by temperature-programmed oxidation, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and N2 sorption. Micropores in the Fe/AC catalyst are completely plugged by coke deposits, whereas the mesoporous structure of Fe/SiO2 is unaffected. TEM images reveal two different types of coke deposit: 1) catalytic coke deposited in the vicinity of iron particles and 2) thermal coke (carbonaceous particles ≈1 μm in diameter) formed from the gas-phase growth of lignin oligomers.


Topic & Aim:
The idea that a strong entrepreneurial learning imperative underpins the endeavours of the nascent entrepreneur is widely acknowledged. To this end and as part of a broader start-up competition agenda, Business Plan Competitions are readily prescribed as an important entrepreneurial learning activity. This is on the basis of participation affording development of skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary to successful venture implementation. Such prescription appears underpinned by the assumed strong synergies between the competition experience offered and how nascent entrepreneurs are purported to learn, henceforth an emphasis upon learning by and through doing, stakeholder interaction, mentoring and feedback. Business Plan Competitions are accordingly promoted as representing an authentic experience which, through the participant engaging in business plan production, pitching, networking and training workshops, provides learning of relevance and applicative benefit beyond a competition context.

Despite the persistent championing of their entrepreneurial learning credentials, Business Plan Competitions represent an under researched phenomenon; particularly within the context of the entrepreneurial learning of the nascent entrepreneur. Consequently Business Plan Competition participation has largely gone unchallenged as an entrepreneurial learning experience. Acceptance of this agenda is apparent despite a clear lack of evidence to support such an impact; specifically from the perspective of the nascent entrepreneur participant both immediately following and in the months after their participation. These considerations rendered the exploration of how Business Plan Competition participation serves to provide know-how amongst nascent entrepreneurs an important and timely aim for research.

Method:
Given the exploratory nature of this research a longitudinal qualitative methodological approach was adopted. Positioning nascent entrepreneur participants as the focus of analysis, the paper draws upon data yielded from participants of a UK university based Business Plan Competition over three stages; at the start-of, end-of and six months after participation. In-depth open-ended interviews were utilised as a data collection method. This method enabled the accessing, capturing and elucidating nascent entrepreneur experiences of the competition but also appreciation of the meanings attached to this experience as a source of entrepreneurial learning. An inductive analytical approach was taken to identify patterns across participant accounts Data was analysed according to the stage of data collection with this analysis informing the subsequent stage[s] of data collection.

Findings and Contribution:
The findings of the study indicated clear shifts amongst participants away from viewing the BPC participation as an entrepreneurial learning experience but also a narrowing relevance of learning afforded through participation over the study period.

At the start of the competition, participation was viewed as a valuable learning opportunity in pursuit of making the nascent venture happen. Accordingly and symptomatic of their nascent status, the entrepreneurs were aware of the know-how which they did not hold but needed to progress the venture. The competition and its experiential emphasis, was viewed as being able to provide lacking capabilities which participants moreover perceived would be beneficial in the taking their venture forward.

Immediately after the competition, participants considered their participation experience to have served as an entrepreneurial learning opportunity. With some affordance of know-how sought particularly with regards to pitching, public speaking, networking and business plan production but also the self-confidence that that this knowledge could be used. Participants envisaged that the value of this learning would be realised as such in the coming months with contexts for application identified.

Analysis of the data collected six months following the competition suggested that whilst participants still recognised that know-how had been developed this was viewed as having limited application outside a competition context; competition and venture implementation know-how were thus no longer seen as synonymous. Accordingly the know-how afforded through the competition was deemed by participants as being confined to participation in other competitions rather than the routine day-to-day aspects of new venture implementation. A prevailing participant view that start-up competition participation represented an important activity which would enable value to be leveraged in terms finance, marketing and networking opportunities rendered attitude that developed know-how would be useful.

These findings suggest that whilst competition participation provides know-how, the outcome of this learning can be deemed confined to further competition participation. Despite previously envisaged wider applicative benefit. However this can still be viewed necessary learning given the nascent entrepreneurs need to procure value from competition participation. Accordingly the findings are used to introduce the notion of 'start-up competition know-how'. Such know-how entails the knowledge, skill and attitudinal dimensions needed to realise value from competition participation and more specifically related to pitching, business plan production, networking, self-confidence and a pro-competition attitude. Considerations of competition know-how aside, these results serve to question the Business Plan Competition as the highly relevant and broadly applicable learning experience often espoused. What this research also highlights is a need to progress the conversation about the Business Plan Competition, with further critical examination of the competition agenda necessary.


The formation of international mergers is examined in the presence of two kinds of asymmetric information, one when a local firm has private information on market size and the other when a foreign firm has private information on its technology. In each situation, parametric configurations are identified under which a merger offer may or may not be made. It also examines the kind of offer and the probability of its acceptance. The likelihood of a merger beingformed is also related to the basic market size, demand uncertainty, and cost uncertainty. Welfare effects of tax/subsidy policies by the host country are also analyzed. Copyright (c) 2001 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.


Cocktails are the most American of alcoholic beverages, and at the same time the most international of drinks. Created in the United States around 1806, they quickly spilled over into all corners of the globe. The cocktail's ancestor, punch, arrived from the British colonies and became a mainstay of taverns and entertaining at home in the eighteenth century. After ice began to be mechanically harvested and sold, and mixers such as soda water invented, the modern cocktail was born; and with it cocktail parties, cocktail dresses, cocktail hors d'oeuvres, cocktail napkins and the Molotov cocktail. From Singapore to New York, Rio to Bangkok, Joseph M. Carlin describes how cocktails have influenced society around the world, and explores the new breed of cocktails currently being fashioned by artisanal mixologists. Featuring many tempting recipes, "Cocktails: A Global History" will appeal to anyone who enjoys a cocktail or is interested in how some of our most popular drinks were invented and travelled around the globe.


This article introduces the Journal of Political Ecology Special Section on 'towards a political ecology of applied anthropology.' We provide a brief overview and analysis of the history and application of applied and practicing anthropology. Examining moral and ethical issues related to the application of anthropology, we assess current endeavors and make suggestions for future directions from a political ecology perspective. Introducing five articles that exemplify our approach, we identify common themes and particular contexts that both unify and distinguish each of the contributions. Throughout this introduction, we propose a potential guidepost for a political-ecology informed applied anthropology: any applied anthropology that engages, documents, promotes, and supports cultural diversity, social justice and environmental sustainability is just. Conversely, any applied anthropology that threatens cultural diversity and environmental sustainability is unjust. Key words: applied anthropology, imperialism, political ecology, neoliberalism, ethics


High-Q silicon membranes have been fabricated as resonator elements for excitation by magnetic direct generation of acoustic waves. Operating in the thickness shear mode, these inexpensive sensor elements are remotely excited by a planar spiral coil, driven by a radio frequency current and a strong static magnetic field. Modelling and FEM simulation have been done to improve the understanding of the sensor principle. Strong resonances with Q-factors up to 105 could be excited and detected successfully. Mass loading of these resonators shows Sauerbrey-like frequency shifts similar to quartz crystal microbalance sensors.


In this paper a partial interdiction problem on a capacitated hierarchical system is studied. We consider an attacker who can interdict facilities at different levels and each interdiction level causes a specified reduction in the capacity of a facility depending upon its service level in the hierarchy. First, the interdictor identifies her interdiction strategy whose aim is to cause the most demand satisfaction cost subject to her budgetary limitation. Subsequently, the defender tries to optimize the objective function which is similar to the attacker's one but in the opposite direction. The defender is responsible for choosing the least cost strategy in order to satisfy all customers' demand. She can achieve this goal by two ways: (1) allocating their demand to the hierarchical facilities subject to their residual capacity, (2) benefiting from outsourcing option. This problem can be regarded as a static Stackelberg game between a malicious interdictor as the leader and a system defender as the follower. In this paper we propose a bi-level mathematical formulation in order to model the problem. To solve this problem with exhaustive enumeration, CPLEX has been used.


YACHT CHARTER CHALKIDIKI SERVICES. Succumb to the pleasure of the idyllic cruise in the emerald waters of Chalkidiki, where time is measured by gently lapping waters and the refreshing sea breeze. Discover the hidden coves of Sithonia and the sacred Mount Athos peninsula, or fall under the spell of the lush coastlines of Skiathos and Skopelos in the Sporades.


This chapter aims to illustrate the dynamic functioning of the recursive double-layered structure – which this volume sets as constitutive for the narrative discourse – by means of exemplary analysis of complex strategies of perspectivization in narrative texts. The focus of the chapter thus lies on the narrative macro-structure on the one hand and the relation between narrative micro- and macro-structure on the other.The key premise here is the assumption that meta-discursive strategies reveal the underlying double structure of narrative discourse, since they are based on the constitutive distance between the narrator- and character-level (cf. Chapter 1 in this volume). In order to make obvious the recursive embedding of perspectives and the crucial function of the narrator as a dynamic instance of mediation, evaluation, and perception, the chapter introduces a three-staged model of narrative communication. This model builds the foundation for two exemplary analyses of narrative texts which show a very distinct presence and manner of their respective narrator: E.T.A. Hoffmann's Romantic-era novella The Golden Pot (orig. Der goldne Topf , 1814) and Wolf Haas' contemporary series of detective novels.


Gut-liver axis is increasingly recognized to be involved in the pathogenesis and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The gut microbiota and intestinal permeability have been demonstrated to be the key players in the gut-liver cross talk in NAFLD. Geniposide and chlorogenic acid (GC) combination is derived from a traditional Chinese medicine, Qushi Huayu Decoction (QHD), which has been used in clinic for NAFLD treatment for decades in China and validated in multiple animal models of NAFLD. GC combination previously has been demonstrated to treat NAFLD via modulation on the gut microbiota composition. In the present study, the effects of GC combination on gut barrier function in NAFLD were evaluated, and QHD and sodium butyrate (NaB), the intestinal mucosa protectant, were used as positive control. The therapeutic effect of GC combination on NAFLD were confirmed by amelioration on non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) induced by high-fat diet (HFD) in mouse, which was comparable to that of QHD. Simultaneously, GC combination was found to reduce the signaling of gut-derived lipopolysaccharide (LPS) including hepatic LPS binding protein, Toll like receptor 4, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor –α, and Kupffer cells infiltration. Furthermore, GC combination reduced LPS and D-lactate in plasma, restoring the colonic tight junction (TJ) expression and inhibited colonic TJs disassembly by down-regulation on RhoA/ROCK signaling in NASH induced by HFD. On the other hand, NASH was also alleviated in NaB group. The results of the present study suggested the important role of protection on gut barrier function in NAFLD treatment, which contributed to the therapeutic effects of GC combination on NASH.


The majority of the 542 typhlopid specimens examined by Edgar Waite for his 1918 monograph of the family are identified, and their current status discussed. Most Waite records that do not correspond with the distribution based on modern records are shown to be in error, involving either misidentifications, misreadings of localities, or transposition of data. A few remaining problematic records are considered dubious due to a lack of supporting data. Ramphotyphlops batillus (Waite, 1894), known only from the holotype from Wagga Wagga, NSW, is restored to the Australian fauna, and new data on the type are provided. Probable paratypes for Typhlops grypus (SAM R849; QM J2947), T. proximus (AM R615, R145401- 07, SAM R915) and T. subocularis (AM R2169) are identified. New data on dorsal scale counts are provided for Ramphotyphlops leucoproctus (377-394), R. polygrammicus (370-422), R. proximus (326- 392), R. wiedii (381-439) and R. yirrikalae (447-450).


Abstract The proposition that the Grenville Province is a remnant of a large hot long-duration collisional orogen is examined through a comparative study of its present orogenic front, the Grenville Front, and a former front, the Allochthon Boundary Thrust. Structural, metamorphic and geochronologic data for both boundaries and their hanging walls from the length of the Grenville Province are compared. Cumulative displacement across the Grenville Front was minor (10 s of km) whereas that across the Allochthon Boundary Thrust was major (100 s of km), consistent with the observation that the latter boundary separates rocks with a different age, and P–T character, of metamorphism. On an orogen scale, Grenvillian metamorphism can be subdivided into two spatially and temporally distinct orogenic phases, a relatively high T Ottawan (c. 1090–1020 Ma) phase in the hanging wall of the Allochthon Boundary Thrust, and a relatively lower T Rigolet (c. 1000–980 Ma) phase in the hanging wall of the Grenville Front. It is argued that the structural setting and ≥50 My duration of Ottawan metamorphism are compatible with some form of channel flow beneath an orogenic plateau, with the Allochthon Boundary Thrust forming the base of the channel. Channel flow ceased at c. 1020 Ma when the Allochthon Boundary Thrust was reworked as part of a system of normal-sense shear zones, and following a hiatus of c. 20 My the short-lived Rigolet metamorphism took place in the former foreland and involved the development of a new orogenic front, the Grenville Front. Taken together, this suggests the Grenville Orogen developed as a large hot long-duration orogen during the Ottawan orogenic phase, but following gravitational collapse of the plateau the locus of thickening migrated into the foreland and active tectonism was restricted to a subjacent small cold short-duration orogen. The foreland-ward migration of the orogenic front from the Allochthon Boundary Thrust to the Grenville Front, the contrasting P–T–t character of the metamorphic rocks in their hanging walls, and the evidence for orogenic collapse followed by renewed growth, provide insights into the complex evolution of a long-duration collisional orogen.


Mesophilic Aeromonas are opportunistic human pathogens which produce a wide range of virulence factors and have been isolated from both untreated and chlorinated drinking waters. The presence of these microorganisms in the distribution systems suggests that Aeromonas could display an adaptive response to oxidant present during water treatment. This adaptive response of Aeromonas would lead to interference in analysis for faecal coliforms used to determine the quality of potable drinking water, and be a potential source of intestinal disorders. The Colilert defmed substrate technology system was developed as a one-step detection of both coliforms and E. coli while suppressing non-coliform heterotrophic growth. Aeromonas species were previously shown to cause production of falsepositive reaction at high cell densities (Edberg et ai., 1988). Similar results were obtained in our study when using fresh Colilert reagents. However, results obtained during this project showed Aeromonas to mediate false-positive reactions at low cell densities (101 cells/ml in presence of salt, 102 cells/ml in absence of salt) when using Colilert reagents within 4 weeks prior to shelf-life expiry. Increased incidence in falsepositive reactions mediated by Aeromonas were shown to be dependent upon the stability of the Colilert reagent affected with age. Such Aeromonas interference would lead to over-estimation of coliforms and E. coli in potable drinking water supplies. The ability of bacteria to adapt to a wide range of stress factors such as pH, heat shock, oxidants or starvation has been extensively studied. Little is known about the response of Aeromonas to such stress conditions. During this project, it has been demonstrated that mesophilic Aeromonas display an adaptive tolerance response to a lethal oxidative challenge through pre-treatment with a sub-lethal dose of oxidant. The stress adaptation process was demonstrated to occur through synthesis of stress proteins and modulation of pre-existing catalase. Of the species studied, A. sobria was most sensitive, whereas A. caviae and A. hydrophila displayed similar responses to oxidative stress. The hypersensitivity of A. sobria did not impair the adaptive response of the organism. During our investigations, stationary phase Aeromonas cells have been shown to be more resistant than their logarithmic counterpart and suggested that excreted molecules may playa role in protecting the cells. Re-suspension of fresh cells into spent medium from a stationary phase cells revealed a higher resistance of these cells compared to those re-suspended in minimal medium. This resistance was demonstrated to be mediated by non-proteinaceous, thermo-sensitive effector molecule. A potential candidate as the effector molecule, butyryl homo serine lactone, was synthesised and assayed. Preliminary data strongly suggest that this molecule has a role to play in the stress adaptation phenomenon and might be involved in stimulating synthesis of key stress proteins.


This study argues that Nash equilibria with less variations in players' best responses are more appealing. To that regard, a notion measuring such variations, the entropic selection of Nash equilibrium, is presented: For any given Nash equilibrium, we consider the cardinality of the support of a player's best response against others' strategies that are sufficiently close to the behavior specified. These cardinalities across players are then aggregated with a real-valued function on whose form we impose no restrictions apart from the natural limitation to nondecreasingness in order to obtain equilibria with less variations. We prove that the entropic selection of Nash equilibrium is non-empty and admit desirable properties. Some well-known games, each of which display important insights about virtues / problems of various equilibrium notions, are considered; and, in all of these games our notion displays none of the criticisms associated with these examples. These examples also show that our notion does not have any containment relations with other associated and well-known refinements, perfection, properness and persistence.


Aims. We present the analysis of 26 nights of V and I time-series observations from 2011 and 2012 of the globular cluster M 30 (NGC 7099). We used our data to search for variable stars in this cluster and refine the periods of known variables; we then used our variable star light curves to derive values for the cluster's parameters. Methods. We used difference image analysis to reduce our data to obtain high-precision light curves of variable stars. We then estimated the cluster parameters by performing a Fourier decomposition of the light curves of RR Lyrae stars for which a good period estimate was possible. We also derive an estimate for the age of the cluster by fitting theoretical isochrones to our colour-magnitude diagram (CMD). Results. Out of 13 stars previously catalogued as variables, we find that only 4 are bona fide variables. We detect two new RR Lyrae variables, and confirm two additional RR Lyrae candidates from the literature. We also detect four other new variables, including an eclipsing blue straggler system, and an SX Phoenicis star. This amounts to a total number of confirmed variable stars in M 30 of 12. We perform Fourier decomposition of the light curves of the RR Lyrae stars to derive cluster parameters using empirical relations. We find a cluster metallicity [Fe/H](ZW) = -2.01 +/- 0.04, or [Fe/H](UVES) = -2.11 +/- 0.06, and a distance of 8.32 +/- 0.20 kpc (using RR0 variables), 8.10 kpc (using one RR1 variable), and 8.35 +/- 0.42 kpc (using our SX Phoenicis star detection in M 30). Fitting isochrones to the CMD, we estimate an age of 13.0 +/- 1.0 Gyr for M 30.


Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the sensitivity of regional and world poverty rates to the purchasing power parities (PPP) used in the calculations. The PPPs are required to convert the "international poverty line" typically denominated in US dollar to its local currency equivalent in the various countries. While recent studies on world poverty differ with respect to the specification of the international poverty line (IPL), they universally use the PPP available from the international comparison program (ICP). This study provides a departure and calculates PPPs using the Gini–Elteto–Koves–Szulc (GEKS) price index and country product dummy (CPD) model as alternatives to the ICP PPPs. The GEKS and CPD PPPs are compared with the ICP PPPs. The paper then compares the global and regional poverty rates based on the three sets of PPPs and presents evidence of significant revision to the poverty rates if we depart from the use of the ICP PPPs. The study tests for the presence of serial correlation between price movements in different countries and investigates its impact on the PPPs. The methodological contribution of this paper is to establish the close nexus between price indices and poverty rates via the PPPs used in obtaining the local currency unit (LCU) denominated IPL.

Design/methodology/approach

The PPP calculations in this paper relate to the ICP round, 2011. Along with the ICP PPPs from published reports (with India as the numeraire country), we report the following indices, namely, the GEKS, weighted CPD and its two spatially correlated generalisations. The ICP PPPs are used as benchmark. The ICP group in the World Bank made the price and expenditure information for 2011 available. Corresponding poverty rates are calculated at the country, regional and global levels.

Findings

The empirical evidence points to the fact that while at the country level the alternative calculations have high impact on the implied poverty rates, at the regional and global level the rates are reasonably quite robust.

Research limitations/implications

Three points are worth noting, namely, as opposed to the PPP for "Individual consumption expenditure by households" (ICEH), which is the PPP used for international poverty monitoring by the World Bank and others, we have used the ICP PPPs for "Actual individual consumption" (AIC); although ICP uses the GEKS procedure above the BH level, we independently calculated these PPPs using the price information provided, and the base country has been moved from the USA to India.

Practical implications

One can come up with independently estimated PPPs that do not require the elaborate and expensive procedure set up by the ICP and can arrive at robust poverty rates at the regional and global level.

Social implications

The change in base has been made as India shares many of the features of a developing country including high poverty rates, but at the same time provides a market and an economy size that places it in the top tier of nations. In addition, poverty comparisons amongst developing countries can be made using these PPPs directly, without reference to the USA. The poverty calculations are based on the PovcalNet program.

Originality/value

There is no clear answer to the question "how robust are the global poverty numbers to departures from the ICP PPPs?" in the literature nor is there any evidence on the robustness of the ICP PPPs themselves to changes in the ICP methodology. Given that the ICP uses the Gini–Elteto–Koves–Szulc (GEKS) multilateral price index in aggregation of ICP PPP basic heading data, in an attempt to partially answer this question this study examines the sensitivity of measures of relative prices (and poverty) to using CPD (and various spatial versions) and GEKS methods, using price data provided by the World Bank. It also verifies how these PPPs track the published 2011 ICP PPPs, which are used as benchmark.


Senegal is one of the very few former French colonies that explicitly pursued the sanitary regulation of prostitution after independence; in Senegal, the legal status of sex work turns on a distinction between registered "avowed" prostitutes, and non-registered, unofficial prostitutes – the clandestines. Based on fifteen months ethnographic study in two clinics this thesis traces the changes that have taken place in the regulation of commercial intimacy in Dakar following the integration of an experimental regime at the state clinic and the creation of the identity
"clandestine" by non-governmental organizations. Despite the enormous changes that have taken place over the course of the twentieth century, colonial sanitary regulation remains a governing "biopolitical paradigm" (Epstein, 2007), leaving its traces in the therapeutic, experimental, and affective lives of the clinics. In this thesis I examine how racial, gender, and class difference is produced in regulation through (1) the racial politics of colonial policy; (2) enactments of social and individual bodies at the Enda
mobile clinic; (3) how difference is written into the onto-epistemologies of molecular biology; (4) how attempts to understand and accommodate difference are attempted through bioethics and the material effects of ethical practice. I do this by paying close attention to the ethnomethods of the
professionals I study and to the local historical geographies of clinical practice. Throughout this
thesis I think about the feminist biopolitics that might be capable of responding to and theorizing the surprising social life of the clinics.


The vulnerability of automatic speaker verification systems to imposture or spoofing is widely acknowledged. This paper shows that extremely high false alarm rates can be provoked by simple spoofing attacks with artificial, non-speech-like signals and highlights the need for spoofing countermeasures. We show that two new, but trivial countermeasures based on higher-level, dynamic features and voice quality assessment offer varying degrees of protection and that further work is needed to develop more robust spoofing countermeasure mechanisms. Finally, we show that certain classifiers are inherently more robust to such attacks than others which strengthens the case for fused-system approaches to automatic speaker verification.


EU public procurement law relies on the specific enforcement mechanisms of the Remedies Directive, which sets out EU requirements of administrative oversight and judicial protection for public contracts. Recent developments in the case law of the CJEU and the substantive reform resulting from the 2014 Public Procurement Package may have created gaps in the Remedies Directive, which led the European Commission to publicly consult on its revision in 2015. One year after, the outcome of the consultation has not been published, but such revision now seems to have been shelved. This chapter takes issue with the shelving of the revision process and critically assesses whether the Remedies Directive is still fit for purpose. The chapter focuses on selected issues, such as the interplay between the Remedies Directive and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and with the general administrative law of the Member States. It also assesses the difficulties of applying the Remedies Directive 'as is' to some of the new rules of the 2014 Public Procurement Package, which creates uncertainty as to its scope of application, and gives rise to particular challenges for the review of exclusion decisions involving the exercise of discretion. The chapter also raises some issues concerning the difficulties derived from the lack of coordination of different remedies available under the Remedies Directive and briefly considers the need to take the development of ADR mechanisms into account. Overall, the chapter concludes that there are important areas where the Remedies Directive requires a revision, and submits that the European Commission should relaunch the review process as a matter of high priority.


This book presents a unified theory of random matrices for applications in machine learning, offering a large-dimensional data vision that exploits concentration and universality phenomena. This enables a precise understanding, and possible improvements, of the core mechanisms at play in real-world machine learning algorithms. The book opens with a thorough introduction to the theoretical basics of random matrices, which serves as a support to a wide scope of applications ranging from SVMs, through semi-supervised learning, unsupervised spectral clustering, and graph methods, to neural networks and deep learning. For each application, the authors discuss small- versus large-dimensional intuitions of the problem, followed by a systematic random matrix analysis of the resulting performance and possible improvements. All concepts, applications, and variations are illustrated numerically on synthetic as well as real-world data, with MATLAB and Python code provided on the accompanying website.


Experiences of after-death communication are normal, common, and usually healthy. They often go unreported by experiencers for fear of being judged, ridiculed, and/or thought to be mentally ill especially by doctors, therapists, and clergy. Four main categories of after-death communication experiences (ADCs) exist: spontaneous, facilitated, assisted, and requested. Spontaneous ADCs occur unexpectedly and uninvited. Facilitated ADCs occur during a specific established protocol and with the direction of a trained facilitator. Assisted ADCs involve receiving messages from the deceased through a psychic medium who directly experiences the communication and shares the messages received with the living. The term requested ADCs is proposed here to refer to experiences that occur as the result of the experiencer engaging in specific practices (other than facilitated or assisted experiences), employing technological or other physical apparatuses, using psychoactive substances, inviting the deceased to communicate, or simply intending that the experience occur. Most published research has examined the positive effects of spontaneous or facilitated ADCs on grief. Research examining the effects on grief of assisted ADCs is limited but trends toward a positive response. Reports on the effects of requested ADCs on grief are for the most part lacking and several research directions are open for further exploration. Counselors, healthcare providers, caregivers, and others who regularly interact with the grieving may benefit from better understanding these experiences but little to no formal training exists and they must independently seek out relevant materials. Ideally, this article will serve as one of those sources.


Using rainfall, public relief, and election data from India, we examine how governments respond to adverse shocks and how voters react to these responses. The data show that voters punish the incumbent party for weather events beyond its control. However, we find evidence that fewer voters punish the ruling party when the party responds vigorously to the crisis. Moreover, severe crises are associated with increased voter sensitivity to disaster assistance. These results are consistent with models of government accountability, and provide an explanation for Amartya Sen's claim that democratic governments respond better to salient emergencies than to less conspicuous ones. Even so, the results suggest that even the most responsive government will fare worse in the subsequent election than had there been no disaster.


The pharmaceutical industry endeavours to develop novel drug delivery systems which require excipients that fulfil specific functions. Excipients from renewable sources are attractive due to their sustainable mass production. The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential use of gel and whole leaf materials from Aloe vera and Aloe ferox as excipients in the formulation of controlled release matrix-type mini-tablets. The chemical composition of the freeze-dried aloe materials was characterised by means of proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and their flow properties determined. Matrix-type mini-tablets manufactured from the aloe materials alone, and in combination with other polymers were evaluated in terms of their physical characteristics, mucoadhesive properties, swelling behaviour and drug release kinetics. Some of the formulations exhibited high potential to control drug release from matrix-type tablets and some approached zero-order kinetics.


The ever-increasing Internet Protocol (IP) traffic volume has finally brought to light the high inefficiency of current wavelength-routed over rigid-grid optical networks in matching the client layer requirements. Such an issue results in the deployment of large-size, expensive, and power-consuming IP/Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) layers to perform the required grooming/aggregation functionality. To deal with this problem, the emerging flexgrid technology, allowing for reduced-size frequency grids (usually referred to as frequency slots), has recently attracted much attention among network operators, component and equipment suppliers, and the research community. In this paper, we tackle the multilayer IP/MPLS-over-flexgrid optimization problem. To this end, an integer linear programing formulation and a greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP) metaheuristic are provided. Using GRASP, we analyze the cost implications that a set of frequency slot widths have on the capital expenditure investments required to deploy such a multilayer network. For the sake of a compelling analysis, exhaustive numerical experiments are carried out considering a set of realistic network topologies, network equipment costs, and traffic instances. Results show that investments in optical equipment capable of operating under slot widths of 12.5 GHz, or even 25 GHz, are more appropriate, given the expected traffic evolution.


The civil–military dynamic in Southeast Asia has been a contested issue for years. Although most countries in the region have been undertaken democratic governance, the military role in politics remains relatively unresolved. After having relatively stable civilian governments for over a decade, the Thai military launched another coup in 2014 to topple a democratically elected government. In Indonesia and the Philippines, the military has been moderately controlled by the democratically elected civilian governments, but their professional roles in sustaining democratic principles and values are also questionable. Accordingly, the crucial issues are the role that the military plays in the transition period, such as in Thailand, and the degree to which the military is institutionalised under civilian control in nascent democracies, such as Indonesia and the Philippines. These issues are addressed in the books discussed herein.


We have demonstrated the detection of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) labeled with magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) using MgO-based magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) sensors. AFP is an important hepatic tumor biomarker and the detection of AFP has significant applications for clinical diagnostics and immunoassay for early-stage liver cancer indications. In this work, MgO-based MTJ sensors and 20-nm iron-oxide magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) were used for detecting AFP antigens by a sandwich-assay configuration. The MTJ sensors with a sensing area of 4 × 2 μm2 possess tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) of 122% and sensitivity of 0.95%/Oe at room temperature. The target AFP antigens of three concentrations were successfully detected, and the experimental data indicate that the resistance variations of the MTJ sensor increased with the AFP concentration ratios proportionally. These results demonstrate that MgO-based MTJ sensors together with MNPs are a promising biosensing platform for liver cancer immunoassay.


Research on larval production of Parrot red rainbow fish Glassolepis incisus has been done by using different numbers of raffia's rope as substrats for eggs attachment. A raffia's rope substrats of different plys concentrations namely A 360 plys, B 720 plys, and C 1080 plys were used. The spawning was carried out during 30 days, and larval feeding was given twice a day with frozen Chironomus larvae in ad satiation rate. The results showed that highest spawning frequencies was found in treatment A (360 plys) with 24 times, and then treatment B (720 plys) with 23 times, and treatment C (1080 plys) with 18 times. Highest eggs production were found on treatment A, B and C respectively at 1154 eggs, 892 eggs, and 691 eggs, respectively. Whiles the hatching rate were found that the treatment A = 92 %, treatment B= 85 % and treatment C= 94 %. The Treatment A overall was the best treatment in this experiment. Keyword: Larval, Parrot red rainbow, raffia rope, spawning


© 2015, Marine Ornithology. All rights reserved. Over the last 12 years, the use of global positioning system (GPS) technology to track the movements of seabirds has revealed important information on their behaviour and ecology that has greatly aided in their conservation. To date, the main limiting factor in the tracking of seabirds has been the size of loggers, restricting their use to medium-sized or larger seabird species only. This study reports on the GPS tracking of a small seabird, the Sooty Tern Onychoprion fuscatus, from the globally important population breeding on Dog Island, Anguilla. The eight Sooty Terns tracked in this preliminary study foraged a mean maximum distance of 94 (SE 12) km from the breeding colony, with a mean trip duration of 12 h 35 min, and mean travel speed of 14.8 (SE 1.2) km/h. While our study was limited in scope, it showed that small loggers such as the ones used present new opportunities for accurately tracking the short-term movements of small seabird species, thus providing huge potential to advance our understanding of seabird behaviour and conservation. Indeed, all study birds foraged in waters outside of Anguilla's Exclusive Economic Zone near the neighbouring islands of Saint Martin, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Eustatius, and St Kitts and Nevis, with 50% of birds commuting along the same route, thus demonstrating that the conservation of this population, with further study, will have geopolitical complexities.


In this paper, I review the topic of international corporate governance, starting with a description of the fundamental agency problem, the separation between ownership and control in the public corporation. Relying primarily on recent literature, I then present an overview of the various internal and external mechanisms that may provide potential solutions to this agency problem. The purpose is to show the eminent differences in national corporate governance structures in the use of these mechanisms. Therefore, I look at the system of the United States and the system of Germany, which reveal significant dissimilarities. For a deeper understanding of the ongoing changes in the field of corporate governance, I provide a detailed look at the German structure and then compare it with the US. Finally, I present current developments and possible future research areas.


This thesis examines the development of state-narco networks in post-transition Bolivia. Mainstream discourses of drugs tend to undertheorise such relationships, holding illicit economies, weak states and violence as synergistic phenomena. Such assumptions fail to capture the nuanced relations that emerge between the state and the drug trade in different contexts, their underlying logics and diverse effects. As an understudied case, Bolivia offers novel insights into these dynamics. Bolivian military authoritarian governments (1964-1982), for example, integrated drug rents into clientelistic systems of governance, helping to establish factional coalitions and reinforce regime authority. Following democratic transition in 1982 and the escalation of US counterdrug efforts, these stable modes of exchange between the state and the coca-cocaine economy fragmented. Bolivia, though, continued to experience lower levels of drug-related violence than its Andean neighbours, and sustained democratisation despite being a major drug producer. Focusing on the introduction of the Andean Initiative (1989-1993), I explore state-narco interactions during this period of flux: from authoritarianism to (formal) democracy, and from Cold War to Drug War. As such, the thesis transcends the conventional analyses of the drugs literature and orthodox readings of Latin American narco-violence, providing insights into the relationship between illicit
economies and democratic transition, the regional role of the US, and the (unintended) consequences of drug policy interventions.

I utilise a mixed methods approach to offer discrete perspectives on the object of study. Drawing on documentary and secondary sources, I argue that state-narco networks were interwoven with Bolivia's post-transition political settlement. Uneven democratisation ensured pockets of informalism, as clientelistic and authoritarian practices continued. This included police and military autonomy, and tolerance of drug corruption within both institutions. Non-enforcement of democratic norms of accountability and transparency was linked to the maintenance of fragile political equilibrium. Interviews with key US and Bolivian elite actors also revealed differing interpretations of state-narco interactions. These exposed competing agendas, and were folded into alternative paradigms and narratives of the 'war on drugs'. The extension of US Drug War goals and the targeting of 'corrupt' local power structures, clashed with local ambivalence towards the drug trade, opposition to destabilising, 'Colombianised' policies and the claimed 'democratising mission' of the Bolivian government. In contrasting these US and Bolivian accounts, the thesis shows how real and perceived state-narco webs were understood and navigated by different actors in distinct ways. 'Drug corruption' held significance beyond simple economic transaction or institutional failure. Contestation around state-narco interactions was enmeshed in US-Bolivian relations of power and control.


Transduction of murine B16 melanoma cells with a GM-CSF gene, the B16-MG tumor line, showed reduced tumorigenicity. In vitro studies demonstrated no remarkable difference between the parent and transduced tumor lines in their ability to induce secondary response to generate the anti-tumor killer cells (immunogenicity), or in their susceptibility to the killing by anti-tumor killer cells (immunosensitivity). Both CD4(+) and CD8(+) cells were required for the generation of the effecters. Nevertheless the effecters were determined to be Thy1.2(+), CD8(-), and NK1.1(-). At least two antigenic specificities could be defined in the cytolytic reactions. One was a broadly cross-reactive antigen shared by a variety of tumor cells, and the other apparently a tumor-specific antigen which was only present in B16 tumors. Cold target inhibition experiment confirmed these specificities. In the in vivo tumor transplantation study, the B16-MG cell line was not only more immunogenic but also was more immunosensitive than the parent line. More than 50% of the mice which were immunized with B16-MG remained tumor free after challenge with the parent tumor B16, indicating that GM-CSF gene transfer makes an effective tumor vaccine. The in vivo protective effect was specific for B16 tumor, thus only the tumor-specific antigen could function as transplantation antigen. Both CD4(+) and CD8(+) cells were required for providing the in vivo protection. Both the B16 and B16-MG tumor bearing hosts could generate anti-tumor killer cells, hence the development of progressive growth of B16 tumor was not due to the lack of anti-tumor immune response. It appears that the overall effect of in vivo tumor immunity is determined by a complex network of interactions among different compartments of host immune cells and different compartments of host immune cells and different immune-regulatory molecules derived from the host and from the tumor.


This is a comprehensive guide to baseball fundamentals that helps players and coaches build winning teams together. Watching major-league baseball today, many fans wonder what happened to the fundamentals of the game when they see a highly paid outfielder miss the cutoff man or a multimillion-dollar pitcher fail to lay down a bunt. What's missing are the basics - and that's precisely the content of this classic bestseller. Updated and revised to address today's baseball rules and trends, "Basic Baseball Strategy" helps you, whether you're a beginning coach, a player from a youth or advanced league to master the fundamentals of the game - from the hit-and-run to the squeeze play, from when to steal to when to sacrifice. Former collegiate coach S. H. "Chuck" Freeman explains not only how to execute baseball's most basic plays but also why and when to do so.


This methodological investigation set out to examine the use of the Internet as a data collection tool: its potential for sampling gay and bisexual men and gathering data on sexual behaviour.

The research took place in the context of the Internet and HIV study, an examination of high risk sexual behaviour among gay and bisexual men seeking sex on the Internet. The Internet and HIV study collected quantitative data using selfadministered questionnaires completed online or by pen-and-paper, and qualitative data using one-to-one interviews conducted face-to-face or online. Its design provides an invaluable opportunity for investigating Internet-based research methods.

Methodological issues were explored through collection of primary data from respondents who had participated in the Internet and HIV study and secondary analysis of data collected for the study.

The first area of exploration was the use of web surveys for sampling gay and bisexual men. The results indicated that participation in the Internet and HIV web survey was driven by an altruistic desire to contribute to research into sexual health promotion and HIV prevention. Drop out was most likely to occur in the early stages of the survey and minor differences in sub-group drop out were identified. Men who participated in the web survey were broadly similar to the MSM drawn from a national probability sample, but were more likely to participate in high risk sexual activity. Differences were more pronounced when the samples were restricted to London men.

The second area of exploration was the effect of the Internet mode on data collection. The web survey reduced item nonresponse in comparison to the pen-and-paper survey but did not improve response to sensitive questions over and above this general mode effect. The results indicated that online synchronous interviews may be suited to a more structured format, given the difficulty of expressing complex ideas through typing in real time.

It was concluded that the Internet has excellent potential for researching sexual behaviour among gay and bisexual men. It provides effective access to this population and more complete survey data than the traditional alternative. The application of online interviewing requires further exploration.


The United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Right to Development in 1986. The Declaration recognizes that development is an inalienable human right, and describes development as a comprehensive process leading to the well-being of all people. All states are called upon to cooperate internationally and work nationally to ensure that this comprehensive process in which all human rights can be realized is undertaken without discrimination, and that all people may participate fully and equally in this process. This paper provides an elaboration of the content of the right to development by drawing on international law. It addresses the obligations of states, particularly with regard to international cooperation, and considers the application of obligations of conduct, as well as those of result, in giving this right meaning. This paper also details the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples and how they relate to the right to development. The creation of conditions that enable a state to develop will not necessarily lead to the realization of the right to development by the individuals within that state. Traditionally marginalized groups – notably, minorities and indigenous peoples – may not benefit from this development or may be harmed by it. Even where the right to development is being realized by the majority, the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples could be violated if the process undertaken does not take account of their rights. The authors discuss the need to have in place the standards to ensure that the protection and promotion of minority and indigenous rights are fully integrated into policies designed to fulfil the right to development. Written in cooperation with the UN Independent Expert on the right to development, this work builds on his contribution to the mandated objectives of the inter-state UN Working Group on the Right to Development. It provides an important contribution to the scope of rights and obligations in this area, and the implications that stem from them, particularly for minorities and indigenous peoples.


Face recognition under varying pose is a challenging problem, especially when illumination variations are also present. In this paper, we propose to address one of the most challenging scenarios in face recognition. That is, to identify a subject from a test image that is acquired under different pose and illumination condition from only one training sample (also known as a gallery image) of this subject in the database. For example, the test image could be semifrontal and illuminated by multiple lighting sources while the corresponding training image is frontal under a single lighting source. Under the assumption of Lambertian reflectance, the spherical harmonics representation has proved to be effective in modeling illumination variations for a fixed pose. In this paper, we extend the spherical harmonics representation to encode pose information. More specifically, we utilize the fact that 2D harmonic basis images at different poses are related by close-form linear transformations, and give a more convenient transformation matrix to be directly used for basis images. An immediate application is that we can easily synthesize a different view of a subject under arbitrary lighting conditions by changing the coefficients of the spherical harmonics representation. A more important result is an efficient face recognition method, based on the orthonormality of the linear transformations, for solving the above-mentioned challenging scenario. Thus, we directly project a nonfrontal view test image onto the space of frontal view harmonic basis images. The impact of some empirical factors due to the projection is embedded in a sparse warping matrix; for most cases, we show that the recognition performance does not deteriorate after warping the test image to the frontal view. Very good recognition results are obtained using this method for both synthetic and challenging real images.


Groundwater flow is examined for recharge and extraction within a sloping aquifer. Fundamental equations are commonly formulated either in s‐n coordinates where s is tangent to the base or in x‐z coordinates where x is horizontal. Consistency between these two formulations is achieved here by incorporating the slope of the base directly into the hydraulic conductivity and aquifer diffusivity terms. A stepping model is developed for steady and transient flow, and comparisons between stepping and sloping models show that the stepping model approaches the exact solutions as the number of steps increases. This model is used to develop a set of nomographs and dimensionless parameters relating drawdown over time to distance upgradient or downgradient from a point of water use. While upgradient and downgradient responses differ with respect to the quantity of water removed or injected, it is shown that the response proportional to the change in saturated thickness is the same in both directions.


We know very little about spinsters in earlier times, for the stigma attached to the unmarried state often rendered these women almost invisible. Now a fascinating book opens a window into the lives of British spinsters in the mid-seventeenth to mid-nineteenth centuries, assessing the opportunities open to them and the restrictions placed upon them within different social classes, occupations, and periods. Bridget Hill examines how often spinsters were able to earn enough money to live independently, what provision the Poor Law made for them if they did not, whether extreme poverty led to their involvement in crime or prostitution, and, if they stayed in the parental home, what kind of lives they led. She looks at the part single women played in religious organisations and the role of friendship and letter-writing in their daily lives. She describes the nature of close relationships between women, some lesbian but many others not. Exploring the spinsters' possibilities of escape from restrictive lives, particularly by emigration or crossdressing, she discusses how successful these were. She provides details about the degree of surveillance single women suffered from the authorities and how often they were seen as a threat to social order. Finally she addresses the question of whether all spinsters of this era were suffering victims or potential viragoes, or neither.


DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5915/40-4-4431 Objective : To determine the prevalence of edentulism and its associated factorsamong elderly Muslims in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. Study design : A cross-sectional study was conducted with 506 randomly selected community-dwelling elderly patients aged 60 years and older in the district of Badang, Kota Bharu, Kelantan. The participants who consented were interviewed for sociodemographic information and followed by an oral examination to record edentulism. Results : The prevalence of edentulism was 55.9% (95% CI=51.67, 60.50). Multiple logistic regression analyses showed that older age groups of the elderly, 70-79 years and 80 years and older, were more likely to be edentulous, with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.9 (95% confidence interval [CI] =1.2, 3.1) and OR=4.0 (95% CI=2.0, 8.1) respectively, compared to the younger elderly 60-69 years old. Women are more likely to be edentulous (OR=2.0, 95% CI=1.3, 3.1). Conclusion : Older women are more likely to be edentulous. More efforts are required to promote retention of teeth among younger women so that this cohort will not be edentulous when its members reach old age.


Scholarship on private legal systems (PLS) explains the evolution of norms created and enforced by PLSs, but rarely addresses the evolution of institutions that form PLSs. Such institutions are assumed to form spontaneously (unless suppressed by law) when law is either unresponsive or incapable of directing behavior in welfare-maximizing manners. But, as this paper demonstrates, PLSs typically cannot form spontaneously. Newly formed PLSs cannot enforce cooperation since the effectiveness of mechanisms used to secure this cooperation (e.g., the threat of exclusion) depends on the PLS's ability to confer benefits to its members, and newly formed PLSs do not yet confer such benefits. Successful PLSs bypass this barrier by building on extant foundations - preexisting institutions that already benefit members, typically through functions requiring less costly enforcement. The threat of losing preexisting benefits disciplines members to abide by the PLSs' rules, which in turn allows the PLSs to regulate behavior. This pattern indicates that rather than developing spontaneously, PLSs develop in phases, initially facilitating activities that are unrelated to regulating behavior and incur lower enforcement costs, the provision of which enables the PLS to regulate behavior in the second stage. The paper suggests normative applications of this observation in the fields of antitrust, critical infrastructure protection and corporate governance.


In image retrieval based on color, the weighted distance between color histograms of two images, represented as a quadratic form, may be defined as a match measure. However, this distance measure is computationally expensive (naively O(N/sup 2/) and at best O(N) in the number N of histogram bins) and it operates on high dimensional features (O(N)). We propose the use of low-dimensional, simple to compute distance measures between the color distributions, and show that these are lower bounds on the histogram distance measure. Results on color histogram matching in large image databases show that pre-filtering with the simpler distance measures leads to significantly less time complexity because the quadratic histogram distance is now computed on a smaller set of images. The low-dimensional distance measure can also be used for indexing into the database.<<ETX>>


For highrise structures, mixed steel-concrete systems are more efficient and cost less than either material alone. The two design approaches are exterior tube structures and core braced structures. Composite tubular systems combine a reinforced concrete framed tube on the exterior with simple steel framing on the interior. The second type combines a concrete shear wall core with a steel framing for floors and exterior columns. Still in the future are composite superframes in the form of a portal. These exterior frames resist all wind forces, leaving the interior free for atriums. More research is needed for all types of composite design.


Who should the state punish? Why? Should punishment be proportional? This article surveys, in the context of these fundamental criminal-law questions, the Second Amendment's constitutional history and jurisprudence. A vast body of evidence shows that the framers of both the Second and Fourteenth Amendments intended to protect the individual's right to keep and carry arms for protection against both governmental and private aggression.
Yet courts, unwilling to allow disfavored groups the means of self-defense, or fearing being blamed for criminal firearm activity, have failed to enforce the right to bear arms to any meaningful extent. After the Civil War, the U.S. Supreme Court read portions of the Fourteenth Amendment out of the Constitution. In the twentieth century, despite the Court's rejection of both the proposition that the Second Amendment right belonged only to states and the proposition that government had plenary power to limit arms possession, lower courts refused to enforce any limit on governmental power over the right to keep and bear arms. After District of Columbia v. Heller declared with no lack of clarity that the Second Amendment protected an individual arms right, lower courts nonetheless continue flagrantly to defy the Supreme Court's mandate.
This judicial abdication has allowed the continued legislative overcriminalization of entirely peaceable citizens that the state has no reason to have on its radar. The vast majority of gun laws are malum prohibitum possessory offenses that often provide greater penalties than heinous malum in se offenses. This legislative overreach and judicial underenforcement has been enabled by the systematic demonization of both firearm owners and certain types of firearms. This suggests that modern gun control, rather than a genuine attempt to reduce crime, is all too often an effort to create moral panic.


We consider the following basic task in the testing of concurrent systems. The input to the task is a partial order of events, which models actions performed on or by the system and specifies ordering constraints between them. The task is to determine if some scheduling of these events can result in a bug. The number of schedules to be explored can, in general, be exponential. Empirically, many bugs in concurrent programs have been observed to have small bug depth; that is, these bugs are exposed by every schedule that orders d specific events in a particular way, irrespective of how the other events are ordered, and d is small compared to the total number of events. To find all bugs of depth d, one needs to only test a d-hitting family of schedules: we call a set of schedules a d-hitting family if for each set of d events, and for each allowed ordering of these events, there is some schedule in the family that executes these events in this ordering. The size of a d-hitting family may be much smaller than the number of all possible schedules, and a natural question is whether one can find d-hitting families of schedules that have small size. In general, finding the size of optimal d-hitting families is hard, even for d = 2. We show, however, that when the partial order is a tree, one can explicitly construct d-hitting families of schedules of small size. When the tree is balanced, our constructions are polylogarithmic in the number of events.


Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have received extensive attention due to their one-dimensional structure and ability to demonstrate many novel physical and chemical phenomena in the quantum scale. However, the application of CNTs in electronics is hindered due to their higher growth temperatures which are usually in excess of 500 °C, which is not compatible with current semiconductor technology in industry. Low temperature growth is necessary for integrating CNTs into standard semiconductor devices such as CMOS and large-scale integrated circuits. To date, various techniques have been utilised to lower the CNT growth temperature by: 1. using various carbon sources with lower dissociation temperature; 2. exploring metal catalyst films of the low melting point or metal nanoparticles as catalysts; and, 3. introducing a plasma during deposition to increase the dissociation and ionization of feed gases. In this study, we report the low temperature growth of vertically aligned high-density CNTs by a DC plasma chemical vapour deposition method, using Ni nanoclusters as catalysts. The Ni nanoclusters are free from a high-temperature formation process compared to the film based catalysts and directly demonstrate catalytic growth of CNTs at substrate temperatures as low as 390 °C. The density of as-grown CNTs is up to 10 /cm , as shown in Figure 1. Transmission electron microscopy studies show the CNTs are made of crystalline graphene shells and have a uniform diameter distribution. The field electron emission properties of the samples are investigated.


A 3-yr study was conducted to focus on the impact of surface soil water content on metolachlor (2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxy-1-methylethyl) acetamide) volatilization from a field with different surface soil water regimes created by subsurface water flow paths. Metolachlor vapor fluxes were measured at two locations within the field where local meteorological and soil conditions were relatively constant, except for surface soil water content, which differed significantly. Surface soil water content at the two sites differed in response to the presence of subsurface flow pathways. Detailed soil moisture observations over the duration of the study showed that for the first 2 yr (2004 and 2005), surface soil water contents at the dry location (V1) were nearly half those at the wetter location (V2). Cumulative metolachlor vapor fluxes during 2004 and 2005 at V1 were also about half that at V2. In the third year (2006), early-season drought conditions rendered the soil water content at the two locations to be nearly identical, resulting in similar metolachlor volatilization losses. Analysis of infrared soil surface temperatures suggests a correlation between surface soil temperatures and metolachlor volatilization when soils are wet (2004 and 2005) but not when the soils are dry (2006). Field-averaged metolachlor volatilization losses were highly correlated with increasing surface soil water contents (r(2) = 0.995).


Egg white lysozyme (EWL) has considerably a wide functional protein exhibiting antibacterial activity mainly against Gram-positive bacteria. The EWL is widely applied in food industry and is considerably safe. Despite its high potency, EWL of Indonesian poultry has never been studied and exploited. This study was aimed to purify EWL from two Indonesian poultry: kampung chicken and Cihateup duck, and compared to egg of commercial laying hens. The eggs in this study were obtained from field laboratory of Faculty of Animal Science, Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) and classified in AA quality based on the interior quality. First attempt to purify the EWL was performed by using ethanol precipitation yielding purified EWL which was still contaminated by other proteins, hence designated as partially purified EWL. Final concentrations of partially purified EWL of kampung chicken, commercial laying hens, and Cihateup duck were about 5800, 5400, and 5500 μg/mL, respectively. To confirm whether the use of ethanol in the purification affecting EWL antibacterial activities, the activities were examined against Staphylococcus aureus . It demonstrated that the partially purified EWL exhibited ability to inhibit S. aureus at 6 and 26 h suggesting that the method was feasible as it did not interfere EWL antibacterial activities. Yet, based on SDS-Page, purity was the issue in ethanol precipitation method. Further attempt using ion exchange chromatography at pH 10 successfully purified lysozyme as indicated by a single band corresponding to lysozyme size (~14 kD) free from bands of other proteins. Altogether, a single step of ion exchange chromatography is sufficient and promising to isolate EWL from Indonesian poultry for various industrial purposes. Key words: Indonesian poultry, lysozyme, egg, kampung chicken, Cihateup duck


Research has showed repeatedly the value of extensive reading in the L2 classroom for improved reading comprehension (Elley & Mangubhai, 1981; Mason & Krashen, 1997; Renandya, Rajan, & Jacobs, 1999). However, additional support beyond traditional extensive reading practices may be needed for very low proficiency learners. This report reviews research on implementing an extensive reading program for beginning level adult-education English language learners. It presents arguments for supporting extensive reading through shared reading, including read-alouds, use of children's literature, and strategy modeling techniques. It also discusses the benefits of student-generated texts for boosting vocabulary and comprehension skills. The report concludes with pedagogical implications for including a strong reading component in the adult education ESL curriculum and suggestions for evaluating the strength and utility of such a program.


This paper studies path-breaking economic developments in Poland following the start of the systemic transformation in 1989. Three groups of countries are used for comparative analysis: those economically most advanced, those less developed but striving to catch up during the last 30–40 years, and as a subgroup of the latter, the transition economies. The paper has three objectives. The first is to show that many opinions regarding major aspects of the Polish transformation are at variance with the plain statistical facts. The second is to evaluate the pace and the extent of the progress so far in the effort to narrow the income and wealth gaps between Poland and most developed countries, particularly pre-2004 members of the European Union. The third consists of a discussion of factors which are likely to impede the pace of Poland's economic development in the years to come.


Indigenous sciences are foundationally based in relationships, reciprocity, and responsibilities. These sciences constitute systems of knowledge developed through distinct perspectives on and practices of knowledge creation and decision-making that not only have the right to be pursued on their own terms but may also be vital in solving critical twenty-first-century challenges. "Science" is often treated as if it were a single entity, free of cultural influences and value-neutral in principle. Western science is often seen as instantiating and equivalent to this idealized, yet problematic, view of science. We argue for engagement with multiple perspectives on science in general, and increased engagement with Indigenous sciences in particular. As scholars focused on human learning and development, we share empirical examples of how Indigenous sciences, sometimes in partnership with Western science, have led to new discoveries and insights into human learning and development.


ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to determine if laparoscopic inguinal herniorrhaphy represents a viable alternative to the conventional repair and to assess whether a prospective randomized controlled trial comparing both procedures is warranted. MethodsThree types of laparoscopic inguinal herniorrhaphies (transabdominal preperitoneal [TAPP], intraperitoneal onlay mesh [IPOM], and totally extraperitoneal [EXTRA]) were studied in a phase II design. Twenty-one investigators from 19 institutions participated. Approval from the local human research committee was required at each institution before patients could be enrolled. ResultsThere were 686 patients with 869 hernias: 366 (42.1%) were direct, 414 (47.6%) were indirect, 22 (2.5%) were femoral, and 67 (7.7%) were combination hernias. The TAPP procedure was used for 562 hernias, the IPOM was used for 217 hernias, and the EXTRA was used for 87 hernias. Sixtyone patients had additional abdominal procedures performed at the time of laparoscopy without any adverse affects on their herniorhaphies. The overall recurrence rate was 4.5%, with a minimum follow-up of 15 months.Complications were divided into the following three groups: 1) those related to laparoscopy, 2) those related to the patient, and 3) those related to the herniorrhaphy. Complications related to the laparoscopy occurred in 5.4% of patients; bleeding or abdominal wall hematomas occurred 31 times, (two patients required transfusion); one patient had bowel perforation, which was sutured laparoscopically; a bladder injury required laparotomy for management. Patient complications occurred in 6.7%. The majority involved the urinary tract (5.8%). Two patients required secondary abdominal procedures for adhesions, one for pain in the right lower quadrant and the other for adhesive small bowel obstruction. Postoperative myocardial infarction on day 5 resulted in the only operative mortality, for a rate of 0.1%. Complications related to the herniorrhaphy itself occurred in 17.1%. Most of these were minor, consisting of transient groin pain (3.5%), seroma (3.5%), transient leg pain (3.3%), hematoma (1.5%), or transient cord or testicular problems (0.9%). The incidence of leg pain decreased dramatically as surgeons became more familiar with the anatomy of the nerve supply to the groin when viewed laparoscopically. Ninety-three percent of patients were discharged within 24 hours of their operations. ConclusionsLaparoscopic inguinal herniorrhaphy is an effective method to correct an inguinal hernia. It can be offered safely to patients undergoing other abdominal procedures. The TAPP, IPOM, and EXTRA


Long paleoseismic histories are necessary for understanding the full range of behavior of faults, as the most destructive events often have recurrence intervals longer than local recorded history. The Sunda megathrust, the interface along which the Australian plate subducts beneath Southeast Asia, provides an ideal natural laboratory for determining a detailed paleoseismic history over many seismic cycles. The outer-arc islands above the seismogenic portion of the megathrust cyclically rise and subside in response to processes on the underlying megathrust, providing uncommonly good illumination of megathrust behavior. Furthermore, the growth histories of coral microatolls, which record tectonic uplift and subsidence via relative sea level, can be used to investigate the detailed coseismic and interseismic deformation patterns. One particularly interesting area is the Mentawai segment of the megathrust, which has been shown to characteristically fail in a series of ruptures over decades, rather than a single end-to-end rupture. This behavior has been termed a seismic "supercycle." Prior to the current rupture sequence, which began in 2007, the segment previously ruptured during the 14th century, the late 16th to late 17th century, and most recently during historical earthquakes in 1797 and 1833. In this study, we examine each of these previous supercycles in turn. First, we expand upon previous analysis of the 1797–1833 rupture sequence with a comprehensive review of previously published coral microatoll data and the addition of a significant amount of new data. We present detailed maps of coseismic uplift during the two great earthquakes and of interseismic deformation during the periods 1755–1833 and 1950–1997 and models of the corresponding slip and coupling on the underlying megathrust. We derive magnitudes of Mw 8.7–9.0 for the two historical earthquakes, and determine that the 1797 earthquake fundamentally changed the state of coupling on the fault for decades afterward. We conclude that while major earthquakes generally do not involve rupture of the entire Mentawai segment, they undoubtedly influence the progression of subsequent ruptures, even beyond their own rupture area. This concept is of vital importance for monitoring and forecasting the progression of the modern rupture sequence. Turning our attention to the 14th century, we present evidence of a shallow slip event in approximately A.D. 1314, which preceded the "conventional" megathrust rupture sequence. We calculate a suite of slip models, slightly deeper and/or larger than the 2010 Pagai Islands earthquake, that are consistent with the large amount of subsidence recorded at our study site. Sea-level records from older coral microatolls suggest that these events occur at least once every millennium, but likely far less frequently than their great downdip neighbors. The revelation that shallow slip events are important contributors to the seismic cycle of the Mentawai segment further complicates our understanding of this subduction megathrust and our assessment of the region's exposure to seismic and tsunami hazards. Finally, we present an outline of the complex intervening rupture sequence that took place in the 16th and 17th centuries, which involved at least five distinct uplift events. We conclude that each of the supercycles had unique features, and all of the types of fault behavior we observe are consistent with highly heterogeneous frictional properties of the megathrust beneath the south-central Mentawai Islands. We conclude that the heterogeneous distribution of asperities produces terminations and overlap zones between fault ruptures, resulting in the seismic "supercycle" phenomenon.


If, in some cataclysm, all of scientific knowledge were to be destroyed, and only one sentence passed on to the next generations of creatures, what statement would contain the most information in the fewest words? I believe it is the atomic hypothesis (or the atomic fact, or whatever you wish to call it) that all things are made of atoms—little particles that move around in perpetual motion, attracting each other when they are a little distance apart, but repelling upon being squeezed into one another. In that one sentence, you will see, there is an enormous amount of information about the world, if just a little imagination and thinking are applied.


Abstract The purpose of this comparative study of the structure and operation of the health care systems in the United Stetes and Canada is to draw lessons from those experiences that may be relevant to the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. First, the study examines the different sources of health-sector funding in the United States and Canada and the levels and types of coverage provided. The fact is brought out that per capita levels of expenditure in these two countries exceed per capita national income in much of the region. A comparison of the two systems shows that, although expenditure is lower in Canada, its coverage is better. Second, the author discusses the different methods of payment that have been implemented in conjunction with regulatory and supervisory instruments and institutions. In Canada, responsability for health-budget performance lies with the provinces, and transfers from the central government are made, inter alia, through a capitated payments sys tem. In the United States, a number of different payers, each with its own individual cost control mechanims, are found. It is argued that selective outsourcing of health-care services in the United States would appear to be less relevant for Latin American countries than the Canadian system of payment, given the need to increase the levels of coverage in these countries. Third, the study focuses on proposed health care reforms in the two countries. One of the main objectives of these reforms is to curb rising costs. Lastly, the author draws a number of conclusions which he considers relevant to the needs of Latin American and Caribbean countries. The assertion is made that the Canadian system offers advantages in terms of the provision of affordable health insurance for all.