In Group Key Exchange (GKE) protocols, users usually extract the group key using some auxiliary (ephemeral) secret information generated during the execution. Strong corruptions are attacks by which an adversary can reveal these ephemeral secrets, in addition to the possibly used long-lived keys. Undoubtedly, security impact of strong corruptions is serious, and thus specifying appropriate security requirements and designing secure GKE protocols appears an interesting yet challenging task – the aim of our article. We start by investigating the current setting of strong corruptions and derive some refinements like opening attacks that allow to reveal ephemeral secrets of users without their long-lived keys. This allows to consider even stronger attacks against honest, but 'opened' users. Further, we define strong security goals for GKE protocols in the presence of such powerful adversaries and propose a 3-round GKE protocol, named TDH1, which remains immune to their attacks under standard cryptographic assumptions. Our security definitions allow adversaries to register users and specify their long-lived keys, thus, in particular capture attacks of malicious insiders for the appropriate security goals such as Mutual Authentication, key confirmation, contributiveness, key control and key-replication resilience.


Objective Surveillance tools for early cancer detection are suboptimal, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and biomarkers are urgently needed. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have gained increasing scientific interest due to their involvement in tumour initiation and metastasis; however, most extracellular RNA (exRNA) blood-based biomarker studies are limited to annotated genomic regions. Design EVs were isolated with differential ultracentrifugation and integrated nanoscale deterministic lateral displacement arrays (nanoDLD) and quality assessed by electron microscopy, immunoblotting, nanoparticle tracking and deconvolution analysis. Genome-wide sequencing of the largely unexplored small exRNA landscape, including unannotated transcripts, identified and reproducibly quantified small RNA clusters (smRCs). Their key genomic features were delineated across biospecimens and EV isolation techniques in prostate cancer and HCC. Three independent exRNA cancer datasets with a total of 479 samples from 375 patients, including longitudinal samples, were used for this study. Results ExRNA smRCs were dominated by uncharacterised, unannotated small RNA with a consensus sequence of 20 nt. An unannotated 3-smRC signature was significantly overexpressed in plasma exRNA of patients with HCC (p<0.01, n=157). An independent validation in a phase 2 biomarker case–control study revealed 86% sensitivity and 91% specificity for the detection of early HCC from controls at risk (n=209) (area under the receiver operating curve (AUC): 0.87). The 3-smRC signature was independent of alpha-fetoprotein (p<0.0001) and a composite model yielded an increased AUC of 0.93. Conclusion These findings directly lead to the prospect of a minimally invasive, blood-only, operator-independent clinical tool for HCC surveillance, thus highlighting the potential of unannotated smRCs for biomarker research in cancer.


Greenhouse cultivation is an energy intensive process therefore it is worthwhile to introduce energy saving measures and alternative energy sources. Here we show that there is scope for energy saving in fan ventilated greenhouses. Measurements of electricity usage as a function of fan speed have been performed for two models of 1.25 m diameter greenhouse fans and compared to theoretical values. Reducing the speed can cut the energy usage per volume of air moved by more than 70%. To minimize the capital cost of low-speed operation, a cooled greenhouse has been built in which the fan speed responds to sunlight such that full speed is reached only around noon. The energy saving is about 40% compared to constant speed operation. Direct operation of fans from solar-photovoltaic modules is also viable as shown from experiments with a fan driven by a brushless DC motor. On comparing the Net Present Value costs of the different systems over a 10 year amortization period (with and without a carbon tax to represent environmental costs) we find that sunlight-controlled system saves money under all assumptions about taxation and discount rates. The solar-powered system, however, is only profitable for very low discount rates, due to the high initial capital costs. Nonetheless this system could be of interest for its reliability in developing countries where mains electricity is intermittent. We recommend that greenhouse fan manufacturers improve the availability of energy-saving designs such as those described here.


Context. Continuum emission is a fundamental component of the solar and stellar spectra between 1 A and 2000 A and has important applications to plasma diagnostics. However, the importance of X-ray free-bound continuum radiation has been overlooked in recent years, and no assessment of the accuracy of different data and approximations underlying the calculation of continuum emissivity has been carried out to understand the reliability of diagnostic results. Aims. The importance of free-bound radiation in the X-rays will be demonstrated and its effects on plasma diagnostics will be discussed. The importance of user-chosen parameters such as ion and element abundances, necessary to the calculation of continuum emissivity, will be assessed. The uncertainties in the atomic data underlying continuum calculations will be investigated. Methods. We will use the CHIANTI spectral code to investigate the relative importance of the free-free, free-bound and two-photon radiation as a function of wavelength in the 1-2000 A spectral range, and to assess the effects of user-chosen parameters on the calculation of the continuum emission. A comparison between continuum emissivity of two of the most widely used spectral codes, developed using very different atomic data and approximations, will give us an indication of their reliability. Results. The effects of element abundances and of the neglect of free-bound radiation in the X-rays are shown to be significant, with important consequences for plasma diagnostics results. The total continuum emissivities of the two spectral codes we compared are found to be in agreement to better than 40% at all wavelengths and temperatures of interest, with only a few exceptions.


Rapid boron dilution transients have shown the need for accurate knowledge of the solute particle distribution in pressurized water reactors (PWRs). Small-break loss-of-coolant accidents (SBLOCAs) enable the formation of low-borated slugs in the loop seals. Low-borated water, if driven to the core, could cause a reactivity excursion. Since online boron concentration measurement is impractical in the primary system of PWR plants and quite difficult in test facilities, best-estimate codes should be seen as the most suitable tools. However, transport of a low-borated slug through the primary system requires accuracy of the methods. Several studies have shown high numerical diffusion introduced by the upwind difference schemes habitually used by system codes. Furthermore, most of the boron tracking models implemented in system codes at present do not consider physical diffusion. Nevertheless, to introduce physical diffusion, it is necessary to considerably reduce numerical diffusion. The implicit Godunov scheme, which is available in RELAP5, has proved its capability in almost eradicating numerical diffusion. However, the formulated equation in RELAP5 does not deal with physical diffusion. A new tracking model for the solute field is presented, along with results of its implementation in the RELAP5 code. To evaluate the new model, a numerical test has been performed that demonstrates both the reduction of numerical diffusion and the correct simulation of physical diffusion. Moreover, the UPC model has shown its consistency in experiment F1.1, which is an SBLOCA with boron dilution. The test was part of the OECD-PKL2 program directed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).


Background: The production of triterpenes from plants for pharmacological purposes varies in concentration, due to genetic and environmental factors. In vitro culture enables the control and increase of these bioactive molecules. Objective: To evaluate the effect of plant growth regulators and elicitors in the induction of calli and the production of ursolic acid (UA) and oleanolic acid (OA) in Lepechinia caulescens. Materials and Methods: Leaf explants were exposed for the induction of calli at different concentrations and combinations of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP). Methyl jasmonate (MJ) and salicylic acid were used as elicitors. High-performance liquid chromatography method was used to quantify UA and OA content in each treatment. Results: Treatment with 3.0 mg/L of 2,4-D and 0.1 mg/L of BAP produced the best results for calli induction and production of UA (1.57 mg/g dry weight [DW]) and OA (1.13 mg/g DW). Both elicitors facilitated the accumulation of triterpenes. Conclusion: The combination of auxins and cytokinins showed favorable results for the induction of calli. Variation concerning the accumulation of UA and OA was observed between treatments. MJ increased the production of triterpenes five times after 8 h of exposure, compared to control treatment. There is a greater accumulation of UA (16.58 mg/g DW) and OA (1.94 mg/g DW) in leaves of wild plants. Abbreviations used: 2,4-D: 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, BAP: 6-benzylaminopurine, DW: Dry weight, MJ: Methyl jasmonate, OA: Oleanolic acid, PGRs: Plant growth regulators, UA: Ursolic acid, SA: Salicylic acid.


Service composition is one of the principles of service-oriented architecture; it enables reuse and allows developers to combine existing services in order to create new services that in turn can be part of another composition. Dynamic composition requires that service components are chosen from a set of services with equal or similar functionality at runtime and possibly automatically. The adoption of the REST services in the industry has led to a growing number of services of this type, many with similar functionality. The existing dynamic composition techniques are method-oriented whereas REST is resource-oriented and consider only traditional (WSDL/SOAP) services. We propose SAW-Q, an extension of simple additive weighting (SAW), as a novel dynamic composition technique that follows the principles of the REST style. Additionally, SAW-Q models quality attributes as a function of the actual service demand instead of the traditional constant values. Our model is much more accurate when compared to real implementation, positively improving the quality of dynamic service compositions.


One main motive behind lengthy prison terms for serious crime is to deter potential offenders from engaging in crime. Yet, economic theory predicts that the scope for punishment as acting as a deterrent depends on how much individuals discount future events when balancing the immediate utility of the crime and the costs of a potential future punishment. If criminals have short time horizons, then it is hard to imagine punishment acting as a key deterrent. This paper provides the first empirical investigation of the link between time preferences and criminal behavior. Our study is made possible by access to a unique Swedish longitudinal dataset that links individual measures of time preferences collected at age 13 to various crime indicators from administrative registers spanning over 18 years. Our results show that high discount rates significantly predict criminal involvement. The magnitude of the relationship is substantial and corresponds to roughly one third of the association between intelligence and crime. Although high discount rates significantly predict the onset of criminal involvement, it is less strongly correlated with crime at the intensive margin. The link is more pronounced for property crime and among males with low intelligence. We also find that part of the association can be explained by high discount rates being associated with lower human capital accumulation.


Energy consuming appliances accounted for over 40% of the energy use and $17 billion in sales in the U.S. in 2014. Whether such amounts of money and energy were optimally combined to produce household energy services is not straightforwardly determined. The efficient allocation of capital and energy to provide an energy service has been previously approached, and solved with Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) under constant returns to scale. That approach, however, lacks the scale dimension of the problem and may restrict the economic efficient models of an appliance available in the market when constant returns to scale does not hold. We expand on that approach to estimate returns to scale for energy using appliances. We further calculate DEA scale efficiency scores for the technically efficient models that comprise the economic efficient frontier of the energy service delivered, under different assumptions of returns to scale. We then apply this approach to evaluate dishwashers available in the market in the U.S. Our results show that (a) for the case of dishwashers scale matters, and (b) the dishwashing energy service is delivered under non-decreasing returns to scale. The results further demonstrate that this method contributes to increase consumers' choice of appliances.


High-latitude climate change will have an impact on the carbon and water cycles in northern ecosystems. Stable isotopes in these systems can serve as indicators of changes and feedbacks. Monitoring the stable isotopic composition of Arctic river discharge provides a means to investigate integrated basin-scale hydrologic changes in remote northern regions. I measured water d18O and dD from the Kolyma River in Siberia and local precipitation to partition the river flow into 60% snow and 40% rain inputs. Comparing this estimate with seasonal precipitation across the watershed showed a significant portion of snowmelt is retained in the soils of this permafrost dominated region, and contributes to ~40% of the growing season transpiration. The seasonal cycles of atmospheric CO2 and d18O-CO2 at high northern latitudes have the potential to serve as indicators of ecological change. Effective interpretation of atmospheric observations requires an understanding of how different species and ecosystems contribute to biosphere-atmosphere exchange. By combining isotopic signatures of ecosystem water pools with measured CO2 fluxes in three stands of an Alaskan boreal fire chronosequence (recent burn, intermediate-aged deciduous and mature evergreen forests), I compared the relative effects of stand age on the phase and amplitude of the seasonal cycles of CO2 and d18O-CO2. Higher rates of mid-summer net carbon exchange and a shorter growing season at the deciduous stand resulted in the largest seasonal CO2 amplitude and also delayed the drawdown of atmospheric CO2 compared to the evergreen stand. Reduced levels of photosynthesis at the deciduous stand early in the growing season caused atmospheric d18O-CO2 to increase more slowly compared to fluxes from the evergreen stand. The distribution of stand ages in northern boreal forests is likely to determine the response of net ecosystem exchange (NEE) to future climate changes. I used three years of NEE measurements from the Alaskan fire chronosequence to determine that the sensitivity of growing season NEE to spring air temperatures and summer drought was greater at the deciduous forest than the evergreen forest. As forest fire disturbance increases due to climate warming, the shift to younger forests should increase interannual variability in atmospheric CO2 concentrations.


The paper investigates the effects of deviations from normality on the estimates of risk premiums and the real equilibrium, short-term interest rate in the conventional rational expectations equilibrium model of Lucas (1978). We consider a time-continuous approach, where both the aggregate consumption process as well as cumulative dividends from risky assets are assumed to be jump-di usion processes. This approach allows for random jumps in the fundamental underlying processes at random time points. Preferences are time separable and additive. We derive testable expressions for these quantities, and confront these with 20. century sample estimates. Since there are non-linear components in the formulas for the risk premiums and the interest rate, we can readily explore what effect deviation from normality has on these quantities. Our results test the boundaries of the conventional model.


Insect parasitoids can play ecologically important roles in virtually all terrestrial plant–insect herbivore interactions, yet whether parasitoids alter the defensive traits that underlie interactions between plants and their herbivores remains a largely unexplored question. Here, we examined the reciprocal trophic interactions among populations of the wild cabbage Brassica oleracea that vary greatly in their production of defensive secondary compounds – glucosinolates (GSs), a generalist herbivore, Trichoplusia ni, and its polyembryonic parasitoid Copidosoma floridanum. In a greenhouse environment, plants were exposed to either healthy (unparasitized), parasitized, or no herbivores. Feeding damage by herbivores induced higher levels of the indole GSs, glucobrassicin and neoglucobrassicin, but not any of the other measured GSs. Herbivores parasitized by C. floridanum induced cabbage plants to produce 1.5 times more indole GSs than levels induced by healthy T. ni and five times more than uninduced plants. As a gregarious endoparasitoid, C. floridanum causes its host T. ni to feed more than unparasitized herbivores resulting in increased induction of indole GSs. In turn, herbivore fitness parameters (including differential effects on male and female contributions to lifetime fecundity in the herbivore) were negatively correlated with the aliphatic GSs, sinigrin and gluconapin, whereas parasitoid fitness parameters were negatively correlated with the indole GSs, glucobrassicin and neoglucobrassicin. That herbivores and their parasitoids appear to be affected by different sets of GSs was unexpected given the intimate developmental associations between host and parasitoid. This study is the first to demonstrate that parasitoids, through increasing feeding by their herbivorous hosts, can induce higher levels of non-volatile plant chemical defenses. While parasitoids are widely recognized to be ubiquitous in most terrestrial insect herbivore communities, their role in influencing plant–insect herbivore relationships is still vastly underappreciated.


Ji Kang's "An Essay on Nourishing Life" has, for much of its history, been overshadowed by his more famous work "Sound is without Grief or Joy." Be that as it may, "An Essay on Nourishing Life" is also an important text in that it delves into the interdependence of the heart-mind, spirit, and vital breath, and into how harmony between them is the key to ensuring physical longevity. In addition to investigating this aspect of his thought, this paper will also discuss Ji Kang's attention to the vicissitudes of knowledge and desire and to the need to temper them with tranquility and stillness. "An Essay on Nourishing Life" can thus be read as an extension of classical Daoist theories of self-cultivation while at the same time elaborating upon them by bringing together their disparate components into a coherently unified doctrine.


This is a detailed guide on how to read WTO Schedules of Commitments for Goods and Services. The Schedules are part of the Legal Texts of the WTO Uruguay Round Agreements. They comprise about 27,000 pages of specific commitments by 153 members of the WTO on market access conditions for their markets. Understanding how to interpret the Schedules is essential for anyone wishing to glean information for academic, official, or business purposes. Commissioned and reviewed by the WTO Secretariat, this is a unique guide to understanding the Schedules.


Visualizations have a distinctive advantage when dealing with the information overload problem: Because they are grounded in basic visual cognition, many people understand them. However, creating proper visualizations requires specific expertise of the domain and underlying data. Our quest in this article is to study methods to suggest appropriate visualizations autonomously. To be appropriate, a visualization has to follow known guidelines to find and distinguish patterns visually and encode data therein. A visualization tells a story of the underlying data; yet, to be appropriate, it has to clearly represent those aspects of the data the viewer is interested in. Which aspects of a visualization are important to the viewer? Can we capture and use those aspects to recommend visualizations? This article investigates strategies to recommend visualizations considering different aspects of user preferences. A multi-dimensional scale is used to estimate aspects of quality for visualizations for collaborative filtering. Alternatively, tag vectors describing visualizations are used to recommend potentially interesting visualizations based on content. Finally, a hybrid approach combines information on what a visualization is about (tags) and how good it is (ratings). We present the design principles behind VizRec, our visual recommender. We describe its architecture, the data acquisition approach with a crowd sourced study, and the analysis of strategies for visualization recommendation.


Abstract. Recently, two types of ice clouds (TICs) properties have been characterized using the Indirect and Semi-Direct Aerosol Campaign (ISDAC) airborne measurements (Alaska, April 2008). TIC-2B were characterized by fewer ( 110 μm) ice crystals, and a larger ice supersaturation (> 15%) compared to TIC-1/2A. It has been hypothesized that emissions of SO2 may reduce the ice nucleating properties of ice nuclei (IN) through acidification, resulting in a smaller concentration of larger ice crystals and leading to precipitation (e.g., cloud regime TIC-2B). Here, the origin of air masses forming the ISDAC TIC-1/2A (1 April 2008) and TIC-2B (15 April 2008) is investigated using trajectory tools and satellite data. Results show that the synoptic conditions favor air masses transport from three potential SO2 emission sources into Alaska: eastern China and Siberia where anthropogenic and biomass burning emissions, respectively, are produced, and the volcanic region of the Kamchatka/Aleutians. Weather conditions allow the accumulation of pollutants from eastern China and Siberia over Alaska, most probably with the contribution of acidic volcanic aerosol during the TIC-2B period. Observation Monitoring Instrument (OMI) satellite observations reveal that SO2 concentrations in air masses forming the TIC-2B were larger than in air masses forming the TIC-1/2A. Airborne measurements show high acidity near the TIC-2B flight where humidity was low. These results support the hypothesis that acidic coating on IN could be at the origin of the formation of TIC-2B.


The rate of return to schooling appears to be nearly two percentage points greater for females than for males in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data set, despite the fact that females tend to earn less, both absolutely and controlling for personal characteristics. A survey of previous studies reporting wage equations reveals that a higher return to female schooling appears to be the norm, although it has not attracted comment. This paper considers various explanations. The most important involves the detrimental impact of discrimination and other factors that cause women to accept wage offers that undervalue their characteristics. It is hypothesized that the better educated is a woman, the more able and willing she is to overcome the se handicaps and compete with men in the labour market, and an index of discrimination disaggregated by years of schooling is constructed using Oaxaca decompositions. This index is indeed negatively correlated with schooling and it accounts for about one half of the differential in the male and female schooling coefficients. Next considered is the possibility that part of the differential could be attributable to male-female differences in the quality of educational attainment, as proxied by their academic outcomes in high school. The NLSY females did indeed perform better than the males, but there is little association between academic attainment and Earnings and allowing for it made no difference to the estimate of the differential in the returns to schooling. The third explanation considered is that women choose to work in sectors where education is relatively highly valued. Controlling for this effect does indeed account for much of the remaining differential.


Abstract. Recently, recurrent neural networks have been proposed for crop mapping from multitemporal remote sensing data. Most of these proposals have been designed and tested in temperate regions, where a single harvest per season is the rule. In tropical regions, the favorable climate and local agricultural practices, such as crop rotation, result in more complex spatio-temporal dynamics, where the single harvest per season assumption does not hold. In this context, a demand arises for methods capable of recognizing agricultural crops at multiple dates along the multitemporal sequence. In the present work, we propose to adapt two recurrent neural networks, originally conceived for single harvest per season, for multidate crop recognition. In addition, we propose a novel multidate approach based on bidirectional fully convolutional recurrent neural networks. These three architectures were evaluated on public Sentinel-1 data sets from two tropical regions in Brazil. In our experiments, all methods achieved state-of-the-art accuracies with a clear superiority of the proposed architecture. It outperformed its counterparts in up to 3.8% and 7.4%, in terms of per-month overall accuracy, and it was the best performing method in terms of F1-score for most crops and dates on both regions.


Background : Previous studies show that Mindi (Melia azedarach) has a potent cytotoxicity effect on MCF-7 via induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. However its mechanism has not been established. This study was performed to determine the anti-cancer activity of Melia azedarach, doxorubicin, and cyclosphamide combination and to elucidate the underlying mechanism of this activity in mice. Study design and methods : This was an experimental study with a posttest control group design. Twenty four C3H mice inoculated with adenocarsinoma mammary were divided into four groups receiving one of the following treatment: Aquadest,combination of doxorubicin and cyclosphamide (dox-cyc); Melia azedarach, doxorubicin, cyclosphamide (MA-dox-cyc) combination; Melia azedarach alone (MA) respectively. BAX expression was determined by Immunohistochemistry. Results and conclusion : A significant decrease in tumor volume was found in combination group. This decrease might have been due to the significant increase is in BAX expression and decrease in AgNOR expression compared with that of control (p <0.05). In conclusion, the combination of Melia azedarach, doxorubicin, cyclosphamide can decrease volume of adenocarsinoma mammary tumors in C3H mice via BAX expression increasing and decreasing AgNOR expression. Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science Vol.16(3) 2017 p.428-432


Abstract. The article presents the laser scattering and depolarisation instrument SIMONE that is installed at the large aerosol and cloud chamber facility AIDA of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. SIMONE uses a 488 nm cw laser to probe simulated atmospheric clouds by measuring the scattered light from the 1.8° and 178.2° directions. At 178.2°, the scattered light is analysed for the linear polarisation state to deduce the particle linear depolarisation ratio δp which is a common measurement parameter of atmospheric lidar applications. The optical setup and the mathematical formalism of the depolarisation detection concept are given. SIMONE depolarisation measurements in spheroidal hematite aerosol and supercooled liquid clouds are used to validate the instrument. SIMONE data from a series of AIDA ice nucleation experiments at temperatures between 195 and 225 K were analysed in terms of the impact of the ice particle microphysics on δp. We found strong depolarisation values of up to 0.4 in case of small growing and sublimating ice particles with volume equivalent diameters of only a few micrometers. Modelling runs with the T-matrix method showed that the measured depolarisation ratios can be accurately reproduced assuming spheroidal and cylindrical particles with a size distribution that has been constrained by IR extinction spectroscopy. Based on the T-matrix modelling runs, we demonstrate that in case of small ice crystals the SIMONE depolarisation results are representative for the lidar depolarisation ratio which is measured at exact backscattering direction of 180°. The relevance of our results for the interpretation of recent lidar observations in cirrus and contrails is discussed. In view of our results, the high depolarisation ratios observed by the spaceborne lidar CALIOP in the tropical upper troposphere might be a hint for the presence of small (sublimating) ice particles in the outflows of deep convective systems.


The improved ant colony algorithm is the hybrid algorithm consisting of the genetic algorithm and ant colony algorithm convergence. Through the introduction of the gauss mutation, we achieve the goal of improving ant colony algorithm. Using coal-fired power plant unit as main steam temperature controlled object, we design the PID controller based on improved ant colony algorithm. And setting of PID parameters by Z - N method has carried on the comparative analysis of the main steam temperature control system. Simulation results show that PID optimization based on improved ant colony algorithm can greatly improve the dynamic performance of the control system. So we verify the sophistication and effectiveness of the algorithm


Macrocycles represent a common structural framework in many naturally occurring peptides. Several strategies exist for macrocyclization, and the enzymes that incorporate them are of great interest, as they enhance our repertoire for creating complex molecules. We recently discovered a new peptide cyclization reaction involving a crosslink between the side chains of lysine and tryptophan that is installed by a radical SAM enzyme. Herein, we characterize relatives of this metalloenzyme from the pathogens Streptococcus agalactiae and Streptococcus suis. Our results show that the corresponding enzymes, which we call AgaB and SuiB, contain multiple [4Fe-4S] clusters and catalyze Lys-Trp crosslink formation in their respective substrates. Subsequent high-resolution-MS and 2D-NMR analyses located the site of macrocyclization. Moreover, we report that AgaB can accept modified substrates containing natural or unnatural amino acids. Aside from providing insights into the mechanism of this unusual modification, the substrate promiscuity of AgaB may be exploited to create diverse macrocyclic peptides.


Examples of bone exploitation by carnivorous theropod dinosaurs are relatively rare, representing an apparent waste of both mineral and energetic resources. A review of the known incidences and possible ecological implications of theropod bone use concludes that there is currently no definitive evidence supporting the regular deliberate ingestion of bone by these predators. However, further investigation is required as the small bones of juvenile dinosaurs missing from the fossil record may be absent as a result of theropods preferentially hunting and consuming juveniles. We discuss implications for both hunting and feeding in theropods based on the existing data. We conclude that, like modern predators, theropods preferentially hunted and ate juvenile animals leading to the absence of small, and especially young, dinosaurs in the fossil record. The traditional view of large theropods hunting the adults of large or giant dinosaur species is therefore considered unlikely and such events rare. square Behaviour, carnivory, palaeoecology, predation, resource utilization.


PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to develop an integrated genomic-based approach to personalized treatment of patients with advanced-stage ovarian cancer. We have used gene expression profiles to identify patients likely to be resistant to primary platinum-based chemotherapy and also to identify alternate targeted therapeutic options for patients with de novo platinum-resistant disease.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
A gene expression model that predicts response to platinum-based therapy was developed using a training set of 83 advanced-stage serous ovarian cancers and tested on a 36-sample external validation set. In parallel, expression signatures that define the status of oncogenic signaling pathways were evaluated in 119 primary ovarian cancers and 12 ovarian cancer cell lines. In an effort to increase chemotherapy sensitivity, pathways shown to be activated in platinum-resistant cancers were subject to targeted therapy in ovarian cancer cell lines.

RESULTS
Gene expression profiles identified patients with ovarian cancer likely to be resistant to primary platinum-based chemotherapy with greater than 80% accuracy. In patients with platinum-resistant disease, we identified expression signatures consistent with activation of Src and Rb/E2F pathways, components of which were successfully targeted to increase response in ovarian cancer cell lines.

CONCLUSION
We have defined a strategy for treatment of patients with advanced-stage ovarian cancer that uses therapeutic stratification based on predictions of response to chemotherapy, coupled with prediction of oncogenic pathway deregulation, as a method to direct the use of targeted agents.


Objective:To facilitate the quantitative comparison of AIDS incidence statistics between countries and with other diseases using statistics based on age-standardized incidence rates instead of absolute number of cases. Design:AIDS incidence rates for 19 countries belonging to the World Health Organization (WHO) European region, and for comparative purposes, the United States. Methods:Incidence rates were standardized using the world standard population for all ages, from 1985 to 1992. The data were derived from the WHO European Non-Aggregate AIDS Dataset and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) AIDS Public Information Dataset, adjusted for reporting delays in each country. Results:The AIDS incidence rate for men (81 in 1 000000) in the United States was fourfold higher than the highest rate in a European country (Switzerland) in 1985; incidence rates in all other European countries, except France and Denmark, were below 10 in 1000000. Subsequently, AIDS incidence has increased more rapidly in southern Europe than in the rest of the continent. The estimated incidence rate for men in Spain (243 in 1 000 000) approached that in the United States (304 in 1 000 000) in 1992, and three additional countries (France, Switzerland and Italy) showed rates above 100 per million. The spread of the AIDS epidemic among women in some southern European countries was faster than in the United States. In Switzerland and Spain the standardized incidence rates in women were higher than in the United States by 1988 and 1992, respectively. Conclusions:Analysing trends in incidence rates avoids some weaknesses of AIDS statistics based on absolute numbers, and should become one of the standard tools for AIDS surveillance.


This article reports the findings of an exchange rate determination model based on either the traditional chartist or the fundamental model. Much dispute has surrounding exchange rate determination and many theories have been offered; however, market participants use and rely on the chartist model and academics rely on various economic variables (i.e., fundamental variables) in general. The monetary approach is sometimes used by persons in the field along with purchasing power parity hypothesis, the asset market approach, and so on. This article introduces both chartist and fundamental models and assumes that market participants are rational and can learn from mistakes. These participants check the profitability of the rule and compare it to other available rules. If they discover that the rule is less profitable, they consider a switch to the better rule. If they find otherwise, they stick to the initial rule. Using the dollar-Japanese yen exchange rate for 2010-2012, this article examines the appropriateness of this hybrid model, which fits well with the reality. This article shows that this rational- fundamentalist-chartist hybrid model can account for movements in the exchange rate.


Invasive species cost the United States 120 billion dollars every year, without factoring in the loss of species biodiversity and the damage done to our ecosystems (Pimentel, Zuniga, & Morrison, 2005). Recognition of threats posed by invasive species has led to increasing pressure to control or eradicate them in order to mitigate their impacts (Mack et al., 2000). Understanding public opinion can help guide educational outreach to gain public support for eradication projects (Bertolino & Genovesi, 2003). The attitude of many people towards control of exotic pests depends on their perception of whether they believe a particular species is harmful or beneficial (National Invasive Species Council, 2008). Obstacles impeding invasive species management would likely be alleviated given a well-informed public (Bertolino & Genovesi, 2003). Since public opinions and attitudes can potentially affect continued introductions and management of exotics, it is imperative to understand the public's level of knowledge and attitudes toward these pests. In a study conducted by Oxley, Waliczek, and Williamson (2016) about the San Marcos River in Hays Co., Texas, a survey was administered to gauge the public's general knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes regarding non-native species and invasive species management. The San Marcos River is a highly invaded ecosystem with over 48 non-native species (Bowles & Bowles, 2001). The results indicated that participants who claimed they knew of invasive species in the river were more supportive of control measures being taken when compared to participants who claimed they did not know of any invasive species in the river. The study also found that young adults who had not received as much college education knew less about invasive species and were less likely to be involved in environmental organizations that could inform them about invasive species. These results indicate there is a need to determine and understand attitudes of college-aged youth about impacts of invasive species and their control (Oxley et al., 2016). This information will allow educators to design and implement appropriate educational programs to inform this segment of the public of the issues and challenges of exotic pest management.


High risk is inherent to agriculture in Turkmenistan, a post-socialist desert country where the political uncertainties of transition exacerbate natural unpredictability. This study examines risk coping strategies of Turkmen farmers based on a survey of 1100 respondents carried out in 2002 in all five provinces. We propose a new composite index of vulnerability, which includes human capital indicators and geographic location. The analysis relies on a single independent variable, which nevertheless incorporates the effect of criteria interactions. Using survey data, we analyze income smoothing as a mechanisms of risk management across vulnerability groups. Consistently with theoretical expectations, the most vulnerable households seem prefer a smaller, but safer outcome over a larger but uncertain one: the most vulnerable households tend to specialize in wheat, which is less risky (and less profitable) than cotton, while less vulnerable households emphasize cotton. However, contrary to expectations and findings in other countries, Turkmen farmers do not follow many of the common risk coping strategies. The more vulnerable households do not readily diversify their income generating activities: they seldom take off-farm employment; rarely engage in cottage industries; do not diversify the production mix on their household plot. Nor is there evidence that the more vulnerable families show greater reliance on their subsistence household plot. The results seem to suggest that the more vulnerable households are trapped in a deep vulnerability trap, lacking initiative and probably resources to break out through income diversification strategies.


Economic hardship has detrimental effect on parenting behavior. Parents with low and unstable incomes experience more emotional stress, more depressive symptoms and less involved in the children,s lives (McLoyd,1990;Taylor et al, 1970). The main objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between economic hardship and parenting behavior of Rungus families in urban and rural areas in Sabah. The sample consists of 243 respondents, (115 husbands and 128 wives) with 111 respondents live in urban and 132 respondents live in rural areas. The instrument used for this study were the Economic Strain Questionnaire (ESQ) to measure economic hardship, and Parent,s report (PR) to measure parenting behavior. Analysis of data was done using t-test and Pearson correlation. The result of the study revealed that economic hardship was significantly correlated to parenting behavior. There are no relationship between financial hardship and parenting behavior. Implications of these findings and future research are discussed.


Qualitative studies and media reports suggest that the presence of Chinese oil or mining companies generates resentments among local extractive communities due to low wages, poor working conditions, environmental degradation, the employment of foreign labour, and perceived racial discrimination. At the same time, Chinese investment in the extractive sector appears to enhance local infrastructure. So far, these claims have not been empirically tested in a systematic way. Relying on novel data on the control-rights regimes of diamond, gold, and copper mines and geo-referenced information from Afrobarometer surveys, this paper examines whether Chinese-controlled mining promotes anti-Chinese sentiments among the local populations of sub-Saharan African countries. In addition, we test the effect of mining contractors' nationality on socio-economic indicators such as local employment rates and infrastructure levels. Our logistic regression analysis for the period 1997-2014 reveals that the effect of Chinese mining companies on African local development is ambiguous: while proximity to Chinese-operated mines is associated with anti-Chinese sentiments and unemployment, populations living close to Chinese mining areas enjoy better infrastructure, such as paved roads or piped water. Multilevel mixed-effects estimations using district-level data from the Demographic Health Survey for 20 sub-Saharan countries corroborate these findings.


In this paper, The Design and Implementation low power Current Steering Digital to Analog Converter in 45 nm technology using GDI Logic using TANNER TOOL, V15 is presented. This architecture gives the most optimized results in terms of speed, resolution and power. The designed 6-bit DAC operates with two supply voltages, 1 V and 3.3 V. The simulation result shows the transient analysis waveforms of current Steering DAC. The average power dissipation is 364.06 μW. The tool used for simulation is Tanner S-Edit and T-Spice. Comparisons show that using GDI logic, it consists low power as compare to the CMOS logic.


Past environmental changes and events at multi-decadal to tectonic timescale toward an understanding of Earth climate system by an integration of terrestrial and marine proxy studies and numerical modeling will be discussed. We welcome a variety of paleo-environmental studies from a wide range of background. In particular, a series of presentations relating to the Anthropocene will be planned. This is a merged session of A-OS31 "Linkage between oceanography and paleoceanography in marginal, shelf and coastal oceans" and M-IS23 "Paleoclimatology and paleoceanography" sessions at JPGU 2017. We hope that this session will provide an opportunity to promote communication between participants from multidisciplinary field.


Glaucoma is a first rank common cause of irreversible vision loss. It is also recognized as a neurodegenerative disease which progress with age, results in optic neuropathy. The exact cause of glaucoma remains unclear although oxidative stress considered as one of the reasons for cell death in the retinal ganglion cell and retinal pigment epithelium. Oxidative stress could result after imbalance between formation and utilization of reactive oxygen species. Current pharmacotherapy of glaucoma includes lowering down of elevated level of IOP, which is not sufficient enough to retard irreversible vision loss in some instances. Hence, alternative neuroprotective therapy is warranted. Polyphenolic compounds possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory properties and also show the neuroprotective effect in an experimental model. Amongst the natural polyphenolic compounds resveratrol, curcumin, rutin, quercetin, myricetin have been studied and showed potential as neuroprotection against cell apoptosis. Moreover, the extra supplement of a polyphenolic compound may also improve antioxidant status, which was underestimated in glaucoma disorder. Despite the potential, the polyphenolic compounds yet to explore for clinical use in ocular disorder. Hence it is an excellent opportunity for the future researcher to transform these substances from lab to clinic as neuroprotectants


Objective. To determine whether the correlation between the mean change in disease activity and the mean change in synovial sublining (sl) CD68 expression could be demonstrated across different academic centers. Methods. Synovial biopsies obtained at arthroscopy from patients with rheumatoid arthritis before and 160 days after rituximab therapy were selected and coded. Paired sections were processed independently at Amsterdam Medical Center (AMC) and at St. Vincent's University Hospital (SVUH), Dublin. Digital image analysis (DIA) was employed at both centers to quantify sublining CD68 expression. Results. After analysis of CD68sl expression at centers in 2 different countries, high levels of intracenter and intercenter agreement were observed. For the pooled sections stained at AMC, the correlation between 2 investigators was R = 0.942, p = 0.000, and for sections stained at SVUH, R = 0.899, p = 0.001. Similarly, the intracenter correlations for ΔCD68sl expression after treatment were R = 0.998, p = 0.000, for sections stained at AMC and R = 0.880, p = 0.000, for sections stained at SVUH. The intercenter correlation for the pooled scores of sections stained at AMC was R = 0.85, p = 0.000, and for the sections stained at SVUH, R = 0.62, p = 0.001. The consistent correlation between ΔDAS (Disease Activity Score) and ΔCD68sl expression across different studies (Pearson correlation = 0.895, p < 0.001) was confirmed. The standardized response mean values for ΔCD68sl, calculated from analyses at both AMC and SVUH, were consistently 0.5 or greater, indicating a moderate to high potential to detect change. Conclusion. The correlation between mean ΔDAS and mean ΔCD68sl expression was confirmed across 2 centers. Examination of serial biopsy samples can be used reliably to screen for interesting biological effects at the site of inflammation at an early stage of drug development.


The main objective of this dissertation is to add a historical perspective to the debate on the link between gender inequality and development. To do so, the dissertation first documents global gender differences in life expectancy and sex ratios (to cover health status); in average years of schooling, labour force participation, inheritance rights and marriage age (to cover socioeconomic status); and in parliamentary seats and suffrage (to cover political rights) over the last century. These indicators show thatthe position of women has improved substantially throughout the world over the last century. For instance, two centuries ago, women everywhere were denied political rights and access to the political arena, whereas today this legal restriction has been removed everywhere. While women could inherit property only in a handful of Western European countries at the turn of the twentieth century, today gender egalitarian inheritance practices are the norm in many corners of the world, except in a number of MENA and Sub-Saharan African countries. A composite indicator of gender equality taking these dimensions into account together shows strong progress in reducing gender inequality in the past 60 years in most regions.Only in East Asia and in Eastern Europe has this decline stalled in the 1980s.However, this progress has been too limited to speak of a gender equal world. Despite improvement, women are still disadvantaged, for instance, with regards to labour force and political participation, and in extreme cases are even denied the right to live. A number of explanations are relevant to understand progress towards gender equality. Economic development partly explains later marriage ages, higher levels of education and improvements in life expectancy of women in which global progress started to become visible from the 1970s onwards. Next to economic development, international forces such as CEDAW and the United Nations help explain the timing of these improvements in women's position. However, the economic development thesis fails to give a full account for the trends in female labour force participation and political representation of women. Instead, historical institutions, in particular the legal systems countries have adapted in the past and family systems, seem to be relevant in explaining why economic development does not per se translate into higher gender equality. The findings, therefore, highlight the importance of incorporating a historical perspective to develop better strategies for policy makers to eliminate gender inequalities persisting today. The second part of the dissertation shows that eliminating the institutional arrangements that discriminate against women has consequences for the democratic and economic development of societies as well. For instance, societies in which women have less decision making power in the household are characterized by a higher level of fertility, and lower levels of educational attainment, less democratic institutions and lower economic development. Overall, the findings of the dissertation support the view that empowering women is 'smart economics' in the long run.


The paper addresses the asymmetrical gender relations which have shaped all spheres of life,  arguing that in both the public and private domains just relations cannot be accomplished unless the uniqueness of the individual is duly acknowledged. Examining the background for the persistent discrimination of women, Part I discusses the  naturalistic fallacy implied in traditional gender norms, the fatal correlation of 'women' and 'nature', and the 'feminization of poverty'. Part II focuses on the ways in which philosophical conceptions such as 'autonomy' and 'equality' have been, and still are, important tools for elaborating legislative measures – on the national as well as the international level – that aim at abolishing gender discrimination. Participatory equality is one case in point. Emphasizing that legislation represents but one element of what is needed in order to achieve fully reciprocal gender relations, Part III argues that the understanding of intimate human relations needs to be re-considered. Hegel's portrayal of 'love' that is based upon mutual recognition of individuals in their unique personality, and his conception of 'we' prove relevant here.


This is a critical overview of the anthropology of Chinese kinship focusing on the twentieth-century Euro-American literature. I first deal with the less well-known early literature of the period before the foundation and closure of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. I then show how the thematic and theoretical heterogeneity of this early literature was superseded during the 1960s and 1970s by a powerful but reductive paradigmatic lineage model of Chinese kinship and society, largely derived from documentary-based studies of lineage organisation in the late imperial period and consolidated through field research in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Inspired by earlier critics of this lineage-model, tuned in to new anthropological trends in the field of kinship studies and triggered by the post-Mao opening of the PRC, the 1990s marked the beginning of a very heterogeneous cycle of renovation generated by new field research. Seen as a whole, this current cycle of renovation has been undertaking a revision of the older descent-centred comparative view of Chinese kinship and is giving important insights to current anthropological debates about the nature of human kinship.


Diabetes mellitus is a signifi cant
risk factor for the development
of peripheral arterial disease
(PAD) (Baker et al, 2005).
Figures suggest that PAD
occurs 20 times more often in
people with diabetes compared
with the non-diabetic population
(Shaw and Boulton, 2001)
and is known to be a major
risk factor for diabetic foot
ulceration. Of all lower extremity
amputations, 40–70% are
related to diabetes, with the
majority occurring as a result
of PAD (Apelqvist et al, 1992;
International Working Group on
the Diabetic Foot, 2005).
There is a general consensus
that diabetic patients should
receive regular vascular
assessment to allow early
identifi cation of vascular
changes and prompt
intervention to prevent
deterioration (International
Working Group on the
Caroline McIntosh is Senior Lecturer in Podiatry, University of Huddersfi eld, Yorkshire
A reduced blood supply to the lower limb, due to arterial disease, is a common cause of foot
ulceration in patients with diabetes. Early identifi cation of arterial disease allows the implementation
of prompt management strategies to prevent adverse outcomes, such as ulceration. Regular vascular
assessment is therefore essential to establish the patient's risk of ulcer development. This article will
now examine the important aspects of lower-limb vascular assessment.
Diabetic Foot, 1999; Scottish
Intercollegiate Guidelines
Network [SIGN], 2001; National
Institute for Health and Clinical
Excellence [NICE], 2004).
This article provides advice
based on current clinical
guidelines to assist practitioners
when undertaking vascular
assessment of the diabetic foot.


Views expressed in this report are not necessarily those of the Department for Work and Pensions or any other Government Department.


Aim/Purpose: Explores the interrelationships between uncertainty, motivation, and IT readiness when predicting IOS adoption among small businesses.

Background: Small business IOS adoption is proportionally low in most countries worldwide.

Methodology: Uses a sample of small businesses and PLS structural-equations path modelling approach.

Contribution: Uncertainty is an underexplored construct in information systems research, and our research shows that it plays a significant role in IOS adoption among small businesses

Findings: The findings support that uncertainty has a negative effect on intent to adopt IOS and that motivation and IT readiness have a positive effect.

Recommendation for Researchers: To alleviate uncertainty, an effort to win over small business managers to IOS over the internet must encompass accessible information, security provisions, low-cost product, simple interfaces, and system adaptability to existing provisions in the IOS network.

The uncertainty perspective has not been tested extensively empirically, especially not in the context of technology adoption, and needs further investigation.

Future Research: Future research could explore the uncertainty construct in the context of IOS among different size businesses


Research traditionally uses experiential learning arguments to explain the existence of a positive relationship between repetition of an activity and performance. We propose an additional interpretation of this relationship in the context of discrete corporate development activities. We argue that firms choose to repeat successful activities, thereby accumulating high experience with them. Data on 437 aircraft projects introduced through three governance modes show that the positive performance effect of the firm's experience with the focal mode becomes insignificant after accounting for experience endogeneity. We suggest that in a general case, experience with corporate development activities may be tinged with both learning and selection effects. Therefore, omitting to account for experience endogeneity may lead to incorrect conclusions from an "empirically observed" positive experience–performance relationship.


An ecological approach to multimodal perception of virtual environments suggests that different perceptual mechanisms should cooperate in forming an impression of the complex surrounding. Traditionally, Virtual Environments (VE's) has primarily been developed for the visual modality. It is hypothesized that multi-modal stimulation in VE's raises the experience of presence perceived by the user. Furthermore, it is believed that auditory cues also can improve memory. In Experiment 1, 40 subjects were assigned either to a unimodal (vision only) or bimodal (vision and hearing) virtual environment. The subjects had two memory- and navigation tasks, one where auditory cues had no apparent connection to visual information and one where auditory and visual cues carried similar information. Completion time for both tasks was measured. Statistical analysis showed as expected that no improvement of memory occurred for the unrelated task, while the auditory information yielded a significant effect in the second memory task. Ratings showed that subjects in the bimodal condition experienced significantly higher presence, were more focused on the situation and enjoyed the VE more than subjects receiving unimodal information did. Experiment 2 tested the hypothesis that varying degrees of visual realism would affect judgments of aural room qualities in a betweensubjects design using 80 undergraduates. The results suggested that auditory stimuli in virtual environments can serve both as an information-carrying channel as well as way to improve the experience of presence in a VE and that memory performance may serve as a measure of presence in VE's.


During this period the state's interest in the film industry took several different forms. The area of films policy explored in this thesis is the economic protection of the commercial film industry against the high percentage of American films screened in Britain and the Empire. I begin in 1925 because it was not until then that active steps were taken by the government, in response to agitation from producers and those who saw film as a bond of Empire and advertisement for British goods and 'way of life', leading to the Cinematograph Films Act, 1927. This proposed, for political, cultural, moral and economic reasons, that renters and exhibitors should acquire and show a percentage of British films. There was no subsidy for producers or a heavy duty levied on American film imports. The origins, impact and character of official film policy are explored in the thesis with particular attention to financial and political aspects. An attempt is made to explain why policy was limited to film quotas together with an assessment of their impact on the industry's economic development. Details are also given on how the film industry's affairs became caught up in wider debates on tariff policy in the 1920s and in Anglo-American relations ten years later. The first three chapters deal with the evolution, promulgation and initial impact of the Cinematograph Films Act, 1927. Chapter 4 examines the deliberations of the Moyne Committee, established in 1936 to review the film industry's progress. The last three chapters analyse the three major influences on policy during the making of the 1938 Films Act: the campaigns of British film trade interests; the state of Anglo-American relations and film finance. In the final assessment the major influences that shaped policy are outlined together with conclusions on the industry's position and problems on the eve of the Second World War.


PURPOSE
To evaluate the role of axial, coronal, and sagittal MR in identification of surface landmarks of the cerebral operculum and to determine the reference values of interopercular distances of each hemisphere in healthy infants and children on MR images.

METHODS
Two hundred fourteen cerebral opercula of 35 healthy infants and 72 healthy children were retrospectively evaluated from 107 routine MR brain examinations. The surface landmarks of the operculum and interopercular distances of each hemisphere, which were subjectively divided into anterior interopercular distance (anterior sylvian width) and posterior interopercular distance (posterior sylvian width), were recorded from axial, coronal, and sagittal MR images, respectively. The mean value of anterior interopercular distance of each hemisphere was obtained by averaging two linear measurements of the anterior sylvian width from lateral, sagittal, and axial planes of the same side. Likewise, the posterior interopercular distance of each side of the brain was obtained from averaging of two measurements on lateral, sagittal, and coronal planes.

RESULTS
The landmarks of the operculum were best identified by sagittal MR, followed by axial and coronal images. The average values of left anterior interopercular distance, right anterior interopercular distance, left posterior interopercular distance, and right posterior interopercular distance in infants were 1.9 +/- 1.3, 1.6 +/- 1.1, 0.4 +/- 0.7, and 0.2 +/- 0.4 mm, and in children, 0.9 +/- 1.3, 1.0 +/- 1.4, 0.03 +/- 0.23, and 0.01 +/- 0.07 mm, respectively. Infants showed significantly wider interopercular distances than children. Left anterior interopercular distance was significantly wider than right in infants, but not in children. Male children displayed a more significant increase in anterior interopercular distance than did female children. There was no statistic difference in measurements of anterior interopercular distance and posterior interopercular distance between female and male infants.

CONCLUSIONS
The operculum should be evaluated with MR in three planes. Infants may show conspicuous sylvian fissures that should not exceed 4.5 mm (mean + 2 SD) anteriorly on axial and sagittal planes and 1.8 mm posteriorly on sagittal and coronal planes. Healthy children who have fully developed opercula should have an anterior interopercular distance of no more than 3.5 mm and a posterior interopercular distance of 0.5 mm.


Chloroperoxidase from Caldariomyces fumago catalyzes the aerobic oxidative halocyclization of allenic alcohols and carboxylates yielding functionalized furan and pyran heterocycles as valuable synthetic scaffolds. Thanks to an oxidase-initiated redox cascade, simple halide salts – in combination with air and glucose – act as stoichiometric reagents for the in situ generation of reactive halonium species. Under the mild reaction conditions in an aqueous emulsion medium, the stereochemical integrity of diastereo- and enantioenriched allenes remains uncompromised and chiral dihydrofurans can be obtained via 5-endo-trig cyclizations with perfect axis-to-centre chirality transfer.


The time and amount of nitrogen (N) uptake affects
both root and extractable sucrose yield of sugarbeets
(Beta Vulgaris L.). Either excessive or late N fertilizer
applications and subsequent plant N uptake from applied or
residual N sources cause an increasing proportion of the
photosynthate to be used for top growth at the expense of
both root dry matter and sucrose accumulation (6, 7).
Adequate but not excessive amounts of soil and fertilizer
N available early in the growing season are needed for
adequate top and root growth, while maintaining sufficiently
high sucrose percentage and purity for profitable
sucrose extraction and yield.

For maximum N efficiency and economy, N fertilizer
should be applied either near the time of planting or
sidedressed early in the season. This reduces the time
between N application and N uptake which allows less opportunity
for N to be leached out of the root zone,
denitrified, or incorporated into soil microorganisms and
their by-products.

Fall bedding and fertilization of fields to be used
for sugarbeets is a common practice throughout the
intermountain area of the western United States. Although
this practice increases the time between N application and
N uptake, it has the following advantages: 1) possible
earlier planting, 2) improved moisture level in the
seedbed at planting, 3) less irrigation water is required
for germination, 4) more even distribution of labor requirement
during the fall and spring months, and 5) more
even distribution of fertilizer demand.

The objective of this study was to evaluate several
rates and times (fall and spring) of N fertilizer application
as it affects the location of NO3-N within the soil
profile, N uptake, seasonal growth rates, dry matter production,
sucrose concentration and accumulation, and the
partitioning of the photosynthate.


An evaluation of the complex and dynamic relationship that develops between Special Olympics coaches and athletes as they prepare for major competitions is underway at the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland. The project is centered on the Special Olympics World Games planned for June/July 2011, and will involve athletes and coaches in four countries selected from four Special Olympics regions. To prepare for this work a pilot study has been completed in the Ulster region of SO Ireland. This report summarises the aims of the study and the methods used, discusses the key themes, which were drawn from the data and how these have been used to refine our data collection tools for the wider study. The report is written for the Project Advisory Board in the first instance.


I. IntroductionImagine a world where the only punishment for breaking the law is the payment of a negotiated fine. Imagine further that after paying this fine, you do not even have to admit to being guilty of the crime, no matter how staggering the evidence arrayed against you might be. Add to this the fact that your lawyer, negotiating the fine, used to work for the government entity prosecuting the crime. What is more, the government prosecutor sitting across the table from you will, in a few years time, want a job with the law firm now defending you. Finally, indulge in one more flight of fancy: imagine that you can pay these fines with other people's money. Now, ask yourself, exactly how much of a law-abiding citizen would you be?1Sadly, this is not a premise for a dystopian, science-fiction movie. This is the current enforcement paradigm of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission), the federal agency predominately tasked with writing, overseeing, and enforcing the rules and regulations that govern the country's financial markets.2 Over the last few decades, the once-feared Division of Enforcement-the law enforcement wing of the Commission- has slowly warped into a meek and abiding Division of Settlement.3 This is a change that has and will continue to have sweeping consequences on the effectiveness of U.S. financial regulations, and through them, the stability of the overall global financial markets.As a partial riposte to this rigged game-where corporate defendants violate the securities laws, are civilly sanctioned for these violations, and then proceed to violate the laws again in a veritable merry-go-round of fraud-the Honorable Jed S. Rakoffof the Southern District of New York rejected a proposed settlement and consent decree that the Commission had entered into with Citigroup Global Markets on November 28, 2011.4 In this unexpected and controversial move,5 Judge Rakofftook the Commission to task-not for the first time-calling such deals "unfair,"6 "unreasonable,"7 "suggest[ing] a rather cynical relationship between the parties,"8 "done at the expense . . . of the truth,"9 "worse than mindless [and] inherently dangerous,"10 aimed at "suppressing or obscuring the truth,"11 "designed to provide the S.E.C. with the facade of enforcement,"12 and perhaps most damningly, "engine[s] of oppression."13 At the heart of his criticism, though, was Judge Rakoff's belief that such settlements-which in this case imposed a $285 million fine on Citigroup-amounted not to a sanction but to the imposition of a "cost of doing business" on the defendant, a mere inconvenience, and therefore failed to further the public interest in affecting tangible regulatory enforcement.14 This Note addresses Judge Rakoff's concerns. While it is true that the Second Circuit will likely overturn Judge Rakoff's decision in a matter of months,15 owing to the high levels of deference traditionally granted to agency determinations, his opinion nevertheless raises fundamental questions about the soundness of the Commission's settlement policy-questions that demand answers.The Commission currently settles, in a manner not unlike the scenario described above, roughly 98% of its cases.16 This amounts to between 650 and 700 settlements per year.17 This means that the Commission settles cases at a higher rate than private parties18-even though the Commission's goal is not to vindicate its own private interests, as settlement often does, but to vindicate the interests of the public at large.19 The numbers themselves, then, suggest that there is something foundationally askew.These settlements-termed consent judgments or consent decrees because the defendant is 'consenting' to an order being entered against it- have three constituent parts. First, the defendant typically agrees to pay a monetary fine and to disgorge any ill-gotten gains.20 Second, the defendant agrees to the issuance of an injunction barring the defendant from violating the securities laws again in the future. …


The small East African shorthorn zebu (EASZ) is an indigenous stable zebu x taurine admixed cattle population highly adapted to the local African environment, i.e. disease resistance, thermotolerance, sustain themselves on poor feed quality, in comparison to the exotic productive cattle. Understanding the genetic control of their adaptations will help sustainable breeding improvement programs, both within populations and through crossbreeding. In this thesis, genome-wide SNP data, from two commercially available SNP arrays; the Illumina BovineSNP50 BeadChip v.1 and the Illumina BovineHD BeadChip, and full genome sequence of 10 pooled EASZ samples were used to define candidate regions with signatures of positive selection in the genome of EASZ. In chapter 2, the low-density SNP chip has defined 24 candidate regions (21 in the autosomes and three in the sex chromosome X (BTA X) by two Extended Haplotype Homozygosity (EHH)-based (intra-population iHS and inter-population Rsb) analyses and an inter-population FST approach. Characterising the EASZ genome with high-density genome-wide SNP analyses (meta-SS, Rsb, iHS and ΔAF) and pooled heterozygosity (Hp) sequence analysis, in chapters 3 and 4, identified a total of 266 autosomal and 20 BTA X candidate regions. Analysing genome-wide SNP data of zebu cattle populations from Uganda and Nigeria classified some of these regions as East African zebu-sharing and East and West African zebu-sharing candidate regions. Genes and quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with adaptive traits (e.g., reproduction, immunity and heat stress) were found within the identified candidate regions. Moreover, Nine non-synonymous variants were found in five candidate genes and considered as possible causative mutations under selection. Finally, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of 13 EASZ were investigated and affiliated to T1a, T1b and T1b1 sub-haplogroups. No selective advantage was found to be associated with taurine mtDNA over the zebu type. Although purifying selection is the main selective factor influencing African cattle mtDNA, in Cox-2 gene of the T1b/ T1b1 sub-haplogroups a non-synonymous mutation may confer a selective advantage. The results of this thesis are just the first milestone to define the valuable genetic material in EASZ, which should be conserved in future composite cattle upon informed selective crossbreeding and/or the recently introduced gene modification techniques (TALEN and CRISPER/Cas9).


the Internet, is owned by 5 major airlines and affiliated with 30 more. Its charter requires it to display flight and fare information in an unbiased manner, sorted only by price, number of stops, length of trip, and other basic criteria. Despite the fact that Orbitz has plenty of competition, other players in the industry have trotted out antitrust arguments to try to keep it from operating or cripple it with regulations. The intensity of the assault should set off alarms, because it is simply the latest example of antitrust being used to suppress competition rather than to promote it. Orbitz was created because the founding airlines have a strong interest in fostering sources of comprehensive, unbiased information on schedules, fares, and seat availability. Improved information will decrease airline operating costs and promote their interest in filling as many seats as possible. Orbitz is also introducing new software for booking reservations. This will introduce competition and reduce fees in a part of the industry that now derives market power from government regulation. It will also restructure the industry to reflect the new economic realities of the Internet. The antitrust attack on Orbitz is highly technical and is directed at provisions of the charter that require the participating airlines to provide Orbitz with all fares that they make publicly available, which is alleged to create excessive power over ticket selling. Another cause of antitrust concern is that Orbitz might in some fashion enable airlines to coordinate, and raise, their fares. Neither charge is valid. The charter provisions that are drawing fire are necessary to the creation of an unbiased information source. The real motivation of most opponents is their vested interest in the status quo. The seriousness with which the attack is being taken by the government, the press, and the public illustrates a general failing of contemporary antitrust regulation. Antitrust enjoys an excellent image, primarily because of the belief that it protects consumers. But in practice, the energy behind antitrust policy often comes from firms that are threatened by new arrangements. Pressure from such firms is skewing antitrust policy into a series of efforts to suppress innovation for the benefit of industry incumbents and to the detriment of consumers. Online Travel Services The Antitrust Assault on Orbitz—and on Consumers


Abstract A generalized Heckman model of purchase decisions incorporating perceived consumer quality attributes, ease of purchase, and familiarity with marketing outlets as factors influencing pecan purchases is estimated. Marketing efforts that encourage consumers to expand expenditures on nut products increase both the probability of pecan purchases and the amount purchased. Consumers who use all types of nuts in a wider variety of foods tend to purchase pecans more frequently. A diverse set of marketing outlets provides consumers with convenient sources for purchasing pecans and has a significant influence on the probability of pecan purchases but not the amount of pecans purchased.


A system effect arises when the properties of an aggregate differ from the properties of its members, taken one by one. The failure to recognize system effects leads to fallacies of division and composition, in which the analyst mistakenly assumes that what is true of the aggregate must also be true of the members, or that what is true of the members must also be true of the aggregate. Examples are (1) the fallacious assumption that if the overall constitutional order is to be democratic, each of its component institutions must be democratic, taken one by one; (2) the fallacious assumption that if judges are politically biased, courts will issue politically biased rulings. In these cases and many others I will discuss, system effects are an indispensable analytic tool for legal theory. A systemic approach implies that the choices of legal actors are strategically interdependent: the best course of action for any given actor will depend upon what other actors do. Judges deciding how to interpret statutes and the constitution, for example, cannot simply assume, idealistically, that it would be best for them to adopt the approach that would be best for all if adopted by all. If others do not adopt that approach, then the nature of the best approach for the given judge may itself change, taking others' actions as nonideal constraints. The implication is a second-best approach to constitutionalism and legal interpretation. The judge who takes system effects into account may change her approach in light of the behavior of her colleagues and the behavior of other institutions. Although such a judge is strategic, it does not follow that she is unprincipled. Rather, under identifiable conditions, the systemically-minded judge will be a strategic legalist who attempts to act, within the constraints that arise from others' behavior, so as to nudge the legal system toward the best possible state, according to her view of the law. Indeed, the systemically-minded judge may even be a legal chameleon who changes her approach as the legal environment, including the behavior of other judges, changes around her, until the court as a whole reaches an equilibrium of optimal diversity. Although such a course of action is psychologically demanding, the systemic benefits that the legal chameleon creates can be attained at the systemic level instead. Wise appointments by Presidents and Senators aiming to diversify the judiciary would mimic, in a second-best way, the diversity that a bench of legal chameleons would produce.


Construction industry is one of the largest and most important industries in Palestine. Quality and safety in the industry still suffers from ignorance and lack of supervision and accident rate on construction projects is very high. The objective of this paper is to identify the quality and safety factors that relate to safety, and determine their relative importance as perceived by contractors to help reduction of accidents. A survey was conducted by using a 55 item questionnaire which was grouped into 15 major categories. Analysis of the responses found the most important factors that included: "safety organization formed with community culture considers safety is a vital need for people", "all managers are required to go through proper safety management training", "all engineers are needed to go through relevant safety management training", "lack of orientation training of new workers decreases quality and increases risks for them", and "safety organization formed in such a way that workers and top management exercise positive behavior towards safety". The results found that safety training group was categorized as the most important among the 15 categories.


The object of this thesis is the study of nanostructured thin films using inelastic fight scattering and elastic x-ray scattering techniques. Their use in combination with other techniques is a powerful tool for the investigation of nanostructured materials. X-ray, Raman and Brillouin characterisation of cluster-assembled carbon films, promising for applications in the field of catalysis, hydrogen storage and field emission, is here presented. X-ray reflectivity (XRR) provided a measure of the density. Raman spectroscopy showed that the local bonding in these amorphous films depends on the size distribution of the clusters and that it is possible to select the cluster size in order to grow films with tailored properties. Brillouin scattering provided a characterisation at the mesoscopic scale and an estimate of the elastic constants, revealing a very soft material. XRR was employed to study density, layering and roughness of a wide range of amorphous carbon films grown with different techniques. Some films possess an internal layering due to plasma instabilities in the deposition apparatus. By comparing XRR with Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy, a unique value for the electron "effective mass" was deduced and a general relationship between sp(^3)-content and density was found. XRR and H effusion were used to determine the hydrogen content. A study of the size-dependent melting temperature in tin nanoparticle thin films was undertaken with a combined use of X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and light scattering. A redshift in the position of a Rayleigh peak in the temperature-dependent Brillouin measurements was shown to be related to the melting of the nanoparticles and explained by an effective medium model. XRD also provided information on the low-level of stress in the particles. Low-frequency Raman scattering was used to study the behaviour of the acoustic modes of a single particle as a function of temperature.


Hepatotropic viruses are important causes of human disease, but the intrahepatic immune response to hepatitis viruses is poorly understood because of a lack of tractable small- animal models. We describe a murine model of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection that recapitulates critical features of type A hepatitis in humans. We demonstrate that the capacity of HAV to evade MAVS-mediated type I interferon responses defines its host species range. HAV-induced liver injury was associated with interferon-independent intrinsic hepatocellular apoptosis and hepatic inflammation that unexpectedly resulted from MAVS and IRF3/7 signaling. This murine model thus reveals a previously undefined link between innate immune responses to virus infection and acute liver injury, providing a new paradigm for viral pathogenesis in the liver.


Background: This study compared walking frequency and associated variables between older males and females living in Spain. Type of study: Cross-sectional analysis. Methods: Logistic regression was used to determine differences in various intensities and durations of walking. The sample consisted of 1,504 people over 60 years of both genders. Results: For low frequency of walking, there were no significant differences between males (68.2%) and females (68.4%). When the frequency increased to five days per week, the differences were significant: males (51.5%), females (43.5%). Level of education was found to be associated with the likelihood of walking: males (OR=1.9), females (OR=1.4) and perceived physical condition males (OR=3.0), females (OR=4.6). Conclusion: Overall, the probability of walking, at a faster pace with the purpose of maintaining or improving fitness, was the same for males and females. However, the males walked more frequently than the females. Moreover, females with low self-rated physical fitness levels were most unlikely to walk on a daily basis. Physical inactivity was associated with low levels of education, particularly among males. These data suggest that the older adult Spanish population is insufficiently active and that females and those with low levels of education were the least likely to walk on a daily basis.


The diversification of plant‐feeding insects is seen as a spectacular example of evolutionary radiation. Hence, developing hypotheses to explain this diversification, and methods to test them, is an important undertaking. Some years ago, we presented the oscillation hypothesis as a general process that could drive diversification of this and similar interactions, through repeated expansions and contractions of host ranges. Hamm and Fordyce recently presented a study with the outspoken intention of testing this hypothesis where they concluded that the oscillation hypothesis was not supported. We point out several problems with their study, owing both to a misrepresentation of our hypothesis and to the methods. We provide a clarifying description of the oscillation hypothesis, and detail some predictions that follow from it. A reanalysis of the data demonstrated a troubling sensitivity of the "SSE" class of models to small changes in model specification, and we caution against using them for tests of trait‐based diversification. Future tests of the hypothesis also need to better acknowledge the processes behind the host range oscillations. We suspect that doing so will resolve some of the apparent conflicts between our hypothesis and the view presented by Hamm and Fordyce.


For a point source placed in front of a reflecting cone, expressions have been found for the shape of the virtual image and for the amplitude of the real-image field. Both the virtual and the real images have the same axis of symmetry, which passes through the vertex of the cone and lies in the plane containing the point source and the cone axis. The angle between the axis of symmetry and the axis of the cone is equal in magnitude but opposite in sign to the angle between the latter and the line joining the point source and the cone vertex. The projection of the virtual image onto a plane perpendicular to the axis of symmetry is an ellipse. Both the real and virtual images have two planes of symmetry that are the planes containing, respectively, the major and minor axes of the virtual image. The irradiance distribution along the axis of symmetry in the real-image field varies as the square of a Bessel function of zero order and of the first kind. The analytical expression found for the real-image field gives the expected behavior of the field when the cone becomes a plane. It also obeys the energy-conservation law.


A detailed study has been made of the onset and behaviour of (m = 3, n = 2) neoclassical tearing modes (NTMs) on JET, validating many of the underlying concepts in NTM physics. In particular, fitting onset thresholds in terms of the correctly motivated physics parameters produces scalings closer to theoretical expectations. The use of such locally measured parameters also removes previous inconsistencies in the data between different divertor configurations. The evolution of island size with β confirms the predicted levels of bootstrap current, and highlights the role of small island size stabilization terms, which give rise to a seeding requirement for NTMs from some other instability. This seeding requirement is confirmed, and is generally provided by sawteeth in the cases studied here. Although there are a variety of possible seeding mechanisms, for the particular cases studied here, it appears doubtful that the seeds are induced by magnetic coupling. In particular the NTM always appears well below the n = 2 sawtooth precursor harmonic frequency—although they often lock together once the NTM has grown close to saturation. Also, while plasma rotation profiles are favourable for a three wave interaction involving (4, 3) and n = 1 modes, with irregular matches to the appropriate mode frequency condition, there is no clear correlation between such matches and (3, 2) NTM growth rates. Thus, other seeding models should be considered—we have discussed two possibilities: a temporary change to classical tearing stability due to the sawtooth, and flow variation leading to a change in ion polarization current polarity, but neither of these are yet confirmed by the data. A complete resolution of this issue is essential if a predictive theory of NTMs is to be obtained, but it requires further, more detailed experimental measurements, and development of theoretical models. Finally, the nature of the (4, 3) NTM has also been explored. This mode also requires a seed perturbation to be triggered (in these cases supplied by a sawtooth), and occurs at similar local parameter values as the (3, 2) NTM, but with lower heating powers and βN. A cascade process emerges in which successively lower mode number NTMs occur as β is raised.


Basic unshaped refractories are used as tundish lining in the continuous casting steelmaking process. These refractories are composed of forsteritic olivine and periclase. Slag covers the steel bath in the tundish in order to protect the melt from reoxidation. Using TEM, we demonstrate that the fayalite component of the olivine is reduced to metallic iron giving the olivine a dusty appearence in transmitted light. The reduced olivine appears stable under high temperature reducing conditions. We suggest that diffusion of Mg2+ from the outer part of the olivine into empty Fe2+ lattice positions in the interior prohibits formation of SiO2 as by-product of the fayalite reduction. Some of the silica may also have left the olivine in form of gaseous SiO. Periclase reacts with Al2O3 from the tundish slag to form spinel. We show that Mn from the steel melt is oxidized and enriched in tundish slag as well as in the refractory. The steel melt is the only source of Mn in the slag. Thermodynamic calculations show that equilibrium fractionation of Fe and Mn between steel melt and slag results in effective separation of Fe (in steel) and Mn (in oxides/silicates).


The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of the country risk factors on the dispersion of the cost of bank borrowing within the euro area, during the period of the global financial and Eurozone debt crises. The main aim is to empirically evaluate the degree to which the cost of borrowing differentials of euro area countries can be explained by changing dispersion in country risk (measured by government bond spreads). The results using rolling estimations suggest that the impacts of bond yield spreads are not such a significant determinant of the observed dispersion of the cost of borrowing, a dispersion that has been worsen after the outbreak of the global financial crisis and the subsequent euro area debt crisis. Even in the cases where a significant association is found for some countries, it seems that it is weakening as we move further away from the beginning of the turbulent periods.


The cognitive radio paradigm for developing next-century wireless communication systems is rapidly entering the mainstream, and various aspects of it are currently being applied in 5G technology, aeronautical engineering, military communications, emergency, and public safety applications, satellite communication, and healthcare. Cognitive radio focuses on the existence of software defined radio architectures that allow dynamic reconfiguration. Many researchers have taken initiatives in the last decade to achieve the reconfiguration ability in cognitive radio systems to support the concept of dynamic spectrum access. As cognitive radio adapts dynamic spectrum allocation for its users, the physical implementation requires reconfigurable filters that can alter the carrier frequencies and bandwidth. Although there are many ways to reconfigure filter operation, diode based reconfiguration has received utmost attention among researchers because of its shorter response delay and easy implementation. In the last decade, researchers have reported several diode-based reconfigurable filters, including their characteristics such as filter function, filter combination, tuning range, variation in bandwidth, isolation, and resonance. However, to examine the potential of these filters in the application of cognitive radio, a comprehensive review needs to be pursued. In this review article, the descriptions of several diode based reconfigurable filters are illustrated with their exhibiting characteristics. The detailed information provided in this article has disclosed that primarily three different types diode based reconfigurable filters have been reported by researchers: Tunable, Switchable, and Hybrid (Both Tunable and Switchable). It is also found that each type of reconfiguration can further be segregated in terms of filter function, centre frequency variation, and bandwidth variation. The detailed categorization of the reconfiguration presented in this paper provides a systematic approach to select the correct reconfigurable filter for the desired frequency reconfiguration in cognitive radio.


Clusters with filled electronic shells and a large gap between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) are generally energetically and chemically stable. Enabling clusters to become electron donors with low ionization energies or electron acceptors with high electron affinities usually requires changing the valence electron count. Here we demonstrate that a metal cluster may be transformed from an electron donor to an acceptor by exchanging ligands while the neutral form of the clusters has closed electronic shells. Our studies on Co6Te8(PEt3)m(CO)n (m + n = 6) clusters show that Co6Te8(PEt3)6 has a closed electronic shell and a low ionization energy of 4.74 eV, and the successive replacement of PEt3 by CO ligands ends with Co6Te8(CO)6 exhibiting halogen-like behavior. Both the low ionization energy Co6Te8(PEt3)6 and high electron affinity Co6Te8(CO)6 have closed electronic shells marked by high HOMO-LUMO gaps of 1.24 and 1.39 eV, respectively. Further, the clusters with an even number of ligands favor a symmetrical placement of ligands around the metal core.


While hurricanes occur naturally, human‐caused climate change is supercharging them and exacerbating the risk of major damage. Here using ocean and atmosphere observations, we demonstrate links between increased upper ocean heat content due to global warming with the extreme rainfalls from recent hurricanes. Hurricane Harvey provides an excellent case study as it was isolated in space and time. We show that prior to the beginning of northern summer of 2017, ocean heat content was the highest on record both globally and in the Gulf of Mexico, but the latter sharply decreased with hurricane Harvey via ocean evaporative cooling. The lost ocean heat was realized in the atmosphere as moisture, and then as latent heat in record‐breaking heavy rainfalls. Accordingly, record high ocean heat values not only increased the fuel available to sustain and intensify Harvey but also increased its flooding rains on land. Harvey could not have produced so much rain without human‐induced climate change. Results have implications for the role of hurricanes in climate. Proactive planning for the consequences of human‐caused climate change is not happening in many vulnerable areas, making the disasters much worse.