In large urban areas, smooth running public transit networks are key to viable development. Currently, economic and environmental issues are fueling the need for these networks to adequately serve travel demand, thereby increasing their competitiveness and their market share. Better balance between transit supply and demand will also help reduce and control operating costs. The fact is, however, that transit operators are finding it extremely difficult to adjust the service to meet the demand, because this demand changes continuously with the time or day of travel (period of the day, day of the week, season or holiday) and other factors like weather and service breakdown. In order to enhance their service, operators need to better understand the travel demand (customer behaviors and the variability of the demand in space and time). This can be achieved only by continuously monitoring the day-to-day activities of users throughout the transit network. Some large cities around the world take advantage of smart card capabilities to manage their transit networks by using Smart Card Automated Fare Collection Systems (SCAFCS). An SCAFCS gives travelers greater flexibility, since a single card may be used by one user at various times and on different parts of the transit network, and may support various fare possibilities (by travel, line, zone, period, etc.). For transit operators, these systems not only validate and collect fares, but also represent a rich source of continuous data regarding the use of their network. Actually, this continuous dataset (developed for fare collection) has the potential to provide new knowledge about transit use. Following the application of various pretreatments which make it possible to extract real-time activity, data mining techniques can reveal interesting patterns. These techniques are aimed at precisely describing customer behavior, identifying sets of customers with similar behaviors, and measuring the spatial and temporal variability of transit use. Patterns are extracted and analyzed to document various issues, such as identifying transit use cycles or homogeneous days and weeks of travel for various periods of the year. This information is required for a better understanding and modeling of customer behavior, and consequently better adjustment of the service to the demand. These adjustments may, for instance, lead to the restructuring of the transit network, to the adaptation of route scheduling or to the definition of new and different subscription options (fares). Below, results from various experiments conducted with a real dataset are provided. They show the potential of data mining to provide useful and novel information about user behavior on a transit network. The data processed in the study are extracted from a system operating in a Canadian city (Gatineau, Quebec).


Objective: To describe challenges associated with the medication use process and potential medication safety hazards in an Ethiopian hospital emergency department using a human factors approach.
Methods: We conducted a qualitative study employing observations and semi-structured interviews guided by the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety model of work system as an analytical framework. The study was conducted in the emergency department of a teaching hospital in Ethiopia. Study participants included resident doctors, nurses, and pharmacists. We performed content analysis of the qualitative data using accepted procedures.
Results: Organizational barriers included communication failures, limited supervision and support for junior staff contributing to role ambiguity and conflict. Compliance with documentation policy was minimal. Task related barriers included frequent interruptions and work-related stress resulting from job requirements to continuously prioritize the needs of large numbers of patients and family members. Person related barriers included limited training and work experience. Work-related fatigue due to long working hours interfered with staff's ability to document and review medication orders. Equipment breakdowns were common as were non-calibrated or poorly maintained medical devices contributing to erroneous readings. Key environment related barriers included overcrowding and frequent interruption of staff's work. Cluttering of the work space compounded the problem by impeding efforts to locate medications, medical supplies or medical charts.
Conclusions: Applying a systems based approach allows a context specific understanding of medication safety hazards in EDs from low-income countries. When developing interventions to improve medication and overall patient safety, health leaders should consider the interactions of the different factors.
Conflict of Interest We declare no conflicts of interest or financial interests that the authors or members of their immediate families have in any product or service discussed in the manuscript, including grants (pending or received), employment, gifts, stock holdings or options, honoraria, consultancies, expert testimony, patents and royalties".
Treatment of Human Subjects: IRB review/approval required and obtained

Type: Original Research


This study presents a new equivalent lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery model for online energy management system. It has an equilibrium potential E and an equivalent internal resistance R int . The equilibrium potential E is expressed as a function of state-of-charge (SOC), current and temperature. The equivalent internal resistance R int includes R 1 and R 2 . R 1 is defined as the resistance, which can be formulated by the discharging current and temperature. R 2 is defined as the resistance which is because of the change of temperature. The adaptive extended Kalman filter is employed to implement the online energy management system based on the proposed Li-ion battery model. The SOC is considered as the state variable for the charging or discharging process of the Li-ion battery. The covariance parameters of the processing noise and observation errors are updated adaptively. The SOC of the Li-ion battery can be predicted by the online measured voltage and current in the online energy management system. The effectiveness and robustness of the proposed Li-ion battery model is validated. Experimental results show that the estimated SOC is accurate for various operating conditions. A comparison between the proposed method and other SOC estimation methods is also shown in the experimental results and analysis section.


Bayesian optimization is an efficient way to optimize expensive black-box functions such as designing a new product with highest quality or tuning hyperparameter of a machine learning algorithm. However, it has a serious limitation when the parameter space is high-dimensional as Bayesian optimization crucially depends on solving a global optimization of a surrogate utility function in the same sized dimensions. The surrogate utility function, known commonly as acquisition function is a continuous function but can be extremely sharp at high dimension having only a few peaks marooned in a large terrain of almost flat surface. Global optimization algorithms such as DIRECT are infeasible at higher dimensions and gradient-dependent methods cannot move if initialized in the flat terrain. We propose an algorithm that enables local gradient-dependent algorithms to move through the flat terrain by using a sequence of gross-tofiner Gaussian process priors on the objective function as we leverage two underlying facts a) there exists a large enough length-scales for which the acquisition function can be made to have a significant gradient at any location in the parameter space, and b) the extrema of the consecutive acquisition functions are close although they are different only due to a small difference in the length-scales. Theoretical guarantees are provided and experiments clearly demonstrate the utility of the proposed method on both benchmark test functions and real-world case studies.


Telomere shortening limits the proliferative capacity of a cell, but perhaps surprisingly, shortening is also known to be associated with increased rates of tumor initiation. A current hypothesis suggests that telomere dysfunction increases tumor initiation by induction of chromosomal instability, but that initiated tumors need to reactivate telomerase for genome stabilization and tumor progression. This concept has not been tested in vivo, since appropriate mouse models were lacking. Here, we analyzed hepatocarcinogenesis in a mouse model of inducible telomere dysfunction on a telomerase-proficient background, in telomerase knockout mice with chronic telomere dysfunction (G3 mTerc-/-), and in WT mice with functional telomeres and telomerase. Transient or chronic telomere dysfunction enhanced the rates of chromosomal aberrations during hepatocarcinogenesis, but only telomerase-proficient mice exhibited significantly increased rates of macroscopic tumor formation in response to telomere dysfunction. In contrast, telomere dysfunction resulted in pronounced accumulation of DNA damage, cell-cycle arrest, and apoptosis in telomerase-deficient liver tumors. Together, these data provide in vivo evidence that transient telomere dysfunction during early or late stages of tumorigenesis promotes chromosomal instability and carcinogenesis in telomerase-proficient mice.


The formulation of agricultural price policy is complicated by the multiplicity of functions that price performs. The objectives, thrust, and instruments of agricultural price policy in India have undergone conspicuous shifts during the past 50 years and so has the role and effectiveness of price policy as a tool to influence the agricultural economy. The country's post-reform period witnessed higher emphasis and dependence on price policy compared with previous decades, where price policy aimed only at maintaining a balance between the interests of consumers and producers. It is in this context that the paper examines the effectiveness of procurement prices in getting sufficient income to the farmers. An in-depth analysis of costs and returns was conducted for wheat and paddy, the crops offered the highest protection by the state, to get idea of the profitability of Indian agriculture and gain insights into the workings of the price policy.


Sphalerite from Carlin–type gold deposits in Zhaishang, western Qinling, China, exhibits colour banding ranging from light to dark brown. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron-probe microanalysis show that such sphalerite banding is caused by variable Fe incorporation. A linear relationship exists between grey-scale level in photomicrographs and Fe content, thus allowing the extraction of Fe compositional length scales from high spatial resolution banding. Hurst exponents and Lyaponov exponents were measured using this technique. In the outer banding region, the measured Hurst exponents range from 0.20 to 0.41 with an average of 0.32, indicating fractal scaling and anti-persistent behaviour. The values of the Lyaponov exponent range from 0.0254 to 0.0757, with an average of 0.0468, revealing weakly chaotic behaviour in the oscillatory banding pattern. Analysis of the multifractal spectrum from the inner to outer bandings indicates that, compared with the inner and outer areas in the bandings of sphalerite crystals, the middle area exhibits a greater degree of fractal behaviour. The fractal dimensions can be taken as a quantitative indicator of temperature. Furthermore, zoning patterns may reflect chaotic behaviour in a nonlinear non-equilibrium system.


A modified procedure for the isolation of a nuclear pore complex-lamina fraction from rat liver nuclei is described. Evidence is provided that the isolated lamina, a 150-A thick, proteinaceous structure, apposes the inner nuclear envelope membrane, connecting nuclear pore complexes and surrounding the entire nucleus.


Microclimatic conditions have a strong influence on the distribution of vascular epiphytes, among which orchids often occur in sunnier and more drought-prone situations than ferns. However, very few studies have looked at the distribution of ferns and orchids in Australian tropical rainforests. By using transmitted light measurements at the locations of individual epiphytes and vapour pressure deficit from the canopy and base of host trees, we were able to determine the patterns of light and humidity in the rainforest environment, and the responses of ferns and orchids to variation in the physical environments. We surveyed five sites, ranging from 800 to 1180 m in elevation in the lower montane rainforests of north-east Australia. Data loggers recorded the vapour pressure deficit (VPD) at the forest floor and canopy of each site. Light was correlated with height within the host tree and VPD differed significantly over position in the host tree and elevation. There was a strong partitioning of taxonomic groups over the light and VPD gradients. Orchids occurred in environments that had higher mean light levels and mean daily maximum VPD (27% and 0.43 kPa, respectively) than ferns (21% and 0.28 kPa). There was also strong microclimatic partitioning of species within taxonomic groups, suggesting that microclimatic factors play an important role in the realized niche spaces of epiphytes within the tropical Australian rainforest. Thus, the tested ecological generalizations made on tropical rainforest epiphytes apply in Australia.


Nineteen patients with chronic heart failure participated in a double blind crossover trial of captopril and prazosin--two drugs with differing neuroendocrine effects--to determine whether neuroendocrine changes could explain clinical and haemodynamic responses to treatment. Patients were assessed before and after acute and long term (four weeks') treatment with each drug given in random order. Sixteen patients completed the study. During captopril haemodynamic improvement was maintained by inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system. Breathlessness was relieved in 15 patients and exercise capacity increased. During prazosin a reduction in systemic vascular resistance was maintained, but plasma renin activity and aldosterone and noradrenaline concentrations increased, fluid retention developed, and clinical benefit did not occur. These results suggest that clinical and haemodynamic responses to long term vasodilator treatment for chronic heart failure are related to neuroendocrine changes. In patients with chronic heart failure inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system results in clinical benefit, whereas inhibition of the alpha adrenergic system does not.


Persons with disabilities can achieve a greater degree of freedom when they have full access to a variety of transit modes, but this can only be achieved when the pathways to transit – the infrastructure and conditions in the built environment – allow full access to transit stops, stations, and vehicles. Since passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, many transit agencies and governmental jurisdictions have made significant progress in this area. Policy initiatives, incremental enhancements, modifications, and other measures undertaken by transit agencies and their partners have significantly improved access to transit for persons with disabilities, others who rely on public transportation, and individuals who chose to utilize these services. This research study explores, through case study work, efforts that have been effective in improving pathways to transit. Interviews and site visits were conducted with five transit agencies, along with their partners, that are actively engaged in improving pathways to connect transit consumers – particularly people with disabilities – with transit stations and stops. These agencies are: Broward County Transit (Broward County, FL), Memphis Area Transit Authority (Memphis, TN), NJ TRANSIT (Newark and New Brunswick, NJ), Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (Portland, OR), and Link Transit (Wenatchee, WA). Promising practices and/or lessons were identified through the case study analysis; these should be considered by any transit agency seeking to create improved access to its services for persons with disabilities.


This article examines the promise of market democratization conveyed by consumer rating and review websites in the restaurant industry. Based on interviews with website administrators and data from the main French platforms, we show that review websites contribute to the democratization of restaurant criticism, which first started in the 1970s, both by including a greater variety of restaurants in the reviews, and by broadening participation, opening restaurant reviewing to all. However, this twofold democratic ambition conflicts with the need to produce fair and helpful recommendations, leading review websites to seek compromises between these two dimensions.


Abstract Depositional paleoenvironments of the La Luna Formation were established based on investigation of sedimentology, foraminiferal assemblages, and stable isotope composition of two sections in the Venezuelan Andes. Planktonic foraminiferal biostratigraphy indicates that the age of the San Miguel section spans from the late Turonian to the early Campanian and the Las Hernández section ranges from the early Coniacian to the early Campanian. The base of the La Luna Formation becomes progressively younger towards the south. Early-diagenetic processes have altered stable isotopic composition of carbonates, however stratigraphic changes in carbon isotope values can be used to correlate between the sections. The environment of deposition of the La Luna Formation changed during the Late Cretaceous. Interval I, from the early Coniacian to mid-Santonian, was characterized by anoxic conditions. Alternating anoxic-dysoxic environments in Interval II lasted from the mid-Santonian to the base of the Campanian. Interval III, in the early Campanian, was marked by more oxygenated conditions. These trends can be partially observed in other ocean basins.


Introduction and development of membrane techniques in the production of drinking water and purifi cation of wastewaters, in the last 40 years, was important stage in the fi eld of water treatment effectiveness. Desalination of sea and brackish water by RO is an established way for drinking water production. Signifi cant improvements in design of RO, the application of alternative energy sources, modern pretreatment and new materials have caused the success of the process. NF is the method of water softening, because NF membranes can retain diand multivalent ions, but to a limited extend monovalent. Drinking water containing viruses, bacteria and protozoa, as well as other microorganisms can be disinfected by means of UF. Viruses are retained by UF membranes, whereas bacteria and protozoa using both UF and MF membranes. For the removal of NOM it is possible to use direct NF or integrated systems combining UF or MF with coagulation, adsorption and oxidation. The use of NF, RO and ED, in the treatment of water containing micropollutants for drinking and industrial purposes, can provide more or less selective removal of the pollutants. The very important are disinfection byproducts, residue of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds. For endocrine disrupting compounds, special attention is paid onto polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and surface-active substances, chlorinated pesticides, phthalates, alkylphenols, polychlorinated biphenyls, hormones, synthetic pharmaceuticals and other substances disposed to the environment. The application of MF and UF in the removal of inorganic and organic micropollutants is possible in integrated systems with: coagulation, adsorption, complexion with polymers or surfactants and biological reactions.


The cereal cyst nematode, Heterodera avenae is one of the most important pests of wheat in many countries in the world with different climatic types. Heterodera. avenae is commonly distributed in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Turkey and all populations investigated belong to the Ha1 group, Ha21 pathotype. This study was aimed to found resistance sources from the national wheat varieties, wheat wild genotypes and international wheat genotypes against H. avenae Karlik–Adana population (Ha21 pathotype). Results showed that four national wheat varieties, seventeen wheat wild genotypes and twenty three international wheat genotypes were found to be moderately resistant against to Eastern Mediterranean Region of Turkey H. avenae population. Among these genotypes, the national bread wheat variety, Adana 99 (PFAU/SERI82//BOG"S"), some wild genotypes and international genotypes can be used in national wheat breeding programmes. However, Cre1 was not showed completely resistant against H. avenae. Additionally resistance sources in of Turkish national wheat and wild genotypes needs to be determined.


Latinas/os are reported to be the fastest growing ethnic minority in the United States, with a large percentage being newly arrived immigrants. Previous research has found that many migrate in phases, with the father leaving the family behind or both parents migrating and leaving children in the care of family members. Separations from parental figures have been found to lead to psychosocial, psychological, and educational problems, acculturative stress, lack of social support, attachment problems, poverty, discrimination, unemployment, and marital distress. The purpose of this study was to inquire if immigrant variables (attachment, acculturative stress, and social supports) in Mexican and Central American immigrants who were separated from their primary caregivers as children predict marital distress. A total of 92 participants completed either the online questionnaire via Survey Monkey or paper surveys in person. A quantitative methodology, correlational multiple regression model was used in order to investigate the research questions and hypotheses. The theoretical framework that guided this study was John Bowlby's Attachment Theory. The results from the current study showed a statistically significant finding that the attachment style and acculturative stress in Mexican and Central American immigrants predicted marital distress. Findings from this study can promote a deeper understanding to marriage counselors regarding attachment, social support, acculturative stress, and separation factors that can affect immigrant couples. It may also have implications for immigration policy and promote the establishment of reunification programs in communities where immigrant populations reside.


We review the current state of the field of neutron scattering as applied to studies of mineral behaviour. Neutron scat- tering is a particularly versatile tool because it is able to measure both structure (diffraction) and dynamics (spectroscopy) of mate- rials at an atomic level, and because it is able to measure both coherent and incoherent scattering processes. As a result, there is a wide range of phenomena that can be studied using neutron scattering. The versatility of the tool is shown to arise within a gen- eral theoretical framework. Applications of neutron scattering in the Earth and Mineral Sciences are described.


The major effects of dietary fibre occur in the colon. Each type of dietary fibre interacts with the microflora, and the colonic mucosa and muscle to produce several possible effects. The action of an individual fibre source depends to a large extent on its fermentability. The least fermentable dietary fibres are in general having the greatest effects on stool output. Previous research showed that Gel Forming Component (GFC) of green cingcau leaves (Premna oblongifolia Merr.) had high fermentability in vitro. Therefore, in this research, we evaluated its effecton stool output and viable cells number of lactic acid bacteria in the diegesta of rats fed with diet containing GFC. Fifteen of 3 months-old Sparague-Dawle (c) and (3) Rats fed with diet containing iulin (l) . The results showed that stool output of G was higher than l, but lower than C (6.30, 4.61, 7.21 %, (respectively). feces consistency of G was softer than l, but harder than C. Number of viable cells of latic acid bacteria in the diegesta of G, I, and C were 12.85, 11.97 and 11.14 log of viable cells numbe/g digesta, respectively. These data suggest that GFC of green cingcau leaves had moderate laxative effect and fermentability. Key words: cingcau, fermentability, laxative, dietary fibre.


Background: Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency (AATD) is a rare genetic disorder that is associated with low levels of circulating alpha-1-antitrypsin in serum. The aim of the study was to identify differences between the genotypes PiZZ and PiSZ regarding the disease phenotypes including quality of life, exacerbation rate, rate of pneumonias and lung function. Methods: We compared PiZZ and PiSZ patients from the German registry for individuals with AATD in baseline characteristics and longitudinally by a follow-up period of 11 years. For the analysis, all subjects were stratified in three groups according to their cumulative nicotine consumption in packyears. Results: 868 PiZZ patients and 114 PiSZ patients with an average age of 52.6 ± 12.8 years (56.5% male; 43.5% female) in PiZZ and of 50.3 ± 17.4 years (53.5% male; 46.5% female) in PiSZ were compared. Significant differences between the genotypes could be observed in the group of never-smokers in SGRQ total score (PiZZ vs. PiSZ, p = 0.002), in all SGRQ sub-scores and in DLCO % pred. (PiZZ vs. PiSZ, p = 0.003). Exacerbation rate within the last two years significantly differed in patients with moderate nicotine consumption in packyears (PiZZ vs. PiSZ, p = 0.032). There was no significant difference in the exacerbation rate between individuals between PiZZ and PiSZ in the group of heavy (ex-) smokers Conclusions: The differences between PiZZ and PiSZ in quality of life, rate of exacerbations or diffusion capacity are weakening with increasing number of packyears.


2-Amino-5-fluorobenzonitrile (2A5FBN), a novel molecule has been reported after mutually experimental and theoretical approaches on molecular atomic structure, vibrational spectra, Non-linear Optics (NLO) properties, Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) analysis and Molecular Electrostatic Potential (MEP). The Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) (400-4000 cm-1) and FT-Raman spectra (50-3500 cm-1) of 2A5FBN were recorded. The density functional Hybrid functional Becke, three-parameter, Lee-Yang-Parr (HF/B3LYP) methods with 6-311++G (2d, p) as higher basis set was determined the molecular geometry, harmonic vibrational frequencies and bonding features of 2A5FBN in the ground state. Time-dependent Density Functional Theory (TD-DFT) has produced the calculated energy and oscillator strength. The calculated Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital (HOMO) and Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital (LUMO) energies show that charge transfer occurs within the molecule. Mulliken Population Analysis (MPA) and Natural Population Analysis (NPA) on charges also have been evaluated. Eventual investigation on thermodynamic parameters like enthalpy, Gibbs free energy, zero point energy, entropy, heat capacity, dipole moment and atomic charges have also been conducted. Finally, spectra of the title compound have good complement while compared with the calculation results were applied to simulate infrared and Raman spectra.


Abstract : The ability to take position, in a dynamic environment, relative to a local stationary object, is vital to many planned missions for the Naval Postgraduate School's Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV II) project, such as bottom surveying and mine hunting. The AUV II can achieve this ability through the use of its sensors along with stem propulsion motors and tunnel thrusters. The sensors employed by the AUV II include a free directional gyro and independent self-sonar which provide acoustic positioning data without the aid of a transponder net. Described in this thesis are the details of the internal subsystems of the AUV II, and an examination of its positioning ability through the analysis of maneuvering experiments. Commanded motions of yaw, lateral and longitudinal positioning during hover conditions are studied. Autonomous underwater vehicle, Acoustic dynamic positioning, Marine vehicle dynamics, Proportional derivative control.


Nationwide, as physicians and health care systems adopt electronic health records, health information technology is becoming integral to the practice of medicine. But current medical education and professional development curricula do not systematically prepare physicians to use electronic health records and the data these systems collect. We detail how training in meaningful use of electronic health records could be incorporated into physician training, from medical school, through licensure and board certification, to continuing medical education and the maintenance of licensure and board certification. We identify six near-term opportunities for professional organizations to accelerate the integration of health information technology into their requirements.


We describe the first public data release of the Dark Energy Survey, DES DR1, consisting of reduced single-epoch images, co-added images, co-added source catalogs, and associated products and services assembled over the first 3 yr of DES science operations. DES DR1 is based on optical/near-infrared imaging from 345 distinct nights (2013 August to 2016 February) by the Dark Energy Camera mounted on the 4 m Blanco telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. We release data from the DES wide-area survey covering ∼5000 deg2 of the southern Galactic cap in five broad photometric bands, grizY. DES DR1 has a median delivered point-spread function of , r = 0.96, i = 0.88, z = 0.84, and Y = 0.″90 FWHM, a photometric precision of <1% in all bands, and an astrometric precision of 151 . The median co-added catalog depth for a 1.″95 diameter aperture at signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) = 10 is g = 24.33, r = 24.08, i = 23.44, z = 22.69, and Y = 21.44 . DES DR1 includes nearly 400 million distinct astronomical objects detected in ∼10,000 co-add tiles of size 0.534 deg2 produced from ∼39,000 individual exposures. Benchmark galaxy and stellar samples contain ∼310 million and ∼80 million objects, respectively, following a basic object quality selection. These data are accessible through a range of interfaces, including query web clients, image cutout servers, jupyter notebooks, and an interactive co-add image visualization tool. DES DR1 constitutes the largest photometric data set to date at the achieved depth and photometric precision.


His book is based on Women Research Institute's study on "Feminist Leadership in the Post Authoritarian Regime in Indonesia: Its Impact on Social Movements and Women's Welfare" (2012). The goal of the research was to capture the landscape of women's leadership in Indonesia after the downfall of Suharto in 1998.
There were not many studies and analysis on the condition of Indonesian women in the post 1998 period. Studies on the role of feminist leadership in making democracy gender responsive during post 1998 social transformation period were practically non-existent.

This writing is a description on women's leadership, as part of Feminist Leadership in Post Authoritarian Indonesia, Its Influence on Social Movement and Correlation to the Improvement of Women's Welfare - Case Studies of Five Areas of Jakarta, Lampung, North Sumatera, Padang and Lombok.

Research conducted by Women Research Institute (WRI) is an attempt to describe not only women's organizations and their works but also women's leadership viewed as suitable for women's organizations in Indonesia. WRI chooses five areas in Indonesia to represent how women's organizations address women's issues. Moreover, this research also attempts to describe women's concerns and challenges that are addressed or will be addressed by women's organizations.

This research also attempts to examine and understand forms of women's power emerging from this social movement and its social, cultural and political implication in individual, family, civil society organizations and the general public levels.


Differences in the level, timing, or location of gene expression can contribute to alternative phenotypes at the molecular and organismal level. Understanding the origins of expression differences is complicated by the fact that organismal morphology and gene regulatory networks could potentially vary even between closely related species. To assess the scope of such changes, we used high-resolution imaging methods to measure mRNA expression in blastoderm embryos of Drosophila yakuba and Drosophila pseudoobscura and assembled these data into cellular resolution atlases, where expression levels for 13 genes in the segmentation network are averaged into species-specific, cellular resolution morphological frameworks. We demonstrate that the blastoderm embryos of these species differ in their morphology in terms of size, shape, and number of nuclei. We present an approach to compare cellular gene expression patterns between species, while accounting for varying embryo morphology, and apply it to our data and an equivalent dataset for Drosophila melanogaster. Our analysis reveals that all individual genes differ quantitatively in their spatio-temporal expression patterns between these species, primarily in terms of their relative position and dynamics. Despite many small quantitative differences, cellular gene expression profiles for the whole set of genes examined are largely similar. This suggests that cell types at this stage of development are conserved, though they can differ in their relative position by up to 3–4 cell widths and in their relative proportion between species by as much as 5-fold. Quantitative differences in the dynamics and relative level of a subset of genes between corresponding cell types may reflect altered regulatory functions between species. Our results emphasize that transcriptional networks can diverge over short evolutionary timescales and that even small changes can lead to distinct output in terms of the placement and number of equivalent cells.


Despite increased numbers of female researchers, women still face more difficulties than their male counterparts when it comes to publishing their work and having it read and cited. In this editorial, the main recommendations are detailed in order to promote gender parity in the scientific arena. Specifically, we must review the make-up of the editorial boards responsible for the publication processes, the evaluation process and the review criteria in place for scientific works.

> She didn't write it.
>
> She wrote it, but she shouldn't have.
>
> She wrote it, but look what she wrote about.
>
> She wrote it, but she wrote only one of it.
>
> She wrote it, but she isn't really an artist, and it isn't really art.
>
> She wrote it, but she had help.
>
> She wrote it, but she's an anomaly.
>
> She wrote it, BUT...
>
> Joanna Russ, 1983. Quoted in Margaret Rossiter 1993.

Almost 25 years have passed since these words were first written and, despite increased numbers of female researchers, women still face more difficulties than their male counterparts when it comes to publishing their work and having it read and cited. The proportion of biomedical articles with a woman as the main author is around 30%, and there are marked differences between specialties.1 2 Women are still under-represented in the editorial boards of health magazines, especially in terms of the most prestigious jobs involving the most responsibility, and less than 20% of directors' posts in scientific societies are held by women.3–5 The gap between the contributions made by men and those made by women in the processes for the …


Twenty annular and 12 cruciform pulleys were dissected from four unembalmed fresh cadaveric fingers and stained with haematoxylin and eosin, Verhoeff-van Gieson stain for elastin, alcian blue stain for hyaluronic acid, and a separate stain for S-100 to identify chondroid cells. Three distinct layers were identified in both annular and cruciform pulleys: an outer layer of fibrofatty tissue with vascular channels outermost, an inner layer of hyaluronic acid-secreting cells, and a collagen-rich layer in between. Chondroid metaplasia was noted in the inner layer of both types of pulleys. Minimal differences were noted in regard to the elastin fibre content of the pulleys, with slightly more elastin in the annular pulleys, but no other differences were noted.


In November 2017 the Federal government established a Royal Commission in Australia's financial services industry that has become widely known as the Banking Royal Commission. The Commission has, during its hearings and in its recent Interim Report, exposed serious misconduct and poor regulation in Australia's financial services industry. The authors argue that the recommendation of the 2014 Financial System Inquiry that there be an Assessment Board to provide continuous oversight of the financial regulators, APRA and ASIC, is an effective solution to the regulatory failures exposed by the Banking Royal Commission. The benefits to Australia of the establishment of an Assessment Board are clear, and include enhanced accountability, improvements in the regulator's culture, prevention of regulatory capture, and enhanced capacity to prevent financial crises. The introduction of an Assessment Board in Australia would serve as a timely and highly effective adjunct to the current Australian Twin Peaks financial regulatory architecture comprising APRA and ASIC.


This research project generates a body of work, which represents an
investigation into the physical, allegorical and historical narratives of
Quadratura Painting in terms of motif, genre and technical prowess.
Specifically, it attempts to address the evolution of issues associated with
the visual virtuosity of objects within a pictorial space and it's affiliation
with contemporary Realist painting. It examines the physical apotheosis of
ornament and attempts to establish a comparative relationship between
painting, object and illusionistic space. While touching on the precedent of
Hyper-realism and the Neo-Baroque, it addresses the integrity of obsession
and the indolent fortitude of an abandoned schema gone ballistic.
This project also attempts to rein in the concept of disembodiment as
self-portraiture and the re-emergence of the image as an ocular gush,
specifically the "The Wow Factor".
This paper has a direct correlation to the body of work. It is an instruction
kit that expurgates the vortex of peripheral issues that have plagued this
project from its inception and gives it some order of sequence. While the
project began as an historical anecdote of portraiture, the final images
of the lavish interior of The Napoleon III apartments in The Louvre, are
a translation of this experience and have become a distillation of self image.
The paintings are constructed as hybrids of the original source
and emerge as physical evidence of subjective witness. They are an
examination of new breath in the old carcass of portraiture and much like
the infamous Professor Gunther von Hagens with his "Korperwelten"
cadaver carnival; the works are that of a plastic surgeon. They balance
between a reconstruction of a Baroque archetype with a Neo-Classicist emblematic makeover and the showgirl closet of Liberace. All the images
generated within this project are direct cosmetic appliances derived from
endless self-examination and exist because of a prolonged reverence for
the history of painting and the extant experience of these images.
Much has been made of the lingering demise of painting. Originally
this fear was initiated in the Nineteenth century by the onslaught of
photography. Indeed Daguerre's belief that his invention would 'give a
new impulse to the arts' was quickly followed by Turner's resolve that,
"This is the end of Art". It is often referred to, as a relic with more recent
criticism suggesting that painting is an anachronism, failing the brief
of 'a new art for a new century'. While this sounds like a familiar echo,
it has been the manifesto of artists and critics who believe in vapour,
spent objects or the breathless heights of digital decoupage. While this
emerges as "cutting edge", a more comforting biopsy appears to exist
between factions of taste who recognise the absurdity of assigning
mortality to physical disciplines. In this respect nothing is actually dead,
it's merely ignored. The quintessence of practise must be visual or
sensory sensation, authorship, the signature and the physical participation
of the conjurer. If anything has been absorbed from post-modernist ethos,
it is the belief that the past will become future again in a loaded Mannerist
fragment that turns revolution a full circle and empowers the new
exemplar with profundity. The Zeitgeist suggests that, for the moment,
painting is back with renewed Realist vigour, but its genealogy contains
new chromosomal material. It has had to become a hybrid because of
decades of disrespect. Beneath all of this is the fundamental suggestion that painting is alchemy
with its very essence being the pure inscription of the artist's gesture,
will and body. In this respect, the act of translating any reality, be it truth
or invention through the transmogrified body of paint establishes a
hypostasis synopsis; life does exist in the frozen skin. The rationale of
ego and self is perpetually linked to the outcome of this experience. The
very substance of paint, then, becomes a pool of reflection, allowing the
painter to drag out possibly submerged issues about themselves and
record them within the material. The painter is the painting, and that is
the allegory of painting. Self-portraiture, then, is a perpetual cycle and
perhaps, all painting is self-portraiture.
The work in this project addresses the specifics of genre and it is therefore
critical to audit its context within the developmental factions of European
and American painting. In order to begin an examination of a contemporary
status for authoritative illusionists, it is essential to be immersed within
the Italian Quadraturisti, with it's paraphrase of the French trompe
l'oeil; the agony of visual truth as articulated by the Flemish School and its convoluted trajectory within American Realism. There is also a need
to address the relationship between wall and ceiling painting, 'the big
picture and the anthropological context of ornament. In this way, I believe
I may conciliate my own position within the schema of things.


Neural networks enjoy widespread use, but many aspects of their training, representation, and operation are poorly understood. In particular, our view into the training process is limited, with a single scalar loss being the most common viewport into this high-dimensional, dynamic process. We propose a new window into training called Loss Change Allocation (LCA), in which credit for changes to the network loss is conservatively partitioned to the parameters. This measurement is accomplished by decomposing the components of an approximate path integral along the training trajectory using a Runge-Kutta integrator. This rich view shows which parameters are responsible for decreasing or increasing the loss during training, or which parameters "help" or "hurt" the network's learning, respectively. LCA may be summed over training iterations and/or over neurons, channels, or layers for increasingly coarse views. This new measurement device produces several insights into training. (1) We find that barely over 50% of parameters help during any given iteration. (2) Some entire layers hurt overall, moving on average against the training gradient, a phenomenon we hypothesize may be due to phase lag in an oscillatory training process. (3) Finally, increments in learning proceed in a synchronized manner across layers, often peaking on identical iterations.


Fig. 1 illustrates a technique for measuring laser Raman spectra of materials immersed in a medium, which provides spectra of medium molecules absorbed in materials without interference due to the surrounding medium. The technique can be applied to studying absorbed medium molecules in swollen or gel-like materials, the absorption equilibrium, interactions of matrix materials with medium molecules therein such as water in biomolecules, molecular structure changes in materials accompanied by swelling, etc. The uniqueness of the technique is that the amount of absorbed medium molecules in materials in equilibrium with the surrounding medium can be measured without disturbance from the medium and the time dependence of the absorption process can be followed if it is not too rapid. The amount of absorbed medium molecules can be easily determined by choosing a suitable band of the material as an internal standard.


It's time to consider a more economically efficient model for financing roads, bridges and other public infrastructure. It's true that Canada has become one of the biggest spenders on infrastructure among OECD countries, at four per cent of GDP, but using GDP to measure the share the government should spend on infrastructure is an anachronistic and arbitrary measure. We all know it is important that Canada keep pace with maintaining and building the necessary infrastructure to maximise our productive capacity and economic prosperity. But how do we know if we are on the right track? How much investment is enough, and what is the optimal level of public investment in infrastructure? This paper proposes a framework for evaluating current and future levels of financing for public infrastructure. Rather than relying on arbitrary comparisons with Canadas post war 'golden age' of infrastructure investment (an all too common standby in political circles), we propose a standard that is based in economic efficiency and which aims to maximise the public benefits associated with infrastructure investment. We also take a historical look public capital spending in Canada, as well as the trend toward privatization of public infrastructure and core services that began some 30 years ago after the Mulroney government was elected. This trend has seen many core services and assets that were once publicly run transition to outright privatization. It is interesting to note that the most heavily privatized sectors (utilities and communications) are also the sectors most often spared from the label of 'inadequate', a label that befalls so much of Canada's public infrastructure. When infrastructure is financed through taxation, there is a tendency for spending to be discouraged to ease the burden on taxpayers; however, this inevitably leads to infrastructure maintenance and construction being deferred, with a significant deficit inevitably built up. A user-pay model would work to eliminate political influence, create revenue for infrastructure renewal, and facilitate an optimal allocation of infrastructure resources. All of this further helps maximise the benefits derived from public infrastructure. This model of infrastructure finance and provision could be further advanced and reinforced through the creation of provincial and federal bodies whose mandate would be to actively evaluate infrastructure investments in their respective jurisdictions, prioritizing funding for the most meritorious projects, and those offering the highest public return on investment. When projects are funded through taxation and access is not priced, there is often little or no incentive for individuals to make efficient use of them. The lack of direct accountability means individuals fail to use infrastructure judiciously and sparingly to preserve the life of public assets or prevent unnecessary congestion. Moreover, the lack of a clear sense of cost means governments do not know the true value that the public places on one type of infrastructure over another. Thus, government budgeting for such projects remains inefficient and skewed. The best level and mix of public infrastructure can only be determined when government and private providers can reliably establish user demands in a priced (efficient) system. The current model of funding public infrastructure deprives users of infrastructure as well as government planners from vital information they need to make informed and efficient decisions. Both remain unclear on value for money, and costaccountability, but are bound by an innate aversion to increased tax-financing. Governments, fully cognizant of both consumer attitudes and the need to retain vote-getting power, thus swing between funding necessary infrastructure and allowing infrastructure deficits to grow. This paper advocates for a more efficient, accountable system with greater dependence on user-pay models and reinforced by and active arm's length government agency designed to advance merit based project selection, and maximise public benefit.


A modified Lundgren model is applied for the description of stationary bathtub vortices in a viscous liquid with a free surface. Laminar liquid flow through the circular bottom orifice is considered in the horizontally unbounded domain. The liquid is assumed to be undisturbed at infinity and its depth is taken to be constant. Three different drainage regimes are studied: (i) subcritical, where whirlpool dents are less than the fluid depth; (ii) critical, where the whirlpool tips touch the outlet orifice; and (iii) supercritical, where surface vortices entrain air into the intake pipe. Particular attention is paid to critical vortices; the condition for their existence is determined and analysed. The influence of surface tension on subcritical whirlpools is investigated. Comparison of results with known experimental data is discussed.


Increasing awareness of the need for action on global warming has produced a search for ways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to sequester carbon to offset such emissions. At the present time, nations around the globe are hotly debating whether to put into force the Kyoto Protocol. To comply with such climate controls, industrialized countries will need to develop systems to control their own domestic emissions. Domestic corporations that emit GHGs will be required to limit their emissions and will also very likely be able to gain credit by investing in climate-beneficial projects in other countries. This paper focuses on the legal issues concerned with carbon offset projects involving forestry in developing countries.


Significant shifts in demographics across the United States continue to impact educational demands and decisions. This article is an initial investigation of the behaviors and understandings of a bilingual student participating in an academic literacy community. In order to begin exploring my topic, I posed the question: "What traits are evident in a bilingual student's writing at home and at school?" The participants included a 5 grade male and his mother; both speak English as a second language and are of South Korean heritage. I approached my research qualitatively; using discourse analysis of written text and oral conversation and ethnographic research to generate possible answers to my question. My findings include (a) writing traits are positively influenced by text-based responses, voice, and choice; (b) writing is negatively impacted by vocabulary and conventions; (c) understanding of reading and writing is cultivated through heritage language and second language. I concluded that (a) ESL students may exhibit progress towards proficiency in writing when presented with opportunities to write in genres related to their primary discourse; (b) text-based responses may require less orchestration, benefiting English Language Learners; (c) a teacher's professional knowledge and instructional expertise concerning English Language Learners might benefit from conducting ethnographic research while working with such students.


An array antenna based localization using spatial smoothing processing (SSP) is proposed for wireless security and monitoring, referred to as array sensor. The proposed method is based on the array sensor that exploits an array antenna at the receiver to detect the propagation environment of interest. If an event occurs, e.g., human motion, the propagation environment is changed. Thus the eigenvector and eigenvalue spanning the signal subspace that is inherent to its environment changes as well. Using a machine learning technique based on the eigenvector and eigenvalue, we can detect the event accurately. The proposed method is improved from our previous work which uses only a limited number of signal subspace features. The basic idea of this work is the extension of the dimension of the signal subspace by using SSP without increasing the number of array element. In addition, this work investigates the impact of the array antenna placement on localization performance. The experimental results show that the proposed SSP based method achieves a 41.83 % improvement in localization accuracy, and a 1.24 m improvement in root mean square error (RMSE) compared to the previous method.


A secure wireless broadcast network model is investigated, in which a source node broadcasts K confidential message flows to N user nodes, with each message intended to be decoded accurately by one user and to be kept secret from all of other users (who are thus considered to be eavesdroppers with regard to all other messages but their own). The source maintains a queue for each message flow if it is not served immediately. The channel from the source to the K users is modelled as a fading broadcast channel, and the channel state information is assumed to be known to all nodes. Two eavesdropping models are considered. For a collaborative eavesdropping model, in which the eavesdroppers exchange their outputs, the secrecy capacity region is obtained, within which each rate vector is achieved by using a time-division scheme and a source power control policy over channel states. A throughput optimal queue length based scheduling algorithm is further derived that stabilizes all arrival rate vectors contained in the secrecy capacity region. At each packet time slot, the queue length vector determines the power control policy over the channel states at the source, and hence determines the secrecy rate allocation among users. For a non-collaborative model, in which eavesdroppers do not exchange their outputs, the time-division scheme provides an achievable secrecy rate region, and the queue length based scheduling algorithm stabilizes all arrival rate vectors in this region.


Abstract The stellarator impurity transport code has been developed to describe the evolution of the impurity concentration and convective and diffusive fluxes of different charge states in time and space for given background plasma profiles in nonaxisymmetric devices. An extended model of neoclassical transport coefficients obtained by benchmarking of various methods has been employed for calculation of the radial electric field and for description of impurity ions. Calculations were performed mainly for light impurity species for background plasma profiles in high-density long-pulse Large Helical Device (LHD) discharges with and without an externally induced island at the edge and for W7-AS discharges with low and high confinement. It is shown that in the frame of neoclassical theory, the forces due to the radial electric field, the temperature gradient (convective terms), and the density gradient (diffusive term) mainly determine the impurity dynamics and eventually, together with atomic processes, the radial distribution of each ionization stage. Calculations show that in LHD discharges a different sign of the electric field (measured in experiment) within the island ensures the effective pumping of impurities within the island and their screening from penetration into the bulk plasma. It is shown that in the frame of purely neoclassical theory, the retention of impurities at the plasma edge, seen in the high-density H-mode of operation in W7-AS, cannot be explained.


Purpose Ubiquitous internet access and social media make visual consumption possibly the most vital characteristic of the experience economy. A cumulative, integrative framework for the analysis of visual artefacts has thus been called for as existing analytical tools and theoretical frameworks (such as semiotics, discourse analysis, content analysis, iconography, rhetoric, and so on) each provide in isolation only a restricted perspective. To advance best practice towards shaping brand perception and consumer engagement this paper provides a crucial analytical tool to uncover the unique and specific characteristics of identitary luxury fashion brand discourse by introducing and applying such an integrative framework. Design/methodology/approach A rigorous grounded theory approach was applied to a corpus of primary data, print advertising in Vogue (UK and US) and Vanity Fair (UK). Outcomes were distilled to first principles of meaning-making and aggregated in a framework which also integrates longexisting classics from diverse fields of knowledge to present a broad cumulative perspective for the analysis of visual discursive practice. This paper demonstrates the methodological rigour and validity of the framework, that is, its practical adequacy and explanatory power in uncovering the identitary brand discourse of luxury fashion. Findings An application of the integrative framework breaks new ground in uncovering the discreet identitary characteristics of the discursive practice of the luxury brands under investigation, Chanel and Gucci, which can be encapsulated as gendered technology of the confident self (Foucault) and spectacle (Debord) respectively. 2 Research limitations / implications To advance theory that illuminates understanding and shaping of brand perception and consumer engagement with luxury fashion brands, the proposed framework is the first to integrate insight from a rigorous analysis of primary data with long-existing classics from salient fields of knowledge. It, thus, provides a broader, more inclusive perspective that elucidates the multifaceted layers of meaning of luxury fashion discourse in a new and comprehensive way which existing approaches with focus on an isolated dimension such as semiotics or nonverbal behaviour and so on would not have been able to reveal. Practical implications The inclusive theoretical framework provides a parsimonious and practical tool that can be applied by non-experts across disciplines to unlock meaning in fashion discourse as a route to shaping brand image and engaging consumers. Originality The paper provides a new perspective on the communication practice of luxury fashion advertising as the new integrative framework illuminates layers of meaning crucial to understanding the intricacies of identitary brand discourse and to shaping brand perception and engaging consumers.


Quantum efficiency measurements in nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H)solar cells deposited onto textured substrates indicate that these cells are close to the "stochastic lighttrapping limit" proposed by Yablonovitch in the 1980s. An interesting alternative to texturing is "plasmonic" light-trapping based on non-textured cells and using an overlayer of metallic nanoparticles to produce light-trapping. While this type of light-trapping has not yet been demonstrated for nc-Si:H solar cells, significant photocurrent enhancements have been reported on silicon-on-insulator devices with similar optical properties to nc-Si:H. Here we report our measurements of quantum efficiencies in nc-Si:H solar cells and normalized photoconductance spectra in SOI photodetectors with and without silver nanoparticle layers. As was done previously, the silver nanoparticles were created by thermal annealing of evaporated silver thin films. We observed enhancement in the normalized photoconductance spectra of SOI photodetectors at longer wavelengths with the silver nanoparticles. For nc-Si:H solar cells, we have not yet observed significant improvement of the quantum efficiency with the addition of annealed silver films.


The aim of this study was to develop a real-time dynamic simulator of a power grid with power plant and battery model. The simulator was used to investigate the frequency control characteristics of a megawatt-scale high-capacity energy storage system connected to the electric power grid. In this study, a lithium-ion secondary battery was chosen as one of the batteries for a grid-connected model. The dynamics of the model was analysed in both steady and transient states. The frequency control system of the battery model plays a role in regulating the grid frequency by controlling the power of energy storage systems according to process variables and grid frequencies. The power grid model based on the current power network of South Korea, included power plants, substations and power demands. The power supply is classified by the type of turbine generator as thermal, nuclear, hydro power, pumped power storage, combined power plants and batteries, including high-capacity energy storage systems rated for a maximum of 500 MW. This study deals with an installed capacity of 87.17 GW and peak load of 77.30 GW in the Korean power grid. For 24 hours of operation, the maximum and minimum power outputs were simulated as 61.59 GW and 46.32 GW, respectively. The commercialized real-time dynamic simulation software ProTRAX was used. The simulation was conducted to observe the operation characteristics of the frequency control system during a breakdown of power plants, as well as under governor-free operation, auto generation control operation, and with the battery energy storage system connected. The results show that the model is valid for each power plant breakdown simulation. They also confirm that the output power and frequency controls of the battery operated well during simulations.


The COST‐731 action is focused on uncertainty propagation in hydrometeorologica l forecasting chains. Goals and activities of the action Working Group 2 are presented. Five foci for discussion and research have been identified: (1) understand uncertainties, (2) exploring, designing and comparing methodologies for the use of uncertainty in hydrological models, (3) providing feedback on sensitivity to data and forecast providers, (4) transferring methodologies among the different communities involved and (5) setting up test‐beds and perform proof‐of‐concepts. Current examples of different perspectives on uncertainty propagation are presented. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society


The Māori Electoral Option is a period of 4 months, every 5 years, when Māori electors can choose whether to be on the Māori or the General Electoral Roll. The outcome of the Māori Electoral Option is a key factor in determining the number of Māori seats in the New Zealand Parliament. The Electoral Commission estimates that approximately 6,000 Māori voters each year request to change electoral roll, but in 2017 over 19,000 voters applied to change. Why were so many more Māori wanting to change and why did they not know they could only change during the Māori Electoral Option held every 5 years? The following year, the 2018 Māori Electoral Option saw the first net increase of Māori changing to the general roll since 1996. This article uses data gathered from the results of Māori Electoral Options 1991–2018, an anonymous survey, and evaluations of Māori Electoral Option campaigns to consider how the shifting trends in roll choices might be explained.


The statistical method has been taken to examine the use of Internet services and resources and its impact among faculty members of Physical Education and Sports Science in nine university of Tamilnadu. In this study, 207 questionnaires were distributed to all faculty members of nine universities for the studies of different Internet resources. Among them, 146 questionnaires were taken for the present study and analysis. The various Internet services and resources used by sports faculty members are e-mail, discussion groups, SMS/chatting, search engines, e-journals and e-books. The gender wise distribution of the respondents exposes the wide disparity between males and females -- 87% and 13% respectively. The pattern of usage of Internet reveals that most of the sports faculty members are habitual users, prominent users being Assistant Professors. The ranking of chi square values suggest that most of sports faculty members are making best use of available Internet resources and other services.


September 28, 2014, is the 8th annual World Rabies Day. Rabies is a fatal acute encephalitis caused by lyssaviruses (1). The number of human rabies deaths worldwide is estimated to exceed 55,000 each year (2). In the United States, wild animal reservoirs serve as the most important source of infection. However, over 90% of human deaths globally are caused by bites by rabid dogs (3). Rabies control and prevention efforts focus on elimination of canine rabies through mass vaccination campaigns and treatment of exposed persons with prompt wound care and administration of human rabies immune globulin and vaccine. Although rabies is preventable, a lack of accurate data on the burden of disease, inadequate rabies diagnostic laboratory capacity, and poor access to rabies vaccine for postexposure prophylaxis has delayed progress towards regional goals for human rabies elimination. Blueprints developed by international rabies experts can be used for the development of country-specific rabies elimination plans (4). These blueprints focus on describing the epidemiology of rabies, improving surveillance, raising awareness among clinicians and the public, achieving high canine vaccination coverage, and ensuring reliable diagnostic, cold chain, and vaccine procurement capacity (5). Despite many challenges, considerable progress has been made in the Western Hemisphere; human rabies mortality has been reduced by more than 90% over the past century (6). Communicable disease programs proven to be successful in settings similar to those where canine rabies is endemic can be emulated for rabies control and prevention efforts in the future. Also, lessons learned during rabies control efforts can prove valuable for responding to emerging zoonotic diseases (7).


Evaluates linear models for predicting the Digital Unix five-second host load average from 1 to 30 seconds into the future. A detailed statistical study of a large number of long, fine-grain load traces from a variety of real machines leads to consideration of the Box-Jenkins (1994) models (AR, MA, ARMA, ARIMA), and the ARFIMA (autoregressive fractional integrated moving average) models (due to self-similarity). These models, as well as a simple windowed-mean scheme, are then rigorously evaluated by running a large number of randomized test cases on the load traces and by data-mining their results. The main conclusions are that the load is consistently predictable to a very useful degree, and that the simpler models, such as AR, are sufficient for performing this prediction.


Abstract It is important to evaluate tritium behavior in tungsten deposition layers considering a long-term plasma operation. In this study, tungsten deposition layers were formed by deuterium or helium RF plasma sputtering. The release behavior of deuterium or helium from the layers were observed by a thermal desorption method. When a tungsten deposition layer does not contain oxygen, the retained deuterium is mainly released as D2. When oxygen exists in the layer, the majority of deuterium is released as water vapor. Tungsten deposition layers have an amorphous structure and consist of fine grain with size of 2-3 nm. Numerous bubbles are observed in the layers. A formation of tungsten deposition layer in a fusion reactor may make tritium control more difficult.


Satellite‐derived surface soil moisture data are available for the Arctic, but detailed validation is still lacking. Previous studies have shown low correlations between in situ and modeled data. It is hypothesized that soil temperature variations after soil thaw impact MetOp ASCAT satellite‐derived surface soil moisture (SSM) measurements in wet tundra environments, as C band backscatter is sensitive to changes in dielectric properties. We compare in situ measurements of water content within the active layer at four sites across the Arctic in Alaska (Barrow, Sagwon, Toolik) and Siberia (Tiksi), taken in the spring after thawing and in autumn prior to freezing. In addition to the long‐term measurement fields, where sensors are installed deeper in the ground, we designed a monitoring setup for measuring moisture very close to the surface in the Lena River Delta, Siberia. The volumetric water content (VWC) and soil temperature sensors were placed in the moss organic layer in order to account for the limited penetration depth of the radar signal. ASCAT SSM variations are generally very small, in line with the low variability of in situ VWC. Short‐term changes after complete thawing of the upper organic layer, however, seem to be mostly influenced by soil temperature. Correlations between SSM and in situ VWC are generally very low, or even negative. Mean standard deviation matching results in a comparably high root‐mean‐square error (on average 11%) for predictions of VWC. Further investigations and measurement networks are needed to clarify factors causing temporal variation of C band backscatter in tundra regions.


A simple method is demonstrated to determine the diameters of dielectric spheres from 0.2 to 1.0 mm by observing the scattering of visible light. Theoretical calculations show that there is an approximately linear relationship between the size of the scattering sphere and the number of maxima and minima in the scattered field as a function of angle when the radius in the 200-1000-wavelength region.


This thesis is a study on the Asian currency crisis. It starts with a review of the theories on foreign exchange rate regimes and their adjustment mechanisms. The monetary approach of foreign exchange rate is discussed and used as a framework in analyzing on the origins and causes of the currency crisis, which started in the East Asia in mid 1997. A lot of statistical data are used in the analysis on the crisis-hit countries in terms of prices, interest rates, external competitiveness, foreign exchange rates of major currencies and the flow of foreign capital and so on. It is found that the main origins and causes of the Asian currency crisis are from the deterioration of external competitiveness and the misuse of foreign capital and bad supervision of the domestic financial markets. The characteristics of a pegged exchange rate regime has proved to be too rigid to reflect the changes in the fundamentals of the economy and has been responsible for the accumulative inconsistencies leading to the collapse of the regime. The Asian currency crisis indicates that in the present world in which econorrnc globalization has become a mainstream trend, it is getting more difficult to maintain a pegged exchange rate regime. The Asian currency crisis also reflects the importance of the establishment of a sound financial sector and good supervisory and governing abilities of the government when liberalizing its domestic financial market, especially on the opening of the domestic capital market. A rush of financial liberalization would likely generate vulnerabilities to the economic system.


Several solvent selection guides have been published, in different formats, reflecting the culture of their institutions. The data given in these guides have been compiled, and where possible combined, in order to allow a ranking comparison. Of the 51 solvents considered, an acceptable alignment of the classifications could be met, permitting a ranking into four categories: recommended, problematic, hazardous and highly hazardous. 17 solvents (33%) could not be unequivocally ranked by this simplified analysis, thus reflecting differences in the weighing of criteria between the institutions.


This research introduces 'hope labor' as a motivation for voluntary online social production, defined here as 'un- or under-compensated work carried out in the present, often for experience or exposure, in the hope that future employment opportunities may follow'. Drawing from interviews with SB Nation sports bloggers and Yelp consumer reviewers, this research expands current understandings of the motivations behind online social production. Structurally, we distinguish hope labor from other forms of free labor by emphasizing the temporal relationship between present and future work—a relationship that shifts costs and risks onto the individual. Hope labor is naturalized and normalized through neoliberal ideologies. It is seen as an investment that pays off for individuals based on merit, despite its deleterious impact on employment prospects in desired industries. Our theorization of hope labor can be seen as a complement or corrective to celebratory accounts of meaning making, creativity, and community in online social production.


In the past decade, major retailers nationwide have begun to employ a private, for-profit system to settle criminal disputes, extracting payment from shoplifting suspects in exchange for a promise not to call the police. This Article examines what retailers' decisions reveal about our public system of criminal justice and the concerns of the agents who run it, the victims who rely on it, and the suspects whose lives it alters. The private policing of commercial spaces is well known, as is private incarceration of convicted offenders. This Article is the first, however, to document how industry has penetrated new parts of the criminal process, administering sanctions to resolve thousands of shoplifting allegations each year.

Proponents of private justice claim that everyone wins. Critics say it's blackmail. The Article takes a tentative middle ground: While "retail justice" is not the American ideal, it may nonetheless be preferable to public criminal justice, at least if certain conditions are met. Rather than cancel the private justice experiment, therefore, as several states are poised to do, the government should aim to foster optimal conditions for its success.

Extending the central analysis, the Article then shows how the study of private justice leads to fresh perspectives on important criminal justice issues. It suggests, for example, that the costs to crime victims of assisting the prosecution may be a feature of the system, not a bug, if they encourage victims to invest in efficient crime-deterring precautions. It also complicates legal academic models of police and prosecutorial behavior built on maximizing arrests and convictions. The Article concludes by identifying conditions that conduce to private criminal justice and speculating about the next frontiers.


The concept of multifunctionality, in which agriculture is viewed as a source of both commodity and non-commodity outputs, has stimulated debate on the desirability of further trade liberalization. We explore the economics of multifunctionality and its policy implications. We argue for a new policy approach in which land and natural resource managers are remunerated for positive non-commodity outputs and penalized for negative outputs. This would require devolution in policy implementation from the centre to the local level. Such an approach would permit countries to achieve broader social objectives, while at the same time continuing to pursue trade liberalization.


The purpose of this book is to examine the ways in which regional tourism destinations use change and innovation to access the economic, social and environmental benefits of tourism while minimising the potential negative impacts. The case studies that feature in this book provide research into the nature of change in regional tourism destinations and the structures and processes that may be employed to help destinations manage change.


The future of humanity is urban, and the nature of urban space enables, and necessitates, sharing -- of resources, goods and services, experiences. Yet traditional forms of sharing have been undermined in modern cities by social fragmentation and commercialization of the public realm. In Sharing Cities, Duncan McLaren and Julian Agyeman argue that the intersection of cities' highly networked physical space with new digital technologies and new mediated forms of sharing offers cities the opportunity to connect smart technology to justice, solidarity, and sustainability. McLaren and Agyeman explore the opportunities and risks for sustainability, solidarity, and justice in the changing nature of sharing. McLaren and Agyeman propose a new "sharing paradigm," which goes beyond the faddish "sharing economy" -- seen in such ventures as Uber and TaskRabbit -- to envision models of sharing that are not always commercial but also communal, encouraging trust and collaboration. Detailed case studies of San Francisco, Seoul, Copenhagen, Medellin, Amsterdam, and Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) contextualize the authors' discussions of collaborative consumption and production; the shared public realm, both physical and virtual; the design of sharing to enhance equity and justice; and the prospects for scaling up the sharing paradigm though city governance. They show how sharing could shift values and norms, enable civic engagement and political activism, and rebuild a shared urban commons. Their case for sharing and solidarity offers a powerful alternative for urban futures to conventional "race-to-the-bottom" narratives of competition, enclosure, and division.


Climate change is one of the greatest environmental challenges. It has posed a serious risk to poverty reduction and development, with adverse impacts expected on the environment, food security and natural resources. There is a strong link between gender and climate change and both are considered as cross cutting issues. However, climate variability and gender has been less attended to in terms of linking climate variability to the process of developing relevant environment and natural resource policies for natural resource dependent communities and most literature has lacked a reflection on the participation process of the natural resource dependent communities in the formulation and implementation of these policies especially at the local level and hence this study. This paper uses Sesheke district in Western Zambia and provides a case study of climate variability and genderand relates it to how the livelihoods of natural resource dependent women and men have been affected in the study area. It further reviews the participation of natural resource dependent communities and gender considerations in the formulation of key policies such as the agriculture and environmental policies in the face of climate variability and how these policies have been implemented in practice at the very local level in terms of a gender-responsive funding allocation and disbursement by government for adaptation activities at local level. The study shows that there has been a significant reduction in the annual rainfall from the year 1970 to 2010 and this has affected both men and women by forcing them to adapt to climate variability by using different means. Results show that climate variability has affected rural livelihoods and this has led to particular effects on gender roles. With regards to policy formulation related to agriculture and natural resources, results have shown that whilst the local people were consulted during the formulation of these policies and have taken into consideration the gender dimensions in terms of providing for the active participation of both women and men, the results have revealed an inadequate and unconsolidated approach to the implementation of the policies coupled with gender blind budgeting and poor funding disbursements to the district.


This article analyses the recent rulings from the European Court of Justice in two Danish cases and examines their possible impact on international tax avoidance. These rulings regard limitations of tax benefits related to cross-border dividends and interest payments resulting from the interposition of holding companies in the EU. We conclude that from a legal perspective, the rulings demonstrate the alignment of international tax policies to combat tax avoidance between the EU and the OECD. This alignment is historical in international tax law as it encompasses a record-high number of states and because it introduces a minimum standard of tools to combat tax treaty abuse directly into national state legislation. This could be the end for certain tax-motivated structures of international companies. From a quantitative perspective, the conclusion is that the rulings limit the potential for Multinational Enterprises to lower their tax burden considerably. The worldwide average potential gain from treaty shopping is reduced by 1.1 percentage points from 5.6% to 4.5% when the EU member states cannot be used on treaty shopping routes. With more countries, and treaties, involved, the combat against tax avoidance is more effective. However, the fact that some countries have a standard withholding tax rate of zero percent hampers the combat. If a prohibitive penalty is applied on indirect routes to all partner countries, the policy is much more effective. The gains from treaty shopping all but disappear in such a setting.


Online hotel reviews, ratings, or opinions have gained importance with the growth of social media tools. The objective of this chapter is to study the impact of specific satisfaction attributes on overall satisfaction. It is used a secondary data set obtained from three of the most influential online travel platforms, being analyzed the guests' average ratings for around 130 hotel units, distributed by four quality segments, located in the Porto metropolitan area. The application of this methodology to a large sample of Portuguese hotels has not been done before, been that the main contribution of this study. It is evidenced that the different platforms, while all incorporating consumer reviews as primary social knowledge, are distinct from each other on some aspects. The three platforms present roughly the same supply of hotels, albeit presenting some differences in terms of volume of data. In terms of specific attributes, with the exception of "service," the three platforms present significant differences that may reflect the different user bases on these platforms.


Identification of, and responsiveness to, the communicative attempts of children with developmental delays' is essential to developing intentional, symbolic communication. The current study was a replication of Keen, Sigafoos, and Woodyatt's 2005 study titled Teacher Responses to the Communicative Attempts of Children With Autism, with modifications to the participants used in the study. The Inventory of Potential Communicative Acts (IPCA; Sigafoos et al, 2000) was used with three teachers of three children with deafblindness to determine if teachers were able to identify potential communicative acts (PCAs) of their students using the IPCA during an interview session. Additionally, analysis of teacher responsiveness to student PCAs took place during a 30-minute classroom observation session. All three teachers identified a wide range of student PCAs during the IPCA interview and showed high levels of responsiveness to those PCAs during the naturalistic, classroom observation. Low interobserver agreement, clinical implications, and directions for future research are discussed.


An investigation has been conducted into factors affecting the interparticulate cohesion profile of three micronised drugs, as a function of humidity. An atomic force microscope (AFM) colloid probe technique was correlated with physico-chemical properties and in-vitro performance. Briefly, micronised drug particles of salbutamol sulphate, triamcinolone acetonide (TAA) and disodium cromoglycate (DSCG) were mounted onto Vshaped tipless cantilevers using a developed micromanipulation technique. Interactions between the AFM 'drug probes' and a series of model drug surfaces were conducted at a 15,30, 45, 60 and 75% relative humidity using a custom built perfusion apparatus connected to the AFM. As expected, separation energy distributions for drug probe interactions were dependent on the surface rugosity of the drug model surfaces. Separation energy measurements conducted between drug probes and individual micronised drug particles (mounted in polymer resin) suggested large variations in separation energy. Further analysis of such data suggested a lognormal separation energy distribution, however, limitations in individual particle measurements (finite particle measurements per experiment) allowed restricted statistical analysis.


The very idea of the draft European Union (EU) Constitutional Treaty was reexamined after the failed French and Dutch referendums and the Treaty of Lisbon (also known as the Reform Treaty) was drafted and entered into force on 1 December 2009 after it's ratification by all 27 member states. The traditional notion of a Constitution as a national legal document establishing the social contract and a moral minimum for a particular socially unified group still prevails in legal and political thinking. Indeed, the European Union has some constitutional elements, but absence of the so called 'European demos' prevents us from recognizing the founding treaties as a real 'European constitution' in the proper sense of the word. The author agrees with the decision to exclude the term 'Constitution' from the title and contents of the new Reform Treaty. The author also suggests that softer terms, like 'European constitutional order' and 'European Constitutionalism' might better reflect the scope of contemporary European integration than the term of 'a Constitution for Europe'. A rethinking of the 'constitutional core' of the Lisbon Treaty was inspired following the so-called Lisbon judgments of Czech, Latvian and German constitutional courts.


During a lightning strike to communication tower stroke currents are shared by the tower and by the shields of the cables along the tower. The currents in the tower proceed towards the grounding system (possibly a combination of counterpoises or ring conductors or ground rods or grounding grids) connected to tower legs' foundation. In this paper, lightning strike to communication tower on mount Gaisberg in Austria is considered and measured currents at the tower top and those shared by an instrumented grounding strip connected to one of the tower leg's are presented. The measured currents at different locations on the 70-m long ground strip are compared with the predictions of a frequency dependant lossy transmission line (TL) model and reasonably good agreement was found. From this validation it is claimed that the TL models are appropriate for lightning transient analysis of grounding systems.


Between 1991 and 2013, the share of fresh vegetables consumed rose from 47% to 56%. While median incomes grew 7.9%, the growth was uneven, with negligible growth occurring in the bottom two quintiles. Estimating an EASI demand system for fresh and preserved vegetables that accounts for corner solutions, we find that income elasticities are larger for fresh vegetables than for preserved vegetables for consumers in the top three but not the bottom two income quintiles. Simulations accounting for uneven income growth indicate that income growth accounts for 0.7 percentage points of the 9 percentage point increase in fresh share.


Background [6]-Gingerol is one of the major pungent principles of ginger and has diverse effects, including anti-inflammatory, and antioxidative effects. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are released during the phenotypic transformation of fibroblasts to myofibroblasts, a process that is involved in the growth of nasal polyps by inducing extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of [6]-gingerol on myofibroblast differentiation and collagen production of nasal polyp–derived fibroblasts (NPDFs) and to determine if the effect of [6]-gingerol is linked to an antioxidant effect. Methods NPDFs were incubated and treated with transforming growth factor (TGF) beta 1. The ROS generated by NPDFs were determined using 2″,7″-dichlorfluorescein-diacetate. The fluorescence was captured by a fluorescent microscope and measured using a fluorometer. The expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin (SMA) and collagen type IV mRNA was determined by a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, and the expression of α-SMA protein and pSmad2/3 was determined by immunofluorescence microscopy and or Western blotting. The amount of total soluble collagen production was analyzed by the SirCol collagen dye-binding assay. Results TGF-beta 1 stimulation increased ROS production by NPDFs. [6]-Gingerol decreased the production of ROS in TGF-beta 1–induced NPDFs. Myofibroblast differentiation, collagen production, and phosphorylation of Smad2/3 were prevented by [6]-gingerol and inhibition of ROS generation with antioxidant such as diphenyliodonium, N-acetylcysteine, and ebselen. Conclusion These results suggest the possibility that [6]-gingerol may play an important role in inhibiting the production of the ECM in the development of nasal polyps through an antioxidant effect.


Introduction Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic life-limiting condition with high symptom-burden and carer-burden. National guidance on end of life care calls for quality care for patients with any condition, yet we rely on frameworks developed for cancer with its largely predictable trajectory. Aim To develop evidence-based recommendations to inform a new framework to improve care and support of patients living with advanced COPD and their informal carers. Methods The Living with Breathlessness Study was a multiple-component, population-based, mixed-method longitudinal, multiple-perspective research programme to identify new evidence on health and social care needs and preferences of patients with advanced COPD and their carers. It followed more than 500 patients and carers for up to 18-months through interview and survey methods. Qualitative data on barriers and facilitators to meeting needs were collected from clinicians. Programme-wide evidence was synthesised to identify recommendations. Stakeholder views were then collected through a workshop and online survey. Results Six inter-related recommendations emerged, linked by the concept of proactive person-centred care: (1) Stop the continual focus on the challenge of prognosis and unpredictability of trajectories as barriers to meeting needs, (2) Change targets to incentivise person-centred care within existing services, (3) Enable identification and response to patient support needs (through evidence-based tools and approaches), (4) Identify and support patients' informal carers (through evidence-based tools and approaches), (5) Identify and respond to psychological morbidity in patients and informal carers identify and respond to psychological morbidity, (6) Change societal attitudes and understandings of COPD, breathlessness, palliative care and informal carer support. The recommendations are underpinned by action points to enable delivery. The recommendations garnered significant support from stakeholders, with caution regarding ease of implementation which varied by recommendation. Conclusion These six inter-related recommendations, and supporting action points, could inform a new framework for care and support in advanced COPD likely to have resonance for those living with other advanced non-malignant long term conditions, and for clinicians striving to support them.


This paper presents findings of a study that described the work of four exemplary districtlevel administrators for curriculum and instruction (curriculum directors). Data on the four curriculum directors in a northwestern state were derived through structured and unstructured interviews, participant observation, and document analysis. The work of the curriculum directors was synthesized into the following categories: (1) communication; (2) curriculum and instruction; (3) program responsibility; and (4) technical expertise. Contextual factors, which shaped the administrator's work, included internal, external, intrinsic, and time factors. Each of the directors utilized the following four different work styles to achieve organizational goals--situational leadership, support for change, respect for developmental levels, and effective planning. These administrators focused on the slow, deliberate process of creating a districtwide culture. Outcomes included an enriched curriculum, improved instruction, and aatter educated staff. Findings indicate that the directors' visions corresponded with their immediate supervisors and their district's philosophy. Two tables are included. (LMI) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** DRAWING A NEW PICTURE: DESCRIBING THE WORK OF EXEMPLARY CURRICULUM DIRECTORS. Jarold D. Hamm, Ed. D. Kelso School District Kelso, Washington


In this paper, we tackle the task of scene-aware 3D human motion forecasting, which consists of predicting future human poses given a 3D scene and a past human motion. A key challenge of this task is to ensure consistency between the human and the scene, accounting for human-scene interactions. Previous attempts to do so model such interactions only implicitly, and thus tend to produce artifacts such as"ghost motion"because of the lack of explicit constraints between the local poses and the global motion. Here, by contrast, we propose to explicitly model the human-scene contacts. To this end, we introduce distance-based contact maps that capture the contact relationships between every joint and every 3D scene point at each time instant. We then develop a two-stage pipeline that first predicts the future contact maps from the past ones and the scene point cloud, and then forecasts the future human poses by conditioning them on the predicted contact maps. During training, we explicitly encourage consistency between the global motion and the local poses via a prior defined using the contact maps and future poses. Our approach outperforms the state-of-the-art human motion forecasting and human synthesis methods on both synthetic and real datasets. Our code is available at https://github.com/wei-mao-2019/ContAwareMotionPred.


Defense counsel must prepare for tort claims based on theories that are not part of the traditional history and requirements of tort law IT HAS long been a fundamental tenet of American tort law that a cause of action requires an injury. In recent years, however, many courts have loosened this requirement significantly, so that a host of causes of action are recognized now in the absence of a quantifiable injury. Speculative or even phantom "harms" now can form the basis of protracted and expensive litigation. No manufacturer, insurer or professional service provider can ignore this unfortunate trend, which must be examined so as to alert defense practitioners as to possible defense theories. PRECEDENTS A. Injury and Harm The English word "tort" derives from the Latin word "tortus," meaning "twisted," and the French word "tort," meaning "injury or wrong." In essence, the purpose of tort law is to make an injured party whole. Thus, tort law imposes duties on individuals to prevent the injury of others.1 The Restatement (Second) of Torts defined the terms "injury," "harm" and "physical injury" in accordance with the common understanding of those terms. According to Sections 7(1), 7(2) and 7(3) of the Restatement (Second), "injury" denotes "the invasion of any legally protected interest of another." "Harm" is defined liberally as "the existence of loss or detriment in fact of any kind to a person resulting from any cause." "Physical harm" means then "physical impairment of the human body, or of land or chattels." In 2001, the American Law Institute sought to clarify the definition of "physical harm" in Section 4 of Tentative Draft No. 1 of the Restatement (Third) of Torts, "Liability for Physical Harm," by adding the sentence, "The physical impairment of the human body includes physical illness, disease, and death." However, from Comment a to that section, it does not appear that the ALI intended any significant change in the traditional understanding of "physical harm" as set out in the Restatement (Second). It remains the case that an injury results from the infliction of some harm, even though an injury may result absent any harm. A "harmless" injury, however, is actionable only because the law recognizes and permits a cause of action. For example, a plaintiff is "injured" under the common law when a defendant trespasses on the plaintiff's property. The law allows the plaintiff to recover, even if the defendant's intrusion is "beneficial, or so transitory that it constitutes no interference with or detriment to the land or its beneficial enjoyment," to quote Comment a to Section 7 of the Restatement (Second).2 Conversely, a harm may exist without a legal injury or the invasion of a legally protected interest. For example, when a friend or family member dies of natural causes, there is no legally protected injury despite the loss.3 To maintain a cause of action in tort, a plaintiff usually must prove that a defendant invaded the plaintiff's legally protected interest, and that this resulted in harm to the plaintiff. According to Comment d to Section 7 of the Restatement (Second), emotional distress alone is not actionable unless there are physical consequences. Usually the plaintiff also must show that the resulting harm is not remote, speculative, hypothetical or uncertain.4 Nevertheless, recent trends have allowed plaintiffs to expand the Restatement (Second) definition of "harm" to cover injuries that are speculative or that exist only in the minds of those claiming them. Allowing plaintiffs to relax or eliminate the burden of proving actual injury and harm renders meaningless the singular purpose of tort law: to make whole a plaintiff who has sustained an actual injury. B. Actual Injury Requirement Traditionally, there was no cause of action in tort unless there was actual loss or damage resulting to the interests of another. For example, the Fifth Circuit has stated, "While the sale of a defective product creates a potential for liability, the law grants no cause of action for inchoate wrongs. …