Endogenous WNT antagonists have roles in both childhood brain cancer and melanoma in the elderly. A pair of papers this week show that endogenous production of natural inhibitors of the WNT/β-catenin pathway has opposite effects in the childhood cancer medulloblastoma and in melanoma, a cancer most common in older adults. Medulloblastoma is a brain cancer classified into subtypes on the basis of mutations and the site of origin in the brain. Whereas those associated with mutations that activate the Sonic hedgehog (SHH) pathway tend to be most aggressive, less responsive to chemotherapy, and often fatal; those with activating mutations in β-catenin tend to be curable. Phoenix et al. identified differences in the penetrability of the blood brain barrier as responsible. WNT-type medulloblastoma secreted the WNT inhibitors WIF1 and DKK1, which functioned as a paracrine inhibitory signal in tumor-associated endothelial cells and disrupted their barrier function. In contrast, few cells of the SHH-type medulloblastoma had detectable WNT/β-catenin activity, and most of the associated endothelial cells had active WNT/β-catenin signaling and formed a functional barrier. These distinct properties affected the penetrance of peripherally delivered chemotherapeutic drugs, such that, although both types of cancer cells were killed in culture by the drugs, only the WNT-type medulloblastoma was affected when implanted into mouse brains. Injecting WNT-type medulloblastoma cells that produced WNT7A stabilized the barrier function of the endothelial cells and rendered these tumors resistant to chemotherapy. Thus, combining WNT inhibitor with chemotherapy, or pretreating with a WNT inhibitor, to improve delivery of the drugs into the tumor may be beneficial in treating more aggressive forms of medulloblastoma. In the second paper, Kaur et al. examined how the age of dermal fibroblasts affected melanoma progression and reported that aged fibroblasts produced the WNT antagonist secreted frizzled-related protein 2 (sFRP2). In melanoma, β-catenin activity promotes proliferation but inhibits invasiveness of the tumor cells. Given that metastasis is the cause of lethality, keeping the cells in a proliferative, noninvasive state may be beneficial. Melanoma cells injected into young or old mice and cultured in organotypic skin reconstructions with fibroblasts from old (>55) or young (<35) human donors exhibited increased proliferation in the young condition and increased invasiveness (in culture) or metastasis (in the mice) in the old condition. Conditioned medium from the aged fibroblasts, which contained sFRP2, or conditioned medium from young fibroblasts supplemented with sFRP2 inhibited proliferation and increased invasiveness of melanoma cells in culture; a similar effect of increased metastasis occurred in the melanoma mouse model when the young mice received sFRP2. Melanoma cells exposed to aged fibroblast conditioned medium or grown in aged mice had reduced abundance of β-catenin, the transcription factor MITF, and APE1 (encoded by a MITF target gene), compared with those in melanoma cells grown in young conditions. Because APE1 is a multifunctional protein involved in DNA damage repair and responding to reactive oxygen species (ROS), unsurprisingly the melanoma cells grown in aged conditions exhibited a gene signature associated with the DNA damage response and an increase in the amount of a marker of oxidative stress, compared with those grown in the young condition. These results are particularly intriguing, because increased ROS and decreased β-catenin and MITF are associated with resistance to BRAF inhibitors, a major therapeutic strategy used to treat melanoma. Treating melanoma cells with conditioned medium from young fibroblasts that had been exposed to H2O2 resulted in resistance to the BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib; whereas treating melanoma cells with conditioned medium from aged fibroblasts that had been exposed to the antioxidant NAC even without adding vemurafenib caused cell death. These data suggest that the age-dependent increase in sFRP2 reduces WNT signaling and adapts the cells to high ROS, thus antioxidant therapy may be particularly beneficial in treating melanoma in patients over a certain age that exhibit high amounts of sFRP2. T. N. Phoenix, D. M. Patmore, S. Boop, N. Boulos, M. O. Jacus, Y. T. Patel, M. F. Roussel, D. Finkelstein, L. Goumnerova, S. Perreault, E. Wadhwa, Y.-J. Cho, C. F. Stewart, R. J. Gilbertson, Medulloblastoma genotype dictates blood brain barrier phenotype. Cancer Cell 29, 508–522 (2016). [PubMed] A. Kaur, M. R. Webster, K. Marchbank, R. Behera, A. Ndoye, C. H. Kugel III, V. M. Dang, J. Appleton, M. P. O'Connell, P. Cheng, A. A. Valiga, R. Morissette, N. B. McDonnell, L. Ferrucci, A. V. Kossenkov, K. Meeth, H.-Y. Tang, X. Yin, W. H. Wood III, E. Lehrmann, K. G. Becker, K. T. Flaherty, D. T. Frederick, J. A. Wargo, Z. A. Cooper, M. T. Tetzlaff, C. Hudgens, K. M. Aird, R. Zhang, X. Xu, Q. Liu, E. Bartlett, G. Karakousis, Z. Eroglu, R. S. Lo, M. Chan, A. M. Menzies, G. V. Long, D. B. Johnson, J. Sosman, B. Schilling, D. Schadendorf, D. W. Speicher, M. Bosenberg, A. Ribas, A. T. Weeraratna, sFRP2 in the aged microenvironment drives melanoma metastasis and therapy resistance. Nature 532, 250–254 (2016). [PubMed]


This paper surveys recent advances in the application of random dynamical systems theory in economics. It illustrates the usefulness of this framework for modeling and analysis of economic phenomena with stochastic components, mainly focusing on stochastic dynamic models in economic growth. The paper also highlights some directions for further applications and interdisciplinary research on random dynamical systems.


During the negotiations of the Sustainable Development Goals, the United Nations consulted worldwide nearly ten million people for their views. Such proliferating megaconsultations are often uncritically accepted as a remedy for an assumed democratic deficit of intergovernmental institutions. We argue, however, that the potential of civil society consultations to democratize global governance is constrained by the limited legitimacy of these consultations in the first place. Global consultations regularly fail to include civil society actors from developing countries, or show other sociodemographic biases. Also, they often fail to strengthen accountability between citizens, international organizations and governments. In this article, we investigate the causes of this phenomenon by exploring the relationship between the design of consultations and their democratic legitimacy. The basis for our argument is an in-depth empirical study of three consultations carried out during the negotiations of the Sustainable Development Goals. We find that design is an important variable to explain the overall legitimacy of consultations. Yet its exact role is sometimes unexpected. Extensive material resources and open access conditions do not systematically enhance the legitimacy of the studied consultations. Instead, developing clear objectives, allocating sufficient time to participants, and formally binding the consultation to the negotiations hold considerably more promise.


The presence of thiols in living systems is critical for the maintenance of cellular redox homeostasis, the maintenance of protein thiol-disulfide ratios and the protection of cells from reactive oxygen species. In addition to the well studied tripeptide glutathione (γ-Glu-Cys-Gly), a number of compounds have been identified that contribute to these essential cellular roles. Many of these molecules are of great clinical interest due to their essential role in the biochemistry of a number of deadly pathogens, as well as their possible role as therapeutic agents in the treatment of a number of diseases. A series of studies were undertaken using theoretical, chemical and biochemical approaches on a selection of thiols, ergothioneine, the ovothiols and mycothiol, to further our understanding of these necessary biological components. Ergothioneine is present at significant physiological levels in humans and other mammals; however, a definitive role for this thiol has yet to be determined. It has been implicated in radical scavenging in vivo and shows promise as a therapeutic agent against disease states caused by oxidative damage. Given the clinical importance of this intracellular thiol, further investigation into the behaviour of ergothioneine appeared warranted. A high level theoretical study was performed to determine the thermodynamic driving force behind the instability of the ergothioneine disulfide, as well as the thermodynamics of the reactions of ergothioneine with a selection of biologically relevant reactive oxygen species. These results were compared to those determined for a glutathione model compound, as well as the related ovothiols. The latter are believed to act as hydrogen peroxide scavengers in vivo and are currently under review as possible therapeutics against oxidative damage. The structural differences between the ovothiols and ergothioneine dramatically affect their reactivity and this study investigates the thermodynamic driving forces behind these differences. Mycothiol is the major thiol found in the Actinomycetales bacteria, which include the causative agent of tuberculosis, and the enzymes which use mycothiol have been identified as important targets for the development of novel antimicrobials. To better understand the in vivo behaviour of mycothiol, a thorough conformational search was performed to determine what, if any, trends exist among the low energy conformers expected to be present in solution. Knowledge of the conformations preferred by mycothiol may aid in the design of substrate-based inhibitors targeted at mycothiol-dependent enzymes. In addition, the efforts towards the identification of a mycothiol-dependent glyoxalase system are described. The glyoxalase system is essential for the detoxification of methylglyoxal, a toxic by-product of glycolysis, and this system would serve as a target for the design of new therapeutics against tuberculosis and other pathogenic Actinomycetales bacteria. In addition to the study of intracellular thiols, this work details a preliminary theoretical study of the thermodynamics of the phosphorylation of proteinaceous serine residues by inositol pyrophosphates in eukaryotic cell-free extracts. It has been postulated that this observed activity may represent a novel signalling pathway in eukaryotes. This study focused on the effect of inositol pyrophosphate structure and overall charge on the thermodynamics of these reactions. This information should contribute to our understanding of this novel cellular phosphorylation process.


Even though current antiviral treatments based on pegylated interferon, or nucleos(t)ide analogues, in mono or combination therapies, have demonstrated clinical benefit to HBV-infected patients, chronic hepatitis B remains a difficult-to-cure disease. An absolute cure, defined as total elimination of HBV DNA, is currently not achievable, and a functional cure characterised by sustained virological response and HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) clearance off-treatment remains a challenge. Pegylated interferon treatment can lead to a sustained virological response and HBsAg clearance off-treatment in only 3–7% of patients,1 and it is too often associated with contraindications and adverse effects. Long-term treatment with nucleos(t)ide analogues is better tolerated, but the chance to achieve a sustained virological response and HBsAg loss remains low,2 and the drugs do not eradicate intrahepatic HBV DNA.

The risk of disease progression and development of hepatocellular carcinoma in chronically HBV-infected patients is clearly associated with high levels of serum HBV DNA and HBsAg.3 ,4 Since high levels of serum HBsAg may be responsible for exhaustion of HBsAg-specific T-cell response in chronically infected individuals, an antiviral strategy aimed at suppressing circulating HBsAg could restore virus-specific immune response and promote viral clearance.5

Zhang et al 6 investigated the potential of anti-HBsAg monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) infusion for clearance of circulating HBsAg in chronic infection. The study was based on (i) the previous observation that anti-HBsAg mAbs treatments could have short-term antiviral effects,7 ,8 and (ii) the growing interest in mAbs-based immunotherapy for viral diseases, including infections with HIV, HCV and Ebola virus.9 The therapeutic use of antiviral mAbs was initially based on the mAbs activity in virus neutralisation …


A gorgeous presentation devoted to the art of Japanese eroticism, drawn from the Honolulu Museum of Art's rare and distinguished collection. The Japanese paintings and prints called shunga (literally spring pictures) reflected the thriving sexual culture of early modern Japan and depicted with sensitivity and nuance the private lives of various social types, from courtesans and Kabuki actors to ordinary townspeople. Organized around a series of exhibitions at the Honolulu Museum of Art, this sumptuous volume presents art from the museum's vast holdings of ukiyo-e prints, woodblock-printed books, and paintings, particularly those originating from the collections of scholar Richard D. Lane and famed author James A. Michener. These fascinating works, dating from the seventeenth through the twentieth centuries, explore Japan's sexual culture (including issues of gender and the country's ever-evolving sex industry) with humour as well as a surprisingly sophisticated literary and art-historical approach. Sure to become a collector's item, this gorgeously designed publication offers stunning colour plates showcasing numerous and unusual examples of exquisite Japanese erotica. Texts by leading scholars of shunga and ukiyo-e complete this treasure album of a book.


Loathing, anger, shame - and deep affection: Virginia Woolf's relationship with her servants was central to her life. Like thousands of her fellow Britons she relied on live-in domestics for the most intimate of daily tasks. Her cook and parlour maid relieved her of the burden of housework and without them she might never have become a writer. But unlike many of her contemporaries Virginia Woolf was frequently tormented by her dependence on servants. Uniquely, she explored her violent, often vicious, feelings in her diaries, novels and essays. What, the reader might well wonder, was it like for the servants to live with a mistress who so hated giving her orders, and who could be generous and hostile by turns? Through the prism of the writer's life and work, Alison Light explores the volatile, emotional territory which is the hidden history of domestic service. Compared to most employers in Britain between the wars, Leonard and Virginia Woolf were free and easy. Life in the Bloomsbury circle of writers and artists was often fun. Yet despite being liberal in outlook, these were also households where the differences in upbringing and education were acute: employers and servants were still 'us' and 'them'. The women who worked for the Woolfs, like other domestic servants, have usually been relegated to the margins of history, yet unearthing their lives reveals fascinating stories: of Sophie Farrell, the Victorian cook and 'family treasure', who ended her days in a London bed-sit; Lottie Hope, the parlour maid, a foundling, who'd been left on a doorstep like a parcel; and, Nellie Boxall, the Woolfs' cook, who was finally dismissed after sixteen years of rows and reconciliations, only to find herself a more glamorous job. "Mrs Woolf and the Servants" is a riveting and highly original study of one of Britain's greatest literary modernists. Ultimately, though, it is also a moving and eloquent testimony to the ways in which individual creativity always needs the support of others.


Abstract We have devised a simple model for assessing the role of development in shaping the evolution of morphological disparity. Disparity of a clade at any given time is expressed in terms of the developmental dynamics that lead to the variety of adult morphotypes observed. We use assumed phenotypic manifestations of developmental processes, as they could be detected from allometric characterizations, to distinguish a few, nonexclusive types of evolutionary changes in ontogeny. On the basis of this formalization, we describe the diversification of hypothetical clades, using the standard curve of adult morphological disparity, the curve of juvenile disparity, and the curve of allometric disparity, the latter quantifying the diversification of clades in allometric space. Contrasts of these curves reflect the underlying developmental scheme that drives temporal changes in disparity. We then vary the parameters of the model to assess the expected signature of each metric under specific conditions: changes in the relative frequencies of the types of evolutionary developmental changes, changes in the transition magnitude attached to each of them, and effects of temporal variation in average adult size on disparity curves and patterns of morphospace occupation. Results emphasize the potential contribution of these proxies for developmental dynamics—juvenile morphological disparity, allometric disparity, and average adult size—in enriching the interpretation of standard disparity curves and the description of clade histories, with possible process-oriented inferences.


This work is a detailed analysis of the chronology of Rhodian amphorae stamps. The research was then applied by the author to the large amount of material unearthed in the course of excavations in the Southern Levant, primarily today Israel and the Autonomous Palestinian territories. An accurate analysis of relevant finds, accounting for about 95 percent of amphorae stamps of the Hellenistic period, was a prerequisite for the understanding of the chronological development of the settlement and history of the region.


The last half century has seen the development of many biological or physical theories that have explicitly or implicitly involved medial descriptions of objects and other spatial entities in our world. Simultaneously, mathematicians have studied the properties of these skeletal descriptions of shape, and, stimulated by the many areas where medial models are useful, computer scientists and engineers have developed numerous algorithms for computing and using these models. The book consists of an introductory chapter, two chapters on the major mathematical results on medial representations, five chapters on algorithms for extracting medial models from boundary or binary image descriptions of objects, and three chapters on applications in image analysis and other areas of study and design. This book will serve the science and engineering communities using medial models and will provide learning material for students entering this field.


Recently, there has been increasing interest within the potential user community of Global Positioning System (GPS) for high precision navigation problems such as aircraft non precision approach, river and harbor navigation, real-time or kinematic surveying. In view of more and more GPS applications, the reliability of GPS is at this issue. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based radio navigation system that provides consistent positioning, navigation, and timing services to civilian users on a continuous worldwide basis. The GPS system receiver provides exact location and time information for an unlimited number of users in all weather, day and night, anywhere in the world. The work in this thesis will mainly focuss on how to model a Mathematical expression for tracking GPS Signal using Phase Locked Loop filter receiver. Mathematical formulation of the filter are of two types: the first order and the second order loops are tested successively in order to find out a compromised on which one best provide a zero steady state error that will likely minimize noise bandwidth to tracks frequency modulated signal and returns the phase comparator characteristic to the null point. Then the Z-transform is used to build a phase-locked loop in software for digitized data. Finally, a Numerical Methods approach is developed using either MATLAB or Mathematica containing the package for Gaussian elimination to provide the exact location or the tracking of a GPS in the space for a given a coarse/acquisition (C/A) code.


People all over the world make art and take pleasure in it, and they have done so for millennia. But acknowledging that art is a universal part of human experience leads us to some big questions: Why does it exist? Why do we enjoy it? And how do the world's different art traditions relate to art and to each other? "Art Without Borders" is an extraordinary exploration of those questions, a profound and personal meditation on the human hunger for art and a dazzling synthesis of the whole range of inquiry into its significance. Esteemed thinker Ben-Ami Scharfstein's encyclopedic erudition is here brought to bear on the full breadth of the world of art. He draws on neuroscience and psychology to understand the way we both perceive and conceive of art, including its resistance to verbal exposition. Through examples of work by Indian, Chinese, European, African, and Australian artists, "Art Without Borders" probes the distinction between accepting a tradition and defying it through innovation, which leads to a consideration of the notion of artistic genius. Continuing in this comparative vein, Scharfstein also examines the mutual influence of European and non-European artists. Then, through a comprehensive evaluation of the world's major art cultures, he shows how all of these individual traditions are gradually, but haltingly, conjoining into a single current of universal art. Finally, he concludes by looking at the ways empathy and intuition can allow members of one culture to appreciate the art of another. Lucid, learned, and incomparably rich in thought and detail, "Art Without Borders" is a monumental accomplishment, on par with the artistic achievements Scharfstein writes about so lovingly in its pages.


The development of an ultrasensitive nanoprobe is regarded as one of the most promising strategies for the precise diagnosis of tumors. Herein, tanespimycin (17-AAG)-modified polyethylenimine-based gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) co-labeled with a gadolinium (Gd) nanoprobe are constructed for targeted dual-mode computed tomography (CT)/magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. The specific binding of tanespimycin to the N-terminal of heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) endows the modified nanoprobes (NPs) with the ability to up-regulate HSP90 tumor cells and to display excellent X-ray attenuation intensity and T1 MR imaging performance in an orthotopic hepatocellular carcinoma tumor model. Such an ultrasensitive nanoprobe holds enormous promise for highly efficient tumor diagnosis and dual-mode CT/T1 positive MR imaging. This study develops a novel strategy to prepare a multifunctional nanoprobe via polyethylenimine nanotechnology. Using this strategy, various dual-mode or multimode nanoprobes for diagnosing different cancers may be designed.


Introduction: Temperature is a key factor influencing the occurrence of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, yet there is no equivalent study in Hong Kong. This study reports results involving a large-scale territory-wide investigation on the impacts of ambient temperature and age–gender differences on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest outcome in Hong Kong. Methods: This study included 25,467 out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases treated by the Hong Kong Fire Services Department between December 2011 and November 2016 inclusive. Simple correlation and regression analyses were used to examine the relationships between out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases and temperature, age and gender. Calendar charts were used to visualise temporal patterns of pre-hospital emergency medical services related to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases. Results: A strong negative curvilinear relationship was found between out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and daily temperature (r2 > 0.9) with prominent effects on elderly people aged ≥85 years. For each unit decrease in mean temperature in °C, there was a maximum of 5.6% increase in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases among all age groups and 7.3% increase in the ≥85 years elderly age group. Men were slightly more at risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest compared with women. The demand for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest–related emergency medical services was highest between 06:00 and 11:00 in the wintertime. Conclusion: This study provides the first local evidence linking weather and demographic effects with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Hong Kong. It offers empirical evidence to policymakers in support of strengthening existing emergency medical services to deal with the expected increase in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the wintertime and in regions with a large number of elderly population.


Palpation, a standard procedure in the diagnostic process of muscular pain conditions – myalgia, aims to provoke a muscular pain response. The origin of pain elicited by palpation is not fully understood. There is also a possibility that the pressure elicit response from mechanoreceptors in skin, sub mucosal tissue or periosteum, which may affect the validity of the method.The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of topical anesthesia on pressure pain thresholds at masseter, temporal and thumb muscle sites in healthy individuals.Twenty symptom-free subjects (ten males/ ten females) mean age 24.6 years (SD 2.6) participated in this double blind randomized experimental trial. An algometer (Somedic AB) was used to measure Pressure Pain Thresholds (PPT), on the masseter, temporal and thumb before and after topical application of EMLA or a placebo cream.There was no statistically significant change in PPTs at any of the tested sites between the baseline and after application of EMLA and placebo cream. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in PPTs between sexes. There was no significant difference in PPTs between the different muscle sites, apart from a higher PPT for the thumb site compared to the masseter muscle.In conclusion, PPT was not affected by topical anaesthesia in symptom-free subjects. This indicates that palpation pain is not dermal. Furthermore did PPT not differ between the masseter and temporal muscles. The study indicates that the same palpation pressure may be used for extra-oral palpation of the temporal and masseter muscle for both sexes.


Electricity grids worldwide are continuing to be severely constrained and stretched to capacity. Certain grid conditions e.g., peak load crisis or loss of generation may lead to severe under frequency situations. Load shedding can then be useful to prevent the national grid from being overwhelmed. Typically, load shedding is done from medium voltage substation level and all customers including emergency service providers under that substation lose power. However, it is beneficial for a society to exclude emergency service providers from load shedding. Smart Meters (SMs) are generally equipped with remotely accessible switch which gives a unique opportunity to exclude prioritized customers during emergency load shedding. Distribution System Operators (DSOs) are currently using remote SM switching typically for one customer at a time. However, the SM switching technique has not been fully investigated with regard to multiple customers. In order to fulfill the gap, this paper presents results obtained from field tests on simultaneous multiple SMs switching with a main focus on the impact of multiple SMs switching on Power Quality (PQ). The results show that impact on PQ might be negligible for small number of SMs switching. Moreover, faster SMs switching and reliable communication system is found as an important prerequisite to use SMs for emergency load shedding.


Robert Aumann's groundbreaking career in game theory has spanned over 35 years. These two volumes provide convenient access to all of his major research--from his doctoral dissertation in 1956 to papers as recent as January 1995. Threaded through all of Aumann's work (symbolized in his thesis on knots) is the study of relationships between different ideas, between different phenomena, and between ideas and phenomena. "When you look closely at one scientific idea," writes Aumann, "you find it hitched to all others. It is these hitches that I have tried to study." The papers are organized in several categories: general, knot theory, decision theory (utility and subjective probability), strategic games, coalitional games, and mathematical methods. Aumann has written an introduction to each of these groups that briefly describes the content and background of each paper, including the motivation and the research process, and relates it to other work in the collection and to work by others. There is also a citation index that allows readers to trace the considerable body of literature which cites Aumann's own work.


Distributed three-dimensional (3D) graphics applications exhibit both resemblance and uniqueness in comparison with conventional streaming media applications. The resemblance relates to the large data volume and the bandwidth-limited and error-prone transmission channel. The uniqueness is due to the polygon-based representation of 3D geometric meshes and their accompanying attributes such as textures. This specific data format introduces sophisticated rendering computation to display graphics models and therefore places an additional constraint on the streaming application.
The objective of this research is to provide scalable, error-resilient, and time-efficient solutions for high-quality 3D graphics applications in distributed and resource-constrained environments. Resource constraints range from rate-limited and error-prone channels to insufficient data-reception, computing, and display capabilities of client devices. Optimal resource treatment with transmission and rendering scalability is important under such circumstances. The proposed research consists of three milestones. In the first milestone, we develop a joint mesh and texture optimization framework for scalable transmission and rendering of textured 3D models. Then, we address network behaviors and develop a hybrid retransmission and error protection mechanism for the on-demand delivery of 3D models. Next, we advance from individual 3D models to 3D scene databases, which contain numerous objects interacting in one geometric space, and study joint application and transport approaches. By properly addressing the properties of 3D scenes represented in multi-resolution hierarchies, we develop a joint source and channel coding method and a multi-streaming framework for streaming the content-rich 3D scene databases toward optimized transmission and rendering scalability under resource constraints.


Recent acquisitional studies reveal that formal properties at the lexicon-syntax interface are in place before discursive properties at the syntax-discourse interface. It has been argued that this phenomenon results from learners' deficits with interpretable discursive features like [focus]. This study claims that the phenomenon derives from learners' deficits with the un-interpretable formal features responsible for regulating the occurrence of discursive focus, whereas learners' representation of interpretable focus features are intact. This claimwas tested by conducting a study with Greek learners of non-native Spanish at three proficiency levels. Learners judged Subject-Verb and Verb-Subject order with intransitives (unergatives and unaccusatives), which is constrained both formally (Unaccusative Hypothesis at the lexicon-syntax interface) and discursively (presentational focus at the syntax-discourse interface). Results confirm that, while the general 'syntax-before-discourse' observation is correct, learners' source of persistent deficits with discursive properties derives from the uninterpretable feature that regulates the syntactic realisation of focus. This implies that learners are sensitive to the (interpretable) [focus] feature, but are unable to grammaticalise it syntactically.


The integration of adaptive optics techniques into ophthalmic imaging devices has improved the diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases. The coupling of adaptive optics with multiphoton microscopy may help extend the reach of ophthalmic imaging to greater depths within the cornea and retina.


Problem. People who are not able to overcome the effects of childhood trauma often waste their human potential on substance abuse and illegal and illicit lifestyles; they end up in prison, uneducated, or develop self-destructive behavior. They often struggle with poor learning and social skills and are not able to be successful in life. However, some individuals do succeed. This study interviewed eight individuals who suffered childhood trauma and developed ways of overcoming that trauma to live prosperous, productive, and, in many regards, full lives. Method. This qualitative study used interviews to explore how adults traumatized as children described childhood trauma and its effect, and their ability to move through the trauma and live normalized adult lives. The eight individuals were located by personal contacts and snowball referrals. Face-to-face interviews took place in public and private locations chosen by individuals. The eight participants consisted of four individuals and two couples. The open-ended questions during the interviews allowed each participant to comfortably disclose their sensitive stories of their past traumatic experiences and how they eventually were supported, encouraged, and nurtured to normalized adult behavior. The writing process began with transcription of recorded interviews. The first step of the data analysis process was to organize the data into details and then look at the individual pieces of information as a whole. A precoding process was used to identify similarities and differences in interviews. The following code systems were applied in the first cycle of coding: (a) in vivo codes: taken directly from what participants said, (b) descriptive codes: summarize the primary topic, usually a noun, (c) process codes: words or phrases that capture action, (d) values codes: assess participants' integrated value, attitude, and belief systems at work, and (e) emotion codes: describe a participant's emotional experience, primary emotions, occurring with specific experience or period of time. The idea was to look for coding patterns. Pseudonyms were used to maintain anonymity and confidentiality. This study also used Dr. Lenore Terr's theory of childhood trauma that concludes that childhood trauma has four lasting characteristics: visualized memories, repetitive behaviors, trauma-specific fears, and changed attitudes about people, life, and the future. The stories in this study were written to reveal and celebrate each individual's success as they moved through childhood trauma to normalized behavior. The interviewees of four individuals and two sets of couples were of various ages ranging from their early 20s to a gentleman in his mid-60s. Participants varied in race and socioeconomic status. It was important that the couples' stories be meshed and joined together, as their lives and journeys are incomplete without each other's interpretation of their individual and coupled transitions through childhood trauma to normalized adult behavior. Some shared details of their trauma. Others gave brief overviews of their abuse but detailed their tumultuous and eventual resilient journeys into adulthood. Chapter 4 is divided up into six sections of the four individuals and two couples who were interviewed. Each section contains six subsections. The first subsection is a brief introduction with participants' background information. The significant themes include: (a) family systems and childhood trauma, (b) feelings about the trauma, (c) results of abuse and trauma, (d) coping with support, and (e) resiliency within the process of being rescued. Results. Cross-case analysis revealed repetitive patterns and themes, which corresponded to the research question: How do adults traumatized as children describe childhood trauma, effects of the trauma, and their ability to move through the trauma to normalized behavior? Themes that emerged from cross-case analyses and a developmental timeline were: (a) reported childhood trauma, (b) effects of trauma, (c) main childhood caregiver, (d) support systems reported, and (e) evidence of resiliency. The reason for choosing these themes was that each interview revealed similarities. Each individual reported various traumas that affected their behavior and emotions. Each individual had a main childhood caregiver and support system, though the support system was not necessarily the main caregiver. All gave evidence of resiliency. The effects described by the eight participants coincide with Lenore Terr's theory of childhood trauma mentioned above. Each story and trauma is also different. Neglect, abandonment, poverty, and substance and physical abuse are observable offenders. But when a child does not know how to speak up and report secret sexual assault or emotional abuse, the trauma becomes less obvious. All of the stories must be told and voices heard. Nevertheless, children of trauma can heal. Participants in this study stated they were on the journey towards recovery from childhood trauma to normalized adult behavior. Conclusion. The themes addressed in this study can be interconnected and related to the research question: How do adults traumatized as children describe childhood trauma, effects of the trauma, and their ability to move through the trauma to normalized behavior? The themes that emerged from the stories were: (a) reported childhood trauma, (b) effects of childhood trauma, (c) main childhood caregiver, (d) support systems reported, and (e) evidence of resiliency. Each adult interviewed volunteered and was willing to describe his or her childhood trauma. For example, neglect, which included divorce, poverty, substance abuse, and violence, was the most prevalent of traumas. Subsequent was behavioral and emotional trauma. All participants told of childhood trauma that affected cognitive and social development. The majority of the trauma was caused and inflicted by caregivers due to neglect. It is unknown if there was intergenerational trauma or if caregiver stress was the initiator of the childhood trauma. Substance abuse of caregivers was also described as a baseline for familial stress. Most support systems were not available to participants as children. These systems include: (a) psychological and psychiatric counseling, (b) education and social, (c) familial and community, (d) and spiritual. Internal and self-directed support and motivation were inferred by all participants, which were fueled by love, faith, and encouragement from external support to motivate participants to normalized adult behavior. Evidence of resiliency was told by each individual. Compassionate giving back to communities was major evidence of healing as well as reported self-respect, hard working in family and community responsibilities, maturity, forgiveness, and security.


The study focused on the effects of basic counseling skills program, such as listening, understanding, respecting, and empathizing, to elementary school teachers in Qatar. Through a three-hour intervention program, the authors used a self-reported questionnaire, interview questions and classroom observations to examine changes in how preschool teachers' dealt with students' in the classroom. Our findings suggest basic counseling skills had an impact on teachers as it encouraged them to understand terms such as "counseling," which basic counseling skills had allowed teachers to improve the quality of students-teacher relationships and their relationships with others. Teachers became aware of their practices as reflective practitioners to improve their practice.


A widely held view of noun noun constructions (NNs) in English is that some are compound nouns while others are noun phrases (e.g. Quirk et al. 1985: 1332, Biber et al. 1999: 589, Giegerich 2004). This chapter shows that a syntactic analysis of NNs necessitates the postulation of a cross linguistically exceptional phrase type, whereas a morphological analysis requires only the normal West Germanic processes of word formation. It therefore argues with Levi (1978: 66–74) and Olsen (2000), that these constructions are all compound words. The criteria of stress and lexical integrity, sometimes taken to indicate a dual origin, are shown to be unreliable. Furthermore, the analysis proposed here is in keeping with recent work by Plag et al. (2007, 2008) and Lappe & Plag (2007), who argue that stress is assigned to NNs on the basis of analogy with previously experienced forms.


Bonus point systems are widely used for rewarding customer loyalty in both traditional and electronic commerce scenarios. Merchants aim to additionally increase revenue by targeted advertising using customer data. At the same time, customers wish to protect their privacy of what they purchase. Common systems neither provide sufficient protection of privacy, nor protect the customers' identities. Anonymity makes it significantly harder to properly resolve claims of fraudulent transactions, because identities are not recorded for any purpose after a transaction has been committed. We propose an anonymous bonus system based on digital payment systems using blind cryptographic signatures. We implement a protocol extension that allows proof of bonus point possession in case of reported misbehavior, and we identify the implications on security, privacy, and performance of our proposals. Our results show that we can resolve these cases of fraud within the system without losing functionality in the bonus point protocol.


The long-term erosional history of the Karkonosze Granite Massif is revised and reconstructed using different sources of information, including the sedimentary record of adjacent basins, previously published low-temperature thermochronological data and geomorphic features. Although the evidence is still incomplete, this work has identified a number of intervals, of unequal duration, characterized by different denudation regimes and rates. Several major phases of rapid exhumation are inferred – in the Permian and the Early Triassic as seen in the sedimentary record, and in the Late Cretaceous as shown by both the thermochronological and sedimentary records. Neotectonic uplift of the Karkonosze Mts. in the late Cenozoic is not recorded in the thermochronological record and there is no evidence of any accelerated denudation close to the massif. Apatite fission track data show that >~3.6 km of rock must have been eroded since the Turonian, while the results of zircon (U-Th)/He analysis suggest that in places erosion of >~6 km of rock must have taken place. This picture differs from previous estimates of denudation which suggested that only 2–2.5 km has been eroded from the axial part of the Karkonosze dome since the exposure of granite batholith in the Permian.


Nonnegative Matrix Factorization (NMF) has become an increasingly important research topic in machine learning. Despite all the practical success, most of existing NMF models are still vulnerable to adversarial attacks. To overcome this limitation, we propose a novel Adversarial NMF (ANMF) approach in which an adversary can exercise some control over the perturbed data generation process. Different from the traditional NMF models which focus on either the regular input or certain types of noise, our model considers potential test adversaries that are beyond the pre-defined constraints, which can cope with various noises (or perturbations). We formulate the proposed model as a bilevel optimization problem and use Alternating Direction Method of Multipliers (ADMM) to solve it with convergence analysis. Theoretically, the robustness analysis of ANMF is established under mild conditions dedicating asymptotically unbiased prediction. Extensive experiments verify that ANMF is robust to a broad categories of perturbations, and achieves state-of-the-art performances on distinct real-world benchmark datasets.


SUMMARY The radionuclides ( 137 Cs, 238 U, 232 Th and 40 K) and heavy metal concentrations (Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn and Mn) were determined in macro algae, mussel, fish and sediment samples collected from two stations at the eastern Turkish coast of the Black Sea. The measured 137 Cs, 238 U, 232 Th and 40 K concentrations are within the range of the values cited in previous works concerning the Turkish Black Sea coast. However, the radionuclide concentrations in the sediment fraction < 63 µm are significantly higher. Regarding the influence of the collection sites on the accumulation of the heavy metals in biota, Rize is generally more polluted. At the same time, Pb, Cu, Zn and Mn concentrations in Rize sediment are also higher than in Pazar sediment of similar grain size. In general, the heavy metal concentrations in the present study are not higher than previously results. However, Pb and Cu levels increased in biota and sediment in the Turkish area of the Black Sea during the years investigated.


To what extent do learners of Norwegian use metaphorical expressions in Norwegian? What types of expression are used, in which context, and by whom? What are the learners' characteristics? Does their mother tongue influence their use of certain expressions? Using data from the ASK corpus at the University of Bergen, this chapter examines metaphorical expressions involving the high frequency nuclear verb ta (English: 'take') in the writing of learners with German, Spanish and Russian as their first language. All the expressions are compared with frequencies of these expressions in written Norwegian used by native speakers. The findings of this study reveal the importance of the topic in comparative studies of this kind.


Abstract In this global information age, schools that teach public affairs and administration must meet the needs of students. Increasingly, this means providing students information in online classrooms to help them reach their highest potential. The acts of teaching and learning online generate data, but to date, that information has remained largely untapped for assessing student performance. Using data generated by students in an online Master of Public Administration program, drawn from the Marist College Open Academic Analytics Initiative,1 we identify and analyze characteristics and behaviors that best provide early indication of a student being academically at risk, paying particular attention to the usage of online tools. We find that fairly simple learning analytics models achieve high levels of sensitivity (over 80% of at-risk students identified) with relatively low false positive rates (13.5%). Results will be used to test interventions for improving student performance in real time.


Research has confirmed that the mother-infant dyadic relationship exerts substantial influence on the course of infant and early-childhood development. In recent years, psychopathology and emotional conflict have been detected with greater frequency in the contours of this relationship. Paul V. Trad, M.D. has devoted significant attention to this issue and, in his most recent work, has devised an efficacious treatment for the dyadic relationship by applying a short-term psychotherapeutic protocol averaging two to twenty-four months. His book is intended to disseminate the most up-to-date theoretical information in the field, as well as to provide assistance for professionals who deal with parents and infants, including child psychiatrists, child psychologists, family therapists, pediatricians, and social workers.The text is divided into two parts. The first part discusses the evolution of a theory of short-term parent-infant psychotherapy. In this regard, the psychological status of the caregiver is subjected to rigorous analysis. From this analysis, Trad extrapolates a variety of offending factors that are likely to interfere with the establishment of an adaptive alliance between mother and infant. Among the factors enumerated are: postpartum depression, marital discord, and a maternal history of abuse and neglect during childhood.Having provided a cogent and convincing rationale for intervention, Trad then argues persuasively for the initiation of therapy as early as the pregnancy period. Indeed, he observes that it is during this time of mild "developmental crisis" that the expectant mother may be most receptive to learning new representational patterns and re-aligning her perceptions along more adaptive pathways. Thus, clinicians working with pregnant women are urged to conduct assessments with these patients in order to determine whether early intervention is warranted.In the event treatment is introduced during the pregnancy, Trad advocates use of an innovative technique--labeled previewing--that sensitizes prospective parents to the content of their own internal representations, as well as to the behavioral patterns they may be expected to manifest after the birth. The previewing process is inaugurated when the mother represents episodes of past and present interaction as well as to envision episodes of future interaction with the infant. This representational task may certainly be practiced during the pregnancy. The second phase of the previewing process involves rehearsal exercises whereby the mother introduces the infant to the physical sensations and interpersonal nuances of new developmental skills. This aspect of previewing is best integrated into the mother's behavior after the birth, yet the clinician should encourage the expectant mother to begin anticipating such rehearsals. The mother helps the infant master new developmental skills. Parental empathy to the infant's moods and emotions is yet another important feature of the previewing process. Clinicians are also reminded to be alert to the potential for parent-infant conflict in single-parent families, as well as in families with working mothers and adolescent mothers. Additional variables that may undermine the mother-infant dyad are marital discord, wife beating, alcoholism, HIV infection, and postpartum depression.The second part of the book illustrates the use of short-term parent-infant psychotherapy in several clinical cases. …


We study the extension of relational multiagent systems (RMASs), where agents manipulate full-fledged relational databases, with data types and facets equipped with domain-specific, rigid relations (such as total orders). Specifically, we focus on design-time verification of RMASs against rich first-order temporal properties expressed in a variant of first-order mu-calculus with quantification across states. We build on previous decidability results under the state-bounded assumption, i.e., in each single state only a bounded number of data objects is stored in the agent databases, while unboundedly many can be encountered over time. We recast this condition, showing decidability in presence of dense, linear orders, and facets defined on top of them. Our approach is based on the construction of a finite-state, sound and complete abstraction of the original system, in which dense linear orders are reformulated as non-rigid relations working on the active domain of the system only. We also show undecidability when including a data type equipped with the successor relation.


PURPOSE
Neurotrophic keratopathy is a degenerative disease of the corneal epithelium resulting from impaired corneal innervation, possibly leading to perforation. We aimed to assess the efficacy and tolerance of a new matrix therapy agent (RGTA, Cacicol20), mimicking heparan sulfates, for the management of neurotrophic keratopathy.

METHODS
We carried out an uncontrolled, prospective, single-center clinical study on 11 patients (11 eyes) with severe corneal neurotrophic ulcers, despite the use of preservative-free artificial tears, for 15 days. Patients were treated with RGTA eye drops, instilled at a dosage of one drop in the morning, on alternate days. Evolution and follow-up during treatment were evaluated by slit-lamp examination, photography, fluorescein-dye testing, tests of corneal sensitivity, and best corrected visual acuity. The main outcome measures for each patient were healing of the corneal surface and best corrected visual acuity before and after RGTA therapy.

RESULTS
Eight patients displayed complete corneal healing after a mean period of 8.7 weeks (range; 1 to 22 weeks). Mean ulcer area decreased significantly, from 11.12% to 6.37% (P = 0.048) in the first week, and to 1.56% (P = 0.005) at 1 month. Treatment failure was observed in three cases, requiring amniotic membrane transplantation in two patients and penetrating keratoplasty in one patient. At the end of the study, none of the patients displayed significant improvement in visual acuity. There were no systemic or local side effects of treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
RGTA seems to be a potentially useful, alternative, noninvasive therapeutic approach in neurotrophic keratopathy management. However, randomized studies are necessary.


Objective The aim of the study was to analyze the relationships between factors that contribute to healthcare professionals informing and apologizing to a patient after an avoidable adverse event (AAE). Methods A secondary study based on the analysis of data collected in a cross-sectional study conducted in 2014 in Spain was performed. Health professionals from hospitals and primary care completed an online survey. Results The responses from 1087 front-line healthcare professionals were analyzed. The willingness of the professionals to fully disclose an AAE was greater among those who were backed by their institution (odds ratio [OR] = 72.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 37.5–140.3) and who had experience with that type of communication (OR = 2.4, 95% CI = 1.3–4.5). An apology for the patient was more likely when there was institutional support (OR = 31.3, 95% CI = 14.4–68.2), the professional was not aware of lawsuits (OR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.2–6.1), and attributed most AAE to human error (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.1–4.2). The fear of lawsuits was determined by the lack of support from the center in disclosing AAE (OR = 5.5, 95% CI = 2.8–10.6) and the belief that being open would result in negative consequences (OR = 2.0, 95% CI = 1.1–3.6). Conclusions The culture of safety, the experience of blame, and the expectations about the outcome from communicating an AAE to patients affect the frequency of open disclosure. Nurses are more willing than physicians to participate in open disclosure. Health care organizations must act to establish a framework of legal certainty for professionals.


ABSTRACT The precise machineries required for two aspects of eukaryotic DNA replication, Okazaki fragment processing (OFP) and telomere maintenance, are poorly understood. In this work, we present evidence that Saccharomyces cerevisiae Pif1 helicase plays a wider role in DNA replication than previously appreciated and that it likely functions in conjunction with Dna2 helicase/nuclease as a component of the OFP machinery. In addition, we show that Dna2, which is known to associate with telomeres in a cell-cycle-specific manner, may be a new component of the telomere replication apparatus. Specifically, we show that deletion of PIF1 suppresses the lethality of a DNA2-null mutant. The pif1Δ dna2Δ strain remains methylmethane sulfonate sensitive and temperature sensitive; however, these phenotypes can be suppressed by further deletion of a subunit of pol δ, POL32. Deletion of PIF1 also suppresses the cold-sensitive lethality and hydroxyurea sensitivity of the pol32Δ strain. Dna2 is thought to function by cleaving long flaps that arise during OFP due to excessive strand displacement by pol δ and/or by an as yet unidentified helicase. Thus, suppression of dna2Δ can be rationalized if deletion of POL32 and/or PIF1 results in a reduction in long flaps that require Dna2 for processing. We further show that deletion of DNA2 suppresses the long-telomere phenotype and the high rate of formation of gross chromosomal rearrangements in pif1Δ mutants, suggesting a role for Dna2 in telomere elongation in the absence of Pif1.


Murphy, Daniel. The impact of intranets on college and university public relations professionals. 1997. Thesis Advisor: Dr. Donald Bagin. Public Relations. The purpose of this thesis was to determine the impact of intranets with regard to the future job responsibilities and functions of public relations professionals in the field of higher education. The hypothesis of this paper was that as more and more colleges and universities begin embracing intranets as a communication tool, the issue of information manage ment will arise. The question of who or what department will be responsible for the information that is placed on a educational institution's intranet will be consistent and problematic. College and university public relations professionals need to be aware of the problems, opportunities, changes and challenges that intranets will bring to an educational institution. A search of previous research relevant to this study was conducted. Original research was conducted in the form of a mail survey randomly distributed to ioo public relations managers, directors or vice pTesidents at four-year colleges and universities across the country. The survey was used to ascertain the current and future influence of intranets on public relations professionals+ A major survey finding revealed that So percent of college and university public relations professionals believe that working with intranets will be a future job function.


A model is developed in which two complementary forms of investment contribute to growth—technology and skill acquisition, and growth takes two forms—TFP and variety growth. The rate of TFP growth depends more heavily on the parameters governing skill accumulation, while variety growth depends, roughly, on the difference between the parameters governing technology and skill accumulation. Conditions for the existence of a BGP are established, and the effects of various parameters are characterized. In an example, subsidies to skill acquisition (technology acquisition) are powerful tools for stimulating TFP growth (variety growth). Investment incentives off the BGP are also explored.


Herpes simplex virus (HSV) glycoprotein K (gK) is thought to be intimately involved in the process by which infected cells fuse because HSV syncytial mutations frequently alter the gK (UL53) gene. Previously, we characterized gK produced in cells infected with wild-type HSV or syncytial HSV mutants and found that the glycoprotein was localized to nuclear and endoplasmic reticulum membranes and did not reach the cell surface (L. Hutchinson, C. Roop, and D. C. Johnson, J. Virol. 69:4556-4563, 1995). In this study, we have characterized a mutant HSV type 1, denoted F-gK beta, in which a lacZ gene cassette was inserted into the gK coding sequences. Since gK was found to be essential for virus replication, F-gK beta was propagated on complementing cells which can express gK. F-gK beta produced normal plaques bounded by nonfused cells when plated on complementing cells, although syncytia were observed when the cells produced smaller amounts of gK. In contrast, F-gK beta produced only microscopic plaques on Vero cells and normal human fibroblasts (which do not express gK) and these plaques were reduced by 10(2) to 10(6) in number. Further, large numbers of nonenveloped capsids accumulated in the cytoplasm of F-gK beta-infected Vero cells, virus particles did not reach the cell surface, and the few enveloped particles that were produced exhibited a reduced capacity to enter cells and initiate an infection of complementing cells. Overexpression of gK in HSV-infected cells also caused defects in virus egress, although particles accumulated in the perinuclear space and large multilamellar membranous structures juxtaposed with the nuclear envelope were observed. Together, these results demonstrate that gK regulates or facilitates egress of HSV from cells. How this property is connected to cell fusion is not clear. In this regard, gK may alter cell surface transport of viral particles or other viral components directly involved in the fusion process.


Strikes are totally inefficient from an economic point of view. They occur when the two parties that bargain over a contract do not find an agreement and the result is a loss of utility for both. In spite of their clear inefficiency in the real world strikes are very common both in the rich economies as well as in the poor countries. Moreover, recent empirical literature found some regularities over time and over countries regarding the strike behavior of the Trade Unions. The aim of this paper is to develop a theory that could explain this apparent economic paradox as well as some of the most known regularities. At the same time we also aim to link the analysis of the strikes with the investment decisions of employers and workers in that particular kind of capital good known as Human Capital. This kind of approach can put under a new light the role played by the Trade Unions in the process of economic growth.


Over the last half century, the Global South has faced a strong rise in the rate of urbanisation. Although this process differs from region to region, rapid urbanisation has created many challenges for countries in the Global South. Brazil is no different. The largest country in South America has jumped from an urban population of 44.67% in 1960 to 84.36% in 2010, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE, 2018). While urban growth is relatively stable in Brazil today, the challenges that came with the rapid increase will be felt for many years to come. One of the main challenges was created due to this urban growth not being organised. The main growth in the cities was due to an opportunity-led development, which produced an extremely unequal urban fabric with spatial discontinuities and left-over spaces. Planning institutions have attempted to overcome this spatial fragmentation problem, but have faced many difficulties.

This thesis demonstrates that spatial fragmentation in Brazilian metropolises is not only related to spatial discontinuities, but also to socioeconomic inequalities. This means that the physical connection between disconnected spaces does not necessarily create social connections between segregated groups. Walls in Brazil are not only physical but also social. This thesis investigates self-organised initiatives as possible entities to dismantle these invisible walls. Such initiatives help to create social connections between highly diverse groups in the public spaces of cities which have a high level of socioeconomic inequality. The cases of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília reveal a growth in the integration level from functional to symbolic, and even to community level in areas where these self-organised initiatives have been active. This increase in social connection between highly diverse groups has a positive impact on the resilience capacity of the urban system, improving the capacity for closer cooperation in the face of unexpected change.

The thesis begins by analysing the spatial fragmentation of Brazilian metropolises and how this relates to resilience. Chapter 2 develops the concept of 'porosity' as a metaphor for these spatial discontinuities in the Brazilian metropolitan context. Data from IBGE was used to create a porosity index and generate a comparative perspective on all of the Brazilian metropolises. The index reveals that cities have very different factors composing their porosity, which in turn create different threats and opportunities regarding the resilience capacity of each city. Certainly, it is important to recognise the particularities of each context, and in this way the porosity index provides a starting point for understanding the spatial fragmentation occurring within Brazilian metropolises. Chapter 3 focuses on the two metropolises with the highest porosity index, Belém and Manaus, to examine how urban policies may affect their spatial fragmentation. The thesis uses the federal government's Minha Casa, Minha Vida (MCMV) social housing programme to investigate the relationship between such programmes and spatial fragmentation. Using GIS-generated maps, it was possible to visualise the pattern of each case of fragmentation and overlap these with the location of the developments in the MCMV programme. The chapter reveals that despite reducing the housing deficit for the low-income segment, the MCMV programme is having a strong negative impact by raising the level of spatial fragmentation already present in both metropolises.

In Chapters 4 and 5, the relationship between spatial fragmentation and self-organised initiatives is analysed. Using cases from São Paulo, Chapter 4 investigates how spatial fragmentation is influencing the work of such self-organised initiatives. It shows that the spatial fragmentation of São Paulo has a strong polarised structure, with the city centre as the main pole. Fragmentation in São Paulo is based on a dichotomy between centre and periphery that also influences where self-organised initiatives operate. Nevertheless, as Chapter 5 demonstrates, the initiatives studied are able to integrate people from extremely diverse socioeconomic contexts, even when being limited by spatial fragmentation. This social disconnection in contexts of inequality is one of the underlying forces driving spatial fragmentation in Brazil. In this sense, this integration capacity of self-organised initiatives is an important resource to tackle fragmentation in Brazilian metropolises and has been attracting the interest of urban planners.

While there is a lot of potential for self-organised initiatives to be integrated into planning strategies in Brazilian metropolises, this is still not being explored by public authorities in the cities studied. The interaction between self-organised initiatives and public institutions is generally problematic and conflictual, despite the participation of some public servants in these initiatives. Much can be done to improve the relationship between self-organised initiatives and public authorities, and this conclusion led to the key recommendations of this investigation. The thesis also points to the active participation of urban planners in these initiatives, with even those who perform technical functions in public institutions becoming active. The results of Chapter 5 show that planners demonstrate a strong belief in the work of self-organised initiatives and their positive impact. Their engagement calls for further examination of the role of planners in such initiatives and their impact in other areas beyond spatial fragmentation.

Despite being scientifically well grounded and having societal relevance, doctoral theses are frequently forgotten in the repositories of universities. With this in mind, this thesis aimed to not only be scientifically sound but to also have a strong societal impact. In addition to publishing articles as part of the thesis, I also explored other methods to improve its societal impact, making the research available on two open online platforms: the Global Urban Lab and the Rethink the City MOOC. The former aims to synthesise the findings and discussions of research in a manner accessible to the general public, while the latter aims to apply the research in planning education. Education can be an efficient tool to generate societal impact based on doctoral research, especially if connected to a massive educational tool such as a MOOC. The Rethink the City MOOC is presented here as a case study on how to generate societal impact by combining doctoral research and online education. The challenges and process of developing the Rethink the City MOOC are discussed in Chapter 6, which also presents some of the satisfactory results from the course, with 17,278 participants registering for the first two editions. This experience demonstrates how much impact doctoral research can have when aligned with online education.


Recent work in multicast routing for wireless mesh networks has focused on metrics that estimate link quality to maximize throughput. Nodes must collaborate in order to compute the path metric and forward data. The assumption that all nodes are honest and behave correctly during metric computation, propagation, and aggregation, as well as during data forwarding, leads to unexpected consequences in adversarial networks where compromised nodes act maliciously. In this work, we identify novel attacks against high throughput multicast protocols in wireless mesh networks. The attacks exploit the local estimation and global aggregation of the metric to allow attackers to attract a large amount of traffic. We show that these attacks are very effective against multicast protocols based on high-throughput metrics. We conclude that aggressive path selection is a double-edged sword: While it maximizes throughput, it also increases attack effectiveness in the absence of defense mechanisms. Our approach to defend against the identified attacks combines measurement-based detection and accusation-based reaction techniques. The solution accommodates transient network variations and is resilient against attempts to exploit the defense mechanism itself. A detailed security analysis of our defense scheme establishes bounds on the impact of attacks. We demonstrate both the attacks and our defense using ODMRP, a representative multicast protocol for wireless mesh networks, and SPP, an adaptation of the well-known ETX unicast metric to the multicast setting. Keywords—Wireless Mesh Networks, High-Throughput Metrics, Secure Multicast Routing, Metric Manipulation Attacks, Byzantine Attacks.


As part of research into Web-based document analysis including Web page downloading and classification, an algorithm has been developed to automatically identify article links in Web-based online journals. This algorithm is based on feature vectors calculated from attributes and contents of links extracted from HTML files, and an instance-based learning algorithm using a nearest neighbor methodology to identify article links. The performance of the algorithm has been evaluated using a sample size of several thousand HTML links of Web-based medical journals. Evaluation shows that the algorithm is capable of identifying article links at an accuracy greater than 99 %.


John Bruzzo Escalante Dynamic Simulation of Cross-country Skiing Lappeenranta, 2017 120 pages Acta Universitatis Lappeenrantaensis 784 Dissertation. Lappeenranta University of Technology ISBN 978-952-335-190-5 ISBN 978-952-335-191-2 (PDF) ISSN-L 1456-4491 ISSN 1456-4491 The application of simulation techniques in different sport disciplines have become an important asset to coaches, teams and public in general due to the detailed information that different types of simulation techniques can provide. This dissertation work focuses on the study of cross–country skiing from a point of view different than those usual research fields. It studies cross–country skiing from the point of view of the mechanical engineering by applying the concepts of kinematics and dynamics to understand better the biomechanics involved in the skier's movement. There are three main aspects that this dissertation addresses. Firstly, how to simulate the movement of a skier by applying simplified simulation models. Secondly, how to compare the evolution of the skier's technique irrespectively from the variability of the body movement. Finally, how to incorporate to the analysis toolbox other measurement devices such as inertial measurement units which allow for the acquisition of data in a more vast range of conditions such as the study of the effect of the ski pole on the skier's propulsion force. Experiments to validate each one of these three main aspects presented in this dissertation work were carried out in multiple locations with the support of different teams with expertise in fields of sport physiology, physiotherapy and human performance quantification. The main findings showed that the techniques applied and the methodology employed to address the tasks were sound and the numerical results obtained were closed to results acquired in the set of experiments.


The effectiveness of a team work not only depends on individual's knowledge; depends on cooperation and precise
communication among them. The tradeoffs of remote communication as compared with face-to-face communication
are a major issue for geographically dispersed team work.
However, the challenges such as what task to be completed,
what problems have been raised and clarified, clarity in project plan , availability of resource person and to make just-in-time decision are the major concerns of a software life cycle. Consequently, these issues cause project delay as well as anxiety among team members. The ease of communication can be achieved by aggregating the collective knowledge about the project, the domain knowledge and skills of managing project into a common resource platform with the help of intelligent agents and allow them to share the repository called Knowledge Grid. In this paper, we present the challenges in distributed team environment and ontology involved in software life cycle along with distributed agent algorithm.


Abstract For virtually all of the prehistoric period the lithic industry on Long bland and the mainland coast around Long Island Sound was focused primarily on the use of quartz cobbles that are ubiquitous on the region's beaches. However, recent research at the McGregor site on eastern Long Island suggests that small quarries or workshops at isolated glacial erratics also served as an important source of lithic material. Stations such as McGregor provided needed lithic material for manufacturing expedient tools when people were engaged in activities such as hunting and collecting plant foods away from the coastal areas, and thus did not have ready access to quartz cobbles. The identification of the McGregor site broadens our understanding of the range of lithic technology and raw material usage in coastal New York.


Abstract. The distribution of the main water masses in the Atlantic Ocean are investigated with the Optimal Multi-Parameter (OMP) method. The properties of the main water masses in the Atlantic Ocean are described in a companion article; here these definitions are used to map out the general distribution of those water masses. Six key properties, including conservative (potential temperature and salinity) and non-conservative (oxygen, silicate, phosphate and nitrate), are incorporated into the OMP analysis to determine the contribution of the water masses in the Atlantic Ocean based on the GLODAP v2 observational data. To facilitate the analysis the Atlantic Ocean is divided into four vertical layers based on potential density. Due to the high seasonal variability in the mixed layer, this layer is excluded from the analysis. Central waters are the main water masses in the upper/central layer, generally featuring high potential temperature and salinity and low nutrient concentrations and are easily distinguished from the intermediate water masses. In the intermediate layer, the Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) from the south can be detected to ~30 °N, whereas the Subarctic Intermediate Water (SAIW), having similarly low salinity to the AAIW flows from the north. Mediterranean Overflow Water (MOW) flows from the Strait of Gibraltar as a high salinity water. NADW dominates the deep and overflow layer both in the North and South Atlantic. In the bottom layer, AABW is the only natural water mass with high silicate signature spreading from the Antarctic to the North Atlantic. Due to the change of water mass properties, in this work we renamed to North East Antarctic Bottom Water NEABW north of the equator. Similarly, the distributions of Labrador Sea Water (LSW), Iceland Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW), and Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW) forms upper and lower portion of NADW, respectively roughly south of the Grand Banks between ~50 and 66 °N. In the far south the distributions of Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) and Weddell Sea Bottom Water (WSBW) are of significance to understand the formation of the AABW.


Spoken language understanding (SLU) is concerned with the extraction of meaning structures from spoken utterances. Recent computational approaches to SLU, e.g., conditional random fields (CRFs), optimize local models by encoding several features, mainly based on simple n-grams. In contrast, recent works have shown that the accuracy of CRF can be significantly improved by modeling long-distance dependency features. In this paper, we propose novel approaches to encode all possible dependencies between features and most importantly among parts of the meaning structure, e.g., concepts and their combination. We rerank hypotheses generated by local models, e.g., stochastic finite state transducers (SFSTs) or CRF, with a global model. The latter encodes a very large number of dependencies (in the form of trees or sequences) by applying kernel methods to the space of all meaning (sub) structures. We performed comparative experiments between SFST, CRF, support vector machines (SVMs), and our proposed discriminative reranking models (DRMs) on representative conversational speech corpora in three different languages: the ATIS (English), the MEDIA (French), and the LUNA (Italian) corpora. These corpora have been collected within three different domain applications of increasing complexity: informational, transactional, and problem-solving tasks, respectively. The results show that our DRMs consistently outperform the state-of-the-art models based on CRF.


Southern shipbuilding in 1861 was comparable to construction throughout the United States. Confederate ships early in the war show continuity of these traditions, but beginning in 1862, wartime stimuli created a distinct Confederate shipbuilding style. This thesis examines changes in the Confederacy's conceptual approach to construction by tracing pre-war shipbuilding traditions and popular trends in naval architecture.   As a consequence of shipbuilders' conservative nature, ships' structural systems and assembly order change gradually, allowing traditions to be traced. A decentralized shipbuilding program led to high levels of variability between Confederate ships, even among vessels of the same class. Local shipbuilders used vernacular methods to expedite construction. Historical and archaeological examination of the CSS Neuse and Jackson, two diamond hull ironclads today housed in museums, identified the progression of Confederate shipbuilding and the non-traditional features in their construction.


Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) plays an important role in economic development, due to is its main orientation towards the world of work (UNESCO TVET Strategy 2016-2021) and the emphasis of the curriculum on the acquisition of employable skills. It's considered to be a tool for productivity enhancement and poverty reduction, at a global level (Europe 2020 communication, EU 2010, 2014). The dynamics of change in TVET in recent years has generated new perspectives / approaches regarding the role of the teacher and his/her responsibilities, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a request for increasing the quality of initial teacher training (Maclean R., Pavlova M., 2013; ET2020 Working Group on Schools Policy (2014-15)). These changes have led to a growing need to adapt the initial teacher training programs in TVET to the current labor market requirements. The quality of teachers in TVET is reflected in the quality of graduates' training and reflects on all stakeholders. Thus, the teachers' role in TVET is essential in achieving quality education and especially in supporting / coordinating students in the transition process- from school to the labor market. The low performances of TVET graduates (relative to basic skills) and the situation on the labor market (compared to the low level of achieved specialized competencies) cast doubt on the quality of TVET, in general, and on the skills of TVET teachers in particular. This paper presents a study on the initial training of TVET teachers worldwide, also taking into account some countries in Europe, among these Romania. The characteristics of the teaching profession in TVET (focusing on the specific competencies for TVET) are highlighted, as well as the specificity of TVET in common competences. Also, the paper presents the implications of new changes (new learning approaches, new technologies in hiring companies, etc.) on the role of TVET teachers and competency profiles. The paper aims at updating the competencies of TVET teachers and proposes an analysis of the assessment in the graduation exams of the training programs. The article is based on a documentary study of some specialized papers on the initial teacher education. The results of the study are reflected in the outline of an up-to-date competency model for TVET teachers, taking into account its rapid pace of development, and in making a critical analysis of how the final evaluation is achieved within the initial training programs.


The FIRST Lessons Learned Series is a collection of FIRST's technical and functional insights gained from FIRST funded engagements. This knowledge note shares valuable lessons from FIRST-funded DIS projects led by the Finance and Markets Global Practice at the World Bank. The paper addresses some of the most important lessons learned and some of the key challenges faced in building effective deposit insurance systems (DIS) in developing countries.


OBJECTIVE
To describe the optimal thoracoscopic approach to the bovine pleural cavity and evaluate the short-term effects of thoracoscopy on cardiovascular and pulmonary function of healthy cattle.

SAMPLE
6 healthy adult Holstein cows (12 hemithoraxes).

PROCEDURES
For each cow, thoracoscopy was performed in both the left and right hemithoraxes with a 24-hour interval between procedures. Cows were sedated and restrained in a standing position for each thoracoscopic examination. Examination of each hemithorax lasted for 30 minutes. Arterial blood gas variables, heart rate, and respiratory rate were assessed at predetermined times before, during, and after the procedures to monitor cardiovascular and pulmonary function. Thoracic ultrasonography was performed immediately and at 24 hours and 1 week after each thorascopic examination to evaluate the extent of residual pneumothorax.

RESULTS
Insertion of the laparoscope into the pleural cavity at the ninth intercostal space 15 cm ventral to the transverse processes of the thoracic vertebrae provided optimal visibility of structures in both the left and right hemithoraxes. Most structures of the pleural cavity were equally visible from both sides except the esophagus and the dorsal branch of the vagus nerve, which were best observed in the left hemithorax, and the pericardium, which was best observed in the right hemithorax. Mild increases in heart and respiratory rates and moderate decreases in arterial oxygen saturation and Pao2 were detected during the procedures.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Standing thoracoscopy was well tolerated in healthy adult dairy cattle and needs to be evaluated in cattle with pulmonary disease.


The nondelegation doctrine prohibits a legislature from delegating its power to an administrative agency, yet it is famously underenforced — even when the delegation results in the creation of criminal offenses (so-called "administrative crimes"). While this practice appears to scandalize the hornbook presumption that legislatures alone define criminal offenses, it has long been ratified by the Supreme Court, and has received little scholarly attention. The few commentators who have addressed administrative crimes highlight the intuition that criminal sanctions are uniquely severe, and thus deserving of a more rigorous nondelegation analysis, but they stop there. They do not precisely link the severe aspects of criminal punishment with a requirement for the type of institutions that can create criminal law. This Article provides that link. I argue that the two most significant dimensions of criminal punishment — community condemnation and liberty deprivation — implicate the concerns of the two most prominent political theories of punishment: Expressivism and Liberalism. A latent but mostly unstated premise of both theories, I claim, is that criminalization must be undertaken by a democratic institution. Given this, administrative crimes should be seen as illegitimate under either conception of state punishment.


Ventricular tachycardia (VT) arising from the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) is one of the most common types of idiopathic ventricular arrhythmias . RVOT-VTs exhibit the following characteristics [2,3]: they usually occur in patients without overt structural heart disease, (2) the surface 12-lead ECG typically shows leі bundle branch block morphology and inferior axis, and (3) the tachycardia typically arises from a discrete area of the myocardium in the RVOT area. Although pathogenic mechanisms in the genesis of RVOT-VT remained largely unknown, activation of sympathetic tone has been shown to play an important role in provoking as well as maintaining these arrhythmias. Нe frequency of ventricular arrhythmias is oіen increased during periods of wakefulness and activity, and they frequently disappear entirely during sleep. They are sensitive to catecholamine infusion, and typically terminate in response to betablockers, calcium channel blockers, and adenosine [5,6]. Heart rate variability studies showed activation of sympathetic tone prior to the occurrence of these ventricular arrhythmias [7-9]. Sympathetic fibers of the ventromedial cardiac nerve (VMCN) and branches of ventrolateral cardiac nerve (VLCN) innervate the myocardium within the proximal pulmonary artery (PA) and the RVOT [10]. Recently, an animal model has been described for RVOT tachycardia by highfrequency stimulation (HFS) of the extravascular sympathetic nerves within the PA innervating the RVOT [11]. Similarly, HFS in the leі pulmonary artery successfully induced RVOT-ventricular premature complexes (VPCs) and/or VT in a human model. However, in both models, the mechanism whereby a discrete area of myocardium in the RVOT becomes arrhythmogenic is yet to be clarified. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the neural mechanism of RVOT ventricular arrhythmias by using HFS within the PA in adult mongrel canine model Methods: Twelve mongrel dogs (13.7 ± 1.3 Kg, 5 male dogs) were studied through midline thoracotomies. Highfrequency stimulation (HFS) was applied to the proximal pulmonary artery (PA) to induce RVOT VT/VPC. An EnSite Array and a mapping catheter were used for electroanatomical mapping. The RVOT and PA were surgically excised for immunohistochemistry studies, including tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) stain for sympathetic nerves and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) stain for parasympathetic nerves.


I am an M.D/Ph.D. student and work as a research assistant for the director of a division of the school of medicine who is an M.D. He assigned me to research a certain topic and gave me no guidelines or guidance as to how to do it. Nevertheless, I did the research and wrote it up. My supervisor liked the report and said that he thought it was so good that "I would like to offer you the opportunity to publish it and list you as the primary author." Some bells went off when he so grandly offered to let me author the report for which I had done 100% of research and writing. I consulted some other people in the field and they said that, as long as I was the primary author, it was legitimate for him to list himself as secondary author if he did some editing later. After editing the abstract only, he e-mailed his revisions to me and in a note at the bottom he asked me what I thought of his revised author order. His name was first, mine second, and the name of his girlfriend (who had no part in this research or its revision) was third. I was shocked by what seemed to be a case of unethical author attribution and confronted him asking why he changed the order when we had agreed that I was primary author. He said that he had put in several hours of work.


ABSTRACT. Abundance and diversity of gymnamoebae were assessed at monthly intervals for one year in the sediment surface layer of a shallow, highly productive, freshwater pond located in northeastern United States using laboratory culture enumeration techniques. The range in total abundance was 81/ml in January to 1,568/ml in June (spring peak) and 1,813/ml in October (autumn peak). The latter is equivalent to over 1.8 million per liter, one of the highest values reported for gymnamoebae from a freshwater pond. Maximum diversity (H = 3.3) occurred in April, July, and August. The growth potential of the gymnamoebae was determined in laboratory cultures (20° C) containing only the pond water (control culture) and pond water emended with malt‐yeast extract and glucose (nutrient culture) using pond water collected in December. The total abundance of gymanmoebae increased from 363/ml in the initial pond water sample to approximately 1,800/ml in each of the culture conditions in the first week. Therafter, abundances reached 5,678/ml (control culture) and 8,016/ml (nutrient culture) by the third week indicating the vigorous growth potential from winter standing stock.


GinovA, A., i. TsveTkov and v. kondAkovA, 2012. Rosa damascena Mill. - an overview for evaluation of propagation methods . Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 18: 545-556 Rosa damascena Mill. f.Trigintipetala, named kazanlak oil – bearing rose is an emblematic plant species for Bulgaria with important economical sense. its importance is determined by the extremely high quality of rose oil, which is obtained after distillation of rose flowers. The methods of propagation play a general role in maintenance and improving the quality of oil rose. Traditionally, the oil-bearing rose is vegetative propagated. in this review are considered the advantages and disadvantages of classical methods of propagation (by grafting, layering, cutting) and in vitro methods for propagation. special attention is directed to the problems that accompany the use of these methods. The layering and grafting are not preferred for use, because their more time consuming and low multiplication rate. The cutting is the preferable way for oil rose propagation in Bulgaria. This method has high generative rate, but obtained plants are not always healthy. In vitro techniques are used for rapid multi plication with high rate, production of healthy and disease-free plants, but they are costly.


Purpose. To evaluate the effect of non-penetrating corneal foreign bodies secondary to explosive blasts on the visual performance of soldiers. Methods. In a prospective, non-interventional study subjective visual performance and objective optical quality of 11 injured eyes with retained corneal foreign bodies were compared with that of 11 normal controls. Visual performance measures consisted of best spectacle-corrected high-contrast visual acuity (HCVA), low-contrast (5%) visual acuity (LCVA), and contrast sensitivity (CS). LCVA was evaluated in two luminance levels (photopic and mesopic) and two glare conditions (with and without glare). Acuity measurements were scored using logMAR notation. Objective optical quality was assessed comparing total root mean square wavefront error (WFE) and percent higher order aberrations. Modulation transfer functions calculated from the wavefront maps were used to predict the results of the psychophysical contrast testing. Results. HCVA of injured eyes (M = −0.03) did not differ significantly (t(20) = 1.56, p = 0.13) when compared with controls (M = −0.09). However, visual performance of injured eyes (M = 0.33) was significantly worse than control eyes (M = 0.11) on photopic LCVA (t(20) = 4.16, p < 0.001), mesopic LCVA(M = 0.44 vs. M = 0.21, t(20) = 3.85, p = 0.001), mesopic LCVA with glare (M = 0.49 vs. M = 0.21, t(20) = 3.66, p = 0.002), and small letter CS (M = 0.25 vs. M = 0.90, t(20) = −6.6, p < 0.001). For a 6-mm pupil, mean absolute WFE attributed to higher order aberrations for the injured eyes was 0.86 &mgr;m and 0.59 &mgr;m for the control eyes. This difference was significant (t(20) = −2.15, p = 0.044). Conclusions. Although HCVA was no different than the normal controls, visual performance of the injured eyes was significantly worse in terms of LCVA and CS. On average, visual performance can be broadly predicted by the modulation transfer function derived from the subjects' wavefront aberration map.


This study compares perceptions of Pakistan in the Chinese and U.S. news media, two countries with which Pakistan shares different types of relationships. The timing of this study—summer 2014—is crucial, because Pakistan's most comprehensive military offensive, Operation Zarb-e-Azb, was under way against militants and terrorists along Pakistan's northwestern border with Afghanistan. The news coverage of the largest wire services of both countries—the Associated Press of the United States and the Xinhua news agency of China—was analyzed for a period of two months commencing on May 15 and ending on July 15, 2014. It was observed that the news coverage of Pakistan by the Associated Press was decidedly different from that of Xinhua, particularly in addressing the terrorism threat, the economic consequences, and international relations. The results inform the frame-building process in the milieu of vested interests of international politics and have practical implications for the state and publicity machineries of Pakistan.


The complex retrovirus human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-1) is the causative agent of adult T-cell leukemia (ATL). Deregulation of cellular transcription is thought to be a key event in virally-mediated T-cell transformation. The HTLV-1 basic leucine zipper factor (HBZ) originates from the 3' long terminal repeat (LTR) and is transcribed from the sense DNA strand relative to other viral genes. HBZ is the only viral gene known to be consistently expressed in ATL cells. HBZ is able to repress HTLV-1 transcription, in part, by binding to the homologous cellular coactivators p300 and CREB-binding protein (CBP). HBZ binds the kinase-inducible interaction (KIX) domain of p300/CBP via two φXXφφ motifs in the activation domain of HBZ (HBZ-AD). In this study, it was determined that HBZ-AD binds with high affinity to the KIX domain of p300/CBP with an apparent equilibrium dissociation constant (K d ) of 3.2 ± 0.5 nM. The KIX domain contains two binding surfaces that are differentially targeted by various transcriptional regulatory proteins. One surface of KIX can bind the activation domain of the mixed lineage leukemia (MLL-AD) protein and the HTLV-1 transactivator Tax, among others. The other surface of KIX can contact the cellular transcription factors c-Myb or cyclic AMP (cAMP) response element binding protein (CREB). HBZ-AD was determined to bind the MLL-AD-binding surface of KIX and to compete with MLL-AD, Tax, and p53 for KIX binding. HBZ-AD was additionally found to significantly enhance the binding of the activation domain of c-Myb (c-Myb-AD) and CREB to KIX. HBZ was also shown to inhibit transcriptional activation mediated by MLL-AD and enhance activation mediated by c-Myb-AD. These results indicate that HBZ is able to alter gene expression by competing with one group of transcription factors for occupancy of KIX while enhancing the binding of other factors to a different surface on KIX.


We empirically analyse whether television (TV) can influence entrepreneurial identity and incidence. To identify causal effects, we utilise a quasi-natural experiment setting. During the division of Germany after WWII into West Germany with a free-market economy and the socialistic East Germany with centrally-planned economy, some East German regions had access to West German public TV that - differently from the East German TV - transmitted images, values, attitudes and view of life compatible with the free-market economy principles and supportive of entrepreneurship. We show that during the 40 years of socialistic regime in East Germany entrepreneurship was highly regulated and virtually impossible and that the prevalent formal and informal institutions broke the traditional ties linking entrepreneurship to the characteristics of individuals so that there were hardly any differences in the levels and development of entrepreneurship between East German regions with and without West German TV signal. Using both, regional and individual level data, we show then that, for the period after the Unification in 1990 which made starting an own business in East Germany, possible again, entrepreneurship incidence is higher among the residents of East German regions that had access to West German public TV, indicating that TV can, while transmitting specific images, values, attitudes and view of life, directly impact on the entrepreneurial mindset of individuals. Moreover, we find that young individuals born after 1980 in East German households that had access to West German TV are also more entrepreneurial. These findings point to second-order effects due to inter-personal and inter-generational transmission, a mechanism that can cause persistent differences in the entrepreneurship incidence across (geographically defined) population groups.


In this paper we explore the determinants of marital timing for males and females separately by race using a sequential model and data from the [U.S.] National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972. Results indicate that background factors are relatively unimportant in determining directly when marriage will occur. Rather events and circumstances that are more current are the determining factors as to whether marriage will occur. In addition the factors important in determining marital timing vary systematically according to sex and race. The models for blacks are distinct in that few measured predictors of marital timing show consistently significant effects contrary to the case for whites. This suggests a much different marriage market for each of the races. (EXCERPT)