Objective: Metabolic syndrome is a common disorder that predisposes to both cardiovascular disease and diabetes. There is paucity of data on cellular signal transduction pathways in metabolic syndrome. This study determined monocyte mitogen-activated protein kinase activity in patients with metabolic syndrome. Research design and methods: The p38, extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1/2 and Jun N-terminal kinase–mitogen-activated protein kinase activities were assayed in isolated monocytes from patients with metabolic syndrome and controls (n = 36 per group) and correlated with features of metabolic syndrome, inflammation and oxidative stress biomarkers. Results: A significant increase in p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activity was observed in metabolic syndrome even following adjustment for adiposity. There were no significant differences in extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1/2 and Jun N-terminal kinase activities. P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activity correlated significantly with homeostasis model assessment–estimated insulin resistance and biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress. Conclusions: We are first to observe a selective increase in monocyte p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activity in metabolic syndrome and suggest it as a pivotal molecular target for ameliorating insulin resistance and inflammation.


The Data Conservancy (DC) is one of two awards through the US National Science Foundation's DataNet program. The goal of the DataNet program is to create "a set of exemplar national and global data research infrastructure organizations (dubbed DataNet Partners) that provide unique opportunities to communities of researchers to advance science and/or engineering research and learning." The DC embraces a shared vision: data curation is not an end, but rather a means to collect, organize, validate, and preserve data to address the grand research challenges that face society. The overarching goal of The Data Conservancy is to support new forms of inquiry and learning to meet these challenges through the creation, implementation, and sustained management of an integrated and comprehensive data curation strategy. DC will address this overarching goal with a comprehensive project comprising four interdependent threads: 1) infrastructure research and development, 2) computer science and information science research, 3) broader impacts, and 4) sustainability. The DC is led by the Sheridan Libraries at Johns Hopkins University. Working with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data and the US National Virtual Observatory, the Sheridan Libraries have developed an initial architectural design, data models and metadata profiles, and organizational models to support data curation. The DC will build upon these initial lessons learned from the partnership between the library and astronomy community and extend them into the life sciences, earth sciences, and social sciences. Use cases will provide the initial framework for technical requirements. A robust information science and computer science research agenda will highlight the scientific requirements and inform the development of a data framework for observations and a theoretical framework for data curation. These activities will guide the development of new curriculum at library and information science schools thereby building capacity for a new generation of data scientists. One of the central tenets of DC's sustainability plan relates to the leadership role of the library. The Sheridan Libraries at Johns Hopkins University have established a leadership position in prototyping data curation systems and services, especially as they relate to astronomy. One of the key outcomes of DC will be a new model for libraries in the digital age. There are several fundamental implications for libraries in the realm of data curation as they relate to collections, services, and infrastructure. The North American Association of Research Libraries has already engaged the DC in its effort to consider these implications strategically as a means to transform the library's role and contributions toward building and sustaining data curation infrastructure.


A well known result is that the Gaussian log-likelihood can be expressed as the sum over different frequency components. This implies that the likelihood ratio statistic has a similar linear decomposition. We exploit these observations to devise diagnostic methods that are useful for interpreting maximum likelihood parameter estimates and likelihood ratio tests. We apply the methods to the estimation and testing of two real business cycle models. The standard real business cycle model is rejected in favor of an alternative in which capital investment requires a planning period.


We analyze the spectrum and eigenstates of a quantum particle in a bipartite two-dimensional tight-binding dice network. In the absence of a dc bias, it hosts a chiral flatband with compact localized eigenstates. In the presence of a dc bias, the energy spectrum consists of a periodic repetition of one-dimensional energy band multiplets, with one member in the multiplet being strictly flat. The corresponding flatband eigenstates cease to be compact, and are localized exponentially perpendicular to the dc field direction, and superexponentially along the dc field direction. The band multiplets are characterized by a topological quantized winding number (Zak phase), which changes at specific values of the varied dc field strength. These changes are induced by gap closings between the flat and dispersive bands, and reflect the number of these closings.


The prospect of using auctions to resolve conflicts among parties competing for the same top level internet domains is described. In the auctions investigated, the winner's payment is divided among the losers. For first-price and second-price sealed-bid auctions, we characterize equilibrium bidding strategies and provide examples, assuming bidders' valuations are distributed independently and are either symmetrically or asymmetrically distributed. The qualitative properties of equilibria reveal novel features; for example, in a second-price auction a bidder might bid more than her valuation in order to drive up the winner's payment. Even so, examples indicate that in symmetric cases a bidder's expected profit is the same in the two auction formats. We then test in the experimental lab two auction formats that extent the setting from a single domain to the actual setting with many domains. The first format is a sequential first-price sealed-bid auction; the second format is a simultaneo us ascending clock auction. The framing and subjects were chosen to closely match the actual setting. Subjects were PhD students at the University of Maryland with training in game theory and auction theory. Each subject played the role of an actual company (e.g., Google) and bid for domains (e.g., .book) consistent with the company's applications . Subjects were given instructions explaining the auction and the equilibrium theory for the single -item case in relevant examples. Both formats achieved auction efficiencies of 98% in the lab. This high level of efficiency is especially remarkable in the case with asymmetric distributions—the format performed better than the simple single-item equilibrium despite the presence of budget constraints in the lab. This experiment together with previous results on the robustness of ascending auctions in general and simultaneous ascending clock auctions in particular suggest that the simultaneous ascending clock auction will perform best in this setting.


The human FHIT gene is altered or lost in many cancers and FHIT has been shown to be a tumor suppressor. However, the mechanism of tumor suppression by the FHIT gene remains unclear. FHIT expression is lost in primary pancreatic cancer and human pancreatic cancer cell lines. To gain insight into the function of FHIT gene, we replaced the FHIT gene in a FHIT-null pancreatic cancer cell line, and established stable fhit-expressing clones. Expression of the exogenous fhit was at similar levels as in other cultured cell lines and fhit protein was found predominantly associated with perinuclear area. fhit replacement resulted in reduced cell proliferation in transfected Panc-1 cells. Cell cycle distribution analysis indicated increased accumulation of G₀/G1 phase cells in transfected clones indicating a retardation of cell cycle progression. We observed specific up-regulation of cdc2 and cyclin D3 upon fhit replacement. Furthermore, Bcl-2 family members Bad, Bak, and Bcl-xS protein levels were increased in FHIT transfected clones when compared with Panc-1 cells. Multiplex RT-PCR of apoptosis pathway related genes revealed that Bcl-2 is absent and Bcl- xS message increases in FHIT transfected clones. Our data suggested that exogenous expression of FHIT in Panc-1 cells affects genes regulating cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, and these molecular changes may contribute to the tumor suppressor activity of the FHIT gene.


The purpose of this demonstration is to illustrate that an off-the-shelf Wireless Sensor and Actuator Network (WSAN) can be used to discover resource availability and guide mobile users to these resources without any support from a navigation system like GPS. The motivating application of this technical demonstration is SmartPark, a distributed system that provides drivers with turn-by-turn instructions to free parking spots in an urban environment. This demo illustrates the usage of simple localized algorithms in the scenario where no node (fixed and mobile) has a full view of the entire network and that exploit the mobility of nodes. The SmartPark application is developed in WASAL, a laboratory for prototyping ad-hoc sensor and actuator applications.


The notion of 'revealed preference' is unclear and should be abandoned. Defenders of the theory of revealed preference have misinterpreted legitimate concerns about the testability of economics as the demand that economists eschew reference to (unobservable) subjective states. As attempts to apply revealed-preference theory to game theory illustrate with particular vividness, this demand is mistaken.


In primates and most carnivores, neurons in primary visual cortex are spatially organized by their functional properties. For example, neurons with similar orientation preferences are grouped together in iso-orientation domains that smoothly vary over the cortical sheet. In rodents, on the other hand, neurons with different orientation preferences are thought to be spatially intermingled, a feature which has been termed "salt-and-pepper" organization. The apparent absence of any systematic structure in orientation tuning has been considered a defining feature of the rodent visual system for more than a decade, with broad implications for brain development, visual processing, and comparative neurophysiology. Here, we revisited this question using new techniques for wide-field two-photon calcium imaging that enabled us to collect nearly complete population tuning preferences in layers 2-4 across a large fraction of the mouse visual hierarchy. Examining the orientation tuning of these hundreds of thousands of neurons, we found a global map spanning multiple visual cortical areas in which orientation bias was organized around a single pinwheel centered in V1. This pattern was consistent across animals and cortical depth. The existence of this global organization in rodents has implications for our understanding of visual processing and the principles governing the ontogeny and phylogeny of the visual cortex of mammals.


The shift in Indian positions on missile defense in the context of the growing transformation of U.S.-Indian relations since the end of the Cold War, and particularly since the advent of the George W. Bush administration, has been remarkable. New Delhi's traditional opposition to strategic defenses gave way to its current consideration of missile defense for a variety of reasons. These included structural factors related to the dissolution of U.S.-Indian antagonism associated with the bipolar configuration of the Cold War; the growing recognition in Washington and New Delhi of the threat posed by weapons of mass destruction and their associated delivery systems in the hands of hostile states intent on nuclear coercion; and the Indian and American desire to forge a new partnership grounded in democratic values but ultimately oriented toward promoting geopolitical equilibrium in Asia in the face of rising challengers such as China and problem states such as Pakistan. All of these factors combined to produce a dramatic new acceptance of strategic defenses as conducive to stability on the part of New Delhi. What is fascinating about this evolution is the manner in which missile defenses have come to reflect both an example of, and a means toward, the steady improvement in U.S.-Indian ties occurring in recent years. This, in turn, implies that a deepening bilateral relationship has become part of New Delhi's larger solution to increasing India's capacity to defeat those threats requiring active defenses in the future.


The quality of the calibrated radiances of the medium-resolution Imaging Infrared Radiometer (IIR) on-board the CALIPSO (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation) satellite is quantitatively evaluated from the beginning of the mission in June 2006. Two complementary "relative" and "stand-alone" approaches are used, which are related to comparisons of measured brightness temperatures and to model-to-observations comparisons, respectively. In both cases, IIR channels 1 (8.65 µm), 2 (10.6 µm), and 3 (12.05 µm) are paired with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)/Aqua Collection 5 "companion" channels 29, 31, and 32, respectively, as well as with the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI)/Meteosat companion channels IR8.7, IR10.8, and IR12, respectively. These pairs were selected before launch to meet radiometric, geometric, and space-time constraints. The prelaunch studies were based on simulations and sensitivity studies using the 4A/OP radiative transfer model and the more than 2300 atmospheres of the climatological Thermodynamic Initial Guess Retrieval (TIGR) input dataset further sorted into five air mass types. Using data from over 9.5 years of on-orbit operation, and following the relative approach technique, collocated measurements of IIR and of its companion channels have been compared at all latitudes over ocean, during day and night, and for all types of scenes in a wide range of brightness temperatures. The relative approach shows an excellent stability of IIR2–MODIS31 and IIR3–MODIS32 brightness temperature differences (BTDs) since launch. A slight trend within the IIR1–MODIS29 BTD, that equals −0.02 K yr−1 on average over 9.5 years, is detected when using the relative approach at all latitudes and all scene temperatures. For very cold scene temperatures (190–200 K) in the tropics, each IIR channel is warmer than its MODIS companion channel by 1.6 K on average. For the stand-alone approach, clear sky measurements only are considered, which are directly compared with simulations using 4A/OP and collocated ERA-Interim (ERA-I) reanalyses. The clear sky mask is derived from collocated observations from IIR and the CALIPSO lidar. Simulations for clear sky pixels in the tropics reproduce the differences between IIR1 and MODIS29 within 0.02 K and between IIR2 and MODIS31 within 0.04 K, whereas IIR3–MODIS32 is larger than simulated by 0.26 K. The stand-alone approach indicates that the trend identified from the relative approach originates from MODIS29, whereas no trend (less than ±0.004 K yr−1) is identified for any of the IIR channels. Finally, using the relative approach, a year-by-year seasonal bias between nighttime and daytime IIR–MODIS BTD was found at mid-latitude in the Northern Hemisphere. It is due to a nighttime IIR bias as determined by the stand-alone approach, which originates from a calibration drift during day-to-night transitions. The largest bias is in June and July when IIR2 and IIR3 are warmer by 0.4 K on average, and IIR1 is warmer by 0.2 K.


In this paper, knowledge representation using Z, a formal notation, is adapted in mapping Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR) requirements. The most frequent cause of faults in safety-critical real-time computer systems is traced to fuzziness in representing requirements knowledge. Pitfalls using a natural language as a medium for representing the system requirements knowledge were analysed and explored. To ensure the specified safety, it is necessary to represent the system requirements of safety-critical real-time computer systems using formal mathematical methods. This removes the fuzziness in communicating knowledge on reactor system requirements. This paper contains the formal mathematical model for requirement specifications of FBTR systems using Z notation. Finally, the advantages of using formal representation for representing system requirements knowledge of FBTR using Z notations to minimise the ambiguity in knowledge communication and thus improve the safety are summarised.


Copyright © 2010 Massachusetts Medical Society. Williams–Beuren syndrome (also known as Williams' syndrome; Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man [OMIM] number, 194050), a multi system disorder, is caused by deletion of the Williams–Beuren syndrome chromosome region, spanning 1.5 million to 1.8 million base pairs and containing 26 to 28 genes. Exactly how gene loss leads to the characteristic phenotype of Williams–Beuren syndrome is unknown, but hypoexpression of gene products is likely to be involved. Estimated to occur in approximately 1 in 10,000 persons,1 Williams–Beuren syndrome is a microdeletion disorder, or contiguousgenedeletion disorder, that can serve as a model for the study of genotype–phenotype correlations and potentially reveal genes contributing to diabetes, hypertension, and anxiety. The first cases of Williams–Beuren syndrome were described as two seemingly unrelated disorders. One presentation was characterized by hypercalcemia plus per sistent growth failure, characteristic facial appearance, "mental retardation," heart murmur, and hypertension,2,3 while the other was characterized by supravalvular aortic stenosis (narrowing of the ascending aorta above the aortic valve, involving the sinotubular junction) plus a distinctive facial appearance, "mental retardation," "friendly" personality, and growth retardation.4,5 Subsequent description of a patient with features common to both phenotypes indicated that these were variations of the same disorder,6 now referred to as Williams–Beuren syndrome.


Abstract Identification and exploration drilling of the Volund Field as part of a sand injection complex is the first example of deliberate targeting of sandstone intrusions in oil exploration. Outcrop data were an important element in the process of constraining the uncertainty associated with reservoir presence and connectivity. A strong lobby against the relevance of sand injectites as exploration targets, and significant uncertainty associated with sub-surface sand injectite analogues associated with existing oil fields, combined to discourage and down-grade Volund's prospectivity. Few outcrop studies provided data of relevance to exploration of sandstone intrusions and original outcrop data were utilized in evaluation of Volund. Sills and saucer-shaped sandstone intrusions are the most common reservoir units observed at outcrop and similar features were identified in the 3D seismic across the Volund Field prospect. A large-scale sand injection origin rather than a depositional origin was proposed. Outcrops of sandstone intrusions demonstrated excellent reservoir quality in composite sandstone bodies that cross-cut depositional bedding. High-quality reservoirs with excellent vertical and lateral connectivity are observed and used to support the prediction of similar quality reservoirs in the Volund prospect.


Detail, central tower over west entrance, finials and balustrade beneath the drum; Serves as the central location for city government in the City of Pasadena, California and it is a significant architectural example of the City Beautiful movement of the 1920s. In 1923, the people of Pasadena approved a bond measure issuing $3.5 million towards the development of a civic center. City Hall was to be the central element of this center. The San Francisco architecture firm of Bakewell and Brown designed City Hall, which has elements of both Mediterranean Revival Style and Spanish Colonial Revival Style architecture, as well as Palladian. It was completed on December 27, 1927 at a cost of $1.3 million. There are over 235 rooms and passageways that cover over 170,000 square feet (16,000 m2). The defining dome, located above the west entrance, is 26 feet (7.9 m) tall and 54 feet (16 m) in diameter. Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (accessed 5/8/2013)


'Privacy by design' is an increasingly popular paradigm. It is the principle or concept that privacy should be promoted as a default setting of every new ICT system and should be built into systems from the design stage. The draft General Data Protection Regulation embraces 'privacy by design' without detailing how it can or should be applied. This paper discusses what the proposed legal obligation for 'privacy by design' implies in practice for online businesses. In particular, does it entail hard-coding privacy requirements in system design? First, the 'privacy by design' provision in the proposed Regulation is analysed and interpreted. Next, we discuss an extreme interpretation – embedding data protection requirements in system software – and identify five complicating issues. On the basis of these complications, we conclude that 'privacy by design' should not be interpreted as trying to achieve rule compliance by techno-regulation. Instead, fostering the right mindset of those responsible for developing and running data processing systems may prove to be more productive. Therefore, in terms of the regulatory tool-box, privacy by design should be approached less from a 'code' perspective, but rather from the perspective of 'communication' strategies.


We determined the outcome of coronary artery bypass surgery in 500 consecutive patients followed for at least 10 years after operation. There were 446 males (89.2%). Angina pectoris was the major indication for operation. Four hundred six patients (81%) had multivessel coronary artery disease and 348 (69.9%) had good left ventricular function. At 10 years of follow-up, 48% of patients were asymptomatic and 41% were improved. Propranolol was being used by 36% of patients and nitrates by 49%. Of the 355 patients younger than 65 years of age at the time of follow-up, 57% were employed full time and 24% were working part-time. Reoperation was performed in 9% of patients. Analysis of survival by Kaplan-Meier curves indicated that overall 10-year survival rates were 78% for one-vessel disease, 69% for two-vessel disease, 48% for three-vessel disease and 67% for left main coronary artery disease. For patients with good left ventricular function, the 10-year survival rates were 83% for one-vessel disease, 73% for two-vessel disease, 53% for three-vessel disease and 73% for left main disease. For patients with poor left ventricular function, the rates were 56%, 59%, 40% and 54%, respectively. Cox multivariate analysis indicated that preoperative diuretic use, history of heart failure, the number of diseased vessels, and infarct on the preoperative ECG were all good predictors of survival. This study shows that the outcome of coronary artery bypass surgery 10 years operation is highly favorable.


This case study uses tools from Critical Discourse Analysis and Translation Studies to explain the translation of Creole aesthetics in thirty-two written folktales of Trinidad, after World War I. The serial publication of these local folktales within the Trinidad Weekly Guardian and the Argos newspapers coincided with a period of cultural transformation in Trinidad, when local newspapers became the caretakers of a national literature in print. The researcher uses translation as a metaphor to critically analyze the process and function of intercultural transfer between oral and written folktale cultures, while showing how intercultural translation was effected in the folktale, at this time. In the final analysis, the study traces the forward reach of translating creolization beyond the period of WWI, into a period that is better known for the foregrounding of the Creole under class, in the short stories of Beacon and Trinidad of 1929 to 1930. It is a significant study because it identifies many translation shifts in Creole culture towards establishing the conventions of the modern short story of the 1930's. In particular, the re-writing of oral tales enabled a discursive shift in focus in favor of the ordinary class, race-relations in society, the melding of folk mythologies for didactic purposes, and a language shift from the folktale's French-Creole language base to an English-oriented literate culture. In this way, it perpetuated a neo-colonial agenda of translating creolization as the discursive recolonization of Creole folktale culture with exocentric conventions.


A fundamental Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) characteristic in Cloud Computing is to be application-specific; depending on the application, Cloud Providers (CPs) restrict data formats and attributes allowed into their servers via a data validation process. An ill-defined data validation process may directly impact both security (e.g. application failure, legal issues) and accounting and charging (e.g. trusting metadata in file headers). Therefore, this paper investigates, evaluates (by means of tests), and discusses data validation processes of popular CPs. A proof of concept system was thus built, implementing encoders carefully crafted to circumvent data validation processes, ultimately demonstrating how large amounts of unaccounted, arbitrary data can be stored into CPs.


The ADI as a tool for risk management and regulation of food additives and pesticide residues is not readily applicable to inherent food plant toxicants: The margin between actual intake and potentially toxic levels is often small; application of the default uncertainty factors used to derive ADI values, particularly when extrapolating from animal data, would prohibit the utilisation of the food, which may have an overall beneficial health effect. Levels of inherent toxicants are difficult to control; their complete removal is not always wanted, due to their function for the plant or for human health. The health impact of the inherent toxicant is often modified by factors in the food, e.g. the bioavailability from the matrix and interaction with other inherent constituents. Risk-benefit analysis should be made for different consumption scenarios, without the use of uncertainty factors. Crucial in this approach is analysis of the toxicity of the whole foodstuff. The relationship between the whole foodstuff and the pure toxicant is expressed in the 'product correction factor' (PCF). Investigations in humans are essential so that biomarkers of exposure and for effect can be used to analyse the difference between animals and humans and between the food and the pure toxicant. A grid of the variables characterising toxicity is proposed, showing their inter-relationships. A flow diagram for risk estimate is provided, using both toxicological and epidemiological studies. © 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.


This paper examines the impact on inequality and poverty of the economic crisis in four European countries, namely France, Germany, the UK and Ireland, and the contribution of tax and benefit policy changes. The period examined, 2008 to 2010, was one of great economic turmoil, yet it is unclear whether changes in inequality and poverty rates over this time period were mainly driven by changes in market income distributions or by tax-benefit policy reforms. We disentangle these effects by producing counterfactual ("no reform") scenarios using tax-benefit microsimulation and representative household surveys of each country. For the period under study, we find that the policy reaction has contributed to stabilizing or even decreasing inequality and relative poverty in the UK, France and especially in Ireland, a country where rising unemployment would have otherwise increased poverty. Market income inequality has nonetheless pushed up inequality and relative poverty in France. Relative poverty and, notably, child poverty, have increased in Germany due to policy responses combined with the increasing inequality of market income.


UVES interstellar observations from the Paranal Observatory Project are presented for early-type stars located in the line of sight to the nearby open clusters IC 2391 (Omni Vel) and NGC 6475 (M7), with spectroscopic resolution R˜ 80 000 and signal-to-noise ratios in the Ti II (3383 A), Ca II K, CH+ (4232 A), Na I D and K I (7698 A) lines of several hundred. The sightlines are a mixture of cluster and non-cluster objects. A total of 22 early-type stars (A and B type) are present in our sample towards IC 2391, with 21 towards NGC 6475/M7, and enable us to probe for differences in column density on scales from ˜0.07 to 7.3 and ˜0.05 to 4.9 pc in the respective clusters. Additionally, towards Praesepe the Na I D interstellar variation only is probed towards 13 sightlines and transverse scales of ˜0.16-10.7 pc at R= 70 000. Towards IC 2391 variations are found in Ti II, Ca II K and Na I D column density in different sightlines of up to 0.7, 1.0 and 1.8 dex (excluding one star), respectively. This kind of variability correlates well with the Hipparcos parallax of the objects, and probes structure within the Local Bubble. For cluster-only objects the variations are 0.3, 0.3 and 0.5 dex, respectively. For the field of view towards NGC 6475 the corresponding maximum variations are somewhat smaller, being 0.5, 0.3, 0.8 and 1.0 dex for Ti II, Ca II K, Na I and K I, respectively, for all objects and 0.4, 0.2, 0.6 and 0.7 dex for the cluster-only objects. These are uncorrelated with parallax, and again demonstrate that Ca II K tends to be more smoothly distributed than Na I D. A few likely cluster sightlines show evidence for CH+ and variations in this molecular species of a factor of 10 in equivalent width over sub-pc scales. Towards Praesepe variation in interstellar Na I D is small, being a maximum of only ˜0.4 dex (including measurement errors), but with fewer sightlines studied. Overall, the scatter in the data is similar for the singly ionized species Ti II and Ca II, lending more support to the hypothesis that these two species sample similar parts of the interstellar medium (ISM). This also appears to be the case for the neutral species Na I D and K I in the one cluster studied. Finally, multiple-epoch observations from a variety of archive sources are used to search for astronomical unit (au) scale structure in the ISM towards 46 sightlines. There are tentative indications of structure on scales of tens to thousands of au for three sightlines. Future observations will confirm the veracity or otherwise of the time-variable components and others presented.


Barack Obama's galvanizing victory in 2008, coming amid the greatest economic crisis since the 1930s, opened the door to major reforms. But the president quickly faced skepticism from supporters and fierce opposition from Republicans, who scored sweeping wins in the 2010 midterm election. Here, noted political scientist Theda Skocpol surveys the political landscape and explores its most consequential questions: What happened to Obama's "new New Deal"? Why have his achievements enraged opponents more than they have satisfied supporters? How has the Tea Party's ascendance reshaped American politics? Skocpol's compelling account rises above conventional wisdom and overwrought rhetoric. The Obama administration's response to the recession produced bold initiatives--health care reform, changes in college loans, financial regulation--that promise security and opportunity. But these reforms are complex and will take years to implement. Potential beneficiaries do not readily understand them, yet the reforms alarm powerful interests and political enemies, creating the volatile mix of confusion and fear from which Tea Party forces erupted. Skocpol dissects the popular and elite components of the Tea Party reaction that has boosted the Republican Party while pushing it far to the right at a critical juncture for U.S. politics and governance. Skocpol's analysis is accompanied by contributions from two fellow scholars and a former congressman. At this moment of economic uncertainty and extreme polarization, as voters prepare to render another verdict on Obama's historic presidency, Skocpol and her respondents help us to understand its triumphs and setbacks and see where we might be headed next.


Virtue ethics (VE for short) is currently so widely embraced that different versions of the theory can now be distinguished. Some of these are mapped out in Statman's useful introduction to his collection. There are enough of these versions to constitute a family, and consequently what they share is a family resemblance rather than agreement to a defining set of necessary and sufficient conditions. What I propose to do, therefore, is to criticise one of the main versions of VE. Rosalind Hursthouse is the main proponent of the version which I will criticise. I choose her as a spokesperson, not because her version of VE is especially weak. On the contrary, it is because she is one of the leading protagonists of VE, and because her writings provide a lucid, powerful and elegant exposition of VE that her version of the theory is an appropriate object of scrutiny.


The world around us exhibits a rich and ever changing environment of startling, bewildering and fascinating complexity. Almost everything is never as simple as it seems, but through the chaos we may catch fleeting glimpses of the mechanisms within. Throughout the history of human endeavour we have mimicked nature to harness it for our own ends. Our attempts to develop truly autonomous and intelligent machines have however struggled with the limitations of our human ability. This has encouraged some to shirk this responsibility and instead model biological processes and systems to do it for us.

This Thesis explores the introduction of continuous time delays into biologically inspired dynamic control systems. We seek to exploit rich temporal dynamics found in physical and biological systems for modelling complex or adaptive behaviour through the artificial evolution of networks to control robots. Throughout, arguments have been presented for the modelling of delays not only to better represent key facets of physical and biological systems, but to increase the computational potential of such systems for the synthesis of control.

The thorough investigation of the dynamics of small delayed networks with a wide range of time delays has been undertaken, with a detailed mathematical description of the fixed points of the system and possible oscillatory modes developed to fully describe the behaviour of a single node. Exploration of the behaviour for even small delayed networks illustrates the range of complex behaviour possible and guides the development of interesting solutions.

To further exploit the potential of the rich dynamics in such systems, a novel approach to the 3D simulation of locomotory robots has been developed focussing on minimising the computational cost. To verify this simulation tool a simple quadruped robot was developed and the motion of the robot when undergoing a manually designed gait evaluated. The results displayed a high degree of agreement between the simulation and laser tracker data, verifying the accuracy of the model developed.

A new model of a dynamic system which includes continuous time delays has been introduced, and its utility demonstrated in the evolution of networks for the solution of simple learning behaviours. A range of methods has been developed for determining the time delays, including the novel concept of representing the time delays as related to the distance between nodes in a spatial representation of the network. The application of these tools to a range of examples has been explored, from Gene Regulatory Networks (GRNs) to robot control and neural networks. The performance of these systems has been compared and contrasted with the efficacy of evolutionary runs for the same task over the whole range of network and delay types.

It has been shown that delayed dynamic neural systems are at least as capable as traditional Continuous Time Recurrent Neural Networks (CTRNNs) and show significant performance improvements in the control of robot gaits. Experiments in adaptive behaviour, where there is not such a direct link between the enhanced system dynamics and performance, showed no such discernible improvement. Whilst we hypothesise that the ability of such delayed networks to generate switched pattern generating nodes may be useful in Evolutionary Robotics (ER) this was not borne out here.

The spatial representation of delays was shown to be more efficient for larger networks, however these techniques restricted the search to lower complexity solutions or led to a significant falloff as the network structure becomes more complex. This would suggest that for anything other than a simple genotype, the direct method for encoding delays is likely most appropriate. With proven benefits for robot locomotion and the open potential for adaptive behaviour delayed dynamic systems for evolved control remain an interesting and promising field in complex systems research.


A holographic correspondence has been recently developed between higher spin theories in three-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS3) and two-dimensional Conformal Field Theories (CFTs) with extended symmetries. A class of such dualities involves SL(N,R) × SL(N,R) Chern-Simons gauge theories in the (2+1)-dimensional bulk spacetime, and CFTs with WN symmetry algebras on the (1+1)-dimensional boundary. The topological character of the bulk theory forces one to reconsider standard geometric notions such as black hole horizons and entropy, as well as the usual holographic dictionary. Motivated by this challenge, in this note we present a proposal to compute entanglement entropy in the WN CFTs via holographic methods. In particular, we introduce a functional constructed from Wilson lines in the bulk Chern-Simons theory that captures the entanglement entropy in the CFTs dual to standard AdS3 gravity, corresponding to SL(2, R)× SL(2, R) gauge group, and admits an immediate generalization to the higher spin case. We explicitly evaluate this functional for several known solutions of the bulk theory, including charged black holes dual to thermal CFT states carrying higher spin charge, and show that it reproduces expected features of entanglement entropy, study whether it obeys strong subadditivity, and moreover show that it reduces to the thermal entropy in the appropriate limit.


Children and young adults between the ages of 11-21 years that were displaced by Hurricane Katrina and currently living in a large relocation camp (n = 68) were compared to a sample of demographically matched controls (n = 63) on two measures of physiological distress (salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase, AA), and self-reported symptoms of distress, depression, anxiety, aggression, self-evaluations, self-esteem, and life-satisfaction. The Katrina sample reported lower anxiety and showed lower cortisol levels than the controls. Similarly, females reported lower anxiety and showed lower cortisol levels than males. Multivariate regressions showed that hurricane experience and sex moderated the relations between cortisol and AA and many internalizing and externalizing behaviors, including aggression and symptoms of depression and distress. In general, salivary cortisol and AA were differentially related to distress behaviors in males and females, suggesting a dynamic interplay between normative sex differences in multiple components of psycho-physiological arousal and behavioral manifestation of internalizing and externalizing behaviors. The findings are interpreted from a broad socio-relational framework of social behavior, which suggests that the human stress response system may have evolved, in part, to modulate the formation and maintenance of different types of social relationships. If so, then phenotypic variation in the expression of distress behaviors such as aggression and depression may change with changes in condition of the individual, including recent life-experiences and sex-typical social interaction styles.


A growing number of public pensions and sovereign funds located in regions without a history of financial services are making direct investments that bypass traditional financial intermediaries. It seems the world's financial center of gravity is shifting away from the traditional financial hubs, such as London, New York and Tokyo, to cities at the frontiers of financial markets. Significantly, this new geography of finance and investment offers some unique opportunities for these investors to leverage their organizational endowments (e.g., scale, time horizon, certainty of capital, etc.) through creative capital deployments (e.g., in-house management, seeding new managers, etc.). However, it also creates a variety of new challenges. For example, how do public pension and sovereign funds set up world-class investment organizations out on the frontiers of finance? More specifically, how do these funds attract the talented investment staff they require to implement a sophisticated investment strategy that combines both in-house and external mandates? In this brief white paper, we highlight how certain public pension and sovereign funds are attracting the necessary human resources. We focus, in particular, on the recruitment of the organization's leaders, both current and future, within the investment departments.


Alongside the Spanish army in the campaign against Napoleon (1808-1814) was an assortment of freebooters, local peasants, and bandits who were organized into ad hoc regional private armies. These "guerrillas" - a term introduced to the English language during the Peninsular War - ambushed French convoys, attacked French encampments, and pounced upon, dodged, and fought French columns, often with extreme brutality. This book investigates for the first time the irregular Spanish forces and their role in resisting Napoleon. Delving deeply into previously untapped archival resources, Charles Esdaile arrives at an entirely new view of the Spanish guerrillas. He shows that the Spanish war against Napoleon was something other than the great popular crusade of legend, that many guerrillas were not armed civilians acting spontaneously, and that guerrillas were more often driven by personal motives than high-minded ideology. Tracking down the bandit armies and assessing their contributions, Esdaile offers important insights into the famous "little war" and the motives of those who fought it.


Introduction The thermal degradation of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) has been studied extensively. It is well accepted that the degradation process is a radical chain reaction involving initiation, depropagation, transfer, and termination reactions. In the degradation process, the factors having observable effects on the decomposition behavior include molecular mass, polydispersity, tacticity, and sample dimensions. The effects of tacticity on the degradation behavior of PMMA were investigated by Kashiwagi et al., Jellinek et al. and Chiamtore et al. The results indicated that both isotactic and syndiotactic PMMA have similar decomposition pathways and activation energies. Isotactic PMMA will decompose at a slightly lower temperature and over a broader range, compared to syndiotactic PMMA with the similar chain ends and molecular masses. It has also been reported that isotactic PMMA is more sensitive to electron-beam radiation, namely, it degrades more easily, than syndiotactic PMMA. The PMMA-SiO2 system has been investigated by a few groups. 7,8 The results indicated that the interaction between the carbonyl groups and silica surfaces can increase the decomposition temperature of PMMA. However, how different variables affect the decomposition behavior of PMMA is still far from clear. In the present work, we report studies of the degradation of ultrathin adsorbed PMMA on silica with a specific focus on the effects of adsorbed amount and tacticity on decomposition.


"New Green Homes" presents the latest innovations in sustainable architecture and design. Projects include 'green' houses, apartments, lofts, and cabins, and explore various aspects of environmentally-friendly design from its ecological and economical benefits to the factors that need to be considered when choosing materials, such as the amount of energy that went into manufacturing the product; its sustainability; the life-expectency of its materials; and, the question of if the materials used can be recycled or safely disposed of if they break down over time. Specific topics covered include climate regulation, drainage systems, and regional planning. Each project contains photographs, floor and aerial plans, as well as detailed drawings that illustrate certain sustainable features revealing how much the parameters of ecological design have expanded in just a few short years. For the environmentally and aesthetically conscious, "New Green Homes" is as poignant as it is refreshing. It's the perfect resource for homeowners, designers, architects, and all clients interested in creating warm and inviting homes that cause only a fraction of the environmental impact of those created using conventional building methods.


Providing a performance measure of any firm is a crucial issue, not only for the stakeholders of the firm, but also for policy makers, labor unions, and economists. The relevant performance measures should consider the objectives of the firm's owners. The ownership structure of cooperatives is different from that of investors owned firms, which in principle implies the need of different tools to measure their performance. Typically, however, the performance of cooperatives and investor owned firm is mostly compared using the same approach. In this study, we use Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to compare the performance of dairy cooperatives and investor owned firms in major European dairy producing countries using a traditional approach, which views both types of firms as cost minimizers, and an alternative approach, which considers the objectives of the cooperatives. In the alternatives approach, two hyperbolic models were evaluated, one of them consider the firms to expand both output production and use of material to address the objective of the owners of the cooperatives. The performance of the cooperatives changes across the two approaches form being out performed by IOFs using the traditional approach to outperforming IOFs when using an approach that is in line with the objective of the cooperative.


We present techniques for characterization, modeling and generation of workloads for cloud computing applications. Methods for capturing the workloads of cloud computing applications in two different models - benchmark application and workload models are described. We give the design and implementation of a synthetic workload generator that accepts the benchmark and workload model specifications generated by the characterization and modeling of workloads of cloud computing applications. We propose the Georgia Tech Cloud Workload Specification Language (GT-CWSL) that provides a structured way for specification of application workloads. The GT-CWSL combines the specifications of benchmark and workload models to create workload specifications that are used by a synthetic workload generator to generate synthetic workloads for performance evaluation of cloud computing applications.


We demonstrate Ti:sapphire laser pulses of unprecedented spectral width, covering an optical octave without external continuum generation. The pulse spectrum spans more than 170 THz and supports bandwidth-limited two-cycle pulses. Assuming a sech2 pulse, the autocorrelation corresponds to a 4.8-fs pulse duration. The average power is 300 mW at a repetition rate of 100 MHz. The key features of the cavity are: dispersion compensation with broadband double-chirped mirrors combined with a prism pair, a broadband semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) to assist Kerr-lens modelocking, and an output coupling mirror specifically designed to broaden the pulse spectrum.


This critical history of research on acquired language deficits (aphasias) demonstrates the usefulness of linguistic analysis of aphasic syndrome for neuropsychology, linguistics, and psycholinguistics. Drawing on new empirical studies, Grodzinsky concludes that the use of grammatical tools for the description of the aphasias is critical. The selective nature of these deficits offers a novel view into the inner workings of our language faculty and the mechanisms that support it.In contrast to other proposals that the left anterior cerebral cortex is crucial for all syntactic capacity, Grodzinsky's discoveries support his theory that this region is necessary for only a small component of the human language faculty. On this basis he provides a detailed explanation for many aphasic phenomena - including a number of puzzling cross-linguistic aphasia differences - and uses aphasic data to evaluate competing linguistic theories.Yosef Grodzinsky is a member of the psychology faculty at Tel Aviv University. "Theoretical Perspectives on Language Deficits" is included in the series Biology of Language and Cognition, edited by John P. Marshall. A Bradford Book.


Distortion, most often caused by the loudspeaker, is a practical problem in acoustic echo cancellation-based conference phones. Typically, this distortion varies significantly with the frequency. This paper presents an implementation of a distortion reducing subband limiter to be used in conjunction with an acoustic echo canceller in a commercial conference phone, yielding improved cancellation performance. Verification of the performance was performed through evaluation of a fix-point real-time implementation.


In spite of the preeminence of its composer, the Sonatine fo r Flute and Piano by Kerre Boulez is not a well known work. The piece poses truly formidable technical and aesthetic challenges for players and audiences. The purpose of this study is to present an analysis and some practical suggestions for flutists preparing the piece for performance. This serial-based work is divided into four continuous main stanzas, each demonstrating a different style and varying compositional techniques while using the same row. The repetition of specific pitch-class sets, rhythm motives, and pitch classes within each stanza lends each one aurally identifiable qualities which flutists and listeners alike can grasp to better appreciate the piece. Along with the analysis, suggestions for successful individual practice and ensemble rehearsals are given, including phrasing and interpretive suggestions, rhythmic accuracy checkpoints, and suggested metronome markings. In addition, some re-barred practice versions of portions of the flute part are included in an appendix, as well as a glossary of all expressive markings in the score. While the practice and performance of this work may seem a monumental task, it is well worth undertaking for several reasons: because there is a scarcity of other pieces in this style for flute and piano, particularly by composers o f Boulez's stature; because performing the piece will challenge any flutist to achieve a higher level of performance; and because it is a fine piece of music, thoughtfully constructed and exciting for performers and audiences. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.


A self-Fourier function (SFF), according to Caola [ J. Phys. A24, L1143 ( 1991)], is a function that is its own Fourier transform. The Gaussian and Dirac combs are well-known examples. Many more SFF's have been discovered recently by Caola. This discovery might bear some fruit in optics, since the Fourier transform is perhaps the most important theoretical tool in wave optics. We show that Caola discovered all SFF's. Furthermore, we study other self-transform functions, which are also tied to some transformations that play a role in coherent optics.


Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) plays an essential role in molecular imaging by delivering the contrast agent into targeted cancer cells. The aim of this study was to evaluate the C595 monoclonal antibody-conjugated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs-C595) for the detection of breast cancer cell (MCF-7). Methods: The conjugation of monoclonal antibody and nanoparticles was confirmed using X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and photon correlation spectroscopy. The selectivity of the nanoprobe for breast cancer cells (MCF-7) was obtained by Prussian blue, atomic emission spectroscopy, and MRI relaxometry. Results: The in vitro MRI showed that T2 relaxation time will be reduced 76% when using T2-weighed magnetic resonance images compared to the control group (untreated cells) at the dose of 200 μg Fe/ml, as the optimum dose. In addition, the results showed the high uptake of nanoprobe into MCF-7 cancer cells. Conclusion: The SPIONs-C595 nanoprobe has potential for the detection of specific breast cancer.


Modal matching is a new method for establishing correspondences and computing canonical descriptions. The method is based on the idea of describing objects in terms of generalized symmetries, as defined by each object's eigenmodes. The resulting modal description is used for object recognition and categorization, where shape similarities are expressed as the amounts of modal deformation energy needed to align the two objects. In general, modes provide a global-to-local ordering of shape deformation and thus allow for selecting which types of deformations are used in object alignment and comparison. In contrast to previous techniques, which required correspondence to be computed with an initial or prototype shape, modal matching utilizes a new type of finite element formulation that allows for an object's eigenmodes to be computed directly from available image information. This improved formulation provides greater generality and accuracy, and is applicable to data of any dimensionality. Correspondence results with 2D contour and point feature data are shown, and recognition experiments with 2D images of hand tools and airplanes are described. >


People living with food allergies in the United States use a variety of strategies to ensure that their food and homes are clean, free of allergens, and therefore safe for their specific needs. Yet the pursuit of purity is not merely a practical or material matter, but a semiotic one as well, and it is shaped by histories of race, gender, class, and family structure in the United States. I call this material-semiotic configuration of purity the hygienic sublime. The hygienic sublime relies upon and reproduces social norms and hierarchies concerning gendered labor in the home, racialized expectations of who can be considered pure, class anxieties expressed through aspirational consumption, and normative family structure. Written against the backdrop of resurgent debates concerning sexual, national, and personal purity in the second decade of the 21st century, this paper demonstrates the broader historical and political stakes of purity politics, especially when they are centered around caretaking activities in the private space of the home.


Adaptive Mesh Refinement methods reduce computational requirements of problems by increasing resolution for only areas of interest. However, in practice, efficient AMR implementations are difficult considering that the mesh hierarchy management must be optimized for the underlying hardware. Architecture complexity of GPUs can render efficient AMR to be particularity challenging in GPU-accelerated supercomputers. This paper presents a compiler-based high-level framework that can automatically transform serial uniform mesh code annotated by the user into parallel adaptive mesh code optimized for GPU-accelerated supercomputers. We also present a method for empirical analysis of a uniform mesh to project an upper-bound on achievable speedup of a GPU-optimized AMR code. We show experimental results on three production applications. The speedups of code generated by our framework are comparable to hand-written AMR code while achieving good and weak scaling up to 1000 GPUs.


Praxiology starts from the point of view of effectiveness. It has three components: analysis of concepts involving purposive actions; critique of modes of action from the viewpoint of efficiency; and normative advisory aspects in recommendations for increasing human efficiency. The third volume of this series aims to make more visible to the English readership the importance of design throughout the many disciplines, professions, and arenas of human endeavor. Design is a pervasive part of our daily lives to such an extent that it goes largely unnoticed. It has become a near invisible aspect of our civilized existence. But when we stop for a moment to study an artifact, activity, group, and institution, or any entity or life process, we can begin to see and imagine the design, the designing, and the human designers who contributed to it. Design and Systems represents a set of contributions made to the methodological study of design. Chapters and contributors include: "Toward Metamedicine" by Kazem Sadegh-Zadeh; "Design Engineering Methodologies in English and German Language Regions and Influences of Culture" by Wolfgang E. Eder; "Systems Methodology and Design" by Gerald Nadler; "Problem Forming, Problem Finding, and Problem Solving in Design" by Herbert A. Simon; and "Design: A Journey to the Future" by Bela H. Banathy, Design and Systems continues the trend of original research done in a little-known, but important area. It will be an enlightening read for sociologists, philosophers, and scholars interested in the study of design.


This study aims to investigate the effects of targeted regulation of Mst1 (Mammalian sterile 20-like kinase 1) expression on the proliferation and apoptosis of SW480 colorectal cancer cells and to elucidate the mechanisms underlying these effects. PolyJetTM in vitro DNA transfection reagent was used to transfect pEGFP-N1-Mst1 into SW480 colorectal cancer cells, and LipofectamineTM2000 was used to transfect Mst1-specific siRNA for the targeted silencing of Mst1. MTT assay was then performed to detect the survival rate of the cells, flow cytometry was used to determine apoptosis, and RT-qPCR and western blot were used to measure the mRNA and protein levels of Mst1, PUMA, p73, p53, YAP (Yes Associated Protein 1), and caspase-3. Compared with the control group, the p-EGFP-Mst1 and p-EGFPMst1+ 5-FU groups showed significantly higher rate of cell proliferation inhibition and apoptosis (P<0.05). The protein levels of MST1, Phospho-YAP1 (Ser127), P73, P53, PUMA, and Caspase-3 were significantly increased (P<0.05), while the protein levels of CTGF (Connective Tissue Growth Factor) and AREG (Amphiregulin) were significantly reduced (P<0.05). In the Mst1-siRNA group, the apoptosis rate was significantly decreased (P<0.01), cell proliferation was accelerated, p73, p53, and PUMA were downregulated, and CTGF, AREG, and YAP were upregulated. The targeted regulation of Mst1 expression significantly affected the proliferation and apoptosis of the SW480 cells. Thus, Mst1 has potential for use as a new target for the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer.


Vitamin E concentrations in dried pastures, stubble and most grains are below the recommended requirement of 10-25 mg/kg dry matter (DM). Sheep grazing in an environment when dry pastures and cereal crop stubbles are their primarysourceofnutrientsforafewmonthshaveahighriskofdevelopingvitaminEdeficiency.IfthelowvitaminEstatus coincides with late gestation, the neonate is likely to have a deficiency of vitamin E. Some of the consequences of this are well known, with nutritional myopathy (with high mortality) a risk in young growing sheep unless vitamin E supplements are provided. Vitamin E plays an important role in the management of oxidative stress. Sperm are subject to oxidative damage due to high metabolic rate and high concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids in their membranes. Oxidative stress may also compromise follicular development and ovarian activity. Vitamin E is also involved with improvement in immune response. For these reasons, vitamin E status is important for reproductive efficiency in both males and females and in the survival of lambs and weaners. In addition, vitamin E deficiency is potentially exacerbated by a lack of other nutrients involved in the management of oxidative stress and immune function, such as selenium (Se) and sulfur amino acids. A Se concentration of 0.1 mg/kg DM in feedstuffs is required to maintain immune competency in sheep. In considering possible consequences for reproduction, further investigation is justified into: (i) effects of low vitamin E, in combination with low levels of other natural antioxidants, on the quality and quantity of sperm produced before and during mating; (ii) follicle development, fertilisation and embryonic mortality in Se-supplemented ewes; (iii) assessment of supplementing formulated antioxidants to rams and ewes during the mating season; (iv) managing oxidative stress in the newborn - consequences of large doses of vitamin E to ewes before parturition to boost lamb reserves; (v) potential benefits to lamb survival through boosting maternal innate immunity; (vi) choices for boosting antioxidant and immune function in ewes and lambs through 'immune pack' nutrient options that may target nutrients lacking in dry grass pastures; (vii) the potential role of heat stress in modifying the requirements for, and responses to, vitamin E in extensive grazing systems.


Fruits possess different antioxidant properties depending on their content in antioxidants. The consumer is aware of the importance of looking for diets containing a large array of compounds that may help the organisms in the daily struggle against chronic diseases. If fruit intake is not sufficient to support the RDA for several micronutrients, an interesting help can be that of foods naturally enriched with antioxidants. The evaluation of Total Antioxidant Capacity of fruits is of pivotal importance in assessing the nutritional attributes of fruits and other horticultural products. By means of specific breeding programs it is possible to select antioxidant enriched fruit varieties. These features are susceptible to be improved through generations in order to release fruits with enhanced nutritional features. The availability of high quality and nutritionally enriched fruit at competitive costs may be a useful tool in the planning of healthy diets.


Markov Decision Processes arise as a natural model for many renewable resources allocation problems. In many such problems, high stakes decisions with potentially catastrophic outcomes (such as the collapse of an entire ecosystem) need to be taken by carefully balancing social, economic, and ecologic goals. We introduce a broad class of such MDP models with a risk averse attitude of the decision maker, in order to obtain policies that are more balanced with respect to the welfare of future generations. We prove that they admit a closed form solution that can be efficiently computed.

We show an application of the proposed framework to the Pacific Halibut marine fishery, obtaining new and more cautious policies. Our results strengthen findings of related policies from the literature by providing new evidence that a policy based on periodic closures of the fishery should be employed, in place of the one traditionally used that harvests a constant proportion of the stock every year.


This study employed the coherent phase modulation (PM) detection method to characterize the phase noise of a Sampled-Grating Distributed Bragg Reflector (SGDBR) laser via delayed self-heterodyne (DSH) measurements. We derived the formula for phase-error variance from the FM noise spectrum of the laser and performed measurements on the Distributed Feedback (DFB) and SGDBR lasers. The results confirmed that the DFB laser phase noise is well described by white FM noise while the SGDBR laser has additional frequency fluctuations below 400 MHz. The measurement and simulation results also demonstrated that the low frequency excess noise significantly broadens the linewidth of SGDBR lasers and can degrade the performance of coherent optical communication systems.


To answer the question, which rhetorical strategies are most persuasive to university graduates regarding hiring and recruitment, I surveyed three classrooms with a questionnaire that gauged university graduates attraction to three different types of rhetorical strategies. The rhetoric came from three major businesses that recruit university graduates: College Works Painting, Peace Corps, and Hewlett Packard. Each one of these businesses uses a different type of strategy to recruit university graduates. College Works Painting uses an Experience Illusion strategy based on the premise that the company will help train university graduates to become managers and leaders in business. Peace Corps' uses an Altruistic strategy that sells the idea that university graduates will have superhero-like jobs, helping others. Hewlett Packard's rhetoric is classified, in my research, as being a Fun strategy, as they advertise fueling individual's curiosity. I predicted that the Experience Illusion strategy would be most attractive to university graduates, but, I found, through my analysis of the survey data, that the Altruistic strategy is most the attractive strategy to university graduates. I realized, though, that my survey could be expanded upon to yield a more accurate representation of university graduates' attraction if a new survey were created. If a survey with more options of the same rhetorical strategies, the Experience Illusion, Altruistic, and Fun concepts worded in different ways, was administered to university graduates, the perceived entrapment of succumbing to the rhetorical strategy would be less thus yielding more true and representative results.


Feeling affection is a key component of romantic relationships, and affectionate communication is associated with a myriad of positive relational benefits; but what happens when that communication is not an honest reflection of an individual's true feelings, but instead is used deceptively? The purpose of this study, therefore, was to explore the relationship between frequency of deceptive affection and: an individuals' beliefs about deception, frequency of deception, and the relational qualities of commitment and satisfaction. Results indicated no relationship exists between the frequency of deceptive affectionate message (DAM) use and an individual's beliefs about deception, though, a negative relationship was found between general partner deception and all four of the beliefs about deception studied. Additionally, results indicated that frequency of DAM use was unrelated to commitment and satisfaction, but that general deception was negatively related to these two relational qualities. Additional findings, limitations and future research are discussed.


This is the credo and seminal text of the movement which was later characterized as liberation theology. The book burst upon the scene in the early seventies, and was swiftly acknowledged as a pioneering and prophetic approach to theology which famously made an option for the poor, placing the exploited, the alienated, and the economically wretched at the centre of a programme where "the oppressed and maimed and blind and lame" were prioritized at the expense of those who either maintained the status quo or who abused the structures of power for their own ends. This powerful, compassionate and radical book attracted criticism for daring to mix politics and religion in so explicit a manner, but was also welcomed by those who had the capacity to see that its agenda was nothing more nor less than to give "good news to the poor", and redeem God's people from bondage.


In the present work, a computational study is performed in order to clarify the possible magnetic nature of gold. For such purpose, gas phase Au2 (zero charge) is modelled, in order to calculate its gas phase formation enthalpy. The calculated values were compared with the experimental value obtained by means of Knudsen effusion mass spectrometric studies [5]. Based on the obtained formation enthalpy values for Au2, the compound with two unpaired electrons is the most probable one. The calculated ionization energy of modelled Au2 with two unpaired electrons is 8.94 eV and with zero unpaired electrons, 11.42 eV. The difference (11.42-8.94 = 2.48 eV = 239.29 kJmol), is in very good agreement with the experimental value of 226.2 ± 0.5 kJmol to the Au-Au bond. So, as expected, in the specie with none unpaired electrons, the two 6s (one of each gold atom) are paired, forming a chemical bond with bond order 1. On the other hand, in Au2 with two unpaired electrons, the s-d hybridization prevails, because the relativistic contributions. A molecular orbital energy diagram for gas phase Au2 is proposed, explaining its paramagnetism (and, by extension, the paramagnetism of gold clusters and nanoparticles).


ABSTRACT The professional literature seems to contain a deluge of descriptions of the ever-increasing complex academic chairperson functions, but there was substantially less information about chairperson evaluation procedures. Consistency in evaluation seems important give the consistency of the annual evaluation, the need for formative data, and the argued benefit of development through dean-chairperson collaboration. Therefore, the Leadership Evaluation Instrument for Academic Chairpersons (LEIFAC) was developed, piloted, and suggested as a tool for future research. The 39-item scale, completed by faculty members using a likert-scale, measures five areas: 1) Managerial, 2) Interpersonal, 3) Communication, 4) Academic, and 5) Political. Estimates of internal consistency ranged from .77 to .99. Cautious recommendations for practice and directions for future research are included. INTRODUCTION An annual enigma and source of anxiety exists in academic departments in most institutions of higher education: the by-law mandated chairperson evaluation. Despite the consistent frequency of this event, and perhaps because of a diversity of expectations for the chairperson, there seems to be no commonly accepted procedure with which it can be conducted (McGlone & Kovar, 1992). The first author of this current article recently completed his fifth year as chairperson of an academic department in a mid-sized, Mid-Western, doctoral/research intensive university, and, as such, has been evaluated by the departmental faculty four times. However, those efforts provided disappointing feedback that was neither useful nor substantial. The author's ascension to the position of chairperson resulted from the previous chairperson's resignation to accept a promotion, at which time no other faculty member was interested in serving the department in this capacity. Others have described chairperson recruitment experiences similar to the one illustrated above (Bowman, 2002, Tucker, 1993, Lucas, 2000). Tucker (1993) stated, "most department chairpersons are drawn from faculty ranks and have had, at best, very little administrative experience" (p. 1). Peltason, in his introduction to Tucker (1984), pointed out that "the selection of chairperson is often based more on academic considerations or the person's reputation as a scholar than on his or her management qualifications" (p. xi.). This is problematic given that institutions of higher education are increasingly complex systems, and the chairperson's responsibilities continue to expand and increase (Hecht, Higgerson, Gmelch, & Tucker, 1998). The conflict between expectations and appropriate evaluation is made even clearer when the extensive list of published material regarding chairperson functions (Bowman, 2002; Creswell, Wheeler, Seagren, Egly & Beyer, 1990; Gmelch, & Miskin, 1993; Hecht, Higgerson, Gmelch, & Tucker, 1998; Lucas, 2000) is contrasted with the lack of discussion of chairperson evaluations from the same sources. Tucker (1993) devoted a chapter to the discussion of chairperson evaluation. He concluded that "Chairs should welcome good and frequent feedback as a source of information about how they can do their jobs better" (p 538) but offered few specifics of evaluation content or an actual process or instrument. Another interested party in this muddle of expectation and evaluation for department chairpersons is the academic dean. The dean is responsible for leadership of the entire college, so the success of each individual department is vital to that of the college and, ultimately, of the dean as measured typically by evaluations from the provost and president of the university. Under the best of circumstances, the dean has come through the ranks as a faculty member moving from tenure-track assistant professor to tenured professor and from department chair to dean. While the same lack of mentoring and useful evaluations may have proven problematic for the dean in the role of chairperson, a realization of such problems should make the dean more sensitive to the needs of newer, less-experienced chairpersons for guidance and of more experienced chairpersons for support. …


In this paper, the author mentions that despite the reliance on software in everything from televisions and cars to medical equipment, it often doesn't work correctly. Everyone has had problems with software like text editors that freeze, answering machines that won't answer. Others are far more serious, such as the program on a satellite that contains an error, causing the loss of expensive equipment, or Web servers that have bugs enabling an attacker to break in and steal personal data. In the case of medical equipment, poor software could cost lives. To develop a better software, one way is to make good programming as much a part of learning computer science as good writing is a part of studying English and law. To test this idea, a secure-programming clinic was developed. Principles of robust programming are widely taught in beginning and advanced programming courses. They're a large part of good programming style and require the realization that things can go wrong. A user might enter a string when the program expects an integer. A function that opens a file might fail. The program must check for these possibilities and handle them correctly. Grading in these programming courses takes such practices into account. But all too often in advanced computer science courses, students don't follow these practices.


Common features found in two families of materials may help explain the mechanism of high-temperature superconductivity. Today we have two families of high-transition temperature (Tc) superconductors, based respectively on compounds in which copper and iron atoms occupy a layered square lattice. An open question is how the quantum mechanics of electrons moving cooperatively on such lattices leads to high-Tc superconductivity. Both families display antiferromagnetism as their chemical compositions are varied (see the figure). It is the interplay between the magnetic and electronic properties that is thought to be controlled by intricate quantum entanglement among the electrons, and to be at the origin of the superconducting properties. The antiferromagnetism is strongest at compositions at which Tc is either zero or small. As the composition is varied and the antiferromagnetism decreases, a critical composition is reached at which the antiferromagnetism vanishes at zero temperature—an example of a quantum phase transition. On page 1554 of this issue, Hashimoto et al. (1) report observations of an especially well-characterized example of such a quantum critical point in a high-Tc superconductor, crystals of BaFe2(As1-xPx)2 with minimal chemical disorder. A novel feature of their experiments is that the signature of a magnetic critical point is observed in an electrical property: The antiferromagnetic quantum critical point leads to a change in the ability of the electrons to carry a super-current. The results demonstrate the close connection between antiferromagnetism and high-Tc superconductivity.


This paper describes a simple model of compressor based on analysis the compression behavior and presents a new self-adjust organization of integrating factor. This organization is capable of self-adjust integral factors based on the values of error. When the error be a positive and big value, the value of integrating factor increases and the controlled increment accumulates quickly. When the output is closing to the expected value, the error decreases and the value of integrating factor lowers concomitantly. When the output has already exceeded the desired value, the error is a negative value and increase quickly. At the same time, the value of integrating factor will increases in the opposite side. So the outputs of self-adjust organization change follow the value of error. In the compressor control system, the fuzzy controller using self-adjust organization may urge the control system to track desired value speedy and ensure the fast response characteristics of control system. Lots of digital simulation results show that this method is effective and intelligent with dynamic control functions.


Hierarchies are ubiquitous on the web, for structuring online catalogs and indexing multi-dimensional attributed datasets. They are a natural metaphor for information seeking if their levelwise structure mirrors the user's conception of the underlying domain. In other cases, they can be frustrating, especially if multiple drill-downs are necessary to arrive at information of interest. To support a broad range of users, site designers often expose multiple faceted classifications or provide within-page pruning mechanisms. We present a new technique, called out-of-turn interaction, that increases the richness of user interaction at hierarchical sites, without enumerating all possible completion paths in the site design. Using out-of-turn interaction, the user has the option to circumvent any navigation order imposed by the site and flexibly supply partial input that is otherwise relevant to the task. We conducted a user study to determine if and how users employ out-of-turn interaction, through a user interface we built called Extempore, for information-finding tasks. Extempore accepts out-of-turn input through voice or text and we employed it in a US congressional website for this study. Think-aloud protocols and questionnaires were utilized to understand users' rationale for choosing out-of-turn interaction. The results indicate that users are adept at discerning when out-of-turn interaction is necessary in a particular task, and actively interleaved it with browsing. However, users found cascading information across information-finding subtasks challenging. By empowering the user to supply unsolicited information while browsing, out-of-turn interaction bridges any mental mismatch between the user and the site. Our study not only improves our understanding of out-of-turn interaction, but also suggests further opportunities to enrich browsing experiences for users.


Most science centres in Canada employ science-educated floor staff to motivate visitorsto have fun while enhancing the educational reach of the exhibits. Although bright andsensitive to visitors' needs, floor staff are rarely consulted in the planning,implementation, and modification phases of an exhibit. Instead, many developmentteams rely on costly third-party evaluations or skip the front-end and formativeevaluations all together, leading to costly errors that could have been avoided. This studywill seek to reveal a correlation between floor staff's perception of visitors' interactionswith an exhibit and visitors' actual experiences. If a correlation exists, a recommendationcould be made to encourage planning teams to include floor staff in the formative andsummative evaluations of an exhibit. This is especially relevant to science centres withlimited budgets and for whom a divide exists between floor staff and management.In this study, a formative evaluation of one exhibit was conducted, measuring both floorstaff's perceptions of the visitor experience and visitors' own perceptions of the exhibit.Floor staff were then trained on visitor evaluation methods. A week later, floor staff andvisitors were surveyed a second time on a different exhibit to determine whether anincrease in accuracy existed.The training session increased the specificity of the motivation and comprehensionresponses and the enthusiasm of the staff, but not their ability to predict observedbehaviours with respect to ergonomics, learning indicators, holding power, and successrates. The results revealed that although floor staff underestimated visitors' success ratesat the exhibits, staff accurately predicted visitors' behaviours with respect to holdingpower, ergonomics, learning indicators, motivation and comprehension, both before andafter the staff training.


Gamification refers to the use of game-like elements in non-entertainment contexts to make activities more engaging and enjoyable to improve utilitarian outcomes. The gamification literature and the use of gamification in practice suggest that gamification can be a useful tool to support behavioral and psychological changes. Recent developments show that there is potential for new waves of gamification research. Therefore, we conducted a workshop at the International Conference on Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI) 2021 to discuss the future of gamification with interested scholars. The discussion with 25 gamification experts led to a research agenda that supports the need for adaptive and personalized gamification designs. Together with the experts, we identify three clusters for future research: 1) the personalization of gamification concepts, 2) theories and concepts for gamified human-computer interaction, and 3) the "dark side" of gamification (e.g., addiction). We also address what the gamification concept means. Aligned with the three clusters, we provide valuable starting points for future research inquiries to help researchers better understand the nature of gamification. We also discuss the capabilities and limits of gamification.


1. Introduction . Juliette Fritsch Part I: Situating Interpretation in the Museum Context 2. "The Museum as a Social Instrument": A Democratic Conception of Museum Education. George E. Hein 3. Invoking the Muse: The Purposes and Processes of Communicative Action in Museums. Paulette M. McManus 4. Interpretation and the Art Museum: Between the Familiar and the Unfamiliar. Cheryl Meszaros, eds. Jennifer J Carter, Twyla Gibson Part II: The Role of Interpretation in Art Galleries 5. Towards Some Cartographic Understandings of Art Interpretation in Museums. Christopher Whitehead 6. Art for Whose Sake? Sue Latimer 7. The Seeing Eye: The Seeing "I". Sylvia Lahav 8. Part III: How Can We Define the Role of Language in Museum Interpretation? Juliette Fritsch Part IV: Interpretation, Personal Experience, and Memory 9. "I loved it dearly": Recalling Personal Memories of Dress in the Museum. Torunn Kjolberg 10. Welcome to My World: Personal Narrative and Historic House Interpretation. Mariruth Leftwich 11. Narrative Museum, Museum of Voices: Displaying Rural Culture in the Museo Della Mezzadria Senese, Italy. Marzia Minore Part V: Evidence-Based Practice 12. An Evaluation of Object-Centered Approaches to Interpretation at the British Museum. Steve Slack, David Francis and Claire Edwards 13. The Other Side of the Coin: Audience Consultation and the Interpretation of Numismatic Collections. Effrosyni Nomikou Part VI: Interpretive Strategies for Specific Audiences 14. Designing Effective Interpretation for Contemporary Family Visitors to Art Museums and Galleries: A Reflection of Associated Problems and Issues. Patricia Sterry 15. Interactive Gallery Interpretation for Design Students: Help or Hindrance? Elizabeth Dyson 16. Empower the Audience! How Art Museums Can Become Enriching Creative Spaces for a Wider Audience through Deliberate and Strategic Use of Experience and Learning Theories. Karen Gron Part VII: Process and People 17. "Reading the Walls": A Study of Curatorial Expectation and Visitor Perception. Sarah Ganz Blythe and Barbara Palley 18. "Education is a department isn't it?" Perceptions of Education, Learning and Interpretation in Exhibition Development. Juliette Fritsch


WINTERS-STONE, K. M., J. C. DOBEK, J. A. BENNETT, G. F. MADDALOZZO, C. W. RYAN, and T. M. BEER. Skeletal Response to Resistance and Impact Training in Prostate Cancer Survivors.Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 46, No. 8, pp. 1482–1488, 2014. Introduction: Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is associated with significant bone loss and an increase in fracture risk among prostate cancer survivors (PCS). We investigated whether impact + resistance training could stop ADT-related declines in bone mineral density (BMD) among PCS on ADT. Methods: We randomized 51 PCS (mean age, 70.2 yr) currently prescribed ADT to participate in 1 yr of impact + resistance training (Prevent Osteoporosis with Impact + Resistance (POWIR)) or in an exercise placebo program of stretching exercise (FLEX). Outcomes were proximal femur (total hip, femoral neck, and greater trochanter) and spine (L1–L4) BMD (gIcm ) and bone turnover markers (serum osteocalcin (ngImL) and urinary deoxypyrodinoline cross-links (nmolImmol Cr)). Results: Retention in the 1-yr study was 84% and median attendance to supervised classes was 84% in POWIR and 74% in FLEX. No study-related injuries were reported. There were no significant differences between groups for average L1–L4 BMD or for BMD at any hip site. When examining individual vertebrae, POWIR has a significant effect on preservation of BMD (j0.4%) at the L4 vertebrae compared with losses (j3.1%) in FLEX (P = 0.03). Conclusion: Impact + resistance training was a safe and acceptable form of exercise for older PCS on ADT. Among our limited sample, POWIR did not appear to have a clinically meaningful effect on hip or spine BMD, but some evidence of skeletal adaptation to resistance + impact training in an androgen-deprived state was apparent. Future studies need to be conducted on a larger sample of patients and should consider modifications to POWIR that could further enhance loading across the spine and at the hip to preserve BMD at these clinically relevant sites.


The
 Situation
 of
 Cataracts
 in
 the
 city
 of
 Buenos
 Aires:
 a
 case
 study
 in
 Ramos
 Mejia Hospital Background:
 When
 a
 person
 has
 cataracts
 his
 or
 her
 lens
 becomes
 clouded
 by proteins,
 causing
 diminished
 vision.
 Though
 cataracts
 cause
 poor
 vision
 or
 in
 more serious
 cases
 blindness,
 what
 is
 special
 about
 cataracts
 is
 that
 they
 are
 treatable. Surgery
 replaces
 the
 clouded
 lens
 with
 a
 new
 artificial
 lens
 called
 an
 intraocular lens.
 In
 Argentina
 in
 2006
 only
 10%
 of
 cataract
 surgeries
 were
 realized
 in
 the public
 sector,
 and
 the
 Ministry
 of
 Health
 of
 the
 Nation
 decided
 to
 develop
 a
 program called
 Program
 Eye
 Health
 and
 the
 Prevention
 of
 Blindness
 to
 fight
 these
 and
 other inequities
 in
 the
 realm
 of
 visual
 health.
 After
 7
 years
 of
 this
 program,
 I
 wanted
 to investigate
 how
 the
 present
 process
 of
 receiving
 cataract
 surgery
 is
 for
 those
 who utilize
 the
 public
 health
 system.
 For
 this
 reason
 I
 completed
 a
 case
 study
 of
 a
 public hospital
 in
 Buenos
 Aires
 where
 I
 investigated
 the
 population
 that
 receives
 cataract surgery
 there
 and
 the
 barriers
 that
 the
 population
 faces
 in
 seeking
 treatment. Methodology:
 The
 study
 was
 based
 chiefly
 on
 interviews
 with
 4
 doctors
 who
 work with
 cataracts
 and
 11
 of
 their
 patients.
 The
 interviews
 were
 conducted
 in
 the
 exam room
 in
 the
 Department
 of
 Ophthalmology
 in
 the
 Ramos
 Mejia
 Hospital.
 The patients
 ranged
 in
 age
 from
 36
 to
 86
 years
 and
 some
 of
 the
 patients
 were
 waiting
 to receive
 the
 surgery
 while
 others
 had
 already
 received
 the
 operation.
 The
 patients were
 asked
 about
 demographic
 information,
 details
 about
 how
 they
 accessed
 the treatment,
 and
 their
 general
 experience.
 The
 doctors
 responded
 to
 questions
 about their
 patients,
 differences
 between
 the
 different
 sectors,
 and
 the
 Program
 Eye Health.
 Secondary
 information
 for
 the
 2010
 Census
 was
 utilized,
 as
 were
 statistics from
 the
 Program
 Eye
 Health
 and
 Prevention
 of
 Blindness.
 Interpretations
 were also
 made
 regarding
 the
 population,
 access
 to
 treatment,
 treatment,
 and
 the
 doctors' motivation. Results:
 The
 interviews
 demonstrated
 that
 the
 patients
 receiving
 the
 surgery
 in Ramos
 Mejia
 Hospital
 were
 varied
 but
 generally
 from
 the
 lower
 middle
 class.
 The majority
 of
 the
 patients
 did
 not
 have
 health
 coverage
 and
 many
 were
 female.
 Half
 of the
 patients
 were
 from
 nearby,
 but
 some
 patients
 travelled
 from
 farther.
 They
 were motivated
 to
 seek
 treatment
 here
 from
 previous
 experience
 with
 the
 hospital
 or because
 of
 its
 prestigious
 reputation
 that
 extends
 outside
 of
 the
 local
 zone.
 Though the
 patients
 endure
 inconvenient
 timetables
 to
 receive
 an
 appointment
 and
 long waiting
 times,
 to
 them
 coming
 here
 is
 worth
 the
 trouble
 because
 the
 treatment
 is free
 and
 of
 high
 quality.
 All
 but
 the
 chief
 of
 the
 team
 that
 operates
 on
 cataracts
 had little
 knowledge
 of
 the
 Program
 Eye
 Health
 and
 Prevention
 of
 Blindness,
 and
 though the
 program
 is
 used
 to
 order
 intraocular
 lenses
 for
 the
 surgery,
 none
 of
 the
 patients know
 who
 financed
 or
 will
 finance
 his
 or
 her
 surgery.
 Though
 the
 hospital
 does good
 work,
 there
 are
 still
 barriers
 that
 keep
 the
 people
 from
 accessing
 care.
 The physical
 difficulty
 of
 traveling
 to
 the
 hospital,
 the
 long
 distance
 and
 necessary
 to travel
 multiple
 times,
 and
 the
 inconvenient
 hours
 to
 obtain
 an
 appointment
 are factors
 that
 make
 the
 process
 difficult
 for
 potential
 patients.


The cored record at Ocean Drilling Program Site 1122, located on the levee of the Bounty Fan off southeastern New Zealand, shows a major late Miocene to Pliocene (11.0–3.5 Ma) hiatus in sedimentation. This hiatus straddles a period of major uplift in the Southern Alps where the rivers that feed sediment to the Bounty Fan are ultimately sourced. There are no significant changes in sediment provenance across this interval. We link this hiatus to a combination of decreased sediment supply owing to tectonic disruption of fluvial drainage and a roughly simultaneous increase in bottom-current strength. Evidence for this scenario includes the distribution of current-generated structures in the core, the relative timing of an onshore transition from fluvial to lacustrine sedimentation, and a potential post-hiatus pulse of more weathered sediment into the Bounty Fan. This sediment pulse was possibly associated with the reestablishment of throughgoing drainage and the erosion and flushing of stored alluvial to lacustrine sediments through the system. Thus the Bounty Fan provides an excellent example of how the complex interplay between tectonic and paleoceanographic forces can affect the sedimentary record in deep-marine systems.


The evolution of voltage‐gated calcium channel (Cav) in eukaryotes is an area of interest for biologists worldwide. The CLAN CL0030 and its family Ion_Trans 2 PF 07885 have been known to be present in prokaryotes, but the origin of these ion channels in Acanthamoeba spp. is yet to be determined. We inferred the origin of primitive forms of two‐pore channels like proteins, human‐like Cav 1.1 of L‐type, and Cav subunit alpha‐2/delta‐1 in Acanthamoeba spp. early during evolution. By in‐depth investigation into genomics, transcriptomics, use of bioinformatics tools and experimentations done with drugs like amlodipine and gabapentin on Acanthamoeba spp., we show the evidence of primitive forms of these channels in this protist pathogen. Genomics and transcriptomics of proteins ACA1_167020, 092610, and 270170 reflected their cellular expression in Acanthamoeba spp. We performed amino acid sequence homology, 3D structural modeling, ligand binding predictions, and dockings. Bioinformatics and 3D structural models show similarities between ACA1_167020, 092610, 270170, and different types of known human Cav. We show amoebicidal effects of amlodipine and gabapentin on Acanthamoeba spp., which can help design their structural analogs to target pathogenic genotypes of Acanthamoeba in diseases like Acanthamoeba keratitis and granulomatous amoebic encephalitis.


Sustainable e-government has become an important issue for countries wishing to sustain their e-services and
promote integration with smart cities. Such new challenges require policy makers to move toward sustainable
e-government and encourage organisations to engage with management systems that promote sustainability;
these include systems for environmental sustainability (ISO14001) and social sustainability (ISO 26000). The
literature related to sustainable e-government shows a lack of research into the acceptance and adoption of
such management systems and their influence on e-government sustainability. A quantitative case study was
conducted in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), which investigated the Saudi Ministry of Justice (MoJ),
together with private software companies employed by the MoJ. The purpose of the study was to understand
the current situation regarding standards that support sustainability in e-government and its affiliates in the
private sector. Survey data was gathered from 83 e-government project employees from the public and private
sectors; participants reported on their adoption of management systems designed to support sustainable egovernment. Social management systems were more highly ranked than other management systems, namely
those related to environmental and economic administration. This raises concerns about the low level of
awareness of green-ability (environmental considerations). While social management systems were more
likely to be adopted, these four management systems, environmental, social, quality and economic, showed a
strong positive interrelationship: when organisations agreed on the adoption of one form of system, they
tended to respond positively to others. These results will be utilised to support future work in designing a
framework for sustainable e-government.


Extracted from text ... December 2005 5
CAPITAL Gains Tax (CGT) was
introduced by Finance Minister
Trevor Manuel during his Budget
speech of 23 February 2000, bringing
South Africa into line with
many other international tax jurisdictions.
Before the introduction of
CGT, taxpayers were taxed on
income, such as salary, rentals, and
TAX
By STEVEN JONES
Capital Gains Tax
demystified
There are few taxes that cause more confusion amongst
laymen than Capital Gains Tax. However, in its most basic
form, it is conceptually not a difficult tax to understand. In
this article, Moneyweb's Personal Finance lifts the veil...
interest, but not on any ..


In this paper we discuss eGovQual a methodology for planning eGovernment initiatives in public administrations with specific attention to the strategic planning and preliminary operational planning phases. The key elements of the methodology are the multidisciplinary approach, which considers social, economical, organizational, juridical and technological issues in the identification and ranking of eGovernment projects, and the quality-driven strategy which considers the assessment of actual and future target quality values for services, processes, organizational systems, and technologies. eGovQual aims to satisfy a real need of constituencies and stakeholders involved in eGovernment projects, confirmed in the context where the methodology has been developed and tested such as the eGovernment for Mediterranean Countries (eG4M) project and former preliminary experiences in the Italian Public Administrations by the interactions with local authorities during the on the field experimentations. A structured process is needed, that provides a clear perspective on the different facets that eGovernment initiatives usually have to challenge, and disciplines the complex set of decisions to be taken. The available approaches to eGovernment provide usually only one perspective to public managers and local authorities on the domain of intervention, either technological, or organizational, or juridical, or social. Our aim is to provide a methodology supporting in a structural fashion the choice of the optimal eGovernment plan, considering all the above mentioned perspectives. The quality driven construction of the eGovernment plan is initially influenced by the social, juridical and organizational perspective, while achieves subsequently its final shape when considering the economic and technological perspectives. The results of the interventions carried out are described at a glance.


Hendra virus (HeV) causes severe infection in a broad range of species leading to mortality in both humans and animals. Productive HeV infection occurred in wild type and mice deficient in interferon signalling (the body's antiviral defence mechanism). But, unlike other animal species susceptible to HeV infection severe disease did not develop. Therefore the restriction of fulminating disease cannot be attributed solely to the efficacy of mouse interferon signalling pathways against HeV-mediated anti-interferon mechanisms. Little neutralising antibody response was seen, suggesting an innate response mechanism remains relevant to limiting the systemic effects of infection. IFITM proteins were possible candidates but replication and cytopathic effect continued in their presence.