Abstract The biogeography of the South Indian Ocean Province (SIP) biotas has long been controversial. Much of the discussion has been based on interpretation of species distributions, based on morphological or anatomical delimitations. However, molecular phylogenetic approaches elsewhere have recently shown that interpretations based solely on morphological data may be misleading. Nonetheless, few studies have employed molecular phylogenetic approaches to understand the biogeography of the SIP biotas. We do so here for the Ectemnorhinus group of genera, a monophyletic unit of weevils endemic to the region. We use mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I DNA sequence data to reconstruct relationships among 13 species and 22 populations in the genera Palirhoeus, Bothrometopus and Ectemnorhinus. On the basis of this analysis we find little support for separating the genus Palirhoeus from Bothrometopus, and little support for the morphologically-based species groups currently recognized within Bothrometopus. Using a molecular clock we show that dispersal among islands probably took place against the prevailing wind direction. These data also support a previous hypothesis of radiation of the epilithic genera Bothrometopus and Palirhoeus during the Pliocene/early Pleistocene, but reject the hypothesis that the genus Ectemnorhinus radiated following the last glacial maximum. We show that Bothrometopus parvulus (C.O. Waterhouse) on the Prince Edward Islands comprises two species that are not sister taxa. We name the second species Bothrometopus huntleyi n. sp. and provide a description thereof.


This paper presents the design, simulation and experimental verification of a new three-phase pulse width modulated inverter. The inverter works on the principle of controlled capacitor charging, where a capacitor that is connected across the load is charged or discharged in a controlled manner to synthesise a desired waveform. The input to the inverter being a voltage source, an inductor is used in series with the capacitor to limit the charging/discharging current. High frequency pulses are used to fabricate the waveform and also to reduce the size of the inductor. A controller, taking a sinusoidal reference voltage signal and operating on a unique tracking logic, controls the switches in discontinuous conduction mode. The capacitor-voltage at the output and the inductor-current are fed-back to the controller. The inverter is able to track the reference-voltage satisfactorily to synthesise the output-voltage. The proposed inverter is first simulated in PSPICE. An experimental prototype is also fabricated in the laboratory. Excellent correlation of the simulation and experimental waveforms confirm the usefulness of the proposed inverter.


Vehicular ad hoc network is one of the most interesting research areas due to low cost, flexibility, fault tolerance, high sensing fidelity, creating many new and exciting application areas for remote sensing. So, it has emerged as a promising tool for monitoring the physical world with wireless sensor that can sense, process and communicate. Their applications range from safety and crash avoidance to Internet access and multimedia. VANETs are considered as one of the ad hoc network real-life application enabling communications among nearby vehicles as well as between vehicles and nearby fixed equipment, usually described as roadside equipment. In this paper, we are most concerned about the study of VANET applications as it is an evolving field which offers scope for research.


Chronic migraine is a disabling and debilitating disease, affecting 1.7-4% of the general population. It is the third cause of moderate to severe pain in the emergency department, in under 50. These case series describe the experience of managing chronic migraine in a headache program of IPS Envigado, Colombia, highlighting the importance of non-pharmacological management and doing a review of the subject. We included 22 patients who met the criteria of chronic migraine and one-year follow-up, using preventive management (propranolol, amitriptyline, and valproic acid) and non-pharmacological (aerobic exercise, meal times, balanced diet, sleep hygiene, avoiding sun exposure, behavioral psychotherapy, psychoneuroimmunotherapy techniques). Finally, there were found a reduction of migraine episodes in 88% and 75% in half of the adherents and pharmacological non-adherent, respectively.  Furthermore, it is considered that non-pharmacological therapy had a significant impact not only improving the prognosis but preventing chronicity.


Importance
In 2017, an estimated 7.9% of persons aged 12 to 17 years reported illicit drug use in the past month, and an estimated 50% of adolescents in the US had used an illicit drug by the time they graduated from high school. Young adults aged 18 to 25 years have a higher rate of current illicit drug use, with an estimated 23.2% currently using illicit drugs. Illicit drug use is associated with many negative health, social, and economic consequences and is a significant contributor to 3 of the leading causes of death among young persons (aged 10-24 years): unintentional injuries including motor vehicle crashes, suicide, and homicide.

Objective
To update its 2014 recommendation, the USPSTF commissioned a review of the evidence on the potential benefits and harms of interventions to prevent illicit drug use in children, adolescents, and young adults.

Population
This recommendation applies to children (11 years and younger), adolescents (aged 12-17 years), and young adults (aged 18-25 years), including pregnant persons.

Evidence Assessment
Because of limited and inadequate evidence, the USPSTF concludes that the benefits and harms of primary care-based interventions to prevent illicit drug use in children, adolescents, and young adults are uncertain and that the evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms. More research is needed.

Recommendation
The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of primary care-based behavioral counseling interventions to prevent illicit drug use, including nonmedical use of prescription drugs, in children, adolescents, and young adults. (I statement).


This case study is an inquiry-within-an inquiry: As high-school students conducted a year-long participatory research project on motivation for literacy learning with their teachers, two university researchers studied the processes and outcomes of their project. The research was part of a six-year longitudinal study of student motivation in which students participated as coresearchers. The original study examined students' perceptions of their own reasons and purposes for literacy learning across elementary, middle level, and senior high school contexts in Southern California. As an outgrowth of that study, several of the students initiated collaborative research with teachers. Data were analyzed through constant comparison. Here, cases of six teacher participants are presented, with cross-case analyses that portray their views on the nature of knowledge, purposes of schooling, their approaches to teaching, their perspectives on the nature of motivation, and their roles and relationships within the culture of the school and with the research team. In collaborating with students in systematic ways about the purposes of literacy learning, the roots of their own intrinsic motivations, and the qualities of classrooms that support their learning, teachers were able to open up possibilities for personal growth and for small beginnings of transformation of school culture.


Considering today's increasing speed of change, radical and innovative improvement Kaikaku, is a necessity parallel to continuous incremental improvement Kaizen, especially for SME's in order to attain the competitive edge needed to be profitable. During 2011, a qualitative single case study with the objective of realizing a kaikaku in production has been conducted. The case study was run as a one year project using a collaborative approach including both researchers and company representatives. The case study was conducted with the purpose of gaining further knowledge about kaikaku realization as well as its implications. The empirical results provide insights about the great productivity results achieved by applying a specific kaikaku realization approach. However, it also sheds light on the difficulty and contradiction of combining innovation management and production system development. Keywords— Kaikaku, Radical improvement, manufacturing, innovation capability.


To date, little research has investigated the involvement of higher-level cognitive processes in reading comprehension ability in children. This study therefore aimed to help fill this gap in the literature by investigating the contribution of inferencing ability: a higher-level cognitive process which is important for successful reading comprehension. To measure inferencing, 38 children aged eight to 11 years participated in a computer task, which measured reaction time and accuracy. Participants were presented with narratives followed by word or non-word targets, on which they made a lexical decision. Word targets were either inference neutral or inference related, with inference generation measured as the difference between the means of the two. Participants were first categorised into low and high comprehension groups by an innovative higher-level comprehension measure, and again by a standardised, lower-level comprehension measure, and then compared. As the higher-level measure purports to directly measure skills underlying inference generation, a finer distinction in inferencing ability was expected between groups when measured this way, compared to the lower-level measure. Overall, however, the data did not reflect whether inferences were generated or not, nor meaningful categorisation between groups, irrespective of which measure they were categorised by. Interpreting the extent of inference generation between high and low comprehenders was therefore difficult. It is likely that the inferencing measure was unable to identify inference generation and that this, along with some other methodological limitations, accounts for the lack of differences between low and high comprehenders. Nevertheless, this study is an important contribution to the literature, as it provides a foundation on which future investigation can be based by illuminating methodological issues which first need to be addressed.


Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is one of the most prevalent causes of vaginal discharge or malodor and has been associated with several pregnancy complications including increased risk of mother to child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) during pregnancy. Objective: To determine the prevalence of BV among HIV-positive pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Kano. Subjects and Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out on 242 HIV positive pregnant women as the study group and 242 HIV negative pregnant women as the control group. Following administration of the questionnaires, high vaginal swabs was collected and tested for PH, whiff test and microscopy to identify clue cells. The data were analyzed using Epi info version 3.5. Chi-square test was used to determine the strengths of association between exposure (HIV) and outcome (BV) variables in the study and controlled groups. Association was considered statistically significant at P < 0.05. Results: The mean ages for both groups were 28.4 (standard deviation [SD] ± 4.45) and 28.7 (SD ± 4.88) years for reactive and nonreactive groups respectively. The women′s parity ranged from 0 to 7 and mean parity were 1.91 and 2.05 for the reactive and nonreactive groups respectively. The overall prevalence of BV among pregnant women attending ANC clinic at AKTH was 43.2%. The prevalence of BV among HIV-positive pregnant women (71.3%) is significantly higher than that of HIV-negative pregnant mothers (28.7%), P < 0.001. Conclusion: Pregnant HIV-positive women have a higher risk of developing BV compared with their HIV-negative counterpart. Active screening for BV among HIV-positive pregnant women is advised.


The prevalence of school-related violence and, in particular, bullying is not a new or isolated phenomenon, nor is it limited to certain schools or countries. Abundant evidence indicates that bullying is widespread and has a negative impact on educational outcomes. Children who are victims of bullying can also be affected emotionally and physically in both the short and long terms. Evidence from low- and middle-income countries on bullying is less extensive when compared to the evidence available on predictors and effects of bullying from high-income countries. However, some findings for the Latin American and Caribbean region seem to suggest a similar picture, with a high prevalence of bullying victimization and association to lower reading scores in different subjects tested. This working paper first uses data from UNESCO's Third Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study for nationally representative samples of sixth grade students to determine the prevalence of bullying and its association to learning outcomes in 15 countries of the LAC region. It then looks at interventions to mitigate the impacts of violence.


Secure knowledge management for eBusiness processes that span multiple organizations requires intraorganizational and interorganizational perspectives on security and access control issues. There is paucity in research on information assurance of distributed interorganizational eBusiness processes from a business process perspective. This paper presents a framework for secure semantic eBusiness processes integrating three streams of research, namely: 1) eBusiness processes; 2) information assurance; and 3) semantic technology. This paper presents the conceptualization and analysis of a secure semantic eBusiness process framework and architecture, and provides a holistic view of a secure interorganizational semantic eBusiness process. This paper fills a gap in the existing literature by extending role-based access control models for eBusiness processes that are done by using ontological analysis and semantic Web technologies to develop a framework for computationally feasible secure eBusiness process knowledge representations. An integrated secure eBusiness process approach is needed to provide a unifying conceptual framework to understand the issues surrounding access control over distributed information and knowledge resources


Calculation of the total depositional volume of an ancient source-to-sink system, combined with estimates of the area of catchments acting as source regions using provenance methods, is used to evaluate average catchment erosion rates on a million year time scale. These rates are compared with values derived from thermochronological methods. Using the mid- to late Eocene (33.9–41.6 Ma) Escanilla palaeo-sediment routing system from the south–central Pyrenean orogenic wedge-top zone as an example, c. 3500 ± 300 km3 of solid particulate sediment was derived from two catchments in the south–central Pyrenees over a 7.7 myr period, equivalent to a mean erosion rate of c. 0.15–0.18 mm a−1. Average exhumation rates in contributing catchments over the same time interval are estimated at 0.2–0.3 mm a−1 based on apatite fission-track analysis of pebbles in proximal conglomerates, and 0.23–0.34 mm a−1 from fission-track analysis of detrital apatites sampling a wider range of grain size. Sediment supply progressively increased during the mid- to late Eocene time period, at least in part driven by catchment expansion deep into the Pyrenean Axial Zone at c. 39 Ma. The consistency of the rates of catchment-averaged erosion calculated from different methods builds confidence that source areas have been connected to depositional sinks correctly. Supplementary materials: A description of the provenance methods used to link sources and sinks of the Escanilla palaeo-sediment routing system, including the analysis of clast lithologies, palaeocurrents, heavy minerals and geochronology of detrital zircons, are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18727.


Joint hospital grand rounds have been held in Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease (GIRD) routinely every week for more than 10 years. Recently, more and more hospitals are taking part in our joint rounds through real-time video communication. Such events are broadcast live to healthcare providers from up to 500 hospitals in China.


This is the first full biography of Abdullah Quilliam (1856-1932), the most significant Muslim personality in nineteenth century Britain. Uniquely ennobled as the Sheikh of Islam of the British Isles by the Ottoman caliph, Sultan Abdul Hamid II in 1893, Quilliam, as a charismatic preacher, created a remarkable community of Muslims in Victorian Liverpool, which included a substantial number of converts. A successful solicitor, Quilliam fought for the rights of the city's poor and, in the high noon of European colonialism, defended the Ottoman caliphate and independent Muslim states through his two international publications, "The Crescent" and "The Islamic World". After 1908, in controversial circumstances, Quilliam left Liverpool and spent the rest of his life living under a pseudonym, but still figured as a major contributor to British Islam in London, where he was involved with the Woking Mosque. Based on exhaustive archival work, Ron Geaves not only provides the first account of Quilliam's colourful and turbulent life, but examines his teachings and considers his legacy for British Muslims today.


Initial rates of [3H]adenosine diphosphate and [3H]adenosine triphosphate uptake were measured in mitochondria isolated from normal rat liver, regenerating liver, mouse hepatoma BW7756, and four Morris hepatomas (7777, 7800, 7794A, and 16) of varying degrees of malignancy. Results obtained demon strate that (a) the apparent Km and Vmaxvalues for adenosine diphosphate and adenosine triphosphate uptake are significantly lower in hepatoma compared to normal or regenerating liver mitochondria, (b) the Vmaxvalues for adenosine diphosphate uptake correlate with tumor growth rate, and (c) the Km values for adenosine triphosphate in both hepatoma and normal mito chondria are lowered in the presence of added uncoupling agents; however, the extent of decrease is much less in fastgrowing tumors than in slow-growing tumors and normal tissues. Studies examining the causes of reduced transport rates in hepatoma mitochondria showed that they are independent of the mitochondrial energy state and associated with substantially lower levels of the total and exchangeable adenine nucleotides. Additional studies revealed that transport rates are also depend ent on the size of the tumor from which the mitochondria are isolated. Mitochondria isolated from small tumors (<2 g) had higher transport rates as well as higher levels of exchangeable and total adenine nucleotides than those isolated from larger tumors (4 to 6 g). Endogenous inhibitor levels also varied as a function of tumor size; free fatty acid levels increased, whereas acyl coenzyme A levels declined in mitochondria isolated from larger tumors. These results seem to indicate that, during the progression of tumor growth, mitochondria are experiencing cellular environmental changes that will affect overall tumor cell metabolism.


Atomic lock-free multi-word compare-and-swap (MCAS) is a powerful tool for designing concurrent algorithms. Yet, its widespread usage has been limited because lock-free implementations of MCAS make heavy use of expensive compare-and-swap (CAS) instructions. Existing MCAS implementations indeed use at least 2k+1 CASes per k-CAS. This leads to the natural desire to minimize the number of CASes required to implement MCAS. We first prove in this paper that it is impossible to "pack" the information required to perform a k-word CAS (k-CAS) in less than k locations to be CASed. Then we present the first algorithm that requires k+1 CASes per call to k-CAS in the common uncontended case. We implement our algorithm and show that it outperforms a state-of-the-art baseline in a variety of benchmarks in most considered workloads. We also present a durably linearizable (persistent memory friendly) version of our MCAS algorithm using only 2 persistence fences per call, while still only requiring k+1 CASes per k-CAS.


Role for Reactive Oxygen Species in Methamphetamine Modulation of Dopamine Release in the Striatum David Matthew Hedges Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, BYU Doctor of Philosophy Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive substance that is highly prevalent in today's society, with over 1 in 20 adults over 26 having taken it at least once. While it is known that METH, a common psychostimulant, acts on both the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) and nigrostriatal DA systems by affecting proteins involved in DA reuptake and vesicular packaging, the specific mechanism of what is known as METH neurotoxicity remains obscure, but has been shown to involve oxidative stress. Studies have shown that reactive oxygen species act on the same proteins that METH affects. Oxidative species have also been known to catalyze the formation of melanins in dopaminergic cells. We explore this link more fully here. In an in vitro system, oxidative species (including Fe3+, an inorganic catalyst for oxidative stress), enhance the rate of melanization of DA. Methamphetamine increased oxidative stress in an in vivo model. Additionally, METH enhanced phasic (stimulated) DA release and caused an electricallyindependent efflux of DA. Lidocaine abolished phasic DA release, but did not affect METHinduced DA efflux, indicating action-potential dependent and independent mechanisms behind METH's effects. The sigma-1 receptor antagonist BD 1063 significantly attenuated METH's effect on DA release. Depletion of intracellular calcium (Ca2+) reserves also attenuated METHenhancement of DA release. We investigated the role of oxidative species in METH-induced DA efflux. Reduced glutathione (the substrate for glutathione peroxidase) and 4-hydroxy-TEMPOL (a superoxide dismutase mimetic) blocked METH's effect on DA release, suggesting that a reactive oxygen species (ROS), most likely superoxide, is necessary for METH-induced DA efflux. Finally, oxidative stress as well as acute METH impairs the vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) by S-glutathionylation modification of Cys-488, highlighting VMAT2 as a likely regulator of METH's effects on electrically independent DA release. These findings help outline a model in which METH induces DA release in the NAc through a signaling cascade involving the sigma receptor and ROS signaling molecules.


The globalisation and changing customer needs in the Middle East required many construction companies to adopt virtual project teams for their business activities and is facing number of challenges. The Middle East is a multicultural region and hence, it's very important to understand the phenomenon of these virtual project teams who relate across multiple cultures. A great deal of literature has pointed on the importance of trust as a facilitator of positive relationships among project stakeholders and affecting the performance of the virtual project teams. It has been found through comprehensive literature review that lack of trust among team members greatly affects the performance of the team. The studies also revealed that not much has been explored on trust building among virtual team members especially in the context of the Middle East. This research work aimed to identify key factors affecting trust in virtual project teams of construction sector and to develop a model to analyse the impact of these factors on trust of virtual teams in the context of Middle East. The comprehensive literature review of virtual project teams and existing models of trust, though not in context of the Middle East, helped in identifying various variables of trust. Both the quantitative and qualitative techniques are used in this research. The development of online questionnaire provided inputs from 403 professionals (team members and team leaders) from the virtual project teams of the Middle East. The analysis of this data through various statistical software such as IBM SPSS and AMOSv22 contributed to the identification of factors (drivers and barriers) of trust and testing of hypothesis. The model of trust evolved was validated through the semi-structured interviews of project managers and team members of virtual project teams of the construction sector of the Middle East. The ISM methodology was used to understand the relationships between various factors of trust. The IRP technique helped to identify four benefits of trust and helped to rank the various factors of trust according to the benefits of trust with respect to the construction projects of the Middle East. The key findings resulted from this research was that the degree of communication among virtual project teams, characteristics of team members, organizational culture of the company and cohesion among team members enhances the building of trust among virtual project teams and hence better performance of the team. Further especially in context of the Middle East, the research concluded that the diversity of the team members - functional or cultural- does not affect negatively in the development of trust. Further to this, the task- based and process based conflicts actually help the team to fulfil the organizational goals whereas the relationship based conflicts results in ego issues which creates distrust among the virtual project team members. It has been found that the leadership skills of superior and task- technology fit does not have any affect in the building of trust. Also the results showed that the teams should be mix of experienced and fresh team members. Therefore, this model of trust offered practical guidelines to senior management and project managers of Architectural/ Engineering / Construction Companies for managing the virtual project teams in construction sector and enhancing their performance in the virtual projects. This model definitely added value to the existing knowledge on virtual project teams.


Objective: The effect of enoxaparin and fibroblast growth factor-1 (FGF-1) on post-infarction capillary density and regional myocardial blood flow (RMBF) was examined. Methods: New Zealand White rabbits received an intramyocardial injection of either physiological saline, FGF-1 + enoxaparin, FGF-1 or enoxaparin directly after ligation of the left anterior descending artery. RMBF and capillary density were investigated using fluorescent microspheres and histological examination. Results: One week after infarction a significant difference in the number of capillaries could be demonstrated within the FGF-1 + enoxaparin group (p < 0.001 versus the control group), the FGF-1 group (p < 0.01) and the enoxaparin group (p < 0.05). Treatment with FGF-1 + enoxaparin resulted in a significantly increased number of capillaries compared to treatment with FGF-1 (p < 0.05) and enoxaparin (p < 0.05) alone. Additionally, all groups treated with FGF-1 and/or enoxaparin showed a significant increase of microvessel density in the treated ischemic border zone compared to the non-treated ischemic border zone (p < 0.001 for FGF-1 + enoxaparin, p < 0.01 for FGF-1, p < 0.05 for enoxaparin). RMBF was significantly increased within the FGF-1 + enoxaparin group compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Moreover, perfusion rates within the FGF-1 + enoxaparin-treated area did not significantly differ from the pre-infarction values. Conclusion: Treatment with either enoxaparin or FGF-1 or FGF-1 + enoxaparin resulted in increased microvessel growth. However, only the combination of enoxaparin with FGF-1 promotes capillary growth and RMBF. Thus, we conclude that enoxaparin enhances the angiogenic potential of intramyocardially injected FGF-1 in the acutely infarcted rabbit heart.


This dissertation focuses on two central capital market transactions, takeovers and initial public offerings (IPOs), from both a theoretical and an empirical point of view. After an introductory chapter, the first two chapters analyse how minority shareholders are affected by a change in take-over regulation (introduction of the mandatory bid rule) in Germany in 1995. The last chapter focuses on the pricing and timing of going-public transactions. Chapter 2 focuses on the absolute wealth effect of the mandatory bid rule and formalises the trade-off minority shareholders of corporate raiders face with respect to the adoption of a mandatory tender offer after a shift in control. Under plausible assumptions about the distribution of security and control benefits, minority shareholders of acquirers profit from the adoption of the mandatory bid rule. A subsequent empirical study supports this hypothesis by measuring the stock price effects after the acceptance of the German Takeover Code. Chapter 3 uses a dataset of German dual-class shares during 1988-1997 to study how the change of corporate governance rules affects the price differential between voting and non-voting stock. First, the chapter discusses how mechanisms to separate control from cash-flow rights relate to the value of control. Second, the chapter analyses how minority voting and non-voting shareholders participate in transfers of corporate control under the alternative regulatory structures pre- and post- 1995. By providing an analysis of sequential going-public decisions. Chapter 4 outlines conditions under which the likelihood of a second IPO increases after a first firm has gone public ('hot issue markets'). Two effects can trigger the rise of hot issue markets in a setting with asymmetric and costly information about both firm quality and industry prospects: risk-induced selling pressure and informational free-riding on the industry news conveyed by a first IPO. Finally, the model offers an explanation for the empirical finding that hot issue markets exhibit a higher degree of underpricing than cold issue markets.


The exposure to a life-threatening disease such as cancer may constitute a traumatic experience that in some cases may lead to the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In recent years, several studies investigated this syndrome in patients with cancer, but few focused on the underlying neurobiology. The aim of this work was to review the current literature of neurobiology of PTSD in oncological diseases, focusing on a comparison with the results of neurobiological studies on PTSD in nononcological patients and on treatments resulted effective for such disorder. Brain structures having a role in the appearance of PTSD in psycho-oncology, and in particular, in intrusive symptoms, seem to be the same involved in non-oncologic PTSD. These findings may have important implications also at clinical level, suggesting that psychotherapies found to be effective to treat PTSD in different populations may be offered also to patients with cancer-induced posttraumatic symptoms. Further studies are needed to deepen our knowledge about cancer-related PTSD neurobiology and its treatment, aiming at transferring the results into clinical practice.


Abstract. Snow is a major contributor to stream flow in alpine watersheds and quantifying snow depth and distribution is important for hydrological research. However, direct measurement of snow in rugged alpine terrain is often impossible due to avalanche and rock fall hazard. A laser rangefinder was used to determine the depth of snow in inaccessible areas. Laser rangefinders use ground based light detection and ranging technology but are more cost effective than airborne surveys or terrestrial laser scanning systems and are highly portable. Data were collected within the Opabin watershed in the Canadian Rockies. Surveys were conducted on one accessible slope for validation purposes and two inaccessible talus slopes. Laser distance data was used to generate surface models of slopes when snow covered and snow-free and snow depth distribution was quantified by differencing the two surfaces. The results were compared with manually probed snow depths on the accessible slope. The accuracy of the laser rangefinder method as compared to probed depths was 0.21 m or 12% of average snow depth. Results from the two inaccessible talus slopes showed regions near the top of the slopes with 6–9 m of snow accumulation. These deep snow accumulation zones result from re-distribution of snow by avalanches and are hydrologically significant as they persist until late summer.


This paper explains the development and implementation of a new methodology for expanding existing computer networks. Expansion is achieved by adding new communication links and computer nodes such that reliability measures of the network are optimized within specified constraints. A genetic algorithm-based computer network expansion methodology (GANE) is developed to optimize a specified objective function (reliability measure) under a given set of network constraints. This technique is very powerful because the same approach can be extended to solve different types of problems; the only modification required is the objective function evaluation module. The versatility of the genetic algorithm is illustrated by applying it to solve various network expansion problems (optimize diameter, average distance and computer network reliability for network expansion). The results are compared with the optimal solutions computed using an exhaustive search of complete solution space. The results demonstrate that GANE is very effective (in both accuracy and computation time) and applies to a wide range of problems, but it does not guarantee the optimal results for every problem. >


Solid state electrolytes fabricated with chalcogenide glass (ChG) are considered viable candidates for the next generation of non-volatile memory technologies. These glasses, which are composed of group IV and/or group V elements with those of group VI chalcogens (S, Se, and Te), are excellent metal ion conductors. Because of this property, the resistance across structures composed of ChG films sandwiched between active metal (e.g., Ag) and inert metal (e.g., Ni) electrodes can be switched upon the application of sufficient bias, thereby enabling memristive action. In this paper, the effects of 60Co gamma-ray irradiations on Ag/Ge30Se70 test structures are investigated. The results show that exposure to high-energy photons can trigger the transport of Ag+ & ions from an active Ag top layer into an underlying Ge30Se70 ChG film. Post-irradiation annealing experiments also indicate that this "photo-doping" process is reversible once the radiation stress is removed. Numerical simulations which model the mechanisms of radiation-induced photo-doping and recovery are shown to agree well with the data. The results and analysis presented in this paper suggest the ChG-based memristors may be more susceptible to transient radiation effects than cumulative radiation damage.


Context: Advance directive (AD) is being used in psychiatric care in developed countries for the last two decades. Although the AD is bound to offer patient autonomy and beneficence, evidence for its effectiveness and feasibility are limited. By the enactment of the Mental Health Care Act, 2017, India is going to implement AD. Aims: This study aimed to find perspectives on AD in psychiatric practice by different stakeholders in Kerala, India. Subjects and Methods: A qualitative study using focus group discussion and in-depth interview was done among mental health service users such as patients and carers, providers such as psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and psychiatric social workers, and advocates. Transcribed information was coded by R package for Qualitative Data Analysis, a free software. Results: The predominant themes identified were freedom of choice, issues of documentation, suitability in a crisis, apprehension about future care, mental capacity at the time of making the AD, issues about nominated representative, limitations in the exercise of treatment options by doctors, and the possibility of defensive practice in psychiatry. Half of the patients supported the AD, whereas the other half did not. Advocates agreed that patients should be given the freedom to choose and hence supported the AD. Some mental health service providers favored AD, whereas others were apprehensive. Conclusions: Although ADs help patients in preserving their autonomy, many uncertainties, practical issues, and legal issues are to be tackled for its effective implementation.


The goal of this work was to determine by means of consumption and utilization of natural food, the existence of strains of Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith)in different areas of corn and irrigated rice in Rio Grande do Sul. Four populations were collected: one in Santa Rosa, traditional area of corn cropping; one in Uruguaiana, traditional area of rice; and two in Pelotas, where corn and rice are planted side by side. In the laboratory, 20 larvae were individualized (second generation) and kept in petri dishes, in BOD, at 25oC temperature, 70 ± 10% RH and 14h photophase. The larvae were fed on leaves of their respective hosts, hybrid of corn BRS 8330 and the cultivar of irrigated rice Embrapa 6-Chui. The leaves of both hosts were submitted to bromatological analysis. The dry weight of the larva at maximum development, food consumed and feces eliminated were determined and the nutritional ratios were calculated: relative consumption ratio (RCR), relative metabolic ratio (RMR), relative growth ratio (RGR), approximate digestibilidade (AD), efficiency of conversion of ingested food (ECI), efficiency of conversion of digested food (ECD) and the metabolic cost (100 - ECD). Rice was more suitable as food for S. frugiperda; it was ingested in smaller amount, presented smaller 100 - ECD and larger ECI and ECD. A strong possibility of existence of two strains of S. frugiperda is evidenced in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, the corn and rice strains, which are morphologically similar but physiologically different.


Abstract The Singhbhum Craton preserves large low-grade tracts of an extensive stratigraphic period in the Precambrian and therefore is of prime importance for studying the Earth's early evolutionary processes. An early (c. 3.1 Ga) crustal stabilization followed by a long period (c. 500 Ma) of high freeboard conditions has been postulated from the terrane in recent times. Tectonostratigraphic analyses of the supracrustal successions, carried out in the present study, from the west-northwestern margin of the Singhbhum Granite body in the craton identify a hitherto undetected Mesoarchaean shelf sequence among these supracrustal successions. In contrast to current thinking, the observations imply immediate development of a passive margin setting following the craton's early stabilization. The cratonic margin later succumbed to a major compression, resulting in successive emplacement of thrust sheets from the northern hinterland side that produced an intermingling of thrust slices of basement rocks and the deformed shelf and rift sequences. This later compressive episode not only involved a part of the Mesoproterozoic Kolhan Basin, but its effects are also manifest as a second deformation throughout the western Iron Ore Group belt. Involvement of the Kolhan Group in the deformation milieu constrains the timing of this orogeny to the Grenvillian (c. 1.0 Ga).


Presentation anxiety is one of the most common fears that people express. Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) which is also known as tapping is an emerging complementary therapy that has been used to treat a variety of phobias. Participants were a convenience sample of 25 3rd year Foundation Degree level complementary therapy students undertaking a Research Module. The module included an assessed presentation, which was known to generate anxiety among students. The students were given a 15 minute assignment workshop .They then received a 15 minute lecture introducing EFT and were then guided though one round of EFT focussing on their fear of public speaking. The students were assessed using the Subjective Units of Distress (SUDs) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) pre and post EFT. Immediately following their presentation, the students were invited to take part in a brief face to face interview to explore their use of and feelings about EFT. Twenty one of the total sample of 25 students (84%) participated in the research. There was a significant reduction in SUDS (p=0.002), HAD (p = 0.048) and HAD Anxiety Subscale (p=0.037). There was no difference in the HAD Depression Subscale (p=0.719). The qualitative data were analysed using a framework approach which revealed 3 themes: nerves, novelty and the practical application of EFT. Despite the limitations of the study, the results suggest that EFT may be a useful addition to curricula for courses that include oral presentations.


Gal. 3:10-14 is still one of the most controversial and challenging passages in Paul's letters. The logic of Paul's rhetoric is that which mainly baffles. Study of this text has been hampered by an inadequate appreciation of the ranges of possible meanings, at all semantic levels. We seek to redress this lack m chapter 2. We survey the science of logic. We discover overlooked semantic possibilities for three key word-groups in Paul's rhetoric. and could be "discourse" lexical concepts. By Paul very possibly intends "accomplishments" rather than "endeavour." Chapter 3 finds the indicated senses Paul's. Effectively multiplying our data via sociolinguistic cognizance that identical words may denote different "realities" for speaker and hearer, we discover that Paul's usage implies a three-fold working semantic hypothesis: For Paul "faith" believes in a covenantal condition besides itself, namely obedience (endeavour to fulfil God's commands); Paul is basically denying that justification depends upon any particular amount of accomplishment of God's commands; and the issue Paul is addressing is not that of die true means of justification, but that of the true meaning of ("righteousness" and thereby of) "justification" in the context of God's covenant. The remainder of the thesis confirms and elaborates this overall meaning for Gal. 3:10-14. In verse 10 Paul points out that logically those who hold to the theory of "justification" have circumstances which contradict that theory; thus he is arguing by a "circumstantial" ad hominem type of argument. In verses 11-12 he circumstantially undermines his opponents' "accomplishments" righteousness-criterion by its incompatibility with Hab. 2:4. In verses 13-14, the "rescue" works entirely by causa cognoscendi: it is not a means of propitiation or repayment, either for man or for God. Our findings support our hypothesis.


In this paper, we aim to bring the debate on the global productivity slowdown – which has largely been conducted from a macroeconomic perspective – to a more micro-level. We show that a particularly striking feature of the productivity slowdown is not so much a lower productivity growth at the global frontier, but rather rising labour productivity at the global frontier coupled with an increasing labour productivity divergence between the global frontier and laggard (non-frontier) firms. This productivity divergence remains after controlling for differences in capital deepening and mark-up behaviour, suggesting that divergence in measured multi-factor productivity (MFP) may in fact reflect technological divergence in a broad sense. This divergence could plausibly reflect the potential for structural changes in the global economy – namely digitalisation, globalisation and the rising importance of tacit knowledge – to fuel rapid productivity gains at the global frontier. Yet, aggregate MFP performance was significantly weaker in industries where MFP divergence was more pronounced, suggesting that the divergence observed is not solely driven by frontier firms pushing the boundary outward. We contend that increasing MFP divergence – and the global productivity slowdown more generally – could reflect a slowdown in the diffusion process. This could be a reflection of increasing costs for laggard firms of moving from an economy based on production to one based on ideas. But it could also be symptomatic of rising entry barriers and a decline in the contestability of markets. We find the rise in MFP divergence to be much more extreme in sectors where pro-competitive product market reforms were least extensive, suggesting that policy weaknesses may be stifling diffusion in OECD economies.


Species are vital entities in biology. Species are generally considered to be discrete entities, consisting of a group of (usually interbreeding) individuals that are similar in phenotype and genetic composition, yet differ in significant ways from other species. The study of speciation has focussed on understanding general evolutionary mechanisms involved in the accumulation of differences both at the genetic and phenotypic level. In this thesis, I investigate incipient speciation, an early stage of divergence towards evolutionary independence in closely related natural populations. I make ample use of recent advances in sequencing technology that allow 1) characterizing phenotypic divergence at the level of the transcriptome and 2) delineate patterns of genetic variation at genome-scale from which processes are inferred by using principles of population genetic theory.In the first paper, we assembled a draft genome of the hooded crow and investigated population differentiation across a famous European hybrid zone. Comparing sequence differentiation peaks between and within the colour morphs, we could identify regions of the genome that show differentiation only between colour morphs and that could be related to gene expression profiles of the melanogenesis pathway coding for colour differences.The second paper expands on the first paper in that it includes crow population samples from across the entire Palaearctic distribution spanning two additional zones of contact between colour morphs. The results suggest that regions associated with selection against gene flow between colour morphs were largely idiosyncratic to each contact zone and emerged against a background of conserved 'islands of differentiation' due to shared linked selection.The third paper focusses on five killer whale ecotypes with distinct feeding and habitat specific adaptations. Differing levels of sequence differentiation between these ecotypes places them along a speciation continuum and provides a unique temporal cross-section of the speciation process. Using genome scans we identified regions of the genome that show ecotype specific differentiation patterns which might contain candidate genes involved in adaptation.In the fourth and final paper, I assumed a comparative genomic perspective to the problem of heterogeneous genomic differentiation during population divergence. The relatively high correlations in the diversity landscapes as well as differentiation patterns between crow, flycatcher and Darwin's Finch populations is best explained by conservation in broad-scale recombination rate and/or association with telomeres and centromeres conducive to shared, linked selection.


Increased anthropogenic input of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere has caused widespread patterns of ocean acidification (OA) and increased the frequency of extreme warming events. We explored the sublethal effects of OA on the hemolymph chemistry and physiological response to acute thermal stress in the American lobster (Homarus americanus H. Milne Edwards, 1837). We exposed subadult lobsters to current or predicted end-century pH conditions (8.0 and 7.6, respectively) for 60 days. Following exposure, we assessed hemolymph L-lactate and calcium concentrations (as indicators of oxygen carrying capacity), ecdysterone concentrations, total protein content, and total hemocyte counts (THCs) as an indicator of immune response. We also assessed cardiac performance in the context of an acute warming event using impedance pneumography. Calcium, total protein, and ecdysterone concentrations were not significantly altered (P ≥ 0.10) by OA exposure. Control lobsters, however, had significantly higher levels of L-lactate concentrations compared to acidified lobsters, suggesting reduced oxygen carrying capacity under OA. THCs were also 61% higher in control versus acidified lobsters, suggesting immunosuppression under chronic OA. Lobsters exposed to acidified conditions exhibited reduced cardiac performance under acute warming as indicated by significantly lower (P = 0.040) Arrhenius Break Temperatures compared to control lobsters. These results suggest that although some physiological endpoints of American lobster are not impacted by OA, the stress of OA will likely be compounded by acute heat shock and may present additional physiological challenges for this species in the face of future change.


This paper proposes a design for a fresh water spot market. The design has the groundwater of the New Zealand Canterbury Plains in mind, but would be appropriate for almost any region. In our market design, a market manager will operate a hydrology model and a Linear Program (LP), based on widely available software. The hydrogeology model calculates the effects of users' proposed abstraction rates. The LP finds allocations that maximise the sum of buyer and seller surplus, while satisfying environmental constraints expressed in terms of hydraulic heads and gradients in specific locations. The model produces a price for every location of interest. The price at a given location is the shadow price on the associated user's supply of water. Users are then charged their allocation times the market price at their location, and the market clears. We have written the software and are beginning testing.


Parking on public streets is scarce. The current allocation system for parking spots based on rule of capture coupled with low parking fees creates a tragedy of the commons scenario. The misallocation of parking has consequences for commerce, for access to public spaces, and for pollution and congestion. Municipalities have not widely adopted the solution that economists propose to solve this scarcity problem: increase the price. Politics aside, the reluctance of municipalities to do so may be explained by the unique nature of public property as reflected in well-rooted legal and societal constraints. This unique nature helps explain, for example, municipalities' ban of software applications (apps) allowing occupants of curbside parking to "sell" their spots to would-be occupants in Boston or San Francisco. While the ban may be justified, the unique nature of public property is not incompatible with some well-designed, efficiency-oriented policies, as this paper will put forward. This article distills the legal constraints on curbside parking and any other public property management by drawing on case law regarding parking meters, case law on public resources managed in trust for the public, and decisions by municipalities regarding parking apps and privatization of parking meters. These constraints include, among others, that public property shall not be used to raise revenue, although placing a price on it may pursue other regulatory aims consistent with public use, or that municipalities shall not lose control of the public spaces dedicated to curbside parking. At a normative level, the above constraints provide a framework for assessing policies regarding curbside parking and, by extension the management of any other public property resources. At a positive level, the article proposes ways to make efficiency compatible with the principles guiding the management of public property. It analyzes to what extent the efficiency oriented policies that would translate into a price increase—variable pricing, tradable property rights, and privatization—clash with those principles constraining the monetization of public property. In addition, the article concludes by pointing to other situations where its analytical framework could be extended, such as other uses of public streets (for instance, use of public bus stops by shuttle-buses of private companies) or existing practices in connection to public resources of a similar nature (for instance, semi-privatization of beaches by surfers).


Since its original description in 1893 by Willem van Einthoven, the electrocardiogram (ECG) has been instrumental in the recognition of a wide array of cardiac disorders1,2. Although many electrocardiographic patterns have been well described, the underlying biology is incompletely understood. Genetic associations of particular features of the ECG have been identified by genome wide studies. This snapshot approach only provides fragmented information of the underlying genetic makeup of the ECG. Here, we follow the effecs of individual genetic variants through the complete cardiac cycle the ECG represents. We found that genetic variants have unique morphological signatures not identfied by previous analyses. By exploiting identified abberations of these morphological signatures, we show that novel genetic loci can be identified for cardiac disorders. Our results demonstrate how an integrated approach to analyse high-dimensional data can further our understanding of the ECG, adding to the earlier undertaken snapshot analyses of individual ECG components. We anticipate that our comprehensive resource will fuel in silico explorations of the biological mechanisms underlying cardiac traits and disorders represented on the ECG. For example, known disease causing variants can be used to identify novel morphological ECG signatures, which in turn can be utilized to prioritize genetic variants or genes for functional validation. Furthermore, the ECG plays a major role in the development of drugs, a genetic assessment of the entire ECG can drive such developments.


Lymphedema related to lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a disabling condition that commonly manifests in adolescence. Fifty-three adolescents, 25 LF infected and 28 LF non-infected, in age and sex-matched groups, using the Binax ICT rapid card test for filarial antigen were recruited to the study. None of the participants had overt signs of lymphedema. Lymphedema assessment measures were used to assess lower limb tissue compressibility (tonometry), limb circumference (tape measure), intra- and extra-cellular fluid distribution (bioimpedance) and joint range of motion (goniometry). The mean tonometric measurements from the left, right, and dominant posterior thighs were significantly larger in participants with LF compared to participants who had tested negative for LF (p = 0.005, p = 0.004, and p = 0.003, respectively) indicating increased tissue compressibility in those adolescents with LF. ROC curve analysis to define optimal cut-off of the tonometry measurements indicated that at 3.5, sensitivity of this potential screening test is 100% (95%-CI = 86.3%, 100%) and specificity is 21.4% (95%-CI = 8.3%, 41.0%). It is proposed that this cut-off can be used to indicate tissue change characteristic of LF in an at-risk population of PNG adolescents. Further longitudinal research is required to establish if all those with tissue change subsequently develop lymphedema. However, thigh tonometry to identify early tissue change in LF positive adolescents may enable early intervention to minimize progression of lymphedema and prioritization of limited resources to those at greatest risk of developing lifetime morbidity.


Seeds of native herbaceous vegetation adapted to germination in hydric soils (i.e., moist-soil plants) provide waterfowl with nutritional resources including essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals that occur only in small amounts or are absent in other foods. These elements are essential for waterfowl to successfully complete aspects of the annual cycle such as molt and reproduction. Moist-soil vegetation also has the advantages of consistent production of foods across years with varying water availability, low management costs, high tolerance to diverse environmental conditions, and low deterioration rates of seeds after flooding. The amount of seed produced differs among plant species and varies annually depending on environmental conditions and management practices. Further, many moist-soil impoundments contain diverse vegetation, and seed production by a particular plant species usually is not uniform across an entire unit. Consequently, estimating total seed production within an impoundment is extremely difficult. The chemical composition of seeds also varies among plant species. For example, beggartick seeds contain high amounts of protein but only an intermediate amount of minerals. In contrast, barnyardgrass is a good source of minerals but is low in protein. Because of these differences, it is necessary to know the amount of seed produced by each plant species if the nutritional resources provided in an impoundment are to be estimated. The following technique for estimating seed production takes into account the variation resulting from different environmental conditions and management practices as well as differences in the amount of seed produced by various plant species. The technique was developed to provide resource managers with the ability to make quick and reliable estimates of seed production. Although on-site information must be collected, the amount of field time required is small (i.e., about 1 min per sample); sampling normally is accomplished on an area within a few days. Estimates of seed production derived with this technique are used, in combination with other available information, to determine the potential number of waterfowl use-days available and to evaluate the effects of various management strategies on a particular site.


SUMMARY A study of the variability of the amplitude of Sq at a fixed hour from one day to the next at nine stations from the dip equator to about 22° north of it has produced interesting results. The amplitude and sign of the variability change virtually randomly, making the mean practically zero. The variability occurs at all hours of the day. Its magnitudes in the components D, H and Z have the same diurnal variation, which peaks in the noon period like Sq(H) in low latitudes, and a weak seasonal variation that peaks at the June solstice (local summer). It is demonstrated that changes in the current intensities of the equatorial electrojet (EEJ) and the worldwide part of the Sq (W Sq) current layers have contrasting phases and can sometimes be in antiphase. Indeed, the changes are mostly independent. Inclusion of the magnetic element D revealed that the EEJ current system has not only an east‐west but also a north‐south component. The study shows that the meridional component of the EEJ current intensity evidenced at the Kodaikanal and Annamalainagar stations is an integral part of the zonal component at Trivandrum. This confirms the results of Rastogi (1996) and validates those of Onwumechili (1997). The results suggest that ionospheric conductivity mainly controls the magnitude, while the electric field and ultimately winds mainly control the phase and randomness of the day-to-day variability of the hourly amplitudes of Sq. The random component is attributed to local and/or regional atmospheric winds, probably of gravity wave origin.


Prior research has demonstrated that paid work experience while in school is a predictor of postschool employment outcomes for youth with disabilities. For youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), early paid work experience in high school can provide a place to learn occupational skills as well as develop communication, problem solving and interpersonal skills and behaviors that are essential for obtaining and maintaining employment. In the present study, we examined the extent to which youth with ASD have engaged in early paid work experiences while in school and factors associated with such experiences, using data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 . We found that approximately 24.4% of youth with ASD reported having been involved in a paid work experience during high school at some point within the past year. Further, age, social engagement, household income, and parent expectations were significant predictors of early paid work experience. Implications for practice and research are discussed.


Recently, computerized dialogue systems are studied actively. Non-task-oriented dialogue systems that handle domain-free dialogues like chats are expected be applied in various fields, but many challenges still exist in developing them. This paper addresses the problem of utterance generation for non-task-oriented dialogue systems. We search twitter data by topic words and acquire sentences. The sentences are filtered by rules and scored on the basis of training data. We acquire the sentences which have a high score as utterances. The results of an experiment demonstrate that the proposed method can generate appropriate utterances with a high degree of accuracy.


The 2001–2003 excavations at Tell Sabi Abyad in northern Syria have provided important new information on the nature and development of the Pottery Neolithic settlement at the site in the seventh and sixth millennia B.C. The fieldwork has produced a long sequence of small and continually shifting occupations, in the order of 0.5–1.0 ha, each with rich assemblages of very early ceramics and other artifacts. There is proof for localized abandonment and the episodic contraction and expansion of occupation over the site. Living in small, dispersed groups, leaving extensive areas of the site uninhabited, was a basic practice of Neolithic settlers at Tell Sabi Abyad (and probably elsewhere as well). Of particular note was the discovery of well-preserved building levels belonging to the initial stage of the Pottery Neolithic, ca. 6600–6200 B.C., providing insight into the character of settlement and material culture of one of the poorest known periods in the history of Syria and the northern Levant. Single- and multiroomed houses came to light, often with white-plastered floors and walls. The ceramics from these buildings are among the earliest found in the Near East to date. Distinct changes in the organization of the communities and the material culture took place at ca. 6200 B.C. and were associated with, among other things, the appearance of circular buildings and clay sealings as indicators of controlled storage.


We present high spatial resolution, aperture synthesis images of K3-50A as part of an ongoing study of high-mass star formation regions. Maps in the HCO+ (J = 1 → 0), H13CO+ (J = 1 → 0), and SiO (v = 0, J = 2 → 1) emission lines at ~2.″5 resolution reveal both a flattened cloud of dense molecular gas ~1.1 pc in extent and a newly discovered inner torus ~0.5 pc in extent. The axis of the inner torus is tilted ~20° with respect to the outer cloud. The inner torus surrounds a bright continuum source, associated with the origin of a bipolar ionized gas outflow, and has HCO+(J = 1 → 0) optical depth greater than 14. Chemical abundances in the inner torus are azimuthally asymmetric, possibly due to differential impact of the ionized outflow on the inner region of the torus. Comparison with a kinematic radiative transfer model confirms that the torus is rotating and the rotation axis of the inner torus is aligned with the ionized outflow. While the cloud is not in solid body rotation, the rotational velocity of material in the cloud increases with radius. We estimate molecular abundance ratios by comparison with high-resolution dust extinction maps previously obtained at the same spatial resolution. The abundance ratio [HCO+]/[H2] = 3.9 × 10-8 is enhanced and falls in the upper range of typically measured values for star formation regions. SiO is likewise enhanced relative to both H2 and to HCO+. The ratio [SiO]/[H2] = 3.9 × 10-10 is within the range observed toward shock-excited regions. The cloud mass is estimated to be ≳2600 M☉.


A deep equilibrium model uses implicit layers, which are implicitly defined through an equilibrium point of an infinite sequence of computation. It avoids any explicit computation of the infinite sequence by finding an equilibrium point directly via root-finding and by computing gradients via implicit differentiation. In this paper, we analyze the gradient dynamics of deep equilibrium models with nonlinearity only on weight matrices and non-convex objective functions of weights for regression and classification. Despite non-convexity, convergence to global optimum at a linear rate is guaranteed without any assumption on the width of the models, allowing the width to be smaller than the output dimension and the number of data points. Moreover, we prove a relation between the gradient dynamics of the deep implicit layer and the dynamics of trust region Newton method of a shallow explicit layer. This mathematically proven relation along with our numerical observation suggests the importance of understanding implicit bias of implicit layers and an open problem on the topic. Our proofs deal with implicit layers, weight tying and nonlinearity on weights, and differ from those in the related literature.


Evidence is provided that the tridymite component observed in the X-ray diffraction patterns of some sewage sludge ashes (SSAs) should not be interpreted as the tridymite modification of SiO2 but as the tridymite form of AlPO4. This proof is based on a combined X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Mossbauer spectroscopy investigation of two SSAs produced at two fluidized bed incineration facilities, located in different municipalities and operated differently. The structural and chemical characterization was carried out on the 'as received' SSA samples as well as on the residues of these two SSAs pretreated by leaching in citric acid. In addition, direct proof is presented that the tridymite form of AlPO4 does crystallize from X-ray amorphous precursors under conditions that mimic the huge heating rate and short retention time (just seconds at T ≈ 850 °C) typical for fluidized bed incinerators.


The Vedic Multiplier and the Reversible Logic Gates has Designed and implemented in the multiply and Accumulate Unit (MAC) and that is shown in this paper. A Vedic multiplier is designed by using Urdhava Triyagbhayam sutra and the adder design is done by using reversible logic gate. Reversible logics are also the fundamental requirement for the emerging field of Quantum computing. The Vedic multiplier is used for the multiplication unit so as to reduce partial products and to get high performance and lesser area. The reversible logic is used to get less power. The MAC is designed in Verilog HDL and the simulation is done in Modelsim, Xilinx 14.2 and synthesis is done in both RTL compiler using cadence as well as Xilinx. The chip design for the proposed MAC is also carried out.


Regulated deaggregation allows meningitis-causing bacteria to propagate to new host cells and migrate across epithelia. Numerous bacterial species, such as Neisseria meningitidis, thrive in the mouth, throat, and gut, or on the skin, and propagate from one host to the next. Most of the time, cohabitation with these commensals has no pathological consequences and can even be beneficial. However, commensal species are occasionally responsible for severe invasive infections, including septicemia and meningitis. Chamot-Rooke et al. describe the details of a molecular switch that takes place during the infection cycle of N. meningitidis that allows it to disseminate. The process depends on a regulated posttranslational modification of the N. meningitidis pilin, the major component of a filamentous adhesive structure, the type IV pilus. This modification caused bacteria to maintain their adhesive properties to the host cell surface but to lose their ability to stay attached to bacterial microcolonies, so that a small proportion of bacteria are thus free to colonize new hosts and propagate. J. Chamot-Rooke, G. Mikaty, C. Malosse, M. Soyer, A. Dumont, J. Gault, A.-F. Imhaus, P. Martin, M. Trellet, G. Clary, P. Chafey, L. Camoin, M. Nilges, X. Nassif, G. Duménil, Posttranslational modification of pili upon cell contact triggers N. meningitidis dissemination. Science 331, 778–782 (2011). [Abstract] [Full Text]


The presence of Japan Inc. looms larger than ever for millions of American managers and workers, as hundreds of Japanese companies open plants and offices in local communities across the United States. What is it like to work for the Japanese? Can Americans, with their strong tradition of individualism, adjust to a Japanese "team system" that emphasizes harmony and close cooperation? How do Americans and Japanese resolve the misunderstandings that arise from differences in language and culture? Journalists Joseph and Suzy Fucini sought the answers by studying relations between Americans and Japanese at the new state-of-the-art Mazda plant in Flat Rock, Michigan, the first wholly-owned Japanese auto plant to employ a unionized American workforce. For three years, the Fucinis followed events at the plant, interviewing more than one hundred workers, managers and outside suppliers. The authors conclude that for all its strengths, the team system requires the sacrifice of individual interests to the good of the group, and that no matter how hard an individual tries to become part of the Mazda team, advancement for both managers and workers will be limited by the fact that they are not Japanese.


This paper discusses the results and the recent status of the study by radiolarians as tracers for erosional events, especially for those of Jurassic and pre-Jurassic accretionary complexes in the Outer Zone of SW Japan. As a test case to clarify the provenance of radiolarian-bearing gravels in conglomerates, the author reviewed the work previously done to trace the source rocks within oceanic-plate stratigraphy successions from monomictic chert-pebble conglomerates of the Lower Cretaceous Ryoseki-Monobegawa group. The group is a molasse typical of paralic sedimentary facies in the Outer Zone of SW Japan.


Avery Dulles is careful to distinguish between religious liberty, which is a positive good commended to us by a succession of recent papal encyclicals, and religious pluralism, which is an empirical reality that is far from good in itself and indeed could threaten to rend the fabric of society through its centrifugal tendencies. In response to this pluralism, Dulles suggests, following John Courtney Murray, that only a broad consensus on a national civil religion can prevent its fragmenting effects from going too far. He thus laments the recent erosion of this consensus and fears its long-term possible consequences. In response to Dulles, I will do three things: first, to explore religious diversity and the varying approaches that people take to it; second, to indicate how an understanding of what might be called differentiated responsibility helps us to articulate a proper political approach to this diversity; and, finally, to sound a note of hope for the future in the midst of our present crisis of fragmentation. David T. Koyzis, "Differentiated Responsibility and the Challenge of Religious Diversity," Journal of Markets & Morality 5, no. 1 (Spring 2002): 199-207


Abstract Background: The amount and perception of domestic work may affect satisfaction with everyday life, but further knowledge is needed about the relationship between domestic work division and health and well-being. Aim: To describe the division of, and satisfaction with, domestic work and responsibility for home/family in adults living with a partner. A further aim was to investigate the associations between these aspects and self-rated life satisfaction and health. Method: Data from the Work, Lipids and Fibrinogen survey collected 2009 were used, comprising 4924 participants living with a partner. Data were analyzed using logistic regression. Results: The majority shared domestic work and responsibility for home/family equally with their partner. However, more women conducted the majority of the domestic work and were less satisfied with its division. When both division and satisfaction with division was included in the analysis, solely satisfaction with the division and the responsibility were associated with higher odds for good life satisfaction. Regarding health, higher odds for good self-rated health were seen in those who were satisfied with their division of responsibility. Conclusion and significance: The results highlight the importance of taking into account not solely the actual division of domestic work but also the satisfaction with it.


Introduction The aim of this study was to find the prevalence of oral mucosal lesions in the adult and child populations, examined or treated at external university dental clinics of the University of Tromso, and then compare these prevalences with prevalences found in previous studies. Methods A questionnaire was sent to the external University dental clinics (n=14), inviting all dental practitioners and hygienists to participate. During eight weeks the examiners reported all the oral mucosal lesions found during examination or treatment of their patients. Results Twelve out of 14 clinics participated in the study (86%), and a total of 8088 (3122 adults and 4966 children) patients were examined by 39 examiners. Oral mucosal lesions were found in 7.59% of adult patients and in 2.68% of patients under the age of 18. The prevalence's of oral mucosal lesions were generally lower compared to previous studies. Conclusion Some of our results may indicate underregistration of oral mucosal lesions compared to previous studies. However, the previous studies have been conducted in other countries, and may not produce valid estimators of prevalences in Norway. To find the prevalence of oral mucosal lesions in Norway, a study on a general population that is stratified and randomly selected should be carried out.


The attachment of CMC to pulp is known to have a strong impact on the tensile strength properties. The mechanisms behind the strength-enhancing ability of the CMC have been investigated by studying the effect of surface carboxymethylation on some basic fibre and sheet properties. Standard methods were used for the strength evaluation, and the relative bonded area was determined from both light-scattering measurements and BET-analysis. The effect of CMC on the shear bond strength was calculated using Page's equation. The attachment of CMC was shown to increase the shape factor and reduce the number of kinks per fibre, which is beneficial for the tensile strength. Surface carboxymethylation also increased the relative bonded area, but on a small-scale structural level detectable only using BET-analysis and not by the scattering coefficient. The sheet density was not affected by the treatment. CMC attachment also increased the shear bond strength. In order to use Page's equation for this evaluation, the relative bonded area had to be determined by BET-analysis. The positive effect of CMC on sheet formation also contributed to an increase in tensile strength.


The present study aims at: (a) determining Arabic teachers' extent of needs
for language skills, (b) perceived competence in using language skills, and
(c) readiness for self-directed learning. Two groups of Arabic teachers,
namely, non-native government religious schoolteachers (Sekolah Menengah
Kebangsaan Agama SMKA) and non-native speaking teachers of Arabic of
the Matriculation Center International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM),
were involved in the study. Approximately, 160 respondents were involved in
the study, 70% were religious schoolteachers and 30% were teachers of the
Matriculation Center IIUM.
A questionnaire was employed to gather data. The results of data analysis
indicated that both schoolteachers and the Matriculation teachers showed
high level of needs for language skills, their perceived language competence
was also high, but they showed moderate level of readiness for self-directed learning. They perceived lower in benefiting from external learning factors
such as learning resources and learning strategies. Schoolteachers showed
higher level of need in language skills, language competence and readiness
for SDL compared to Matriculation teachers. Benefiting from external learning
factors however, was lower for schoolteachers compared to Matriculation.
The results of t-test and ANOVA indicated no significant difference between
Arabic teachers' needs for language skills and language competence in
terms of their training, majors and qualifications. However, there is a
significant difference in readiness for selfdirected learning in terms of
training, but no significant difference in terms of majors and qualifications.
The results of stepwise multiple regression analysis demonstrated a
significant correlation of three independent variables namely, learning
strategies, language competence and teaching experience, with the
dependent variable readiness for SDL.
The findings of the study suggest that any effort by the educational authority
to assist Arabic teachers for their self development has to take into account
their needs, ways to enhance their language competence and ways to
improve their readiness for SDL.


The paper investigates a new approach to analysis and design of inhomogeneous linear antenna arrays. The approach relies on omnidirectional antennas, which exhibit linear phase variation of the radiation pattern in the far-field. By appropriately combining different phase variations with a spacing between antennas, one can obtain a performance not achievable with standard linear arrays. Most notably, the approach allows to decrease size of the aperture required for a given beamwidth. The radiation pattern can be easily calculated by a simple equation (if coupling is neglected).


Abstract Dryland rivers in which fine sediments travel as aggregates are increasingly recognized in modern and ancient fluvial systems. Fowlers Creek, Australia, is an ephemeral dryland mud-aggregate river whose sediments provide insights into the dynamics of mud-aggregate floodplains, the origin of massive mudrocks from arid depositional environments, and the nature of planar bedding. Fowlers Creek's flow conditions were inferred from relationships between landforms and the sediment texture, bedforms, and sedimentary structures remaming after flow ceases. Floodplain muds, consisting of fine sand and sand-size mud aggregates, are distributed over the floodplain in suspension. As flow decelerates they are deposited as bedload. The shallow depth, high sediment load, and low aggregate particle density promote flow conditions ranging from high in the lower flow regime to upper flow regime, producing coexisting ripples, scours, flat beds, and clay layers. With time, visible signs of aggregate structure are lost, leaving a massive cohesive mud; consolidation is not achieved by burial. Aggregates reappear when muds reenter fluvial transport. In unchanneled reaches, sheetflows deposit sediment with a pervasive horizontal fabric. Channel sediments (coarse sands and gravels) are a minor component of Fowlers Creek's deposits. Widespread lower-flow-regime conditions produce planar beds and 2-D dunes, usually deposited without internal stratification or in horizontal laminae. Lower-flow-regime planar bedding is also observed in fine silty sands. Near the close of flow, rapid shallowing may move channel conditions from lower to upper flow regime, or from lower to higher positions in the lower flow regime bedform stability spectrum, leading to unusual bedform associations. In the rock record sediments from a river like Fowlers Creek would be characterized by structureless gravelly sands (channel facies), massive red mudstones (floodplain facies), and sediments with horizontal fabric but poorly expressed bedding (sheetflow facies).


BACKGROUND
The Child's Challenging Behaviour Scale (CCBS) was designed to measure a mother's rating of her child's challenging behaviours. The CCBS was initially developed for mothers of school-aged children with developmental disability and has previously been shown to have good psychometric properties using classical test theory techniques. The aim of this study was to use Rasch analysis to fully evaluate all aspects of the scale, including response format, item fit, dimensionality and targeting.

METHODS
The sample consisted of 152 mothers of a school-aged child (aged 5-18 years) with a disability. Mothers were recruited via websites and mail-out newsletters through not-for-profit organizations that supported families with disabilities. Respondents completed a survey which included the 11 items of the CCBS. Rasch analysis was conducted on these responses using the RUMM2030 package.

RESULTS
Rasch analysis of the CCBS revealed serious threshold disordering for nine of the 11 items, suggesting problems with the 5-point response format used for the scale. The neutral midpoint of the response format was subsequently removed to create a 4-point scale. High levels of local dependency were detected among two pairs of items, resulting in the removal of two items (item 7 and item 1). The final nine-item version of the scale (CCBS Version 2) was unidimensional, well targeted, showed good fit to the Rasch model, and strong internal consistency.

CONCLUSIONS
To achieve fit to the Rasch model it was necessary to make two modifications to the CCBS scale. The resulting nine-item scale with a 4-point response format showed excellent psychometric properties, supporting its internal validity.


The interaction of laser light with a parcel of air with a known density structure can result in one of three reactions. The simplest of these reactions is reflection. Depending on the nature of the density profile, that part of the light that is not reflected can be refracted or scattered. The extent of the refraction and scattering is determined by the density of the particles found in the air. This thesis investigates two concepts that use the abovementioned interactions. The first, the colliding shock lens (CSL) was proposed by Buccellato, Lisi and Michaelis (1993) . This device uses the graded index (GRIN) lens formed by the collision of symmetrically arranged shock waves to focus a laser beam. Unfortunately, the first reported colliding shock lenses had optical apertures of the order of millimeters. This is hardly useful in realistic laser systems whose beams typically have a diameter of 10mm. The major part of this thesis involves the scaling up of the optical aperture of the CSL while simultaneously maintaining a fairly short foca l length. We show how the behaviour of the CSL varies with factors such as input energy, electrical diameter, geometry and various other factors. By optimising the physical parameters a 1.5cm diameter lens is obtained having a focal length of 1.5m. We develop a simple scaling theory and run a simulation based on the fluid in cell (FLIC) method, and find good correlation in both cases between the experimentally obtained results and the theoretically predicted ones. As a further development of the work on colliding shock lenses we introduce a cylindrical colliding shock lens. This device is shown to be able to line focus a laser beam of 1cm in diameter. At this stage the focus quality is still poor and suggestions are made for further improvements. Lidar is an acronym for light detection and ranging. Such systems are based on the scattering of laser light incident on a parcel of air. We discuss the results of a campaign conducted during the period of June to November 1994 to study aerosol concentrations over Durban. Particular attention is paid to low level aerosols due to sugar cane burning over the Natal coast. These aerosols are known to influence local climate and since vertical profile studies have never been carried out , this investigation gives some useful insight into the atmospheric dynamics. We find that in June (the begining of the burning campaign) the aerosol loading in the lower atmosphere is low. However , there are very stable aerosol layers at 3km and Skm. The density of the aerosols in these layers are decoupled. In September, the turbulent atmosphere over Durban is found to destroy structure in the aerosol layers. Nevertheless, the aerosol loading is high. Scattering ratios and extinction coefficients are calculated to show the long and short term evolution of the aerosols. A new coefficient (the low altitude aerosol coefficent LAAC) is defined as an indicator for aerosol loading in the lower atmosphere. This coefficient is compared with total column ozone values over Durban. An anti-correlatory behaviour is noticed. We also report the detection of an extremely high aerosol layer (60km) over Durban. This layer is believed to be sodium. The profiles are compared to satellite data to verify the first ever detection of a constituent at these altitudes in Southern Africa.


While the United States has a divisive history around the separation of church and state in public school, current national and state teaching standards do include curricular objectives related to the study of religion. This paper focuses on the ways a diverse group of sixth-grade public schoolchildren engaged with religious content in their English Language Arts class. Specifically, it examines the kinds of narratives the children constructed in response to diverse works of public art and children's picture books, including Mora's (2012) The Beautiful Lady: Our Lady of Guadalupe / La hermosa señora: Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Señora), and Garza's (1996) In My Family. The children's responses disrupt us/Other social narratives and demonstrate the importance of religious literacy in the space of public schools. They push against the notion that acknowledging religious perspectives that are not part of mainstream culture could be offensive to some children. This study reinforces that the interdisciplinary inclusion of religious content in public school not only supports state and national teaching standards, but also opens a space for children to understand the pluralistic society in which they live.


Introduction: Cardiac injuries are one of the important causes of death in young population. With aggressive resuscitative therapy and emergency room thoracotomy, the salvage rate of these patients can reach 35%. In this case series the types of presentation, methods of resuscitation, surgical approaches, operative and postoperative outcomes are discussed. Patients and Methods: From January 2009 to January 2014 there were 3157 patients treated for thoracic injuries at Sulaimani university hospital, 14 patients had cardiac injuries. All admitted cases with central chest trauma were submitted to a thorough clinical examination, ECG and eFAST (extended Focused assessment with sonography for trauma) and/or transthoracic echocardiography. Results: Total of 14 cardiac injuries from 3157 causalities were identified, which is 0.44% of the total admissions. Male gender was predominant (85.7% vs. 14.28%) for females. Mechanism of injury was mostly penetrating (85.71%) among which stabs were majority (57.14%) while bullet and shrapnel each constituted (14.28%). Mean time of interval between the accident and our intervention was 2.96 hours. No diagnostic test was 100% specific and sensitive. Discussion: Cardiac injury regarded as a crucial injury because of its high fatality. It is reported that 10.3% of emergency surgical operations are thoracic type and about 1% of them are associated with cardiac injury. Although any penetrating injury to the thorax may injure the heart but those within the box are more suspicious. We conclude that cardiac trauma is a fatal injury but still if the facilities are available the mortality can be minimized.


Background: Dysfunctional uterine bleeding (DUB) is common ailment. It accounts for about 10% of gynaecology outpatient department (OPD) registrants in developed countries. There is disturbance of rhythmic cyclic menstruation resulting in excessive and irregular hemorrhage. Anovulation or oligoovulation leads to the sustained estrogen effects with unopposed progesteronal effects. Other causes of estrogen dominance may also cause similar effects. The relative estrogen dominance results in various changes in the endometrial vasculature causing menorrhagia. Objective: To determine the frequency and significance of thickened blood vessels in the endometrial curettings in dysfunctional uterine bleeding. Study Design: Retrospective cross sectional pilot study. Place of Study: Islamabad Institute of Pathology & Labs, Islamabad, Pakistan Materials & Method: Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) stained sections of 30 consecutive random cases of the endometrial curetting from dysfunctional uterine bleeding were studied by light microscopy for with particular emphasis on numbers of thickened blood vessels. Inclusion Criteria: All endometrial curetting with history of dysfunctional uterine bleeding Exclusion Criteria: Endometrial curetting from patients with specific etiologies such as endometritis, atypical hyperplasia, retained products, Intra uterine devices (IUDS) Results: Over 50% of the patients were in perimenopausal age group i.e. 40-55. All endometrial curettings contained thickened blood vessels. On average there were about 8 thickened blood vessels per endometrial curetting. Conclusion: Estrogen induced vascular changes result in increased permeability which may in turn cause deposits of various plasma proteins in the wall with enhanced intramural vascular thickening. Such thickened vessels may not contract properly thus causing and prolonging excessive bleeding.


Abstract Under intensified pressures for improving the global competence of university graduates, national governments across different parts of the globe have to on the one hand expand higher education enrolments and on the other hand assure high quality in teaching and research in order to make sure their higher education systems can compete globally. Many Asian states have been in the forefront of this effort to improve national competitiveness by raising their higher education enrolment rate. As state financing and provision alone will not satisfy the growing demands for higher education, governments in Asia adopt more pro-competition policy instruments and increasingly look to the market/private sectors in running higher education. Therefore the private higher education sector has paid for much of the higher education sector expansion, leading to revolutionary changes and imparting a growing 'privateness' to Asian higher education systems. This article sets out in this wider socio-economic context to examine the rise of transnational higher education in three Asian societies: Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. With particular reference to examining how the growing prominence of privateness in higher education has challenged the conventional education governance models, this article critically examines how these Asian states have reinvented their regulatory regimes to govern the growing complexity and highly contested public-private mix in higher education.


Future application of robotic missions in the space context will require the systems to have both mobility and manipulation capabilities. The limited direct communication with the systems due to visibility, and severe time delays also make it a requirement for the system to perform its actions mainly autonomously. The increasing complexity of the task, as well as the strict requirements for reliability and fault tolerance pose a significant challenge to both engineering and research activities. The SpaceBot Cup was held in November 2013 to probe those capabilities in the context of a competition. In this paper we present the Artemis rover and its software architecture as well as the competition results and lessons learned. Special attention is given to the modular design based on the Robot Construction Kit (Rock) framework – a component based software framework, which uses a component model based on the Orocos Real-Time-Toolkit (RTT).


This paper considers multiobjective linear programming problems where each coefficient of the objective functions isexpressed by a random fuzzy variable. A new decision making model is proposed by incorporating the concept of fractilecriteria optimization into a possibilistic programming model. An interactive fuzzy satisficing method is presented forderiving a satisficing solution for a decision maker efficiently by updating the reference membership levels. In theproposed method, it is shown that the transformed deterministic problems for obtaining Pareto optimal solutions can besolved by using some convex programming techniques. An illustrative numerical example is provided to clarify theproposed method.


You think you know why our government in Washington is broken, but you really don't. You think it's broken because politicians curry favor with special interests and activists of the Left or Right. There's something to that and it helps explain why these politicians can't find common ground, but it misses the root cause. A half century ago, elected officials in Congress and the White House figured out a new system for enacting laws and spending programs--one that lets them take credit for promising good news while avoiding blame for government producing bad results. With five key tricks, politicians of both parties now avoid accounting to us for what government actually does to us.
While you understand that these politicians seem to pull rabbits out of hats, hardly anyone sees the sleight of hand by which they get away with their tricks. Otherwise, their tricks wouldn't work. DC Confidential exposes the sleights of hand. Once they are brought to light, we can stop the tricks, fix our broken government, and make Washington work for us once again.
The book explains the necessary reform and lays out an action plan to put it in place. Stopping the tricks would be a constructive, inclusive response to the anger that Americans from across the political spectrum feel toward what should be our government.


In Chapter one, I presented a comparative definition of the meaning of Sirah (PI.Siyar), Tarjamah (Pl. Tarajim), Manaqib, Tabaqat and Maghazi as they were understood in antiquity. I also showed how the meaning of Sirah in modern times has only narrowly developed. Although the method of biographical writing continuously developed in Europe, it hardly progressed in Modem Arabic Literature. The only exception was seen in the writings by the pioneers of enlightenment in Egypt at the beginning of the twentieth century. This change of direction relied on borrowing European methodology in biographical writing.

In chapter two, I reviewed the early attempts at writing biographies in the nineteenth century by Abd al Rahman al- Jabarti and Ali Mubarak. Although both were the first
pioneers in this respect, yet they followed the footpath of classical approach above all that of al-Maqarizi from whom -Ali Mubarak derived inspiration in his book Al-Khitat al-Tawfiqiyyah.

In chapter three, I studied the twentieth century, starting with traditional biography writers who could not employ European methodologies and whose writings oscillated between biographical notes and biographical sketches; or whose texts were more of a literary study than a biography proper.

In chapters four to nine, I selected the most renowned, productive writers who best represented methodologies of biography writing. Perhaps certain writers have not
been mentioned in this period of study. This is not out of negligence but simply because their texts were totally out of reach, or their writings did not exhibit the
required literary criteria.

All methodologies representing the theory of biography writing in Egypt have been analysed in these chapters. All, in fact, form a digestion or assimilation of French,English and German schools. In Egypt, Taha Husayn is considered the chairman of the French school, al-Mazini and al-Aqqad of the English/German schools, al-Nuwaihi of the psychoanalytical/anatomical school and Sidqi who employed both. By contrast, al Iryan was the trailblazer of the distinguished biographical novel.

In these chapters, I tried to lay out the general outlines these writers have produced in the production of biographical texts, and how these attempts were a successful step on the road of presenting literary biographies characterized by high world standards.

Chapter ten may well seem traditional, but it is important to give a comparative outlook on the views of biography writers themselves when they study and analyse
the same character.

Among the characters studied ,I selected Bashsliar, Abu Nuwas, Ibn al-Run-i, al-Mutanabbi and al-Maarri. These are outstanding landmarks in the history of Arab verse and the subject of a multitude of studies as well. Modern biographers took these figures as a test field for the deployment and employment of biographical methodologies. I selected these examples to provide comparisons and explain how far these biographies were successful in producing a biography or a profile of those classical poets.

The conclusion and the bibliographical list arrived at the end of research.

I wish, however, to clarify one important point here. It seems that I could not fix the year 1950 as the temporal parameter of my research but took some textswhich were
published shortly beyond that point. The reason for this obvious extension was either to give additional useful details or simply because chapters of such texts had already
been published prior to that year and were known to the readership.

At times I would satisfy myself with analysing the part rather than the whole. This again was meant to eschew repetition or was due to the fact that the book in question
was not available.