A 12 year old female, presented with rapidly progressive visual loss following left hemi facial pain for 15 days duration. Anterior segment and fundus examination was normal. She was diagnosed as retro bulbar neuritis and received steroid therapy. CT scan of PNS revealed a mass limited to the nasopharyngeal area and an endoscopic biopsy of mass revealed to be rhabdomyosarcoma, embryonal type. She was enrolled with pediatric oncology group rhabdomyosarcoma, as intermediate risk group to receive chemo-radiotherapy. A repeat MRI of brain done two weeks later, showed an intracranial extension of the tumor involving the optic nerve and chiasma. The fundus examination showed bilateral optic disc pallor. The patient responded well to chemotherapy but there was no visual improvement at four weeks follow-up. This case highlights the aggressive nature of rhabdomyosarcoma and should be kept as a differential diagnosis in cases of sudden loss of vision with normal fundus in children.

Keywords: Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma2, Optic atrophy4, Nasopharyngeal mass3, Chemotherapy1


In 1957, in the case of Conley v. Gibson, the Supreme Court announced a minimal standard for the contents of a complaint under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and endorsed what has come to be known as 'notice' pleading. This article, prepared for a symposium on Conley, reviews the debate over pleading requirements that preceded the case. Unlike modern discussions of pleading, which focus on the level of factual specificity required in complaints, the pre-Conley debate was about the legal content of complaints - an question largely forgotten in the years following Conley. The early twentieth century debate over pleading was at least in part a jurisprudential debate, waged between legal formalists and Legal Realists. The different interpretations the two camps gave to the pleading rules under the Field Code and, later, the Federal Rules, reflected their differing views of the role of positive law in adjudication. Formalists believed that a viable complaint must set out a theory of recovery, or 'cause of action,' based on existing rules of law. Legal Realists believed that the rules governing complaints should allow plaintiffs to present their stories to the courts and courts to do justice according to the facts that evolved at trial. The formalist view made legal claims dependent on supporting rules of substantive law, and so increased the chances that the course of litigation, and the resolution of litigated disputes, would be governed by articulable legal rules. The Legal Realist view loosened the grip of substantive law on trials, favoring instead a mode of adjudication in which judges aimed for just outcomes, case-by-case. The article sets out my interpretation of the pre-Conley pleading debate, then describes the rather haphazard way in which the debate was resolved. It concludes with some brief comments on the implications the early debate for civil rights litigation.


Climate scientists have long warned that global warming, even if by only a few degrees, would play global havoc, with devastating negative impacts on the entire planet. In the climate science world, there are no positive impacts of a temperature increase, only negatives. Climate scientists frequently blame global warming almost entirely on the steady increase in the use of fossil fuels by human beings as the world becomes ever more and more industrialized. Climate scientists generally believe that drastic and costly steps must immediately be taken to curb the burning of fossil fuels in an effort to reduce the pace of global warming, even if these drastic measures have only a minimal impact on atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, if at all.This paper takes an entirely different view grounded in both plant science and agricultural production economics. This has been largely if not entirely ignored by the climate scientists. The scientific basis is grounded both in agricultural production economics and the basics of plant physiology. The conclusion I reach states that to the extent the planet is warming, while there may be some measurable and reasonable costs, the same warming undeniably generates large benefits to agriculture. These benefits accrue to farmers and consumers. Farmers operating in the Northern Plains states have been and continue to be major beneficiaries. These benefits include not only the direct impacts of the carbon dioxide on plant growth, but also benefits such as increased rainfall associated with greater cloud cover, longer growing seasons allowing a larger diversity of high-value species to be grown, more lush pasture growth for livestock and warmer winters that allow more fall-planted and high-yielding plant such as winter wheats to thrive.


This paper presents an analysis of the potential impacts of an international initiative designed to support and promote the development and implementation of appliances standards and labelling programs throughout the world. As part of previous research efforts, LBNL developed the Bottom Up Energy Analysis System (BUENAS), an analysis framework that estimates impact potentials of energy efficiency policies on a global scale. In this paper, we apply this framework to an initiative that would result in the successful implementation of programs focused on high priority regions and product types, thus evaluating the potential impacts of such an initiative in terms of electricity savings and carbon mitigation in 2030. In order to model the likely parameters of such a program, we limit impacts to a five year period starting in 2009, but assume that the first 5 years of a program will result in implementation of 'best practice' minimum efficiency performance standards by 2014. The 'high priority' regions considered are: Brazil, China, the European Union,India, Mexico and the United States. The products considered are: refrigerators, air conditioners, lighting (both fluorescent and incandescent), standby power (for consumer electronics) and televisions in the residential sector, and air conditioning and lighting in commercial buildings. In 2020, these regions and enduses account for about 37percent of global residential electricity and 29percent of electricity in commercial buildings. We find that 850Mt of CO2 could be saved in buildings by 2030 compared to the baseline forecast.


Does the spread of democracy really contribute to international peace? Successive U. S. administrations have justified various policies intended to promote democracy not only by arguing that democracy is intrinsically good but by pointing to a wide range of research concluding that democracies rarely, if ever, go to war with one another. To promote democracy, the United States has provided economic assistance, political support, and technical advice to emerging democracies in Eastern and Central Europe, and it has attempted to remove undemocratic regimes through political pressure, economic sanctions, and military force. In Electing to Fight, Edward Mansfield and Jack Snyder challenge the widely accepted basis of these policies by arguing that states in the early phases of transitions to democracy are more likely than other states to become involved in war. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative analysis, Mansfield and Snyder show that emerging democracies with weak political institutions are especially likely to go to war. Leaders of these countries attempt to rally support by invoking external threats and resorting to belligerent, nationalist rhetoric. Mansfield and Snyder point to this pattern in cases ranging from revolutionary France to contemporary Russia. Because the risk of a state's being involved in violent conflict is high until democracy is fully consolidated, Mansfield and Snyder argue, the best way to promote democracy is to begin by building the institutions that democracy requires -- such as the rule of law -- and only then encouraging mass political participation and elections. Readers will find this argument particularly relevant to prevailing concerns about the transitional government in Iraq. Electing to Fight also calls into question the wisdom of urging early elections elsewhere in the Islamic world and in China.


The photophysical and photochemical properties of electronically excited states of thymine and its water complexes are studied using resonantly enhanced multiphoton ionization spectroscopy. After initial excitation by a nanosecond laser, the excited thymine molecule is trapped in a dark state with a lifetime of tens of nanoseconds. Ionization from this dark state by deep ultraviolet (UV) radiation has a substantially high yield. The lifetime of the dark state is rapidly decreased by adding water molecules. These results indicate that the photostability of our genetic code is not an intrinsic property of the bases themselves. Quenching by solvent water molecules may be the key for the photostability of the DNA bases.


Understanding organizations and their needs for new technology has never been more challenging than in today's high-tech business world. Enterprise managers are required to coordinate with other departmental managers, direct their personnel and solve problems along the way. Communicating new designs to IT for needed applications may not be in the manager's skillset. When the enterprise grows rapidly or tries to compete in new areas, a set of basic diagrams illustrating common workflows may no longer accurately reflect the complex environment. What is needed is a simple method for illustrating the enterprise as a whole, interoperable structure so managers and workers alike can describe their requirements in the unique vocabulary of their industry. REBAR offers a novel approach for using key strategic and operational business documents, written in natural language, as the basis for the formal enterprise ontology. Popular semantic web standards, including RDF, FOAF and DC, provide generic terms already designed to convey the subject–predicate–object structure of natural language in a social structure. The REBAR enterprise ontology extends these existing standards, thus evolving a sociotechnical model of the functional organization distilled directly from existing enterprise documents. REBAR captures the essence of the unique enterprise in a graphical application that can be queried and dynamically recombined to illustrate details of complex workplace collaborations. An enterprise ontology should unite all defined departmental functions authorized by executive enterprise managers. Additionally, findings indicate the REBAR ontology has the potential to provide a reusable structure for linking core social business functions of the enterprise to other explicit enterprise knowledge, including policies, procedures, tech manuals, training documents and project metrics. The REBAR methodology offers evidence that the enterprise is more than the sum of its parts, it is the bridge unifying explicit and tacit knowledge during work projects across the entire enterprise.


This essay addresses subjectivity in the context of the emergence of neoliberalism in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The appropriation of neoliberal values and policies in Dubai offers data on cultural processes that demonstrate the highly localized ways neoliberalism is inflected, challenging theories of neoliberal policies as monolithic instruments of global integration. Unlike other national contexts such as Singapore, local inflections of neoliberalism in Dubai are governed more by notions of ethically "valuable" citizenship and authentic identity than by economically "valuable" citizenship. The essay focuses on the young corporate employees of some of Dubai's leading corporations, who I call Dubai's "flexible citizens." First situating the genealogy of neoliberalism and its flexible citizens in the colonial history of Dubai, the essay goes on to analyze the ways Dubai's flexible citizens appropriate neoliberal discourses to mediate local ambiguities and tensions of social and gender identity. The essay concludes with a discussion of how neoliberal Dubai is evolving in the wake of the 2008 world economic crisis.


Greater exposure to environmental microorganisms has been hypothesized to reduce the likelihood of developing autoimmune disorders, and vegetation is known to be a source of diverse microbiota to the air. However, the spatiotemporal dynamics of airborne microbial communities in urban environments with varying amounts and types of vegetation are poorly understood. In this study we used high-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene to assess whether fine-scale variation in urban vegetation influences the diversity, composition, or structure of airborne bacterial communities over time. We used passive settling dishes to collect airborne bacteria from 36 sites representing three urban land cover types (forest, grassland, paved) over a 3-month period in Eugene-Springfield, Oregon, USA. We used remote sensing data (aerial 4-band orthoimagery and LiDAR) and geographic information systems (GIS) to assess detailed site characteristics (e.g., total vegetation cover and structural diversity) for each site. Our initial analysis indicated that site was the most important factor explaining variation in bacterial community structure (R2 = 0.32, p < 0.001), followed by sampling date (R2 = 0.24, p < 0.001), while land cover type was a significant but weak predictor (R2 = 0.06, p < 0.001) and other vegetation metrics were even less predictive. However, when samples were analyzed separately by date, the explanatory power of land cover type increased substantially; six of nine dates showed significant effects (p < 0.05) with R2 ranging from 0.16–0.31, indicating that land cover type had a marked influence on bacterial community structure that was obscured by the effects of site and sampling date. Despite the importance of site as a predictor of bacterial community structure, Mantel tests for spatial correlation were insignificant for most sampling dates, suggesting that localized site characteristics were driving this relationship. We use our results to propose a space-time conceptual model of the interactions between site-scale environmental features (e.g., vegetation characteristics) and regional-scale temporal processes and events (e.g., agricultural harvesting) to understand and perhaps manage intraurban airborne bacterial communities.


To better understand deepwater imaging challenges in the Gulf of Mexico, we constructed a large 3D model based on the complex salt geology of the Garden Banks protraction area. We simulated a regional wide-azimuth (WAZ) streamer survey with offsets of ±8 km inline and ±4 km crossline over this model. Using the true velocity model, reverse time migration of this data set produced a usable subsalt image nearly everywhere. The same synthetic seismic data set was passed to interpreters and geophysicists to process and image as if it were real field data. They did not get to see the true velocity model. Instead they performed conventional "migrate, pick, and flood" top-down velocity-model building, followed by final imaging through their interpreted velocity model. Where the salt was relatively simple, we found that the interpreted velocity model was reasonably accurate. Reverse time migration of the seismic data through these parts of the velocity model produced an image that was imperfect, but still usable for exploration-scale, structural interpretation. Where the salt structure was complex, however, it was sometimes grossly misinterpreted. The ensuing large-scale errors in the interpreted velocity model resulted in an unusable, shattered subsalt image. We next simulated a low-frequency, ocean-bottom-node (OBN) acquisition, with offsets up to 30 km in all azimuths. We started with the imperfect model produced by the interpreters and investigated what it would take for full-waveform inversion (FWI) to successfully find and fix the gross interpretation errors. Initial results suggest this "interpretation followed by FWI" methodology could produce a velocity model capable of generating an adequate subsalt image, but it may require ultrawide offsets (30 km), ultralow frequencies (below 2 Hz), and improved FWI algorithms to do so.


Over the last 12 months, we have witnessed an unexpected breakthrough and rapid evolution in the field of emerging photovoltaics, with the realization of highly efficient solid-state hybrid solar cells based on organometal trihalide perovskite absorbers. In this Perspective, the steps that have led to this discovery are discussed, and the future of this rapidly advancing concept have been considered. It is likely that the next few years of solar research will advance this technology to the very highest efficiencies while retaining the very lowest cost and embodied energy. Provided that the stability of the perovskite-based technology can be proven, we will witness the emergence of a contender for ultimately low-cost solar power.


The emerging consensus regarding high and rising levels of graduate unemployment in South Africa in recent years has primarily been based on a select number of studies, all of which have serious shortcomings ranging from deficient definitions of "graduates" to the use of outdated, incomplete, or unrepresentative data. Moreover, given the heterogeneity in the quality of higher education in South Africa, existing findings regarding aggregate graduate unemployment in the country, even if accurate, mask the substantial variation in labour market outcomes which are likely to be faced by graduates from different higher education institutions. This paper attempts to address these issues by examining graduate unemployment and employment in South Africa with specific emphasis on the type and quality of higher education using multiple labour force survey and administrative datasets. Its primary contribution is to incorporate the effect of potential measures of higher education institution type and quality on the likelihood of graduate unemployment and employment by probabilistically linking graduates that are observed in labour force survey data to the institutions from which they are likely to have graduated given their time-invariant observable characteristics and the known demographic composition of the graduates produced by each of South Africa's formal higher education institutions every year. The analysis shows that graduate unemployment in South Africa is not only low in relation to overall unemployment in the country, but that much of the racially-delineated differentials in graduate unemployment and employment outcomes can likely be attributed to heterogeneity in the quality and type of higher education institutions commonly attended by individuals from different racial backgrounds.


Cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by craniofacial dysmorphia, ectodermal abnormalities, cardiac malformations, as well as growth and developmental delay. Although some endocrine abnormalities have been reported in this syndrome, very little is known about CFC syndrome-related endocrine disorders. A 7.5-year-old boy was admitted to our endocrinology clinic with the complaint of short stature. He had a height of 103 cm [-4 standard deviation (SD)], a weight of 16 kg (<3th percentile, -1.7 SD), a facial appearance typical for the CFC syndrome, optic nerve hypoplasia and pulmonary stenosis. Genetic investigation revealed a heterozygous mutation in exon 3 of the MEK1 gene, c.389A>G (p. Y130C). During his long-term follow-up, the patient developed a variety of endocrine disorders including precocious puberty, growth hormone deficiency and hyperprolactinemia.


This short comment on Loïc Wacquant's 'Marginality, Ethnicity, and Penality' begins by highlighting three of Wacquant's most important interventions. It then extends the analysis by drawing on research about urban marginality in South Africa and Palestine/Israel. Whereas Wacquant focuses on the state response to urban marginality, I suggest that it is important to look beyond the state to consider how other actors have responded to the growth of precarious populations. Specifically, I point out that private security companies and residents' associations are at the forefront of efforts to police poor black South Africans, while an imperial network of security forces polices the Palestinian precariat.


Background: With the advent of many new advanced techniques, sequences of a number of proteins have been made available. But the relative paucity of the experimentally determined three-dimensional structures of these proteins has paved way for the development of computational structure prediction methods. Protein secondary structure prediction is an essential step in modeling the tertiary structure. Among the various secondary structure prediction methods available, three different methods with unique working principles, namely, GOR, HNN, and SOPMA were evaluated for their efficiency to predict secondary structures. Methods: A set of 90 different proteins with known secondary structures from three major classes namely, mainly alpha, mainly beta, and mainly alpha beta was used as reference. Secondary structure data of these proteins obtained through experimental methods were compared with that of predictions made by GOR, HNN, and SOPMA respectively by employing various statistical analyses, namely paired sample test, correlation coefficient, standard deviation, standard error mean and scatter plots. Results: The secondary structure prediction tools namely, GOR and HNN were found to predict helical structures more accurately than the sheets. SOPMA was observed to predict sheets more accurately than helices. Conclusion: Based on the observed results, it could be concluded that there is no single tool that consistently predicts all the secondary structures accurately. It could also be anticipated that a combined use of these secondary prediction tools could further enhance the efficacy of in silico protein secondary structure prediction methods.


The muscled, independent woman found in action-orientated cinema is a problematic figure that confronts customary perceptions of masculine and feminine representation and gender roles. The regularly applied active/passive dichotomy is challenged by the agency and skill of these women, but, simultaneously, their position is undermined by an emphasis on the body, relationships with male characters, and the demands of patriarchy. Indeed, Jeffrey A. Brown (1996) argues that a female in an action role is simply a 'sheep in wolf's clothing'. This paper will explore Brown's claim by focusing on the 1980s sword and sorcery cycle, in particular the often critically overlooked Conan the Destroyer (1984) and Red Sonja (1985). In these narratives, women are seemingly elevated from subsidiary roles to become action heroines or formidable villains. Moreover, the films facilitate discussions of the women as warriors, women as powerful malevolent forces, but also engage with broader issues surrounding the representation of gender, sexuality, race, and the female body.


I formulate a phase theory of microcredit market dynamics. The theory is developed and validated using an in-depth multiple case study examining three mature microfinance markets: Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Morocco. I present a specific case study framework that is used to analyze each of the three markets separately. This framework combines qualitative and quantitative empirical analysis through the evaluation of 12 specific indicators. These indicators are chosen to represent four different market dynamics that are believed to affect microfinance institutions and their performance. A cross-case analysis is conducted to detect similar patterns across the three mature markets, and the findings are summarized into the phase theory. I present a theory of six different phases that a microfinance market goes through from its emergence until the crisis is resolved. Some of the important findings across the three cases are rapid growth, increased bargaining power of consumers and excessive funding to the microfinance institutions, all in the time period leading up to the repayment crisis. In essence, the phase theory predicts that a market that grows beyond what is sustainable and controllable will eventually crash when macroeconomic instability occurs. To make sure a market maintains a sustainable growth, it's important for the microfinance institutions to focus on long-term profitability over short-term growth. Mechanisms for information sharing are also essential to eliminate the new information asymmetries that arise from introducing competition in microcredit markets. I also examine a microfinance market that is under development: Cambodia. This market has not yet experienced a repayment crisis, and I apply the phase theory on this case market to assess how likely it is that it will.


Various effects of marine fouling on piles have been addressed through a literature study and an experimental investigation. The experimental investigation was conducted on circular cylinders in steady current at subcritical Reynolds numbers. Hard marine fouling was modeled on the surface of three different cylinder models using sand and gravel particles with relative roughnesses k/D = 0.01, 0.02 and 0.07. In addition, one cylinder model was kept smooth, while one cylinder model was covered with artificial fur to simulate soft marine fouling. The drag and the wake velocity were measured, and in addition a flow visualization was carried out. The cylinders had a free end and the tests were performed in a free surface flume tank. On the cylinders covered with artificial hard marine fouling, the mean drag was found to increase with increasing surface roughness. The mean drag of a cylinder covered by artificial soft marine fouling was almost three times the drag of a smooth cylinder with the same diameter. A cylinder with a diameter of 0.042 m covered with artificial soft marine fouling, was found to have approximately the same drag as a 0.10 m smooth cylinder. The streamwise velocity at points along the centerline of the wake was measured using the optical technique Laser Doppler Velocimetry (LDV). In the case of hard marine fouling, increasing surface roughness was found to increase the mean velocity near the cylinder, and to decrease the mean velocity further away from the cylinder. The results also indicated that increased surface roughness decreased the Reynolds number dependence of the wake closure length (the region where the mean velocity is negative). The presence of soft marine fouling was found to have a large impact on the mean velocity in the wake. Here, the wake closure length was found to be approximately 3.6-3.7 times longer than for a smooth cylinder. The flow visualization showed that the Strouhal number was reduced from approximately 0.19 to 0.16 when hard marine fouling was introduced. For soft marine fouling, the Strouhal number was approximately 0.11. The visualization also supported the findings from the LDV tests. It was concluded that marine fouling could have large consequences for both the forces on a circular cylinder and on the flow around it. The effects of soft marine fouling were found to be more significant than the effects of hard marine fouling for all parameters in the investigation.


Safety and security engineering involve several and complex multidisciplinary activities aimed to preserve people and the environment from hazards and risks. These concepts that were born as "umbrella" terms for the laws, rules; process design is generally applied only for workplaces or related to the employees; indeed, the scenario of related applications is only limited by the typical needs of the specific context. Recently, new methods and applications for detecting, evaluating, and tracking signs of environmental contamination are validating the effectiveness of safety and security engineer- ing tools also in the environmental field. As in a workplace an engineer is called to analyze a complex scenario (e.g. to evaluate a risk, to assess a real danger and, therefore, look for causes to define the dynamics and find a solution), in the same way the environmental forensic scientist has to examine scenarios and actors to define the relationships to reveal source, path and target; in both the same tech- niques and technologies used in the analyses play a key role. This paper introduces a multidisciplinary strategy that bridges different approaches incorporating remote/proximal sensing applications where techniques and technologies enforce safety and security programs. A part of Campania coast, close to Salerno city in southwestern Italy, was chosen as a test bed of our strategy. All the activities were performed supporting the environmental investigations directed by Salerno Prosecutor Office and also cooperating with Italian police and several Government bodies. This paper provides an example where law enforcement and university research teams collaborate to develop enhanced environmental protection methods.


BACKGROUND: There is not enough evidence concerning the implementation of practice guidelines for CAP and its impact on cost and patients9 outcome. MATERIAL & METHOD: A prospective observational study incorporating 300 immunocompetent hospitalised pts with CAP. The aim was to determine whether the 2007 IDSA/ATS and the Greek National Guidelines for CAP are implemented by Chest Physicians in "Sotiria" General Hospital. We assessed whether: a)hospital admission was correct or not, b)the administered initial antimicrobial chemotherapeutic regimen was in accordance to guidelines or not. We applied Fine Score (PSI) to determine the severity of CAP. 193 pts were male, 107 female. Comorbidities emerged in 208 pts. RESULTS: The mortality rate was 12.67%. COPD pts performed a statistically significant higher mortality rate compared to non COPD pts (23.08% vs 10.48% respectively, p=0.024). A microbial pathogen was identified in 66 (22%) cases and Streptococcus Pn. was the predominant pathogen isolated (30.3%). The implementation of CAP guidelines concerning the initial antimicrobial regimen was poor (179 pts, 59.7%). Urine Antigens and Blood Cultures performed the highest yield among all other diagnostic techniques (16.2% & 16% respectively). Pts treated with an initial antimicrobial in accordance to guidelines performed a trend towards lower mortality and shorter LOS compared to those in discordance (p=0.067 and p=0.056). 144 (48%) pts were classified as Risk Class I or II and therefore could be treated as outpatients. CONCLUSION: The implementation of CAP guidelines by Greek Chest Physicians is poor incurring a negative impact on patients9 outcome, on LOS and the financial burden of Greek NHS.


Isarubrolones are bioactive polycyclic tropoloalkaloids from Streptomyces. Three new isarubrolones (2-4), together with the known isarubrolone C (1) and isatropolones A (5) and C (6, 3( R)-hydroxyisatropolone A), were identified from Streptomyces sp. CPCC 204095. The structures of these compounds were determined using a combination of mass spectrometry, 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, and ECD. Compounds 3 and 4 feature a pyridooxazinium unit, which is rarely seen in natural products. Compound 6 could conjugate with amino acids or amines to expand the structural diversity of isarubrolones with a pentacyclic or hexacyclic core. Importantly, 1 and 3-6 were found to induce complete autophagy.


Translating Early Modern Science explores the essential role translators played in a time when the scientific community used Latin and vernacular European languages side-by-side. This interdisciplinary volume illustrates how translators were mediators, agents, and interpreters of scientific knowledge.


Among a number of techniques used for the research of heterogeneous (gas-solid) catalysis, transmission infrared spectroscopy is one of the most widely used techniques for the characterization of surface species adsorbed on the catalyst. It offers useful information, particularly when the spectroscopy is carried out under reaction conditions. Various types of infrared cell have been designed so that the spectra of adsorbed species can be obtained during reactions at high temperatures. Most of them, however, have been used at atmospheric or reduced pressure, and less attention has been paid to high-pressure operations. Also one usually requires an efficient flow of gas in the cell in order to follow the kinetic behavior of the surface species.


The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how and whether cooperative learning through drama can be introduced to children's English language classrooms in Taiwan. Humanistic and educational internationalisation based on philosophy of John Dewey is to be applied as an alternative way for solving the problem caused by competitive globalisation and competitive learning. Chapter 1 sets the scene by indicating the essential features of competitive learning in Taiwan, and its negative impacts are presented. Chapter 2 analyses the background of the cause of competitive learning, and the essential educational mode focused on economic and competitive concerns are analysed. Chapter 3 examines competitive globalisation and its negative impacts on Taiwan's English education for children. Internationalisation with cooperative principles based on Dewey's philosophy is proposed as a doable way to solve the problems. Chapter 4 thus analyses cooperation and drama in educational theory and practice. Cooperative learning through drama is introduced in practice to bring about a change in children's learning. Chapter 5 discusses how cooperative learning lessons are designed, implemented and reflected in the research project in the fieldwork. Action research is the method used in the fieldwork. Chapter 6 presents the children's experience and understanding of cooperative learning. The children's interview data is analysed and presented in a detailed way by applying grounded theory, and children's theory of how they conceptualise cooperative learning through drama is developed. Chapter 7 draws conclusion by discussing what could be done in relation to policy and classroom levels in children's English language learning. Suggestions and the limitations of a case study are also discussed. Reflections are presented as the final remarks of the theme of this research.


To attain international importance and thus protection as a Ramsar site or as a Special Protection Area (SPA) a wetland site must either "regularly" support at least 20,000 waterbirds or seabirds, or 1% of the individuals of a population of a species or subspecies of waterbird.
In most cases, sites have been designated by using the maxima of individual counts. These counts will underestimate volume (i.e. total number) of birds passing through the site if turnover of birds occurs.
Using count data, observations of individually marked birds and survival and recruitment mark-recapture models, we present three different methods (V1, V2 & V3) implemented in the StopOver Duration Analysis or SODA program (Choquet & Pradel 2007) for estimating the total volume of birds passing through a site. We use simulated data to determine their performance using both biased and unbiased data. Specifically, we tested whether the estimates of volume were biased where the following parameters varied: proportion of birds marked, daily resighting rate, timing of arrival, proportion of transients in the population, heterogeneity in the resighting rates (i.e. some individuals with a high or low resighting rate), variation in arrival and stopover time and count error.
With a relatively simple dataset (single arrival, no biases), the proportion of individuals marked had little effect on the reliability of the resulting volume estimates for both V1 and V3. Estimates of volume from V2 were always overestimated. The major factor that caused a small positive bias in V1 and V3 was the resighting probability. Lower resighting probabilities caused a small positive bias in the volume estimates.
Resighting heterogeneity (i.e. some birds more likely to be seen than others) caused a substantial positive bias for all estimators. Transience (i.e. some birds stopping over for shorter time than others) caused no bias in V1 and V3, but a strong negative bias in V2.Transience seemed to reduce the positive bias due to heterogeneity in V1 and V3 when both were present. The use of trap-dependent models (i.e. those that allow individuals to have differential recapture rates) showed some promise for V3 as little bias in the volume estimate was observed when there was a moderate amount of variation in individuals' resighting rates.
V1 & V3 performed well under scenarios of varying arrival and stopover duration as well as where error in the counts was introduced. V2 was consistently biased (see Table 4.1)
The V3 method performed well and consistently had the highest precision; it is the method we recommend to use to estimate volume. It is important that goodness of fit tests are used to determine biases in the data and appropriate models are used in Program SODA. Although some biases in the data have little effect on the resulting volume estimates, care must be taken when setting up a study to reduce bias. We present eight different ways of ensuring that bias is reduced during the collection of data.
Practical ways to deal with biases are discussed. Recommendations (see section 4.2 for further details) are to: (i) Count at the same time as reading colour rings; (ii) Count at approximately one-third of the length of stay interval, e.g. if the species is thought to stay ten days on a site during passage then count every 5 days; (iii) aim to resight > 30 individuals during every count period, although preferably more; obtain as far as is possible representative samples of the population being studied; (iv) the timing of marking of the study species, the number of sites included, and the timing of counts is discussed.


Exploring the transferability between heterogeneous tasks sheds light on their intrinsic interconnections, and consequently enables knowledge transfer from one task to another so as to reduce the training effort of the latter. In this paper, we propose an embarrassingly simple yet very efficacious approach to estimating the transferability of deep networks, especially those handling vision tasks. Unlike the seminal work of \emph{taskonomy} that relies on a large number of annotations as supervision and is thus computationally cumbersome, the proposed approach requires no human annotations and imposes no constraints on the architectures of the networks. This is achieved, specifically, via projecting deep networks into a \emph{model space}, wherein each network is treated as a point and the distances between two points are measured by deviations of their produced attribution maps. The proposed approach is several-magnitude times faster than taskonomy, and meanwhile preserves a task-wise topological structure highly similar to the one obtained by taskonomy. Code is available at \url{https://github.com/zju-vipa/TransferbilityFromAttributionMaps}.


We reconstruct the notion of dative in terms of a Q(⊆) category, denoting an 'inclusion' relation – to be understood roughly as 'possession'. In the light of this, we reconsider interactions between dative and 1st/2nd person in Romance. In Italian 3rd person clitics have two separate lexicalizations for accusative and dative, 1st/ 2nd person clitics have a single dative-like lexicalization. We construe this phenomenon in terms of split accusativity (DOM), i.e. 1st /2nd person object clitics are embedded as datives, as opposed to 3rd person ones that alternate between dative and accusative. We also suggest a reworking of the Person Case Constraint (PCC) as a constraint on the interpretation of Q(⊆) (i.e. valuing of a Q(⊆) probe). Under it, a 1st/2nd person object clitic must be interpreted as the argument of Q(⊆) (i.e. value it) if present, leaving a dative clitic (i.e. bearing Q(⊆) morphology) without an interpretation. Keywords: case; dative; person; Differential Object Marking; Person Case Constraint


The number of people requiring care in Japan has increased with the increase in number of people aged 65 or more. Thus, the production of disposable diapers for the elderly is also increasing. Two types of diapers; pad-type and tape-type, are generally used in combination in nursing homes. Diaper change is a burden for both the caregiver and the care receiver. To reduce the number of diaper changes, this study aimed to develops electrodes as a capacitive sensor attached to the outer surface of the tape-type diaper. The capacitive sensor evaluates the absorption volume of the pad-type diaper, and consists of electrodes and a converter circuit that converts the capacitance of electrodes into an output voltage. The study used a waist-type torso mannequin wearing a pad-type diaper on the inside and a tape-type diaper on the outside. The inside of the torso was filled with saline, and the weight of the torso including the saline was 8.9 kg in total. The electrodes were made of copper tape fixed to an insulating film, and the copper tape was 500-mm long and 25-mm wide with a 20-mm interelectrode gap. The electrodes were attached to the outside of the tape-type diaper and connected to the circuit. Experiment was conducted with the torso placed in supine and 30º lateral positions. Tap water (100 mL) was introduced via a silicone tube between the pad-type diaper and the torso hip surface at a flow rate of 7.8 mL / s, which is the average urinary flow rate for the elderly. This procedure was repeated six times. The ex periment was repeated three times. The output voltage increased linearly with increasing volume of water absorbed by the pad-type diaper, in both torso positions. Therefore, the absorption volume was quantitatively evaluated, and the results suggested that the resolution was at least 100 mL when using this sensor.


This article examines different patterns of interaction between Swedish Americans and the homeland, and my interest is in the significance and consequences of these encounters. The mass emigration of some 1,3 million Swedes in the 19th and early 20th centuries was a fundamental event in Swedish history, and as a result a separate social and cultural community—Swedish America—was created in the U.S. and a specific population group of Swedish Americans emerged. Close to a fifth of these Swedish Americans returned to Sweden, and in their interaction with the old homeland they were seen as a distinct group in Sweden and became carriers of a specific American experience. Swedish Americans thus became a visible sub-group in Sweden and it is the significance of this population that I am interested in. The article looks at both material and immaterial effects of the return migration and at the larger significance of Swedish America and Swedish Americans for Sweden.


Additive methods developed and used at IRCAM and CNMAT are presented. Analysis includes new techniques to find spectral peaks, estimate their parameters, track partial sinusoids, and separate sinusoidal components from the residual considered as noise. Partials are tracked by identifying trajectories in successive set of spectral peaks using a combinatorial hidden Markov model. Control is made easier by use of spectral envelopes instead of the classical time functions. Characteristic features of sounds are given in term of fundamental frequency, spectral envelopes for amplitude, phase, deviation from harmonicity, noise components, etc. This procedure renders user control much more economical and efficient. To reduce the computational cost of the synthesis algorithm, a method has been developed that is based on the short‐time Fourier model of a sound signal allowing for the synthesis and control of hundreds of sinusoidal partials and noise components in real time on a desktop computer without custom hardwa...


Arc temperatures have been measured, and relative electron densities have been estimated for dc arcs in Ar, Ar-CO, He, and He-CO. Two temperatures were measured: the excitation temperature, Tcxc, by means of the zinc two-line intensity ratio method, and the rotational temperature, Tr, by the C2 band method. Relative electron densities were estimated by comparing Ha line widths in each of the four arc atmospheres. These measurements were performed to gain some understanding of the influence of small amounts of CO on the excitation characteristics of low amperage arcs in argon and helium. The resulting temperatures and electron density estimates indicate that only the c in argon with CO present approaches local thermodynamic equilibrium. Tables of the measured temperatures and plots of the Hα line widths for the estimation of electron densities are given. Implications with regard to the excitation of metal impurities vaporized into these arcs are discussed.


Background: We examined if the reduced risk of breast cancer events seen among women without baseline hot flash symptoms in the Women's Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) dietary intervention trial was related to changes in sex hormone concentrations. Methods: Baseline and year one concentrations of total and bioavailable estradiol, and testosterone and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) were compared by intervention arm among 447 postmenopausal women without hot flashes. Cox proportional hazard models tested interaction terms between study arm and baseline hormone concentrations adjusted for study site, antiestrogen use, positive nodes, tumor size, oophorectomy status, and hormone replacement therapy use. Results: Sex hormone concentrations did not differ by study arm at baseline nor at year one. Twenty-two (9.8%) events occurred in the intervention arm versus 42 (18.9%) in the comparison arm (P = 0.009). Baseline bioavailable testosterone was significantly, positively associated with additional events (HR 1.69, 95% CI: 1.00–2.84; P = 0.049). There were significant interactions between the intervention and total (P = 0.015), and bioavailable (P = 0.050) testosterone: the intervention was more protective among participants with higher baseline total (HR 0.3, 95% CI: 0.2–0.7) or bioavailable (HR 0.4, 95% CI: 0.2–0.7) testosterone than for participants with lower baseline total (HR 0.8, 95% CI: 0.4–1.5) or bioavailable (HR 0.8, 95% CI: 0.4–1.5) testosterone. No significant effects were seen for estradiol or SHBG. Conclusions: The WHEL dietary intervention may have modified other risk factors of recurrence correlated with testosterone. Impact: Sex hormones should be considered as part of a larger biological system related to the risk of breast cancer recurrence. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 20(5); 939–45. ©2011 AACR.


Since their publication in 1885 and 1889 respectively, Ravenstein's laws of migration – which have since been summarised as eleven broad rules – have achieved something approaching universal acceptance (Ravenstein 1885, 1889). While most of these laws have been tested and retested using data drawn from a range of countries and time periods – invariably reconfirming the status of his hypotheses as "laws" – one hypothesis has been resistant to attempts to confirm Ravenstein's interpretation; the so-called step-migration hypothesis. Given the conflicting definitions of step-migration, this article first recounts the historiography of the term and the subsequent reason why this paper has defined step-migration as a means by which individuals migrated, rather than a population-level phenomenon in which out-migrants are continually replaced by in-migrants. Recent studies have invariably concluded that while step-migration may have been the predominant means by which migration occurred during periods of industrialisation in the past, it is no longer the process by which movement occurs in modern, post-industrial societies (Plane et al. 2005). This article therefore critically re-evaluates the evidence upon which Ravenstein based his laws. The census. Whereas Ravenstein used the published report of the 1881 census; the present study utilises the complete, individual-level manuscript census returns from 1851 to 1911. Through an analysis of approximately 160 million lifetime migration paths, this paper draws two important conclusions. First, that most people's migratory activity tended to be concentrated in a single move – usually upon leaving home – rather than in a series of steps over their lifetimes. This means the census – recording only individuals' birthplace and location on census night – captures most people's full migration histories, amplifying its value as a source for studying migration in the past. By first identifying the age range in which migration occurred, this article argues that the similarity of the age profile of migrants to those leaving home suggests they were one-and-the-same process. By then constructing synthetic cohorts and analysing the distances migrated by the population in each census between the mean ages of key lifecycle events – leaving home, leaving service and entering marriage – it is demonstrated that very little migration occurred beyond the first move. This is reiterated in a cohort analysis which shows very little change in the destinations of migrants between censuses. In order to search for evidence of migration post-marriage, mothers' migration paths are reconstructed from those of their co-resident children. This similarly demonstrates that only a minority of mothers migrated during their childbearing years with the majority of migration occurring prior to the birth of their first child. This article therefore shows that while 1851-1911 was not a period without migration, nor was it one of constant movement. Rather, England and Wales urbanised because the majority made a considered choice of destination once in their lives. This article therefore demonstrates that migration in steps was the exception rather than the rule and that the individual-level census returns are a valuable source of migration evidence between 1851 and 1911 and deserve far wider use.
* This article belongs to a special issue on "Internal Migration as a Driver of Regional Population Change in Europe: Updating Ravenstein".


The last six years witnessed important advances in applying iris based biometric systems for military and civil security purposes. The fundamental aspect of this progress is the development of biometric algorithms able to produce high confidence personal identification without human interaction. The majority of such biometric algorithms use iris video as a better representation of special properties and features of the iris texture thus optimizing its recognition process. The goal of this paper is to present a general overview of iris recognition methods with particular emphasis on the algorithms used in recent applications for distant iris recognition as well as iris recognition in uncontrolled environments. Though special attention is given to the latest tendencies, traditional iris recognition methods are also described. Finally, some future research opportunities are discussed.


Online education continues to permeate mainstream teaching techniques in higher education settings. Teaching upper-level classes in an online setting is having a major impact on education as a whole and is fundamentally altering global learning. Cases on Critical and Qualitative Perspectives in Online Higher Education offers a collection of informal, personalized articles that identify, describe, and examine actual experiential domains of online program and course production. Administrators, developers, instructors, staff, technical support, and students in the field of online higher education will benefit from these case studies to reinforce and enhance their work.


In contrast to most prior research in this area, which focuses on actual disclosures, this study uses a large-scale direct method to investigate the factors that a key preparer group believes influence intellectual capital (IC) disclosure decisions. IC disclosures are typically characterised by uncertainty of interpretation and high levels of commercial sensitivity. A questionnaire elicits 93 UK-listed company finance directors' views regarding the influences on these decisions. Results are used to evaluate the relative explanatory power of several theoretical and practical reasons for disclosure. Strongest support is found for competitive disadvantage and capital market considerations. Issues related to legitimacy theory, stakeholder theory and other economic disclosure costs also feature. Factor analysis reduces the set of 28 incentives and disincentives to 10 uncorrelated dimensions, indicating that a broad and complex set of overlapping factors affect the disclosure decision. The importance of disclosure incentives and disincentives is found to vary both within and between disclosure topics, which may explain the variation in findings in prior research.


We present a thorough characterization of the access patterns in blogspace – a fast-growing constituent of the content available through the Internet – which comprises a rich interconnected web of blog postings and comments by an increasingly prominent user community that collectively define what has become known as the blogosphere. Our characterization of over 35 million read, write, and administrative requests spanning a 28-day period is done from three different blogosphere perspectives. The server view characterizes the aggregate access patterns of all users to all blogs; the user view characterizes how individual users interact with blogosphere objects (blogs); the object view characterizes how individual blogs are accessed. Our findings support two important conclusions. First, we show that the nature of interactions between users and objects is fundamentally different in blogspace than that observed in traditional web content. Access to objects in blogspace could be conceived as part of an interaction between an author and its readership. As we show in our work, such interactions range from one-to-many "broadcast-type" and many-to-one "registration-type" communication between an author and its readers, to multi-way, iterative "parlortype" dialogues among members of an interest group. This more-interactive nature of the blogosphere leads to interesting traffic and communication patterns, which are different from those observed in traditional web content. Second, we identify and characterize novel features of the blogosphere workload, and we investigate the similarities and differences between typical web server and blogosphere server workloads.


The editors would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada through a grant to the XVIIth Annual Conference of the Canadian Association for Translation Studies (CATS), from which the papers for this volume are drawn. They also acknowledge the financial and intellectual support of CATS and warmly thank Jean Delisle for his precious collaboration.


This indispensable volume provides a complete course on Latin erotic elegy, allowing students to trace a coherent narrative of the genre's rise and fall, and to understand its relationship to the changes that marked the collapse of the Roman republic, and the founding of the empire. The book begins with a detailed and wide-ranging introduction, looking at major figures, the evolution of the form, and the Roman context, with particular focus on the changing relations between the sexes. The texts that follow range from the earliest manifestations of erotic elegy, in Catullus, through Tibullus, Sulpicia (Rome's only female elegist), Propertius and Ovid. An accessible commentary explores the historical background, issues of language and style, and the relation of each piece to its author's larger body of work. The volume closes with an anthology of critical essays representative of the main trends in scholarship; these both illuminate the genre's most salient features and help the student understand its modern reception.


Subramanian L, Simon C, Daniel EE. Increasing contraceptive use among young married couples in Bihar, India: evidence from a decade of implementation of the PRACHAR Project. Glob Health Sci Pract. 2018;6(2):330–344. https://doi.org/10.9745/GHSPD-17-00440 Sarma S, Nemser B, Cole-Lewis H, et al. Effectiveness of SMS technology on timely community health worker follow-up for childhood malnutrition: a retrospective cohort study in sub-Saharan Africa. Glob Health Sci Pract. 2018;6(2):345–355. https://doi. org/10.9745/GHSP-D-16-00290


Environmental monitoring allows authorities to understand the impact of potentially harmful phenomena, such as air pollution, excessive noise and radiation. Recently, there has been considerable interest in participatory sensing as a paradigm for such large-scale data collection because it is cost-effective and able to capture more fine-grained data than traditional approaches that use stationary sensors scattered in cities. In this approach, ordinary citizens (non-expert contributors) collect environmental data using low-cost mobile devices. However, these participants are generally self-interested actors that have their own goals and make local decisions about when and where to take measurements. This can lead to highly inefficient outcomes, where observations are either taken redundantly or do not provide sufficient information about key areas of interest. To address these challenges, it is necessary to guide and to coordinate participants, so they take measurements when it is most informative. To this end, we develop a computationally-efficient coordination algorithm (adaptive Best-Match) that suggests to users when and where to take measurements. Our algorithm exploits probabilistic knowledge of human mobility patterns, but explicitly considers the uncertainty of these patterns and the potential unwillingness of people to take measurements when requested to do so. In particular, our algorithm uses a local search technique, clustering and random simulations to map participants to measurements that need to be taken in space and time. We empirically evaluate our algorithm on a real-world human mobility and air quality dataset and show that it outperforms the current state of the art by up to 24% in terms of utility gained.


We discuss Kochan's recent criticism of the work of Joseph Rouse (Kochan 2011). We argue that Kochan fails to show that both Rouse's own work and his Heidegger interpretation are plagued by insurmountable problems. We also try to locate the deeper, meta-philosophical reasons that are responsible for what we take to be Kochan's misreading of Rouse's work. This allows us to throw some light on the standoff that so often seems to characterize debates on scientific realism.


Photonic crystals are materials that are used to control or manipulate the propagation of light through a medium for a desired application. Common fabrication methods to prepare photonic crystals are both costly and intricate. However, through a cost-effective laser-induced photochemical patterning, one-dimensional responsive and tuneable photonic crystals can easily be fabricated. These structures act as optical transducers and respond to external stimuli. These photonic crystals are generally made of a responsive hydrogel that can host metallic nanoparticles in the form of arrays. The hydrogel-based photonic crystal has the capability to alter its periodicity in situ but also recover its initial geometrical dimensions, thereby rendering it fully reversible and reusable. Such responsive photonic crystals have applications in various responsive and tuneable optical devices. In this study, we fabricated a pH-sensitive photonic crystal sensor through photochemical patterning and demonstrated computational simulations of the sensor through a finite element modelling technique in order to analyse its optical properties on varying the pattern and characteristics of the nanoparticle arrays within the responsive hydrogel matrix. Both simulations and experimental results show the wavelength tuneability of the sensor with good agreement. Various factors, including nanoparticle size and distribution within the hydrogel-based responsive matrices that directly affect the performance of the sensors, are also studied computationally.


In this paper we study the complexity of constructing a hitting set for VP, the class of polynomials that can be infinitesimally approximated by polynomials that are computed by polynomial sized algebraic circuits, over the real or complex numbers. Specifically, we show that there is a PSPACE algorithm that given n,s,r in unary outputs a set of rational n-tuples of size poly(n,s,r), with poly(n,s,r) bit complexity, that hits all n-variate polynomials of degree r that are the limit of size s algebraic circuits. Previously it was known that a random set of this size is a hitting set, but a construction that is certified to work was only known in EXPSPACE (or EXPH assuming the generalized Riemann hypothesis). As a corollary we get that a host of other algebraic problems such as Noether Normalization Lemma, can also be solved in PSPACE deterministically, where earlier only randomized algorithms and EXPSPACE algorithms (or EXPH assuming the generalized Riemann hypothesis) were known. The proof relies on the new notion of a robust hitting set which is a set of inputs such that any nonzero polynomial that can be computed by a polynomial size algebraic circuit, evaluates to a not too small value on at least one element of the set. Proving the existence of such a robust hitting set is the main technical difficulty in the proof. Our proof uses anti-concentration results for polynomials, basic tools from algebraic geometry and the existential theory of the reals.


Aim We aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of determining the presence of true biventricular pacing by administration of intravenous adenosine. This aims to determine whether non-response to biventricular pacing therapy is partially explained by over-counting of the percentage of pacing therapy by the presence of fusion beats. We compared the proportion of patients with fusion beats in non-responders compared to responders Methods This will be a single centre, prospective, cohort study. 71 consecutive patients with implanted cardiac resynchronisation devices between July 2006 and November 2015 were identified. Patients underwent the adenosine trial at least 12 months post CRT device implantation to detect the presence of potentially ineffective biventricular pacing. This was compared with the recorded percentage of biventricular pacing reported during device interrogation. Correlation was made between response to CRT therapy and presence of effective biventricular pacing. Results Preliminary results from 24 patients demonstrate that symptomatic adenosine administration was successful in identifying true effective biventricular paced beats. This has allowed us to identify patients with fusion beats. 8 patients were non-responders to CRT, whereas 16 patients were responders. 50% (n=4) of non-responders and 12.5% (n=2) of responders had definite electrocardiography (ECG) changes through the symptomatic adenosine administration, showing that a percentage of the paced beats counted by the CRT device may in fact be fusion beats. Figure 1 shows the clear change in the morphology of the QRS complex in one of the non-responders. Figure 1 Electrocardiogram of a non-responder during symptomatic adenosine administration Conclusion Preliminary results suggest that symptomatic adenosine administration is successful in identifying true effective biventricular paced beats which may be overestimated by CRT device interrogation. Correlation with response to CRT is yet to be established, but in 50% of the non-responders we identified a definite change in the morphology of the paced rhythm during the symptomatic response to adenosine. This raises a question of whether the poor response to CRT for these patients is actually due to the insufficient percentage of effective biventricular pacing (<98%).Abstract 9 Figure 1 Electrocardiogram of a non-responder during symptomatic adenosine administration


Biomedical research in general simply known as medical research, is the basic research, applied research, or
translational researchconducted to aid and support the body of knowledge in the field of medicine.
Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide representing
13% of all deaths (over 11 million in 2030), breast cancer is the most common diagnosed type of cancer among women accounting for about 28% of all female cancer cases, while liver cancer is the third most common cause of death from cancer worldwide. Workers exposed to formaldehyde vapour have been well documented to have an association between formaldehyde exposure and several
cancers, including nasopharyngeal cancer and leukemia. A study was conducted in hatching chicks which
represented a working environment that was exposed to the 10.9 ppm formaldehyde vapour, the result illustrated that there were pathological changes in the respiratory epithelium. And there was also pre-cancerous lesion seen in the epithelium where the normal psuedostratified columnar ciliated epithelium was replaced by stratified squamous epithelium in the trachea. The existing treatment for cancer such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are not always effective and can cause significant side effects. Thus, the author ventured into cancer research via two approaches:In viro therapy, where, Newcastle Disease Virus was used whilst, in herbal therapy where Azadirachta Indica A.Juss (Neem) Extracts, Cola Nut (Cola Nitida) Fruit Aqueous Extract and Strobilanthes Crispus Extract were used in in-vitro and in-vivo study. The oncolytic effect of Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV) strain AF2240 was investigated on the MCF-7, MDA-MB-231 breast
cancer cell lines and 3T3 fibroblast. There were destruction of the cytoskeletal protein, structural and ultrastructural changes, as well as molecular changes of the oncogenes which enlightened the important biological discoveries of apoptosis in the cancer cells, however, not in the normal cells.The oncolytic effect of Newcastle Disease Virus AF2240 on Allografted 4T1 Breast Cancer Cells In Balb/c mice was well demonstrated and NDV-AF2240 was detected via In situ
 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (in situ RT-PCR), polyclonal chicken antibody and goat anti-chicken antibody conjugated with fluorescein isothiocynate (FITC) using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and negative staining transmission electron microscopy (NSTEM). The pre-clinical study of this virus is proven to be safe and effective in animal study, however, further study is needed to understand the underlying mechanism in making the NDV strain of AF2240 as an anti-cancer agent in human.In herbal theraphy research, Berberis Vulgaris(L.) Fruit Extract,
Azadirachta Indica A.Juss (Neem) Extracts, Strobilanthes Crispus Extract, and Cola Nut (Cola Nitida) Fruit Aqueous Extract, were found to contain high antioxidant and prevent the formation or viability of cancer cells.
In vitro and in-vivo study showed that they have great potential to be developed either into functional food or
further develop into drugs which can be used to either treat liver, breast and cervical cancers.
Tissue and organ failure, resulting from various forms of injury such as traumatic, metabolic, inflammatory and other diseases normally lead to lost of tissue, organ and system function. To overcome these problems, researchers try to implement tissue engineering as a new approach and to assure the proper re-establishment of organ function, the structural and ultrastructural changes and expression of protein markers during re-modelling of tissue-engineered skin, tissue engineered cornea and tissue engineered bone.
In orthopaedics, administration of antibiotics does not provide good local bone response due to poor vascularisation of bone tissue; low drug penetration and recurrent cases are high due to formation and
presence of biofilm. The author again takes the lead to develop a biocompatible material in-cooperated with antibiotic to overcome the problem mentioned above.
As cancer, tissue and organ lost can either be life threatening or compensating quality of life, biomedical research play an important role to support the medical scenario towards human health and wealth creation to the nation.


This work-in-progress provides a preliminary exploration of students' metacognitive monitoring abilities by analyzing written self-evaluations of statics problems. Metacognitive approaches to learning encourage students to examine their own thinking processes as a means of deepening their understanding. We used qualitative coding to analyze students' level of metacognitive awareness regarding both their ability to solve a given problem and their ability to identify sources of error. The full data set includes 10 response sequences (homework solution and student writing about their solution) from 69 students. In this paper, we present the analysis of two of these sequences, one from early and one from later in the semester. The findings show that for both assignments, about half the students recognized their inability to solve the problems correctly, though in both cases the groups were split between those who could accurately identify one or more sources of error and those who could not. This finding points to the need for teaching practices that can help students develop the ability both to accurately assess their performance and, perhaps more importantly, identify sources of error and confusion that can then lead to successful learning.


I have 2 essays re-published (the only contributor to have more that one) in this comprehensive critical overview of the last 25 years of Contemporary Visual Art in Scotland.

From the archive, the GENERATION Reader has gathered essays, talks and artist writings from the period, some of which have never been printed before. Artist Ross Sinclair's essay for the 1991 Windfall exhibition and his nineties satire on a future Scotland as a giant historical theme park have been republished in full for the first time since 1996. Graham Fagen and Ruth Barker write about the challenges for artists working in public. There are robust accounts of the state of art institutions from figures like Adele Patrick and Professor Neil Mulholland as well as recollections of art education from artists including Luke Fowler, Katy Dove, Sara Barker and Corin Sworn.

Available to buy alongside the Guide, the GENERATION Reader is a packed volume, full of the ideas, arguments and inspirations that have shaped contemporary art in Scotland. With an introduction by novelist Louise Welsh, this collection of brand new essays and writings from the archive tells the story of the last 25 years in the voices of the artists and writers who took part, capturing the energy and ideas of the times.

New writings include prize-winning novelist Nicola White's recollections of her work as a curator in the Glasgow Art Scene in the nineties and her recent travels, retracing the steps of poet Edwin Muir's Scottish Journey from Orkney to Glasgow, Professor Andrew Patrizio on working with artist Christine Borland to install a one-tonne bale of compressed rubbish into a pristine display case at Kelvingrove Museum and the day that then Prime Minister John Major and his wife Norma visited Glasgow's McLellan Galleries. Curator Francis McKee describes espresso-fuelled days showing Scotland's artists at the Venice Biennale.

The GENERATION Reader is the first volume of its kind to be published on contemporary art in Scotland over the last quarter century painting a lively, ambitious and at times controversial picture of the period.

"GENERATION is a major, nation-wide exhibition programme showcasing some of the best and most significant artists to have emerged from Scotland over the last 25 years.

The programme traces the developments in art in Scotland since 1989. It shows the generation of ideas, of experiences, and of world-class art on an unparalleled scale by over 100 artists in more than 60 venues. The artists within GENERATION came to attention whilst working in Scotland, helping to create the vibrant and internationally recognised contemporary art scene that exists here today.

The art that has emerged from Scotland during this period is characterised by its diversity, rather than by one particular style or dominant trend. GENERATION offers an opportunity to see art that is innovative, thought- provoking, imaginative, at times beautiful, at others challenging, but always inspiring.

GENERATION is delivered as a partnership between the National Galleries of Scotland, Glasgow Life and Creative Scotland and is part of Culture 2014, the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme."


High-level area-time estimation is an essential step to facilitate rapid design exploration for FPGA implementations. Existing works in high-level area-time estimation usually ignore the physical effects of the design after place and route, which have a notable impact on the maximum achievable speed of the design. In this paper, we propose a framework to rapidly estimate the area-time measures of mapping C-applications onto FPGA. The framework relies on the Trimaran compiler to generate an optimized high-level IR (Intermediate Representation) of the C-applications. Area-time estimation of the IR is then performed using a proposed estimation model that is based on an architecture template with application-specific heterogeneous functional units. In order to accurately predict the delay of the design after place and route, we introduce a new metric for the estimation that models the criticality of the design's interconnectivity. Experimental results based on a set of embedded functions show that the proposed area estimation can achieve comparable results with the synthesis results of a commercial FPGA tool in the order of milliseconds. For the C functions used in our experiments, the proposed delay estimation leads to an average error of about 3% when compared to the post place and route results. In addition, we demonstrate the robustness of the proposed framework which provides consistent results for different FPGA families. The contribution of this paper is a scalable methodology for rapid estimation of cost-benefit metrics of C-based algorithms to be accelerated on FPGA-based high-performance computing platform.


Abstract Field analysis shows that fault cores of brittle, extensional faults at a medium to mature stage of development are commonly dominated by lozenge-shaped horses (fault-core lenses) characterized by a variety of lithologies, including intact, mildly to strongly deformed country rock derived from the footwalls and hanging walls, various types of fault rocks of the protocatalasite and breccia series, breccia, fault gouge and clay smear. The lenses are sometimes stacked to form complex duplexes. These structures are commonly separated by high-strain zones of sheared cataclasite, and/or clay smear/clay gouge. The geometry and distribution of clay gouge in high-strain zones sometimes display evidence of intrusion, indicating high fluid pressure. Although the sizes of the horses vary over several orders of magnitude, they frequently display a length:thickness (a:c) ratio of between 1:4 and 1:15. The high-strain zones of fault rocks commonly constitute unbroken, 3D membranes that are likely to constrain fluid communication both across and along the fault zone. There are significant contrasts in fault core architecture that are probably related to processes associated with contrasting fluid pressure, strain intensity and strain hardening/strain softening. Faults associated with strain softening are characterized by less abundant brittle deformation products and are less likely to be conduits for fluid flow compared to those that are affected by strain hardening.


Abstract In this work we describe a new method for parallelizing the source iterations in a Monte Carlo criticality calculation. Instead of having one global fission bank that needs to be synchronized, as is traditionally done, our method has each processor keep track of a local fission bank while still preserving reproducibility. In doing so, it is required to send only a limited set of fission bank sites between processors, thereby drastically reducing the total amount of data sent through the network. The algorithm was implemented in a simple Monte Carlo code and shown to scale up to hundreds of processors and furthermore outperforms traditional algorithms by at least two orders of magnitude in wall-clock time.


Process Management Systems (PMSs) are currently more and more used as a supporting tool for cooperative processes in pervasive and highly dynamic situations, such as emergency situations, pervasive healthcare or domotics/home automation. But in all such situations, designed processes can be easily invalidated since the execution environment may change continuously due to frequent unforeseeable events. This paper aims at illustrating the the oretical framework and the concrete implementation of SmartPM, a PMS that features a set of sound and complete techniques to automatically cope with unplanned exceptions. PMS SmartPM is based on a general framework which adopts the Situation Calculus and IndiGolog.


ABSTRACT This paper considers the state of the 'field' of affect studies and its development – partly through the involvement of one of its authors – over the course of decades. It argues that rather than identifying affect as the 'other' of signification and representation, thus 'subtracting' it from the conjuncture, one should understand the question of affect to point to the multiplicity of forms of sign behaviours – or, better, of forms of expression or collective assemblages of enunciation (in the terms of Deleuze and Guattari) that constitute a conjuncture in all its complexity. This article attempts to map this multiplicity by refining and expanding Guattari's 'mixed semiotics'. Finally, it offers a brief example of how such multiplicities (and their resulting hybridities) might be used to compare the 'affective topographies' and structures of feelings that have differentially enabled oppositional movements in the 1960s and the current moment.


A large fraction of total electricity demand is comprised of end-use devices whose demand for energy is inherently deferrable in time. Of interest is the potential to use this latent flexibility in demand to absorb variability in power supplied from intermittent renewable generation. A fundamental challenge lies in the design of incentives that induce the desired response in demand. With an eye to electric vehicle charging, we propose a novel forward market for deadline-differentiated electric power service, where consumers consent to deferred service of prespecified loads in exchange for a reduced price for energy. The longer a consumer is willing to defer, the lower the price for energy. The proposed forward contract provides a guarantee on the aggregate quantity of energy to be delivered by a consumer-specified deadline. Under the earliest-deadline-first (EDF) scheduling policy, which is shown to be optimal for the supplier, we explicitly characterize a non-discriminatory, deadline-differentiated pricing scheme that yields an efficient competitive equilibrium between the supplier and consumers. We further show that this efficient pricing scheme, in combination with EDF scheduling, is incentive compatible in that every consumer would like to reveal her true deadline to the supplier, regardless of the actions taken by other consumers.


The deterrence of copyright infringement and the evils of piracy have long been an axiomatic focus of both legislators and scholars. The conventional view is that infringement must be curbed and/or punished in order for copyright to fulfill its purported goals of incentivizing creation and ensuring access to works. This Essay proves this view false by demonstrating that some rightsholders don't merely tolerate, but actually encourage infringement, both explicitly and implicitly, in a variety of different situations and for one common reason: they benefit from it. Rightsholders' ability to monetize infringement destabilizes long-held but problematic assumptions about both rightsholder preferences, and about copyright's optimal infringement policy.

Through a series of case studies, this Essay describes the impetuses and normative implications of this counterintuitive—but not so unusual—phenomenon. Recognition of monetized infringement in copyright is interesting not only for its unexpectedness, but also for the broader point that its existence suggests: we have an impoverished descriptive account of why some laws operate the way that they do. This is particularly unsettling in an area like copyright, where advocates are sharply divided along policy lines. This Essay is an important first step toward a positive theory of copyright—one that recognizes the underappreciated role, both positive and negative, that private parties play in policymaking.


This paper presents experimental and numerical results about the effectiveness of a beam-type twin dynamic vibration absorber for a cantilevered flexible structure carrying an unbalanced rotor. An experimental laboratory prototype setup has been built and implemented in our laboratory and numerical investigations have been performed through finite element analysis. The proposed system design consists of a primary cantilevered flexible structure with an attached dual-mass cantilevered secondary dynamic vibration absorber arrangement. In addition, an unbalanced rotor system is attached to the tip of the flexible cantilevered structure to inspect the system response under harmonic excitations. Numerical findings and experimental observations have revealed that significant vibration reductions are possible with the proposed dual-mass, cantilevered dynamic vibration absorber on a flexible cantilevered platform carrying an unbalanced rotor system at its tip. The proposed system is efficient and it can be practically tuned for variety of design and operating conditions. The designed setup and the results in this paper can serve for practicing engineers, researchers and can be used for educational purposes.


AIM
To confirm whether insulin regulates resistin expression and secretion during differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes and the relationship of resistin with insulin resistance both in vivo and in vitro.

METHODS
Supernatant resistin was measured during differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. L6 rat myoblasts and hepatoma cell line H4IIE were used to confirm the cellular function of resistin. Diet-induced obese rats were used as an insulin resistance model to study the relationship of resistin with insulin resistance.

RESULTS
Resistin expression and secretion were enhanced during differentiation 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. This cellular differentiation stimulated resistin expression and secretion, but was suppressed by insulin. Resistin also induced insulin resistance in H4IIE hepatocytes and L6 myoblasts. In diet-induced obese rats, serum resistin levels were negatively correlated with insulin sensitivity, but not with serum insulin.

CONCLUSION
Insulin can inhibit resistin expression and secretion in vitro, but insulin is not a major regulator of resistin in vivo. Fat tissue mass affects insulin sensitivity by altering the expression and secretion of resistin.


The present work is a collection of articles [133, 134, 135] that, in broad
terms, are dedicated to the development of statistical models for the analysis of social networks. Two main approaches are adopted throughout
this manuscript that, despite being substantially different in their nature,
are also complementary and accompanied by an active and relevant scientific background.
From one side, following the statistical physics literature regarding the
study of networks, we develop models based on the topology of the observed graphs: these methods are built starting from the activity of each
node, i.e. its degree, and this information is preserved on average in the
benchmark structure. Therefore any successive analysis that compares
observed and expected quantities to detect relevant behaviours is, indeed, identifying quantities that cannot be simply reproduced by a model built on the information regarding solely network topology.
On the other side, we also analyse the stream of literature that focuses on
generative models. In this framework, the network topology plays a role
in the definition of the temporal evolution of the node-related link probability, synthesized in the preferential attachment rule that is a function of
nodes' degrees. We enrich this formulation in order to take into account
also some individual features of the nodes, not related to the network
structure. This addition gives a fundamental contribution in reproducing the evolution of the considered network.
Which of the two approaches provides a more accurate benchmark is often argument of debate. In this work we have developed theoretical tools
and tested them with real-world applications, for both the presented
cases. The results of our analyses show that the information provided
by these two complementary methodologies can reveal equally valuable
in reproducing different aspects of the systems object of study


Many animal studies have reported an association between melatonin suppression and the disturbance of metabolic responses; yet, few human studies have investigated bright light effects on metabolic and hormonal responses at night. This study investigated the impact of light on plasma hormones and metabolites prior to, and after, an evening meal in healthy participants. Seventeen healthy participants, 8 females (22.2 ± 2.59 years, mean ± s.d.) and 9 males (22.8 ± 3.5 years) were randomised to a two-way cross-over design protocol; dim light (DL) (<5 lux) and bright light (BL) (>500 lux) sessions, separated by at least seven days. Saliva and plasma samples were collected prior to and after a standard evening meal at specific intervals. Plasma non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) levels were significantly higher pre-meal in DL compared to BL (P < 0.01). Plasma glucose and insulin levels were significantly greater post-meal in the BL compared to DL session (P = 0.02, P = 0.001), respectively. Salivary melatonin levels were significantly higher in the DL compared to those in BL session (P = 0.005). BL at night was associated with significant increases in plasma glucose and insulin suggestive of glucose intolerance and insulin insensitivity. Raised pre-prandial NEFA levels may be due to changes in insulin sensitivity or the presence of melatonin and/or light at night. Plasma triglyceride (TAG) levels were the same in both sessions. These results may explain some of the health issues reported in shift workers; however, further studies are needed to elucidate the cause of these metabolic changes.


Introduction: The level of smoking cessation support across UK prisons is variable, with most offering pharmacological support, such as nicotine replacement therapy. However, with a complete smoking ban in prisons in England now imminent, additional standardised behavioural support is necessary to help offenders go smoke-free. Aims: This study used the Behaviour Change Wheel to aim to develop the content of an online smoking cessation intervention for offenders, with consideration of their capability, motivation and opportunity for behaviour change. Methods: This was an intervention development study. The Behaviour Change Wheel was used to map cognitive, behavioural, physiological and social targets for the intervention, onto appropriate intervention techniques for inclusion in the smoking cessation programme for offenders. Results: Psychological capability, social opportunity and reflective and automatic motivation were identified through deductive thematic analysis as areas of change required to achieve smoking cessation. A total of 27 behavioural change techniques were chosen for this smoking cessation intervention and were mapped onto the Lifestyle Balance Model which provided the theoretical basis on which the components of the programme are conceptualised. This included strategies around increasing motivation to quit, anticipating smoking triggers, modifying smoking-related thoughts, regulating emotions, managing cravings, replacing smoking and rewarding nicotine abstinence and adopting a healthier lifestyle. Conclusions: Through the utilisation of the Behaviour Change Wheel, the development process of this digital smoking cessation intervention was achieved. Further research is planned to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of this intervention and to explore how the programme is implemented in practice within prison settings.


I conducted a land-based theodolite study from June 27 through August 20,2001, to examine the response of dolphins to vessel traffic in Core Creek, NC. Groups of animals were displaced from the Intracoastal Waterway (lCW) when transiting boats passed through the study site. Dolphins changed direction least when multiple boat activities occurred while animals reoriented most when no boats were present. Differences in the directness of groups' travel path were seen among various categories of vessel traffic. Pairs of mothers and calves were closely associated when vessels were present; pairs were farther apart when no boats were in the study site, although this difference was not significant. I also conducted a social science survey to examine dolphin-watch activities, consumer education, and customer satisfaction on these vessels. I compared customer satisfaction between three boats with varying customer interaction and levels of interactions. Forty-five percent of customers on the operation with highest educational content were satisfied with their trip. Most patrons on the other boats wished to see other activities incorporated into their experiences. Therefore, my study suggests that dolphin-watch patrons to the Beaufort/Morehead City, NC, area value educational content. From these two studies, I developed policy recommendations to reduce impact of vessel traffic on bottlenose dolphins in Core Creek and to enhance the dolphin-watch . industry in the area. My suggestions include: 1.) Establishment of a regional ecotour operators' association, 2.) Development of a dolphin-watch certification program, 3.) Promotion of land-based operations, and 4.) Integration of naturalists and researchers into daily operations of dolphin-watches.


Although introductions to courses in finance exist for a variety of fields, Robert W. Kaps provides the first text to address the subject from an aviation viewpoint. Relying on his vast experiencetwenty-plus years in the airline industry and more than thirty years in aviationKaps seeks not only to prepare students for careers in the aviation field but also to evoke in these students an excitement about the business. Specifically, he shows students how airlines, airports, and aviation are financed. Each chapter contains examples and illustrations and ends with suggested readings and references. Following his discussion of financial management and accounting procedures, Kaps turns to financial management and sources of financial information. Here he discusses types of business organizations, corporate goals, business ethics, maximizing share price, and sources of financial information. Kaps also covers debt markets, financial statements, air transport sector revenue generation, and air transport operating cost management, including cost administration and labor costs, fuel, and landing fees and rentals. He describes in depth air transport yield management systems and airport financing, including revenues, ownership, operations, revenue generation, funding, allocation of Air Improvement Program funds, bonds, and passenger facility charges. Kaps concludes with a discussion of the preparation of a business plan, which includes advice about starting and running a business. He also provides two typical business plan outlines. While the elements of fiscal management in aviation follow generally accepted accounting principles, many nuances are germane only to the airline industry. Kaps provides a basic understanding of the principles that are applicable throughout the airline industry."


The role of dopamine in plasticity at glutamatergic synapses in the striatum is central to our understanding of basal ganglia functions and dopamine-dependent reward mechanisms. Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) at these synapses are thought to be dependent on D1 and D2 dopamine receptors, respectively. However, the mechanisms of LTP and LTD in the striatum are controversial. Using brain slices from transgenic mice, Shen et al. show that LTP and LTD can occur in both D1- and D2-expressing neurons but with different molecular mechanisms. Dopaminergic modulation of plasticity is receptor and cell-type specific. The findings suggest that the control of bidirectional plasticity is not exerted through a monolithic mechanism, as previously asserted, but by cell-type-specific mechanisms depending on the subtype of dopamine receptor expressed. W. Shen, M. Flajolet, P. Greengard, D. J. Surmeier, Dichotomous dopaminergic control of striatal synaptic plasticity. Science 321, 848-851 (2008). [Abstract] [Full Text]


The level of genetic variation detected among 7 sugar beet and 4 fodder beet breeding lines was compared to the variation found among 21 accessions of wild beets of the section Beta. RFLP analysis used a set of 32 sugar beet DNA sequences as probes to score a total of 351 bands over all accessions. The band data was used to calculate genetic distances between all pairs of accessions. The distance estimates were subsequently used in a cluster analysis to produce a dendrogram of genetic distances. The analysis unambiguously defined all accessions and clearly defined a fodder beet cluster within the sugar beet cluster. The cultivated beets were all separated from the wild beets. The sugar beet breeding lines showed a considerable amount of genetic variation, comparable with the level of variation detected among the wild beet accessions.


In the present study, we report on an artificial language learning experiment aiming to test the idea that it is easier to learn palatalization before a front vowel than it is to learn depalatalization in the same context. The motivation for the study comes from recent work by Czaplicki (2013), who provides a detailed analysis of palatalization-related effects in Polish, showing that they have no phonological basis. The conclusion he reaches is that 'phonological naturalness does not play a role in linguistic computation' Czaplicki (2013:32). It is nevertheless the case that palatalization is cross-linguistically much more common than depalatalization. If naturalness plays no role in computation, the typological asymmetry must arise from elsewhere, for example, from biases in learning difficulty. Our results provide provisory evidence that there is a small but statistically significant advantage for learning palatalization over depalatalization for adult Hungarian speakers.


Palaeowaters in Coastal Europe contains 17 contributions from an international array of authors. They discuss the history of groundwater evolution during the late Pleistocene in the coastal areas of Europe from the Baltic region to the Iberian peninsula and the Canary Islands. Geochemical and geophysical techniques for evaluating palaeowaters are reviewed. The focus of the book is on changes in the hydrogeological regime during the Quaternary and their impacts on groundwater movement and chemistry in European coastal aquifers. The work summarized in the papers was carried out by a partnership of European scientists under the auspices of the PALAEAUX project, an EC initiative. Researchers from the fields of hydrogeology, geochemistry, isotope hydrology and Quaternary studies attempted to reconstruct the most probable movement of groundwater in the study area over the past 100 000 years and its response to climatic events of global significance during the last glacial cycle. The results of this work, summarized in this volume, allow a better understanding of the water resources found at and near the coastlines of northern and western Europe. During times of lowered sea level, it appears that groundwaters were replenished to depths greater than occur at the present day. These pristine freshwater reserves are an irreplaceable asset. Their location at coastlines where populations and water demands are high and often seasonal means that they need careful management to avoid over-exploitation or contamination. The inevitable conflicts that this resource management creates are discussed. Palaeowaters in Coastal Europe: evolution of groundwater since the late Pleistocene will be of interest to Quarternary scientists, hydrogeologists, marine scientists engaged in coastal research and those involved in environmental science and the management of groundwater assests.