The idea of the simultaneous transmission and reception of data using the same frequency is a potential candidate to be deployed in the next generation wireless communications standard 5G. The In-Band Full-Duplex (IBFD) concept permits to theoretically double the spectral efficiency as well as to reduce the medium access control (MAC) signaling which will improve the overall throughput of a wireless network. However, IBFD radios suffer from loopback self-interference (LSI) that is a major drawback that hinders the full exploitation of the potential benefits that this system is capable of offering. Recently, there has been an increased interest in modeling and analyzing the effect of LSI on the performance of an IBFD communication system, as well as in developing novel LSI mitigation techniques at the radio-frequency (RF) front-end and/or at the baseband stage. LSI mitigation is approached by three different ways: The first approach is a propagation domain approach, where the transmitter and receiver antennas of the full-duplex node are designed in a manner that results in minimizing the interference between them. Although this method seems promising, the risk of nulling the received signal of interest is always present. Motivated by this risk, researchers have resorted to the use of analog circuitry to regenerate the LSI effect by adjusting the gain, phase and delay of the known transmitted data to mimic the effect of the channel of the received LSI signal on the transmitted data, and finally subtracting the estimated signal from the received signal. However, this turns out to be a formidable task since the surrounding environment of the full-duplex node is always varying and the LSI channel variations are difficult to track using analog circuit components. Both of the discussed approaches are classified as passive LSI mitigation approaches, given that they lack the ability to adapt to the constantly varying LSI channel. To overcome this drawback, a third technique of LSI cancellation is implemented, where the complex implementation of an adaptive LSI mitigation technique is moved to the digital domain, and the receiver actively updates the estimation of the LSI channel depending on the performance of the communication system to finally combine it with the known transmit data and subtract it from the received signal. Given that the LSI mitigation process can be easily performed in the digital domain using digital signal processing (DSP) algorithms, one might ask: why isn't the whole LSI mitigation process performed in the digital domain? The answer is that the signal entering the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is limited by the ADC's dynamic range. Consequently, a combination of the three aforementioned LSI mitigation techniques must be deployed towards the implementation of an efficient and reliable IBFD communication node. Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is the preferred modulation scheme that is adopted by many wireless communication standards. Its implementation using direct conversion receiver architecture, which is favored over its super-heterodyne counterpart, suffer from inter-carrier interference (ICI) introduced by RF impairments such as oscillator phase noise (PHN) and in-phase/quadrature-phase imbalance (IQI). PHN's effect is manifested in the spread of the energy of an OFDM subcarrier over its neighboring subcarriers, and IQI introduces ICI between image subcarriers. In this work, we analyze the joint effect of PHN and IQI on the process of LSI mitigation in an IBFD communication scenario. The analyses is performed to yield the average per-subcarrier residual LSI signal power after the final stage of the digital LSI cancellation. The analysis shows that, even with the perfect knowledge of the LSI channel-state information, the residual LSI power is still considerably high, and more sophisticated LSI mitigation algorithms must be designed to achieve a better performing IBFD communication scheme. Acknowledgement: This work was made possible by GSRA grant # GSRA2-1-0601-14011 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The findings achieved herein are solely the responsibility of the authors.


This article addresses college classes as forums for activism. One course brought college students together with system-involved girls for a mentoring program to provide often-unavailable, relationship-oriented services to girls. A second course provided a unique educational experience for incarcerated youth and traditional college students to study restorative justice. As such, the course itself was an attempt to practice restorative justice principles by strengthening the damaged relationship between offenders and the community. Data collected from participants allow for an exploration of the experiences, perceptions, and changes in attitudes and beliefs. Further discussion on linking activism and teaching is presented.


Several adaptive feedforward control methods have been proposed in previous research on active noise control. In those methods, noise control is achieved by adding in a reverse-phase control sound of the same amplitude to noise near an error microphone. Because this method is aimed at controlling only noise near the error microphone, the control area is inherently narrow. Here, we propose an alternative method of noise control for an entire closed space. The proposed method is based on state feedback control and modeling of the acoustic space by the concentrated-mass model. The acoustic space is modeled as masses, connecting springs, and connecting dampers. Further, a loudspeaker as control source is also modeled as a mass– spring–damper system. We previously reported a method for simple one-dimensional acoustic space control. In this paper, we show the design of a control system for two-dimensional acoustic spaces. The acoustic space and loudspeakers are modeled in a concentrated-mass model, and the state feedback control system is realized as a Kalman filter with pole placement. The number of degrees of freedom is reduced by using modal analysis, which reduces the computation time of the controller. Experiments and numerical simulation of the coupled system were conducted to confirm the validity of the analysis model. Noise in the acoustic space was experimentally controlled, with the finding that noise in the entire acoustic space was reduced around the resonance frequencies. Furthermore, the limit of the control effect are considered within the proposed system.


Introduction: There is a rising incidence of Oriental cholangiohepatitis (OCH) also known as recurrent pyogenic cholangitis (RPC), in Indian population. The condition which presents with classical triad of recurrent upper abdominal pain, obstructive jaundice and fever is characterized by biliary sludge, intrahepatic bile duct calculi, strictures, duct dilatation and cholangitis resulting from chronic biliary parasitic infestation and associated chronic secondary portal bacteremia. Aim: The purpose of this retrospective study was to understand the spectrum of radiological manifestations of oriental cholangiohepatitis by MRI which helps in differentiating it from other differential causes of biliary obstruction and cholangitis. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of cases of oriental pyogenic cholangitis diagnosed by MRI over a period of 3 years in department of radio diagnosis who were referred from gastroenterology department with clinical suspicion of cholangitis and diagnosed as having OCH based on MRI finding's and later confirmed by ERCP or biochemical parameters. Results: Out of the total 950 MRCP scans evaluated, 150 cases were of suspected cholangitis and only 9 cases had features of oriental pyogenic cholangitis. These patients showed the characteristic MRCP finding's like ductal changes including intraductal calculi with dilatation and strictures in RHD and LHD, segmental and subsegmental IHBRs and in extrahepatic biliary tree i.e. CHD and CBD with decreased arborization of peripheral biliary radicals; wall thickening in biliary tree and pneumobilia; and parenchymal abnormalities like fatty liver, hepatomegaly, segmental atrophy or diffuse liver atrophy. Complications like portal hypertension, splenomegaly and ascites that occur were also observed. Though literature mentions complications like hepatic mass/SOL i.e. hepatic abscess or malignancy, we didn't have any in our case series. Conclusion: To summarise, presence of hepatolithiasis and choledocholithiasis with significant biliary duct dilatation and short segment strictures in the biliary tree with peripheral IHBR pruning, usually in the absence of gallstones on MRCP is nearly pathognomonic of oriental pyogenic cholangitis in patients presenting with classical clinical triad of abdominal pain, jaundice and fever and obviates the need for diagnostic ERCP.


Opioid addiction, a chronic relapsing disorder, continues to impose great health and economic burden on our society. America's opioid crisis has become an epidemic due in part to the lack of effective treatments for the negative physical and emotional states suffered by the individuals during withdrawal from chronic opioid use. These symptoms might be major contributing factors to relapse. Recently, Cannabis and cannabinoids have emerged as a potential therapeutic strategy in the treatment of opioid addiction. This review differs from many other reports in the field by focusing on the possible mechanisms underlying the effects of cannabinoids on the negative physical and emotional states induced by opioid withdrawal. We start by briefly outlining the current opioid crisis and how both opioids and cannabinoids affect the mammalian central nervous system (CNS). Next, we present findings that illustrate how cannabinoids may be used to enhance opioid analgesia and to mitigate opioid withdrawal syndromes. Finally, we summarize these findings and propose directions for future research.


One of the major barriers to the adoption of passive engineering strategies in buildings, such as the provision for ventilation by natural means, is the limitation of the predictive techniques currently available for their design. At present there are three generic predictive methods for buoyancy-driven natural ventilation flows: simple analytical modelling, experimental water-based scale-model testing and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). In addition, there is a shortage of experimental data from real buildings for the validation of such predictive methods. This work was concerned with current and emerging methods for predicting buoyancy-driven natural displacement ventilation flows within buildings. There were two main objectives for this research; to conduct a thorough experimental study on the natural ventilation flow through a full-scale enclosure representative of a real building with air as the fluid medium in order to provide benchmark data for model validation and to use this benchmark data to identify the preferred method for predicting detailed airflow patterns and thermal stratification for natural displacement ventilation flows within buildings. A single benchmark case that has received much attention in the past 15 years was identified for the experimental program: the natural displacement ventilation flow through an enclosure with low-level and high-level openings, driven by a point source of buoyancy at floor level. A simple mathematical model was proposed to describe this flow, which was validated experimentally using the small-scale water-based salt-bath technique (Linden et. al., 1990). More recently, another small-scale water-based technique has been developed and used to verify the mathematical models (Chen et. al., 2001). The simple models have also been validated numerically using the CFD approach (Cook, 1998). Despite the widespread interest in this class of ventilation flow, there had not yet been any experimental validation work reported to the authors knowledge using a full-scale air-based enclosure. To address this, a full-scale air-enclosure was constructed as part of this work and the natural displacement ventilation flow through the space investigated for a number of heat sources and for a range of opening configurations. In particular, the temperature stratification established within the enclosure and the displacement flow rates through the space were monitored and are presented. The rate of heat transfer through the walls of the enclosure and the surface temperatures of the walls were not recorded. In terms of its geometrical size, the full-scale experimental enclosure was representative of an occupied space within a real building. Due to budgetary constraints, however, it was constructed from chipboard sheet material rather than more traditional building materials, so that the thermal properties of the walls were not necessarily representative of a real building. Nonetheless, the experimental data presented does form a valuable set of benchmark data for a natural ly-d riven ventilation flow with air as the fluid medium that does not suffer from geometrical scaling problems. It was found that the simple analytical models that have been proposed to date and the water-based scale-modelling do not compare favourably with the data from the experimental study. It is thought that this is because the analytical models and the water-based scale-models effectively assume that the only significant transport mechanism within the space is convection, so that the mechanisms of diffusion and thermal radiation are neglected. Realistic predictions for this type of ventilation flow can be achieved using the CFD technique, which is not affected by scaling restrictions and can be easily extended to model additional physical processes including turbulent transport and thermal radiative transfer. This approach does, however, require further development before it can be used routinely, particularly with respect to the prediction of rates of heat transfer at solid walls. Reasonable agreement with the experimental benchmark data from the full-scale enclosure was observed only when the thermal radiation model was incorporated within the CFD-model. Improved agreement was observed when the radiation absorption characteristics of air due to the content of water vapour in the atmosphere were properly represented. The choice of which turbulence closure should be employed was found to be of secondary importance. It would, therefore, appear that thermal radiative transfer is an important transport mechanism within enclosures with air as the fluid medium. It is concluded that the CFD-technique has the potential to accurately predict the detailed airflow patterns and thermal stratification for buoyancy-driven natural ventilation flows within buildings where simpler analytical models or water-based experimental methods have limitations. A FV-radiation model should be incorporated into the CFD-model, and the absorption coefficient ic should be in the range 0.1 Orn" < ic< 0.1 5m". If possible, the rate of heat transfer at the walls of an enclosure should be prescribed in advance, as further work is required before this information can be realistically determined as part of a CIFID-simulation. iv


The complexity of modern real-time systems is increasing day by day. This inevitable rise in complexity predominantly stems from two contradicting requirements, i.e., ever increasing demand for functionality, and required low cost for the final product. The development of modern multi-processors and variety of network protocols and architectures have enabled such a leap in complexity and functionality possible. Albeit, efficient use of these multi-processors and network architectures is still a major problem. Moreover, the software design and its development process needs improvements in order to support rapid-prototyping for ever changing system designs. Therefore, in this dissertation, we provide solutions for different problems faced in the development and deployment process of real-time systems. The contributions presented in this thesis enable efficient utilization of system resources, rapid design & development and component modularity & portability.

In order to ease the certification process, time-triggered computation model is often used in distributed systems. However, time-triggered scheduling is NP-hard, due to which the process of schedule generation for complex large systems becomes convoluted. Large scheduler run-times and low scalability are two major problems with time-triggered scheduling. To solve these problems, we present a modular real-time scheduler based on a novel search-tree pruning technique, which consumes less time (compared to the state-of-the-art) in order to schedule tasks on large distributed time-triggered systems. In order to provide end-to-end guarantees, we also extend our modular scheduler to quickly generate schedules for time-triggered network traffic in large TTEthernet based networks. We evaluate our schedulers on synthetic but practical task-sets and demonstrate that our pruning technique efficiently reduces scheduler run-times and exhibits adequate scalability for future time-triggered distributed systems.

In safety critical systems, the certification process also requires strict isolation between independent components. This isolation is enforced by utilizing resource partitioning approach, where different criticality components execute in different partitions (each temporally and spatially isolated from each other). However, existing partitioning approaches use periodic servers or tasks to service aperiodic activities. This approach leads to utilization loss and potentially leads to large latencies. On the contrary to the periodic approaches, state-of-the-art aperiodic task admission algorithms do not suffer from problems like utilization loss. However, these approaches do not support partitioned scheduling or mixed-criticality execution environment. To solve this problem, we propose an algorithm for online admission of aperiodic tasks which provides job execution flexibility, jitter control and leads to lower latencies of aperiodic tasks.

For safety critical systems, fault-tolerance is one of the most important requirements. In time-triggered systems, modes are often used to ensure survivability against faults, i.e., when a fault is detected, current system configuration (or mode) is changed such that the overall system performance is either unaffected or degrades gracefully. In literature, it has been asserted that a task-set might be schedulable in individual modes but unschedulable during a mode-change. Moreover, conventional mode-change execution strategies might cause significant delays until the next mode is established. In order to address these issues, in this dissertation, we present an approach for schedulability analysis of mode-changes and propose mode-change delay reduction techniques in distributed system architecture defined by the DREAMS project. We evaluate our approach on an avionics use case and demonstrate that our approach can drastically reduce mode-change delays.

In order to manage increasing system complexity, real-time applications also require new design and development technologies. Other than fulfilling the technical requirements, the main features required from such technologies include modularity and re-usability. AUTOSAR is one of these technologies in automotive industry, which defines an open standard for software architecture of a real-time operating system. However, being an industrial standard, the available proprietary tools do not support model extensions and/or new developments by third-parties and, therefore, hinder the software evolution. To solve this problem, we developed an open-source AUTOSAR toolchain which supports application development and code generation for several modules. In order to exhibit the capabilities of our toolchain, we developed two case studies. These case studies demonstrate that our toolchain generates valid artifacts, avoids dirty workarounds and supports application development.

In order to cope with evolving system designs and hardware platforms, rapid-development of scheduling and analysis algorithms is required. In order to ease the process of algorithm development, a number of scheduling and analysis frameworks are proposed in literature. However, these frameworks focus on a specific class of applications and are limited in functionality. In this dissertation, we provide the skeleton of a scheduling and analysis framework for real-time systems. In order to support rapid-development, we also highlight different development components which promote code reuse and component modularity.


In the past three decades, developing countries have made significant economic and social progress, from improved infant mortality rates to higher life expectancy. Yet, 1.3 billion people continue to live in extreme poverty in the developing world, leading policymakers to place a renewed emphasis on policies that could promote economic efficiency and the productivity of the poor. How should these policies be sequenced and implemented to spur growth? Would a large, front-loaded increase in public infrastructure investment yield the desired growth-promoting effect? Taking a rigorous look at this kind of investment and its outcomes, this book explores the different channels through which public capital in infrastructure may affect growth and human welfare, and develops a series of formal models for understanding how these channels operate. Bringing together a vast amount of research in one unifying framework, Pierre-Richard Agenor finds that in considering investment in infrastructure, a variety of externalities need to be factored into analytical models and introduced in policy debates. Lack of access to infrastructure not only constrains the expansion of markets and private investment, it may also hinder the achievement of health and education targets. Ease of access, conversely, promotes innovation and empowers women by allowing them to reallocate their time to productive uses. Laying a solid foundation of economic facts and ideas, Public Capital, Growth, and Welfare provides a comprehensive look at the critical role of public capital in development


Seasonality in yield, physical and chemical properties of the native agar from different life stages of Gracilaria cliftonii was investigated over a period of six seasons (autumn 2008–winter 2009). Agar yield and its properties varied as a function of seasons and life stages but there was no significant correlation between environmental factors and agar properties (p > 0.05). Native agar varied from 53.6% to 59.6% dry basis over the study period. Agar yield of the tetrasporophyte was significantly higher in autumn 2008 than spring 2009. Gelling temperature of agar varied between 34 and 36 °C, whereas melting point varied from 77 to 84.3 °C. Sulphate of the agar from different life stages of G. cliftonii varied from 5.9% to 6.6% dry basis but was not influenced by seasons (p > 0.05). The present study demonstrated that agar yield and its properties are influenced both by seasons and reproductive status of the thallus.


Wind speed and air-sea flux measurements made from instrumentation on ships are affected by the airflow distortion created by the presence of the ship. The airflow can be either accelerated or decelerated depending on the shape of the ship and the location of the anemometer. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) package VECTIS was used to examine the extent of the flow distortion at potential anemometer locations on the foremast platform of the RRS "James Cook". This technique has been previously used to study the airflow over many research ships, but this is believed to be the first time it has been applied to a research ship in the design/build stage. CFD modelling of the airflow over the ship showed that the foremast platform of the RRS "James Cook" is a good location to locate instrumentation and make high quality air-sea flux measurements. The wind speed is decelerated by about 2 % of the freestream wind speed for bow-on flows at well-exposed anemometer sites on the foremast platform. For relative wind directions up to ±30° of the bow the airflow is accelerated by up to 5 %. The ship's anemometers are located on the main mast and are relatively close to the ship's large satellite communication radome. For winds within 15° of the bow the wind speeds at these anemometer sites are accelerated by up to about 7 %. For wind directions at ±30° the satellite radome has a significant effect on the flow and the wind speeds will be severely biased, with the magnitude of the bias varying rapidly with wind direction and the angle of pitch of the ship. It is strongly recommended that these anemometers be moved higher up and further away from the mast.


We review the nature of glass transitions and the glasses arising from a square-well potential with a narrow and deep well. Our discussion is based on the mode coupling theory (MCT), and the predictions of glasses that we make refer to the "ideal" glasses predicted by this theory. We believe that the square-well system well represents colloidal particles with attractive interactions produced by grafted polymers, or depletion interactions. It has been recently shown that two types of glasses, an attractive and a repulsive one, are predicted by MCT for this model. The former can form at quite low densities. Most of our attention is directed at the mechanical properties of the glasses predicted by this theory. In particular we calculate the elastic shear modulus at zero frequency and the longitudinal stress modulus in the long wavelength limit. Results for both are presented along the glass-liquid transition curves and their interesting behavior is explained in terms of the underlying physics of the system.


Abstract There is a growing body of literature concerning the staging, management and planning for large-scale sports events; the evaluation of these events and the reasons why nations and cities attempt to host them, but few studies have provided a theoretically informed analysis of hosting policy decisions. This study builds upon existing studies which outlined a method for exploring decisions to host, but furthers the analysis through the consideration of a policy model, the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF), in order to provide a sophisticated understanding of how policy decisions are taken at the local level. A case study of Glasgow's bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games was undertaken using semi-structured interviews with the majority of key actors involved in, and excluded from, the policy-making process. The results indicate that, while it does not provide a perfect 'fit', the MSF and its focus on policy entrepreneurialism is useful in explaining the elevation of these events onto local political agendas. The implications of these results include providing a stimulus for researchers to build upon the limited body of literature that applies policy theory to sport policy issues and also to stimulate research in the international context.


Abstract This article advances an intersectional perspective in the analysis of racial inequities in special education so that theoretical refinement of this problem will strengthen educational equity research and theory. Racial disproportionality in some disability categories continues to affect a sizable number of students in the United States, with dire long-term consequences for the educational trajectories of these learners. After more than four decades, the problem continues to be debated in research, practice, and policy circles. There is consensus among researchers that the racialization of disability embodies complexities that defy linear explanations. But this debate has overlooked the potential of intersectionality to document complexity and to transcend the individual-structure binary that tends to permeate previous scholarship. Indeed, intersectionality's explicit attention to how the complexity of people's everyday experiences is connected to larger historical processes could offer key insights. I analyze how disproportionality research has addressed the intersections of race and disability (along with other markers of oppression) through a contrapuntal reading of works framed with medical, social, and cultural disability models. I conclude with reflections for future research on racial disparities in special education that is mindful of intersectional complexity.


It is an honour and a privilege to be elected as president of our professional Society, undeniably the pinnacle in my professional career. Thank you for putting your trust in me. I will, in all I do, endeavour to deliver on that trust. Thank you to everyone who has supported and whose interaction has formed and shaped me during the years leading to this point; the previous leaders of the Society who have taught me many things over the years; the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences for providing the learning environment and growth opportunities; the North-West and Cape Western Province branches where I was blessed with wise men and women to advise me; my wife and family who have always stood by me and accepted the role of my career and profession in my life.


Bilevel optimization has become a powerful tool in a wide variety of machine learning problems. However, the current nonconvex bilevel optimization considers an offline dataset and static functions, which may not work well in emerging online applications with streaming data and time-varying functions. In this work, we study online bilevel optimization (OBO) where the functions can be time-varying and the agent continuously updates the decisions with online streaming data. To deal with the function variations and the unavailability of the true hypergradients in OBO, we propose a single-loop online bilevel optimizer with window averaging (SOBOW), which updates the outer-level decision based on a window average of the most recent hypergradient estimations stored in the memory. Compared to existing algorithms, SOBOW is computationally efficient and does not need to know previous functions. To handle the unique technical difficulties rooted in single-loop update and function variations for OBO, we develop a novel analytical technique that disentangles the complex couplings between decision variables, and carefully controls the hypergradient estimation error. We show that SOBOW can achieve a sublinear bilevel local regret under mild conditions. Extensive experiments across multiple domains corroborate the effectiveness of SOBOW.


Consequent upon the institution of liberal policies by the Government of Pakistan in 1980s, aimed at transferring the import and sale of chemical pesticides to the private sector, numerous companies entered the country's pesticide market. Easy imports, low prices and availability of a variety of pesticides were distinct advantages of these liberal policies. On the other hand, Agriculture Extension lacked the capacity and necessary expertise to monitor such a long range of pesticide products available in the market, reflecting imperfect competition and a high level of windfall profits. As a result, the sale of substandard pesticides is a common problem of farming community. Besides, overuse and misuse of pesticide by untrained farmers increased the health and environmental risks especially in the prime cotton growing districts. The status of pesticide industry in Sindh province was critically reviewed in the study, in the light of international experiences. Using survey method, 263 stakeholders (19 key respondents and 244 sample respondents) were interviewed during 2003-04. Knowledge of farmers and extension agents about proper selection, usage and safe handling of pesticides was assessed. Recommendations were developed regarding registration, monitoring and evaluation of pesticides and extension education programs for capacity building of farmers and extension agents. The status review revealed that the public sector has been able to train critical manpower (18% PhDs) in plant protection. Research on new active pesticide ingredients could not, however, be undertaken due mainly to non-availability of operational funds, advanced training, and appropriate equipment. The on-going public sector research program dealt with IPM related-technology and testing of efficacy of pesticides. Use of IPM techniques was found limited to research stations due mainly to poor extension services. Therefore, pesticide was the sole source of cotton pest control by majority of farmers. Three legal instruments for pesticide registration were in vogue; namely Form1, Form 16, and Form 17. Prerequisite for Form 1 is to test efficacy of pesticides for two consecutive years at two research stations while Form 16 and Form 17 are liberal schemes; and do not need any research trials. Due to easy registration, 47 and 36 percent of the pesticides are registered in Form 16 and 17 respectively. Only 17 percent pesticides are registered in Form 1. Square root regression model was developed on the import of pesticides in the country. Estimates of the proposed model revealed steeper growth trend than that of ordinary regression model; and it was much higher than agricultural productivity growth trend. Directorate General, Agriculture Extension, is responsible for monitoring and evaluation of pesticides. According to information provided by District Officers (Agriculture), the accused Dealers of adulteration and supply of substandard pesticides were penalized with minor fines due to specific legal and administrative shortcomings; while according to section 21/2b of Agricultural Pesticide Ordinance, provided for imprisonment of not less than six months and not more than two years, with fine which may extend to five hundred thousand rupees. Majority of the stakeholders including District Officers (Agriculture), Sales Executives, and Pesticide Dealers were dissatisfied with the present monitoring and evaluation system for pesticides. District Officers did not get due cooperation from police in lodging FIR and protocol in courts during hearing of pesticide cases. Sales Executives stated that the process of drawing samples was targeted and marred with corruption of the highest order. All Pesticide Dealers were of the opinion that pesticide companies be named in FIR when samples are declared unfit by the laboratories; because the companies supplied sealed pesticides and should be held responsible for any adulteration at their end. Local companies offered high profit margins (up to 30%) and incentive schemes including lotteries and foreign tours to the Dealers who, in addition, charged exorbitant interest rate of 30 to 40 percent per annum from the farmers while giving pesticides on loan. Unlike local companies, multinationals offered normal profit margins (up to 15%) to Dealers, supplied quality pesticides and imparted effective training programs for the capacity building of Contact Farmers and Pesticide Dealers. Total sale amount of insecticides in Sanghar, Nawabshah, and Naushahro Feroze districts was estimated to be Rs. 471.73 million in 2003-04. Top five insecticides in terms of weight were methamidophos (29%), endosulfan (12%), cypermetherin (9%), imidacloprid, (8%), and fenpropthrin (7%). The above ranking reflected the persistence of old groups of pesticides i.e. organophosphate, organochlorine and synthetic parathyroid in the market; while the recent literature revealed that cotton insect pests had developed resistance to these groups. Non-Contact Farmers' knowledge was recorded to be significantly low (41%) regarding proper selection, usage and handling of pesticides; while corresponding averages scores for Contact Farmers, Field Assistants, and Pesticide Agents were 75, 57, and 97 percent respectively. Low level of knowledge of Non-Contact Farmers established the need for their training to mitigate health and environmental risks associated with the misuse of pesticides. Non-Contact Farmers' channels of knowledge were landlords and Pesticide Dealers while Contact Farmers directly received information from representatives of pesticide companies. Role of public sector extension in disseminating proper information about pesticide was limited owing to institutional problems such as poorly motivated staff, inadequate operational funds, and lack of relevant technology. Private sector extension targeted large and progressive farmers to minimize the per unit costs. Non-Contact Farmers had to rely on Pesticide Dealers who had limited knowledge and profit maximization motives.Based upon the research findings, it was recommended that APO-71 may be reviewed and liberal pesticide registration schemes be rationalized. Monitoring and evaluation system of pesticides may be redesigned by appointing attorneys and introducing training programs and incentives for Chemists and Inspectors. Well designed extension education programs may be made mandatory for registration of companies. Alternate methods of pest control may be encouraged in the process. Agricultural extension activities such as the farmers' field schools on IPM may be fully supported so as to optimize pesticide import bills, curtail health and environmental risks associated with the over/misuse of pesticides, and manage quality cotton production in the wake of trade globalization.


I am free, shielded from your severities, yet who am I? ... I haven't killed anyone? Not yet to be sure! But have I not let deserving creatures die? Maybe. And maybe I am ready to do so again. Albert Camus(1) INTRODUCTION The 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia was not a typical armed confrontation, and it has raised a challenging set of legal issues. On the day that Operation Allied Force bombing began, NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana claimed the moral high ground when he stated that the goal of the bombing was to "stop further humanitarian catastrophe."(2) Yet unlike the Gulf War, which also involved the use of force on behalf of fundamental principles, the NATO bombing was not authorized by the United Nations Security Council, leaving its legal basis unclear. From the beginning, the NATO Secretary-General was careful to avoid explicitly invoking a right of humanitarian intervention as the legal justification for the mission,(3) and officials in the United States and other NATO countries followed suit. At the same time, NATO leaders made it clear that the moral and political justification for the mission was humanitarian,(4) and no alternative legal justification has been offered so far.(5) Not surprisingly, commentators have raised questions concerning the legality of humanitarian intervention despite NATO's careful attempts to skirt the issue. This Essay argues that, under an appropriate and narrowly defined set of circumstances, acts of forcible humanitarian intervention can indeed be legal, even without the authorization of the Security Council. The principal focus, however, is on the task facing the United States and NATO now that they have invoked this controversial doctrine.(6) Those who rely upon the right of humanitarian intervention have a responsibility to define its legal parameters. Indeed, when a vague doctrine can be invoked by states to justify the use of force, it offers them a license that is subject to abuse. This justification for the use of force is inherently threatening to other states, particularly when those states claiming this license are the most powerful states in the international community. Without clear legal standards to limit it, the practice of humanitarian intervention threatens to undermine the friendly relations among states and could have an adverse impact upon international peace and security. This Essay uses the term "humanitarian intervention"(7) narrowly to refer to forcible action by a state on the territory of another to protect individuals from continuing grave violations of fundamental human rights.(8) Cases in which the Security Council or local government authorizes the use of force are excluded from this definition because their legality can be established independently of any right of humanitarian intervention.(9) In most scenarios of humanitarian intervention,(10) the territorial state's government either is directly responsible for the violations or has acquiesced in them.(11) Although NATO has relied, at least implicitly, upon a right of humanitarian intervention, serious doubts remain regarding both the status of this right under international law and the conditions that would necessarily have to limit it. This confusion stems from the tension between two key aspects of the post-World War II international legal order. A strict prohibition on the use of force was incorporated into Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter(12) as the cornerstone of its strategy for promoting order and peace in the international system.(13) The Charter recognizes only two exceptions to this prohibition. The first is that force may be used in self-defense.(14) The second exception applies only when a decision of the Security Council authorizes the use of force to protect or maintain international peace and security.(15) The prohibition, like other parts of the Charter,(16) reinforces the sovereign rights of the state. The Charter also affirms that the United Nations itself lacks the authority to intervene in the domestic jurisdiction of its members. …


Hepatic fibrosis accompanies innevitably the evolution of chronic hepatitis. In diagnostic protocols, staging and treatment, the assessment of hepatic fibrosis is absolutely mandatory in the correct therapeutic approach. Liver biopsy is an invasive method with risks in children. Currently there are a number of non-invasive tests that offer the correct staging of fibrosis and are admitted in the therapeutic decision and monitoring of chronic hepatitis in children.


The metazoan meiobenthos was investigated in an Antarctic coastal sediment (Factory Cove, Signy Island, Antarctica). The fine sands contained much higher abundances compared to major sublittoral sediments worldwide. Classified second after Narrangansett Bay (North Atlantic) they reached numbers of 13 × 106 ind m-2. The meiofauna was highly abundant in the surface layers, but densities decreased sharply below 2 cm. Vertical profiles mirrored steep gradients of microbiota, chloropigments and organic matter and were coincident with chemical stratification. Spatial patchiness manifested especially in the surface layer. Nematodes dominated (up to 90%), and Aponema, Chromctdorita, Diplolaimella, Daptonema, Microlaimus and Neochromadora constituted almost the entire community. Overall, the nematode fauna showed a strong similarity with fine sand communities elsewhere. The dominant trophic strategies were epistrarum and non-selective deposit feeding, but the applied classification for feeding guild structure of the nematodes of Factory Cove is discussed. High standing stock, low diversity and shallow depth distribution may have occurred because of the high nutritive (chlorophyll exceeded lOOOmgm-2 and constituted almost 50% of the organic pool) and reductive character of the benthic environment. These observations must have originated from the substantial input of fresh organic matter from phytoplankton and microphytobenthic production, typical for an Antarctic coastal ecosystem during the austral summer.


The scientific discipline called dendrochronology is the study of tree rings and of environmental conditions and events of the past that tree growth can reflect. The beginning of scientific study of tree rings is generally ascribed to an astronomer named Andrew Ellicott Douglass, who in the early 1900s noticed not only variation in tree‐ring width but also that this variability was similar between multiple trees. Dendrochronology subsequently expanded worldwide, and now over 3000 of the 12,000+ publications on dendrochronology can be classified as dendroclimatology. As a subfield of tree‐ring analysis, dendroclimatology estimates climate back in time beyond the start of recorded meteorological measurements. Dendroclimatology starts with site and tree selection and continues with dating, measuring, data quality control, and chronology construction. Tree rings are associated with climate using statistical models that are then evaluated for their full length to reconstruct climate of the past. Most commonly, either precipitation or temperature is reconstructed, and reconstructions are then analyzed for frequency of extreme years, changes in mean conditions, ranges of long‐term variability, and changes in interannual variability. For example, from reconstructions of Northern Hemisphere temperature based on tree rings and other natural archives of climate collected from multiple sites, it appears that current temperature (since ad 1850) exceeds the range of variability reconstructed for ad 1000‐1850. Uncertainties in dendroclimatology exist, including a relatively recent issue called divergence, but dendroclimatology has played, and continues to play, a substantial role in interdisciplinary research on climate change. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Retailing no longer involves just growth or expansion into new product, consumer segments or geographic areas. Organisations are now learning to shift their emphasis to managing under conditions of modest, zero or for some organisations, under negative growth. This is to a large extend has been the result of changing consumer behaviour, the emergence of new competitors, global economic recession, and rapid technological advances in the retailing industries. These pressures of business today make many people think that the only thing that counts is financial success, i.e. being the investor of choice. In successful organisations everyone's energy is focused on the "Triple bottom line" as the target. That is, if the organisation has been built the right way, it will be the Provider of Choice, Employer of Choice, and Investor of Choice. The leaders of these organisations believe that people, their customers and business partners are as important as their bottom line. These companies realise that profit is the applause you get for taking care of your customers and creating a motivated environment for your people. Despite its importance, this topic has been given little attention in the academic literature. In the case of retailing, services are designed more to augment the core offering or add value rather than represent the core offering itself? The limited and fragmented research on retail services focuses on specific areas such as quality issues and store image. Thus given this void in the literature, the bases of the study would be to approach retail services as a strategic perspective by focusing on the service orientation of a retailer's business strategy. If a retailer decides to strategically augment its products with services, it is essential that the retailer make this change systematically with a long-term orientation. The study would involve examining one level of service orientation, i.e. individual level. In this research stream, a service orientation is treated as a personality measure whereby certain people are more service orientated than others.


by Jeffrey L. Rubenstein. Baltimore and London: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999. 435 pp. $49.95.Rubenstein offers a close "literary" reading of six stories from the Babylonian Talmud: "Torah, Shame, and `The Oven of Akhnai' (Bava Metsia 591-59b)"; "Elisha ben Avuya: Torah and the Sinful Sage (Hagiga 15a-15b)"; "Torah and the Mundane Life: The Education of R. Shimon bar Yohai (Shabbat 33b-34a)"; "Rabbinic Authority and Destruction of Jerusalem (Gittin 55b-56b)"; "Torah, Lineage, and the Academic Hierarchy (Horayot 13b-14a)"; and "Torah, Gentiles, and Eschatology (Avoda Zara 2a-3b)."After studying the literary traits of these stories and their editors' compositional techniques, Rubenstein concludes that the Talmud has been extensively and carefully edited. He argues that the Stammim, an anonymous group of sages who lived after the Amoraim, edited and redacted the individual stories and placed them into their present contexts, a theory most recently clearly expressed by Halivni.Rubenstein has produced a fascinating volume. He has offered new literary and contextual analyses of some well-known talmudic passages, and he has read them in creative and informative ways. Anyone who reads this book will find important new insights into these six stories. Rubenstein often traces phrases and images throughout the Babli in order to explain why they are appropriate to the sugyot he is studying, and their connotative significance in these stories. Most of the time these parallels greatly enhance our understanding of the cited passage. Rubenstein's most interesting comments center on the various themes and values that the stories express. It is here that he often offers fresh insights into the talmudic sugyot. The author has taken well-worked material and found many new things to say about it. While his interpretations are not always convincing, they are almost always plausible and interesting.These strengths of the book are balanced by certain weaknesses. While one always benefits from new and original interpretations of talmudic passages, Rubenstein's literary conclusions leave us wondering for whom this volume was written. The book is too technical for the amateur in rabbinic literature, but it is hard to imagine exactly for which scholars Rubenstein wrote it. I doubt that many scholars of rabbinic texts would argue today that the talmudic stories are not well-edited literary creations, built from prior sources and designed to teach the values their editors held. Few would challenge the idea that many of the talmudic stories have been placed in their current contexts with a great deal of care. Few would doubt that the stories in the gemara are crafted along the same lines as the legal passages, and that they often share common literary and rhetorical characteristics, many of which originated in the biblical rhetoric and literary style, as Rubenstein himself acknowledges. …


Abstract The present study is focused on a theoretical model of unsaturated soil based on elastic spherical particle arrangement, which can be considered to be a simplified DEM method. The model is presented with a large graded soil. This approach follows a new research method so that the physical phenomena are explained and the number of experimental parameters is limited. The theoretical model takes into account the different arrangements of soil particles so that the entire void ratio scale is covered. The wetting and drying paths are modelled. A comparison with the Brooks and Corey (1962) theory and the new theory is achieved on experimental results with a sample of glass micro-sphere and two natural soils, the Livet-Gavet sandy-loam and the Livet-Gavet loam. It shows that this new theory improves precision of the prediction using only simple physical parameters.


Fish in a school efficiently find the densest source of food by individually responding not only to local environmental stimuli but also to the behavior of nearest neighbors. It is of great interest to enable a network of autonomous vehicles to function similarly as an intelligent sensor array capable of climbing or descending gradients of some spatially distributed signal. We formulate and study a coordinated control strategy for a group of autonomous vehicles to descend or climb an environmental gradient using measurements of the environment together with relative position measurements of nearest neighbors. Each vehicle is driven by an estimate of the local environmental gradient together with control forces, derived from artificial potentials, that maintain uniformity in group geometry.


This memo defines a portion of the Management Information Base (MIB) for use with network management protocols in the Internet community. In particular, it describes managed objects for information related to the Name Server function of a Fibre Channel network. The Fibre Channel Name Server provides a means for Fibre Channel ports to register and discover Fibre Channel names and attributes. DeSanti, et al. Standards Track [Page 1] RFC 4438 Fibre Channel Name Server MIB April 2006


Abstract. A tremendous amount of anthropogenic nitrogen (N) fertilizer has been applied to agricultural lands to promote crop production in the US since the 1850s. However, inappropriate N management practices have caused numerous ecological and environmental problems which are difficult to quantify due to the paucity of spatially explicit time-series fertilizer use maps. Understanding and assessing N fertilizer management history could provide important implications for enhancing N use efficiency and reducing N loss. In this study, we therefore developed long-term gridded maps to depict crop-specific N fertilizer use rates, application timing, and the fractions of ammonium N (NH4+-N) and nitrate N (NO3−-N) used across the contiguous US at a resolution of 5 km  ×  5 km during the period from 1850 to 2015. We found that N use rates in the US increased from 0.22 g N m−2 yr−1 in 1940 to 9.04 g N m−2 yr−1 in 2015. Geospatial analysis revealed that hotspots for N fertilizer use have shifted from the southeastern and eastern US to the Midwest, the Great Plains, and the Northwest over the past century. Specifically, corn in the Corn Belt region received the most intensive N input in spring, followed by the application of a large amount of N in fall, implying a high N loss risk in this region. Moreover, spatial-temporal fraction of NH4+-N and NO3−-N varied largely among regions. Generally, farmers have increasingly favored ammonia N fertilizers over nitrate N fertilizers since the 1940s. The N fertilizer use data developed in this study could serve as an essential input for modeling communities to fully assess N addition impacts, and improve N management to alleviate environmental problems. Datasets used in this study are available at https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.883585.


In a recent article Gensler (2003) has argued that little can be said about the ordering of bound person markers of the T(heme) and R(ecipient) relative to each other or relative to the verb stem apart from the fact that the outer markers are likely to be the result of a second-level cliticization process. We take issue with this claim and document that quite successful predictions with respect to the ordering of the T and R markers can be made on the basis of morphological alignment. Taking as our point of departure the typology of ditransitive alignment outlined in Haspelmath (2004; 2005), we show that the ordering patterns in which the R is placed closer to the verbal stem than the T are favoured in all relevant alignment types apart from the indirective, which exhibits a preference for positioning the T closer to the verbal stem than the R. These preferences for the ordering of the R and T are argued to relate directly to the frequency of use of the relative person forms and thus are seen as constituting yet another piece of evidence for the usage-based model of grammar being developed within the functional-cognitive typological paradigm (cf. e.g. Barlow & Kemmer 2000; Bybee & Hopper 2001; Tomasello 2003).


I. Rationale and Organization of "A University in Print" Arnold Sparr described the American Catholic Literary Revival of this century in To Promote, Defend, and Redeem: the Catholic Literary Revival and the Cultural Transformation of American Catholicism, 1920-1960.1 Sparr mentioned the work and writings of such figures as Daniel A. Lord, Francis X. Talbot, and Frank O'Malley. Other Catholic writers also contributed to this revival, including Allen Tate and Joseph Husslein. Husslein is significant for his effort to promote Roman Catholic literature through his writings and more importantly through his project "A University in Print,"in which he edited over two hundred books on Catholic thought and culture for a wide audience. Joseph Caspar Husslein, SJ. (1873-1952), was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin! In 1891 he entered the Society of Jesus at St. Stanislaus Seminary near St. Louis, Missouri. After studying and teaching at Saint Louis University, Husslein was ordained in 1905. From 1911 to 1930 Husslein worked on the staff of the Jesuit weekly America in New York and taught at Fordham University. During these years Husslein wrote over four hundred articles and ten books on such social issues as worker cooperatives, factory working conditions, woman workers, socialism, and unjust business practices. He produced one of the largest corpora of American Catholic writing on social issues. Husslein's most important books on social questions were The Church and Social Problems (1912), The World Problem: Capital, Labor and the Church (1918), Democratic Industry (1919), The Bible and Labor (1924), and The Christian Social Manifesto (1931).' Of particular significance is Husslein's The Bible and Labor In a method untypical for Catholic thinkers of this period, Husslein used the Bible-particularly the Old Testament-to develop principles for social ethics. This approach would not be repeated until after Vatican Council II. In 1930 Husslein curtailed his writing on social issues and moved to Saint Louis University, where he founded the School of Social Service and began his "A University in Print."4 Husslein's work at Saint Louis University coincided with a particularly vibrant period for the university. New journals were published: The Modern Schoolman, Historical Bulletin, and Classical Bulletin. The Institute for Social Order was founded. The figure from the University's Jesuit community to garner the most attention was Father Daniel Lord. A showman and promoter, he organized and ran the Catholic youth program Sodality. He edited the Queen's Work, produced musical pageants, and wrote hundreds of pamphlets. Lord and Husslein knew each other and believed they had the same mission of promoting Roman Catholicism, but Lord-flamboyant and gregarious-and Husslein-hardworking and quiet-were too independent for long-term co-operation. The St. Louis Jesuit community produced a number of"lone stars." Husslein and Lord shared the American penchant for promotion. For all the difficulties of the 1930's, it was an age of growing confidence for Catholics. The worst of the anti-Catholic nativism had died down; American Catholics had proven their patriotism in World War 1; the National Catholic Welfare Conference brought some unity to the American hierarchy, and the calamity of the depression reaffirmed among Catholic social thinkers the conviction that Catholic teaching had much to say to the world. Radio provided a means for a number of speakers to disseminate a Catholic view. (It is unfortunate that Charles Coughlin is the most remembered of these voices.) The final and most important factor in the growth of confidence was simply the burgeoning Catholic population caused by large families descended from the immense waves of immigrants of the 1800's and early 1900's. Catholics had become the largest denomination in America. American Catholicism had the confidence not only to promote itself to the world, but ironically, and perhaps more importantly, Catholicism had to promote itself to its own members. …


T-cell responses to antigens are classified on the basis of the cytokines they produce as either Th1 (IFN-γ, IL-2) or Th2 (IL-4, IL-10), with these Th types being indicative of either cell-mediated or antibody-mediated responses, respectively. Using this classification, T-cell responses in MHC-class-IIrestricted autoimmune diseases appear to be predominantly of the Th1 type, based on the presence of high levels of IFN-γ. This simplistic classification has recently been challenged, however, as disease incidence and severity are frequently elevated in animals that have a deficient IFN-γ response. The recent data discussed here indicate that the cytokine circuits involved in the regulation of cell-mediated and humoral immune responses during the development of autoimmune arthritis are more complex than originally proposed; perhaps our characterization of autoimmune responses as strictly Th1 or Th2 is overly simplistic, especially as it pertains to the role of IFN-γ.


What does it mean to study, interpret, and understand Vermeer today, and how do times, perspectives, theories, biographies, and histories act to shape interpretations of canonical art? Is Vermeer a "given" stable and recuperable figure, or someone, something, "produced" by the needs, preoccupations, and pressures of any given historical moment? These were some of the questions posed by a group of scholars who came together in March 2004 for a transdisciplinary colloquium organized and sponsored by the Clark and the AHRB Centre for Cultural Analysis, Theory, and History at the University of Leeds. This colloquium was convened by Nanette Salomon, professor at the College of Staten Island, City University of New York, and Griselda Pollock, from the Centre for Cultural Analysis, Theory, and History at the University of Leeds..

Participants included: Ernst van Alphen (University of Leiden), Mieke Bal, (cultural analyst, Amsterdam and Toronto), Clare Pajaczkowska (psychoanalytical cultural historian, London), Alison Rowley (University of Leeds), and Edward Snow ( Rice University)..


This thesis aims to analyse social process in Fiji, with reference to Bourdieu, Giddens, Sahlins, Thomas and Toren. We can find quite peculiar characteristics in phases of Hie distinction derived Som a criterion of "urban / rural" in Fiji. There is a considerable contrast in the standard of living, lifestyle, economic system, ritual institution and values between urban and rural sphere. Taking account of the events in Waidracia village in Naitasiri Province and in Nasilai village in Rewa Province, in which the author had conducted his fieldwork, the tradition in Fiji is examined. The indigenous people, encountering various kinds of "objects", "ideas", "situations" and "acts", would objectify such circumstances in their own practical senses to make practices. There could occur some deviations or differentiae in their practices. As a result, some "objects", "ideas", "situations" and "acts" will persist, while others might be innovated It depends on the interaction among the agents' practices whether the tradition is persisted or innovated. Social process is understood as the accumulation of the agents' practices. The individual embodies various numbers of "distinctions", which depend on his or her position in society. Distinction provides the individual with a certain habitus. The individual as an independent agent chooses his or her own "purposive acts", led by the "practical sense" derived from habitus. On the other hand, we can construct a conceptual idea of "sphere", in which certain "purposiveness" is shared. Field research shows there is a common "spheric purposiveness" in a sphere, and the thesis examines how the forms of the practices yielded by the individuals in the sphere converge. The particular tendency of practices will reflect on the reproduction of individual habitus. Simultaneously, the individual habitus is also reproduced and transformed through the interactions between practices in different spheres.


A literature review covering the use of dynamic pile driving equations, wave equation methods, pile analyzers, and current practices by State Transportation Departments is presented. The literature review shows that no one dynamic pile driving formula can be considered superior to all others. However, the Hiley, Janbu, and Gates equations appear to be consistently among the best in published comparisons of formula predictions versus pile load test results. The Engineering News formula and its modified versions are found, with one exception, to be among the worrst predictors of pile capacity in these studies. When wave equation methods are included in comparisons of predicted to measured capacity, the wave equation prediction is consistently equal to or better than the best formula. Pile analyzer results can be excellent; however, the ability of the operations is a crucial factor in its successful use. The majority of the 34 states responding to a survey indicated that they use the Engineering News formula in its original or modified form. No other dynamic equation was mentioned. Several states indicated a switch in recent years from the Engineering News formula to wave equation analyses with a resulting increase in accuracy. Only two states make regular use of a pile analyzer, but they are very saftisfied with it. Recommendations are made for the improvement of current Washington State Department of Transportation procedures for construction control of pile driving and estimation of pile capacity. Recommendations for additional research are also included.


This paper examines the nature of ecological economics, arguing that it comprises two aspects, the qualitative framework within which it operates and the quantitative techniques which it uses to measure sustainability, evaluate policies and assist decision-making. The former is distinct to ecological economics, whereas the latter is largely shared with environmental economics. Although these have co-existed for some time, it is contended that the qualitative aspect needs to be developed if ecological economics is to realize its potential. The paper first offers a Schumpeterian 'pre-analytic' vision of ecological economics. Ecological economics, it is argued, necessarily implies a fundamental change in the way problems are perceived and in how they should be addressed. Second, the paper discusses the quantitative aspect of ecological economics, arguing that the overlap with environmental economics in the techniques used is one reason why the two have frequently not been seen as sufficiently distinct. The paper concludes that a development of the qualitative, procedural aspect of ecological economics is needed if its full potential for influencing policy-making is to be realized.


In digital image processing and computer vision applications for microscopy imaging, calculating image features is a frequent task. Features related to intensity, color and morphology are used to classify cells and other objects. The precision of segmentation influences the calculated feature values and can affect the results of classification. Therefore, achieving a high precision in segmentation is very important. In this work, the effects of interpolation on the precision of image segmentation were studied using instances of cell microscopy images and different interpolation and segmentation methods. The goal was to determine quantitatively to what extent improvements in segmentation precision can be obtained through previous interpolation of the images. This effect can be particularly important for small objects, whose images might be deteriorated due to limitations in the camera's resolution. The results show that an improvement in the precision of segmentation can be obtained by previously interpolating the images.


This report is complementary to the 1:250 000 scale geological map of the Falkland Islands compiled in 1998. The
report and map are products of the Falkland Islands Geological Mapping Project (1996-1998).
Geological observation and research in the Islands date from 1764. The Islands were visited during two pioneering
scientific cruises in the 19th century. Subsequently, many scientists visited en route to the Antarctic or Patagonia.
Geological affinities to other parts of the southern continents, especially South Africa, were noted early in the 20th
century. There have been two previous attempts to create a geological map of the Islands, both motivated primarily
by the search for economic mineral deposits onshore. In the last few decades much effort has been directed to
understanding the Falklands' place in Gondwana, the processes by which the Islands have moved to their present
position by continental drift and the concomitant development of offshore sedimentary basins. Considerable progress
in describing the superficial deposits was made in the 1970's, and during the last ten years.
The stratigraphic subdivisions of the geological sequence shown on the previous geological maps have been
substantiated and defined more rigorously than before. In addition, several new stratigraphic units have been
recognised. Each unit is described with an introductory summary of composition and distribution, followed by
comments on nomenclature and stratigraphic relationships, associated landforms, distinguishing characters, and the
criteria used to locate and survey the stratigraphic base. Detailed descriptions of composition, sedimentary structures
and fossil content then lead to brief comments on the environment of deposition, age and correlation.
The bedrock geological formations ('solid geology') can be divided into four age groups. The Proterozoic granites
and amphibolite facies gneisses of the Cape Meredith Complex (about 1150 to 1000 million years old) are overlain
in turn by sedimentary sequences of the ?Silurian to Devonian West Falkland Group and the Carboniferous to
Permian Lafonia Group. Jurassic igneous rocks are widespread but only locally abundant.
The West Falkland Group is dominated by sandstones, with some siltstones and mudstones. The oldest of four
formations, the Port Stephens Formation, is divided into seven members, representing marine to fluvial
environments. The basal member on East Falkland is probably the oldest part of the sedimentary sequence and might
be latest Ordovician in age, but is more probably Silurian. The overlying Albemarle Member is notable for abundant
trace fossils, mainly Skolithos, but also contains a new ichnospecies of Heimdallia. The succeeding marine Fox Bay
Formation contains the Early to Middle Devonian Malvinokaffric invertebrate fossil fauna. One proximal facies
member is recognised in the west. The Port Philomel Formation represents deltaic facies. It is notable for abundant
fossil plant debris, most conspicuously lycophyte stems. The Late Devonian Port Stanley Formation, which includes
the Stanley Quartzite, marks a return to marine conditions. The sandstones in the West Falkland Group are mostly
quartz arenites and subarkoses, consistent with derivation from an area of stable continent crust. The West Falkland
Group can be correlated with parts of the Cape Supergroup of South Africa.


Regression verification (RV) seeks to guarantee the absence of regression errors in a changed program version. This paper presents Partition-based Regression Verification (PRV): an approach to RV based on the gradual exploration of differential input partitions. A differential input partition is a subset of the common input space of two program versions that serves as a unit of verification. Instead of proving the absence of regression for the complete input space at once, PRV verifies differential partitions in a gradual manner. If the exploration is interrupted, PRV retains partial verification guarantees at least for the explored differential partitions. This is crucial in practice as verifying the complete input space can be prohibitively expensive. Experiments show that PRV provides a useful alternative to state-of-the-art regression test generation techniques. During the exploration, PRV generates test cases which can expose different behaviour across two program versions. However, while test cases are generally single points in the common input space, PRV can verify entire partitions and moreover give feedback that allows programmers to relate a behavioral difference to those syntactic changes that contribute to this difference.


In this paper, by modifying a subclass of bent functions inPS ap, we construct another subclass of bent functions in PS + with maximum algebraic degree. We demonstrate that the algebraic immunity of the constructed functions is maximum. The result is proved by using the well known conjecture proposed by Tu and Deng (Des. Codes Cryptogr. 60(1), pp. 1-14, 2011) which has been proved recently by Cohen and Flori (http://eprint.iacr.org/ 2011/400.pdf). Finally, we identify a class ofD0 type bent functions constructed by modifying Dillon functions whose lower bound on second-order nonlinearity is very high.


Background and Objectives: Aedes mosquito has been recognized as a global emerging threat with its potential to transmit fatal diseases of international public health importance such as dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever. Prior attempts to manage the vector with various synthetic larvicides have resulted in emergence of resistance, thus necessitating search for a safer and effective alternative. The study was an experimental laboratory-based study to screen the recent World Health Organization (WHO)-approved insecticide spinosad for larvicidal activity and compare the efficacy of the same with other currently used larvicides, namely temephos and Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis (Bti). Methodology: An experimental setup was done as per the WHO Pesticide Evaluation Scheme to assess the larvicidal activity of the spinosad at varying concentrations along with a positive and negative control. A preliminary screening to assess the larvicidal property of the spinosad was undertaken with 0.5 ppm concentration as recommended by the WHO. The mortality was checked after 24 h and results were statistically analyzed and LC50 and LC90 values were calculated. Results: Spinosad brought about 100% larval mortality at the recommended dosage (0.5 ppm) as well as at a lower dosage of 0.1 ppm. The comparison with the other two commonly used larvicides, namely temephos and Bti, reveals 100% and 90% mortality, respectively, in wild Aedes larvae. Conclusion: The study concludes that spinosad is a promising larvicide that can be used in rotation with temephos against Aedes aegypti in potable water and may be used at a lower dosage of 0.1 ppm. However, large-scale field trials are required to ascertain the effectiveness of the larvicide in field conditions.


The Rio Colorado meandering river system feeds the Salar de Uyuni, the World's largest salt pan in the southern Altiplano plateau (Bolivia). It is characterized by ephemerality due to the high aridity of the region, and a downstream decrease of river bankfull width and depth in the river terminus. Dry land meandering river systems in high-altitude regions have rarely been reported. We investigated the active processes in this system from the alluvial fan to the lower coastal plain. On-site surveys combined with high-precision GPS and high-resolution satellite imagery show that Rio Colorado area is typified by generally fine sediment and a low gradient in the coastal plain. In the alluvial fan, where channel meandering is weak but still recognizable, the deposits are characterized by fining-upward sequences with gravel-prone sediments at the bottom, paleosols in the middle and clay-dominated sediments at the top. In the coastal plain the channel deposits consist of coarse to fine sand with sparse basal gravel, while the river banks and thus much of the floodplain consist of clay and silt in the upper coastal plain and very fine sand, silt and clay with salt deposits in the lower coastal plain. Grain-size distribution analysis show a linear decrease in bed load sediments downstream and a concurrent increase in suspended load sediments. These longitudinal variations in the proportions of sediment load are found to be consistent with changes in the topographic slope. The river gradient shows six intervals with downstream decreasing but internally quite constant slopes and sediment composition. Characteristic geomorphologic features are found to be head-cutting channels, chute channels, avulsions and crevasse splays. They illustrate the processes of erosion and deposition in this low-gradient river system and help understand sediment dispersal and their preservation potentials.


When non-Chinese lawyers complain of "lack of transparency" in China's IP judicial system, what they are actually complaining about is a lack of good translations of Chinese judges' decisions. Now at last, two renowned and experienced US-China intellectual property attorneys – both fluently bilingual – take the giant step necessary to bring China's modes of handling intellectual property disputes into the international mainstream with excellent translations of 20 landmark Chinese patent-related cases, all decided during the past 10 years. Also included and translated are specially commissioned commentaries by the exact judges who decided each case, clearly explaining the "behind-the-scenes" reasoning they used. The patent issues covered in these cases include the following: procedures and remedies for patent infringement; determination of "a clerical error"; how to determine similarity between designs; how to properly submit and use evidence; amendments that change the original technical solution; novelty and inventiveness; avoiding improper "hindsight" in assessing inventiveness; interpretation of a claim's technical terms; doctrine of claim differentiation; patent infringement under the doctrine of equivalents; test standard for deciding identity or similarity between designs; prior art defense; use of a patented process for a medical regulatory review; identifying the manufacturer and seller involved in patent infringement; intentionally manufacturing or selling customized key parts of a patented product; patentee's liability for improper enforcement of patent right; and preliminary injunction against the import of a patented product. A detailed introductory chapter authored by Justice Dongchuan Luo and two other IP Judges explains the historical development of the Chinese patent system and describes enforcement mechanisms and procedures, both administrative and judicial. Appendices provide English translations of the most important legal sources of patent law in China. To some readers this sophisticated body of modern Chinese patent law, with its sensitivity to well-established international consensus, will come as a revelation. To these and others, and especially to patent law practitioners, jurists, and academics worldwide, this book will quickly become a cornerstone resource.


The tourism industry is a capitalist activity concerned with the production, accumulation and distribution of wealth. Power is an important arena for research in this respect as diverse outcomes for the local economy in general, and its players specifically, provide important aspects to study when considering the lives of rural entrepreneurs. However, it may be argued that whilst Marxist theorists using critical approaches on power have tended to focus on issues around the equality of power relations between actors or stakeholders, the inherently spatial nature of power has received less emphasis. This paper focuses on an exploration of the spatiality of power which surrounds entrepreneurship and tourism industry development. The conceptual framework, based on the application of Lefebvre's (1991) concepts supplemented by Gaventa's (2004) power cube, is placed within the broader context of Marx Political Economy and Historical Materialism. The main value of Lefebvre's (1991) work for the current research is seen in his notion of space as an 'ensemble' formed from i) representational space (or our conception of it); ii) spatial practices, which are our interaction with physical and material aspects of space; and, iii) the spaces of representation, or our lived space. They are intertwined dimensions and therefore intradependent (Theobald 1997). These three types of dialectically interrelated spaces are merged into a single ensemble which forms our experience of social space. Gaventa (2006) extends this further with the introduction of power through space and explores the visible, hidden, and invisible forms of power which are negotiated at different spatial scales and which are experienced as closed, invited, or (re)claimed. The case study geographic area examined is in transition from Socialism to Capitalism with the tourism industry at early stages of its development. For this, reason entrepreneurial activity and power struggles over the key business asset, the landscape, are currently being played out. Literature theorising rural entrepreneurship (Marlow et al 2014) and especially the notion of skills and training for diversifying rural enterprise (Vik and McElwee 2011; Pyysiäinen et al 2006) is an important context here. This is particularly born out in the relationships between the indigenous reindeer herders, 'the Nenets', local tour operators, and the local government of Yamal in the the YamalNenets Autonomous Okrug (YNAO) of the Russian Federation which provides the core material. The research has been conducted through an ethnographic field study with indigenous reindeer herder communities as well as interviews with local stakeholders. This allows for insights into the spatiality of power surrounding rural entrepreneurial space and tourism enterprise to be gained.


Toxic dinoflagellate blooms of Gymnodinium catenatum Graham (causative organism
of paralytic shellfish poisoning) can have major impacts on aquaculture, human health
and the aquatic environment. In south-east Tasmanian estuaries, these blooms are
preceeded by rainfall events and the associated input of freshwater and humic
substances (from soil leachates). This study examined the potential nutritive role of
terrestrially-derived humic substances / micronutrients and the importance of vertical
water column stratification in the development of G. catenatum blooms.
Laboratory experiments showed that humic additives (standard aquatic humic acid
purchased from the International Humic Substances Society, and dissolved organic
matter isolated from the Huon Estuary by ultrafiltration) stimulated G. catenatum
growth and biomass production. Under these conditions biomass was limited by the
macro-nutrients nitrate and phosphate, but in seawater medium with no humic additives
the micro-nutrient selenium was limiting. This suggests that humic substances change
overall nutrient availability and / or uptake by G. catenatum, either by adding nutrients
or by interaction with other nutrients.
Bioassays indicated that 1 - 100 nM selenium (IV) stimulated G. catenatum growth and
biomass production. However not all strains of this dinoflagellate species tested
(including isolates from Tasmania, Japan and Spain) had an obligate selenium
requirement. Another PSP dinoflagellate Alexandrium minutum showed a selenium
requirement similar to G. catenatum, but the bloom forming diatom, Chaetoceros cf.
tenuissimus showed no reduction in growth or biomass production under seleniumdeficient
conditions. Inorganic selenium (selenite and selenate) concentrations in the
Huon Estuary were commonly <0.01 nM (below detection) and thus are potentially
limiting for G. catenatum. Since selenium enters estuarine systems primarily through
river run-off, rainfall may be a crucial trigger for dinoflagellate blooms in these waters
by increasing selenium levels.
Water column stability and stratification, also often associated with rainfall, occurs in
south-east Tasmanian coastal waters during summer, and this is also critical in the
development of G. catenatum blooms. Laboratory experiments in stratified laboratory
water columns (0.1 x 1m) examined the migration behaviour of G. catenatum and
showed that nutrient-deficient cells migrate downwards to access nutrients from bottom
layers at night, while nutrient-replete cells tend to remain at the surface. This migration pattern was similar when using humic and non-humic surface waters, indicating that
humic substances do not enhance cellular nutrient concentrations to such a degree as to
preclude the need for deep nutrient uptake. Diel vertical migration to facilitate dark
nutrient assimilation provides an ecological advantage for G. catenatum over other nonmigratory
species, particularly during late summer in Tasmanian estuaries when surface
nutrients are depleted.
This study indicates that selenium and humic substances contained in river run-off are
stimulatory to G. catenatum growth and biomass production, providing essential
micro-nutrients during bloom initiation. Furthermore, water column stability and
vertical stratification caused by river run-off are of paramount importance in
maintaining G. catenatum blooms. During this latter stage, vertical migration by
nutrient-deficient cells forms an integral part of the successful ecological strategy
utilised by this red tide dinoflagellate.


In The Environment and the People in American Cities , Dorceta E. Taylor provides an in-depth examination of the development of urban environments, and urban environmentalism, in the United States. Taylor focuses on the evolution of the city, the emergence of elite reformers, the framing of environmental problems, and the perceptions of and responses to breakdowns in social order, from the seventeenth century through the twentieth. She demonstrates how social inequalities repeatedly informed the adjudication of questions related to health, safety, and land access and use. While many accounts of environmental history begin and end with wildlife and wilderness, Taylor shows that the city offers important clues to understanding the evolution of American environmental activism.

Taylor traces the progression of several major thrusts in urban environmental activism, including the alleviation of poverty; sanitary reform and public health; safe, affordable, and adequate housing; parks, playgrounds, and open space; occupational health and safety; consumer protection (food and product safety); and land use and urban planning. At the same time, she presents a historical analysis of the ways race, class, and gender shaped experiences and perceptions of the environment as well as environmental activism and the construction of environmental discourses. Throughout her analysis, Taylor illuminates connections between the social and environmental conflicts of the past and those of the present. She describes the displacement of people of color for the production of natural open space for the white and wealthy, the close proximity between garbage and communities of color in early America, the cozy relationship between middle-class environmentalists and the business community, and the continuous resistance against environmental inequalities on the part of ordinary residents from marginal communities.


Recently, the law degree has become a more generalist degree. Yet the Council of Australian Law Deans advises that almost two-thirds oflaw graduates ultimately seek admission to practice. This means that the majority of students commencing a law degree intend to become a solicitor or barrister. Few first-year students, however, are aware of the processes surrounding admission to the profession. They are unaware that merely completing an LLB degree does not a solicitor make. Prospective law students often do not realise that the degree needs to be supplemented by practical legal training (PLT). Beyond that, having satisfied these two academic requirements (the LLB/]D and PLT) students find themselves merely "eligible" for admission. There still remains the question of being "suitable for admission" . Legal profession legislation around the country restricts admission to the profession to individuals who are considered "fit and proper". In deciding whether an applicant is "fit and proper", the admission boards have the power to admit only applicants who are defined as "suitable" . Suitability matters relate generally to the ethical suitability of the applicants: an applicant must be deemed of "good fame and character' to be suitable for admission as a legal practitioner.


This research models the factors influencing ICT innovation adoption in companies, hypothesizing a network of direct and indirect relations of factors, (consistent with TOE model), which channels influence on themselves and on ICT adoption. The hypotheses were tested using a sample of firms with aggregate information at the state level, and were estimated using PLS-SEM. The main results were that ICT adoption is very influenced by the extent of countries' globalization, and the accessibility to ICT capabilities of the country due to its important transmitting role of indirect effects from the other factors. The aggregated indirect influence of factors in the model was more important than the direct influence.


Purpose: The objective of the article is to present the results of the study pertaining to the impact of competences of small enterprises' managers upon the enterprises' performance. Design/Methodology/Approach: The review of available literature as well as empirical studies were performed in order to arrive at the objective. This enabled an in-depth examination of the subject matter. The review of literature enabled the methodology of the study to be formed. The survey approach with the use of a questionnaire was applied in data collection. The impact of the managers' competences upon the performance of the enterprises was examined by means of structural equation modeling. Findings: The study expands knowledge in the field of small enterprises management. The article revealed that the performance of such enterprises is affected by the competences of the management. Based upon the review of literature, three types of competences were distinguished. A list of competences, which takes the specific character of small businesses into consideration, was developed for each of the types. The empirical study revealed that managerial competences directly affect the performance of the enterprises. Such competences are reinforced by specialized competences as well as personal and social competences. Practical Implications: The results of the study may offer valuable information for small enterprise owners. They may prove helpful in developing competence profiles and strategies regarding the improvement of managers' competences. They may also be of use to consultants offering trainings and advisory services for small businesses. The results of the study are compelling and encourage further research. Originality/Value: The subject matter seems vital because insufficient competence level of the management is believed to be one of the weaknesses of small enterprises. Usually, such businesses are analyzed in relation to large enterprises or the entire MSME sector. The current study pertains exclusively to small enterprises, which have the lowest development capacity in the sector. Studies prove that the enhancement of the management's competences may contribute to the improvement of business performance.


Spreading depolarization (SD) accompanies numerous neurological conditions, including migraine, stroke, and traumatic brain injury. There is significant interest in understanding the relationship between SD and neuronal injury. However, characteristics underlying SD and repolarization (RP) induced by global cerebral ischemia (e.g., cardiac arrest (CA)) and reperfusion are not well understood. Quantifying features of SD and RP during CA and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) may provide important metrics for diagnosis and prognosis of neurological injury from hypoxia-ischemia. We characterized SD and RP in a rodent model of asphyxial CA+CPR using a multimodal platform including electrocorticography (ECoG) and optical imaging. We detected SD and RP by (1) alternating current (AC), (2) direct current (DC), and (3) optical imaging of spreading ischemia, spreading edema, and vasoconstriction. Earlier SD (r=−0.80; p<0.001) and earlier RP (r=−0.71, p<0.001) were associated with better neurological recovery after 24hrs. SD+RP onset times predicted good vs poor neurological recovery with 82% sensitivity and 91% specificity. To our knowledge, this is the first preclinical study to link SD and RP characteristics with neurological recovery post-CA. These data suggest that SD and RP may be ultra-early, real-time prognostic markers of post-CA outcome, meriting further investigation into translational implications during global cerebral ischemia.


We have studied the development of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) and lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPC)-metabolising enzyme activities in the neonatal rat intestine and its relation to the intestinal permeability of macromolecules. The permeability was determined by feeding young rats a mixture of bovine serum albumin, bovine immunoglobulin G and fluorescein-isothiocyanate-conjugated dextran 70,000, and analysing the serum concentrations after six hours. The animals were then killed and the intestinal mucosa was homogenised and assessed for PLA2 and lysoPC-metabolising enzyme activities. The intestine was 'open' to the macromolecules in 14 day old animals, but 'closed' in 22 and 32 day old animals and in 14 day old rats treated with cortisone acetate on day 10, 11, and 12 postpartum. The activity of PLA2 (at pH 6 and 2 mM Ca2+) was higher in 32, 22, and cortisone treated 14 day old animals, than in untreated, 14 day old animals. Incubation of 14C-acyl-lysoPC with mucosa from 14 day old rats did not change the radioactivity pattern as shown by thin layer chromatography, whereas after incubation with mucosa from 22 or 32 day old animals all the radiolabel was found in free 14C-fatty acid and in 14C-phosphatidylcholine. These findings indicate that mucosal PLA2 activity increases during intestinal maturation and that the mucosa acquires the ability to acylate and deacylate lysoPC when it is 'closed' to macromolecules.


The effect of high pressure exceeding 6 GPa on magnetism and multiferroicity was investigated for the olivine Mn2GeO4 that shows successive magnetic transitions at ambient pressure and a ferroelectric ground state driven by spin- spiral order. We measured heat capacity, dielectric constant, and electric polarization at various pressures using a diamond anvil cell. The pressure evolution of the magnetic structures was also investigated by powder neutron diffraction measurements using a Paris- Edinburgh press. We found that all of the magnetic transition temperatures are enhanced monotonically by applying pressure. Furthermore, the spin- driven ferroelectricity persists up to about 6 GPa but suddenly vanishes by 6.3 GPa. A consistent description of all data is achieved if an incommensurate- commensurate phase transition occurs with pressurization and causes the suppression of ferroelectricity. We discuss the origin of the observed pressure effects on the magnetism and multiferroicity in Mn2GeO4 in terms of a pressure- induced change in the superexchange magnetic interactions.


Given finite resources, intense investment in one life history trait is expected to reduce investment in others. Although telomere length appears to be strongly tied to age in many taxa, telomere maintenance requires energy. We therefore hypothesize that telomere maintenance may trade off against other life history characters. We used natural variation in laboratory populations of Atlantic silversides (Menidia menidia) to study the relationship between growth, fecundity, life expectancy, and relative telomere length. In keeping with several other studies on fishes, we found no clear dependence of telomere length on age. However, we did find that more fecund fish tended to have both reduced life expectancy and shorter telomeres. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that there is a trade-off between telomere maintenance and reproductive output.


SUMMARY Stability and transparency are two critical indices of bilateral teleoperation systems. The wave variable method is a conservative approach to robustly guarantee system passivity under arbitrary constant time delays. However, the wave-variable-based reflection is an intrinsic problem in this method because it can significantly degrade system transparency and disorient the operator's perception of the remote environment. In order to enhance both the transparency and the stability of bilateral teleoperation systems in the presence of large time delays, a new four-channel (4-CH) architecture is proposed which applies two modified wave-transformation controllers to reduce wave-based reflections. Transparency and stability of the proposed system are analyzed and the improvement in these when using this method is measured experimentally. Results clearly demonstrate that the proposed method can produce high transparency and stability even in the presence of large time delays.


In rotating-analyzer ellipsometry, an improved measurement method that does not need the accurate adjustment of the optical components before measurement is described. By carrying out the measurements at two 90°-different azimuths of the polarizer, we can determine the orientation of the optical components to the plane of incidence and the ellipsometric parameters of the specimen at the same time. The method is also applicable to a new adjustment procedure that is simpler and more convenient than the usual methods. The versatility of this improved measurement method has been confirmed experimentally.