Amos and the Officialdom in the Kingdom of Israel: The Socio-Economic Position of the Officials in the Light of the Biblical, the Epigraphic and Archaeological Evidence, by Izabela Jaruzelska. Seria Socjologia 25. Poznan: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza, 1998. Pp. 240. N.P. This book examines the functions and behaviors of the royal state officials to whom the book of Amos presumably alludes in 3:9-11, 12b-15; 4:1-3; 5:11; and 6:1-7. The author, a sociologist/biblicist at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poland, addresses this study to the ways and means by which state officials financially prosper during the gilded age of northern Israel under Jeroboam II. Relying heavily on materialistic sociological models (K. Marx, M. Weber, S. Kozyr-Kowalski), this study presupposes sharp distinctions between the phenomenon of ownership and the right of property, between direct and indirect means of production, and between upper and lower classes in the ancient world. Its goal is to explain the "putative enrichment" (p. 13) of Israel's state officials by determining first and foremost the social matrix out of which they operate: "Once position within the social division of labour... and the socio-economic ownership of means of production and labour power has been determined, the identification of classes and social estates can proceed" (p. 21). Thus, where T. N. D. Mettinger (Solomonic State Officials: A Study of the Civil Government Officials of the Israelite Monarchy [Lund: Gleerup, 1971]) overviews the work of civil servants in the united monarchy, and J. A. Dearman (Property Rights in the Eighth Century B.C. [Atlanta: Scholars, 1988]) asks pertinent questions about eighthcentury officials generally, Jar-uzelska brings to the text of Amos a remarkable amount of archaeological and epigraphic data to formulate more specific questions about more specialized functionaries. This study is dominated by the redactoral hypotheses of Hans Walter Wolff, the epigraphic and historical work of Andre Lemaire, and the sociological theories of Jaruzelska's Doktorvater, Stanislaw Kozyr-Kowalski (also of Adam Mickiewicz University). Following a clear, brief introduction, chapter I offers an engaging sociohistorical analysis of eighth-century Israel. Highlighting state-economy relationships, Jaruzelska sidesteps religious questions entirely (without dismissing them as unimportant, p. 198). Chapter 2 attempts to list eighth-century Israel's "most important economic developments," addressing factors such as agricultural production (including viticulture and oil production) and international trade (particularly with Phoenicia, and, to a lesser extent, southern Arabia). A highlight of the chapter is its fascinating socioeconomic discussion of the Samaria ivories. Chapter 3 presents the biblical, epigraphic, and archaeological evidence proper. Extrapolating from the Solomonic data, Jaruzelska supplements it with an enormous amount of epigraphical data gathered by A. Lemaire and other epigraphers in order to visualize more precisely the power-contours of Jeroboam II's "cabinet" (p. 101). It is an ambitious goal-one which the author admits can generate only a "tentative" portrait (p. 198). Yet even with the present lack of data, the picture painted here is nevertheless based on a painstaking synthesis of a large amount of hard-to-find information. Nothing quite like this is available anywhere else in contemporary Amos studies. One of its most important accomplishments is its successful move beyond the simplistic "charisma"-vs..office" dichotomies of a previous scholarly age, and for this alone Jaruzelska should be praised. …


Software visualization contributes to the support and maintenance of software systems, especially to alleviating the handling of a systems' complexity. This article deals with approaches to visualization in the context of service-oriented architectures, which allow the building of flexible system environments, but which are nevertheless subject to a dynamic outer field. Thus a distinctive understanding both from the technological and from the functional point of view is an important prerequisite for a successful implementation of such systems. The following article presents a concept of three-dimensional views as well as the development of a visualization pipeline to create dynamic views. These approaches provide the stakeholders with access to relevant information which can then be integrated into the over-all context.


The potential value of private gardens for enhancing biodiversity has long been recognized, while, less investigated is the contribution of historical gardens. The complex history of Sicily, with its strategically central position in the Mediterranean basin, made the island an important crossroad of civilizations and also influenced the use of ornamental plants in gardens over the centuries. With the aim to investigate the biodiversity of historical gardens of Milazzo (North of Sicily), the flora of 31 gardens, dating from the late 19th to the early 20th century, were analyzed through a complete plant inventory. The gardens are localized in two areas: the first ('Piana' = 13 gardens) close to the rural area, the second ('Capo' = 18 gardens) close to the residential area. The determinants of taxonomic richness in individual gardens were carried out with the use of Shannon (H'), Simpson (D) and Evenness (J) indices. The values of the indices are, respectively for 'Capo' and 'Piana', 5.7 and 5.5 for H', 0.8 for J and 0.0046 and 0.0054 for D, and demonstrate the presence of a high biodiversity and an even distribution of individuals per species, with a few dominant species. In the 31 gardens, 529 taxa of ornamental plants were identified, belonging to 343 genera and 117 botanical families. The richness of species found in these green areas allow to consider them as "living plant collections". About 80% of the taxa were present in less than 10% of the gardens; 43.5% of species were present in a single garden. Only one species (Cycas revoluta Thunb.) was present in 87.1% of gardens to underline the species diversity.


Written in an accessible and engaging style, this 2nd edition of "The Psychology of Education" addresses key concepts from psychology which relate to education. Throughout the text the author team emphasise an evidence-based approach, providing practical suggestions to improve learning outcomes and fictional case studies are used in this new edition to provide students with a sense of what psychological issues can look like in the classroom. Activities around these case studies give students the chance to think about how to apply their theoretical knowledge to these real world contexts. 'Key implications' are drawn out at appropriate points, and throughout the book students are provided with strategies for interrogating evidence. Key terms are glossed throughout the book and chapters are summarised and followed by suggestions for further reading. A chapter on Learning Interactions and Social Worlds is new to this edition. The following chapters have all been extensively updated: learning; assessment; individual differences and achievement; student engagement and motivation; the educational context; society and culture; Language; literacy; inclusive education and special educational needs; behaviour problems; and, dealing with behaviour problems. This book is essential reading for undergraduate students of Education Studies and Psychology as well as trainee teachers on BA, BEd and PGCE courses. It will also be of use to postgraduates training to be educational psychologists.


Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Susceptibility to the disease is affected by both environmental and genetic factors. Genetic factors include haplotypes in the histocompatibility complex (MHC) and over 50 non-MHC loci reported by genome-wide association studies. Amongst these, we previously reported polymorphisms in chromosome 12q13-14 with a protective effect in individuals of European descent. This locus spans 288 kb and contains 17 genes, including several candidate genes which have potentially significant pathogenic and therapeutic implications. In this study, we aimed to fine-map this locus. We have implemented a two-phase study: a variant discovery phase where we have used next-generation sequencing and two target-enrichment strategies [long-range polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Nimblegen's solution phase hybridization capture] in pools of 25 samples; and a genotyping phase where we genotyped 712 variants in 3577 healthy controls and 3269 MS patients. This study confirmed the association (rs2069502, P = 9.9 × 10(-11), OR = 0.787) and narrowed down the locus of association to an 86.5 kb region. Although the study was unable to pinpoint the key-associated variant, we have identified a 42 (genotyped and imputed) single-nucleotide polymorphism haplotype block likely to harbour the causal variant. No evidence of association at previously reported low-frequency variants in CYP27B1 was observed. As part of the study we compared variant discovery performance using two target-enrichment strategies. We concluded that our pools enriched with Nimblegen's solution phase hybridization capture had better sensitivity to detect true variants than the pools enriched with long-range PCR, whilst specificity was better in the long-range PCR-enriched pools compared with solution phase hybridization capture enriched pools; this result has important implications for the design of future fine-mapping studies.


Since 2006, the World Bank has been ranking almost 200 countries in terms of their business environment and the "ease of doing business" in these economies. The rationale behind this is the importance of a thriving private sector in promoting high and inclusive growth and development. It is argued that the easier it is to establish and run a business, the more investors will be encouraged to invest, and thus more employment is generated. In June 2013, the APEC Policy Support Unit's EoDB Interim Assessment 2009-2012 showed that APEC's combined improvement across the five EoDB priority areas between the period 2009 and 2012 was equal to 11.5 percent, which exceeded the 2012 pro rata benchmark of 10 percent improvement. The APEC Economic Committee and member economies agreed to continue to work on implementing the EoDB Initiative. As an input to that effort, this paper reviews the international evidence on the key areas of doing business, spanning: a) starting a business, b) getting credit, c) protecting investors, d) paying taxes, e) trading across borders, f) enforcing contracts, and g) resolving insolvency.


In recent years, we have seen a diverse range of crises and controversies concerning food safety, animal health and environmental risks including foot and mouth disease, dioxins in seafood, GM crops and more recently the safety of Irish pork. This has led to the recognition that the handling of uncertainty in risk assessments needs to be more rigorous and transparent. This would mean that decision makers and the public could be better informed on the limitations of scientific advice. The expression of the uncertainty may be qualitative or quantitative but it must be well documented. Various approaches to quantifying uncertainty exist, but none are yet generally accepted amongst mathematicians, statisticians, natural scientists and regulatory authorities. In this thesis we discuss the current risk assessment guidelines which describe the deterministic methods that are mainly used for risk assessments. However, probabilistic methods have many advantages, and we review some probabilistic methods that have been proposed for risk assessment. We then develop our own methods to overcome some problems with the current methods. We consider including various uncertainties and looking at robustness to the prior distribution for Bayesian methods. We compare nonparametric methods with parametric methods and we combine a nonparametric method with a Bayesian method to investigate the effect of using different assumptions for different random quantities in a model. These new methods provide alternatives for risk analysts to use in the future.


Background and objectives: Anabolic steroids are synthetic derivatives of testosterone, modified to enhance its anabolic actions (promotion of protein synthesis and muscle growth). They have numerous side effects, and are on the International Olympic Committee's list of banned substances. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry allows identification and characterisation of steroids and their metabolites in the urine but may not distinguish between pharmaceutical and natural testosterone. Indirect methods to detect doping include determination of the testosterone/epitestosterone glucuronide ratio with suitable cut-off values. Direct evidence may be obtained with a method based on the determination of the carbon isotope ratio of the urinary steroids. This paper aims to give an overview of the use of anabolic-androgenic steroids in sport and methods used in anti-doping laboratories for their detection in urine, with special emphasis on doping with testosterone. Methods: Review of the recent literature of anabolic steroid testing, athletic use, and adverse effects of anabolic-androgenic steroids. Results: Procedures used for detection of doping with endogenous steroids are outlined. The World Anti-Doping Agency provided a guide in August 2004 to ensure that laboratories can report, in a uniform way, the presence of abnormal profiles of urinary steroids resulting from the administration of testosterone or its precursors, androstenediol, androstenedione, dehydroepiandrosterone or a testosterone metabolite, dihydrotestosterone, or a masking agent, epitestosterone. Conclusions: Technology developed for detection of testosterone in urine samples appears suitable when the substance has been administered intramuscularly. Oral administration leads to rapid pharmacokinetics, so urine samples need to be collected in the initial hours after intake. Thus there is a need to find specific biomarkers in urine or plasma to enable detection of long term oral administration of testosterone.


In their article "Narratives of Loss and Order and Imaging the Belgian Landscape 1900- 1945" Bruno Notteboom and David Peleman analyze a number of publications on landscape, focusing on narratives constructed by means of landscape images published in Belgium. With the work of Jean Massart and Emile Vanderwelde as a point of departure, Notteboom and Peleman discuss popularizing publications in the fields of botany, agricultural education, and tourism, as well as an urban planning. They address the three realms of landscape narratives defined by Matthew Potteiger and Jamie Purinton as story, context/intertext, and discourse. Notteboom and Peleman distinguish three recurrent operations or narrative techniques: framing, sequencing, and juxtaposing whereby their main argument is that in spite of their ideological differences the publications they discuss seek a way of dealing with processes of modernization and with the loss of a traditional way of living defined by a direct relation with the land.


The interannual prediction of the number of hurricanes to strike the US coastline is of vital interest to those who live on the coast, those who insure property along the coast and policy makers who make decisions about infrastructure and mitigation measures. Here it is shown that these predictions can be made more accurate when information about the total number of Atlantic Basin hurricanes is considered. The proportion of Atlantic hurricanes that make landfall in the USA is a measure of the relationship between landfalling and basin hurricane numbers. In order to use basin numbers to help make predictions of landfalling numbers, we must first investigate the nature of this relationship. Here we run a number of statistical tests and find that there is a significant change in the relative proportion of Atlantic hurricanes that hit the US coastline between the first and second halves of the 20th century. This difference is ostensibly due to the lack of basin observations in the earlier period. However, after 1948, the proportion of Atlantic hurricanes that hit the US coast shows no evidence of change. By assuming that the proportion is constant, we are able to then use information about the total number of hurricanes in the Atlantic Basin and make more accurate estimates of landfalling hurricane activity. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society


The handling of the COVID-19 crisis has shown that governments can take prompt evidence-based actions to protect people, livelihoods and the economy. The political will to implement drastic policies during the pandemic provides a benchmark for progressive actions to accelerate and strengthen responses to another crisis: climate change. Governments must learn from the policy gaps exposed by COVID-19 to establish better processes for using science and evidence. Applying evaluation approaches throughout policy cycles, from planning to implementation, can achieve systematic, integrated responses to climate policy; policies capable of considering different scenarios and absorbing complex evidence. Evaluations can also promote accountability and learning to identify socially just solutions and transformational approaches to addressing climate change. This briefing outlines four key ways in which evaluations can accelerate progress towards effective climate policy.


: Lugworm Arenicola spp. dredging affects the intertidal benthic community in the Dutch Wadden Sea. Previous studies have found contradicting results regarding the recovery rates of targeted and non-targeted macrozoobenthic species, and meiobenthic communities have been neglected in these studies. The current study explores the short-term effects of dredging on both the macrofaunal and the meiofaunal communities using both a morphological and molecular approach. Benthic samples were collected right before and regularly after dredging for up to 1.5 yr at both control and fished transects. Significant differences between the control and fished transects were found by morphological and molecular approaches. Ordination analysis suggests distinct community compositions between control and fished transects in the first months after dredging. Opportunistic species with short life cycles, typically more than 1 generation yr −1 , thrived more in the fished transects during the spring/summer season compared to these species in the control transects in the same season, whereas recovery for long-lived species was slow. Both ap proaches showed similar results; however, compared to the morphological approach, the molecular approach was more sensitive to the effects due to a larger set of benthic taxa.


Many porphyry copper deposits are associated with granitoid plutons. Porphyry copper deposit genesis is commonly attributed to degassing of pluton-forming intermediate to silicic magma chambers during slow cooling and crystallization. We use numerical simulations of thermal evolution during pluton growth to investigate the links between pluton construction, magma accumulation and solidification, volatile release, and porphyry copper deposit formation. The Jurassic Yerington batholith, Nevada, serves as a case study because of its exceptional exposure, revealing the geometry of three main intrusions. The last intrusion, the Luhr Hill granite, is associated with economic porphyry copper deposits localized over cupolas where dikes and fluid flow were focused. Our simulations for the conceptual model linking porphyry copper deposits with the presence of large, highly molten magma chambers show that the Luhr Hill granite must have been emplaced at a vertical thickening rate of several cm/yr or more. This magma emplacement rate is much higher than the time-averaged formation rates of other batholiths reported in the literature. Such low rates, although common, do not lead to magma accumulation and might be one of the reasons why many granitoid plutons are barren. Based on our results, we formulate the new testable hypothesis of a link between porphyry copper deposit formation and the emplacement


The wave structures, eigenfrequencies and damping rates of toroidicity and ellipticity induced Alfven eigenmodes (TAEs, EAEs) of low toroidal mode numbers (n) are calculated for various axisymmetric ideal MHD equilibria with the global wave finite element code LION. The importance of the safety factor (q) and density (ρ) profiles on the continuum damping rates is analysed. For realistic profiles, several continuum gaps, exist in the plasma discharge. Frequency misalignment of these gaps yields continuum damping rates γ/ω of the order of a few per cent. Finite poloidal beta lowers the TAE eigenfrequency. For beta values below the Troyon limit, the TAE enters the continuum and can thus be stabilized. Finite elongation allows the EAE to exist, but triangularity can have a stabilizing effect through coupling with the continuum. The localization of TAE and EAE eigenfunctions is found to increase with the shear and with n. Therefore, large shear, through enhanced Landau and collisional damping, is a stabilizing factor for TAEs and EAEs


Cholangiocarcinoma is an intractable cancer, with limited therapeutic options, in which the molecular mechanisms underlying tumor development remain poorly understood. Identification of a novel driver oncogene and applying it to targeted therapies for molecularly defined cancers might lead to improvements in the outcome of patients. We performed massively parallel whole transcriptome sequencing in eight specimens from cholangiocarcinoma patients without KRAS/BRAF/ROS1 alterations and identified two fusion kinase genes, FGFR2‐AHCYL1 and FGFR2‐BICC1. In reverse‐transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) screening, the FGFR2 fusion was detected in nine patients with cholangiocarcinoma (9/102), exclusively in the intrahepatic subtype (9/66, 13.6%), rarely in colorectal (1/149) and hepatocellular carcinoma (1/96), and none in gastric cancer (0/212). The rearrangements were mutually exclusive with KRAS/BRAF mutations. Expression of the fusion kinases in NIH3T3 cells activated MAPK and conferred anchorage‐independent growth and in vivo tumorigenesis of subcutaneous transplanted cells in immune‐compromised mice. This transforming ability was attributable to its kinase activity. Treatment with the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) kinase inhibitors BGJ398 and PD173074 effectively suppressed transformation. Conclusion: FGFR2 fusions occur in 13.6% of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The expression pattern of these fusions in association with sensitivity to FGFR inhibitors warrant a new molecular classification of cholangiocarcinoma and suggest a new therapeutic approach to the disease. (Hepatology 2014;59:1427‐1434)


Modern desktop PCs are capable of taking 2D Geographic Information System (GIS) applications into the realm of interactive 3D virtual worlds. In prior work we developed and presented graphics algorithms and data management methods for interactive viewing of a 3D global terrain system for desktop and virtual reality systems. In this paper we present a key data structure and associated render-time algorithm for the combined display of multi-resolution 3D terrain and traditional GIS polyline vector data. Such vector data is traditionally used for representing geographic entities such as political borders, roads, rivers and cadastral information.


This paper examines the location of headquarter growth of large public companies during the 1990s. Headquarters continue to be attracted by large metropolitan areas. Yet, among that group they continue to disperse into the medium-sized centers. The model results suggest that headquarter growth is elastic with respect to population growth. In addition, average January temperature emerges as a predictor of headquarter growth. Furthermore, the paper identifies 6 different categories of gross flows underlying the net change of headquarters observed during the 90s. There is strong variation among the 50 largest metro areas in terms of the composition of these gross flows. On average, entry and exit represent over 2/3 of all gross flow activity. Including information on the composition of gross flows noticeably improves the formal model.


We describe in detail the nesting habitats of the Eurasian Crane in Estonia and explore relationships between different habitat characteristics and nesting success. We analysed all 161 reported Eurasian Crane nest finds in Estonia. We found that the cranes favorite nesting habitats are different types of mire (71% of all nests), especially fens (44%). We conclude that, despite the fact that the Eurasian Crane breeds in different habitats, nesting sites include the same or similar structural elements (vegetation types, plant species and communities and elements of micro-relief). We found that the date of the beginning of egg laying is significantly related to the size of the nesting habitat and that the annual mean date of the beginning of egg laying in Estonia has advanced considerably during the period 1901 to 2001. We also discovered a significant relation between the distance of neighbouring nests (population density) and the brood size and a negative effect of human activity on nesting success.


Tyrosine and aurora kinases are important effectors in signal transduction pathways that are often involved in aberrant cancer cell growth. Tyrosine (TKI) and aurora (AKI) kinase inhibitors are anti-cancer agents specifically designed to target such signaling pathways through TKI/AKI binding to the ATP-binding pocket of kinases thereby leading to diminished kinase activity. Some TKIs have been identified as inhibitors of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters such as P-glycoprotein and breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP), which are commonly upregulated in malignant cells. TKI/AKIs have been investigated as ABC transporter inhibitors in order to facilitate the accumulation of concomitantly administered chemo-therapeutics within cancer cells. However, ABC transporters are prominently expressed in the liver and other eliminating organs, and their inhibition has been linked to intracellular accumulation of drugs, altered disposition, and toxicity. The potential for TKIs/AKIs to inhibit other important hepatic efflux transporters, particularly multidrug resistance-associated proteins (MRPs), remains unknown. The aim of the current study was to compare the inhibitory potency of 20 selected TKI/AKIs against MRP4 and BCRP through the use of inverted membrane vesicle assays. Relative IC 50 values were estimated by determining TKI/AKI inhibition of MRP4-mediated [ 3 H]-dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate uptake and BCRP-mediated [ 3 H]-estrone sulfate uptake. To provide insight to the clinical relevance of TKI/AKI inhibition of ABC efflux transporters, the ratio of the steady-state maximum total plasma concentration (C ss ) to the IC 50 for each compound was calculated with C ss /IC 50 ratio >0.1 deemed potentially clinically relevant. Such analysis identified several potentially clinically relevant inhibitors of MRP4: alisertib, danusertib, erlotinib, lapatinib, neratinib, nilotinib, pazopanib, sorafenib, and tozasertib. The potentially clinically relevant inhibition of BCRP was much more extensive and included alisertib, barasertib, danusertib, enzastaurin, erlotinib, gefitinib, imatinib, neratinib, nilotinib, pazopanib, selumetinib, sorafenib, sunitinib, tozasertib, and vandetanib. These findings indicate the significant potential for TKI/AKIs to inhibit multiple ABC efflux transporters. The resulting inhibition data could provide insight regarding the clinical interpretation of pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic outcomes when TKI/AKIs are administered concomitantly with additional chemotherapeutic agents.


Current robots are either expensive or make significant compromises on sensory richness, computational power, and communication capabilities. We propose to leverage smartphones to equip robots with extensive sensor suites, powerful computational abilities, state-of-the-art communication channels, and access to a thriving software ecosystem. We design a small electric vehicle that costs $50 and serves as a robot body for standard Android smartphones. We develop a software stack that allows smartphones to use this body for mobile operation and demonstrate that the system is sufficiently powerful to support advanced robotics workloads such as person following and real-time autonomous navigation in unstructured environments. Controlled experiments demonstrate that the presented approach is robust across different smartphones and robot bodies.


This thesis consists of analyses and discussions regarding the collision between the offshore vessel Big Orange XVIII and Ekofisk 2/4W the 8th of June 2009. The collision caused the bow of Big Orange to deform three meters back from its original position. On the jacket installation, several braces were teared loose and the structure was pushed out of position. Although the installation endured large structural damages, it did not collapse. Based on the reported damage from NPD and the NORSOK design methods, the collision energy was estimated to be 58.7 MJ. The collision analyses were performed by analyzing Big Orange and Ekofisk 2/4W in two separate uncoupled analyses. A model of Big Orange was made in Patran and analyzed in LS-DYNA. The first model of Big Orange had a 450mm mesh, but was refined to a 200mm mesh. The model of Ekofisk 2/4W was made and analyzed in USFOS. The results from LS-DYNA were implemented as non-linear springs in the collision model in USFOS. Technical specifications regarding the vessel were provided by Ulstein Hatlo. Damage reports and structural arrangements regarding Ekofisk 2/4W were provided by Conoco Philips. The model of 2/4W was analyzed in several conditions: Pushover analyses in undamaged and damaged condition Static and dynamic ship collision analysis Collapse analysis The pushover analyses were mainly performed to verify that the model behaved as to be expected for this type of structure, and that it could be used for ship impact analysis. The static and dynamic ship collision analyses in USFOS had the non-linear springs from LS-DYNA implemented at the collision points to simulate the deformation of the bow in the ongoing collision. Two different dynamic collision models were tested. One model was unsupported, while one model had supports form the north and south bridges. The first collapse analyses were carried out by increasing the collision energy. This was done by increasing the vessel mass or velocity. The last collapse analyses were performed by changing the collision characteristics. The deformation pattern for the unsupported model was similar to the reported damage both in response and in dissipated energy. Both the static and dynamic analyses dissipated the same collision energy that was estimated following the NORSOK methods. The structure had severe deformations when the collision energy was increased by 10%. The vessel speed would have been 5.019m/s with this energy increase. The results obtained from the dynamic analysis were not so similar to the recommended design curves in NORSOK, but gave lower forces for displacements. They were however similar to the results Amdahl and Johansen obtained from simulations in 2002. Using LS-DYNA, they obtained load-deformation characteristics for collisions between a ship bow, and vertical leg columns and oblique braces. Improvements proposed to NORSOK could be to update the design curves for collisions with jacket legs and columns of similar diameters. The values for these collisions are the same as for large diameter columns, and are overly conservative if used for smaller diameters. Because the non-linear springs in USFOS were based on mass and velocity from the actual event, the results from the collapse analysis may deviate from the actual response. To address this problem, the LS-DYNA collision model could be improved to check the results.


Bewley's programme of excluding price singularities in equilibrium solutions for commodity spaces of bounded functions is reconsidered. From two recent examples in which singularities are indispensable, viz., marginal cost pricing in continuous time and an overlapping generations model, it is concluded that, although L?-model makes sense only when prices are represented by densities, price singularities can be incorporated by restricting the commodity space to be subspace of L?. Bewley's approach is rejiged for use in continuous time by weakening his Exclusion Assumption to obtain a price density result with extended applicability; also, the Mackey topology is replaced by the topology of convergence measure, which is simpler and more closely matches the economic properties modelled.


Summary The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of mineral oil on zona pellucida binding potential of human spermatozoa. The study compared zona binding using micro volume droplets under mineral oil as apposed to micro droplets in cryopreservation straws. Spermatozoa from eight proven fertile sperm donors were used. One hundred and fifty five matched hemizonae in 50 μl, 100 μl and 200 μl insemination sperm droplets were co‐incubated; (i) under mineral oil and (ii) 0.5 ml plastic cryopreservation straws. The results were analysed to determine the number of the zona bound spermatozoa during each experiment. Microvolumes with an oil overlay had a decrease in sperm bound per hemizona of 38% (mean±SD; 563±415 vs. 921±597), 51% (mean±SD; 392±359 vs. 800±566 sperm) and 18% (mean±SD; 502±369 vs. 618±445) in 200 μl, 100 μl and 50 μl respectively, compared to microvolumes in cryopreservation straws. It was concluded that mineral oil may have some detrimental factors which interfere with zona binding of spermatozoa.


This paper discusses the use of gender analysis to ensure that economic development policy has equitable consequences for women and men, and describes the role of nonprofit community organizations in promoting such analysis. Gender analysis assumes that role differences between men and women are socially defined and therefore open to change. Planners of a public policy initiative must understand the sexual division of labor and the differences in access to benefits and resources in specific situations. Questions that are key to gender analysis, or to any social analysis, focus on who does what; who has access to or control of resources and benefits; what factors influence activities, access, and control; and who is included at each project stage as informants, decision makers, service providers, and beneficiaries. Social and gender analyses ensure that more of the benefits of development accrue to the disadvantaged than the privileged, and that benefits are socially sustainable beyond the term of a project. In the past 12 years, a number of nonprofit community-based organizations have emerged that focus on women and economic development programs. Their activities include job placement and training programs, advocacy for nontraditional jobs, microenterprise training, and loan programs. As an example of the process of moving from practical needs to strategic action, the Coal Employment Project helped Appalachian women break into coal mining--nontraditional for women bat one of the few decent-paying jobs in the mountains. (SV) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** WHO BENEFITS? GENDER ANALYSIS AND THE ROLE OF NONPROFITS IN AFFECTING PUBLIC POLICY A PAPER PRESENTED TO THE APPALACHIAN STUDIFS CONFERENCE City, Town and Countryside: Appalachian Community in Change


OBJECTIVE
To further study the clinical value of a herbal supplement in the treatment of chronic foot ulcers in diabetic patients.

DESIGN
Double-blind randomised, placebo-control trial.

SETTING
Two general hospitals in Hong Kong.

PATIENTS
Eighty patients were recruited according to strict selection criteria.

INTERVENTIONS
Clinical measures included standard antidiabetic treatment, daily wound care including antiseptic bath, debridement, toe removal for gangrene when necessary, and the daily consumption of a herbal drink or placebo.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
The primary outcome was limb salvage. Secondary outcomes included: granulation maturation, local temperature and circulatory changes, tumour necrosis factor-alpha levels, and adverse events.

RESULTS
Limb salvage was achieved in 85% of the patients. Among the early failures, three each came from the treatment and placebo groups. After shifting to herbal treatment (without unblinding of the original treatment), all were rescued in those initially assigned to herbal concoction (6 out of 6) while only 50% (6 out of 12) were rescued from among those initially assigned to placebo. The speed of granulation maturation, and decline in tumour necrosis factor-alpha levels indicating control of inflammation, were also more favourable with the herbal group. No serious adverse events were observed.

CONCLUSION
The herbal adjuvant therapy was effective in helping the healing of chronic diabetic ulcers.


Book abstract: Such a reflexion for we all which start to believe in this Europe moving imposes. It is initially a question of wondering about the genesis of this awakening of Europe, on the basis of its remote roots and following its strong times: the oikoumene of the Greeks, the Nostrum Pond and Respublica christiana, Papacy and Holy roman Empire at the Average Age. The awakening of the "European" man will crystallize around the various "European identities" (that of the humanism and the Discoverers of the Rebirth, of the Reform in the Counter-Reformation, Europe of the Lights to its heirs (current of liberalism, Marxism, socialism)… To wonder about Europe, it is also to observe the various ways of thinking universalism and their political and social consequences: thus the universal one of Europe under the French revolution, the industrial revolution, the dynamism of the colonial expansions and the impulses missionaries of the Occident.
It is also to wonder which are the collective representations which it caused in the past and the present. More than ever it is also the world vis-a-vis in Europe which it is a question of observing: how, nonEuropean contributions - in the field of sciences, technology, arts, the ways of life - did they count? Does Europe really represent for the rest of the world a political, economic, cultural entity that it is necessary to imitate or reject?


Recent years have witnessed an unprecedented interest on the part of both scholars and the media in Taiwan's politics in general and its political development more specifically. John Copper's new book, Taiwan's 1991 and 1992 Non-Supplemental Elections: Reaching a Higher State of Democracy, examines Taiwan's departure from holding only supplemental elections-a practice that allowed many delegates to remain in office for years and thus called into question the competitive nature of Taiwan's electoral system-marks a new phase in Taiwan's democratization. Copper points out, though, that these elections need to be related to other factors of political development. He discusses how economic and cultural factors such as Taiwan's rapid economic growth in the '60s and '70s and the resulting urbanization of the country contributed to a political atmosphere that would allow the departure from supplemental elections.


De Montfort University is developing a 3D display which is capable of supplying 3D to several viewers who do not have to wear special glasses, and who are able to move freely over a room-sized area. The device consists of a single liquid crystal display that presents a stereo-pair by employing spatial multiplexing, and has its conventional backlight replaced by novel steering optics controlled by the position of a head position tracker. This is achieved using arrays of novel coaxial optical elements in conjunction with high-density white light emitting diode arrays. The operation of the steering and multiplexing optics will be explained. The prototype display, which uses a four-target electromagnetic head tracker, and incorporates a folded optical system, will be described. © 2005 Optical Society of America


Introduction Cellular nanovesicles (CNVs), that are shed from cells, have been recognized as promising indicators of health status. We analyzed the effect of long-distance running on concentration of CNVs, along with some standard blood parameters, in 27 athletes two days before and >15 hours after physical effort. Methods CNVs were isolated by repetitive centrifugation and washing of samples, and assessed by flow cytometry. Cholinesterase (ChE) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity were measured spectrophotometrically. Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). C-reactive protein (CRP) was measured with immunoturbidimetric determination and lipidogram parameters were measured by enzymatic colorimetric assay. Flow cytometry was used for blood cell count and mean platelet volume (MPV) measurement. Results More than 15 hours after physical effort a decrease was found in CNVs' concentration in isolates from blood (46%; p<0.05), in ChE activity in whole blood (47%; p<0.001), in plasma (34%; p<0.01), and in erythrocyte suspension (54%; p<0.001), as well as in GST activity in erythrocyte suspension (16%; p<0.01) and in IL-6 concentration in plasma (63%; p<0.05). We found no change in GST activity in plasma and in TNF-α concentration in plasma. Correlations (>0.8; p<0.001) between CNVs' concentration and ChE activity, and GST activity, respectively, in erythrocyte suspension were found. Conclusion We found that >15 hours post-physical effort, CNVs' concentration was below the initial value, concomitant with other measured parameters: ChE and GST activity as well as IL-6 concentration, indicating a favorable effect of physical effort on health status. CNVs' concentration and ChE activity in isolates from peripheral blood proved to have potential as indicators of the response of the human body to inflammation after physical effort. Physical activity should be considered as an important factor in preparation of subjects for blood sampling in procedures focusing on CNV-containing diagnostic and therapeutic compounds.


Caveolae are 50–100 nm, nonclathrin-coated, flask-shaped plasma membrane microdomains that have been identified in most mammalian cell types, except lymphocytes and neurons. To date, multiple functions have been ascribed to caveolae, including the compartmentalization of lipid and protein components that function in transmembrane signaling events, biosynthetic transport functions, endocytosis, potocytosis, and transcytosis. Caveolin, a 21–24 kDa integral membrane protein, is the principal structural component of caveolae. We have initiated studies to examine the relationship of detergent-insoluble complexes identified in astrocytes to the caveolin–caveolae compartment detected in cells of peripheral tissues. Immunolocalization studies performed in astrocytes reveal caveolin immunoreactivity in regions that correlate well to the distribution of caveolae and caveolin determined in other cell types, and electron microscopic studies reveal multiple clusters of flask-shaped invaginations aligned along the plasma membrane. Immunoblot analyses demonstrate that detergent-insoluble complexes isolated from astrocytes are composed of caveolin-1α, an identification verified by Northern blot analyses and by the cloning of a cDNA using reverse transcriptase-PCR amplification from total astrocyte RNA. Using a full-length caveolin-1 probe, Northern blot analyses suggest that the expression of caveolin-1 may be regulated during brain development. Immunoblot analyses of detergent-insoluble complexes isolated from cerebral cortex and cerebellum identify two immunoreactive polypeptides with apparent molecular weight and isoelectric points appropriate for caveolin. The identification of caveolae microdomains and caveolin-1 in astrocytes and brain, as well as the apparent regulation of caveolin-1 expression during brain development, identifies a cell compartment not detected previously in brain.


RAJAGOPAL, NISHA. Modeling and Performance Prediction of IP Multimedia Subsystem Networks. (Under the direction of Professor Michael Devetsikiotis). IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is envisioned as the solution for the next generation multimedia rich communication. Based on an open IP infrastructure, IMS enables access independent convergence of data, speech, video and mobile network technologies. Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) is the signaling protocol of choice for IMS. In this thesis, we propose service models for IMS networks with utility functions. These service models act as control mechanisms to optimize network properties. We analyze the IMS network based on the SIP signaling delay and predict performance trends of the network. Our focus is on the formulation of queueing models for the IMS network and characterization of the SIP server workload. This approach of theoretical evaluation combined with realistic performance characterization can be used for designing IMS networks with optimal performance. Our analysis is based on a careful study of real-life SIP network traffic. Modeling and Performance Prediction of IP Multimedia Subsystem Networks


The article presents social work field practice as a complex and complicated process, which takes into account the novelty of the social work as a profession, and numerous actors in this process. Thus the task which falls onto educators of social workers is very complicated, as they support the student in this process, that is, the task is to organize the learning process which develops conditions for self-education of professional social worker who is able to act in individual critical situations by integrating practical and theoretical knowledge. During field practice the student is learning through memorizing theoretical knowledge, performing practical tasks, and reflecting gained and professional experience. The stages of professional development are discussed, as they create specific requirements for the process of field practice and anticipate guidelines for the practice teacher. The context of social work profession is not just static, but permanently interchanging. So, the professional activities should be reflected, discussed, and changed models of behavior and professional experience should be accumulated. The process of professional development creates certain process for field placement. Article emphasizes group supervision as a method, which should lead student in the learning process and integration of theoretical and practical knowledge.


The increasing pressure for firms and countries to innovate in order to remain competitive comes from many different forces. In the case of Central America, one important factor has been the movement towards a more open economy, and therefore greater competition. The capacity to find niches or increase competitive ability may be improved with higher levels of innovation, reached by means of more capabilities and knowledge, and by interiorising and building on this knowledge base. This movement towards a learning economy can be seen as desirable for Central America and as a new model that could go beyond mere export-promotion. However, this reorientation towards a learning economy does not occur haphazardly; it must be promoted actively. The core of the discussion is centred here on the question of how much labour market institutions support the development of a learning economy in the Central American countries. Furthermore, it reflects on the inter-linkages existing between labour market institutions and learning capability building.


Hostile media perception (HMP) is a phenomenon showing the significance of individual factors in evaluation of media content. Extending theoretical understanding of HMP, this study has two purposes: (a) to examine the roles of different types of involvement in hostile media effect (HME), that is, value-relevant and outcome-relevant involvement, and (b) to explore relationships between HMP and other media-related perceptions, such as congruency of perceived media influence, media skepticism, and perceived opinion climate. Data were collected from college students in South Korea. Results suggest that value-relevant involvement, rather than outcome-relevant involvement, is a critical predictor of HMP in the context of news coverage of the National Security Law in Korea. HMP also was a significant predictor of congruency of presumed media influence, which in turn predicted perceived opinion climate.


An important quest in optical imaging has been, and still is, extending the resolution of imaging systems beyond the diffraction limit. We propose a superresolution technique in which the image is first blurred by a scattering mask, and then recovered from the blurry data with improved resolution. We introduced a scattering mask into the space between the observed objects and the objective lens of a Fresnel incoherent correlation holography (FINCH) system to demonstrate the method. Optical waves, containing high spatial frequencies of the object, which are usually filtered out by the limited system aperture, were introduced into the system due to the scattering nature of the scattering mask. As a consequence, both the effective numerical aperture and the spatial bandwidth of the system were enlarged. The image resolution could therefore be improved far beyond the resolution limit dictated by the limited numerical aperture of the system. We demonstrated the technique using a modified FINCH system and the results were compared with other systems, all having the same aperture dimensions. We showed a resolution enhancement in comparison to conventional FINCH and regular imaging systems, with the same numerical apertures. The theoretical and experimental data presented here establishes the proposed method as an attractive platform for an advanced superresolution system that can resolve better than conventional imaging systems.


Background Massage therapy is widely recognized as offering many health benefits, with a growing number of studies finding it has value in stress management, pain reduction, and overcoming physical limitations. However, there are few studies of massage therapists practices and perceptions in New Zealand and internationally. This paper reports the findings from the first national survey examining the characteristics, perceptions, and experiences of New Zealand-based massage therapists on a range of aspects related to their role and practices. Purpose This study sought to ascertain the characteristics, experiences, and perceptions of massage therapists in New Zealand, particularly in the aspects of: integration of health care; attitudes and practices related to research; and evidence and attitudes to registration. Setting Massage practice in New Zealand (nationwide survey). Participants Members of Massage New Zealand (a massage practitioners association). Research Design Massage practitioners were surveyed online, using a 65-part questionnaire, on a range of characteristics of their practices and their attitudes to research, integration, and registration. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA. Statistical significance was set at 0.05. Main Outcome Measures Four hundred massage therapists (MTs) were invited to participate and 115 responded, providing a response rate of 29%. MTs valued research (95%) and perceived that it had an impact for their practices (88%). Significant correlations were found for research value and: mean case-load (p = .009) and level of academic qualification (p = .004). The majority of MTs (79%) supported integration with conventional practitioners, and 83% referred clients to general practitioners, with 75% receiving referrals from general practitioners. Ninety-three percent of MTs supported registration, with 67% of those supporting statutory registration. Conclusion Massage practitioners perceive that they make a significant contribution to health care, but area of practice, such as research, and referral and integration into mainstream health care require more in-depth investigation.


Abstract The family practitioner in private practice is a key role player within the primary health care system and should play a bigger role in national tuberculosis (TB) control. TB training at medical undergraduate level is often not adequate and continuous medical education is necessary to develop capacity among private family practitioners. The Department of Health should also encourage the involvement of especially the private family practitioners in district TB control, which is a long overdue public-private interaction. This article discusses the role of the family practitioner to better diagnose, treat and refer tuberculosis patients.


Background Celiac disease is an inflammatory condition of the small intestine that affects genetically predisposed individuals after dietary wheat gliadin ingestion. Type 2-transglutaminase (TG2) activity seems to be responsible for a strong autoimmune response in celiac disease, TG2 being the main autoantigen. Several studies support the concept that celiac anti-TG2 antibodies may contribute to disease pathogenesis. Our recent findings on the ability of anti-TG2 antibodies to induce a rapid intracellular mobilization of calcium ions, as well as extracellular signal-regulated kinase phosphorylation, suggest that they potentially act as signaling molecules. In line with this concept, we have investigated whether anti-TG2 antibodies can induce phosphoproteome modification in an intestinal epithelial cell line. Methods and Principal Findings We studied phosphoproteome modification in Caco-2 cells treated with recombinant celiac anti-TG2 antibodies. We performed a two-dimensional electrophoresis followed by specific staining of phosphoproteins and mass spectrometry analysis of differentially phosphorylated proteins. Of 14 identified proteins (excluding two uncharacterized proteins), three were hypophosphorylated and nine were hyperphosphorylated. Bioinformatics analyses confirmed the presence of phosphorylation sites in all the identified proteins and highlighted their involvement in several fundamental biological processes, such as cell cycle progression, cell stress response, cytoskeletal organization and apoptosis. Conclusions Identification of differentially phosphorylated proteins downstream of TG2-antibody stimulation suggests that in Caco-2 cells these antibodies perturb cell homeostasis by behaving as signaling molecules. We hypothesize that anti-TG2 autoantibodies may destabilize the integrity of the intestinal mucosa in celiac individuals, thus contributing to celiac disease establishment and progression. Since several proteins here identified in this study were already known as TG2 substrates, we can also suppose that transamidating activity and differential phosphorylation of the same targets may represent a novel regulatory mechanism whose relevance in celiac disease pathogenesis is still unexplored.


A surprisingly high number of shallow water sponge species (197) were recorded from extensive sampling of natural intertidal and subtidal habitats in Singapore (Southeast Asia) from May 2003 to June 2010. This is in spite of a highly modified coastline that encompasses one of the world's largest container ports as well as extensive oil refining and bunkering industries. A total of 99 intertidal species was recorded in this study. Of these, 53 species were recorded exclusively from the intertidal zone and only 45 species were found on both intertidal and subtidal habitats, suggesting that tropical intertidal and subtidal sponge assemblages are different and distinct. Furthermore, only a third of the fouling species of sponges from a previous study was recorded in this study, thus suggesting that sponge assemblages from natural and fouling communities in the tropics are different as well. A new species, Forcepia (Forcepia) vansoesti is described from Singapore. Members of this genus possess unique spicules shaped in the form of a pair of forceps. The new species is distinguished from its congeners in having the largest forceps (nearly 300 μm in length) so far recorded in the Indo-Pacific.


'Exploring the Public City' is a multidisciplinary Intensive Program aimed to highly motivated students in the 3rd and 4th year of the bachelor and master programs of the Faculties of Urban Design, Urban Planning, Architecture and Architectural Engineering of 6 innovative European Partner institutions.

The IP has the objective to develop and exchange, each year between average 60 students and 12 teachers, innovative ideas and design - and analysis tools to tackle emerging problems in the field of public space in European cities.

In order to do so, the workshop gives participants the opportunity to compare and discuss different case studies in different European cities each year.

By applying a systematic pedagogical workshop approach to different cities over duration of 3 years, the effect of educational exchange is maximized and different urban conditions and contexts can be compared.

The results of each workshop are published in a small book and it is being used in existing regular teaching programs at all participating universities.

This publication gathers all the research developed during the course 2007-2008 and the projects done in the workshop organized by the University of Alicante in April 2008.


Abstract. Underwater photogrammetry is a well-established technique for measuring and modelling the subaquatic environment in fields ranging from archaeology to marine ecology. While for simple tasks the acquisition and processing of images have become straightforward, applications requiring relative accuracy better then 1:1000 are still considered challenging. This study focuses on the metric evaluation of different off-the-shelf camera systems for making high resolution and high accuracy measurements of coral reefs monitoring through time, where the variations to be measured are in the range of a few centimeters per year. High quality and low-cost systems (reflex and mirrorless vs action cameras, i.e. GoPro) with multiple lenses (prime and zoom), different fields of views (from fisheye to moderate wide angle), pressure housing materials and lens ports (dome and flat) are compared. Tests are repeated at different camera to object distances to investigate distance dependent induced errors and assess the accuracy of the photogrammetrically derived models. An extensive statistical analysis of the different systems is performed and comparisons against reference control point measured through a high precision underwater geodetic network are reported.


Aspect-Oriented Software Development is an approach which supports the modularisation of crosscutting concerns through the development phases of an application. One of the limitations in the main approaches to AOSD is that they do not provide support for the definition and handling of conflicts that may arise between multiple competing aspects. This paper describes how conflicts are managed by a framework that we have developed for the construction of aspect-oriented applications. In the first place, we describe the main characteristics of this reflective multi-level framework and the tool that instantiates it. We then present our categorisation of different conflicts and how they are defined and handled by our environment for the development of aspect-oriented software.


This thesis examines the UK and US press coverage of the 1991 Gulf conflict. It outlines the propaganda model of the press identified by Herman and Chomsky and, through a qualitative study of press content, examines the extent to which the predictions of the model are fulfilled in the coverage. The state systems involved are defined as new militarist and the special role played by the press in these systems is identified. In radically problematising the event, the study identifies the way in which broad historical factors (rather than any elite conspiracy) lay behind the press manufacture of the Gulf war spectacle. Interviews with journalists involved and references to many non-mainstream texts and perspectives (silenced or marginalised within the dominant ideological system) are incorporated. The thesis concludes that most of the expectations of the propaganda model were realised in the press coverage of the Gulf "war".


As a profession, librarians have an important and unique role to play in higher education in producing information literate students equipped to be successful in a complex, twenty-first century global society. It is our contention that our guiding professional information literacy definitions and standards need to be reconsidered in order to remain relevant within the global learning context. Our preliminary conclusion is that the predominantly skills-based approach facilitated by the current ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, is not sufficient to facilitate teaching of twenty-first century "deep information literacy," which we feel encompasses additional content-based engagement with the social, cultural, economic and political contexts of information access, retrieval, use, and creation. Within the global education context, the ways we may engage with such an expanded notion of information literacy and the challenges associated with this, are discussed.


The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the organelle responsible for synthesis and folding of secreted and membranous protein and lipid biosynthesis. It also functions as one of the main cellular calcium stores. Pancreatic beta-cells evolved to produce and secrete insulin upon demand in order to regulate blood glucose homeostasis. In response to increases in serum glucose, insulin synthesis represents nearly 50% of the total protein biosynthesis by beta-cells. This poses an enormous burden on the ER, rendering beta-cells vulnerable to agents that perturb ER function. Alterations of ER homeostasis lead to accumulation of misfolded proteins and activation of an adaptive response named the unfolded protein response (UPR). The UPR is transduced via 3 ER transmembrane proteins, namely PERK, IRE-1 and ATF6. The signaling cascades activated downstream of these proteins: a) induce expression of ER resident chaperones and protein foldases. Increasing the protein folding capacity of the ER; b) attenuate general protein translations which avoids overloading the stressed ER with new proteins; c) upregulate ER-associated degradation (ERAD) genes, which decreases the unfolded protein load of the ER. In severe cases, failure by the UPR to solve the ER stress leads to apoptosis. The mechanisms linking ER stress to apoptosis are still poorly understood, but potential mediators include the transcription factors Chop and ATF3, pro-apoptotic members of the Bcl-2 familly, the caspase 12 and the kinase JNK. Accumulating evidence suggest that ER stress contributes to beta-cell apoptosis in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is characterized by a severe insulin deficiency resulting from chronic and progressive destruction of pancreatic beta-cells by the immune system. During this autoimmune assault, beta-cells are exposed to cytokines secreted by the immune cells infiltrating the pancreatic islets. Our group has previously shown that the pro-inflamatory cytokines interleukin-1beta (IL1-beta and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), via nitric oxide (NO) formation, downregulate expression and function of the ER Ca2+ pump SERCA2. This depletes beta-cell ER Ca2+ stores, leading to ER stress and apoptosis. Of note, IL1-beta alone triggers ER stress but does not induce beta-cell death, while IFN-gamma neither causes ER stress nor induces beta-cell death. Together, these cytokines cause beta-cell apoptosis but the mechanisms behind this synergistic effect were unknown.Type 2 diabetes is characterized by both peripheral resistance to insulin, usually as a result of obesity, and deficient insulin secretion secondary to beta cell failure. Obese patients have high levels of circulating free fatty acids (FFA) and several studies have shown that the FFA palmitate induces ER stress and beta-cell apoptosis.In the present work we initially established an experimental model to specifically activate the ER stress response in pancreatic beta-cells. For this purpose, insulinoma cells (INS-1E) or primary rat beta-cells were exposed to the reversible chemical SERCA pump blocker cyclopiazonic acid (CPA). Dose-response and time course experiments determined the best conditions to induce a marked ER stress without excessive cell death (The first goal of the work was to understand the synergistic effects of IL1-beta and IFN-gamma leading to pancreatic beta-cell apoptosis. Our group previously observed, by microarray analysis of primary beta-cells, that IFN-gamma down-regulates mRNAs encoding for some ER chaperones. Against this background, our hypothesis was that IFN-gamma aggravates beta-cell ER stress by decreasing the ability of these cells to mount an adequate UPR. To test this hypothesis, we investigated whether IFN-gamma pre-treatment augments CPA-induced ER stress and beta cell death. The results obtained indicated that IFN-gamma pre-treatment potentiates CPA-induced apoptosis in INS-1E and primary beta-cells. This effect was specific for IFN-gamma since neither IL1-beta nor a low dose CPA pre-treatment potentiated CPA-induced apoptosis in INS-1E cells. These effects of IFN-gamma were mediated via the down regulation of genes involved in beta cell defense against ER stress, including the ER chaperones BiP, Orp150 and Grp94 as well as Sec61, a component of the ERAD pathway. This had functional consequences as evidenced by a decreased basal and CPA-induced activity of a reporter construct for the unfolded protein response element (UPRE) and augmented expression of the pro-apoptotic transcription factor Chop. We next investigated the molecular regulation of the Chop gene in INS-1E cells in response to several pro-apoptotic and ER stress inducing agents, namely cytokines (IL1-beta and IFN-gamma), palmitate, or CPA. Detailed mutagenesis studies of the Chop promoter showed differential regulation of Chop transcription by these compounds. While cytokines (via NO production)- and palmitate-induced Chop expression was mediated via a C/EBP-ATF composite and AP-1 binding sites, CPA induction required the C/EBP-ATF site and the ER stress response element (ERSE). Cytokines, palmitate and CPA induced ATF4 protein expression and further binding to the C/EBP-ATF composite site, as shown by Western blot and EMSA experiments. There was also formation of distinct AP-1 dimers and binding to the AP-1 site after exposure to cytokines or palmitate. \


Species that successfully colonized subterranean environments are subject to two opposing selection processes. Stringent abiotic factors select for convergent adaptations, such as loss of eyes and pigments, while interspecific competition drives between-species divergence. Subterranean species can resolve opposing selection by adaptation to physically different microhabitats. Yet, species frequently co-occur in physically homogeneous subterranean habitats, like interstitial. These co-occurrences in such a narrow ecological context can be explained either by equalizing mechanisms, in which neither of the co-occurring species has a competitive advantage, or by more complex niche models that include species' differentiation along a trophic niche axis. We tested these hypotheses using the amphipod genus Niphargus. We analysed Europe-wide co-occurrence records of Niphargus species from interstitial habitats, split into six independent large-scale regions. Firstly, we addressed whether species' pairwise co-occurrences are random using a probabilistic model. Secondly, we tested whether species cluster into distinct functional–morphological groups and whether ecologically or phylogenetically distinct species are more likely to co-occur. We found that 68% of species co-occurrences were not different from random expectation, indicating that most species had access to most sites within each region. The remaining 32% co-occurred either significantly more or less often than expected by chance. Cluster analysis of functional morphological characters showed that interstitial species belong to two feeding types, micro- and macrofeeders, likely representing two peaks of the interstitial adaptive landscape, and hinting that niche divergence, as a mechanism allowing coexistence, is favoured. Finally, we found that the number of co-occurrences increases with increasing differentiation of functional morphology, but not phylogenetic differences. We conclude that ecological differentiation may be important in shaping such interstitial communities.


Learn how to plan for success with this hands-on guide to conducting high-quality engineering research. Plan and implement your next project for maximum impact: step-by-step instructions cover every stage in engineering research, from the identification of an appropriate research topic through to the successful presentation of results. Improve your research outcomes: discover essential tools and methods for producing high-quality, rigorous research, including statistical analysis, survey design, and optimisation techniques. Research with purpose and direction: clear explanations, real-world examples, and over 50 customisable end-of-chapter exercises, all written with the practical and ethical considerations of engineering in mind. A unique engineering perspective: written especially for engineers, and relevant across all engineering disciplines, this is the ideal book for graduate students, undergraduates, and new academics looking to launch their research careers.


In this interactive demo, we present Fluid Sketching as an innovative virtual reality application, which is highly inspired by traditional marbling art. By using a particle-based simulation combined with natural, spatial, and multi-modal interaction techniques, we create and extend the original artwork to build a comprehensive interactive experience. With the interactive demo of Fluid Sketching during Mensch und Computer 2018, we aim at increasing the awareness of paper marbling as a traditional type of art and demonstrating the potential of virtual reality as an innovative digital and artistic medium.


This paper explores the concept of continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers in Scotland in an education system undergoing change. It considers the curricular and political changes which affect the nature of CPD considered appropriate and relevant for teachers. This article reports on one small‐scale qualitative study into award‐bearing CPD at masters level in a unique scheme known as Chartered Teacher Studies. This is a new, alternative route for Scottish teachers to gain professional recognition and financial reward for continuing to practise, rather than seeking promotion through a management route. This small‐scale, preliminary exploration of the views of teachers who have completed the programme to masters level found that teachers perceived that their studies had a positive impact on their learning, increased their understanding, their commitment to linking theory with practice through research and raised their confidence in developing pedagogy. It is recognised that the outcomes cannot be widely generalised, as it considers only one cohort of students in one institution. However, since it is widely recognised that CPD for the teaching profession is an essential facet in improving education practice, the issues explored in this paper may be of interest to an international audience.


This work describes a self-supervised data augmentation approach used to improve learning models' performances when only a moderate amount of labeled data is available. Multiple copies of the original model are initially trained on the downstream task. Their predictions are then used to annotate a large set of unlabeled examples. Finally, multi-task training is performed on the parallel annotations of the resulting training set, and final scores are obtained by averaging annotator-specific head predictions. Neural language models are fine-tuned using this procedure in the context of the AcCompl-it shared task at EVALITA 2020, obtaining considerable improvements in prediction quality.


Tak volcanic rocks, found in the southern part of the Chiang Khong-Lampang-Tak volcanic belt in northern Thailand, provide important evidence of the tectonic evolution of the Palaeotethys ocean. Petrographically and geochemically, the volcanic rocks selected for this study are made up of rhyolite, rhyodacite, andesite porphyry, and basalt. Based on field investigations, these rocks are also associated with other igneous rocks including granite, granodiorite, tuff, gabbro, and cumulus gabbro. The chemical data acquired from X-ray fluorescence, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry methods suggest that the studied rocks from the eruption can be separated into eight magmatic groups and four tectonic settings. The tectonic setting of the southern location of Chiang Khong-Lampang-Tak volcanic rocks consists of (1) an active continental margin (Groups V and VII), (2) a back-arc basin (Group VI), (3) post-collision (Groups II and III), and (4) continental rifting (Groups I, IV, and VIII).


Filling an obvious gap in the scientific literature, this practice-oriented reference is the first to tie together the working knowledge of large screening centers in the pharmaceutical and biotechnological field. It spans the entire fi eld of this emerging discipline, from compound acquisition to collection optimization for specific purposes, to technology and quality control. In so doing, it applies two decades of expertise gathered by several large pharmaceutical companies to current and future challenges in high-throughput screening. With its treatment of libraries of small molecules as well as biobanks containing biomolecules, microorganisms and tissue samples, this reference is universally applicable for any molecular scientist involved in a large screening program.


Monoclonal Gammopathies are a group of disorders that show high levels of a monoclonal immunoglobulin (Mprotein). It is produced by a clone of abnormally proliferating B-lymphocytes and/or plasma cells. This M-protein can be evaluated by Serum or Urine Protein Electrophoresis (SPEP), which yields a single distinct band (M-band), usually in the gamma globulin region. Rarely two separate M-bands appear simultaneously at different positions during SPEP–A condition known as Biclonal Gammopathy, as a result of clonal expansion of two dissimilar neoplastic cell lines. Here, we report an atypical case of plasma cell dyscrasias where two distinct bands were found in gamma region during SPEP depicting biclonalgammopathy in gamma region. This peculiar presentation of double M bands in gamma region was double gammopathy without any underlying plasma cell or Lymphoproliferative disorder. This unusual case of double Gammopathy is referred to as "Biclonal Gammopathy" with undetermined significance. To the best of our knowledge this is the first case of double Gammopathy to be reported from Pakistan.


Recent work by the authors and others has uncovered the need for further chemical kinetic-related modeling and experiments, specifically for NOx kinetics at engine conditions. In particular, data on CH formation at realistic combustion conditions are needed for further refinement of the prompt-NOx kinetics. To this end, a series of shock-tube experiments to obtain CH concentration time histories at elevated temperatures was performed behind reflected shock waves at the Aerospace Corporation using a tunable laser. This Ti-Sapphire laser was operated in the near infrared at about 854 nm; blue light at 426.9 nm was obtained using an external, frequency-doubling crystal. The resulting light was used in a differential absorption setup with common-mode rejection to measure CH time histories. New measurements in CH4–C2H6–O2 mixtures highly diluted in argon were performed at temperatures between 1890 K and 2719 K. These new data are compared to several modern, detailed chemical kinetics mechanisms with updated NOx submechanisms. Sensitivity and rate of production analyses at the shock-tube conditions along with a gas turbine model are used to elucidate the current state of affairs in CH prediction by the literature models and its effect on NOx production, particularly through the prompt mechanism. A brief discussion of the chemical kinetics for an important reaction in the production of CH is also presented to emphasize the need for further study and refinement of reactions leading to CH production.


Abstract. The direction and magnitude of soil organic carbon (SOC) changes in response to climate change depend on the spatial and vertical distributions of SOC. We estimated spatially resolved SOC stocks from surface to C horizon, distinguishing active-layer and permafrost-layer stocks, based on geospatial analysis of 472 soil profiles and spatially referenced environmental variables for Alaska. Total Alaska state-wide SOC stock was estimated to be 77 Pg, with 61% in the active-layer, 27% in permafrost, and 12% in non-permafrost soils. Prediction accuracy was highest for the active-layer as demonstrated by highest ratio of performance to deviation (1.5). Large spatial variability was predicted, with whole-profile, active-layer, and permafrost-layer stocks ranging from 1–296 kg C m−2, 2–166 kg m−2, and 0–232 kg m−2, respectively. Temperature and soil wetness were found to be primary controllers of whole-profile, active-layer, and permafrost-layer SOC stocks. Secondary controllers, in order of importance, were found to be land cover type, topographic attributes, and bedrock geology. The observed importance of soil wetness rather than precipitation on SOC stocks implies that the poor representation of high-latitude soil wetness in Earth system models may lead to large uncertainty in predicted SOC stocks under future climate change scenarios. Under strict caveats described in the text and assuming temperature changes from the A1B Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change emissions scenario, our geospatial model indicates that the equilibrium average 2100 Alaska active-layer depth could deepen by 11 cm, resulting in a thawing of 13 Pg C currently in permafrost. The equilibrium SOC loss associated with this warming would be highest under continuous permafrost (31%), followed by discontinuous (28%), isolated (24.3%), and sporadic (23.6%) permafrost areas. Our high-resolution mapping of soil carbon stock reveals the potential vulnerability of high-latitude soil carbon and can be used as a basis for future studies of anthropogenic and climatic perturbations.


Balangan Regency is the youngest regency in South Kalimantan that established at April 08 2003. The capital city of Balangan is located in Paringin Subdistrict. The wide of this regency is 1.878, 30 km2 that consists of 6 subdistricts and 159 village. Balangan Regency is located in the middle of Banua Lima area (Tapin Regency, Hulu Sungai Utara Regency, Hulu Sungai Selatan Regency, Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency, and Tabalong Regency) so Balangan Regency is appropriate to be transit area and development central in economy sector. The majority of society livelihood in Balangan Regency is farmer. Besides farmer, the society of Balangan Regency becomes a breeder. We can find many big livestock animals of cow in Balangan. This things is reasonable because available in many areas that we can use as animal husbandry of cow. The cow that is developed in Balangan Regency : the kind of Peranakan Ongole (PO) or white cow and Bali?s cow. That things is caused both of that cows very appropriate with cultivation and fattening up purposes. The number of beef cattle livestock population in Balangan Regency is 4.405 tails, while the capacity of beef cattle livestock is 15.468 tails. Because the number population of beef cattle that far away from capacity beef cattle livestock, it must be done the development of beef cattle livestock operation in Balangan Regency. That activity among others: management area, broadening area, founding breeder, and servicing operation. SWOT analysis (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunity, and Threats) is one of the technique analysis that used in interpreting planning area, especially in condition that very complex where external and internal factor occupy the same important role. In this final project, a SWOT analysis is used for looking for and learns the potention, problem, opportunity, and threat which occur in beef cattle animal husbandry sector in Balangan Regency. The result of SWOT analysis is used as material for beef cattle development program in Balangan Regency. download


Four-lane divided highways are an economical design solution to increase the capacity of rural highways compared to grade-separated limited access facilities. Compared to two-lane undivided rural highways, four-lane divided highways have markedly lower rates of sideswipe, rear-end, and head-on collisions. However, right-angle crash rates are markedly higher on four-lane divided highway intersections than at two-lane undivided highway intersections, largely as a result of left-turn and through movements from minor roads conflicting with far-side vehicles on the divided highway. The restricted crossing U-turn (RCUT) intersection is a promising treatment to mitigate right-angle crashes where two-lane minor roads intersect with rural four-lane divided highways. This report includes a comparison of operations at an RCUT intersection in Maryland with a roughly comparable conventional stop-controlled intersection on the same corridor. It also includes before-after crash analyses for intersections converted from conventional to RCUT designs on two Maryland highway corridors. The operational analysis found that conflicts between vehicles entering or crossing the highway from a minor road were reduced, weaving movements were about the same for the two intersection types, the RCUT design added about 1 min to travel time for vehicles making left-turn or through movements from the minor road. Three approaches were used to estimate the affect of an RCUT conversion on crashes. All three approaches led to the same conclusion: the RCUT design reduces crashes. A simple 3-year before and 3-year after analysis suggested a 30 percent decrease in the average number of crashes per year. An analysis that adjusted the observed crash rate at RCUT locations for the observed crash rate at nearby conventional intersections on the same corridors suggested a 28 percent decrease in the average annual number of crashes. An empirical Bayes analysis that adjusts for, among other things, the expected number of crashes at similar intersections and average annual traffic suggested a 44 percent decrease in crashes. Furthermore, the analyses suggest an overall reduction in crash severity with the RCUT design.


The incidence of diabetic neuropathy increases with the duration of diabetes and the degree of hyperglycaemia. Pain is one of the most common and incapacitating symptoms of diabetic neuropathy and its pharmacological control is complex. The effectiveness of antidepressive agents has been described in different types of neuropathic pain, but their effectiveness, when used as analgesics in painful diabetic neuropathy, still remains controversial. Objective : To review the possible role of new-generation antidepressive agents in the treatment of pain in diabetic peripheral neuropathy. This work has thus consisted of a meta-analysis for determining which antidepressive agent had the best analgesic potential in managing pain in patients suffering from painful diabetic neuropathy. Methods : This search covered the Cochrane, MEDLINE, EMBASE and LILACS databases, between January 2000 and August 2007. The following information was obtained from each article: criteria for diagnosing diabetic neuropathy, patients' age average, antidepressant drug received and dose, sample size, duration of the disease and treatment follow-up, outcome measurement, evaluation of pain and rescue medication. Results : A combined RR: 1.67 (95% CI 1.38 - 2.02) was obtained; this result indicated that the antidepressive agent duloxetine, was effective for controlling pain in diabetic neuropathy. The corresponding NNT for Duloxetine was established, according to our interests; NNT = 6 (95% CI 5- 8) for achieving greater than 50% analgesia in patients suffering from painful diabetic neuropathy. Discussion : Antidepressive agents are frequently employed in the specific case of diabetic neuropathy; their analgesic benefit has been demonstrated.


This Article examines the modern utility of the Second Amendment's guarantee of "the right to keep and bear arms" in light of the phenomenon of modern crime, particularly black-on-black violence in urban America. Although many advocates of gun control have argued that crime in modern cities is a reason for modifying or severely truncating the right to have arms, the Authors argue that the right to have arms and the Second Amendment's notion of a universal militia can be the basis of a new partnership between police and citizens in urban America. This new partnership can, if properly developed, be a useful tool in fighting crime in inner-city communities.


In this thesis we describe an exploratory visualization system for scientific data using multiple views in tablet-sized touch devices. The increasing ubiquity of mobile devices and vast amount of data generation create a need for such exploration environment. We make the data analysis available anywhere at anytime with our approach. This thesis includes an interaction framework for scientific data and a spatial selection technique based on transfer functions. We then combine the interaction and selection with multiple information visualization views to make the data exploration possible. The proposed approach is one of the first multiview exploratory visualizations in tablet devices.


Previous research shows that when people judge moral acceptability of others' harmful behaviour, they not only take into account information about the consequences of the act but also an actor's belief while carrying out the act. A two-process model has been proposed to account for this pattern of moral judgements and posits: (1) a causal process that detects the presence of a harmful outcome and is motivated by empathic aversion stemming from victim suffering; (2) a mental state-based process that attributes beliefs, desires, intentions, etc. to the agent in question and is motivated by imagining personally carrying out harmful actions. One prediction of this model would be that personality traits associated with empathy deficits would find accidental harms more acceptable not because they focus on innocent intentions but because they have reduced concern for the victim's well-being. In this study, we show that one such personality trait, viz. alexithymia, indeed exhibits the predicted pattern and this increased acceptability of accidental harm in alexithymia is mediated by reduced dispositional empathic concern. Results attest to the validity of two-process model of intent-based moral judgements and emphasise key role affective empathy plays in harm-based moral judgements.


The isolation of Bartonella henselae, the agent of cat scratch disease, from the blood of naturally infected domestic cats and the demonstration that cats remain bacteremic for several months suggest that cats play a major role as a reservoir for this bacterium. A convenience sample of 205 cats from northern California was selected between 1992 and 1994 to evaluate the B. henselae antibody and bacteremia prevalences and to determine the risk factors and associations between bacteremia and antibody titers. B. henselae was isolated from the blood of 81 cats (39.5%). Forty-two (52%) of these bacteremic cats were found to be infected with > or = 1,000 CFU/ml of blood. Impounded or former stray cats were 2.86 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.94, 4.22) times more likely to be bacteremic than the pet cats. Young cats ( < 1 year old) were more likely than adult cats to be bacteremic (relative risk = 1.64; (95% CI = 1.19, 2.28). Bacteremic cats were more likely than nonbacteremic cats to be infested with fleas (relative risk = 1.64; 95% CI = 1.38, 1.96). No association between B. henselae infection and feline immunodeficiency virus antibody prevalence was observed. Eighty-one percent of the cats (166 of 205) tested positive for B. henselae antibodies, and titers were higher in bacteremic than in nonbacteremic cats. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that younger age and seropositivity for B. henselae antibodies were associated with bacteremia. Serological screening for Bartonella antibodies may not be useful for the identification of bacteremic cats (positive predictive value = 46.4%), but the lack of antibodies to B. henselae was highly predictive of the absence of bacteremia (negative predictive value = 89.7%). Seronegative cats may be more appropriate pets for immunocompromised individuals who are at increased risk for developing severe B. henselae disease.


This paper provides an extensive study on the availability of image representations based on convolutional networks (ConvNets) for the task of visual instance retrieval. Besides the choice of convolutional layers, we present an efficient pipeline exploiting multi-scale schemes to extract local features, in particular, by taking geometric invariance into explicit account, i.e. positions, scales and spatial consistency. In our experiments using five standard image retrieval datasets, we demonstrate that generic ConvNet image representations can outperform other state-of-the-art methods if they are extracted appropriately.


Abstract. Unusual aerosol enhancement is often observed at Syowa Station, Antarctica, during winter and spring. Simultaneous aerosol measurements near the surface and in the upper atmosphere were conducted twice using a ground-based optical particle counter, a balloon-borne optical particle counter, and micropulse lidar (MPL) in August and September 2012. During 13–15 August, aerosol enhancement occurred immediately after a storm condition. A high backscatter ratio and high aerosol concentrations were observed from the surface to ca. 2.5 km over Syowa Station. Clouds appeared occasionally at the top of the aerosol-enhanced layer during the episode. Aerosol enhancement was terminated on 15 August by strong winds from a cyclone's approach. In the second case, on 5–7 September, aerosol number concentrations in Dp > 0.3 μm near the surface reached > 104 L−1 at about 15:00 UT (Universal Time) on 5 September despite calm wind conditions, whereas MPL measurement exhibited aerosols were enhanced at about 04:00 UT at 1000–1500 m above Syowa Station. The aerosol enhancement occurred near the surface to ca. 4 km. In both cases, air masses with high aerosol enhancement below 2.5–3 km were transported mostly from the boundary layer over the sea-ice area. In addition, air masses at 3–4 km in the second case came from the boundary layer over the open-sea area. This air mass history strongly suggests that dispersion of sea-salt particles from the sea-ice surface contributes considerably to aerosol enhancement in the lower free troposphere (about 3 km) and that the release of sea-salt particles from the ocean surface engenders high aerosol concentrations in the free troposphere (3–4 km). Continuous MPL measurements indicate that high aerosol enhancement occurred mostly in surface–lower free troposphere (3 km) during the period July–September.


Whānau (extended family networks) are the fabric of any indigenous community and society. For many whānau violence has become a normalised way of functioning, and persists as a way for its members interacting generation after generation. Māori (indigenous peoples of Aotearoa [New Zealand]), similar to other colonised indigenous peoples, are challenged by the widespread and corrosive nature of violence within their whānau and wider community. Mokopuna (indigenous children) growing up in homes with abuse and violence maintains the intergenerational transmission of violence as an acceptable way of functioning because they are often without opportunities to learn alternative non-violent modes of interacting. Living with violence heightens their risk of becoming victims, perpetrators or both (Burnette & Cannon, 2014; Smith, Ireland, Park, Elwyn, & Thornberry, 2011). Strengthening and restoring whānau cultural identities and traditional values is crucial to halting family violence normalisation and intergenerational transmission. In this paper, opportunities to disrupt violence will be discussed briefly drawing on lessons embedded in our cultural traditions, and insights and experiences of participating in the New Zealand Family Violence Death Review Committee and The People's Report .


Throughout the nineteenth century, African heritage played an important role in black America, as personal memories and cultural practices continued to shape the everyday experience of people of African descent living under the shadow of slavery. Resisting efforts to de-Africanise their values, customs, and beliefs, black Americans invoked their African roots in public arguments about their identity and place in the "new" world. At the outset of the twentieth century many still saw Africa primarily as the source of a common cultural and spiritual past. But after the 1920s, the meaning of African heritage changed as people of African descent expressed new relationships between themselves, the United States, and the African Diaspora. In The Insistent Call , Aric Putnam studies the rhetoric of newspapers, literature, and political pamphlets that expressed this shift. He demonstrates that as people of African descent debated the United States' occupation of Haiti, the Liberian labour crisis, and the Italian invasion of Ethiopia, they formed a new collective identity, one that understood the African Diaspora in primarily political rather than cultural terms. In addition to uncovering a neglected period in the history of black rhetoric, Putnam shows how rhetoric that articulates the interests of a population not defined by the boundaries of a state can still motivate collective action and influence policies.


Adaptive Gibbs Sampling (AGS) algorithm is a new heuristic for unconstrained global optimization. AGS algorithm is a population-based method that uses a random search strategy to generate a set of new potential solutions. Random search combines the one-dimensional Metropolis-Hastings algorithm with the multidimensional Gibbs sampler in such a way that the noise level can be adaptively controlled according to the landscape providing a good balance between exploration and exploitation over all search space. Local search strategies can be coupled to the random search methods in order to intensify in the promising regions. We have performed experiments on three well known test problems in a range of dimensions with a resulting testbed of 33 instances. We compare the AGS algorithm against two deterministic methods and three stochastic methods. Results show that the AGS al- gorithm is robust in problems that involve central aspects which is the main reason of global optimization problem difficulty including high-dimensionality, multi-modality and non-smoothness.


Michael Jackson changed the face of modern rock music and dance. Almost 20 years after it was first produced, Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time. This Macmillan Biography looks at Jackson's early life from his emergence as a child star with the Jackson 5 to the height of his career as international - and controversial - superstar.


Chemical-looping combustion (CLC) is a combustion technology in which a solid oxygen carrier is used to convert fuel. The oxygen carrier is oxidized in air and subsequently transferred to a separate reactor in which it reacts with the fuel. The produced CO2 is inherently separated from the air components, making CLC a promising technology for carbon capture and storage (CCS). CLC of biomass combined with CCS (bioenergy CCS; BECCS) is a way to generate negative CO2 emissions and thus interesting for climate change mitigation. Undesirable chemical reactions between ash and oxygen carriers are a challenge in BECCS because of the reactive nature of biomass ash. This article examines two low-cost steel industry byproducts that have shown desirable fuel conversion properties in CLC: iron mill scale (Glodskal B) and steel converter slag (LD-slag). Their interactions with potassium ash model compounds (KCl, K2CO3,K2SO4, and KH2PO4) in a reducing atmosphere have been investigated. Mixtures of oxygen carriers and potassium salt have been reduced for 6 h in CO and steam in a laboratory-scale fixed-bed reactor at 850 °C. The reduced samples have been analyzed with SEM/EDS and XRD. The reactivity of the mixtures during reduction and oxidation has also been examined by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). K2CO3 increased the reaction rate for the reduction of Glodskal and inhibited the reactivity of LD-slag. KH2PO4 formed a K−P−Fe component with apparent low melting temperature with Glodskal, causing agglomeration, and decreased the reduction/oxidation rate in TGA. KH2PO4 formed a K−P−Ca component with apparent high melting temperature with LD-slag causing agglomeration but the reduction rate was not affected. The study suggests that the iron mill scale and LD-slag should not be rejected as oxygen carriers for CLC based on potassium ash interaction.