This study examined the effect of genetic grouping on REML estimates of additive genetic variance with an animal model with selected base populations. A simulated population of 40 animals (20 males and 20 females) was followed under selection or random mating conditions for 10 generations. Each population was replicated 20 or 50 times. Genetic grouping reduced estimates of additive genetic variance in populations with selected base animals, whereas grouping had little effect on the estimate in unselected populations. The effect of genetic grouping varied according to the quantity and kind of information that was missing (percentage of deleted data and pattern of deletion). When genetic grouping was completely random, the estimates were unaffected. Because including genetic groups in the model for analysis affected the estimates of additive genetic variance, the question should be considered of what value or values for heritability should be used for genetic evaluation when grouping is used to account for prior selection.


Renewable energy (RE) is one of the most popular public policy orientations worldwide. Compared to some other countries and continents, Europe has gained an early awareness of energy and environmental problems in general. At the theoretical level, free-market environmentalism indicates that based on the principle of private property rights, with fewer state interventionist and regulation policies, entrepreneurs, as the driving force of the market economy, can provide better services to meet the necessity of offering RE to protect the environment more effectively. Previous studies have revealed that Germany, Denmark, and the United Kingdom have made some progress in using the market to develop RE. However, this research did not analyze the three countries' RE conditions from the perspective of free-market environmentalism. Based on our review of the principles of free-market environmentalism, this paper originally provides an empirical study of how Germany, Denmark, and the United Kingdom have partly conducted free-market-oriented policies to successfully achieve their policy goal of RE since the 1990s on a practical level. In particular, compared with Germany and Denmark, the UK has maintained a relatively low energy tax rate and opted for more pro-market measures since the Hayekian-Thatcherism free-market reform of 1979. The paper also discovers that Fredrich A. Hayek's theories have strongly impacted its energy liberalization reform agenda since then. Low taxes on the energy industry and electricity have alleviated the burden on the electricity enterprises and consumers in the UK. Moreover, the empirical results above show that the energy enterprises play essential roles in providing better and more affordable RE for household and industrial users in the three sampled countries. Based on the above results, the paper also warns that state intervention policies such as taxation, state subsidies, and industrial access restrictions can impede these three countries' RE targets. Additionally, our research provides reform agendas and policy suggestions to policymakers on the importance of implementing free-market environmentalism to provide more efficient RE in the post-COVID-19 era.


Author(s): Koster, John Walter | Advisor(s): Potts, Donald C. | Abstract: Applications for electrolysis of seawater include preventing fouling in piping systems, conditioning water for aquaculture and reef restoration. Electrolysis creates a variety of chlorine-produced oxidants that attack essential proteins of living tissues and react with metals, other compounds (e.g., ammonia, nitrites) and organic materials (e.g., amines). The Biorock® process developed by Dr. T.J. Goreau and Dr. W. Hilbertz uses electrolysis for restoring reefs and enhancing growth and survival of corals. It is believed to act by elevating pH and alkalinity at the cathode and/or by reducing enzymatic costs for pumping cations and anions across cell membranes by providing an appropriate electrical gradient (Goreau, 2013). I hypothesize that a third mechanism for enhancing organisms may also be involved: inhibition of microorganisms by significant amounts of chlorine-produced oxidants arising from the anode. Applying Faraday's laws of electrolysis for a system at 8.0 amperes and 90% efficiency gives an estimated ~230 grams of diatomic chlorine per day (equivalent to ~70 liters of gas at STP). In nature (i.e., an open system), diffuse follow-on reaction products (including hypochlorous acid, hypochlorite, hypobromous acid and hypobromite ion) may benefit macrobiota via inactivation of microbial pathogens and competitors, or by other improvements to water quality, as long as concentrations are too low to harm larger, ecotoxicologically less vulnerable organisms.


HFT (high-frequency trading) has emerged as a powerful force in modern financial markets. Only 20 years ago, most of the trading volume occurred in exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange, where humans dressed in brightly colored outfits would gesticulate and scream their trading intentions. Nowadays, trading occurs mostly in electronic servers in data centers, where computers communicate their trading intentions through network messages. This transition from physical exchanges to electronic platforms has been particularly profitable for HFT firms, which invested heavily in the infrastructure of this new environment.


Three rural electrification options are analysed showing the cost optimal conditions for a sustainable energy development applying renewable energy sources in Africa. A spatial electricity cost model has been designed to point out whether diesel generators, photovoltaic systems or extension of the grid are the least-cost option in off-grid areas. The resulting mapping application offers support to decide in which regions the communities could be electrified either within the grid or in an isolated mini-grid. Donor programs and National Rural Electrification Agencies (or equivalent governmental departments) could use this type of delineation for their program boundaries and then could use the local optimization tools adapted to the prevailing parameters.


The relationship between carrion and blow flies is well understood, but in situations where fresh carrion sources are unavailable, as may occur on the Great Plains, the potential for multigenerational coloniza tion of a single carcass exists. By testing this possibility through a replicated choice/no-choice experiment using pig carcasses, we were able to demonstrate that multigenerational colonization of carrion by blow flies does not occur. Fresh pig carcasses were exposed to blow fly infestation, then placed in insect exclusion cages. After the emergence of this first generation of blow fly adults, "choice" cages were supplied with a fresh pig cadaver. No multigenerational colonization ofthe parent carcass took place in any of the choice or no-choice replicates. This demonstrates that carcasses act as temporary resource islands, with a "window of opportunity" of colonization in the ecosystem, and are vital for the biodiversity of the Great Plains.


We examine some effects of Universal Basic Income (UBI) during the COVID-19 pandemic using a large-scale experiment in rural Kenya. Transfers significantly improved well-being on common measures such as hunger, sickness and depression in spite of the pandemic, but with modest effect sizes. They may have had public health benefits, as they reduced hospital visits and decreased social (but not commercial) interactions that influence contagion rates. During the pandemic (and contemporaneous agricultural lean season) recipients lost the income gains from starting new non-agricultural enterprises that they had initially obtained, but also suffered smaller increases in hunger. This pattern is consistent with the idea that UBI induced recipients to take on more income risk in part by mitigating the most harmful consequences of adverse shocks.


Ionospheric Modification (IM) experiments using the recently completed High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) HF ionospheric heater located in Gakona, AK, verified the potential of IM in exploiting triggered ionospheric and magnetospheric processes that take advantage of their potential as active media. The research result opened the road to potential applications including new modes of ELF/VLF as well as HF/VHF/UHF communications, over-the-horizon radar, and radiation belt control. The fixed location, size and cost of current ionospheric heaters, such as the HAARP phased array, and the dependence of HF-ionospheric plasma coupling processes on the inclination of the geomagnetic field restricts the realization of the breakthrough applications revealed by the HAARP experiments. The development of transportable, compact, low cost HF heaters can revolutionize both the research and applications of IM. The paper will present results of a current MURI sponsored by AFOSR, whose objective is to replace the current collection of HF sources with a single, mobile low cost amplifier based on recent developments in HPM technology, metamaterials and active materials. The MURI involves a science and an engineering task. The science task focuses on understanding the design requirements of the mobile heater as a function of geomagnetic latitude and application. Emphasis is placed on latitudes close to the dip equator and applications that involve artificial ionization, generation of few cm irregularities that can reflect signals with GHz frequency and artificial antennas in the ELF/VLF range. Analysis is based in theoretical/computational techniques extrapolating results of previous heating experiments and laboratory tests using the UCLA/LAPD space chamber. The engineering task addresses system design and requirement issues including amplifier sources and electrically small antennas. Emphasis is placed on Inductive Output Tubes (IOT) at the University of Maryland and Photo-Conductive Solid State (PCSS) RF Generators at Texas Tech University. Current status and future plans for the MURI project will be presented.


The assembly of focal adhesions was investigated in F9 embryonal carcinoma cells in which the expression of vinculin was eliminated by a targeted disruption of the vinculin gene. Vinculin-deficient F9 cells were capable of adhering to fibronectin-coated surfaces, though they displayed a reduced spreading compared to the parental cells. Transmission electron microscopy as well as interference reflection microscopy of live cells showed that vinculin-null F9 cells formed focal adhesions that were indistinguishable from those of the control cells. Fluorescent labeling for actin, talin, alpha-actinin, paxillin and phosphotyrosinated components indicated that the organization of all these focal contact-associated components was essentially identical in the vinculin-containing and vinculin-null cells. However, quantitative, digitized microscopy indicated that the intensity of fluorescence labeling in focal adhesions for alpha-actinin, talin and paxillin was significantly higher in cells lacking vinculin. The results suggest that there are multiple molecular mechanisms for the formation of focal adhesions in the absence of vinculin.


As sports concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy have captured the media's attention, sports organisations and athletes have become increasingly interested in novel approaches to reduce brain injury risk. One proposal is to protect the brain from within by decreasing brain 'slosh'. This can supposedly be achieved by creating a 'tighter fit' of the brain within the skull.1 Woodpeckers are often cited as model organisms for achieving this,1 and one emerging device claims to replicate the woodpecker's mechanism for protecting its brain.2 This device is a collar worn around the neck which compresses the jugular veins, known as the Q-collar or  Neuroshield (www.q30innovations.com and www.neuroshield.ca). Unfortunately, this woodpecker-inspired concept is misguided for numerous reasons (see online supplementary file 1 for additional references).

1. Woodpeckers have multiple evolutionary adaptations to protect their brains. Computed tomography has confirmed that woodpeckers have numerous microstructural adaptations within the skull, including regionally specific alterations in trabecular bone morphology, which provide favourable mechanical properties.3 The woodpecker's unique hyoid bone and tongue structure dissipate shock.3 4 Additionally, the woodpecker's beak is highly specialised, with …


The primary purpose of this paper is to discuss the design and implementation of an automated help desk application called "Remote Expert System To Optimize Repair Efficiency" (RESTORE) currently deployed in the IBM Corporation at Rochester, Minnesota. It was designed in 1992 mainly to enhance the support of AS/400 business computer systems. In order to familiarize those readers with the topics being discussed, an overview of the product support strategy will be provided as a part of the introduction. The RESTORE application is one of the most successful implementations of Knowledge Based Systems (KBS) and Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) technology in IBM history. It is currently deployed and used very successfully in AS/400 product support, saving tens of millions of dollars in support cost each year. This complex system was designed with a blackboard architecture to enable the use of multiple knowledge sources. These knowledge sources include several rule-based subsystems and a large case-based subsystem, all tied together with a blackboard control module. This innovative design takes advantage of the strength of KBS and CBR by using the concept of blackboard architecture that allows these knowledge-based subsystems to coexist and contribute. This paper will discuss the design of the overall RESTORE system along with its successful implementation


The first impression I had of this book was that it was physically weighty, and I soon realized that this was metaphorically true of its contents and production too. Printed on high-quality paper, the book is replete with exquisite colour photographs; even the endpapers are beautiful. The subject matter is the first publication of the UAE (United Arab Emirates) Insect Project, a complete inventory of the non-marine arthropods, instigated under the inspired patronage of His Highness Sheikh Tahoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. This ambitious project involves over 160 systematists from 27 countries, including a couple of South Africans, and is an exemplary contribution to the goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity.


In accordance with the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, conflict minerals refer to gold, tantalum, tin, and tungsten bearing minerals sourced from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that have been mined illegally and used to funnel funds to rebel forces. In response to an increasing demand for these metals used in cellphones, computers, and other popular technologies, Dodd-Frank mandates that industrial consumers demonstrate due diligence and assure that the materials they use have been extracted legally. Because current chain-of-custody methods have not been effective in sourcing ores, a study was undertaken whereby the range of mineralogical characteristics of 15 samples along the wolframite solid solution series were determined in order to ascertain if differences in these characteristics would permit fingerprinting of the source deposit of wolframite, of which the DRC is the world's fifth largest producer. For these 15 samples, single-crystal X-ray structure and powder X-ray diffraction studies have been conducted; major, minor and trace element chemistry has been determined using ICP-MS and ICP-OES; and Raman spectroscopy has been carried out. Finally, statistical methods were used to determine relationships between samples, and the results of that mathematical work show that there is no firm method at the present time of determining the provenance of a sample based on the information of the crystal structure, diffraction patterns, vibrational frequencies/scattering, or major and trace elemental chemistry. This study elucidates the range of mineralogical properties along the hübneriteferberite solid solution series while working towards to development of an analytical technique that is affordable, practical, accessible and effective for industrial consumers seeking product certification and compliance with the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.


To identify under what conditions guiding-centre or full-orbit tracing should be used, an estimation of the spatial variation of the magnetic field is proposed, not only taking into account gradient and curvature terms but also parallel currents and the local shearing of field-lines. The criterion is derived for general three-dimensional magnetic equilibria including stellarator plasmas. Details are provided on how to implement it in cylindrical coordinates and in flux coordinates that rely on the geometric toroidal angle. A means of switching between guiding-centre and full-orbit equations at first order in Larmor radius with minimal discrepancy is shown. Techniques are applied to a MAST (mega amp spherical tokamak) helical core equilibrium in which the inner kinked flux-surfaces are tightly compressed against the outer axisymmetric mantle and where the parallel current peaks at the nearly rational surface. This is put in relation with the simpler situation B(x, y, z) = B0[sin(kx)ey + cos(kx)ez], for which full orbits and lowest order drifts are obtained analytically. In the kinked equilibrium, the full orbits of NBI fast ions are solved numerically and shown to follow helical drift surfaces. This result partially explains the off-axis redistribution of neutral beam injection fast particles in the presence of MAST long-lived modes (LLM).


The goal of information extraction is to extract database records from text or semi-structured sources. Traditionally, information extraction proceeds by first segmenting each candidate record separately, and then merging records that refer to the same entities. While computationally efficient, this approach is suboptimal, because it ignores the fact that segmenting one candidate record can help to segment similar ones. For example, resolving a well-segmented field with a less-clear one can disambiguate the latter's boundaries. In this paper we propose a joint approach to information extraction, where segmentation of all records and entity resolution are performed together in a single integrated inference process. While a number of previous authors have taken steps in this direction (eg., Pasula et al. (2003), Wellner et al. (2004)), to our knowledge this is the first fully joint approach. In experiments on the CiteSeer and Cora citation matching datasets, joint inference improved accuracy, and our approach outperformed previous ones. Further, by using Markov logic and the existing algorithms for it, our solution consisted mainly of writing the appropriate logical formulas, and required much less engineering than previous ones.


We apply to the Indian Ocean a novel technique to estimate the distribution, total mass, and net air‐sea flux of anthropogenic carbon. Chlorofluorocarbon data are used to constrain distributions of transit times from the surface to the interior that are constructed to accommodate a range of mixing scenarios, from no mixing (pure bulk advection) to strong mixing. The transit time distributions are then used to propagate to the interior the surface water history of anthropogenic carbon estimated in a way that includes temporal variation in CO2 air‐sea disequilibrium. By allowing for mixing in transport and for variable air‐sea disequilibrium, we remove two sources of positive bias common in other studies. We estimate that the anthropogenic carbon mass in the Indian Ocean was 14.3–20.5 Gt in 2000, and the net air‐sea flux was 0.26–0.36 Gt/yr. The upper bound of this range, the no‐mixing limit, generally coincides with previous studies, while the lower bound, the strong‐mixing limit, is significantly below previous studies.


The intension of this dissertation was to investigate why architectural environments were not healing, but harming people, and what factors could be looked at in order to provide healing environments for mankind. The human living and working environments are contributing more to illness and the aesthetic, than to creating environments that comfort, engage and heal the human beings. Buildings needed to become more attuned to people's physical and mental well-being and by providing an architecture that incorporates water and finds ways to heal while being functional. Nature's principles incorporate networks of complexity while remaining harmonious and by looking towards, and using nature in architecture is where inspiration can be found for a solution. The aim of this dissertation was to create an appropriate architecture that respects nature, while providing the essential resourceful, sensitive, delightful and therapeutic environments for the betterment of those who suffer from illnesses. The challenge was that creating balance between architecture and nature is difficult but necessary for producing healing environments for human well-being. A research investigation was carried out in the form of a literature review that covered nature, water and architecture and the factors and elements that these categories contribute to healing. Precedents and case studies where investigated and analyzed to prove these theories of healing of a successful collaboration between nature and architecture. Questionnaires and interviews were conducted with medical professionals to establish the relevance of water in healing for humans through hydrotherapy. The research concluded that healing environments were possible and greatly enhanced when nature, water and architecture were combined. What can be contributed on a large scale is that healing environments is achievable and should be implanted in every society and city for the overall well-being of mankind, and specifically, can contribute medically to healing certain diseases and conditions.


This article examines the cultivation of transnational connections, cosmopolitanism and global class consciousness among members of elite social clubs in Paris. Drawing from interviews with members, it compares how – according to their respective characteristics – various social clubs promote different kinds of bourgeois cosmopolitanism, while rejecting the more recent internationalism of upper-middle-class service clubs such as the Rotary. Each club's peculiar ethos, practice and representations of social capital are related to the features of competing clubs through relations of mutual symbolic distinction; for example, some clubs emphasize the 'genuineness' of links while stigmatizing others for the accent they put on utility. The varied forms of cosmopolitanism that they promote partly replicate these logics of distinction, eliciting struggles over the authenticity or inauthenticity of transnational connections. Yet, clubs also oppose each other according to the unequal emphasis that they place on international ties per se, which creates a competing axiology within the symbolic economy of social capital accumulation.


Recently, in a few case studies we demonstrated that gyrosynchrotron microwave emission can be detected directly from the acceleration region when the trapped electron component is insignificant. For the statistical study reported here, we have identified events with steep (narrowband) microwave spectra that do not show a significant trapped component and, at the same time, show evidence of source uniformity, which simplifies the data analysis greatly. Initially, we identified a subset of more than 20 radio bursts with such narrow spectra, having low- and high-frequency spectral indices larger than three in absolute value. A steep low-frequency spectrum implies that the emission is nonthermal (for optically thick thermal emission, the spectral index cannot be steeper than two), and the source is reasonably dense and uniform. A steep high-frequency spectrum implies that no significant electron trapping occurs, otherwise a progressive spectral flattening would be observed. Roughly half of these radio bursts have RHESSI data, which allow for detailed, joint diagnostics of the source parameters and evolution. Based on an analysis of radio-to-X-ray spatial relationships, timing, and spectral fits, we conclude that the microwave emission in these narrowband bursts originates directly from the acceleration regions, which have a relatively strong magnetic field, high density, and low temperature. In contrast, the thermal X-ray emission comes from a distinct loop with a smaller magnetic field, lower density, but higher temperature. Therefore, these flares likely occurred due to interaction between two (or more) magnetic loops.


Properties of composite boards from oil palm frond agricultural waste were researched. Phenol and urea formaldehyde resins were used as the binders. The oil palm fronds were obtained from 20 year-old trees in an oil palm plantation in Kota Belud, Sabah. The fronds were segregated into three groups of matured, intermediate, and young oil palm fronds and further subdivided into bottom, middle, and top sections. The leaflets and the epidermis were removed from the fronds before they were sliced longitudinally into thin layers. The layers were then compressed into uniform thickness of 2 to 3 mm. The layers were air-dried and later mixed with resins using 12 to 15% of phenol and urea formaldehyde and recompressed with other layers, forming composite boards. The composite boards samples were then tested for their physical and mechanical properties. Testing was conducted in accordance with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard. The results for physical and mechanical properties showed that the oil palm composite boards were better than composite boards from oil palm trunks and slightly worse than the rubberwood. Statistical analysis indicated significant differences between composite boards made from each group and section, but no differences were observed in the type of resin used. The composite boards from oil palm fronds agricultural residues has the potential to be used as an alternative to wood to overcome the shortage in materials in the wood industry.


Which is the most appropriate currency (biomass, energy, water, or some mineral nutrient) for expressing resource allocation in plants has been repeatedly discussed. Researchers need to assess to which extent interindividual, interpopulational, or interspecific comparisons of resource allocation could be affected by the allocation currency chosen. The "currency issue" is relevant to at least three related aspects of resource allocation to reproduction: (a) reproductive allocation (RA), (b) size-dependence of reproductive allocation, and (c) somatic cost of reproduction (SCR). Empirical tests have mostly dealt with the first aspect only. We examined the equivalence of estimates for the three aspects above across three different allocation currencies (dry mass, N, P) in 11 populations of PINGUICULA VULGARIS. For RA we studied the equivalence of allocation currencies at three scales: among individuals of the same population, between populations of the same species, and among species. Equivalence of currencies in the ranking of RA for individuals within populations was high ( RS >/= 0.43) and did not strongly decrease when comparing populations or species. Excepting for size-dependence of RA, ranking of RA, or SCR between populations was equivalent for biomass and N, but not for P. Our study gives two positive guidelines for empirical plant reproductive ecologists facing the "currency issue": (1) become increasingly concerned about the "currency issue" as you increase the scale of your comparison from individuals to populations to species, and (2) avoid estimating allocation in redundant currencies (biomass and N in our case) and choose preferentially "complementary" currencies that provide a broader view of allocation patterns (biomass and P in our case).


Coherent control of the resonant response in spatially extended optomechanical structures is complicated by the fact that the optical drive is affected by the back-action from the generated phonons. Here we report a new approach to coherent control based on stimulated Raman-like scattering, in which the optical pressure can remain unaffected by the induced vibrations even in the regime of strong optomechanical interactions. We demonstrate experimentally coherent control of flexural vibrations simultaneously along the whole length of a dual-nanoweb fiber, by imprinting steps in the relative phase between the components of a two-frequency pump signal,the beat frequency being chosen to match a flexural resonance. Furthermore, sequential switching of the relative phase at time intervals shorter than the lifetime of the vibrations reduces their amplitude to a constant value that is fully adjustable by tuning the phase-modulation depth and switching rate. The results may trigger new developments in silicon photonics, since such coherent control uniquely decouples the amplitude of optomechanical oscillations from power-dependent thermal effects and nonlinear optical loss.


We present a new application of digital holography for phase-contrast imaging and optical metrology. This holographic imaging technique uses a CCD camera for recording of a digital Fresnel off-axis hologram and a numerical method for hologram reconstruction. The method simultaneously provides an amplitude-contrast image and a quantitative phase-contrast image. An application to surface profilometry is presented and shows excellent agreement with contact-stylus probe measurements.


PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES
To describe the four primary causes of extravasation from implanted ports.

DATA SOURCES
Journal articles, textbooks, medical records, depositions, serial photographs, and the authors' personal experiences.

DATA SYNTHESIS
Extravasation from ports can occur by four major mechanisms: incomplete needle placement and needle dislodgment, thrombus or fibrin sheath formation, perforation of the superior vena cava, and catheter fracture. The degree of tissue injury can vary but may be severe enough to require that a simple mastectomy be performed to manage chest wall necrosis.

CONCLUSIONS
Extravasation is a known risk of chemotherapy administration via implanted ports. Vesicants should be administered only after a blood return has been obtained and the needle inserted into the port septum has been adequately secured.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE
Extravasation of vesicant drugs from ports can cause tissue necrosis and may prompt litigation. Risk-management strategies include careful assessment and use of ports, comprehensive patient teaching about the risk of extravasation and measures to decrease the likelihood of needle dislodgment, and development of extravasation-management policies that address port extravasations.


A SPECIAL EDITION ON BUSINESS AND DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA: Changes in the global economic landscape, the comparatively unrestrained flow of resources across the boundaries of nation states, as well as, the growing expansion of the overseas activities of many companies through out the world has stimulated an increased interest in examining business strategies. Africa, along with China, is in the forefront of current global business discussions. Once discounted, to "third world" status, discoveries of large quantities of oil have made Africa a player in the global economy. While these discoveries add to the comparative advantages of African countries, the intense competition brought on by globalization and trade liberalization, trade liberalization and the integration of of world markets challenge us to critically examine the ways in which African countries can contribute to trade and socio-economic growth globally, and the impact of such locally. Comprising a part of the world economy that has approximately 900 million people and 52 nations, Africa represents, potentially some of the most important growth opportunities in today's economy. A diverse group of economies and societies, developing nations, in general and African countries, in particular are an important testing ground for our existing theories, models and concepts of business and management. In addition, they offer the opportunity for the development of new theoretical contributions in the field of management and business studies. The goal of this special edition is to provide a forum on the latest thinking about business and development in Africa. This includes the growing paradox between development and the appropriation of resources; and between globalization and local development. The volume has been developed around several issues with papers in each area. A seminal work looks at early African contributions, particularly those of Ibn Khaldun, to theories of economic development which are based on competitive rather than monopoly capitalism and proposes policy implications. The role of intra-region trade is examined in a paper considering the effects of consumer ethnocentrism on trade between Mozambique and South Africa. Several papers in the edition address business and development in Sub-Saharan Africa, West Africa, South Africa and the COMESA region. Development is examined with respect to: Foreign Direct Investment flows and their effects on GDP, making use of growth accounting frameworks, the impact of trade liberalization and globalization on competition, the challenges facing entrepreneurs, and trends in the exchange rate in West African Economic and Monetary Union. The example of Botswana which has made great strides in transparency, GDP growth and literacy allowing it to become a model of good governance is presented. Other papers examine the importance of agricultural production for household security and income stability and some of the technical barriers which limit trade between African and European countries. The commercial production of medicinal plants and its potential for the semi-arid regions of Kenya is discussed. Another set of papers uses behavioral measures to understand business success: the knowledge transfer process and the motivation to perform are considered with respect to turnover and manager's intention to stay, social performance measures are proposed. In addition to financial performance measures, and the social capabilities of African firms is suggested to be an important factor for narrowing the economic gap between African economies and other parts of the world. The edition includes perspectives on diverse issues. Together, they enrich our understanding of business in Africa and broaden the discussion of development and Africa´s place in the world economy. Thanks to the editors and their respective universities: Dr. Aihie Osarenkhoe of the University of Gavle, Dr. Gabriel Awuah of Halmstad University, and Dr. Sid Howard Credle of Hampton University. Sincerely, Professor C.B. Claiborne, Ph.D, Editor in Chief for International Journal of Business Research, Texas Southern University, Houston, Texas, USA.


The article analyzes the development of EU — Russia energy relations through the lens of the evolution of three parameters: the political agenda (the Energy Dialogue), the institutional structure, and the legal modalities. The identification of these three aspects for assessing the evolution of EU-Russia energy relations is the novelty in the author's approach. This study aims to identify the previous stages and assess the current state of EU — Russia energy dialogue, since they set out conditions for energy cooperation in the Baltic Sea region. This research is based on a political and legal analysis of various documents and employs various international relations theories (including integration theories). The article demonstrates that the EU and Russia have made a transition to the integration agenda manifested in the Energy Dialogue (its current goal is the creation of a common European energy market). The author describes the process of gradual consolidation of transgovernmental and transnational institutions, which leads to depoliticization of cooperation and mutual socialization of the partners. Finally, legal discussions on the development of common rules have become more constructive. In sum, the current situation in EU — Russia energy relations is favourable and positively affects cooperation in the Baltic Sea region.


This paper describes a series of electrochemical measurements design to explore the reactivity of the oxide superconductor, DyBa2Cu3O7-δ (DyBCO). The reproducible voltammetry was obtained in the potential window of 1.0 V to -1.0 V vs Ag/AgCl reference electrode. DyBa2Cu3O7-δ was prepared via co-precipitation and conventional solid state technique. Parameters used in this study including the effect of potential cycling, scan rate, temperature and pH as well as chronoamperometry (CA) and chronocoulometry (CC). The electrochemical reduction and oxidation can be recognized easily by the solid-phase voltammetric technique. The cyclic voltammogram for DyBCO prepared in both techniques showed four major peaks attributed to first and second redox couple. The peaks are due to the redox reaction of Cu(NH3)42+ complex.The peak current is highly dependent upon the formation of the Cu(NH3)42+ complexwhich shows that the copper planes in the superconductor played major role inproducing the peaks observed in the voltammograms. A complex surface process was found in the redox reaction through the scan rate study. After thorough investigations, it was found out that DyBCO prepared in both techniques responses strongly under acidic(pH ≈ 2.00), high temperature (80oC) condition with slight differences in voltammetricbehaviors. The cyclic voltammetric behavior exhibited by both samples is found to depend greatly on the parameters used in this study. From CA and CC studies, theamount of charge, Q that was presence on the electrode surface is 17.0 µC/cm2 and 25.0µC/cm2 and diffusion coefficient, D is 4.6 x 10-6 cm2/s and 4.0 x 10-6 cm2/s for co-precipitation and conventional solid state technique, respectively. From the chronocoulometry (CC) measurement, the estimated mass of sample that was attachedon the glassy electrode is 65 ng and 96 ng for sample prepared via conventional solid state and co-precipitation technique, respectively.


Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) is a decision-making tool originally developed for the evaluation of options where not all of the considerations have an easily assignable value. It may be considered as an extension of the more traditional decision-making techniques (e.g. cost-benefit analysis) in that, as well as financial information, it also enables a range of other factors, such as the environmental and social impacts of the possible alternatives to be taken into account. The resolution of best practice source strategies requires an integrated evaluation of such environmental, technological, economic and social values which are normally set in a local planning and/or site master-scenario context, and which is inevitably inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional in character. Any resolving optimisation procedure must be capable of addressing dimensions of multi-criteria complexity in a manner which is both understandable and auditable to the variety of stakeholders and, if possible, expressed in a simple but objectively quantified methodology. MCA provides such an optimisation approach that facilitates transparent and auditable decision-making, enabling the views and concerns of all stakeholders to be taken into account in combination with scientific and technological data. However, the variety of stakeholders (or "deciders") will normally also hold different opinions (or strategies) regarding the significance (or 'weight') that might be attributed to various influencing criteria and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) although weighting procedures within MCA methodologies can be contentious. There are several types of MCA but all approaches involve the development of a performance matrix containing data/information on how a range of possible solutions perform in relation to a variety of criteria and/or indicators.


Over the past decade, an unprecedented number of proposals have been put forward advocating for a renovation of the aims, perspectives and methods of organology. In a mostly uncoordinated, but consistent methodological debate, several of them were specifically presented as a break, or at least a marked shift from 'traditional organology', and made clear their intention to propose a different perspective to the study of musical instruments through the adoption of new names: 'new organology' (a term used by a 2001 conference on Japanese instruments, and also by Roda), 'lived organology' (Hoosmanrad), 'general organology' (Stiegler), 'new critical organology'(Sonevytsky), 'cultural organology' (Johnston), 'critical organology' (Dolan), and 'biographical organology' (Hoosmanrad) just to mention a few.


The colour of commercial cooked black tiger prawns (Penaeus monodon) is a key quality requirement to ensure product is not rejected in wholesale markets. The colour, due to the carotenoid astaxanthin, can be impacted by frozen storage, but changes in colour or astaxanthin profile, during frozen storage, have not been studied in detail. Subsequently in this study, the aims were to define the astaxanthin (as cis, trans, mono-ester and di-ester forms) content, together with the colour properties, in both pleopods (legs) and abdominal segments. Changes in astaxanthin content and colour properties were further determined during frozen storage (−20°C). Total astaxanthin content was seen to decrease in all samples over time, with the rate of degradation being significantly greater (P < 0.05) in pleopods than abdomen. In both pleopods and abdomen, rate of degradation of esterified forms was significantly greater (P < 0.05) than non-esterified forms. Hue angle (increase), a* value (decrease) and L value (increase) were all seen to significantly change (P < 0.05) during storage, with changes being more prevalent in the pleopods. The pleopods are the key indicator of astaxanthin and colour loss in cooked black tiger prawns and preservation strategies are required to preserve astaxanthin and colour during frozen storage.


The direct amination of alcohols by ammonia is a promising sustainable route to primary amines. The development of novel heterogeneous catalysts calls for a better understanding of this reaction. Through a combination of well-designed catalytic tests and periodic DFT computations, we provide here a deeper understanding of the factors determining the activity of Ni and Pd catalysts. In particular, we demonstrate that a proper assessment of the relative activity requires the inclusion of a spectator species, namely ammonia, which modifies the rate limiting intermediate and transition state and thus affects the overall predicted activity. This better understanding paves the road for a rational improvement of metal-based catalysts.


A key challenge for natural language based large text data is automatically extracting knowledge, in terms of entities and relations, embedded in it. State of the art relation extraction systems requires large amounts of labeled data, which is costly and very difficult, especially in industrial settings, due to time constraints of subject matter experts. Techniques like distant supervision require the availability of a related knowledge base, which is rarely possible. We have developed a novel model for automatically clustering textual Big Data, based on techniques inspired from Active Learning and Clustering, that can derive powerful insights and make the data ready for machine learning with minimal manual effort. Our approach differs from Active Learning as we operate under weak supervision, where all the instances provided for training are not manually labeled. Secondly, This differs from any prevailing clustering algorithms as we adopt a whole new approach of proximity clustering based on affinity propagation. Due to the extrapolation of the labeling efforts, our model makes it easier to adopt deep learning approaches with minimal manual effort. In this paper, we describe our algorithm in detail, along with the experimental results obtained for them.


OBJECTIVE--To evaluate the relative contributions of factors acting at different stages in life to regional differences in adult blood pressure. DESIGN--Prospective cohort study (British regional heart study). SETTING--One general practice in each of 24 towns in Britain. SUBJECTS--7735 Men aged 40-59 years when screened in 1978-80 whose geographic zone of birth and zone of examination were classified as south of England, midlands and Wales, north of England, and Scotland. Non-migrants (n = 3144) were born in the town where they were examined; internal migrants (n = 4147) were born in Great Britain but not in the town where they were examined; and international migrants (n = 422) were born outside Great Britain. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Systolic and diastolic blood pressures and height. RESULTS--Regardless of where they were born, men living in the south of England had lower mean blood pressures than men living in Scotland (142.5/80.1 v 148.1/85.2 mm Hg). The effects of the place of birth and place of examination on adult blood pressure were examined in a multiple regression model. For internal migrants the modelled increase in mean systolic blood pressure across adjacent zones of examination was 2.1 mm Hg (95% confidence interval 1.3 to 2.9); for adjacent zones of birth the corresponding increase was 0.1 mm Hg (-0.7 to 0.7). The place of examination seemed to be a far more important determinant of mean adult blood pressure than the place of birth. Height is an accepted marker of genetic and early life influences. Regional differences in height were therefore analysed to test whether the multiple regression model could correctly distinguish between the influence of place of birth and place of examination. As expected, men born in Scotland were shorter on average than men born in the south of England irrespective of where they lived in Britain (172.6 cm v 175.1 cm for internal migrants). CONCLUSION--Regional variations in blood pressure were strongly influenced by where the men had lived for most of their adult lives rather than by where they were born and brought up. Among middle aged men, factors acting in adult life seemed to be more important determinants of regional differences in blood pressure than those acting early in life such as genetic inheritance, intrauterine environment, and childhood experience.


Oculodentodigital dysplasia (ODDD) is a dominant negatively inherited disorder with variable but characteristic anomalies of the fingers and toes, eyes, face and teeth, which are caused by mutations in the connexin 43 (Cx43) gene. All mutations analyzed so far have a negative influence on the conductance through gap junctional channels and hemichannels, as well as trafficking of Cx43 protein in transfected cells. In this study, we inserted the human Cx43G138R point mutation into the mouse Cx43 gene and generated mice conditionally expressing this mutation. All ODDD phenotypic manifestations observed in humans, including syndactyly and enamel hypoplasia as well as craniofacial, bone and heart anomalies, were also observed with significant penetrance in Cx43G138R mice. When this mutation was specifically expressed in cardiomyocytes, characteristic alterations in the electrocardiogram and spontaneous arrhythmias were recorded. In vitro studies with Cx43G138R-expressing cells revealed loss of the Cx43 P2 phosphorylation state, which was also absent in the mutated hearts. This loss has previously been associated with gap junctional dysfunction and increased cellular ATP release. The Cx43G138R mutated mice show significantly increased arrhythmogeneity ex vivo in Langendorff experiments with explanted hearts and in vivo in particular under hypoxic conditions. Our results suggest that the increased activity of ATP-releasing channels in Cx43G138R mutated cardiomyocytes may further reduce the already decreased gap junctional communication and thus aggravate arrhythmogenesis in the mouse mutant.


Robot-assisted surgical procedures are perpetually evolving due to potential improvement in patient treatment and healthcare cost reduction. Integration of an imaging modality intraoperatively further strengthens these procedures by incorporating the information pertaining to the area of intervention. Such information needs to be effectively rendered to the operator as a human-in-the-loop requirement. In this work, we propose a guidance approach that uses real-time MRI to assist the operator in performing robot-assisted procedure in a beating heart. Specifically, this approach provides both real-time visualization and force-feedback based guidance for maneuvering an interventional tool safely inside the dynamic environment of a heart's left ventricle. Experimental evaluation of the functionality of this approach was tested on a simulated scenario of transapical aortic valve replacement and it demonstrated improvement in control and manipulation by providing effective and accurate assistance to the operator in real-time.


This study clarifies that blockchain cannot replace the strategic value of trusted intermediaries, despite sufficient technological advancement for its implementation. Given the progress expected in the future, this study assumes that blockchain can implement various commitment devices for communication explored in the information design literature, without disclosing their details to anonymous record keepers. By considering revelation incentives explicitly, we show that substituting the verification task of players' pre-owned private signals with a trusted intermediary can reduce transaction costs in liability, which cannot be achieved non-judicially by blockchain. Hence, trusted intermediaries play a significant role in executing information design through blockchain.


Efficiency of distribution processes is one of the key factors influencing the optimization of the entire supply chain. For this reason, both research and business practice initiatives point to the need for continuous search for solutions that will improve distribution efficiency both at the operational level and in terms of the entire supply chain. An effective way to optimize distribution processes is to use a standard logistics labels, which enables the integration of information flow between business partners. Institute of Logistics and Warehousing together with GS1 Poland for over 10 years has been researching the level of use and practical implementations of standard logistics labels GS1 in companies. As part of its research work, the Poznan School of Logistics conducts analyses of the scope of evaluation of the distribution process efficiency as key components in the aspect of intelligent supply chains. Cooperation between these institutions allows to achieve the synergy effect, which Authors wish to present within the framework of this paper. The aim of the paper is to analyze the level of use of logistic labels and to analyze the impact of their use on the supply chain efficiency. Scientific and practical research was carried out in 2017-2018 and provides a research basis for further analysis of the impact of logistical labels on the digitisation of supply chains.


We report the experimental realization of a new type of optical parametric oscillator in which oscillation is achieved by polarization rotation in a linear retarder, followed by nonlinear polarization mixing. The mixing is performed by a type II degenerate parametric downconversion in a periodically poled KTP crystal pumped by a 1064 nm pulsed Nd:YAG pump. A single, linearly polarized beam, precisely at the degenerate wavelength is generated. The output spectrum has a narrow linewidth (below the instrumentation bandwidth of 1 nm) and is highly stable with respect to variations in the crystal temperature.


The preservation of data in a high state of quality which is suitable for interdisciplinary use is one of the most pressing and challenging current issues in long-term archiving. For high volume data such as climate model data, the data and data replica are no longer stored centrally but distributed over several local data repositories, e.g. the data of the Climate Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). The most important part of the data is to be archived, assigned a DOI, and published according to the World Data Center for Climate's (WDCC) application of the DataCite regulations. The integrated part of WDCC's data publication process, the data quality assessment, was adapted to the requirements of a federated data infrastructure. A concept of a distributed and federated quality assessment procedure was developed, in which the workload and responsibility for quality control is shared between the three primary CMIP5 data centers: Program for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison (PCMDI), British Atmospheric Data Centre (BADC), and WDCC. This distributed quality control concept, its pilot implementation for CMIP5, and first experiences are presented. The distributed quality control approach is capable of identifying data inconsistencies and to make quality results immediately available for data creators, data users and data infrastructure managers. Continuous publication of new data versions and slow data replication prevents the quality control from check completion. This together with ongoing developments of the data and metadata infrastructure requires adaptations in code and concept of the distributed quality control approach.


We propose a new method for constructing hyperkenels and define two promising special cases that can be computed in closed form. These we call the Gaussian and Wishart hyperkernels. The former is especially attractive in that it has an interpretable regularization scheme reminiscent of that of the Gaussian RBF kernel. We discuss how kernel learning can be used not just for improving the performance of classification and regression methods, but also as a stand-alone algorithm for dimensionality reduction and relational or metric learning.


We present ILoveSketch, a 3D curve sketching system that captures some of the affordances of pen and paper for professional designers, allowing them to iterate directly on concept 3D curve models. The system coherently integrates existing techniques of sketch-based interaction with a number of novel and enhanced features. Novel contributions of the system include automatic view rotation to improve curve sketchability, an axis widget for sketch surface selection, and implicitly inferred changes between sketching techniques. We also improve on a number of existing ideas such as a virtual sketchbook, simplified 2D and 3D view navigation, multi-stroke NURBS curve creation, and a cohesive gesture vocabulary. An evaluation by a professional designer shows the potential of our system for deployment within a real design process.


Taoism remains the only major religion whose canonical texts have not been systematically arranged and made available for study. This long-awaited work, a milestone in Chinese studies, catalogs and describes all existing texts within the Taoist canon. The result will not only make the entire range of existing Taoist texts accessible to scholars of religion, it will open up a crucial resource in the study of the history of China. The vast literature of the Taoist canon, or "Daozang," survives in a Ming Dynasty edition of some fifteen hundred different texts. Compiled under imperial auspices and completed in 1445 with a supplement added in 1607 many of the books in the "Daozang" concern the history, organization, and liturgy of China's indigenous religion. A large number of works deal with medicine, alchemy, and divination. If scholars have long neglected this unique storehouse of China's religious traditions, it is largely because it was so difficult to find one's way within it. Not only was the rationale of its medieval classification systeminoperablefor the many new texts that later entered the "Daozang," butthe system itself was no longer understood by the Ming editors; hence the haphazard arrangement of the canon as it has come down to us. This new work sets out the contents of the "Daozang" chronologically, allowing the reader to follow the long evolution of Taoist literature. Lavishly illustrated, the first volume ranges from antiquity through the Middle Ages, while the second spans the modern period. Within this frame, texts are grouped by theme and subject. Each one is the subjectof a historical abstract that identifies the text's contents, date of origin, and author. Throughout the first two volumes, introductions outline the evolution of Taoism and its spiritual heritage. A third volume offering biographical sketches of frequently mentioned Taoists, multiple indexes, and an extensive bibliography provides critical tools for navigating this guide to one of the fundamental aspects of Chinese culture."


We report a three-component olefin reductive dicarbofunctionalization for constructing alkylborates, specifically, nickel-catalyzed reductive dialkylation and alkylarylation of vinyl boronates with a variety of alkyl bromides and aryl iodides. This reaction exhibits good coupling efficiency and excellent functional group compatibility, providing convenient access to the late-stage modification of complex natural products and drug molecules. Combined with alkylborate transformations, this reaction could also find applications in the modular and convergent synthesis of complex compounds.


From the early seventeenth to the mid-nineteenth century, the Tokugawa shogunate enacted and enforced myriad laws and ordinances to control nearly every aspect of Japanese life, including observance of a person's death. In particular, the shoguns Tsunayoshi and Yoshimune issued strict decrees on mourning and abstention that dictated compliance throughout the land and survived the political upheaval of the Meiji Restoration to persist well into the twentieth century. Atsuko Hirai reveals the pivotal relationship between these shogunal edicts and the legitimacy of Tokugawa rule. By highlighting the role of narimono chojirei (injunctions against playing musical instruments) within their broader context, she shows how this class of legislation played an important integrative part in Japanese society not only through its comprehensive implementation, especially for national mourning of major political figures, but also by its codification of the religious beliefs and customs that the Japanese people had cherished for innumerable generations.


In 1996, the Dutch distribution companies signed a voluntary agreement to reduce CO 2 emissions. As one element of the agreement, a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) for the electricity distribution companies with certificates trading was introduced (groen label system). The analysis reveals that the total volume of the obligation (3%) can be considered as modest. In addition, it seems more appropriate to replace the distribution companies' current monopoly for the issuing of the certificates by an independent institution. A flexibility mechanism (e.g., a certificates' banking system), which prevents high volatilities in the certificates' market price, and a clear sanction mechanism are needed. A drawback of the current Dutch system is the discriminatory financing of the RPS, which is only provided by MAP tariff customers. Nevertheless, the Dutch RPS may induce an efficient allocation of financial means to support renewable energies. It provides valuable experiences in the functioning of the new system, from which other countries may gain.


Master of Arts in Multilingual Communication: a combination of at least two languagesMaster of Arts in de meertalige communicatie: combinatie van ten minste twee talen


Currently, limited research on large-fire suppression effectiveness suggests fire managers may over-allocate resources relative to values to be protected. Coupled with observations that weather may be more important than resource abundance to achieve control objectives, resource use may be driven more by risk aversion than efficiency. To explore this potential, we investigated observed percentage of perimeter contained and self-reported containment values, the exposure index, and patterns of resource use during the containment and control phases of fire response. Fireline production capacity of responding resources typically exceeds final fire perimeter, often by an order of magnitude or more. Additionally, on average, 21% of total incident resource productive capacity was observed on the fire during the control phase, that is, after the fires cease to grow. Our results suggest self-reported percentage containment significantly underestimates actual percentage of perimeter contained throughout an incident, with reported values averaging only 70% contained at actual fire cessation. Combined, these results suggest a fire manager's risk perception influences resource use and may unnecessarily expose responders to fireline hazards. These results suggest a considerable opportunity to improve large-fire management efficiency by balancing the likelihood and consequences of fire escape against the opportunity cost of resource use.


The interactive effects between Pratylenchus brachyurus and Meloidogynejavanica on soybean cv. Crista-Una were evaluated. Ten treatments (noninoculated check; single inoculations of P. brachyurus at three inoculum levels; single inoculations of M. javanica at two inoculum levels; and mixed inoculations of both species at four different combinations) were stablished, with five replications, in a randomized block design. Sixty days after the inoculations, fresh root weight and top dry weight values were determined, as well as the final population of the nematodes. Antagonism between the species was observed in the mixed infestations, being generally P. brachyurus more adversely affected. Significant reduction hi plant growth only occurred with single P. brachyurus inoculations of 5,000 or 10,000 nematodes per plant.


Political leaders from around the world are demonstrating interest in adopting food policies that account for the economic, health, social and environmental dimensions of food. In the Pacific Islands, decades of experience in implementing multisectoral NCD and climate policy has indicated that operationalising food systems policies will be challenging. We aimed to identify opportunities for food systems sectors to more strongly promote nutrition and environmental sustainability in addition to economic objectives. We conducted a comparative documentary analysis of 37 food systems sector policies in Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. We applied theories of agenda- setting to examine how the frames employed by different sectors, and evident in policy content, shaped policy priorities and activities. We identified a predominately economic framing of issues affecting food systems sectors. Though there were clear policy aims to produce enough food to meet population dietary requirements and to promote an environmentally resilient food supply, aims operationalised more predominately through policy content were those that increase the contribution of productive sectors to food exports and import substitution. Food systems sectors in the Pacific Islands have clear aims to promote nutritious and environmentally resilient food systems, but policy instruments could more strongly reflect these aims.


Originally published in 1982. Taking a radical interpretation of the Kuhnian concept of paradigm incommensurability, the authors begin by discussing the difficulties of gaining access to the ideas of communities with different rational categories, and then define the subject area of parapsychology, offering a review of the relevant literature. After exploring parapsychology's compatibility with science, physics, psychology and quantum theory, the authors move on from this predominantly theoretical framework, and devote the middle section to an empirical study of metal bending. They conclude with an examination of the results, analyse diverse interpretations and investigate the consequences for the idea of scientific revolution.


This master thesis is conducted at the Institute of Product Design at NTNU. The subject of the assignment is "Concept for motivating toddlers to accept inhalation therapy". The project aims at developing a concept for motivating hospitalized toddlers (2-3 years old) to accept inhalation therapy. The first part of the project was an investigation process to understand the situation: the disease, the children's behaviour at 2-3 years age, the hospital environment, the treatment, etc. Secondly I started to develop some ideas that led me to the final concept. After that, having the general concept, the next step was to develop it: the concept, materials, shapes, name for the toy... In addition I had to keep in mind all the details of the interaction process between the treatment, the target and the project. Once I had the concept developed was time to go further in all the key aspects such as production, dimensions, pieces' design, electronic components, maintenance and final results. In conclusion, BRUCE is a toy developed after investigation, detailing and interaction design work. It consists on a toy to improve children's experience of the treatment. Concretely the goal is to engage children between 2 and 3 years with respiratory diseases, while they are taking the medication and entertain them in an active level. Making the kids part of the treatment and making the treatment meaningful for them.


The work described in this thesis was initiated after the outbreaks of swine vesicular disease (SVD) in the Netherlands in 1992. The thesis starts with a general introduction on SVD and the virus causing SVD. Infection with SVD virus had been absent from the Netherlands for 17 years, and before 1992 SVD infection was only reported in Italy. Even though it was logical to assume that the outbreaks in the Netherlands were caused by virus from Italy, detection of SVD virus in Dutch pigs in Italy initiated a discussion whether transport of Dutch pigs were responsible for the infection at an Italian slaughterhouse, where the pigs had been for 2 days. This question initiated the research described in chapter 1, where we show that already 1 day after exposure to an infected environment virus can be detected in pigs. The pathogenesis work in chapter 1 indicated that the virus is most likely enters the body through the skin, therefore we studied the route of infection through the skin using immunohistochemistry, in-situ hybridisation and in-situ RT-PCR (chapter 2).
Because the Netherlands is an important exporter of live pigs, complaints from trading partners on possible infection with SVD virus was causing trade restriction for short or longer periods. The pig industry therefore wanted to perform a large scale serological screening programme. For this large scale screening simple tests were necessary, we therefore validated a liquid phase blocking ELISA for SVD antibodies using a polyclonal pig hyperimmune serum (chapter 3). In the mean time we produced monoclonal antibodies against SVD virus, and mapped the epitopes of these monoclonal antibodies using chimeric SVD viruses produced by fusion PCR (chapter 4). One of the monoclonal antibodies was very well suited for the development of a new blocking ELISA for SVD antibodies (chapter 5). Not only a blocking ELISA was developed also isotype specific ELISAs for the detection of SVD specific IgM, IgG, IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies were developed (chapter 6). These isotype specific ELISA were used to study the sera collected on outbreak farms, and confirm that SVD virus mainly spreads within the pen where infected pigs are housed.
In the period 1994 - 1999 over 3.9 million pig sera were tested for antibodies against SVD virus (chapter 7). In the ELISA approximately 0.5 - 1% of the sera were found positive, after the virus neutralisation test only 0.04 to 0.05% of the sera were positive, but due to the large number of sera tested still 200 - 300 positive samples per year were detected. These samples were from almost the same number of holdings, which were visited by the official veterinarian to show that the positive results were only singleton reactors. Setting the cut-off of the neutralisation test at a slightly higher level reduced this number by 50%, without reducing the farm level sensitivity of the screening programme. The positive sera were tested for antibodies against related Coxsackie B5 virus, but there was no indication the antibodies were caused by Coxsackie B5 infection.


We assess the impact of credit constraints on investment, inventories and other working capital and firm growth with a large panel of small and medium-sized enterprises from 12 European countries for the period 2014-2016. The data come from the Survey on the access to finance of enterprises (SAFE), a survey that is especially designed to analyse the problems in the access to external finance of European SMEs. The key identification challenge is a potential reverse-causality bias, as firms with poor investment and growth opportunities may have a higher probability of being credit constrained. We implement several strategies to overcome this obstacle: proxies for investment opportunities, lagged regressors, random effects and instrumental variables. Our findings suggest that credit constraints, both in bank financing and other financing (e.g. trade credit), have strong negative effects on investment in fixed assets, while the impact on firm growth and working capital is less robust.


Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is one of the most common neurosurgical conditions. There is lack of uniformity in the treatment of CSDH amongst surgeons in terms of various treatment strategies. Clinical presentation may vary from no symptoms to unconsciousness. CSDH is usually diagnosed by contrast-enhanced computed tomography scan. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan is more sensitive in the diagnosis of bilateral isodense CSDH, multiple loculations, intrahematoma membranes, fresh bleeding, hemolysis, and the size of capsule. Contrast-enhanced CT or MRI could detect associated primary or metastatic dural diseases. Although definite history of trauma could be obtained in a majority of cases, some cases may be secondary to coagulation defect, intracranial hypotension, use of anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs, etc., Recurrent bleeding, increased exudates from outer membrane, and cerebrospinal fluid entrapment have been implicated in the enlargement of CSDH. Burr-hole evacuation is the treatment of choice for an uncomplicated CSDH. Most of the recent trials favor the use of drain to reduce recurrence rate. Craniotomy and twist drill craniostomy also play a role in the management. Dural biopsy should be taken, especially in recurrence and thick outer membrane. Nonsurgical management is reserved for asymptomatic or high operative risk patients. The steroids and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors may also play a role in the management. Single management strategy is not appropriate for all the cases of CSDH. Better understanding of the nature of the pathology, rational selection of an ideal treatment strategy for an individual patient, and identification of the merits and limitations of different surgical techniques could help in improving the prognosis.


Making the right choice of a procurement system at the onset ensures successful project delivery, a satisfied client, a successful service provider, and a reputable construction industry. Research has shown that client's requirements have not been properly addressed due largely to wrong choice of procurement systems. This research aims to identify the priority needs of clients and the appropriate procurement system that can ensure the delivery of satisfactory outcomes. Investigations were limited to the views expressed by private sector construction clients, consultants and contractors, registered with their respective umbrella organizations in New Zealand. The descriptive survey method was used, which involved pilot interviews and structured questionnaire surveys. Content analysis, multi-attribute analysis and rank correlation tests were used in the analysis of the data. Results showed that clients' would prefer a procurement system that can ensure the delivery of the project within time, budget and quality/specification targets. Other priority needs include fixed price tender, competitive/ lowest price tenders, separate service provider for the design and management of the construction, life cycle cost, risk preference and to accommodate variation orders without incurring financial penalties. Construction management type of procurement system offering responsibilities for monitoring and coordinating the construction process is the ideal procurement route that could best meet the needs of the New Zealand construction clients. However, the sequential traditional procurement system is the most commonly used; cl ients are not prepared to adopt any other system that could better meet their procurement needs. The most influential reason for this is the perceived risk evasiveness of clients in the adoption of other systems which are not tried and tested. The use of partnering clause in the prevailing sequential traditional system is recommended to ensure win-win outcomes for all stakeholders and to motivate service providers to deliver more satisfactory outcomes to their clients.


Increasing transaction volumes have led to a resurgence of interest in distributed transaction processing. In particular, partitioning data across several servers can improve throughput by allowing servers to process transactions in parallel. But executing transactions across servers limits the scalability and performance of these systems.

In this paper, we quantify the effects of distribution on concurrency control protocols in a distributed environment. We evaluate six classic and modern protocols in an in-memory distributed database evaluation framework called Deneva, providing an apples-to-apples comparison between each. Our results expose severe limitations of distributed transaction processing engines. Moreover, in our analysis, we identify several protocol-specific scalability bottlenecks. We conclude that to achieve truly scalable operation, distributed concurrency control solutions must seek a tighter coupling with either novel network hardware (in the local area) or applications (via data modeling and semantically-aware execution), or both.


As water resources management becomes increasingly critical and many countries in the arid and semi-arid regions are increasingly forced to consider the possibilities of utilizing the water that is available in international rivers. Thus, the concerns relating to the use of international waters in shared rivers are becoming more important. The increasing competition over shared waters may have to lead either to more joint management and cooperation or to conflicts between basin countries.The purpose of the thesis work has been to analyze management of shared waters in international river basins with case studies from the Limpopo and the Orange River Basins in Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and the Juba and Shabelle River Basins in the Horn of Africa (HoA) region, focusing on river cooperation. The methodology employed was a comparative case study analysis through literature review, document analysis, interviews, focus groups and study visits.While similarities in climatic conditions and population growth stand out when comparing the basins in the two regions, the rivers differ primarily in terms of physical development of the water resources and institutional building for cross-border river cooperation. The Limpopo and Orange-Senqu river basins in the SADC region became reason for cooperation and catalyst of regional integration while the Juba and Shabelle river basins in the HoA has the potential to lead its riparian to conflict. The river basins in SADC established and operationalized functional system of river cooperation with both bilateral and multilateral basin-wide frameworks.The analysis concludes that management of water resources in internationally shared river basins is effectively affected by issues other than water. Sharing benefits from the shared waters in international rivers require basin-wide river cooperation. There are variety sets of factors that are of great importance for initiating, establishing and operationalizing river basin cooperation.


Although peace research as a professional institution has lost some of its earlier appeal, the end of the Cold War did not cause any particular identity crisis within the field. Quite the contrary, peace research co-contributed to the end of the Cold War via Gorbachev's `new thinking'. In a world plagued by unnecessary violence, both actual and potential, peace research as an emancipatory conception can readily reorientate to the study of issues relevant in the post-Cold War era. Furthermore, there is plenty of potential to develop the methodological framework from where Galtung and others left off. The article discusses the challenge that critical theories pose for the ontology and epistemology of peace research, and argues that the task of peace research should be related to transformations from politics to violence and vice versa. Informed by critical realism and a pluralistic, republican notion of politics, this argument proposes a direction for both peace research and political praxis. Both should be consistent with realist ontology of open systems and history; with epistemological relativism appropriate for `heterodoxical' discourses; and with critical peace theories concerning violence-prone social processes such as mystification, reification and enemy-construction.


Slits are large secreted proteins which mediate their functions by binding to single pass transmembrane receptors called Robo. This signalling axis was first identified as a pivotal guidance mechanism in the development of the nervous system. A repulsive activity of Slit proteins controls the projection and movement of Robo expressing neurons in Drosophila and vertebrates. Slit and Robo expression is not limited to the nervous system or development only, they were found to be expressed in many different tissues both in embryo and adult organism. Correspondingly, the Slit-Robo signalling axis now is implicated in many other biological and pathological processes such as angiogenesis, cancer and tissue remodelling. This study sought to investigate two different aspects of the Slit-Robo signalling system: Robo1 transmembrane signalling mechanism and possible Slit-Robo roles within the immune system.
Robos and other type I transmembrane receptors are unable to transmit signal across the membrane within a single molecule because a single transmembrane α-helix restricts propagation of conformational changes between extracellular and intracellular parts of the protein. Therefore, the type I receptors usually act as homo- or heterooligomers, formation or dissociation of which is controlled by ligand binding. Based on indirect evidence a similar transmembrane signalling mechanism was suggested for Robo receptors. It was hypothesized that Slit binding induces changes in oligomeric state of Robo which in turn initiates downstream signalling events. In order to test this hypothesis and determine details of the transmembrane signalling mechanism, the oligomeric state of Robo1 receptor was assessed in live cells using two different fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) based methods. A strong FRET signal was observed between differently tagged Robo1 proteins, indicating that the receptor forms oligomers in the resting state. However, contrary to the initial hypothesis, the addition of Slit2 protein did not have an observable effect on the FRET signal and thus on receptor oligomeric state. Moreover, Robo1 proteins were found to form higher density domains within the cell membrane. This property could be abolished by removing the intracellular part of the protein indicating constant Robo1 association with intracellular structures. These data show that the Robo1 transmembrane signalling mechanism might be more complicated than initially expected and likely involves structural changes within the Robo1 oligomer or Robo1 complexes with other proteins.
The Slit-Robo signalling axis was linked to the immune system when it was demonstrated that Slit2 is able to inhibit chemotactic leukocyte migration and reduce inflammatory responses in mice. However, the precise role of these proteins remained unknown. In order to gain further insight into possible Slit-Robo functions within the immune system promoter analysis was performed with the aim to identify transcription factors responsible for the control of these proteins. Among many putative transcription factors discovered, Foxn1 was the most prominent as its binding site was identified both in Slit2 and Slit3 promoters. Development and functions of thymus, a primary lymphoid organ responsible for T cell development, is regulated by Foxn1 and since thymic activity includes active and abundant leukocyte movement into, out-of and within the organ, a hypothesis was suggested that Slits contribute to regulation of these processes. Quantitative Slit2-Slit3 expression studies and assessment of embryonic thymus cellular composition in Slit2 knockout mouse were employed to test this hypothesis. Quantitative PCR revealed that both Slit2 and Slit3 are downregulated four-fold in thymic epithelial cells starting embryonic stage E13, however no differences in cellular composition of embryonic thymi were detected between wild type and Slit2 knockout animals using flow cytometry. Possible Slit2 and Slit3 redundancy might be the reason for the lack of observable effects, unfortunately a Slit3 knockout model was unavailable for these studies. Interestingly, flow cytometry also revealed that in addition to thymic epithelial cells, Slit2 is expressed by pericyte type cells surrounding the thymic vasculature. It seems that Slit proteins have intricate and regulated expression patterns within the thymus, however their precise role remains an open question.
In summary, data collected during this study illuminates two different aspects of the Slit-Robo signalling system. Both of them, despite Slits being secreted proteins, hint at short-range, possibly even juxtacrine, ligand – receptor interactions. Given Robo receptor evolutionary connections to cell adhesion molecules and Slit affinity to heparan sulphate it is not a completely unexpected finding.


The emergence of high-fidelity vehicle and tire models has raised the requirements for terrain measurement capabilities. Inaccuracies that were once tolerable for measurement of general terrain roughness are no longer acceptable for these new applications. The techniques in this work seek to improve the quality of terrain measurement in addition to providing an objective way to describe the accuracy of these measurements. The first portion of this work develops an accuracy verification procedure for terrain measurement systems. This procedure involves a static test to assess the limitations of the profiler's laser height sensor, and a corresponding dynamic test to evaluate the limitations of the positioning sensors. Even with a well calibrated system, inertial errors will accumulate. The second portion of this work develops techniques to address these inertial errors in the data post-processing phase. A general correction technique is developed for any terrain type and a more computationally efficient technique is developed for smooth surfaces. For basic ride and handling simulations, 3D terrain surfaces are computationally impractical, as the models used for these simulations only require point excitation. Current road profilers acquiring these 2D data use single-point lasers that capture localized disturbances that would be mechanically filtered by the tire and suspension in the physical vehicle system. The final chapter in this work develops a method to extract a 2D terrain profile from a 3D terrain surface. By considering all of the information in the tire contact patch, the filtering properties of the tire are approximately emulated.


Living organisms are inherently out-of-equilibrium systems. We employ recent developments in stochastic energetics and rely on a minimal microscopic model to predict the amount of mechanical energy dissipated by such dynamics. Our model includes complex rheological effects and nonequilibrium stochastic forces. By performing active microrheology and tracking micron-sized vesicles in the cytoplasm of living oocytes, we provide unprecedented measurements of the spectrum of dissipated energy. We show that our model is fully consistent with the experimental data, and we use it to offer predictions for the injection and dissipation energy scales involved in active fluctuations.


Abstract. We have developed an advanced data assimilation system for a global aerosol model with a four-dimensional ensemble Kalman filter in which the Level 1B data from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) were successfully assimilated for the first time, to the best of the authors' knowledge. A one-month data assimilation cycle experiment for dust, sulfate, and sea-salt aerosols was performed in May 2007. The results were validated via two independent observations: 1) the ground-based lidar network in East Asia, managed by the National Institute for Environmental Studies of Japan, and 2) weather reports of aeolian dust events in Japan. Detailed four-dimensional structures of aerosol outflows from source regions over oceans and continents for various particle types and sizes were well reproduced. The intensity of dust emission at each grid point was also corrected by this data assimilation system. These results are valuable for the comprehensive analysis of aerosol behavior as well as aerosol forecasting.


Fossiliferous deposits infilling a channel at Whittlesey, eastern England, are dated by amino acid racemization to the Last Interglacial, and pollen analysis indicates deposition in Ipswichian biozones Ip Ib and Ip IIb. Multidisciplinary palaeoenvironmental analyses of these deposits provide a rare insight into Ip Ib subzone conditions. Specifically, the Ip Ib deposits contain exotic thermophiles Naias minor, Belgrandia marginata, Bembidion elongatum, Pelochares versicolor, Caccobius schreberi, Onthophagus massai and Emys orbicularis, usually associated with Ip IIb. Combined palaeotemperature reconstructions based on beetle, ostracod and vertebrate assemblages of the Ip Ib deposits indicate that summers (mean July range +19 to +22°C) were at least 2°C warmer than at present, whereas winters (mean January air temperature range 0 to +7°C) were probably similar to those of today. These palaeotemperature ranges encompass those for Ip IIb deposits at Trafalgar Square (+20 to +21°C and +1.5 to +3°C), previously considered the only Ipswichian site to record temperatures significantly warmer than Holocene temperatures. Of particular significance is that thermal optimal conditions commenced in Ip Ib, rather than being confined to Ip IIb. This demonstrates rapid warming and biological response to early Ipswichian climate amelioration, which accords with the deep-sea Last Interglacial and European Eemian records. Supplementary material: Supplementary Tables S1-S7 are available at http://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3830221.


INTRODUCTION This paper is to be regarded as a continuation of my previous publication (Verseveldt, 1940 1)). Some three species, sufficient material of which for an anatomical examination was available, had then to remain undiscussed; they are: Semperina rubra Ko11., Anthothela macrocalyx (Nutt.) (= Suberia macrocalyx Nutting (1911) = Semperina macrocalyx (Nutt.) Kukenthal (1919)) and Sibogagorgia weberi Stiasny, which species have been examined by me in the same way as formerly the others. It has become clear to me that the second of the species mentioned cannot be considered as belonging either to the genus Suberia Studer or the genus Semperina Ko11. A close relationship with Anthothela grandiflora (M. Sors) caused me to decide on the name Anthothela macrocalyx (Nutt.) (cf. chapter II, § 8). The results of my investigations make it necessary to refer to my views previously mentioned (Verseveldt, 1940) with regard to the canal system and the taxonomy. For both in Semperina rubra and Sibogagorgia weberi the canal system differs in some degree from that of the species examined before. For we see that in the medulla in the tips of the branches of Semperina rubra there do occur many small and even a single large solenium, whereas for the family Anthothelidae Broch I rejected the presence of medullary canals in the terminal parts. So while in all the species examined up till now the medullary canals cease somewhere in apical direction, in Semperina rubra we find them even as far as in, the ends of the branches. In my opinion this is not of radical importance, 1° because the larger medullary canals, which in the more basal parts occur in larger num-


BACKGROUND
The body of biomedical literature on Vitamin D effector mechanisms in gastrointestinal biology and pathophysiology is rapidly expanding. Accordingly, new possibilities of vitamin D biology-based therapeutical intervention in gastroenterological disease are being identified. However, the literature lacks a concise review on these developments, hampering comprehension of the possibilities involved for many in the community.

RESULTS
Genetic vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms and other VDR biology regulation are involved in predisposition to gastrointestinal cancers and might allow tailored strategies for managing those individuals especially at risk, e.g. through vitamin D supplementation. Likewise, modulation of Hedgehog signaling by vitamin D analogues may have promise in combating gastrointestinal cancers or improving barrier function in IBD, but shortage in vitamin D levels may also influence inflammatory conditions of the gut through direct interaction with the mucosal immune system. Evidence justifying population-wide monitoring for vitamin D status is accumulating.

CONCLUSION
There is kaleidoscopic interaction of vitamin D biology with many aspects of gastrointestinal tract biology. Vitamin D appears an attractive target for personalized approaches like precision and P4 medicine.


ABSTRACT The properties of a forecast usually depend upon whether or not the forecast is conditioned on the final period observation. In the case of unconditioned forecasts, it is well known that the point predictions are unbiased. If, on the other hand, the forecast is conditional, then the forecast may be biased. Existing analytical results in literature are insufficient for describing the properties of the conditioned forecast properly, particularly in multivariate models. This article examines some finite sample properties of conditioned forecasts of the VAR(1) process by means of Monte Carlo experiments. We use a number of parameter settings for the VAR(1) process to demonstrate that the forecast bias of the conditioned forecast may be considerable. Hence, unless the analyst has a clear idea of whether the conditioned or unconditioned forecast is relevant for the time series being analyzed, statistical inferences may be seriously erratic.


The Standard Model describes all elementary particles known today, but at larger energies it will have to be complemented with new particles and interactions. To be able to distinguish new physics at proton colliders such as LHC at CERN, it is essential to have an appropriate description of the colliding protons and their interactions. The study of the proton is important also in itself, to get a better understanding of the non-perturbative aspects of the strong interaction.In paper I-IV of this thesis, a model for the non-perturbative dynamics of quarks and gluons is developed, based on quantum fluctuations in hadrons. The parton distributions of the proton are given by momentum fluctuations, with sea quark distributions generated by fluctuations into baryon-meson pairs. This model can reproduce proton structure function data, as well as measured asymmetries between up and down valence quark distributions and between the anti-up and anti-down sea. It provides an intrinsic charm quark component as indicated by data. It also predicts an asymmetry in the strange sea of the proton, which can explain the NuTeV anomaly first attributed to new physics beyond the Standard Model.Charged Higgs bosons are predicted by several theories for new physics, including Supersymmetry. At proton colliders, the predicted dominant production mechanism is in association with top and bottom quarks. In paper V-VII, different contributions to this production are studied, and an algorithm is developed for combining the two dominant processes gb -> tH+/- and gg -> tbH+/-. The algorithm gives a smooth transition from small to large transverse momenta of the b-quark, which is important when the b-quark is observed. It also gives arguments for the choice of factorisation scale in the process.


We have demonstrated, for the first time to our knowledge, a coupled tandem optical parametric oscillator (OPO) configuration in which a second ZnGeP(2) OPO is placed within the resonator of the first, KTiOPO(4), OPO. A significant enhancement in the overall cascaded efficiency of this OPO compared with standard two-stage OPO's was observed. With a multimode Nd:YAG laser, an overall optical-to-optical efficiency (from 1.06 microm to the mid IR) of 5.2% was obtained from operating only ~1.4 times above oscillation threshold. The measured overall slope efficiency was attractively high at 35%. With a single set of mirrors we obtained a broad wavelength-tuning range from 2.7 to 8 microm.


ABSTRACT In this study, a carbon paste electrode modified with a novel 1-(3-aminopropyl) imidazole functionalised crosslinked chlorosulfonated poly(styrene)-divinyl benzene polymer was used for selective and sensitive determination of the trace amounts of Pb2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+ ions by square wave anodic stripping voltammetry. The effect of some parameters such as paste composition, pH, preconcentration time, reduction potential and time, type of supporting electrolyte and potential scan rate on the determination of metal ions were investigated to find the optimal conditions. The effective open-circuit accumulation of the studied metal ions was succeeded only by the modification of the carbon paste electrode with functional polymer. For 6 min open-circuit preconcentration, the detection limit of Pb2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+ was found to be 5, 9 and 14 µgL−1, respectively at 100 mVs−1. The results confirmed that the lower concentration levels of these trace metal ions can be determined with the increase of preconcentration time and/or potential scan rate. Good detection limits and large dynamic concentration ranges were also obtained for their binary and ternary mixtures. The optimised method was successively applied to determine the concentration of Pb2+, Cu2+ ions in the tap water sample and Cu2+ ion in the waste water sample in the presence of possible interfering species (RSD<1%, recoveries 96–110% for 4 min preconcentration).


The use of plastics has increased over the years, thus resulting in a large volume of plastic waste being generated and accumulated in the environment. Due to its non-biodegradability and persistence, recycling processes have become one of the sustainable solutions for preventing environmental deterioration. Plastic wastes, including high density polyethylene (HDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), were collected from industrial sector and used as additional ingredients to improve concrete properties. Prior to concrete processing, an increase in wettability of plastic fibers using nonionic surfactant, Dehydol LS-12, was investigated. At the optimal concentration of 10 times of the critical micelle concentration (CMC), an interfacial tension and a contact angle were reduced to 31–32 mN/m and 65°–68°, respectively. Properties of concrete were determined and compared to those of the mortar samples. Porosity was found to increase with higher volume fraction of plastic fibers, whereas decreases in workability, bulk density, thermal conductivity, splitting tensile strength, and compressive strength were encountered. The lowest thermal conductivity was recorded for concrete samples prepared with 30% by volume of LDPE fibers, and the rest in descending order were HDPE, PP, and PET, respectively. Furthermore, the maximal inclusions of plastic fibers were 5% for HDPE and LDPE, 10% for PP, and 50% for PET so as to satisfy the precast concrete wall requirements.


Future skill requirements and training initiatives designed to meet them, are highly topical issues in the construction industry. The pace of change affecting the structure of training generally has created considerable confusion among employers in the construction industry. In the mind of the average employer there is still uncertainty about the nature and value of competence-based qualifications (NVQs) which are still at a relatively early stage of implementation. Training provision has been decimated by the effects of the recession. The range of options for training routes has become more complex due to continuing government initiatives and frequent changes in funding policy. This paper traces the prevailing trends in the provision of craft training in the UK construction industry, highlighting the fragmentation of funding arrangements and its effects on the structure of training. First, recent developments in government policy for youth training in the UK in general are reviewed. Second, formalized training procedures and the roles of the different training organizations in the construction industry are discussed. This forms an important backdrop for understanding issues affecting the introduction of new vocational qualifications. Finally, the aims, objectives and key characteristics of these qualifications are presented. Factors that have constrained the implementation and delivery of the new qualifications are identified also.