The aim of this thesis is to explore the relationship between modern political thinking and aesthetic image-making through the conceptual framework of contingency. The focus on contingency takes account of the ambiguity and indeterminacy of visual perception and offers a language to describe the political potency of visual images in various historical contexts. The political potency of images is understood in terms of their affective intensities and material presence rather than ideological suspicion or propagandist seduction. In so doing, a case is made for reconsidering the traditional image scepticism (or indifference) in political theory and for recognising visual aesthetic practices as distinct modes of political thinking. I interpret political images as gestures towards the complexity and vulnerability of our social arrangements, indicating that the way we see the world, and show it to each other, could always be otherwise. Drawing on rulers' portraits, war photography and essay films, from the French Revolution to the present time, I show how visual aesthetic practices can reflect, complement and challenge the way we think about political concepts such as sovereignty, accountability or collective agency in different historical moments. Instead of following a modernist belief in the power of art to induce profound social change, this thesis describes the potency of the visual as micropolitical intensities that potentially modify habitual ways of thinking (and acting), provided that aesthetic experiences can connect to already existing moods or dispositions. This micropolitical potency of visual images does not necessarily constitute a particularly strong or reliable politics, but it is exactly its indeterminacy, as well as its constant risk of failure, that harbours the potential to generate new sensibilities towards the world. Taking visual images seriously, not only as worthwhile objects of political research but just as much as distinct modes of thinking, can therefore help us to stronger acknowledge the vital role affective, imaginative and speculative elements have always played for the understanding and justification of our social arrangements.


ABSTRACT Defining the limits of biotechnology patents is one of the most Herculean tasks patent communities are faced with today. The topic was discussed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the National Academy of Sciences in their recent reports. Up to now, no coherent system has been developed that gives enough--but not too--much patent protection for DNA-related subject matter. This article analyzes the problem of patent breadth in the biotechnological field and outlines how to craft balanced patent protection for biotechnology inventions. Within the recommended system innovators would be rewarded adequately, but innovation would still be allowed without considerable delay and prohibitive costs. Based on a comparison of U.S. and European biotechnology patent law, the article first advocates for broad patent protection on DNA-related subject matter to create sufficient incentives for initial innovators to invest in costly biotechnological research. To simultaneously spur subsequent research, the article further proposes the introduction of a widespread compulsory licensing system on reasonable terms as a counterbalance. Thereby, the article opts for a compulsory licensing system that uses arbitration as an enforcement tool rather than traditional regulatory enforcement by the government. Arbitration is favored because it allows reconciliation of compulsory licensing with the principles of free trade. Moreover, arbitration makes compulsory licensing responsive to the peculiarities of the biotechnological area, which so strongly depends on patent protection. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION II. PATENTS ON BIOTECHNOLOGY INVENTIONS-- IMPORTANCE AND POLICY CONCERNS A. Biotechnology and Its Inventions 1. Biotechnology and Its Usefulness 2. What Are Biotechnology Inventions? 3. Why Are Patents on Biotechnology Inventions So Contentiously Discussed? B. Importance of Strong Biotechnology Patents C. Concerns that Exist as to (Broad) Patents on Biotechnology Inventions D. Consensus: Broad Patents and Broad Access Rights III. PATENTABILITY OF BIOTECHNOLOGY INVENTIONS IN U.S. AND EUROPEAN PATENT LAW A. Patentability of Biotechnology Inventions in the U.S. 1. Utility, 35 U.S.C. [section] 102 2. Nonobviousness, 35 U.S.C. [section] 103 3. Enabling, 35 U.S.C. [section] 112 4. Written Description, 35 U.S.C. [section] 112 5. Possible Impacts of the U.S. Patentability Standards B. Patentability of Biotechnology Inventions in Europe 1. The European Patent System 2. Patentability Standards Pursuant to the Biotechnology Directive a. Utility b. Inventive Step = Nonobviousness c. Enabling Disclosure and Patent Scope d. Assessment of the European Patenting Standard IV. GIVING ACCESS TO PATENTED INVENTIONS-- RESEARCH EXEMPTIONS AND COMPULSORY LICENSES A. Access Rights to Patented Biotechnology Inventions in U.S. Law B. Access Rights to Patented Biotechnology Inventions in Europe--A System to Adopt? 1. The Specific Access Rights in European Patent Law a. The Directive's Access Provisions b. Access Provisions in German Patent Law c. Access Provisions of the Proposal for a Regulation on the Community Patent 2. Disadvantages of the European Experimental Use Provisions 3. Disadvantages of the European Compulsory Licensing Models a. General Arguments Against Compulsory Licenses--Market Interventions b. Particular Drawbacks of the European Licensing Provisions 4. Conclusion: Adopting Experimental Use Provisions and/or Compulsory Licensing to Ensure Access? V. PROPOSAL FOR MODIFYING TRADITIONAL COMPULSORY LICENSING SCHEMES A. Substituting the Regulatory Nature of Compulsory Licensing 1. Patent Pooling as a Market-Based Solution to Grant Access 2. …


Several observers credit nearly 25 years of declining crime rates to the "New Policing" and its emphasis on advanced statistical metrics, new forms of organizational accountability, and aggressive tactical enforcement of minor crimes. This model has been adopted in large and small cities, and has been institutionalized in everyday police-citizen interactions, especially among residents of poorer, often minority, and higher crime areas. Citizens exposed to these regimes have frequent contact with police through investigative stops, arrests for minor misdemeanors, and non-custody citations or summons for code violations or vehicle infractions. Two case studies show surprising and troubling similarities in the racial disparities in the new policing in vastly different areas, including more frequent police contact and new forms of monetary punishment. Low-level "public order" crimes and misdemeanors are the starting point for legal proceedings that over time evolve into punishments leading to criminal records with lasting consequences. In these regimes, warrants provide the entry point for processes that move from civil fines to criminal punishment. The chapter concludes with a menu of reforms to disincentivize the new policing while creating new forms of accountability to mitigate its harms.


This paper explores the issue of crisis in Information Systems discipline. It is argued that lack of a clearly shaped identity for the discipline is causing the problem of legitimacy and wide spread acceptance that IS discipline is facing. These problems put the discipline in crisis. Three dimensions of crisis are examined, viz., absence of core theories and concepts, lack of rigor and relevance in IS research outputs, and fragmented nature of IS research. It is concluded that IS research community must create an identity for itself for a better future.


Smart buildings use technologies to interconnect different building systems' data for performance improvement. These buildings can improve the user experience, decrease operation and maintenance costs, and elevate productivity, to name a few. With the advent of information technology, the market for smart building technology is increasingly expanding. Smart buildings and relevant synonyms are becoming prevalent in the architecture, engineering, and construction industries (AEC); however, it is not widely taught in construction education programs. This study aims to determine the current understanding and perception levels of construction management students of the aspects of smart buildings. To do this, two groups of construction management students from Japan and the U.S. were surveyed before and after a smart building workshop. A quantitative research method was used to collect and analyze the data. The results showed similarities and differences between the two groups' attitudes toward different aspects of smart buildings, the workshop's role in changing students' perceptions of smart buildings, and construction education institutions' role in promoting the smart building concept. This study helps education programs by shedding light on the current knowledge of a sample of students about smart buildings and highlights aspects of the concept that need a focus in educational settings.


Fertilizer subsidy program is one of the most well-known and politically sensitive policies in Sub-Saharan countries. Countries such as Malawi, Nigeria, Ghana and Ethiopia are characterized by large funded fertilizer subsidy programs in recent years. Malawi, Ghana and Nigeria administer a targeted input subsidy program (e.g. fertiliser voucher program), while Ethiopia uses a universal subsidy program where the government imports fertilizer and distributes it among farmers at below-market price through the network of cooperative unions. These two programs, highly discussed in the literature, often raise a debate. This paper aims at contributing to this discussion by assessing the likely impacts of these two fertilizer subsidy programs (flexible and targeted programs) on the productivity and food security of Ethiopian smallholder farmers. A novel farm-household model, FSSIM-Dev (Farm System Simulator for Developing Countries), is used to test both programs as well as to assess their production, consumption and welfare effects on a nationally representative sample of farm households in Ethiopia.


Root turnover is important to the global carbon budget as well as to nutrient cycling in ecosystems and to the success of individual plants. Our ability to predict the effects of environmental change on root turnover is limited by the difficulty of measuring root dynamics, but emerging evidence suggests that roots, like leaves, possess suites of interrelated traits that are linked to their life span. In graminoids, high tissue density has been linked to increased root longevity. Other studies have found root longevity to be positively correlated with mycorrhizal colonization and negatively correlated with nitrogen concentration, root maintenance respiration and specific root length. Among fruit trees, apple roots (which are of relatively small diameter, low tissue density and have little lignification of the exodermis) have much shorter life spans than the roots of citrus, which have opposite traits. Likewise, within the branched network of the fine root system, the finest roots with no daughter roots tend to have higher N concentrations, faster maintenance respiration, higher specific root length and shorter life spans than secondary and tertiary roots that bear daughter roots. Mycorrhizal colonization can enhance root longevity by diverse mechanisms, including enhanced tolerance of drying soil and enhanced defence against root pathogens. Many variables involved in building roots might affect root longevity, including root diameter, tissue density, N concentration, mycorrhizal fungal colonization and accumulation of secondary phenolic compounds. These root traits are highly plastic and are strongly affected by resource supply (CO2, N, P and water). Therefore the response of root longevity to altered resource availability associated with climate change can be estimated by considering how changes in resource availability affect root construction and physiology. A cost–benefit approach to predicting root longevity assumes that a plant maintains a root only until the efficiency of resource acquisition is maximized. Using an efficiency model, we show that reduced tissue Nconcentration and reduced root maintenance respiration, both of which are predicted to result from elevated CO2, should lead to slightly longer root life spans. Complex interactions with soil biota and shifts in plant defences against root herbivory and parasitism, which are not included in the present efficiency model, might alter the effects of future climate change on root longevity in unpredicted ways.


This article examines the evolution of the 'Barcelona Model' of urban transformation through the lenses of worlding and provincialising urbanism. We trace this evolution from an especially dogmatic worlding vision of the smart city, under a centre-right city council, to its radical repurposing under the auspices of a municipal government led, after May 2015, by the citizens' platform Barcelona en Comú. We pay particular attention to the new council's objectives to harness digital platform technologies to enhance participative democracy, and its agenda to secure technological sovereignty and digital rights for its citizens. While stressing the progressive intent of these aims, we also acknowledge the challenge of going beyond the repurposing of smart technologies so as to engender new and radical forms of subjectivity among citizens themselves; a necessary basis for any urban revolution.


29 This invention introduces a methodology and associated software tools for automatically learning spacecraft system models without any assumptions regarding system behavior. Data stream mining techniques were used to learn models for critical portions of the International Space Station (ISS) Electrical Power System (EPS). Evaluation on historical ISS telemetry data shows that adaptive system modeling reduces simulation error anywhere from 50 to 90 percent over existing approaches. The purpose of the methodology is to outline how someone can create accurate system models from sensor (telemetry) data. The purpose of the software is to support the methodology. The software provides analysis tools to design the adaptive models. The software also provides the algorithms to initially build system models and continuously update them from the latest streaming sensor data. The main strengths are as follows: • Creates accurate spacecraft system models without in-depth system knowledge or any assumptions about system behavior. • Automatically updates/calibrates system models using the latest streaming sensor data. • Creates device specific models that capture the exact behavior of devices of the same type. • Adapts to evolving systems. • Can reduce computational complexity (faster simulations). This work was done by Justin Thomas of Johnson Space Center. For further infor mation, contact the JSC Innovation Partnerships Office at (281) 483-3809. MSC24419-1 Adaptive System Modeling for Spacecraft Simulation Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas Information Sciences


This paper reports a study of the performance of in-vehicle navigation devices to assess speed-related functionality and the provision of speed information to drivers. There are currently no standards or assessments protocols for navigation devices that are complete and that are directly relevant to the assessment of commercially available intelligent speed adaptation (ISA) devices. Human factors research is not conclusive about the best ways to convey speed limit information and speeding alerts to drivers, and a review of the literature indicated that there are some human-machine-interface methods that should be avoided in the driving task. Protocols for the assessment of navigation devices should avoid being design restrictive, but should discourage poor interface design concerning speed limit information and speeding alerts to drivers. A protocol was developed to evaluate in-vehicle navigation devices offering an ISA capability. The intended outcome from the use of this protocol is to assist consumers in decisions to purchase these devices. Four ISA devices currently available on the Australian market were tested on-road in a scenario incorporating freeway, commercial and residential environments, similar to how the devices would be commonly used. The results indicated that the protocol was very robust, being repeatable, relevant and objective, and can be used as the basis for the development and promulgation of a standard for the assessment of the safety of in-vehicle navigation devices with an ISA capability.


Sudden anisocoria have always been ominous signs among critically ill patients, which requires prompt attention. There are various causes of anisocoria, which call for comprehensive evaluation to rule out neurologic causes such as Adie's pupil, uncal herniation, compression of third cranial nerve, meningeal irritation, and seizures as opposed to the pharmacological causes such as anticholinergic drugs, anesthesia, and recreational drugs versus causes such as . migraine and trauma to the eye. We hereby report a case of a patient with unilateral anisocoria from dilated left pupil due to the nebulized ipratropium bromide, a cholinergic antagonist that resolved with discontinuation of the medication. The purpose of this case report is to emphasize the importance of thorough physical assessment, an early review of the medications, and the use of inexpensive diagnostic test to save time and avoid the expensive diagnostic study.


Journalists often accuse politicians of dodging questions. Truth-default theory (TDT) predicts that when journalists serve as de facto deception detectors, the audience will process the messaging through a cognitive sequence that lowers the perceived trustworthiness of the politician. Conversely, the public's perception of the media as being generally hostile and biased in their reporting could make a journalist's allegation of evasion enhance the politician's credibility. We constructed political TV interviews in which a journalist falsely accused a politician of evasiveness. Consistent with serial multiple mediation as proposed by TDT, in Study 1 (N = 210 U.S. voters) a journalist's allegation triggered suspicion, which increased perceived dodging, resulting in voters distrusting the politician. Absent a journalist's allegation, however, people remained in their truth-default state toward the politician. Study 2 (N = 429) replicated the Study 1 results, and conditional process modeling revealed that the effect was moderated by rumination.


Contamination of corn, peanuts, milk and dairy products with aflatoxins is a worldwide problem, particularly in subtropical regions where the climatic conditions are ideal for the growth of Aspergillus flavus , the fungi that produces these toxins. Developing coun tries have major difficulties in marketing these products abroad due to the stringent inter - national regulations concerning this carcinogenic toxin. Adding to the problem is the analytical cost involved in monitoring the produce, which require sophisticated instru - mentation and qualified personnel, neither of which are available for field testing. The development of a rapid Aflatoxin Quicktest™ provides an effective, reliable and cheaper option for screening levels of aflatoxin above the regulatory thresholds in such produce. The test consists of a lateral flow device (LFD) coated with antibodies specific to aflatoxin B1, although it detects other aflatoxins (i.e. G and M) with high cross-reactivity. Its high sensitivity allows analysis of these toxins in the range 2–40 μg/kg of sample in 15 minutes, plus the time for extraction, which varies among different products. Quantification of the test results is done using a Quick Reader, by comparing the readings of individual tests against a standard curve of the analytes in the same manner as it is done with any other analytical equipment. A validation study was carried out using peanuts from Australia and peanuts and corn from Timor-Leste to assess the performance of the Aflatoxin Quicktest™. Results obtained with the LFD showed a good correlation with the standard analytical measurements by HPLC-fluorescence (r 2 above 0.90 for all cases), indicating the Aflatoxin Quicktest™ is capable of measuring levels of aflatoxins accurately and reli - ably. Given their ease of use, low cost and fast processing time, the Aflatoxin Quicktest™ can be used for screening agricultural produce in countries that cannot afford the costly alternative of using specialised personnel and equipment.


Scott Rodeo, a clinician-scientist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, NY, as well as a team physician for the 2004 and 2008 US Olympic teams, explores the future trends of sports medicine, with the help of more than two dozen other experts in the field. These experts weigh in on the leading topics of tissue engineering approaches to ligament graft fixation, meniscus replacement using synthetic materials, new techniques in allograft processing and preservation, platelet-rich plasma for percutaneous treatment of tendon and muscle injury, emerging concepts in diagnosis and management of concussion, new techniques in articular cartilage imaging, new trends in diagnosis and management of athletic pubalgia and sports hernia, advances in rehab/performance training, current status and potential for primary ACL repair, surgical navigation in knee ligament reconstruction, emerging options for treatment of articular cartilage injury in the athlete, growth factors for rotator cuff repair, and stem cells for treatment of muscle injury.


The individual components of a biorefinery concept based on a ligno-cellulose biomass such as straw have been studied but a complete technical, economic and environmental analysis of such an integrated process is lacking. A detailed analysis on barley wax was performed as a part of the experiment. In addition to further research in wax, the aim of this project is to study the difference, also improvement made, when utilising wax extracted and un-extracted straw on thermal pyrolysis products. The composition of bio-oil char and biogas as pyrolysis products were also studied and the reproducibility of bio-oil using different microwave machines were investigated. The effect on product yield and composition when changing pyrolysis reaction temperature was also tested. The green chemistry metrics was applied to the whole process to measure the environmental impact of the experiment.

Wax was extracted from various kinds of barley straws by different methods and its chemical compositions were analysed using GC-MS and GC. The result indicated that components in the extracted wax can be grouped into several categories: fatty acids was the most dominating group in wax (32.5%), followed by fatty alcohols (14.6%), 14,16-hentriacontanedione (11.3%) and β-diketones (8.6%). When comparing to previous supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) extraction results of other straws, barley wax has the highest yield. The yield from different variety barley straw also varies; Carat barley has a slightly higher yield than Saffron barley.

Previous studies show that wheat straw wax comprises a similar blend of compounds found in ladybird footprints (trace of material found on the path of the insect), which is the aphid's natural enemy and could cause the aphid avoidance.1 In order to test whether other straw wax contains the similar semiochemicals and causes the same effect, previous column chromatography extracted wheat straw, barley straw, and apple peel wax was characterised by GC-MS and GC; and the research was particularly focused in branched and long chain alkane regions. The analysis showed wax extracts all contain similar long-chain and branched-chain components, which may also induce aphid avoidance.

Pyrolysis was applied on both raw and de-waxed straw to produce bio-oil, char and bio-gas. The difference in bio-oil produced using raw and de-waxed straw was mainly caused by wax. Through analysis, bio-oil was identified mainly containing aromatic compounds, where the high content compound in it was (acetyloxy)-acetic acid (7.0%), 3-methyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione(5.2%) and 2,6-dimethoxyphenol(4.6%). Bio-oil's reproducibility was tested on an additional CEM microwave machine. When increasing the pyrolysis temperature, bio-oil yield was slightly increased while char yield was dramatically decreased. However the temperature impact on char was disappeared when reaction reached to 140°C and above.

Char and bio-gas were analysed by FTIR. From the spectra, the decrease intensity of char compared to straw was obvious and caused by decomposing of the chemical groups (e.g. phenolic groups, C-O group) during pyrolysis. The high concentrated peak in bio-gas spectrum was caused by the CO2; other peaks were due to the exultance of CO, CO2, CH4, C2H4 and C2H6.

The environmental impact of both wax extraction and pyrolysis were investigated by performing calculation of their E-factors. The results showed that although the processes were generally environmental benign, there were great potential for improvements, such as employ solvent recycling and broaden products applications.


This Article sets forth a new way to think about the ethics and law of choosing genetic traits in future children. And it applies this framework of offspring to controversies over efforts to select offspring traits including sex, race, intelligence, and deafness using methods ranging from donor selection to embryo screening and gene editing. I adapt the lens of ambivalence that Professor Robert Burt developed in the end-of-life context to illuminate an irreducible tension between the two values at stake in selective procreation. I call these values "acceptance" of the limits found in the natural world and "control" over the limits that nature imposes. The appeal of both resonates as much at life's beginning as at its end. The resulting ambivalence counsels a complex regime to govern selective procreation that mediates the extremes of compulsion and prohibition in ambiguous and even contradictory ways. This regime would combine legal protections for offspring selection such as public subsidies, insurance mandates, tax breaks, and malpractice actions with measures to rein in that same practice as through sin taxes, counseling requirements, advertising limits, and prenatal "choice architecture."


It is known that chromosome number tends to decrease as genome size increases in angiosperm plants. Here the relationship between number of parts (the chromosomes) and size of the whole (the genome) is studied for other groups of organisms from different kingdoms. Two major results are obtained. First, the finding of relationships of the kind "the more parts the smaller the whole" as in angiosperms, but also relationships of the kind "the more parts the larger the whole". Second, these dependencies are not linear in general. The implications of the dependencies between genome size and chromosome number are two-fold. First, they indicate that arguments against the relevance of the finding of negative correlations consistent with Menzerath-Altmann law (a linguistic law that relates the size of the parts with the size of the whole) in genomes are seriously flawed. Second, they unravel the weakness of a recent model of chromosome lengths based upon random breakage that assumes that chromosome number and genome size are independent.


Two separate experiments were conducted to test the response of Shika brown pullet chicks and layers to home-made and commercial feeds in Zaria metropolis of Kaduna state, Nigeria. In both experiments a homemade chick ration and layer ration were formulated using feed ingredients available in the locality. These were compared with two prominent commercial chick mash and layer mash feeds sold in Zaria. There were three feeds in each experiment and each feed constituted a treatment. Each of the treatments was replicated three times (making a total of 9 replicates in each study) in a complete randomised design. Two hundred and seventy chicks and layers respectively were used in each experiment, with 30 birds in each of the nine replicates. Results obtained for the chick study showed that the final weight, body weight gain, daily feed intake, feed conversion efficiency and feed cost per kilogramme gain in weight were significantly (P<0.05) better for the commercial feed A than for the other two feeds. Results obtained for the layers study showed that although birds fed commercial feed A performed significantly (P<0.05) better in terms of final weight, body weight gain, daily feed intake, feed conversion efficiency and percent henday egg production, the birds fed the homemade feed were significantly (P<0.05) better in terms of income above feed expenses, which is a measure of profitability.


The many applications of CAD/CAM softwares in the metal-mechanical industry have led to the presence of disciplines involving these subjects in the curriculums of related courses. To prevent the lessons from being turned into a course on using specific software, we have prepared a model of fully contextualized lessons, where the practical reality of the manufacturing process is discussed, not only the functioning of the software tools. The content schedule was organized according to the main manufacturing processes found in the metal-mechanical industry. Thus, the fact of drawing a simple model, adding data relating to the production process in question, makes it clear that inducing the student to seek such information for resolution of the drawings, trains them in the aspect of research, problem solving and handling software.


The bio-based sector is amongst the most thriving sectors in the European bioeconomy. Industry players in this sector use biological resources (including residues and waste) to make innovative greener value added products. This nascent sector is somehow still small compared to more traditional ones but it is undergoing rapid developments. Developing and commercialising innovative bio-based products – would they be new product types or aim to replace fossil-based equivalents demand pursued Research & Innovation efforts and is influenced by a certain number of critical factors such as access to finance, market developments (including oil prices), feedstock availability or the regulatory framework (including climate action). To progress from the initial concept to a commercial product is thus a journey with many steps and challenges. The aim of this study report is to analyse this journey – which was successful – for 15 EU innovative bio-based products. These 15 success stories deliver on at least one of three following success criteria: profitability, market entry or mobilisation of critical external finance. The 15 success stories span over nine EU Member States, and cover a wide range of products and technologies, most of which have been on the market for only a few years. Two-fifths of these products were developed by large companies, an equal amount by SMEs, and one fifth by micro-enterprises. In two-thirds of the companies, bio-based activities are at the core of their business. Each success story is presented within the report in a factsheet, which provides detailed information about it as well as insights on its drivers of success and on how it responded to risks it faced.


This article explores the racial dimensions of transracial adoption as a socio-legal phenomenon. The three parts of the article trace the history and summarize the law of whites adopting (1) Asians, (2) Native Americans, and (3) African Americans. The most obvious feature of these three types of transracial adoption is that whites serve overwhelmingly as the "adopting race" and also exercise the most control in the adoption process. In addition to this basic pattern of racial dominance, the three types more subtly reveal a racial hierarchy among racial minority groups. When these groups stand above or below one another, the hierarchy impedes the development of solidarity among racial minority groups and thereby enhances white dominance in transracial adoption. This article does not deny that some white adoptive parents transcend racism, and the article also does not oppose transracial adoption. However, transracial adoption as a socio-legal phenomenon nevertheless reflects and reinforces racial hierarchy. Transracial adoption is an illustration that in the contemporary, supposedly "post-racial" United States, race remains associated with power or the lack thereof.


In this paper, we make the case for building high-performance asymmetric-cell caches (ACCs) that employ recently-proposed asymmetric SRAMs to reduce leakage proportionally to the number of resident zero bits. Because ACCs target memory value content (independent of cell activity and access patterns), they complement prior proposals for reducing cache leakage that target memory access characteristics. Through detailed simulation and leakage estimation using a commercial 0.13-/spl mu/m CMOS process model, we show that: 1) on average 75% of resident data cache bits and 64% of resident instruction cache bits are zero; 2) while prior research carefully evaluated the fraction of accessed zero bytes, we show that a high fraction of accessed zero bytes is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for a high fraction of resident zero bits; 3) the zero-bit program behavior persists even when we restrict our attention to live data, thereby complementing prior leakage-saving techniques that target inactive cells; and 4) ACCs can reduce leakage on the average by 4.3/spl times/ compared to a conventional data cache without any performance loss, and by 9/spl times/ at the cost of a 5% increase in overall cache access latency.


This thesis deals with the study of rock falls using a mathematical model, codified for computer use, entitled GeoFall. GeoFall, which was developed by the author, allows predictions to be made of rock fall trajectories, run out distances and kinetic energies for a rock of any arbitrary shape. Its main purpose is to assist in the design of remedial works. The mathematical model is based on rigid body mechanics, and analyses a fall in 2D space using a new theory of impact dynamics developed by Brach (1991). The main features and algorithms of the program are presented in this thesis. The performance of GeoFall was evaluated by comparing actual rock fall events described in several published papers with the output created by GeoFall. Also the output from GeoFall has been compared with the output from other rock fall simulation programs used to simulate the documented rockfalls. A new rock slope inventory system entitled the Rock Fall Risk Assessment System (RFRAS) has been developed by the author to determine the rock fall risk at specific rock fall sites. It consists of three phases of inspection, the slope survey, and the preliminary and detailed rating phases. The detailed rating phase uses 13 parameters that when assessed, evaluated and totalled, numerically differentiates slopes from the least to the most hazardous producing an overall rating in the range 21-1926. It not only allows the relative risk of rockfall between slopes to be assessed but it also categorises the rock fall risk and the potential number of future rockfalls. It has been tested on 18 slopes at ten locations in County Durham. The final part of the thesis details a new laboratory based procedure that can be used to determine the coefficients of restitution for any type of rock material. The normal coefficient of restitution has been determined for seven different types of rock, and the tangential coefficient of restitution has been determined for a local sandstone. Some tentative correlations between the normal coefficient of restitution and the rocks physical properties, such as its Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) have been presented.


Three decades ago, it would have been inconceivable for people to discuss seriously the idea of withdrawing the legal and financial support society gives to marriage. In recent years, however, thinkers and policymakers have given more serious thought to the possibility of eliminating marriage as a category entitled to the State's support. An important consideration in this debate is whether keeping or eliminating the State's support of marriage matters to the well-being of children. A wealth of studies contemplating modern family forms now exists, many of which invariably stack newer family structures up against the more traditional nuclear family. Until recently, such studies contrasted families that are so dissimilar that nothing meaningful could be drawn from them about the importance of marriage. This article evaluates the extent to which newer, more carefully constructed studies can assist us in isolating the impact on a child's well-being of living in a marital home. Part I describes the limitations of earlier studies of family structure. Part II examines a pair of studies published in 2003 that compare children's outcomes and parental investments in children in families that contain biological, married parents with those containing biological, unmarried parents. These studies conclude that "marriage per se confers advantage in terms of" how children thrive and to the extent to which parents are willing to invest in children. Part III evaluates the degree of reliance we should place on these newer studies. It first identifies various selection effects that may color the study results. It then reviews scholarship that suggests that the transformative power of marriage may lie first in the greater permanence of marital relationships and, secondarily, in the motivation of the parties to invest in these relationships. This article concludes that perceptions of enduringness may shape not only relationships between the adults, but may also frame the adults' relationships to their children.


The environmental quality (IEQ) in a building is an important element to perceive the good health and comfort level for the building occupants. However, each building contributes different environmental quality results towards the indoor spaces and the occupants. Learning environment is one of the spaces that need attention as it is related to student's well being as well as their learning performance. Existing knowledge on IEQ is still limited concerning the desirable levels of air quality, maintenance, and other factors affecting IEQ in Malaysian educational establishment. Therefore, the study of indoor environment quality in buildings has been carried out in educational building as it acts as important place in learning process. The methodologies used to conduct this research are divided into two methods, which are classroom measurement normal condition and classroom intervention setting. This is done in order to compare and monitor the improvement of environment in the classroom. This research focuses on the comparison of IEQ in different classroom environment setting and the student satisfaction level in their normal classroom environment. Measurement of temperature (°C), relative humidity, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), Volatile Organic Compound (VOC), dust particles (PM10), lighting (lux), and noise (decibel) in the classroom were collected and questionnaires were distributed among the students. This research found that most of the elements in the classroom was incompliance with the standard threshold limit value. The level of VOC in the classroom was noted to be significantly high (11.7ppm) compared to the standard threshold limit. An intervention on the normal condition classroom was set up with selected plant placed in the classroom. Results show a tremendous reduction in the percentage of relative humidity, level of TVOC, as well as CO 2 .


While there is an increasing role of ultrasound for breast cancer screening in patients with dense breast, conventional anatomical ultrasound lacks sensitivity and specificity for early breast cancer detection. In this study, we assessed the potential of ultrasound molecular imaging using clinically translatable vascular endothelial growth factor receptor type 2 (VEGFR2)-targeted microbubbles (MB(VEGFR2)) to improve the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasound in earlier detection of breast cancer and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in a transgenic mouse model [FVB/N-Tg(MMTV-PyMT)634Mul]. In vivo binding specificity studies (n = 26 tumors) showed that ultrasound imaging signal was significantly higher (P < 0.001) using MB(VEGFR2) than nontargeted microbubbles and imaging signal significantly decreased (P < 0.001) by blocking antibodies. Ultrasound molecular imaging signal significantly increased (P < 0.001) when breast tissue (n = 315 glands) progressed from normal [1.65 ± 0.17 arbitrary units (a.u.)] to hyperplasia (4.21 ± 1.16), DCIS (15.95 ± 1.31), and invasive cancer (78.1 ± 6.31) and highly correlated with ex vivo VEGFR2 expression [R(2) = 0.84; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.72-0.91; P < 0.001]. At an imaging signal threshold of 4.6 a.u., ultrasound molecular imaging differentiated benign from malignant entities with a sensitivity of 84% (95% CI, 78-88) and specificity of 89% (95% CI, 81-94). In a prospective screening trail (n = 63 glands), diagnostic performance of detecting DCIS and breast cancer was assessed and two independent readers correctly diagnosed malignant disease in more than 95% of cases and highly agreed between each other [intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.98; 95% CI, 97-99]. These results suggest that VEGFR2-targeted ultrasound molecular imaging allows highly accurate detection of DCIS and breast cancer in transgenic mice and may be a promising approach for early breast cancer detection in women.


The goal of adaptive game AI is to enhance computer-controlled game-playing agents with (1) the ability to self-correct mistakes, and (2) creativity in responding to new situations. Dynamic scripting is a reinforcement learning technique that realises fast and reliable online adaptation of game AI. It employs knowledge bases which contain rules that can be included in game scripts. To be successful, dynamic scripting requires a mechanism to order the rules that are selected for scripts. So far, rule ordering was achieved by a manually-tuned priority value for each rule. In the present research, we propose three mechanisms to order rules automatically for dynamic scripting. We performed experiments in which we let dynamic scripting, using each of the three mechanisms, play against manually-designed tactics. Our results show that dynamic scripting with automatic rule ordering generates game AI that is at least as effective as dynamic scripting with manually-tuned priority values. Moreover, it has the ability to generate novel game AI with significantly increased effectiveness. The costs are a slight decrease in learning efficiency. So, we may conclude that automatic rule ordering is a valuable enhancement for dynamic scripting.


Wasserstein Generative Adversarial Networks (WGANs) can be used to generate realistic samples from complicated image distributions. The Wasserstein metric used in WGANs is based on a notion of distance between individual images, which induces a notion of distance between probability distributions of images. So far the community has considered $\ell^2$ as the underlying distance. We generalize the theory of WGAN with gradient penalty to Banach spaces, allowing practitioners to select the features to emphasize in the generator. We further discuss the effect of some particular choices of underlying norms, focusing on Sobolev norms. Finally, we demonstrate a boost in performance for an appropriate choice of norm on CIFAR-10 and CelebA.


We report that we can enhance the performance of polymer photovoltaics by introducing materials with dipoles at the donor–acceptor interface of the polymer solar cells. We use a zwitterionic conjugated polyelectrolyte (ZCPE) as an interfacial layer in a model bi-layer system consisting of donor and acceptor polymers. We find an increase in short-circuit current and fill factor when a 2 nm thin layer of ZCPE is introduced between donor and acceptor polymers. Absorption of light in the ZCPE interlayer contributes to the photocurrent, and, as revealed by time-resolved pump–push optical spectroscopy, the interlayer reduces the probability of electron–hole recombination at the donor–acceptor interface.


BACKGROUND
This study examines the prevalence of physician-diagnosed respiratory conditions and mental health symptoms in firefighters and emergency medical service workers up to 9 years after rescue/recovery efforts at the World Trade Center (WTC).

METHODS
We analyzed Fire Department of New York (FDNY) physician and self-reported diagnoses by WTC exposure and quintiles of pulmonary function (FEV1% predicted). We used screening instruments to assess probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and probable depression.

RESULTS
FDNY physicians most commonly diagnosed asthma (8.8%) and sinusitis (9.7%). The highest prevalence of physician-diagnosed obstructive airway disease (OAD) was in the lowest FEV1% predicted quintile. Participants who arrived earliest on 9/11 were more likely to have physician-diagnosed asthma (OR = 1.4). Seven percent had probable PTSD. 19.4% had probable depression.

CONCLUSIONS
Self-reported and physician-diagnosed respiratory conditions remain common, especially among those who arrived earliest at the WTC site. OAD was associated with the lowest pulmonary function. Since respiratory and mental health conditions remain prevalent, ongoing monitoring and treatment is important.


Research trends in endoscopy have been to reduce the dimension of the system for minimally invasive diagnostics and to improve spatial resolution to the microscopic level for the detailed investigation of specimens. In developing endoscopes that meet these needs, ultrathin imaging probes such as graded index lenses and fiber bundles have been widely used. And a single imaging probe is used for both illumination and detection to maintain the small diameter of the probe unit. However, this causes a fundamental problem, that is the back-reflection noise from the surface of the imaging probes. This back-reflection noise can overwhelm signals from target objects with weak contrast, which is the case for biological tissues, and degrade image contrast to such an extent that the objects remain unresolved.
Here, we present an endomicroscope free from back-reflection noise generated at an ultrathin imaging probe and yet guaranteeing microscopic spatial resolution. In our method, we send illumination through single individual core fibers in the image fiber bundle, and detect signal light by the other core fibers. By blocking the back-reflection occurring only at the core used for the illumination, we remove the back-reflection noise before it reaches the detector sensor. The transmission matrix of the fiber bundle is measured and used to reconstruct a pixelation-free and high-resolution image from the raw images captured by the other fibers, which are blurred and pixelated. We demonstrated that the proposed imaging method improved 3.2 times on the signal to noise ratio produced by the conventional illumination-detection scheme.


Territoriality looms large in our jurisprudence, particularly as it relates to the government's authority to search and seize. Fourth Amendment rights turn on whether the search or seizure takes place territorially or extraterritorially; the government's surveillance authorities depend on whether the target is located within the United States or without; and courts' warrant jurisdiction extends, with limited exceptions, only to the borders' edge. Yet the rise of electronic data challenges territoriality at its core. Territoriality, after all, depends on the ability to define the relevant "here" and "there," and it presumes that the "here" and "there" have normative significance. The ease and speed with which data travels across borders, the seemingly arbitrary paths it takes, and the physical disconnect between where data is stored and where it is accessed critically test these foundational premises. Why should either privacy rights or government access to sought-after evidence depend on where a document is stored at any given moment? Conversely, why should State A be permitted to unilaterally access data located in State B, simply because technology allows it to do so, without regard to State B's rules governing law enforcement access to data held within its borders?This Article addresses these challenges. It explores the unique features of data and highlights the ways in which data undermines longstanding assumptions about the link between data location and the rights and obligations that should apply. Specifically, it argues that a territorial-based Fourth Amendment fails to adequately protect "the people" it is intended to cover. Conversely, the Article warns against the kind of unilateral, extraterritorial law enforcement that electronic data encourages — in which nations compel the production of data located anywhere around the globe, without regard to the sovereign interests of other nations.


In the turning operation the relative dynamic motion between cutting tool and workpiece, or vibration, is a frequent problem, which affects the result of the machining, and, in particular, the surface finish. Tool life is also influenced by vibration. Severe acoustic noise in the working environment frequently occurs as a result of dynamic motion between the cutting tool and the workpiece. These problems can be reduced substantially by active control of the machine-tool vibration. Adaptive feedback control based on the filtered-x LMS-algorithm, enables a reduction of the vibration by up to 40 dB at 1.5 kHz and by approximately 40 dB at 3 kHz. The active control performeds a broadband attenuation of the sound pressure level by up to 35 dB. However, the process of machining a workpiece usually involves a variety of cutting data which in turn are likely to cause substantial variations in the spectral properties of the tool vibrations. Hence, variations in the spectral properties originates from changes in the excitation of the tool holder and changes in the structural response of the tool holder. To handle the potential large variations in the spectral properties of tool vibration in the turning operation the robustness of the control system has to be improved. By applying the leaky version of the filtered-x LMS algorithm in the active control of machine tool vibration it was found that the robustness of the adaptive control system was improved substantially to large variations in the spectral properties of tool vibration.


A diagnostic complex has been developed for the modelling and experimental investigation of the gas-dynamic and spectral characteristics of an inductively coupled plasma. This complex includes a four-dimensional computer model of plasma, a research plasma generator, a schlieren system for visualizing the spatial structure of gas flows in the torch, and a high-resolution spectrometer for obtaining information on the temperature in the discharge zone from the intensity of the emission spectra. The model adequately maps the gas-flow dynamics in the torch with no discharge ignited in the inductively coupled plasma. The results of the calculations agree well with the experimental data.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS
Phytochrome B (phyB) is a photosensory receptor important for the control of plant plasticity and resource partitioning. Whether phyB is required to optimize plant biomass accumulation in agricultural crops exposed to full sunlight is unknown. Here we investigated the impact of mutations in the genes that encode either phyB1 or phyB2 on plant growth and grain yield in field crops of Zea mays sown at contrasting population densities.

METHODS
Plants of maize inbred line France 2 wild type (WT) and the isogenic mutants lacking either phyB1 or phyB2 (phyB1 and phyB2) were cultivated in the field during two seasons. Plants were grown at two densities (9 and 30 plants m-2), irrigated and without restrictions of nutrients. Leaf and stem growth, leaf anatomy, light interception, above-ground biomass accumulation and grain yield were recorded.

KEY RESULTS
At high plant density, all the lines showed similar kinetics of biomass accumulation. However, compared with the WT, the phyB1 and phyB2 mutations impaired the ability to enhance plant growth in response to the additional resources available at low plant density. This effect was largely due to a reduced leaf area (fewer cells per leaf), which compromised light interception capacity. Grain yield was reduced in phyB1 plants.

CONCLUSIONS
Maize plants grown in the field at relatively low densities require phyB1 and phyB2 to sense the light environment and optimize the use of the available resources. In the absence of either of these two light receptors, leaf expansion is compromised, imposing a limitation to the interception of photosynthetic radiation and growth. These observations suggest that genetic variability at the locus encoding phyB could offer a breeding target to improve crop growth capacity in the field.


The mapped area, which includes the eastern part of the Richmond and the western part of the Naomi peak quadrangles, Utah-Idaho, is located in the central part of northern Utah and southeastern Idaho. It is located along the eastern side of Cache Valley and western side of the Bear River Range. Cache Valley is in the Basin and Range province and the Bear River Range is in the Middle Rocky Mountain province. The mapped area is about 8.6 miles long, in the north-south direction, and 7.8 miles long, in the east-west direction. The Mutual Formation of Precambrian age is the oldest stratigraphic unit exposed in the mapped area. It consists of purple and brown quartzite. The Brigham Formation of Early Cambrian age and the Langston Formation of Middle Cambrian age overlie the Mutual in stratigraphic succession. The Salt Lake Formation of Tertiary age unconformably overlies older rocks; it is also faulted against the Mutual Formation. A major landslide of Precambrian, Cambrian, and Ordovician formations is present in the southern part of the mapped area. It is unconformably overlapped by the Salt Lake Formation. The Lake Bonneville Group of late Pleistocene age is present in Cache Valley and overlaps older rocks along the western side of the Bear River Range. The Precambrian and Cambrian stratigraphic units, except for those of the landslide, dip eastward and form the western flank of the Logan Peak syncline. A small disharmonic asymmetrical anticline, in the Langston and Ute Formations of Cambrian age, indicates eastward movement. Two beddingplane faults locally eliminate the basal Naomi Peak Limestone Member of the Langston Formation. A major normal fault, which is nearly vertical, extends along the base of the Bear River Range. Another normal fault, which is probably nearly vertical, parallels the western edge of the foothills. The folding and bedding-plane thrust faulting involve eastward movement and occurred during the Sevier orogeny. This orogeny began during late Jurassic time and extended into the early part of the Tertiary Period. Basin and Range normal faulting began early in the Tertiary Period. The normal faults produced great relief between Cache Valley and the Bear River Range. The landslide surface is thought to have formed as a west-dipping thrust fault. Reversed movement on this fault, due to removal of support on the valley side, produced the major landslide. (58 pages)


We consider a classical employee timetabling problem: a set of employees with various skill levels, qualifications, workload and availability distributions has to be assigned to a set of shifts, each requiring a prescribed number of qualified employees and spanning a given time period. The novelty of our approach is a hybrid combination of the methods proposed in bibliography, such that we leverage the advantages of known methods while minimizing their disadvantages. Thus, we first apply the generalized local hill-climbing with randomized neighborhoods to quickly reach the vicinity of local optima, and then use the tabu search to explore more of the search space around those solutions. Our experiments show that the resulting hybrid technique performs better than the comparable approaches presented in bibliography due to the hybrid nature of the technique. In addition, we propose a modular design that utilizes dependency injection to compose the the search algorithm. Together with careful modeling, this approach allows for constant-time evaluation of each possible step in the neighborhood and for an easy evaluation of different hybrid combinations that can be combined and parameterized at runtime.


Laboratory diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) traditionally relies on smear microscopy and culture of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from clinical samples. With recent advances in technology, there have been numerous efforts to develop new diagnostic tests for TB that overcome the low sensitivity and specificity and long turnover time associated with current diagnostic tests. Molecular biological tests based on nucleic acid amplification have brought an unprecedented opportunity for the rapid and specific detection of M. tuberculosis from clinical specimens. With automated sequencing analysis, species identification of mycobacteria is now easier and more accurate than with conventional methods, and rapid detection of mutations in the genes associated with resistance to TB drugs provides early information on the potential drug resistance for each clinical isolate or for clinical samples. In addition, immunological tests for the detection of M. tuberculosis antigens and antibodies to the antigens have been explored to identify individuals at risk of developing TB or with latent TB infection (LTBI). The recent introduction of commercial IFN-γ assay kits for the detection of LTBI provides a new approach for TB control even in areas with a high incidence of TB. However, these molecular and immunological tools still require further evaluation using large scale cohort studies before implementation in TB control programs.


Insulin-responsive neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus contribute to obesity induced by a high-fat diet. In addition to its peripheral effects in regulating glucose metabolism, insulin also influences metabolism by acting in the brain (see Yi et al.). Klöckener et al. determined that a subset of steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1)–positive neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) responded to insulin injection with increased immunoreactivity for phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP3), an indication of active signaling by the insulin receptor (IR) through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway. Comparing the activity of control neurons in hypothalamic slices with those in slices in which the IR was knocked out (SF-1ΔIR) revealed that, without the IR, these SF-1 neurons failed to exhibit insulin-induced hyperpolarization and reduction in firing rate. Analysis of the neurons in slice preparations from the control animals showed that the reduction in firing rate and hyperpolarization was mediated by the KATP channel, which is similar to the mechanism by which insulin inhibits the activity of another class of neurons, the POMC neurons of the arcuate nucleus, which are also implicated in the regulation of metabolism. The SF-1ΔIR mice exhibited normal reproductive function, which is also regulated by the VMH, and normal metabolism and weight gain when fed a normal diet. However, when fed a high-fat diet (HFD), the SF-1ΔIR mice were protected from HFD-induced obesity, ate less, and exhibited improved leptin sensitivity (leptin regulates appetite and feeding) and glucose tolerance compared with the control mice on the HFD. Control mice fed a HFD had more SF-1 neurons with strong PIP3 immunoreactivity compared with the SF-1ΔIR mice, which had more neurons with moderate immunoreactivity for PIP3. Knockout of PTEN, the gene encoding the lipid phosphatase that degrades PIP3, in SF-1 neurons to promote PI3K signaling triggered the development of obesity in mice fed a HFD, and double knockout of PTEN and IR in SF-1 neurons eliminated the protective effects of IR knockout. POMC neurons inhibit food intake, and a HFD reduced the firing rate of POMC neurons in control mice but not in the SF-1ΔIR mice, suggesting that these insulin-responsive neurons in the VMH contribute to the obesity under conditions of HFD by reducing the activity of POMC neurons. T. Klöckener, S. Hess, B. F. Belgardt, L. Paeger, L. A. W. Verhagen, A. Husch, J.-W. Sohn, B. Hampel, H. Dhillon, J. M. Zigman, B. B. Lowell, K. W. Williams, J. K. Elmquist, T. L. Horvath, P. Kloppenburg, J. C. Brüning, High-fat feeding promotes obesity via insulin receptor/PI3K-dependent inhibition of SF-1 VMH neurons. Nat. Neurosci. 14, 911–918 (2011). [PubMed] C.-X. Yi, T. Scherer, M. H. Tschöp, Cajal revisited: Does the VMH make us fat? Nat. Neurosci. 14, 806–808 (2011). [PubMed]


Co9S8 has received intensive attention as an electrode material for electrical energy storage (EES) systems due to its unique structural features and rich electrochemical properties. However, the instability and inferior rate capability of the Co9S8 electrode material during the charge/discharge process has restricted its applications in supercapacitors (SCs). Here, MOF-derived Co9S8 nanoparticles (NPs) embedded in carbon co-doped with N and S (Co9S8/NS–C) were synthesized as a high rate capability and super stable electrode material for SCs. The Co9S8/NS–C material was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). It was found that the Co9S8/NS–C material possessed a unique nanostructure in which Co9S8 NPs were encapsulated in porous graphitic carbon co-doped with N and S. The N/S co-doped porous graphitic carbon of composite led to improved rate performance by enhancing the stability of the electrode material and shortening the ion diffusion paths due to a synergistic effect. The as-prepared Co9S8/NS–C-1.5 h material exhibited a high specific capacitance of 734 F g−1 at a current density of 1 A g−1, excellent rate capability (653 F g−1 at 10 A g−1) and superior cycling stability, i.e., capacitance retention of about 99.8% after 140 000 cycles at a current density of 10 A g−1. Thus, a new approach to fabricate promising electrode materials for high-performance SCs is presented here.


Title of Dissertation: Individual Blade Control for Vibration Reduction of a Helicopter with Dissimilar Blades Beatrice Roget, Doctor of Philosophy, 2004 Dissertation directed by: Professor Inderjit Chopra Department of Aerospace Engineering A control method is proposed to reduce vibrations in helicopters using active trailing-edge flaps on the rotor blades. The novelty of the method is that each blade is controlled independently, taking into account possible blade dissimilarities. This is different from previous control approaches that assumed blades were identical and generated a single control input which is applied with adequate phase shift to each blade. The controller is developed in discrete time, with the control inputs updated every rotor revolution. The method consists of performing simultaneous system identification (using Kalman filtering technique) and closed loop control (using a deterministic control law) at each time step. For the system identification, different inputs are applied to each blade, and the relationship between the individual blade inputs and the resulting loads in the fixed frame is estimated on-line, assuming a linear-time-periodic model of the helicopter. A comprehensive rotor analysis, including all blade degrees of freedom and a free wake model for computing the inflow across the rotor disk, was used to investigate the controller performance in detail. The rotor model is based on a modern bearingless rotor that includes detailed modeling of trailing edge flap effects. The controller performance was tested at advance ratios from μ = 0.10 to μ = 0.40, both for a baseline rotor with identical blades and a damaged rotor with dissimilar blades. In the case of the dissimilar rotor, comprehensive analysis predicts that allowing independent control inputs for each blade dramatically improves the vibration reduction compared to restricting the control inputs to be specific phase shifted versions of each other. For example, at μ = 0.30, the vibration index is reduced by over 90% using individual inputs, compared to only 45% using phase-shifted inputs, for both structural and aerodynamic blade dissimilarities. Required flap deflections are similar for both methods, around ±2.5◦. In order to test the controller experimentally, a Mach-scale rotor model was fabricated. The rotor model consists of 4 blades with piezo-ceramic actuated trailing edge flaps. A new type of hinge using flexures was designed to improve the flap articulation and incorporated in each blade. The smart rotor model is then fitted on a bearingless model-scale hub and tested both on a hover stand and in the Glenn L. Martin wind tunnel. Both rotating-frame as well as fixed-frame vibratory loads were targeted in the closedloop control tests. These tests demonstrate the controller's ability to account for blade dissimilarities and generate different optimal inputs for each blade. For example, in hover, at 500 RPM, the 1/rev bending moment at the root of three of the blades was simultaneously reduced by 77% using three active blades. In forward flight, the controller could simultaneously reduce the baseline 4/rev fixed frame vibration as well other harmonics of vibration such as 1/rev and 3/rev arising from blade dissimilarities. It was also possible to minimize vibration in the fixed frame for several loads simultaneously. However, for most control tests, increases in other loads (not included in the control objective) were observed. During most closed loop tests, the maximum allowable input to the actuators was reached. It was found that the method used to account for actuator saturation and maintain actuator input within acceptable limits had an important effect on controller performance. The best controller performance was obtained when control inputs are computed by solving the constrained minimization problem. However, this procedure is very time consuming and could not be implemented in real-time with the available computer. It can be concluded that accounting for blade dissimilarities using individual inputs for each blade results in improved vibration reduction. However, to maximize the benefits of this control scheme, an efficient, practical method to limit control inputs needs to be devised. Individual Blade Control for Vibration Reduction of a Helicopter with Dissimilar Blades by Beatrice Roget Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2004 Advisory Committee: Professor Inderjit Chopra, Chairman/Advisor Professor Robert Sanner Professor Roberto Celi Professor Norman Wereley Professor Dianne O'Leary


Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV, also known as CD26; EC 22.214.171.124) is a non-integrin receptor glycoprotein with multiple functions, including cell adhesion, cellular trafficking through the extracellular matrix and co-stimulatory potential during T cell activation. By virtue of its exopeptidase activity, DPP IV plays a key regulatory role in the metabolism of peptide hormones. Based on data emerging from different biomedical specialties, it appears worthwhile to highlight the different facets of DPP IV in nutrition, immune responses and peptide hormone metabolism. The presentation of the complex regulatory circuits in which DPP IV appears to be involved may also serve as a note of caution, in view of attempts to apply selective inhibitors of DPP IV enzymic activity for the treatment of disease, e.g. Type II diabetes.


Imaging is used to map activity across populations of neurons. Microscopes with cellular resolution have small (< 1 millimeter) fields of view and cannot simultaneously image activity distributed across multiple brain areas. Typical large field of view microscopes do not resolve single cells, especially in the axial dimension. We developed a 2-photon random access mesoscope (2p-RAM) that allows high-resolution imaging anywhere within a volume spanning multiple brain areas (Ø 5 mm × 1 mm cylinder). 2p-RAM resolution is near diffraction limited (lateral, 0.66 μm, axial 4.09 μm at the center; excitation wavelength = 970 nm; numerical aperture = 0.6) over a large range of excitation wavelengths. A fast threedimensional scanning system allows efficient sampling of neural activity in arbitrary regions of interest across the entire imaging volume. We illustrate the use of the 2p-RAM by imaging neural activity in multiple, non-contiguous brain areas in transgenic mice expressing protein calcium sensors.


"Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor" represents Leonardo Boff's most systematic effort to date to link the spirit of liberation theology with the urgent challenge of ecology. Focusing on the threatened Amazon of his native Brazil, Boff traces the ties that bind the fate of the rain forests with the fate of the Indians and the poor of the land. In this book, readers will find the keys to a new, liberating faith.


In large cities, due to expensive land price, high-rise buildings are built, in which the space dedicated to the elevators is considerable and reduces the rented surfaces. To decrease these lost surfaces, a Multi Mobile System is proposed. It consists of several moving cabins in the same shaft. This paper focuses on the modeling of the power supply of such a system. As the long linear stator is energized per sector, a methodology is proposed to study the complete system. New modules of Simseu software are developed. The obtained results permit to develop a complete control strategy as the next step of the study.


Today digital communication is a natural part of young people's social life. It has increased drastically during the last few years, and there are still a lot of questions about what this means, and how this new media affects communication. This study focuses on young people of 11-13, i.e.the age between children and teenagers, also called tweens. In a large study, the overall aim is to see what communication in the Internet community LunarStorm means to them in their social life. This particular paper reports on the content of the asynchronous communication in the participants' digital guest books, which is one of the main channels for communication between the participants. A group of 15 tweens from a small village in Sweden were studied when communicating in Sweden's largest Internet community, LunarStorm. The research method used was what is usually described as cyber ethnography. The contributions in the participants' digital guest books are not written by the guest book owners themselves, which means that the focus is on the collective aspects of this communication, and not from a specific children's point of view. Qualitative analyses were made of the content of 947 contributions in the participants' guest books in order to make a statistical analysis. Most of the participants' communication was between friends in the same geographical neighbourhood concerning how things are going, what to do, when to meet and similar things. The contributions were divided into three categories: (1) Social chat (2) Chain letters, and (3) Messages incomprehensible to outsiders. The information-category was divided into three sub-categories depending on the emotions expressed. 44% of the total messages were considered as emotionally neutral information, 39% as kind or encouraging, and also with an aim to sort things out, and 6% of the total messages contained insults and elements of anger. Among the younger users of the Internet community LunarStorm, the main reason to participate seems to be to keep in touch with already known friends. Being part of an already existing group continues and develops online. The positive tone among the participants in the community and the possibility to express difficult feelings, which have been reported on earlier from LunarStorm, still seem to be present.


One of the most significant recent changes in Brazilian politics is the inroads made by the Workers' Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores, PT) and other leftist parties into state and municipal governments in the country's most conservative region, the Northeast. An important strand of literature argues that this is due to a transformative strategy anchored in institutional growth, which is based on opening local party directorates. In contrast, this analysis shows that the PT has made gains in the region by segmenting its strategy – that is, by focusing on two well-established political practices. First, the PT has leveraged executive office at higher levels of government (e.g., federal and state) in order to advance at lower levels (e.g., state and municipal). Second, it has constructed pragmatic alliances with opportunistic parties, thus revealing how the migration of opportunist politicians into allied parties allowed entrenched elites to remain in power. This suggests that the Left's subnational advances are less transformative than they seem and could potentially harm democratic consolidation.


In this paper, we present distributed beamformer designs for a cognitive radio network (CRN) consisting of a pair of cognitive (or secondary) transceiver nodes communicating with each other through a set of secondary non-regenerative two-way relays. The secondary network shares the spectrum with a licensed primary user (PU), and operates under a constraint on the maximum interference to the PU, in addition to its own resource and quality of service (QoS) constraints. We propose beamformer designs assuming that the available channel state information (CSI) is imperfect, which reflects realistic scenarios. The performance of proposed designs is robust to the CSI errors. Such robustness is critical in CRNs given the difficulty in acquiring perfect CSI due to loose cooperation between the PUs and the secondary users (SUs), and the need for strict enforcement of PU interference limit. We consider a mean-square error (MSE)-constrained beamformer that minimizes the total relay transmit power and an MSE-balancing beamformer with a constraint on the total relay transmit power. We show that the proposed designs can be reformulated as convex optimization problems that can be solved efficiently. Through numerical simulations, we illustrate the improved performance of the proposed robust designs compared to non-robust designs.


We use the ellipsoidal collapse approximation to investigate the non-linear redshift space evolution of the density field with primordial non-Gaussianity of the local f nl -type. We utilize the joint distribution of eigenvalues of the initial non-Gaussian shear field and evaluate the evolved redshift space probability distribution function (PDF). It is shown that, similar to the real space analysis, the underdense tail of the non-linear redshift space PDF differs significantly from that for Gaussian initial conditions. We also derive the lowest order correction of the Kaiser's formula in the presence of a non-zero f nl .


This chapter addresses some of the control problems involved in animal's visually guided 3D piloting. We formulated explicit control schemes which explain how insects may navigate without requiring any distance or speed measurements. The concept of the optic flow regulator, a feedback control system based on optic flow sensors, is presented. Based on a number of behavioral experiments conducted in our laboratory and elsewhere, we explain how OF regulators suffice to account for various insect flight patterns observed over the ground and over still water, under calm and windy conditions, and in straight or tapered corridors. These control schemes were tested in simulation and implemented onboard two types of insect-like robots, a micro-helicopter and a micro-hovercraft, which behaved very much like insects when placed in similar environments. These robots were all equipped with electro-optic OF sensors inspired by the results of our previous microelectrode studies on the motion sensitive neurons present in the flies' eyes. The simple and parsimonious control schemes described here do without any conventional avionic devices such as radio-altimeters, laser rangefinders, variometers, radars, sonars or GPS receivers. While these control schemes are little demanding in terms of neural resources consistent with their integration in the lessthan-one-milligram insect's brain they show great potential for simplifying the design of aerial and space vehicles, with interesting prospects in weight-reduction and low consumption.


This book presents an up-to-date analysis of ocean-atmosphere interaction. Well known experts examine diverse subjects such as ocean surface waves, air-sea exchange processes, ocean surface mixed layer, water-mass formation, as well as general circulation of the oceans, El Nino and Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and the deep-ocean circulation. Other areas described are basic dynamics, data analysis techniques, numerical modelling, and remote sensing. This book is primarily aimed at graduate and senior undergraduate courses in the area of ocean-atmosphere research.


This is a comparative analysis of maritime law and its administration in five northern European towns. It has often been assumed that there was a common maritime law in northern Europe, shared between skippers and merchants who conducted their business along the North Sea and Baltic littoral. This study examines this assumption by studying the dissemination of law compilations across this region, and by comparing the contents of these and the judgments passed by urban courts in cases of shipwreck, jettison and ship collision. Medieval maritime law has never before been the subject of a major study in the English language. The practice of maritime law has, up until now, largely been ignored. This book is the first to offer a comparison of maritime laws and court proceedings. It is also unique in that it provides a truly comparative history, covering a large geographical area stretching from Aberdeen on the North Sea coast to Reval (present-day Tallinn) in the innermost regions of the Baltic. Key features: overview of all medieval maritime law compilations; an insight into the workings of medieval urban courts; a unique study of maritime law and legal practice; and, comparative approach allows for impactful conclusions on medieval shipping.


Motivated by the desire to image exosolar planets, recent work by us and others has shown that high-contrast imaging can be achieved using specially shaped pupil masks. To date, our masks have been symmetric with respect to a cartesian coordinate system but were not rotationally invariant, thus requiring that one take multiple images at different angles of rotation about the central point in order to obtain high-contrast in all directions. In this talk, we present two new classes of masks that have rotational symmetry and provide high-contrast in all directions with just one image. These masks provide the required 10-10 level of contrast to within 4 λ/Δ of the central point. They are also well-suited for use on ground-based telescopes, and perhaps NGST as well, since they can accommodate central obstructions and associated support spiders.


The current metric for examiner prosecution activity is allowance rate, which is calculated by dividing the total number of allowances by the sum of the allowances and abandonments (allowance rate = total allowance/(total allowances total abandonments)). Importantly, however, allowance rates do not consider an examiner's pending docket. Specifically, allowance rates do not fully capture if the examiner is simply writing office actions thereby prolonging prosecution or allowing cases. This study rectifies this failure by creating and analyzing a dataset that captures every active examiner's current docket. Calculating the Office Action per Grant Ratio (OGR = Total # of Office Actions/Total # of Grants), this study's new metric for measuring patent examiner activity captures not only pending cases, but also helps decipher which examiners are spending their time allowing cases or writing Office Actions. This new metric indirectly helps determine if specific examiners are prolonging prosecution compared with peers within their Art Unit, Workgroup and Technology Center. Using the OGR score, this study elucidates how examiners in certain art units and Workgroups behave- specifically, which examiners in certain art units are more likely to write office actions or allow cases. To calculate the OGR, this study captures 8,537,660 office actions, 2,812,177 granted patents and 1,255,552 abandonments from 9,535 examiners from January 1, 2001 to June 8, 2017.

This study finds that, overall, there is a wide range of OGR scores across the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), commonly ranging from approximately 0.2 to 23. Furthermore, overall, most examiners have an OGR of 3.0 or below, which means that most examiners write 3 Office Actions before granting a patent. These OGR scores roughly correlate to allowance rates, but there are a significant number of examiners that do not have an allowance rate that corresponds with OGR scores. There are more examiners with high OGR scores in Technology Centers 1600 and 1700, which may reflect the complex nature associated with biotechnology and chemical patents. In contrast, there are a higher number of examiners with low OGR scores in Technology Center 2800, which corresponds to Semiconductors, Electrical and Optical Systems and Components.

Interestingly, when broken down into Workgroups, this study finds that there can be large variation in OGR scores. For example, in Technology Center 1600, workgroups 1610 and 1620 have a disproportionate number of examiners with high OGR scores. Similarly, in Technology Center 3600, Workgroups 3620 and 3680 have many examiners with high OGR scores, which is unsurprising since both Workgroups encompass "Data Processing: Financial, Business Practice, Management, or Cost/Price Determination" or business methods type applications.


Cloud services have grown very quickly over the past couple of years, giving consumers and companies the chance to put services, resources and infrastructures in the hands of a provider. There are big security concerns when using cloud services. With the emergence of cloud computing, Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology has undergone a renaissance, enabling computer to computer communications. This study describes use of PKI in cloud computing and provides insights into some of the challenges which cloud-based PKI systems face.


Hydrophobic membrane proteins (MPs) occupy a unique niche in the brain proteome research due to their important physiological roles. Therefore, the extraction, separation, and identification of MPs are of great interest in proteomic analysis. We applied various proteomic techniques to enrich, separate, and analyze the human brain proteome, including membrane proteome. Temperature‐induced phase fractionation with the nonionic surfactant Triton X‐114 was used to simultaneously extract, separate, and concentrate low abundant hydrophobic and high abundant hydrophilic proteins from human brain tissue. The extracted and delipidated proteins were analyzed by two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE). Approximately 600 spots were detected in the gels. In‐solution digestion was performed on 3 kDa spin filters. Tryptic peptides were separated using RP nano‐LC and analyzed using two different high performance mass spectrometers, linear ion trap‐Fourier transform and a linear ion trap‐Orbitrap to reveal the low abundant MPs. In total, 837 and 780 unique proteins were identified by using linear ion trap‐Fourier transform and linear ion trap‐Orbitrap mass spectrometers, respectively. More than 29% of the identified proteins were classified as MPs with significant biological functions such as ion channels and transporters. Our study establishes a simple and rapid shotgun approach for the characterization of the brain proteome, and allows comprehensive analysis of brain membrane proteomes.


A model based on mixed-integer network optimization is developed and applied to the Aguas Group drinking water production and main distribution system. The four sanitary companies owned by the group, which supply nearly all Santiago, Chile, with drinking water, possess an intricate network of hydrological sources, water treatment plants, wells, pipelines and elevation plants, providing profuse alternatives to supply their clients. The Production and Main Distribution Optimization Model (MOPYT) searches for the global optimal provision scheme from an operational costs standpoint, specifically electricity, chemical inputs and extra labour expenses. The model provides weekly benchmarks for the diverse productive quarters. It has also been used for budgetary exercises planned for water demand forecasts. MOPYT has been particularly beneficial for generating consensus among complementary operational areas such as production and main distribution, achieving global costs efficiency.


[4Fe-4S] clusters are one of Nature's most ubiquitous cofactors, playing vital roles in protein structure stabilization, electron transport, catalysis, and sensing. When an enzymatic active site features a [4Fe-4S] cluster, the coordination environment of the cluster is 3:1 site-differentiated, meaning that the ligand or residue coordinated to one of the four iron atoms is markedly different from those coordinated to the other three iron atoms. To study these intriguing metallosites, biomimetic chemists prepare, study, and compare synthetic [4Fe-4S] clusters to their biological counterparts. 3:1 site differentiation in synthetic clusters is usually achieved by the use of tripodal trithiolate ligands, which chelate three of the four iron sites, leaving one iron atom free for further modification. Chapter 1 of this thesis provides an overview of natural and synthetic 3:1 site-differentiated [4Fe-4S] clusters. Chapter 2 presents a new synthetic route to the promising site-differentiating TriSH3 ligand. The route avoids the use of highly toxic reagents and results in an overall yield that is more than double that in the original procedure. TriSH3 reacts with (n-Bu4N)2[Fe4S4(SEt)4] to yield (n-Bu4N)2[Fe4S4(TriS)(SEt)], which in turn reacts with [Fe(tpySH)2](PF6)2 (tpySH = 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine-4'-thiol) to form the first [4Fe-4S] cluster dimer to be linked by a metal-containing bridge. Chapter 3 presents a series of symmetrically substituted [4Fe-4S] clusters with N-substituted indole-3-thiolate ligands, which are monodentate analogues of TriS3–. The new cluster family undergoes 2–/3– redox transitions at potentials midway between the potential ranges in which clusters fully coordinated by all-aliphatic and all-aromatic thiolates generally display redox transitions, and show electronic transitions that are among the most redshifted known in [4Fe-4S] cluster chemistry. Chapter 4 demonstrates that reaction of (n-Bu4N)2[Fe4S4(TriS)(SEt)] with 4-pyridinethiol results in a 3:1 site-differentiated [4Fe-4S] cluster with a pendant pyridyl group, which can subsequently react with the ruthenium porphyrin [Ru(TTP)(CO)(MeOH)] (TTP = 5,10,15,20-tetra(p-tolyl)porphyrinato dianion) to form a [4Fe-4S]-Ru assembly. Furthermore, 19F NMR indicates that the reaction of (n-Bu4N)2[Fe4S4(TriS)(SEt)] with p-fluorothiophenol forms minor side products stemming from decoordination of TriS3– arms, demonstrating the benefits of using 19F NMR to study the substitution behavior of [4Fe-4S] clusters. Chapter 5 presents a new model for the active site of iron-only hydrogenase. The model is the TriS3– analogue of an earlier, LS33–-based model reported by Pickett and co-workers and the change in tripodal ligand has a profound impact on the properties of the mimic as a whole. 1H NMR spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry suggest that the [4Fe-4S] and diiron redox entities in the new model are strongly coupled, as also observed in the natural enzyme. Chapter 6 describes the immobilization of [4Fe-4S] clusters on self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). (n-Bu4N)2[Fe4S4(TriS)(SEt)] can react with the thiol groups at the surface of a mixed SAM, resulting in an immobilizing interaction strong enough to resist extensive washing. The immobilization represents a first step towards studies of [4Fe-4S] clusters at controlled solid-liquid interfaces.


One of the important defined factors affecting the religious behaviors is religious capital for which some indicators have been created. Position generator and resource generator are two cases of such indicators. According to reviews, the effect of this factor on the religious-based behaviors is positive. However, the explanatory variables of various indicators - in addition to reliability and validity - can also be a benchmark for their excellence. Based on the conducted studies, the costs for God's sake is a function of the religious capital. The present study experimentally estimated the effect of religious capital on the costs for God's sake in both separate and comparative forms to analyze the two techniques of position generator and resource generator. The statistical population was the households in the city of Zahedan. The statistical sample was 500 households in 2015. The data was collected in 2016 through interviews and questionnaires. The analysis was performed using econometrics in Eviews software. The findings showed that the religious capital had a positive effect on the costs for God's sake in these households. However, the explanatory variable of position generator was higher. This means that the imported variable of this indicator created a higher meaningfulness for the model. Furthermore, the variable coefficients of the position generator indicators were still significant in the separation of up and down position religious capital, and the variable coefficients of the resource generator indicators were not significant at 10% confidence level.


Working within the context of PT-symmetric quantum mechanics, we begin by describing a non-Hermitian extension of QED that is both Lorentz invariant and consistent with unitarity. We show that the non-Hermitian Dirac mass matrix of this theory exhibits an exceptional point, corresponding to an effectively massless theory whose conserved current is either right- or left-chiral dominated. With this inspiration, we are able to construct a non- Hermitian model of light Dirac neutrino masses from Hermitian and anti-Hermitian Yukawa couplings that are both of order unity. We finish by highlighting potential phenomenological implications of this model.


Climate, groundwater extraction, and surface water flows have complex nonlinear relationships with groundwater level in agricultural regions. To better understand the relative importance of each driver and predict groundwater level change, we develop a new ensemble modeling framework based on spectral analysis, machine learning, and uncertainty analysis, as an alternative to complex and computationally expensive physical models. We apply and evaluate this new approach in the context of two aquifer systems supporting agricultural production in the United States: the High Plains aquifer (HPA) and the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer (MRVA). We select input data sets by using a combination of mutual information, genetic algorithms, and lag analysis, and then use the selected data sets in a Multilayer Perceptron network architecture to simulate seasonal groundwater level change. As expected, model results suggest that irrigation demand has the highest influence on groundwater level change for a majority of the wells. The subset of groundwater observations not used in model training or cross‐validation correlates strongly (R > 0.8) with model results for 88 and 83% of the wells in the HPA and MRVA, respectively. In both aquifer systems, the error in the modeled cumulative groundwater level change during testing (2003–2012) was less than 2 m over a majority of the area. We conclude that our modeling framework can serve as an alternative approach to simulating groundwater level change and water availability, especially in regions where subsurface properties are unknown.


This study examined the contribution to the peer-reviewed literature of library and information science by practicing academic librarians in the United States. Data on authors were obtained from articles published from 1993 to 1997 in thirty-two journals. Of 3,624 peer-reviewed articles in these journals, 1,579 (43.6%) were authored by at least one practicing academic librarian. These librarians represented 386 institutions of higher education. This study provides benchmark data for publication productivity of academic librarians and identifies a core list of peer-reviewed journals for them. Approximately six percent of these librarians wrote three or more articles in the five-year period. In nineteen journals one-third or more of the articles were authored by academic librarians. Libraries from Research I universities that were members of the Association for Research Libraries were the most productive. The contribution of practicing academic librarians to the literature of their field is significant.


Eye movements during natural tasks suggest that observers do not use working memory to capacity but instead use eye movements to acquire relevant information immediately before needed. Results here however, show that this strategy is sensitive to memory load and to observers' expectations about what information will be relevant. Depending upon the predictability of what object features would be needed in a brick sorting task, subjects spontaneously modulated the order in which they sampled and stored visual information using working memory more when the task was predictable and reverting to a just-in-time strategy when the task was unpredictable and the memory load was higher. This self organization was evidenced by subjects' sequence of eye movements and also their sorting decisions following missed feature changes. These results reveal that attentional selection, fixations, and use of working memory reflect a dynamic optimization with respect to a set of constraints, such as task predictablity and memory load. They also reveal that change blindness depends critically on the local task context, by virtue of its influence on the information selected for storage in working memory.


Response to a Problem Coffee was introduced in Acholi and Lango sub-regions in mid-Northern Uganda, by 1997, at first through pressure from political leaders, as an alternative perennial crop to the traditional cotton crop. This was an effort to fight poverty levels - aggravated by effects of a prolonged civil war in this sub-region. Cotton and other annual traditional food crops had little effect on poverty and introducing coffee, as alternative perennial crop was deemed very important to the region. Systematic coffee planting by the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) first as a pilot (around 2001), and subsequently, has had a positive impact in the mid-North sub-region. To date, 16000 farmers in mid-Northern Uganda have planted 5,441 hectares. The current output in the sub-region is 154 metric tons; with a potential output estimated at 16,323 metric tons at peak and stable production level by 2017. The study identified districts with high potential for coffee production in the sub-region such as; Apac, Lira, Nwoya, and Oyam. Enablers UCDA through the elite clonal robusta coffee seedling distribution programme has been the lead agent of change in the transfer of coffee technology in the sub-region. This has been through working partnerships with about 132 low-cost-low- input private nursery operators. The nursery operators are key actors in the transfer of proven high performing elite clonal robusta seedlings to farmers in a cost effective way across 14 districts in the sub-region. This programme has had varied success across the sub-region with pronounced responses in only 5 districts (Lira, Nwoya, Oyam, Kole, and Apac) out of the 14 districts in the sub-region. Coffee Poverty Reduction Evidence The 2009/10 UNPS data reveal a significant household poverty reduction effect from coffee production; through incremental household consumption expenditure. Results further confirm that coffee producing households are associated with lesser poverty incidence compared to non-coffee producers. The interesting evidence we find from the study suggests that coffee production is a pro-poor intervention due to its strong positive impact on per capita consumption expenditure among the poorest households. Self-reported qualitative assessment reveals that coffee farmers feel that their welfare has improved to satisfactory levels from incomes earned from coffee. A farmer (as an individual) needs 1.4 metric tons of kiboko (unprocessed) coffee in a year to earn 1.2 million shillings-UGX (the threshold annual income) to move out of poverty. Challenges to Coffee Production in the Sub-region The UCDA national coffee expansion program anchoring in mid-Northern Uganda is still in its infancy; and faced with the following bottlenecks that need to be addressed to consolidate the proven poverty reduction potential in this sub-region.