A method for the oxidative coupling of arylsilanes with nitrogen nucleophiles is reported. This method occurs with a broad range of heptamethyltrisiloxylarenes and nitrogen nucleophiles, proceeds with the arylsilane as limiting reagent, and does not require a fluoride activator with electron-poor arylsilanes. The combination of this method with C-H silylation generates arylamines from unactivated arenes with site selectivity controlled by steric effects. This combination of steps gives direct access to many compounds that cannot be accessed via alternative C-H functionalization methods, including direct C-H amination or the combination of C-H borylation and amination.


This thesis is a hybrid work that combines the critical and creative components of the Creative Writing PhD in a novel, Feverish. It includes notes, an afterword, and a full bibliography.  Feverish is a novel narrated by Gigi, a writer who wishes to induce a fever in herself. The thesis aims to present more than a fictional account of a quest for fever. It aims, rather to travel with the mind of the protagonist. Gigi is not exclusively engaged in quest-related transactions in her present. Her interest in fever moves her to consider events from her past and her upbringing in Apartheid South Africa. It reminds her of a teenaged fascination with brain fever in Wuthering Heights. It prompts her to research fever-related aspects of psychiatric history and Jewish history. It drives her to research the law on consent to self-harm. As Gigi's interest in fever leads her to these and other topics, so the thesis follows her, so the form adapts.  In both its form and its content, Feverish presents a view into a mind. It provides glimpses of the events that shaped the mind. It describes where the mind goes when in the single-minded grip of a quasi-fever. The novel contains strands of theory, memoir, creative non-fiction, ficto-criticism. These different forms are layered upon each other. At times they make way for each other. At times they assert themselves over each other.  In the notes at the end of the novel, the theoretical strand is at its most assertive. The notes present Gigi's mind at its most critical, when it is directed at supporting the theoretical aspects of her quest. They support Gigi's accounts of her research by providing additional information and citations.  The narrative arc is provided by a chronological account of the days Gigi devotes to her fever quest. What follows here is a skeleton account of the novel.  Feverish opens with a conversation between Gigi and a friend. This conversation spurs Gigi to explore brave artistic acts, and to the decision to induce a fever in herself. She remembers childhood holidays. Books, and in particular the nineteenth-century children's literature that featured fever, are the focal point of these memories. Gigi recalls one particular holiday, taken at a time when a friend of hers, Simon, was just starting to show signs of mental illness.  Gigi starts planning her fever. She writes a 'fever manifesto'. But she worries her siblings will think her insane. She remembers Alberto, a schizophrenic patient of her father's for whom recovery had, according to his parents, been foretold.  Gigi's husband, son and daughter are introduced. The family has a dinnertime discussion on bravery, anti-Semitism and terrorist attacks. Gigi starts researching fever. She imagines a conversation between her deceased father and Simon about Julius Wagner-Jauregg, a Nobel Prize-winning psychiatrist who induced malaria in patients suffering from neurosyphilis. Gigi's father and Simon discuss an historic 'showdown' between Wagner-Jauregg and Freud. Gigi remembers Steve Biko's death and her father's aggressive response to a guest who supported Biko's doctors.  Gigi is distracted from her research into fever by her son, who is vacuuming his room. She tells him a friend of hers is thinking of inducing a fever in herself. He explains the difference between fever and hyperthermia. Gigi realises that, to induce true fever, she will have to become ill. This prompts memories of the meningitis her brother suffered from as a child. Gigi uses Fildes's famous painting, The Doctor as the starting point in an argument for a universal desire to be watched over in illness.  Gigi imagines a conversation she feels she ought to have had with her father, about (mental) illness in Wuthering Heights. They test the characters against each one's ability to empathise with Catherine's 'brain fever'. Their discussion of Nelly's status as servant prompts in Gigi the memory of a shameful childhood act.  A visit from a friend from law school prompts Gigi to research the law that could impact on her quest. She reviews case law relating to consent to self-harm, personal autonomy, and the boundaries of criminal law. Her research is interrupted by domestic concerns: her cat kills an endangered bird; her son writes a fever-related essay for school; she accompanies a friend in looking for her errant daughter.  At the end of the novel Gigi and her family confront a crisis. It becomes clear that Gigi is not the only family member unsettled by fever.


Remotely sensed LiDAR data has become an important tool in the management of modern forest inventories. Monitoring the high frequency changes within forests with this data has been restricted by the cost and intermittent nature of LiDAR surveys. The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) as a remote sensing platform is a rapidly developing field and is capable of allowing highly dynamic environmental changes to be monitored. As such recent studies presented in the literature highlight the potential of UAV systems for forest monitoring. This study further investigates the potential of UAVs by examining the achievable accuracy of a newly developed UAV-borne LiDAR system in comparison to a traditional full scale system. The major contributions to the error budget of a UAV-borne LiDAR system are constrained through the use of a novel UAV specific processing workflow. Central to this workflow is the fusion of observations from a low cost Inertial Measurement Unit, a GPS receiver and a high definition video camera with a Sigma-Point Kalman Smoother allowing for highly accurate estimates of orientation. We found that using this workflow and under certain flying conditions accuracies similar to a modern full-scale system are achievable from this low-cost platform.


Kepler data from G-, K-, and M-type stars are used to study conditions that lead to superflares with energies above 1034 erg. From the 117,661 stars included, 380 show superflares with a total of 1690 such events. We study whether parameters, like effective temperature or rotation rate, have any effect on the superflare occurrence rate or energy. With increasing effective temperature we observe a decrease in the superflare rate, which is analogous to the previous findings of a decrease in dynamo activity with increasing effective temperature. For slowly rotating stars, we find a quadratic increase of the mean occurrence rate with the rotation rate up to a critical point, after which the rate decreases linearly. Motivated by standard dynamo theory, we study the behavior of the relative starspot coverage, approximated as the relative brightness variation. For faster rotating stars, an increased fraction of stars shows higher spot coverage, which leads to higher superflare rates. A turbulent dynamo is used to study the dependence of the Ohmic dissipation as a proxy of the flare energy on the differential rotation or shear rate. The resulting statistics of the dissipation energy as a function of dynamo number is similar to the observed flare statistics as a function of the inverse Rossby number and shows similarly strong fluctuations. This supports the idea that superflares might well be possible for solar-type G stars.


How does an increased presence of immigrants in the workplace affect anti-immigration voting behavior? While cooperative interactions between natives and immigrants can reduce intergroup prejudice, immigrant coworkers might be regarded as a threat to native-born workers' labor market position. We combine detailed Swedish workplace data with precinct-level election outcomes for a large anti-immigration party (the Sweden Democrats) to study how the share of non-Europeans in the workplace affects opposition to immigration. We show that the share of non-Europeans in the workplace has a negative effect on support for the Sweden Democrats and that this effect is solely driven by same-skill contact in small workplaces. We interpret these results as supporting the so-called contact hypothesis: that increased interactions with minorities can reduce opposition to immigration among native-born voters, which, in turn, leads to lower support for anti-immigration parties.


ABSTRACT The tetrazole-functionalised calixdiquinone 5,17-di-tert-butyl-26,28-bis-(1H-tetrazole-5-ylmethoxy)-calix[4]-25,27-diquinone Q was synthesised by chemical oxidation of the bis-tetrazole calix[4]arene precursor using PbO2/HClO4. The single crystal X-ray structure determination of Q confirmed the structure and showed binding of a water molecule in the solid state. Chemical reduction of Q to the dihydroquinone QR was achieved using N,N-diethylhydroxylamine. Comparison of the solution phase photophysical properties of Q or QR in the presence of terbium ions showed significant excitation only with QR, suggesting redox switching of the photophysical response may be possible with this or similar receptor. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


Glucocorticoid hormones suppress the secretion of ACTH evoked by secretagogues such as CRF and arginine vasopressin. In this study, we investigated the effects of glucocorticoids on ACTH release induced by oxytocin (OT) and on intracellular free calcium ion levels in corticotropes prepared from the adenohypophyses of female Wistar rats. Pulsatile additions of physiological concentration of OT (10 nM) to superfused anterior pituitary cells caused pulsatile ACTH release about 4-fold above basal secretion with similar peak amounts of ACTH during subsequent OT pulses. Exposure of the cells to corticosterone (100 nM) or to a selective glucocorticoid receptor agonist RU 28362 (100 nM) for 30 min suppressed OT-stimulated but not basal ACTH release by approximately 60%. Inhibition gradually disappeared during subsequent pulses of OT in the absence of corticosterone. Pretreatment with the selective antagonist RU 38486 (1 microM) completely blocked the inhibitory effect of corticosterone on OT-induced ACTH secretion. Changes in free cytosolic calcium levels in single cultured pituitary cells were measured using the calcium indicator Fura-2. OT caused calcium transients in corticotropes, which were identified by immunocytochemistry. They responded in a similar manner to a second OT stimulus when preincubated for 30 min with corticosterone (1 microM) or with RU 28362 (1 microM). Our data indicate that glucocorticoids, via glucocorticoid receptors, rapidly inhibit OT-stimulated ACTH secretion by corticotropes without affecting intracellular calcium transients due to OT. Therefore, we conclude that rapid inhibition of ACTH release by glucocorticoids interferes with cellular signal transduction beyond the step of calcium mobilization.


Most complex diseases have well-established genetic and non-genetic risk factors. In some instances, these risk factors are likely to interact, whereby their joint effects convey a level of risk that is either significantly more or less than the sum of these risks. Characterizing these gene-environment interactions may help elucidate the biology of complex diseases, as well as to guide strategies for their targeted prevention. In most cases, the detection of gene-environment interactions will require sample sizes in excess of those needed to detect the marginal effects of the genetic and environmental risk factors. Although many con- sortia have been formed, comprising multiple diverse cohorts to detect gene-environment interactions, few robust examples of such interactions have been discovered. This may be because combining data across studies, usually through meta-analysis of summary data from the contributing cohorts, is often a statisti- cally inefficient approach for the detection of gene-environment interactions. Ideally, single, very large and well-genotyped pro- spective cohorts, with validated measures of environmental risk factor and disease outcomes should be used to study interactions. The presence of strong founder effects within those cohorts might further strengthen the capacity to detect novel genetic effects and gene-environment interactions. Access to accurate genealogical data would also aid in studying the diploid nature of the human genome, such as genomic imprinting (parent-of-ori- gin effects). Here we describe two studies from northern Sweden (the GLACIER and VIKING studies) that fulfill these characteristics.


Does the Internet change the balance of power between authoritarian regimes and their domestic opponents? The results of this case study of Egyptian digital activism suggest that the Internet has important effects on authoritarian politics, though not necessarily the kind we have come to expect from popular accounts of online activism. In this dissertation, I argue that what I call Social Media Networks can trigger informational cascades through their interaction effects with independent media outlets and on-the-ground organizers. They do so primarily through the reduction of certain costs of collective action, the transmission capabilities of certain elite nodes in social and online networks, and through changing the diffusion dynamics of information across social networks. An important secondary argument is that while states, including Egypt, have become more adept at surveillance and filtering of online activities, SMNs make it impossible for authoritarian countries to control their media environments in the way that such regimes have typically done so in the past. Case studies of media events in Egypt between 2006 and 2008 explain how SMNs undermine the process of authoritarian media control and why the independent press is critical for claims-making and the building of shared meaning. However, the power of SMNs is not capable of challenging the entrenched repressive capacity of determined states, nor can SMNs be substituted for the difficult work of grassroots organizing. I arrive at this conclusion through a case study of the April 6th Youth Movement, which staged nearly identical strikes on April 6th, 2008, and April 6th, 2009, with divergent results. Therefore, the dissertation concludes that even though SMNs may lead to richer information environments with increased capacity for organizing, the technologies themselves are not determinative of political outcomes. Finally, by studying the use of digital tools by Muslim Brothers and Baha'is, the dissertation argues that SMNs can provide critical public space and create discursive focal points for political and religious minorities. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Political Science First Advisor Ian S. Lustick Second Advisor Robert Vitalis Third Advisor Deborah Wheeler This dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/116


Antarctic marginal seas are the warm tub for the floating extensions of the Antarctic ice sheet. The analysis of a 200-year (1900--2099) integration of a regional ice-ocean model (BRIOS-2.2) forced with the atmospheric output of an IPCC-20C3M scenario simulation with the coupled atmosphere-sea ice-ocean ECHAM5-MPIOM reveals that these seas exhibit significant decadal variability. Changes in bottom salinity on the southern Weddell Sea continental shelf, caused by a variable sea ice cover and related modification of surface waters near the Greenwich Meridian, influence the circulation such that cold waters from the Weddell Sea flush into the southeast Pacific Ocean with varying intensity. The deep temperature signal propagates westward and onto the continental shelves of the Amundsen and Ross Seas. Weddell Sea anomalies thus could be a new aspect to consider at the present search for mechanisms controlling the flow of warmer deep waters towards the floating extensions of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.


Forests have significant economic and ecological value as a provider of ecosystem services, being home to much of the world's biodiversity and supporting the livelihoods of many people. Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD) is a critical component of the overall greenhouse gas emission reductions and now the significance of REDD+ (which is not only about reducing emissions but halting and reversing forest loss), in delivering climate change mitigation benefits along with co-benefits, is increasingly being recognized in global climate negotiations. Northeast India provides a tremendous potential for harnessing REDD+ activities with about 66% of the total geographical area of the region being covered by forests. This paper attempts to explore this potential besides estimating the area available for different options under REDD+ as well as the mitigation potential using COMAP model, overcoming limitations of existing studies or a lack of them. Within this, the status of forests and biodiversity along with drivers of deforestation in north east India are documented and an assessment of the potential for taking up reducing deforestation and degradation and enhancement of carbon stocks and afforestation is conducted both at the state as well as district level. It was found that northeastern states have been experiencing net forest loss during the last few years along with significant scale forest degradation, with Nagaland followed by Arunachal Pradesh offering maximum potential for "reducing deforestation" option under REDD and the total incremental annual mitigation potential of the four REDD+ activities in northeast India being 29.2 MtCO2 for 2030.


Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a genetic disease which affects the red blood cell. Its treatment of is very expensive and some patients go towards the traditional medicine. This work was undertaken to describe sickle patients from some area of Cameroon manage SCD using local food and medicinal plants. Five Cameroon regions which include West; Littoral; Center; East and North were visited and information collected through interview and observation. One hundred and seven families of patients with Sickle Cell Disease families visited answer the information survey. The results of this investigation revealed that the local black beans seeds (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were used by 21 families in the West region while 8 of them used mill wild variety (Fragaria vesca L.). In the Littoral region, 23 families used bitter kola (Garcinia kola H.) and 8 seeds of Annona muricata L. Bitter kola (Garcinia kola H.) is also used by 23 families in Center and 14 in the East regions. The oil of the seeds of neem (Azadirachta indica J.) is used to manage SCD in 10 families in North Cameroon. Administration of these remedies was per os as food or decoction. Present findings provides basis for future research in anti-sickle cell drug development.


This paper proposes a simple focal plane pattern detector architecture using a novel pixel sensor based on the dichromatic vertacolor structure. Additionally, the sensor transfers dichromatic intensity values using a self-timed time-to- first-spike scheme, which provides high dynamic range imaging. The intensity information is transmitted using the address event representation protocol. The spectral information is sampled automatically at each intensity reading in a ratioed way that maintains high dynamic range. A test chip consisting of 20 pixels has been fabricated in 1.5 um 2P 2M CMOS and characterized. The combined pattern detector/ imager core consumes 45 uA at 5 V supply voltage.


Tapinos and Rambukkana uncovered an unexpected pathway to activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) while investigating the response of Schwann cells to long-term infection with the bacillus that causes leprosy. Damage to peripheral nerves, which involves bacterial invasion of nonmyelinating Schwann cells and leads to sensory loss, is one of the key features of leprosy. Tapinos and Rambukkana grew human Schwann cells in primary cultures and found that infection with Mycobacterium leprae stimulated their proliferation and accelerated progression through the G1 phase of the cell cycle. Gene array analysis, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and Western analysis indicated that expression and abundance of the G1 regulator cyclin D1 was increased 30 days after infection. Moreover, overexpression of a cyclin D1 dominant-negative mutant blocked the effects of M. leprae on G1 progression. Infected cells showed increased phosphorylation of ERK1/2 compared with controls, and transfection with a dominant-negative ERK2 protein implicated that kinase in the stimulation of cyclin D1 abundance and cell cycle progression. However, pharmacological and peptide inhibitor analysis indicated that neither the SOS-Ras-Raf-mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, which is critical to growth factor activation of ERK1/2, nor phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling were involved in M. leprae activation of ERK1/2. Rather, M. leprae activated ERK1/2 and thereby stimulated cell proliferation through a pathway involving protein kinase Cε (PKCε)-dependent activation of the Src family tyrosine kinase lymphoid cell kinase (p56Lck). Thus, M. leprae appears to activate a previously unknown pathway to cell proliferation and thereby to provide itself with a niche for long-term survival. N. Tapinos, A. Rambukkana, Insights into regulation of human Schwann cell proliferation by Erk1/2 via a MEK-independent and p56Lck-dependent pathway from leprosy bacilli. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 102, 9188-9193 (2005). [Abstract] [Full Text]


Water spray characteristics, including droplet size and velocity, airborne dust capture potential, and induced airflow quantity for various spray nozzle designs were evaluated to provide basic information for improving spray applications. Water droplet size and velocity characteristics were initially measured by a Phase Doppler Particle Analyzer (PDPA) for hollow cone, full cone, flat fan, and air atomized spray nozzles at similar operating parameters. Airflow inducement and dust capture experiments were also conducted under the same operating parameters to examine any salient features of the spray nozzle type, droplet characteristics, induced airflow, and airborne dust capture. Test results indicate that there are trade offs between airflow inducement and dust capture efficiency. A spray nozzle with a wider discharge angle was observed to induce more airflow, but at reduced dust capture efficiencies. Increasing spray nozzle fluid pressure(s) generally reduced water droplet sizes with concurrent increases in droplet velocity, airflow inducement, and airborne dust capture. Placing a three-sided barrier around the spray nozzles normally reduced spray air induction and increased dust capture efficiency. A direct relationship between airborne dust capture efficiency and spray input power normalized per unit of airflow induced was observed. This information can be utilized to improve the performance of water sprays for reducing airborne dust levels.


To the Editor: Over the past 10 years in North America and western Europe, a resurgence of bedbugs (Cimex lectularius) has occurred (1). Although the basis for this resurgence is unclear, large bedbug infestations have been attributed to increased worldwide travel, altered insecticide management, and increased resistance to pesticides (2). Marginalized populations in large urban centers appear to be disproportionately affected; ≈30% of shelters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, report bedbugs (1). We report recovery of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE) from bedbugs in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Three patients, all residents of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside—an impoverished community in Vancouver with high rates of homelessness, poverty, HIV/AIDS, and injection drug use (3)—were hospitalized and found to be infested with bedbugs. Hypothesizing that these parasites may be vectors for the transmission of antimicrobial drug–resistant pathogens, we collected 5 bedbugs and tested them for drug-resistant organisms. The bedbugs were homogenized and streaked onto standard microbiological media, including 5% sheep blood agar. Bacterial colonies were identified by using conventional and automated microbiological methods, and susceptibility testing was performed in accordance with Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines (4). For 2 patients, VRE was isolated from 1 bedbug each. These bacterial isolates were also resistant to ampicillin, teicoplanin, and aminoglycosides but susceptible to linezolid, quinupristin/dalfopristin, and tetracycline. For 1 other patient, MRSA was isolated from 3 bedbugs. All MRSA isolates had susceptibility patterns consistent with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis type USA300 (susceptible to vancomycin, clindamycin, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxasole, tetracycline, and rifampin; resistant to erythromycin).

Despite investigations of transmissibility of numerous infectious agents, including transmissible blood-borne pathogens such as HIV and hepatitis B and C viruses, to our knowledge, no conclusive evidence has demonstrated disease transmission by bedbugs (5,6). Clinically, bedbug bites have been associated with cutaneous manifestations, most commonly pruritic wheals with a central hemorrhagic punctum (6). Excoriation at the site of a bite can cause further skin abrasion, thereby providing an entry point for colonizing bacteria, which can potentially result in folliculitic or cellulitic superinfections (5). S. aureus, which is commonly found on the skin and can cause cellulitis, has been reported to colonize the salivary glands of bedbugs for as long as 15 days (7). However, although transient and persistent forms of colonization may play a role in disease transmission, we did not differentiate these forms because the clinical bedbug specimens were processed at the time of receipt in the laboratory.

Similar to other cities worldwide, Vancouver has seen an alarming increase in bedbugs, particularly in the Downtown Eastside, where 31% of residents have reported bedbug infestation (8). Enterococci commensally occupy the gastrointestinal tract. The recovery of VRE from bedbugs could result from the relatively unhygienic living conditions encountered in the Downtown Eastside and the high level of interconnectedness between St. Paul's Hospital (where a large pool of patients with VRE colonization/infection reside) and the surrounding community.

MRSA is also a substantial problem in the Downtown Eastside; it has been cultured from 54.8% of skin and soft tissue infections of patients seen at the emergency department of St. Paul's Hospital (9). More recently, among wound infections in injection drug users in this community, 43% were colonized or infected with MRSA consistent with USA300, the predominant community-associated MRSA strain in Vancouver (10). The phenotype of the MRSA recovered from the bedbugs was consistent with community-associated MRSA and identical to that found on antibiograms from patients with MRSA infection who reside in this community. Given the high prevalence of MRSA (particularly USA300) in hotels and rooming houses in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, bedbugs may become colonized with community-associated MRSA. Consequently, these insects may act as a hidden environmental reservoir for MRSA and may promote the spread of MRSA in impoverished and overcrowded communities.

Bedbugs carrying MRSA and/or VRE may have the potential to act as vectors for transmission. Further studies are needed to characterize the association between S. aureus and bedbugs. Bedbug carriage of MRSA, and the portal of entry provided through feeding, suggests a plausible potential mechanism for passive transmission of bacteria during a blood meal. Because of the insect's ability to compromise the skin integrity of its host, and the propensity for S. aureus to invade damaged skin, bedbugs may serve to amplify MRSA infections in impoverished urban communities.


Through virtuoso readings of significant works of American film, television, and fiction, Phillip E. Wegner demonstrates that the period between the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 fostered a unique consciousness and represented a moment of immense historical possibilities now at risk of being forgotten in the midst of the "war on terror." Wegner argues that 9/11 should be understood as a form of what Jacques Lacan called the "second death," an event that repeats an earlier "fall," in this instance the collapse of the Berlin Wall. By describing 9/11 as a repetition, Wegner does not deny its significance. Rather, he argues that it was only with the fall of the towers that the symbolic universe of the Cold War was finally destroyed and a true "new world order," in which the United States assumed disturbing new powers, was put into place.

Wegner shows how phenomena including the debate on globalization, neoliberal notions of the end of history, the explosive growth of the Internet, the efflorescence of new architectural and urban planning projects, developments in literary and cultural production, new turns in theory and philosophy, and the rapid growth of the antiglobalization movement came to characterize the long nineties. He offers readings of some of the most interesting cultural texts of the era: Don DeLillo's White Noise ; Joe Haldeman's Forever trilogy; Octavia Butler's Parable novels; the Terminator films; the movies Fight Club , Independence Day , Cape Fear , and Ghost Dog ; and the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . In so doing, he illuminates fundamental issues concerning narrative, such as how beginnings and endings are recognized and how relationships between events are constructed.


The investigation of membrane proteins, key constituents of cells, is hampered by the difficulty and complexity of their in vitro synthesis, of unpredictable yield. Cell-free synthesis is herein employed to unravel the impact of the expression construct on gene transcription and translation, without the complex regulatory mechanisms of cellular systems. Through the systematic design of plasmids in the immediacy of the start of the target gene, it was possible to identify translation initiation and the conformation of mRNA as the main factors governing the cell-free expression efficiency of the human voltage dependent anion channel (VDAC), a relevant membrane protein in drug-based therapy. A simple translation initiation model was developed to quantitatively assess the expression potential for the designed constructs. A scoring function is proposed that quantifies the feasibility of formation of the translation initiation complex through the ribosome-mRNA hybridization energy and the accessibility of the mRNA segment binding to the ribosome. The scoring function enables to optimize plasmid sequences and semi-quantitatively predict protein expression efficiencies.


Do the economic effects of potential avian flu outbreaks justify policy attention and resource allocation in a poor country like Ethiopia? We address this question by assessing both economywide (macro-level) economic impacts and household (micro-level) livelihood impacts that might be caused by an avian flu outbreak in Ethiopia. Because 1) the prevalent traditional poultry sector is weakly linked to other sectors, 2) livelihoods of the poultry-producing households are diversified, and 3) shocks are idiosyncratic in nature, the study finds that the impacts of an avian flu outbreak are likely to be small and limited to producers who keep larger flocks. Therefore, allotment of funds to prevent the disease must be justified on the grounds of preventing spread of the disease to human populations in Ethiopia and in other countries where it might have more severe economic and health effects. In other words, resource allocation must be justified as a global public good.


As atmospheric concentrations of CO2 rise, the pH of high-latitude oceans is pre- dicted to decrease by 0.3 to 0.5 units by 2100. Several biological consequences of ocean acidifica- tion across this pH range have already been documented in invertebrates and tropical marine fishes. However, little work has been done examining potential responses of the temperate and boreal marine fish species that support major fisheries. In 2 experiments, we examined the growth responses of juvenile walleye pollock Theragra chalcogramma at ambient and 3 elevated CO2 lev- els. In a short-term experiment with yearlings, CO2 treatment had no significant effect on growth or condition after 6 wk of rearing. Elevated CO2 levels (>450 µatm) increased the rate of otolith deposition, but did not affect otolith elemental composition. In a second experiment, growth in length of sub-yearlings over 12 wk at 8°C was 7.2% faster in the 2 higher CO2 treatments (>1200 µatm) than in the lower CO2 treatments (<900 µatm). Growth of sub-yearlings measured during 11 subsequent weeks of rearing at 2.5°C did not differ among CO2 treatments. There was no effect of CO2 treatment on condition factor following either phase of the experiment. Sub- yearling consumption rates were not directly affected by CO2 treatment, confirming that growth at elevated CO2 levels is not maintained through compensatory feeding. While not exhaustive of potential interactive environmental factors, these experiments demonstrate a general resiliency of growth energetics in juvenile walleye pollock to the direct effects of CO2 changes predicted for the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea in the next century.


As a leader in ICT at Orewa College, I was continually aware of the debate amongst staff surrounding the place of ICT teaching and learning at the school. An aspect of this debate was focused on whether specialist ICT subjects should continue to exist at the school. It was from this discussion that the inspiration for this thesis arose. Although Ministry documents (MOE, 1995b; MOE, 2002) provided guidance, what ICT teaching and learning should be occurring seemed vague. This research was a response to a need to find out the best ways for ICT teaching and learning to take place at Orewa College. The importance of this research was highlighted only a week before completion when a Draft Essence Statement for the new Technology curriculum was released (Talk21earn, 2004). This essence statement did not include ICT, and it was stated that this absence was deliberate. If the current Draft Essence statement forms the foundation of the new Technology curriculum, ICT will not be a major focus of any curriculum statement in New Zealand. This thesis is a single site case study that investigates the ways that ICT teaching and learning could take place at Orewa College. A combination of qualitative and quantitative methodology has been utilised within an ethnographic paradigm and triangulation of data collection methods and groups of participants was employed to increase validity of the data . Participants included the staff, parents and students of Orewa College, local employers, representatives from tertiary institutions, contributing schools and other North Shore secondary schools. Data collection methods included document analyses, questionnaires, email interviews, partially structured face-to-face interviews and observations . A need has emerged for a combination of some specialist ICT subjects and some integration of ICT across the curriculum, with some ICT learning taking place in a more osmosis-like discovery method. However, a greater revelation is that a new and evolving pedagogy that ICT teaching and learning needs to take place within has emerged and needs to be integrated into all subjects, including the teaching and learning that takes place within specialist ICT subjects. It is also discovered that the intended flexibility and choice in how ICT teaching and learning should take place has been limited by the current assessment framework. An ongoing partnership between schools and their communities is additionally highlighted as an important part of students' continual learning in the field of ICT.


This is an interesting publication in the sense that it actually contains two texts, one by J Hillis Miller and the other by Manuel Asensi on the work of J Hillis Miller. The first analyzes from a European perspective, the analyses of the second who writes from an American perspective. What is more interesting is that this book has a graphic arrangement in which the two texts of the two authors face one another. As such this endeavour calls for thorough reading, analysis and interpretation in its own right. This will be done at another occasion.


The branchial parasitic isopod Pleurocryptella altalis sp. nov. (Bopyridae: Pseudioninae) is described from the squat lobster host Munidopsis petalorhyncha Baba, 2005. The new species is morphologically similar to Pleurocryptella formosa Bonnier, 1900 and P. wolffi Bourdon, 1972b but can be distinguished based on male characters (differences in head, pleon and uropods) and female characters (differences in barbula, pleopods and pleotelson). The parasite specimens (a female and male pair) were collected with the squat lobster host at a depth of 5060–5130 m from the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, representing the deepest record for any of the 850+ described bopyrid isopod species and for any record of an infested host. Dichotomous identification keys to females and males of Pleurocryptella species and subspecies are provided.


An experiment was conducted in Seed Pathology Center, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh to determine the efficacy of biocontrol means (BAU-Biofungicide, Garlic extract and Neem extract) in controlling seedborne fungal diseases of maize ( Zea mays ). In laboratory experiment, the seeds of maize cultivars cv. Badsha-1, Khai Bhutta, Bornali, Mohor, BARI Bhutta- 5 and BARI Bhutta- 6 were tested by blotter method. The identified  fungi associated with the seeds were A. niger, A. flavus, Fusarium sp ., P. oxalicum , C. lunata and R. stolonifer . The seed samples were treated with BAU-Biofungicide @ 2.5% of seed weight, neem extract@ 1:2 w/v and 1:3 w/v and garlic extract @ 1:2 w/v and 1:3 w/v to control the seed-borne pathogens. The effective results were recorded as regards to the highest germination (84.5%) reflected the lowest disease incidence (4.0%) recorded in BAUBiofungicide treated seeds followed by other treatment. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jesnr.v5i1.11564 J. Environ. Sci. & Natural Resources, 5(1): 117 - 120, 2012


Disseminate, v. [f. L. disseminat- ppl. stem of disseminare to spread abroad, disseminate, f. Dis- I+semen, semin- seed; cf. F. disseminer (14th c. in Littre).] 1. trans. lit. To scatter abroad, as in sowing seed; to spread here and there; to disperse (things) so as to deposit them in all parts. 2. fig. To spread abroad, diffuse, promulgate (opinions, statements, knowledge, etc.). 3. intr. (for refl.) To diffuse itself, spread. Dissemination, n. The action of scattering or spreading abroad seed, or anything likened to it; the fact or condition of being diffused; dispersion, diffusion, promulgation. (1) ********** Academic conversations are now frequently sprinkled with the word 'deconstruction.' Like other novel neologisms--Kierke--gaard's 'leap of faith,' (2) Haeckel's 'ecology,' (3) Kuhn's 'paradigm shift,' (4) or Rawls's 'veil of ignorance, (5)--the use of deconstruction more often than not strays far and wide of its original, intended meaning. In part, this equivocation is due to historical accident: the North American intelligentsia was introduced to Jacques Derrida's thinking more through departments of English and Literature than departments of Philosophy. (6) As a result, the philosophical foundations of deconstruction have been blurred and seemingly forgotten. 'Deconstruction,' a term appropriated by Derrida from Martin Heidegger, (7) is now taken to be a vaguely defined relativistic method of literary criticism which holds that any interpretation of a text is as good as another, rather than a rigorous metaphysics and epistemology. For example, the following definition of deconstruction recently appeared in the program of a highly reputable acting company: "Deconstruction--a theory about language and literature that developed in the 1970s, and is characterized by the notions of textuality and intertext. Briefly, deconstruction says that all the world is text and that because of context, no text's content can really be read or interpreted." (8) As well-intentioned as this author may be, this amorphous type of definition of deconstruction--now prevalent--obscures the rigorous philosophical foundations of the theory. My purpose is to make clear the philosophical foundations of Derrida's theory of deconstruction. Most precisely, deconstruction is Derrida's critique of Plato's metaphysics. To understand deconstruction, we first briefly recapitulate Platonic metaphysics. Second, using Derrida's meticulous reading of the Phaedrus, we examine the way Plato represents writing (grammata) as a drug (pharmakon). Third, we turn to Derrida's critique of Plato. Fourth and finally, we reassert the philosophical status of deconstruction and reassess the contribution of Derrida to Western Philosophy. One caveat: many original theories carry with them a new vocabulary, and Derrida's deconstruction is no exception. For a basic Derridean glossary, see the Appendix. 1. An Ordered Cosmos: Platonic Metaphysics Plato's ontological vision is perfectly teleological, rigidly hierarchical, and beautifully ordered. All that exists is oriented towards an ultimate, eternally unchanging telos which absolutely and ultimately entails the meaning for every existent thing's Being (in the verbal sense). This telos dictates why acorns grow up to be oaks, tadpoles grow into frogs, babies become adults. It explains why acorns, tadpoles, and adults that do not do this are perversions of nature, things that do not manifest what they are supposed to, beings that do not fit into the teleological structure of the cosmos. This telos can be thought of as the Good, the Idea, the Eschaton or the Transcendental Signifier. It is the Sun in the Allegory of the Cave, (9) the realm of the Forms: "It is there that true being dwells, without color or shape, that cannot be touched; reason alone, the soul's pilot, can behold it, and all true knowledge is knowledge thereof," Socrates says. …


Abstract. Alpine glaciers play a key role in our society through the production of freshwater for domestic, industrial and agricultural use. As they are severely affected by climate change, it is of crucial importance to understand their behaviour and monitor their morphological evolution, with the primary aims to estimate ice volume and mass changes. However, the accurate retrieval of glacier morphology changes over time is not an easy task. In this context, the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is of interest to the glaciological community because of their flexibility, fine spatial detail and ease of processing with state-of-the-art software packages, which makes them an ideal candidate to investigate glacier changes. The goal of this work is to assess the accuracy that can be obtained with UAVs observations when comparing volume changes computed from multi-temporal acquisitions on an Alpine glacier, on the basis of a photogrammetric pipeline implemented in Leica Infinity software. The study area is Forni Glacier in Raethian Alps, Italy. Two photogrammetric blocks were acquired in 2014 and 2016 using different UAVs: a fixed-wing drone in 2014 and an in-house multicopter in 2016. Ground Control Points (GCPs) were established only during the 2016 survey which was used to establish the reference datum. Different techniques to co-register the 2014 dataset to the 2016 dataset were applied and compared: 1) using points extracted from the 2016 Dense Point Cloud (DPC) as GCPs for the 2014 DPC generation; 2) shifting and rotating the raw 2014 DPC, using manually digitised common points from the 2014 and 2016 DPCs in Leica Infinity; 3) first manually shifting, then automatically roto-translating with the Iterative Closest Point (ICP) algorithm the raw 2014 DPC in CloudCompare. The investigation shows a good agreement of the three co-registration methods in terms of height and ice volume changes and the potential of UAV data processing with Leica Infinity for glacier monitoring even when the acquisition conditions are problematic (lack of ground control points, sub-optimal image quality).


In today's business environment, firms increasingly think in the context of a supply chain rather than a single factory and operate globally rather than in a single nation. At the same time, we have also witnessed increasing breadth in product ranges and accelerating rates of new product introduction in the marketplace. While there are potentially strong interrelationships between product variety and international supply chain management, the issues have been addressed separately in the research literature. Owing to this shortfall, this study investigates the issue of product variety in the context of international supply networks. More specifically, the study seeks to gain insights on different types of co-ordination and configuration of international supply network and to more deeply understand the impact of, and the interrelationships between, product variety, supply lead-time and demand uncertainty on the performance of an international supply chain. Empirical and simulation studies have been conducted to fulfil the above objectives.

The empirical study involves eleven manufacturing companies in Indonesia, belonging to both Multinational Corporations (MNC) and contract manufacturers, and one company in the UK operating internationally that owns manufacturing units as well as contracting out. The empirical study generated findings on configuration structures, co-ordination policies, and product variety impact and management. Based on their configuration and coordination strategies, MNC supply networks involved in the empirical study can be classified as supply networks that have regional autonomous subsidiaries, regional clusters of subsidiaries and purely global supply network. Contract manufacturers' configurations may change from one selling period to another. More co-ordination efforts are found to be necessary in MNC supply networks compared to contract manufacturer supply networks. Although companies face different challenges with respect to product variety and uncertainties in demand and supply, the evidence shows that product variety principally affects the procurement of materials, as various products require different materials and parts. Product variety also affects production due to the need to conduct set-up activities.

To obtain a deeper understanding of the impacts of product variety, supply lead time and demand uncertainty on supply chain performance, a simulation study has been conducted. A simulation model was developed based on the insights obtained from the empirical study. The model represents a three-stage MNC supply network producing consumer goods in discrete manufacturing processes. Product variety is represented in the model by the use of different types of material required at different stages of the production process. An extensive set of simulation experiments concentrated on flow time and inventory performance.

Results from the simulation experiments show that increases in product variety extend the average flow time due to the need to conduct set-up activities. The impact of product variety on flow time depends on the severity of set-up and the stage at which variety occurs in the production processes. Variety occurring early in the production process and generating long set-up times has a more pernicious impact on average flow time compared to variety occurring later and requiring shorter set-ups.

Supply and demand uncertainty may affect the supply chain performance as it may delay the manufacturing processes. When supply lead-time is subject to uncertainty, materials may not be available at the right time for production. Similarly, demand uncertainty may lead to a situation where the available materials may not be adequate to meet the production requirements. The simulation results show that producing high variety when material delivery time is subject to uncertainty has a damaging impact on the two supply chain performance metrics - flow time and inventory level. The supply chain performance worsens with increasing level of supply uncertainty. Producing high variety when either aggregate-level or product-level demand is subject to uncertainty results in a higher level of inventory and longer average flow time. The worst performance in terms of average flow time and average inventory is evident when the supply chain produces maximum variety and both supply and demand are subject to uncertainty. The simulation study provides a guide to the magnitude of the impact in each case.

Findings from the empirical and simulation study are synthesised into a framework for understanding and managing product variety in international supply chains. The framework can be used to understand interrelationships between key factors in managing product variety in international supply networks and to identify potential strategies to mitigate the negative impact of those factors on performance.


A large literature documents that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms are associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration among adults. However, research on this relationship among adolescents and young adults has been plagued by methodological flaws (e.g., cross-sectional designs). Thus, the purpose of the present study was to examine the longitudinal and bidirectional associations between PTSD symptoms and psychological and physical IPV perpetration from adolesence to young adulthood. A sample of racially and ethnically diverse high school students (N = 1,042; 56% female) were assessed annually for 6 years (from 2010 to 2015 in Southeastern Texas). At each assessment, participants completed measures of PTSD symptoms and psychological and physical IPV perpetration. The mean age of the sample at the first assessment was 15.09 (SD = .79). Structural equation modeling demonstrated that PTSD symptoms at Years 2, 3, and 4 predicted increases in psychological IPV perpetration in the subsequent year. In turn, psychological IPV perpetration at Years 1 and 4 predicted increases in PTSD symptoms in the subsequent years. In addition, psychological IPV perpetration mediated the association between PTSD symptoms and physical IPV perpetration over time. Results were consistent across gender and race/ethnicity. Findings provide initial evidence that PTSD symptoms are associated with IPV perpetration across time from adolescence to young adulthood. Prevention and intervention programs for adolescent and young adult IPV perpetration may benefit from screening for, and potentially treating, PTSD symptoms.


Brief Points Global spending on development aid amounted to approximately 147 billion USD in 2017. We know that while donors are effective at directing aid to the poorest countries, it is often ineffective at reaching the poorest within these countries. However, we do not know how systematic inequalities between identity groups and group exclusion interact with aid distribution. Yet, this relationship has potentially important implications for policy. Development aid has the potential to ameliorate income, as well as to reduce inter-group inequalities when it is distributed to address such systematic differences. On the other hand, aid can also exacerbate already existing group inequalities if these differences are not taken into account. Thus, understanding the determinants of how development aid is distributed within countries is vital. Using data on the location of World Bank aid projects, as well as data on the political status (i.e. excluded or included) of ethnic groups, we address the question: Is development aid more or less likely to be directed towards areas with politically excluded groups? Political Exclusion, Group Inequality and Aid Distribution


Stainless steels have widespread applications due to their good corrosion resistance, but for certain types of large naval constructions, other requirements are imposed such as high strength and toughness, and modified magnetic characteristics. 302 type metastable austenitic stainless steel after solution treatment possesses a fully austenitic microstructure. However, its tensile strength in the solution treated condition, is low. Consequently, cold rolling following solution treatment is applied and results in the strain induced transformation to α'- martensite within the austenitic matrix and enhancement of its tensile strength. Following cold rolling a mixed martensitic-retained austenitic microstructure is obtained. In addition, when ferromagnetic α'-martensite is introduced to an otherwise fully paramagnetic matrix, the magnetic response of the steel changes. The magnetic hysteresis loop for the cold rolled 302 type stainless steel was recorded, under a static field, together with the hysteresis loop obtained for an 817M40 type steel (reference material). It is observed that the 302 type stainless steel shows much lower maximum induction and remanence values, without any increase in the coercivity. TEM examination revealed in greater detail the fine elements of the microstructure of the material. Hexagonal e-martensite forms initially and then at a later stage of deformation α'-martensite forms. This behaviour is typical of 302 type stainless steel deformed below its Md temperature. In addition to conventional electron microscopical investigation, magnetic domain imaging has been performed using the low magnification mode of the TEM. Magnetic domains then appear as lines of dark and light contrasted areas, when the sample is imaged in the out of focus condition.These domain boundaries are present only in the α'-martensite regions and are normally oriented at an angle to the long axis of the martensite lath. It has been identified that significant reductions in the maximum magnetic induction and remanence values can be achieved when a 302 type stainless steel is substituted for the conventional types of low alloy medium carbon steel. These changes can be attributed to the paramagnetic austenite fraction and the magnetic domain structure existing within the α'-martensite areas (ferromagnetic phase). There was no magnetic domain structure within the paramagnetic e-martensite region.


ETC (electronic toll collection) is an electronic automatism toll collection system that was been researching by the world used in the highway, bridge and tunnel. Throwing information change between electronic labels that held vehicle and RFID antennas that was fixed the roadside or door frame, the center control computer can identify the road user by the information stored in the electronic label and deduct the pike from the road user advance stored card or bank account. Its obvious advantage is no parking troll collection. Thereby it can significantly improve the dispose efficiency of the toll station and the traffic ability of toll road.


* Brings the past to life in an attractive and easy to use city guide *Fully illustrated with colour photos and clear fold-out maps *Presents the important sites of Nazi history in Berlin History has indelibly imprinted itself onto the cityscape of Berlin- the period of the Nazi regime in particular. The many air raids and the destruction wrought during the final Battle of Berlin have left their traces, as have the Nazis' megalomaniac restructuring plans to transform Berlin into the future world metropolis 'Germania'. Maik Kopleck's Pastfinder pinpoints the well-known and lesser known sites of Nazi history in Berlin, whilst providing a concise account of the historic events and introducing the most important personalities connected to these places. You will find for example the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe; the sinister Euthanasia Centre; the Memorial for Members of the German Underground Resistance; the Swastika Forest; the Nazi Brothel'Salon Kitty', the home of Joseph Goebbels; he infamous 'Fuhrer Bunker', and the numerous forced labour camps. The many maps and clear graphic design let you put together your own sightseeing tour and provide quick orientation at each location.


RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM) is a conserved mechanism for epigenetic silencing of transposons and other repetitive elements. We report that the rdm4 (RNA-directed DNA Methylation4) mutation not only impairs RdDM, but also causes pleiotropic developmental defects in Arabidopsis. Both RNA polymerase II (Pol II)- and Pol V-dependent transcripts are affected in the rdm4 mutant. RDM4 encodes a novel protein that is conserved from yeast to humans and interacts with Pol II and Pol V in plants. Our results suggest that RDM4 functions in epigenetic regulation and plant development by serving as a transcriptional regulator for RNA Pol V and Pol II, respectively.


The theory of $J$-holomorphic curves has been of great importance since its introduction by Gromov in 1985. In mathematics, its applications include many key results in symplectic topology. It was also one of the main inspirations for the creation of Floer homology. In mathematical physics, it provides a natural context in which to define Gromov-Witten invariants and quantum cohomology, two important ingredients of the mirror symmetry conjecture. The main goal of this book is to establish the fundamental theorems of the subject in full and rigourous detail. In particular, the book contains complete proofs of Gromov's compactness theorem for spheres, of the gluing theorem for spheres, and of the associatively of quantum multiplication in the semipositive case. The book can also serve as an introduction to current work in symplectic topology: there are two long chapters on applications, one concentrating on classical results in symplectic topology and the other concerned with quantum cohomology. The last chapter sketches some recent developments in Floer theory. The five appendices of the book provide necessary background related to the classical theory of linear elliptic operators, Fredholm theory, Sobolev spaces, as well as a discussion of the moduli space of genus zero stable curves and a proof of the positivity of intersections of $J$-holomorphic curves in four-dimensional manifolds. The second edition clarifies various arguments, corrects several mistakes in the first edition, includes some additional results in Chapter 10 and Appendices C and D, and updates the references to recent developments.


Most of the prior studies concentrated on warning letters issued for clinical investigation, Institutional review board, and infringement of promotional claims, no studies assessed the warning letters issued for infringements of Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) pertaining to medical devices. Hence, there is a need to carry out a crosssectional study of these warning letters. Publically available U.S. Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) letters under the law of the freedom of Information Act sent to the pharmaceutical company were accessed from the USFDA website. A standard data collection tool (Excel Spreadsheet) with all letters of warning issued from January 2008 to July 2018 was developed. Letters have been manually screened. Warning letters related to medical device breaches of cGMP were screened based on the letter's subject and content. Overall, 669 warning letters issued for medical device cGMP violations were reviewed between January 2008 and November 2018. From 2008 to 2013, there was a downward trend in the issuance of warning letters. The number of warning letters issued in 2014 was 101, followed by 106 in 2015, as the USFDA focused more on data integrity issues, while the number decreased to 53, 27, and 19, respectively, in 2016, 2017, and 2018. The highest number of warning letters were issued to manufacturers located in the USA (379), followed by Canada (52), and China (37). Section 820.30 of Title 21 CFR was found to be most violated with 603 infringements. This section represents the design control requirements for cGMP. Class 2 type of medical devices were found to be most violated (82%), followed by Class 3 with 7%. Only 32% of the companies responded to the warning letters although 52% Not Issued the closeout letter followed by 16% of the letters were considered as non-applicable letters. With the time, scientific developments and increased awareness of both regulatory authorities and industries/ academic organizations, overall improvement are observed with significant decrease in the number of warning letters.


This thesis takes a new look at the art of ancient Champa. Breaking away from traditional
studies, it looks at the art not in its ancient Cham context, but rather through its present and
recent past contexts.
The study asks "What exactly is Cham art?" To answer this, I examine not only the artworks, but
also the museums and exhibitions, the display and classification.
After an introduction explaining the background to the research, Chapter 2 contrasts two statues
of Ganesh in French museums, tracing their biographies and questioning what constitutes Cham
art. In Chapter 3, I examine the architectural line-drawings of Henri Parmentier, which have
represented Ancient Champa visually for over a century, revealing the complex temporality
within which they mediate between the present and multiple pasts.
Chapter 4 looks at the history of the Danang Cham Sculpture Museum through the choices and
decisions of the men who have shaped Cham art into what it is today. In Chapter 5 I investigate
how Cham art was displayed in a series of exhibitions in museums and a department store
basement in the United States, Paris and Brussels, while Chapter 6 is a study of a major Cham
exhibition at the Musee Guimet, examining its narrative threads and historical and colonial
interconnections and its implications for Cham art history.
I conclude that Cham art is much more than just the physical traces of the Cham past. It is the
preserving, displacing, labelling, copying, interpreting and displaying of the art that makes it
what it is just as much as its original functions. I suggest, therefore, that the field of Cham art
studies as we understand and view it today is actually something of our own invention, a largely
20th century construct. We do not yet know, therefore, what the Ancient Cham art of the future
will be.


Signal transmission by many cell surface receptors results in the activation of phosphoinositide (PI) 3-kinases that phosphorylate the 3′ position of polyphosphoinositides. From a screen for mouse proteins that bind phosphoinositides, the protein GRP1 was identified. GRP1 binds phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate [PtdIns(3,4,5)P3] through a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain and displays a region of high sequence similarity to the yeast Sec7 protein. The PH domain of the closely related protein cytohesin-1, which, through its Sec7 homology domain, regulates integrin β2 and catalyzes guanine nucleotide exchange of the small guanine nucleotide-binding protein ARF1, was also found to specifically bind PtdIns(3,4,5)P3. GRP1 and cytohesin-1 appear to connect receptor-activated PI 3-kinase signaling pathways with proteins that mediate biological responses such as cell adhesion and membrane trafficking.


Health measures are decisive for the development and implementation of population health policies. Monitoring health indicators can lead to improvements in health and decrease in the inequalities among subpopulations. The life expectancy at birth for the Moldovan population did not increase considerably during the last decades, due to the social and economic crisis which led to high mortality and poor health. In Moldova, no aggregated health indicators are utilized for health monitoring. Therefore, the authors calculated health indicators to assess the population health and argue their importance. Mortality and subjective data on self-perceived health and self-rated morbidity from the Household Budget Survey was used for constructing period morbidity-mortality tables. Thus, the authors applied Sullivan's method to calculate the life expectancy in very good/good/fair health and the life expectancy without chronic morbidity for the period 2006–2015. The life expectancies in very good/good/fair health showed a compression of morbidity in the older ages for both sexes, and for rural and urban types of residence. The life expectancies without chronic morbidity for males and for urban dwellers demonstrated an expansion of morbidity. Although the life expectancy is slowly increasing, the trends in population health are contradictory, depending on the applied measures. The health expectancy indicators, based on self-perceived health, depict the actual situation in the population health. These indicators are becoming more essential with the ageing process and can be used for the tailoring of social and health policies and services to the real needs of the population.


The performance levels of fundamental (i.e., operational and formal) and advanced (i.e., information and strategic) Internet skills and their potential predictors were assessed among a sample of Dutch primary school children. The findings suggest that primary school children possess sufficient levels of fundamental but not advanced Internet skills and, hence, might not be able to make best use of important opportunities the Internet has to offer. Children employed very ineffective and inefficient search strategies and did not combine information to make beneficial decisions. Contrary to previous survey research findings, no performance differences among boys and girls were revealed when using actual performance tests. Training programs to support advanced Internet skills among primary school children should be considered.


The Nature and Origin of Pebble Dikes and Associated Alteration: Tintic Mining District (Ag-Pb-Zn), Utah Douglas M. Johnson Department of Geological Sciences, BYU Master of Science In many ore deposits throughout the world, brecciation often accompanies or occurs in association with mineralization (Sillitoe, 1985). Such is the case in the Tintic Mining District (AgPb-Zn) of north-central Utah, where unique breccia features called pebble dikes occur alongside significant mineralization. Pebble dikes are tabular bodies of breccia, which consist of angular to rounded clasts of quartzite, shale, carbonate, and minor igneous rock cemented in a fine-grained clastic matrix. All clasts now lie above or adjacent to corresponding source rocks. Dikes are thin, typically less than 0.3 m wide to as much as 1 m, and can exceed 100 m in length. The average of the largest clast sizes is less than 3 cm but correlates positively with pebble dike width. Contacts are sharp and an envelope of fine breccia surrounds roughly half of the dikes. Pebble dikes are mostly hosted in an Eocene rhyolite lava flow, which displays argillic to silicic alteration when in contact with a pebble dike, but are also hosted in an assortment of folded Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. The dikes show a strong northeast trend in orientation, following a regional fabric of northeast-trending strike-slip and oblique-slip faults. The formation of pebble dikes has been historically attributed to the intrusion of the Silver City Stock, the Tintic District's main productive intrusion (Morris and Lovering, 1979; Hildreth and Hannah, 1996; Kim, 1997; Krahulec and Briggs, 2006). However, pebble dikes are spatially associated with a previously unrecognized porphyritic unit, informally named the porphyry of North Lily, which is texturally, mineralogically, and chemically distinct from the Silver City Stock, and like pebble dikes, is emplaced in northeast-trending plugs and dikes. Pebble dikes show a strong spatial correlation to outcrops of the porphyry of North Lily. Additionally, clasts of the porphyry of North Lily have been found in pebble dikes, while pebble dike quartzite clasts have been found as xenoliths in the porphyry of North Lily. These similarities and interactions suggest simultaneous formation. Low-grade alteration associated with pebble dikes indicates that they formed at elevated temperatures (<150°C). Stable isotope characteristics of rhyolite altered during the emplacement of pebble dikes suggests that the dikes formed in the presence of heated groundwater, with little to no magmatic water association. The overall physical, spatial, and chemical characteristics of pebble dikes of the Tintic Mining District suggest that they formed by the mobilization of breccia in the explosive escape of groundwater that had been heated by the porphyry of North Lily. This escape occurred along pre-existing northeast-trending faults and fractures. Pebble dikes then became pathways for later ore fluids, easing the creation of the district's abundant mineral resources.


The Ontario Water Resources Act requires a Permit To Take Water (PTTW) for withdrawals greater than 50,000 L/day. The permitting process includes a requirement to minimize the environmental effects of the withdrawal, but does not include a specific framework to do so. A methodology is proposed for estimating the water supply, the water demand, both anthropogenic and ecological, and the amount available for withdrawal. Water supply is estimated using statistical analysis of recorded daily flows in the watershed of interest, in adjacent watersheds, and in the region. Anthropogenic demand is given by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment's PTTW database. Ecological demand is also estimated using statistical analysis of recorded daily flows, and through field measurement methods such as the Wetted Perimeter method. A case study of Millhaven Creek in eastern Ontario shows that the methodology is appropriate for this area and, with minor modifications, would apply to the rest of Ontario. Evaluation of the existing methods for water supply estimation showed that using long-term data for analysis is the best method, and that the regional analysis work completed for Ontario is out of data and needs revising. Estimation methods for ecological demand are not necessarily appropriate for all areas. A single instream flow requirement based on the Mean Annual Flow is not appropriate for Millhaven Creek, and even a set of flows based on Mean Monthly Flows needs modification to be acceptable for Millhaven Creek. Supply minus demand varies from month to month, and therefore the decision on whether to issue a permit depends on the season as well as the duration of the withdrawal (e.g. seasonal vs. continuous) and type of use proposed (e.g. golf course irrigation vs. municipal drinking water).


The tension between the law on foreign investment and environmental concerns of host states has been increasingly recognised. There are circumstances where a host state's environmental measures result in the restriction of foreign investors' interests and a dispute between the affected investor and the host state reaches investment treaty arbitration. In such 'environment-investment' conflicts, there has been a tendency among arbitral tribunals to prioritise investors' interests over environmental concerns of host states.
This thesis proposes a way to redress the existing Imbalance between the protection of foreign investment and environmental protection in investment treaty arbitration. It proposes 'interpretative linkage', that is. linking certain international environmental norms to investment treaties through the interpretation of investment protection provisions, as a means to seek a balance between them. This thesis focuses on the precautionary principle, the polluter pays principle and the principle of sustainable development as the former, and provisions on expropriation and the fair and equitable standard of treatment as the latter.
This thesis first establishes the theoretical bases for interpretative linkage by examining: (i) the openness of the investment treaty arbitration regime towards 'external' international norms; (ii) the legal status of the three environmental principles and ways by which these principles may influence treaty interpretation; and (iii) certain interpretative rules that promote interpretative linkage. It then examines how expropriation provisions and the fair and equitable standard of treatment should be interpreted in the light of the three environmental principles where bona fide environmental measures are concerned. The central argument is that these principles, if used in the proper context in interpretative linkage, can be potent tools for achieving a shift towards greener interpretation and therefore contribute to more environmentally sensitive outcomes.


Science looks for the simplest hypotheses to explain observations. Starting with the simple assumption that {\em the actual world is the best possible world}, I sketch an {\it Optimal Argument for the Existence of God}, that the sufferings in our universe would not be consistent with its being alone the best possible world, but the total world could be the best possible if it includes an omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent God who experiences great value in creating and knowing a universe with great mathematical elegance, even though such a universe has suffering.
God seems loathe to violate elegant laws of physics that He has chosen to use in His creation, such as Maxwell's equations for electromagnetism or Einstein's equations of general relativity for gravity within their classical domains of applicability, even if their violation could greatly reduce human suffering (e.g., from falls). If indeed God is similarly loathe to violate quantum unitarity (though such violations by judicious collapses of the wavefunction could greatly reduce human suffering by always choosing only favorable outcomes), the resulting unitary evolution would lead to an Everett multiverse of `many worlds', meaning many different quasiclassical histories beyond the quasiclassical history that each of us can observe over his or her lifetime. This is a theological argument for one reason why God might prefer to create a multiverse much broader than what one normally thinks of for a history of the universe.


PURPOSE
Quantitative analysis of right ventricle (RV) motion is important for study of the mechanism of congenital and acquired diseases. Unlike left ventricle (LV), motion estimation of RV is more difficult because of its complex shape and thin myocardium. Although attempts of finite element models on MR images and speckle tracking on echocardiography have shown promising results on RV strain analysis, these methods can be improved since the temporal smoothness of the motion is not considered.

METHODS
The authors have proposed a temporally diffeomorphic motion estimation method in which a spatiotemporal transformation is estimated by optimization of a registration energy functional of the velocity field in their earlier work. The proposed motion estimation method is a fully automatic process for general image sequences. The authors apply the method by combining with a semiautomatic myocardium segmentation method to the RV strain analysis of three-dimensional (3D) echocardiographic sequences of five open-chest pigs under different steady states.

RESULTS
The authors compare the peak two-point strains derived by their method with those estimated from the sonomicrometry, the results show that they have high correlation. The motion of the right ventricular free wall is studied by using segmental strains. The baseline sequence results show that the segmental strains in their methods are consistent with results obtained by other image modalities such as MRI. The image sequences of pacing steady states show that segments with the largest strain variation coincide with the pacing sites.

CONCLUSIONS
The high correlation of the peak two-point strains of their method and sonomicrometry under different steady states demonstrates that their RV motion estimation has high accuracy. The closeness of the segmental strain of their method to those from MRI shows the feasibility of their method in the study of RV function by using 3D echocardiography. The strain analysis of the pacing steady states shows the potential utility of their method in study on RV diseases.


Aston Business School (ABS) has offered four-year sandwich degrees (including a year long placement) for over 30 years, and ABS has often been ranked top for graduate employability. This report outlines the activities ABS uses to meet its ever increasing placement targets. ABS builds relationships in students' thinking between theory and practice, and this has implications for their study, the placement period and beyond. Developing the links has certainly been a factor in the enhanced employabilility of ABS graduates, resulting in ABS having been ranked top for graduate employability for many years. The eight employability skills used as the basis for the placement preparation objectives originate from Smith at al's (2002) work on employability. We were encouraged to find that these employability skills overlap with the benchmark of the 'Profile summary for Business and Management' outlined by Hawkridge (2005). In this case study we provide a rationale and then the objectives of the placement preparation period, followed by specific details of the preparation process. The evaluation highlights key achievements and areas for development, and the discussion is future-focused. Readers should note that the ABS Undergraduate curriculum is aimed at preparing students for employment but this case study focuses on the role of the Placements Team.


Semi-supervised few-shot learning consists in training a classifier to adapt to new tasks with limited labeled data and a fixed quantity of unlabeled data. Many sophisticated methods have been developed to address the challenges this problem comprises. In this paper, we propose a simple but quite effective approach to predict accurate negative pseudo-labels of unlabeled data from an indirect learning perspective, and then augment the extremely label-constrained support set in few-shot classification tasks. Our approach can be implemented in just few lines of code by only using off-the-shelf operations, yet it is able to outperform state-of-the-art methods on four benchmark datasets.


In late 2019, a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV2) evolved in Wuhan city of China, which rapidly surfaced across the globe conducing to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic The SARS-CoV-2 infection may progress from mild to severe and critically state, however a plethora of cases are either asymptomatic or mild An excessive release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines delineates the severity of the disease and the condition is called as the cytokine storm The multiplication of the virus and depletion of T cells up-regulates the macrophages and monocytes to generate the cytokine storm Tremendous efforts are being made to unearth an effective and efficient therapeutic strategy to contain the pandemic These attempts are focused on discovering a vaccine, virus elimination, interrupting the virus-host interaction or host modulations and many of them have demonstrated good clinical prognosis The delivery approach of a potential drug is also pivotal into the bargain Drug administration off target will not only deteriorate the ability but also delay the mechanism of action of that molecule Synthetic nanosilicates (Laponite XLG) nanoparticles possesses a dichotic charge that makes them a classic drug carrier for targeted and sustained drug release However, drug delivery into the lungs using only nanosilicates may be ineffective, as these particles will be cleared off from the pulmonary passage due their Nano size Therefore, a mucoadhesive polymer like chitosan may serve as a secondary carrier to the drug loaded nanosilicates and can deliver the molecules at the targeted biological site This nano-in-micro drug delivery system may tailor the therapeutic modality of SARS-CoV-2 infection and establish good clinical outcomes © 2020 Ubiquity Press All rights reserved


The Paris Agreement establishes a cycle where parties submit their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) every five years. First-round NDCs fail to put emissions on a path consistent with achieving the Agreement's 2°C goal. This article presents a formal, dynamic model of reciprocity-based collective action among states and investigates the conditions under which the Paris process might deliver sufficient ambition ratchet-up to achieve the 2°C goal. The model is run under various assumptions about parties' (1) willingness to increase ambition as a function of what others promise and deliver, (2) compliance with promises, (3) trust in the outcome of the review process, and (4) trust in the outcome of the periodic global stocktake. The results show that the Paris process delivers sufficient ambition ratchet-up to achieve the 2°C goal only under a very restricted set of conditions. At minimum, parties need to increase ambition by 4 percent of global emissions when they submit, confirm, or revise their 2030 targets in 2020.


During the first year of life, infants start to learn various properties of their native language. Among these properties are phonotactic constraints, which state the permissible sound sequences within the words of the language (e.g., Dutch words typically do not contain the sequence 'pf'). Such constraints guide infants' search for words in continuous speech, thereby facilitating the development of the mental lexicon. An intriguing problem is how infants are able to acquire knowledge of phonotactics. This dissertation proposes a computational model of phonotactic learning, which is based on psycholinguistic findings. The model connects two learning mechanisms: statistical learning and feature-based generalization. Using these mechanisms, phonotactic constraints with varying levels of generality are induced from transcribed utterances of continuous speech. The constraints are subsequently used for the detection of word boundaries. The computational model, StaGe (Statistical learning and Generalization), induces biphone constraints through the statistical analysis of segment co-occurrences in continuous speech (Frequency-Driven Constraint Induction), and generalizes over phonologically similar biphone constraints to create more general, natural-class-based constraints (Single-Feature Abstraction). The model learns phonotactic constraints of two types: markedness constraints (*xy) and contiguity constraints (Contig-IO(xy)). The former type exerts pressure towards the insertion of boundaries into the speech stream, while the latter type militates against the insertion of boundaries. Conflicts between constraints are resolved using principles of Optimality Theory. The model is tested in various empirical studies. A series of computer simulations demonstrate that a crucial property of the model, feature-based generalization, improves the segmentation performance of the learner. In addition, StaGe provides a learnability account of a constraint from theoretical phonology, OCP-Place, and of its effect on human segmentation. A detailed analysis of the constraint set that is induced by StaGe reveals that the model learns constraints that resemble OCP-Place through abstractions over statistical patterns found in continuous speech. Moreover, these simulations show that both specific and abstract phonotactic constraints are needed to account for human segmentation behavior. The psychological plausibility of the phonotactic learning approach is addressed in a series of artificial language learning experiments with adult participants. It was found that human learners can induce novel phonotactics from continuous speech. The results were limited to constraints on specific consonants. No evidence was found for feature-based generalization to novel consonants (i.e., consonants not presented during training). This null result was possibly due to perceptual confusion. This dissertation demonstrates that phonotactic constraints can be learned from continuous speech by combining mechanisms that are available to language learners. The computational model provides a better account of speech segmentation than models that rely solely on statistical learning. With respect to human learning capacities, the dissertation shows that adult learners can induce novel phonotactic constraints from a continuous speech stream from an artificial language. By combining computational modeling with psycholinguistic experiments, this dissertation contributes to our understanding of the mechanisms involved in early language acquisition


Autoimmune hepatitis has been recognised since 1940s and was then known as chronic active hepatitis (CAH), described as a novel form of hepatitis found in females noted to have hypergammaglobulinaemia. In the 1960s it was noted to respond to corticosteroids, and in 1993, AIH was endorsed as a clinical entity.
AIH is an unresolving chronic inflammatory condition of the liver resulting from an unknown cause. For this to happen there is a complex interaction of trigger factors, autoantigens, genetic predispositions, and immune-regulatory systems.
AIH is characterized by interface hepatitis and piecemeal necrosis, with a plasmalymphocytic infiltration on histological examination. In addition to this there is increased immunoglobulin G (IgG), elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, and liver specific and non-liver specific autoantibodies autoantibodies in the serum.
A quick diagnosis and immunosuppressive therapy in patients with AIH can contain the disease activity and result in a normal life expectancy. Early diagnosis however can prove very difficult because of the heterogeneous nature of the clinical picture and the fact that there is no specific tests applicable to all patients.


Persons with disability Act (ACT 715) makes it mandatory to put up buildings that are disabled friendly but most designers and contractors in Ghana fail to factor the disabled people in the design and construction of infrastructure. In most cases where attention has been given, the provision of the person with disability has been misconstrued by some building industry players to mean provision of ramps to ground floors. After the passage of the persons with disability Act, in 2006, it has become necessary that all public buildings in Ghana have to be designed and built to incorporate the required features that will aid the disabled to have a comfortable access to all public places. This study is therefore carried out to investigate into the state of public buildings in Ghana after the passage of the persons with disability Act (ACT 715) with particular emphasis on public tertiary educational institution buildings in Ghana. To achieve the study objectives, the paper adopted research survey method which includes the use of questionnaire and interview conducted among Contractors and Clients representatives as well as officials from the Law Enforcing Agency who are directly involved in the construction of public buildings. The study considered four public tertiary institutions and the type of buildings considered under these institutions are lecture halls, studentsâ?? hostel, offices and residential flats for staff. The results showed that though the disability law has been passed, out of 31 buildings investigated, 9.68% of the buildings were fully factored with disability facilities, 67.74% partially factored and 22.58% not factored at all. The study concluded that law enforcing agency should ensure that construction professionals fully factor disabled people in their building designs and construction. Massive education should also be given to the general public and clients about the need to make buildings disabled friendly.


The construction and function of flagella in eukaryotes is often vital to feeding, survival and reproduction. The last 15 years has seen a realisation that some eukaryotes, which contain the majority of eukaryotic biodiversity, possess flagella that play a function as sensory antennae. There are ongoing attempts to elucidate these sensory mechanisms, which allow cells to perceive and respond to external stimuli. This is also important in a medical context, as many cells throughout the human body build cilia as a motile or sensory apparatus, which if defective, can result in genetic syndromes known as ciliopathies. Ciliopathies have been shown to predispose individuals to chronic health conditions, including cancer, obesity and diabetes.

The predatory amoeba Naegleria gruberi is capable of a transformation, in which the cell differentiates into a motile flagellate cell. This occurs via assembly of two flagella and a microtubule-based cytoskeleton de novo, in response to environmental cues such as nutriment deficit. With the advent of whole genome sequencing, the genome of N. gruberi has been decoded, revealing an intriguingly large repertoire of metabolic pathway and sensory signaling proteins. RNA microarray studies have revealed that a large number of these proteins are developmentally regulated throughout the differentiation process, which suggests that the flagellate form of Naegleria is likely well equipped for perception of environmental conditions. This stands to reason, as the primary role of the temporary flagellate form is to find a new habitable environment before the cell expires, in order to resume amoebic growth and proliferation.

Throughout the MSc a bioinformatic analysis of various serpentine receptor proteins was carried out, utilizing previously published microarray data, to categorise these proteins by expression levels and expression patterns during the differentiation process. I also studied the effects of different environmental triggers upon differentiation and encystment of N. gruberi, with the intent to elucidate how vastly different environmental conditions would influence the ameboflagellate differentiation sensory response. Finally, the purification of recombinant proteins of interest was carried out, with the aim to later localise these proteins via immunolocalization and biochemical fractionation, to assess the sensory capability of the flagellum of N. gruberi both during and after differentiation.


This article argues that some currently influential liberal-culturalist discourses tend to underplay the direct link between violent street crime, economic marginalization and the more ruthless adaptive aspects of advanced capitalist culture. In doing so they consistently reify the state, misconstrue its social role and represent its decline as a fait accompli. There is also a tendency to misrepresent the relative and moderate success in reducing street violence that it once achieved by using its political mandate to help maintain underlying economic stability above the required threshold. Underneath these discourses is a tacit political endorsement of the global neo-liberal project that is revealed by their collusion in the political neutralization of populations and the delegitimization of the potentially democratic state and its vital role in socio-economic stabilization and violence reduction.


The first half of the twentieth century was fraught with global tensions and political machinations. However, for all the destruction in that period, these geopolitical conditions in Manchuria cultivated an extraordinary variety of architecture and urban planning, which has completely escaped international attention until now. With over forty carefully chosen images, Ultra-Modernism: Architecture and Modernity in Manchuria is the first book in English that illustrates Manchuria's encounter with modernity through its built environment. Edward Denison and Guangyu Ren take readers through Russia's early territorial claims, Japan's construction of the South Manchuria Railway (SMR), and the establishment of Manchukuo in 1932. The book examines in detail the creation of modern cities along the SMR and focuses on three of the most important modern urban centres in Manchuria: the Russian-dominated city of Harbin, the port of Dalian, and the new capital of Manchukuo, Hsinking (Changchun). Like so much of the world outside 'the West' during the twentieth century, Manchuria's encounter with modernity is merely a faint whisper drowned out by the deafening master narrative of Western-centric modernism. This book attempts to redress an imbalance in the modern history of China by studying the impact of Japan on architecture and planning beyond the depredations of the Sino-Japanese War.


Non-tenure track faculty are a growing majority in American higher education, but research examining their work lives is limited. Moreover, the theoretical frameworks commonly used by scholars have been critiqued for reliance on ideologically charged assumptions. Using a conceptual model developed from Hackman and Oldham's (1980) Job Characteristics Model (JCM) and prior research on faculty workplace experiences, this study considers the extent to which full-time non-tenure track and tenure line faculty share a professionalized approach to their jobs, working conditions, and how this is associated with their organizational commitment. Findings demonstrate important consistencies in full-time faculty views of their workplaces and jobs across appointment type. Satisfaction with resources, rewards, autonomy and feedback had a significant positive relationship with odds of organizational commitment for all faculty groups. Overall, the results suggest being removed from the tenure track is not associated with faculty viewing their jobs in a substantially different way than those in tenure line positions, which underscores the importance of conceptualizing full-time faculty work as an integrated whole.


The revolution that brought the African National Congress (ANC) to power in South Africa was fractured by internal conflict. Migrant workers from rural Zululand rejected many of the egalitarian values and policies fundamental to the ANC's liberal democratic platform and organized themselves in an attempt to sabotage the movement. This anti-democracy stance, which persists today as a direct critique of "freedom" in neoliberal South Africa, hinges on an idealized vision of the rural home and a hierarchical social order crafted in part by the technologies of colonial governance over the past century.

In analyzing this conflict, Jason Hickel contributes to broad theoretical debates about liberalism and democratization in the postcolonial world. Democracy as Death interrogates the Western ideals of individual freedom and agency from the perspective of those who oppose such ideals, and questions the assumptions underpinning theories of anti-liberal movements. The book argues that both democracy and the political science that attempts to explain resistance to it presuppose a model of personhood native to Western capitalism, which may not operate cross-culturally.


The aim of the present study was to map out required changes to current stakeholder thinking in public relations (PR) research and practice for a better suited model for PR professionals. The concept of issue arenas (Luoma-aho & Vos 2009) was adopted for the future direction of stakeholder thinking. Further, a central aspect of PR management on issue arenas is the division of voice – or indirect power – of different players. It was suggested that gaining a dominant voice in an issue arena would facilitate the attainment of organizational goals. Meaning was considered cental in this process. This thesis, focused, on the formation of dominant voice in issue arenas. Two research questions were selected. These were 1) What are the constituents of dominant voice in an issue arena? and 2) How is dominant voice formed in an inter-organizational context? Both research questions help defining central elements of and provide tools for future PR research and practice challenges by investigating new areas of research. The research method was a combination of multiple approaches. First, there are elements of a conceptual paper, as many features of the central concepts have not been defined earlier. One form of this was the creation of new theoretical model for the formation of dominant voice in issue arenas. Second, a wide array of literature was used in a way that could loosely be defined as literature review. Finally, a practical case example was provided to test the theoretical model in a real-life setting by theoretical means. Dominant voice was seen to consist of at least three factors. These were 1) one or few players lead the discussion on an issue, 2) other players refer to the dominant player(s), and 3) dominance is witnessed within managing meanings, not necessarily attributed to direct power. Moreover, two strategies were identified for the formation of dominant voice in an inter-organizational context. These were dominance through resources and dominance through recognition. Dominance through resources refers to the material resources through which an organization can provide value for other players on an issue arena, or the ownership of media space via more quantity and quality communications than other players can. Dominance through recognition refers to the charismatic character of one player who has gained the position granted by other players due to a recognition building trait or capacity to act. Finally, alliances were seen instrumental catalysts to both strategies. The findings of the present thesis suggest that the identification of relevant issues should precede the identification of stakeholders. Also, key to success in today's operating environment comes from giving key importance to the management of zones of meaning as a fundamental aspect of the PR practice.