Mathematics education is under threat in Nigeria. Young people report it as boring and difficult; teachers say young people are not engaged, even when they are achieving academically. Meanwhile, digital games are a part of everyday childhood. They are now being used to benefit young people academically as they have been shown to help motivate reluctant learners. This action research case study aims to determine if a digital educational game can stimulate interest and engagement with mathematics. SpeedyRocket, a digital educational game was designed and used in the classroom in three schools in rural Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria to teach pupils about estimation, as part of the mathematics curriculum. The evaluation was carried out with the pupils through a combination of a pupils' mathematics attitude questionnaire, and classroom observation. The results demonstrate significant improvements in attitude to and engagement with mathematics across the target group, after two weeks of using SpeedyRocket. Learners became co-creators of their own knowledge, sharing ideas, forging new learning pathways, competing, and cooperating with one another. Furthermore, the findings from this study provide insights into the changes that occur in the dynamics of the traditional classroom through the introduction of digital technology, especially in settings where it has not been previously used.


The sovereign states of Melanesia are countries where the yoke of colonialism and struggles for independence are still within living memory. There are territories within Melanesia where the questions and complexities associated with achieving self-determination are very much live issues. In West Papua, this issue is one over which blood continues to be spilt. As these countries, and the communities within them, grapple with political-economic and technical shifts, the need for independent journalism is self-evident. However, journalists, editors, publishers and media owners face a barrage of challenges to their ability to operate free from repression or coercion by those who wield power in their societies. Some of these challenges are overt and can extend to threats or physical intimidation. Others are more subtle but no less pervasive and damaging. They lead to a narrowing of the media landscape, the loss of talented professionals to other areas, the rise of self-censorship, and more.


Position awareness in unknown and large indoor spaces represents a great advantage for people, everyday pedestrians have to search for specific places, products and services. In this work a positioning solution able to localize the user based on data measured with a mobile device is described and evaluated. The position estimate uses data from smartphone built-in sensors, WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) adapter and map information of the indoor environment (e.g. walls and obstacles). A probability map derived from statistical information of the users tracked location over a period of time in the test scenario is generated and embedded in a map graph, in order to correct and combine the position estimates under a Bayesian representation. PDR (Pedestrian Dead Reckoning), beacon-based Weighted Centroid position estimates, map information obtained from building OpenStreetMap XML representation and probability map users path density are combined using a Particle Filter and implemented in a smartphone application. Based on evaluations, this work verifies that the use of smartphone hardware components, map data and its semantic information represented in the form of a OpenStreetMap structure provide 2.48 meters average error after 1,700 travelled meters and a scalable indoor positioning solution. The Particle Filter algorithm used to combine various sources of information, its radio WiFi-based observation, probability particle weighting process and the mapping approach allowing the inclusion of new indoor environments knowledge show a promising approach for an extensible indoor navigation system.


The need to consider aqueous and sorption reaction kinetics and microbiological processes arises in many subsurface problems. By adding these processes to the TOUGH family code, more complex problems can be addressed that involve multiphase fluid and heat flow, and geochemical interaction. This paper presents a formulation for incorporating kinetic rates among primary species into mass‐balance equations. The space discretization used is based on a flexible integral finite difference approach that uses irregular gridding to model biogeologic structures. A general multiregion model for hydrological transport interacted with microbiological and geochemical processes is proposed. A one‐dimensional reactive transport problem with kinetic biodegradation and sorption was used to test the enhanced simulator, which involves the processes that occur when a pulse of water containing nitrylotriacetate (NTA) and cobalt is injected into a column. The current simulation results agree very well with those obtained with other simulators. The applicability of this general multiregion model was validated by results from a published column experiment of denitrification and sulfate reduction. The matches with measured nitrate and sulfate concentrations were adjusted with the interfacial area between mobile and immobile regions. Results suggest that TOUGHREACT not only is useful interpretative tool for biogeochemical experiments but also can produce insight into processes and parameters of microscopic diffusion and their interplay with biogeochemical reactions.


ELECTROSTATIC MICROACTUATORS FOR MIRROR AND OTHER APPLICATIONS by Xingtao Wu Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) based electrostatic micro actuators are becoming important building blocks for innovations in optical signal processing and computing systems due to their inherently small size, high density, high speed and low power consumption. Generally, the principle of operation in these systems can be described as: an electrostatic attractive force causes a mechanical rotation, translation or deformation of a mirror plate, controlling the power, phase or direction of a light beam while it propagates through some medium or through free space. The fast paced, competitive research and development efforts widely being undertaken, both in academia and industry, are demanding simple, fast methods for the design of quasi-static mirror systems, with a large, stable, analog range of operation. In addition fast prototyping methods are in demand for the proof of concept fabrication of these mirror designs. This dissertation addresses these research topics by presenting 1) a general capacitance-based quasi-static design theory and methodology for electrostatic micro actuators, 2) a study of electrostatic travel range extension methods to minimize the pull in effect, and 3) a fast prototyping approach for electrostatic mirror devices using ultra thin silicon wafer bonding and deep reactive etching technologies. In the first topic, two fundamental capacitance-based differential equations are developed for the quasi-static description of electrostatic micro actuator systems. A structural equation is developed to represent the coupled electromechanical response of the system under applied voltage bias, and a pull in equation is determined to identify the intrinsic collapse point beyond which an actuator system no longer has a stable equilibrium, the so-called pull in point. These equations are applied to various complex electrostatic micro actuator systems to predict specific quasi-static behavior. A unitless equation is introduced for each actuator category, and based on it, a design method is proposed to quickly provide specifications for a particular desired performance of an electrostatically actuated micro-mirror system. In the second topic, and as an application of the proposed design methodology, the travel range extension issue is addressed leading to two new methods to increase travel range by sacrificing driving voltage. Both methods are applied directly in the electrostatic domain. The first method utilizes a series capacitor to modulate the effective actuation voltage across the variable capacitor micro mirror. The second method utilizes negative feedback due to the coulombic repulsive interaction between charge layers inserted between the micro mirror electrodes. An analytical study of representative mirror devices is presented, and verification of the travel range extension models is provided via finite element analysis (FEA) simulation. As a further application of the design methodology developed as part of the first research topic, three state-of-the-art micro actuator systems are designed and studied: 1) a variable optical attenuator (VOA), 2) an optical cross connect device (OXC) and 3) an electrostatically tunable, wavelength selecting device. FEA simulations are used to confirm design specifications. In the third research topic, VOA and electrostatically tunable, wavelength selecting devices are fabricated using fast prototyping via ultra thin wafer bonding and deep reactive etching (DRIE) technologies. Both silicon wet-etching and SU-8 patterning are investigated for the formation of mirror gaps. Testing in the mechanical domain and partial device characterization in the optical domain is provided for these devices. Finally, as a demonstration that the actuator design approach developed in this thesis can be applied to systems other than micro mirrors, we use the approach to design an innovative true mass flow sensor using an electrostatic resonant beam as the sensing element. ELECTROSTATIC MICROACTUATORS FOR MIRROR AND OTHER APPLICATIONS


Mobility is a core feature of future networks, e.g., wireless sensor, wireless mesh, and mobile ad-hoc networks. Thus the ability to generate accurate traces of mobile nodes is an important aspect for wireless network research. Many publications regarding wireless networks rely on simulations. The applied mobility models are often highly abstract and emulate human behavior poorly. Graph-based approaches try to restrict the area of movement to street-like structures yet they do not model real environments. MoNoTrac is a work-inprogress framework to create mobility traces based on real maps provided by OpenStreetMaps. Its plug-in architecture allows the usage of custom mobility models and provides simplified access for research in the domain of mobile networks.


Over the last two decades, enteric protozoa have been recognized as a major concern regarding waterborne diseases, mostly due to the occurrence of a high number of outbreaks worldwide, leading to serious public health problems. The complexity of these problems advises an integrated analysis of the microorganisms' characteristics and life cycle linked with the catchment-toconsumer drinking water system in order to bring light upon the failures that underlie these undesirable events. Several studies have been developed in order to mitigate these impacts on public health, attending to the main paths of water contamination, and the processes of advanced treatment and monitoring. Moreover, risk management methodologies were also improved in order to provide the incorporation of the multiple barrier approach in drinking water risk assessment tools, which must be able to identify hazards and the major vulnerabilities of drinking water contamination by pathogenic protozoa. In this work, the authors present a protozoa control strategy, based on a risk management methodology and consisting of three fundamental steps: identification of hazardous events and drinking water system failures; qualitative risk assessment associated with the identified events and failures; definition of risk mitigation measures for protozoa control. A case study will be used for testing the proposed methodology towards the design of a strategic plan to minimize the resilience of the events related to the presence of these pathogens in water sources and to increase the sustainability of water resource management.


As a major driving force of the global digital economy, Web-Based Shopping Systems (WBSS) are diffusing very rapidly across national boundaries. Though the diffusion of WBSS is recognized as one of the most important issues of electronic commerce, the research on WBSS is just beginning. There is little comprehensive research and only a few examples of empirical research on the topic. This research attempts to examine the phenomenon of WBSS diffusion in different national contexts, based on a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches. In particular, this dissertation attempts to answer the following questions: What are WBSS. Are WBSS an enabler of new business. What kinds of factors affect the diffusion of WBSS. Are there any distinguishing characteristics of WBSS diffusion in different national contexts. How do organisations tend to enable WBSS diffusion. What kinds of driving forces influence the shaping process of WBSS. In order to answer these questions, this research introduces several research models: a classification model of WBSS, a research model of WBSS diffusion, and a comparison model of key impact factors. On the basis of these models, this dissertation examines and attempts to explain the phenomenon of WBSS diffusion. It does so by relating survey research and interviews in two particular national contexts: the UK and Korea. The findings arising from the quantitative and qualitative data collected are applied to provide guidance as to the further diffusion of WBSS in both countries. Some of the major findings of the dissertation are: o At the macro level, a systemic view of WBSS diffusion is provided by analyzing the characteristics off our types of WBSS. Major characteristics of WBSS associated with each of these types of WBSS - their strengths, critical success factors and suitable strategic options - have also been identified. On the basis of this background knowledge of WBSS, a research model of WBSS diffusion was derived. o At the micro level arising from empirical investigations, key impact factors influencing the diffusion of WBSS in the UK and Korean contexts have been identified. Following cross-national analysis, the diffusion of WBSS was observed as a series of shaping processes being influenced by different cultural issues and similar ICT-related factors in global Web-based shopping circumstances. o The implications emerging from the quantitative survey and qualitative interviews from both countries are: -Theoretical implications were highlighted by comparing the WBSS diffusion model with previous ICT diffusion studies. It was observed that WBSS diffusion in both the UK and Korea is a dynamic, complex, and interactive shaping process being influenced by internal organisation and internal system factors, as well as external market and external technical factors. -Practical implications for further WBSS diffusion in both countries have been suggested in the interests of both promoting e-commerce, and establishing a solid base for the digital economy. Overall, this dissertation has attempted to provide a theoretical foundation for further research relevant to WBSS, electronic commerce and ICT diffusion in different national contexts. It is hoped that this research will serve as a catalyst for triggering new research agendas on e-commerce and ICT innovation diffusion, paving the way for other researchers who wish to build on the research findings of this dissertation.


In this study we present a novel approach for improving the air quality predictions using an ensemble of air quality models generated in the context of AQMEII (Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative). The development of the forecasting method makes use of modelled and observed time series (either spatially aggregated or relative to single monitoring stations) of ozone concentrations over different areas of Europe and North America. The technique considers the underlying forcing mechanisms on ozone by means of spectrally decomposed previsions. With the use of diverse applications, we demonstrate how the approach screens the ensemble members, extracts the best components and generates bias-free forecasts with improved accuracy over the candidate models. Compared to more traditional forecasting methods such as the ensemble median, the approach reduces the forecast error and at the same time it clearly improves the modelled variance. Furthermore, the result is not a mere statistical outcome depended on the quality of the selected members. The few individual cases with degraded performance are also identified and analysed. Finally, we show the extensions of the approach to other pollutants, specifically particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, and provide a framework for its operational implementation.


Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and partial least squares (PLS) are well-known techniques for feature extraction from two sets of multi-dimensional variables. The fundamental difference between CCA and PLS is that CCA maximizes the correlation while PLS maximizes the covariance. Although both CCA and PLS have been applied successfully in various applications, the intrinsic relationship between them remains unclear. In this paper, we attempt to address this issue by showing the equivalence relationship between CCA and orthonormalized partial least squares (OPLS), a variant of PLS. We further extend the equivalence relationship to the case when regularization is employed for both sets of variables. In addition, we show that the CCA projection for one set of variables is independent of the regularization on the other set of variables. We have performed experimental studies using both synthetic and real data sets and our results confirm the established equivalence relationship. The presented analysis provides novel insights into the connection between these two existing algorithms as well as the effect of the regularization.


The number of vacant properties nationwide jumped by 4.5 million between 2000 and 2010, an increase of 44%, due to a variety of factors, such as the financial crisis and natural disasters. Vacant properties create a vicious cycle of negative externalities: abandoned property breeds blight and crime, thereby further depressing the economy, which leads to more abandoned property. Solving the problem of abandonment is a top priority for municipal leaders, but effective means of putting abandoned property in the hands of a private owner are hard to come by. Cities have experimented with a variety of solutions ranging from eminent domain to land banks to enticing owners to return to their abandoned property through grant money.This Article proposes an alternative solution for abandoned property: adverse possession with a reformed possession requirement. This Article argues that the traditional application of the possessory requirement for adverse possession should be modified when the true owner has vacated his property. In this instance, actual possession should be unnecessary; instead, a notice of intent to possess should be sufficient to acquire abandoned property through adverse possession. By altering the doctrine in this manner, adverse possession can be an efficient solution for private parties to acquire ownership of abandoned properties while still offering a temporal safety net to protect true owners. Furthermore, expanding possession in this manner allows the doctrine to serve as a tool for market discovery that encourages adverse possessors and true owners to transfer ownership through voluntary bilateral transactions.


Invasive plant species should be evaluated and prioritized for management according to their impacts, which include reduction in native diversity, changes to nutrient pools, and alteration of fire regimes. However, the impacts of most invasive species have not been quantified and, when measured, those impacts are based on a limited number of response metrics. As a result, invasion ecology has been overwhelmed by speculation and bias regarding the ecological consequences of invasive plants. We propose a quantitative mathematical framework that integrates any number of impact metrics as a function of groundcover and geographic extent. By making relative comparisons between invaded and uninvaded landscapes at the population scale, which results in a percent change for each metric, we overcome previous limitations that confounded the integration of metrics based on different units. Our model offers a quantitative approach to ecological impact that may allow identification of the transition from benign introdu...


The recent extensive package introduced by the Commission is the most comprehensive reinforcement of economic governance in the EU and the euro area since the launch of the Economic and Monetary Union. Broader and enhanced surveillance of fiscal policies, but also macroeconomic policies and structural reforms are sought in the light of the shortcomings of the existing legislation. New enforcement mechanisms are foreseen for non-compliant Member States. In this very crucial and important package of 6 legislative dossiers this paper tries to identify critical missing or redundant and/or unworkable elements within the Commission package. Moreover, it checks what (if anything) is missing outside and beyond the proposals in order to make the whole package of governance reform complete and workable as, for instance, crisis resolution mechanisms and debt restructuring, EMF, project bonds and Eurobonds.


This investigation was conducted to determine the effect of more complete scavenging on the full throttle power and the fuel consumption of a four-stroke-cycle engine. The NACA single-cylinder universal test engine equipped with both a fuel-injection system and a carburetor was used. The engine was scavenged by using a large valve overlap and maintaining a pressure in the inlet manifold of 2 inches of mercury above atmospheric. The maximum valve overlap used was 112 degrees. Tests were conducted for a range of compression ratios from 5.5 to 8.5. Except for variable speed tests, all tests were conducted at an engine speed of 1,500 r.p.m. The results of the tests show that the clearance volume of an engine can be scavenged by using a large valve overlap and about 2 to 5 inches of mercury pressure difference between the inlet and exhaust valve. With a fuel-injection system when the clearance volume was scavenged, a b.m.e.p. of over 185 pounds per square inch and a fuel consumption of 9.45 pound per brake horsepower per hour were obtained with a 6.5 compression ratio. An increase of approximately 10 pounds per square inch b.m.e.p. was obtained with a fuel-injection system over that with a carburetor.


BACKGROUND
Elevated plasma total homocysteine is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), but the randomized trials of dietary supplementation with B-vitamins to lower homocysteine have not yet provided clear evidence of benefit on vascular risk.

METHODS
Cumulative meta-analysis of all randomized trials assessing the effects of lowering homocysteine levels with B-vitamins on risk of CVD.

RESULTS
An individual patient data meta-analysis of all randomized trials of the effects on vascular risk of lowering homocysteine with B-vitamins will maximize the power to assess the epidemiologically predicted differences in risk. Among the 12 randomized homocysteine-lowering trials for prevention of CVD, involving more than 1000 participants, data should be available on approximately 52,000 participants (32,000 with prior CVD in unfortified populations; and 14,000 with prior CVD and 6000 with renal disease in fortified populations). To minimize bias, the design and primary analyses to be carried out have been pre-specified. The analyses will include assessment of effects on major vascular events (MVE), stroke, major coronary events (MCE), in addition to venous thrombosis, cancer and fractures. Additional analyses will assess effects on vascular outcomes in sub-groups defined by population, prior disease, per 3 micromol/L difference in homocysteine levels achieved by treatment, pre-treatment vitamin status, duration, age, sex and vascular events excluding revascularizations and, separately, excluding vascular events occurring during the first year of treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
A cumulative meta-analysis of the homocysteine-lowering trials should ensure that reliable evidence emerges about the effects of lowering homocysteine on risk of vascular and non-vascular outcomes.


In this article a new data-adaptive method for smoothing of bivariate functions is developed. The smoothing is done by kernel regression with rotational invariant bivariate kernels. Two or three local bandwidth parameters are chosen automatically by a two-step plug-in approach. The algorithm starts with small global bandwidth parameters, which adapt during a few iterations to the noisy image. In the next step local bandwidths are estimated. Some general asymptotic results about Gasser-Muller-estimators and optimal bandwidth selection are given. The derived local bandwidth estimators converge and are asymptotically normal.


The paper examines the contribution to strategy by chairmen and non-executive directors in large UK companies. The collective label of `part-time board member' is used to refer to individuals performing these roles. The paper asks `how, if at all, do part-time board members influence strategy in UK plc's'?. Using data gathered from interviews with 108 company directors, the paper suggests that part-time board members do not simply ratify decisions made by all-powerful executives. A conceptual model is developed to show that part-time board members are able to influence processes of strategic choice, change and control by shaping both the ideas that form the content of company strategy and the methodologies and processes by which those ideas evolve. Their involvement in strategy is conditioned by factors such as: changing norms about corporate governance; the history and performance of the company; the process and conduct of board meetings and informal dialogue amongst company directors between board meetings.


The percentage of impervious surface area (ISA%) in a watershed has been suggested to be an important indicator for evaluating watershed health since the 1990s. Thus, an accurate and frequently updated ISA% map is needed by decision-makers and environmental managers. Recently, Pok developed an easily implemented method (hereafter referred to as the Pok17 method) for estimating ISA% from a moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) time-series and the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program's Operational Line-scan System (DMSP-OLS) nighttime light (NTL) data. However, it was found that the Pok17 method systematically overestimated ISA % values in rural areas (i.e., pixels with lower ISA% values). In this study, we improved the original Pok17 method to mitigate these overestimations. Firstly, we analyzed the cause of the overestimation in the Pok17 method and found that it was because a large uncertainty existed in the enhanced vegetation index-adjusted NTL index (EANTLI) values of rural areas, which are used as inputs for ISA% estimations in the Pok17 method. In this study, we proposed to use original NTL data instead of EANTLI values in rural areas. For urban and suburban areas, the EANTLI data were still used to correct the saturation problem and blooming effects in the original NTL data. The results showed that the improved Pok17 method outperformed the original one with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 10.3%, a system error (SE) of 4.3%, and a determination coefficient of 0.88. A remarkable improvement was found in pixels with ISA% values less than 20%, with the RMSE reduced from 9.7% to 8.1% and the SE reduced from 6.1% to 3.3%. This improvement is significant for evaluating watershe health because the ISA% value of the watershed is obtained by accumulating the ISA % value of each pixel, and pixels with lower ISA% values usually account for most of the area in the watershed.


This paper addresses the actual and potential role of strategic spatial planning in the context of
educational infrastructure provision. Specifically, the paper focuses on the planning and provision of
primary schools in the Dublin city-region in the context of rapid demographic and social change. The
recent economic boom period has been accompanied by a rapid pace of population growth and
significant shifts in the demographic composition of society in Ireland and the Dublin city-region, in
particular. The analytical focus on planning for the provision of schools constitutes a critical case
study of strategic spatial planning in practice. In particular, planning for school provision represents
a policy domain where coordination between spatial planning and sectoral policy (i.e. education)
functions is required in order to ensure the planning and provision of infrastructure to service the
needs of expanding urban and peri-urban residential communities. Although, in most cases, schools
are not required for development to proceed1, the need for additional school places may be
particularly acute where residential development is accompanied by in-migration of households with
a younger than average age profile and high proportion of young children. This paper outlines the
challenges and problems associated with the practice of planning primary school provision in the
Dublin city-region as well as critically assessing specific policy measures that have been introduced
with the objective of improving the capacity of the state to respond to the need for new schools in
areas of urban and peri-urban expansion. The analysis in this paper draws on qualitative interviews
conducted by the author in 2008 and 2009.


Driving is a very complex activity which requires the driver's full attention. Nowadays, the human factor is linked to the majority of accidents [1], and driver distraction is a principal cause. The objective of this project was to create an active safety system for testing with somnolent drivers in real driving conditions, and so it was necessary to create a system which allowed the driver to handle the car without interfering with driving. The system we developed is composed of a GPS which checks the position and velocity of the vehicle continuously, a robot which decides with GPS data if the vehicle is being properly driven and an actuator over the brakes to stop the car if necessary. The robot takes control of the vehicle if it is not being driven correctly in order to prevent a possible accident. Moreover, an environment closely representative of today's roads was created to make the driving experience more real. This included a circuit with bends or corners to check the capabilities or reactions of the driver. The main objective of the tests was to acquire behavioral and biomedical signals of the drowsy drivers while driving, but keeping them safe in a controlled environment. Therefore, the task of stopping the vehicle depended entirely on the system. Additionally, there were redundant devices which would stop the car to prevent an accident in the event of any failure of the primary system. The system developed in the project opens the doors to experimentation with drowsy drivers in real driving conditions, in which there is the possibility of loss of control of the vehicle. It can also be used to increase safety at test track facilities or for other control applications in which safety is fundamental. Keywords: Driver distraction; Language: en


This report presents the results of a detailed review of evidence and policy relating to the factors that influence the engagement of the individual in skills development. It incorporates a broad range of formal and informal learning activities, delivered in a range of institutional settings and through different media, including work-based, classroombased, distance learning and community based learning. The review is deliberately broad in its focus, drawing on evidence and policy relating to people in different positions within the labour market - in or out of work, new entrants into employment, younger and older workers, people with and without qualifications and/or with higher and lower skills. However, a key focus for the research was the barriers and factors affecting access to skills development opportunities among lower skilled and lower qualified people. The review was undertaken by WM Enterprise and the Employment Research Institute, Edinburgh Napier University for the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UK Commission).


Extensible Markup Language (XML) documents are widely used as
containers for the exchange and storage of arbitrary data in
today's systems. In order to send changes to an XML document, an
entire copy of the new version must be sent, unless there is a means
of indicating only the portions that have changed. This document
describes an XML patch framework utilizing XML Path language (XPath)
selectors. These selector values and updated new data content
constitute the basis of patch operations described in this document.
In addition to them, with basic , and
directives a set of patches can then be applied to update an existing
XML document.


Susan Butler, ed., My Dear Mr. Stalin: The Complete Correspondence of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph V. Stalin. Foreword by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. xx + 361 pp. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005. ISBN-13 978-030012592-4. $40.00. Peter Ruggenthaler, ed., Stalins grosser Bluff: Die Geschichte der Stalin-Note in Dokumenten der sowjetischen Fuhrung (Stalin's Great Bluff: The History of the Stalin Note Based on Soviet Documents). 256 pp. Munich: Oldenbourg, 2007. ISBN-13 978-3486583984. 24.80 [euro]. The foreign policy of the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 1940s has always been closely associated with the name of Iosif Stalin. The conclusion of the nonaggression pact with Nazi Germany, the forging of the wartime alliance with Great Britain and the United States, the beginning of the Cold War and the division of Germany--all these pivotal moments before, during, and after World War II cannot be separated from the person of the Soviet dictator. Between the early 1930s and his death in 1953, he exerted a decisive influence on the conduct of Soviet foreign policy. Two new document collections, covering different periods and aspects of Soviet foreign policy, promise to shed light on Stalin's diplomatic performance. Both illustrate the problems connected with the sources that scholars now have at their disposal to examine Stalin's person and rule. First, disappointing as it may be for many historians, there is no guarantee that hitherto unknown sources will significantly alter our understanding of Stalin and the historical processes and relationships of which he was a part. Sometimes new sources only confirm what is already known. Second, although considerable progress has been made in reconstructing the decision-making process in the Stalinist political system, there are still cases where it remains difficult to find evidence of Stalin's involvement and to establish his responsibility for certain political and diplomatic initiatives. The first book under review contains the complete correspondence of Stalin and President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Although previously known in part, the correspondence is presented here for the first time in its entirety. Since Allied wartime diplomacy is rather well documented and has never suffered from scholarly neglect, historians will surely wonder what the book can contribute to an already extensive literature. The editor, Susan Butler, has assembled 304 letters, telegrams, and other messages that the president and the Soviet dictator exchanged between August 1941 and April 1945. The correspondence reflects the progress of the war and the development of Allied cooperation. However, the topics covered in the letters and telegrams hold no surprises. They range from Lend-Lease deliveries and the opening of the Second Front to military operations in Europe, in the Mediterranean and in the Pacific, the postwar order, and meetings of the Big Three. These issues are seldom discussed at length. It is evident that Roosevelt and Stalin used their correspondence mainly for a preliminary exchange of their respective views on issues they deemed important and as a means to keep each other informed about their activities. As the war went on, new topics were added: the surrender of Italy in 1943, the future of Poland, and the founding of the United Nations in 1944. Toward the end of the war, the two men's relationship became visibly strained. Agreement on the Polish question could not be reached, and Stalin began to suspect that his allies were about to conclude a separate armistice with German forces on the western front. Roosevelt's sudden death in April 1945 prevented a further deterioration of the relationship. The letters dealing with Poland's borders and the composition of the Polish government are by far the most important pieces in the collection because they foreshadow the breakup of the wartime alliance. But these and a couple of other interesting letters are scattered among a vast number of minor messages that constitute the bulk of the correspondence and contain little information of historical significance. …


This dissertation explores the relationships between literacy, technology, and bodies in the emerging media of Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). In response to the recent, rapid emergence of new media forms, questions arise as to how and why we should prepare to compose in new digital media. To interrogate the newness accorded to new media composing, I historicize the literacy practices demanded by new media by examining digital texts, such as video games and software applications, alongside analogous "antiquated" media, such as dioramas and museum exhibits. Comparative textual analysis of analogous digital and non-digital VR, AR, and MR texts reveals new media and "antiquated" media utilize common characteristics of dimensionality, layering, and absence/presence, respectively. The establishment of shared traits demonstrates how media operate on a continuum of mutually held textual practices; despite their distinctive forms, new media texts do not represent either a hierarchical or linear progression of maturing development. Such an understanding aids composing in new VR, AR, and MR media by enabling composers to make fuller use of prior knowledge in a rapidly evolving new media environment, a finding significant both for educators and communicators. As these technologies mature, we will continue to compose both traditional and new forms of texts. As such, we need literacy theory that attends to both the traditional and the new and also is comprehensive enough to encompass future acts of composing in media yet to emerge.


We report two experiments designed to investigate the consequences of manipulating the harmonic content of background music on taste perception. The participants in the present study evaluated samples of mixed fruit juice whilst listening to soundtracks that had either been harmonised with consonant or dissonant musical intervals. Each sample of juice was rated on three computer-based scales: One scale was anchored with the words sour and sweet, while the other two scales involved hedonic ratings of the music and of the juice. The results of an internet-based pre-test revealed that participants reliably associated the consonant soundtracks with sweetness and the dissonant soundtracks with sourness. The results of the on-site experiments demonstrated that participants rated the juices as tasting significantly sweeter in the consonant than in the dissonant music condition, irrespective of the melody or instrumentation that were evaluated. These results therefore provide empirical support for the claim that the crossmodal correspondence between a higher level musical attribute (namely, harmony) and basic taste can be used to modify the evaluation of the taste of a drink.


Synopsis-The studies upon which this contribution is based were made to investigate the structure and properties of high stretch papers . Webs produced by compaction and by creping, the two main commercial processes, were examined by light microscopy and physical testing . The microphotography shows a variety of web configurations found in crepe papers, including examples of wave formations, internal delamination and twosidedness . The characteristic fibre orientation and densification are illustrated by photomicrographs of webs taken before and after the compacting process . The mechanical behaviour of high stretch papers is illustrated by typical stress/strain curves and a discussion of their behaviour during the process of straining.


Batik is an Indonesia cultural heritage. In general, batik dyeing uses synthetic dyes, which can cause problems in health and the environment. Therefore, the exploration of natural dyes is needed to apply to batik. This study aimed to determine the quality of batik used natural dyes based on the types of plants and the types of leaves. Natural dyes were extracted using a heating method with a water solvent. Natural dye sources took from glodogan tiang (Polyathea longifolia), teak (Tectona grandis L. F), angsana (Pterocarpus indicus), and mango (Mangifera indica) leaves. The types of leaves were fresh and fallen leaves. The natural dyes applied as a dye of batik with tunjung fixation material. Test on the result of batik dyeing used the color difference test (L* a* b) and consumer preference test with parameters of color intensity, batik neatness, and clarity on batik motif. Determining the importance level of the batik quality parameters used the Analytical Hierarchy Process method. Then the selection of the best treatment alternative was made using the Expectation Value method. The results of the study shown that the best treatment was batik with natural dyes from fallen leaves of teak. That caused dye of teak fallen leaves can bound more tightly than other leaves.


The auditory stimulation method used in experiments on moth A cell(s) is generally believed to be adequate to characterise the encoding of echolocation signals. The stimulation method hosts, though, several bias. Their compounded effects can explain a range of discrepancies between the reported electrophysiological recordings and significantly alter the current interpretation. To test the hypothesis that the bias may significantly alter our current understanding of the moth's auditory transducer characteristics, papers using the same auditory stimulation method and reporting on either spiking threshold or spiking activity of the moth's A cells were analysed. The consistency of the reported data was assessed. A range of corrections issued from best practices and theoretical background were applied to the data in an attempt to re-interpret the data. We found that it is not possible to apply a posteriori corrections to all data and bias. However the corrected data indicates that the A cell's spiking may be (i) independent of the repetition rate, (ii) maximum when detecting the long and low intensity pulses of the bat in searching mode, and (iii) steadily reduce as the bat closes on the moth. These observations raise the possibility that a fixed action pattern drives the moths's erratic evasive manoeuvres until the final moment. In depth investigation of the potential bias also suggest that the auditory transducer's response may be constant for a larger frequency range than thought so far, and provide clues to explain the negative taxis in response to the searching bats's calls detection.


Author(s): Crutchfield, James P | Abstract: The principle goal of computational mechanics is to define pattern and structure so that the organization of complex systems can be detected and quantified. Computational mechanics developed from efforts in the 1970s and early 1980s to identify strange attractors as the mechanism driving weak fluid turbulence via the method of reconstructing attractor geometry from measurement time series and in the mid-1980s to estimate equations of motion directly from complex time series. In providing a mathematical and operational definition of structure it addressed weaknesses of these early approaches to discovering patterns in natural systems. Since then, computational mechanics has led to a range of results from theoretical physics and nonlinear mathematics to diverse applications---from closed-form analysis of Markov and non-Markov stochastic processes that are ergodic or nonergodic and their measures of information and intrinsic computation to complex materials and deterministic chaos and intelligence in Maxwellian demons to quantum compression of classical processes and the evolution of computation and language. This brief review clarifies several misunderstandings and addresses concerns recently raised regarding early works in the field (1980s). We show that misguided evaluations of the contributions of computational mechanics are groundless and stem from a lack of familiarity with its basic goals and from a failure to consider its historical context. For all practical purposes, its modern methods and results largely supersede the early works. This not only renders recent criticism moot and shows the solid ground on which computational mechanics stands but, most importantly, shows the significant progress achieved over three decades and points to the many intriguing and outstanding challenges in understanding the computational nature of complex dynamic systems.


The 3D visualization of astronomical nebulae is a challenging problem since only a single 2D projection is observable from our fixed vantage point on Earth. We attempt to generate plausible and realistic looking volumetric visualizations via a tomographic approach that exploits the spherical or axial symmetry prevalent in some relevant types of nebulae. Different types of symmetry can be implemented by using different randomized distributions of virtual cameras. Our approach is based on an iterative compressed sensing reconstruction algorithm that we extend with support for position-dependent volumetric regularization and linear equality constraints. We present a distributed multi-GPU implementation that is capable of reconstructing high-resolution datasets from arbitrary projections. Its robustness and scalability are demonstrated for astronomical imagery from the Hubble Space Telescope. The resulting volumetric data is visualized using direct volume rendering. Compared to previous approaches, our method preserves a much higher amount of detail and visual variety in the 3D visualization, especially for objects with only approximate symmetry.


Lithium (Li) isotopes are a promising tracer of chemical weathering processes for both modern and ancient times. In order to improve the use of Li isotopes in the sedimentary record, here we calibrate the relationship between weathering intensity and detrital Li isotope composition (δ 7 Li) using the fine fraction of modern large river sediments. Through independent estimates for sediment provenance to calculate the Li isotope signature of the rock from which the sediments derive through weathering, we show that source rock variability (in particular the relative contribution of sedimentary versus igneous rocks) must be corrected for before using Li isotopes as a weathering proxy. We also show that for rivers draining mountain ranges, the contribution to river sediments of particles derived from sedimentary rocks is correlated to their Li/Al ratio, making it possible to use Li contents to estimate the average source rock composition. Once corrected for bedrock variability, the Li isotope signature defines a negative relationship with the weathering intensity (ratio between silicate weathering rate and total denudation rate), with highest Li isotope fractionation for the highest weathering intensity. Altogether, we propose a set of new relationships between weathering, erosion, provenance, and Li isotopes that can be used to quantify present-day and paleo-weathering using detrital sediment.


The perceived public transport quality is an important driver that influences both customer satisfaction and mobility choices. The competition among transport operators needs to improve the quality of the services and identify which attributes are perceived as relevant by passengers. Among the "traditional" public transport quality attributes there are, for example: travel and waiting time, regularity of the services, and ticket price. By contrast, there are some "non-conventional" attributes that could significantly influence customer satisfaction jointly with the "traditional" ones. Among these, the beauty/aesthetics of the transport terminals (e.g. rail station and bus terminal) is probably one of the most impacting on user perception. Starting from these considerations, the point stressed in this paper was if (and how munch) the travel experience of the overall travel (e.g. how long is the travel, how many transport modes must be used) influences the perception of the public transport quality. The aim of this paper was to investigate the weight of the terminal quality (e.g. aesthetic, comfort and service offered) within the overall travel experience. The case study was the extra-urban Italian bus network. The passengers of the major Italian terminal bus were interviewed and the analysis of the results shows that about the 75% of the travelers, are available to pay up to 30% more for the ticket price for having a high quality terminal. A travel experience effect was observed: the average perceived transport quality varies with the characteristic of the overall trip. The passengers that have a "long trip" (travel time greater than 2 hours) perceived as "low" the overall quality of the trip even if they pass through a high quality terminal. The opposite occurs for the "short trip" passengers. This means that if a traveler passes through a high quality station, the overall perception of that terminal could be significantly reduced if he is tired from a long trip. This result is important and if confirmed through other case studies, will allow to conclude that the "travel experience impact" must be considered as an explicit design variable for public transport services and planning. Keywords—Transportation planning, sustainable mobility, decision support system, discrete choice model, design problem.


The in situ processing of vast amounts of data, available intermittently in networks of sensors, motivates investigation of means for achieving high performance when required, but ultralow-power dissipation when idle. One approach is the use of embedded multiprocessor systems, leading to tradeoffs between parallelism, performance, energy-efficiency, and cost. To evaluate these tradeoffs, and to gain insight for future system designs, this letter presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of a miniature, energy-scalable, 24-processor module, L24, for compute-intensive in situ sensor data processing tasks. The platform provides idle power dissipation over an order of magnitude lower than systems employing a monolithic processor of equivalent performance, while dynamic power dissipation remains competitive. Taking into account both application computation and interprocessor communication demands, it is shown that there may exist an optimum operating voltage that minimizes either time-to-solution, energy usage, or the energy-delay product. This optimum operating point is formulated analytically, calibrated with system measurements and instruction-level microarchitectural simulation, and evaluated for the hardware platform and application presented.


This doctoral research investigates possibilities and limitations of 'education borrowing' in
Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago in the midst of competing objectives of improving
quality in secondary education, encouragement of 'sharing' by the international community
and the impulses towards the 'centre'. Two types of 'borrowing' are identified. The first
involves 'horizontal borrowing', in which countries borrow from each other in the manner
suggested by UNESCO and Commonwealth Secretariat policy documents. The second
involves 'vertical borrowing' in which states are influenced by policies from the 'centre',
usually countries of powerful significance due to relationships with the metropole or in the
bid to raise achievement. The thesis analyzes literature on both types of 'education
borrowing' and identifies policies encouraging 'horizontal borrowing' by the international
community. Fieldwork was undertaken to identify pulses of foreign influence and
innovation for policies in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago. 50 interviews and 87 hours
of observation for the purpose of triangulation took place between January - November
2007. Respondents include teachers, heads of departments, senior school managers,
policymakers, local academics and members of regional and international institutions.
Mathematics curricula and teaching were selected as the focus for examining policy.
Drawing on the policy review and fieldwork data, patterns of policy 'borrowing' in the
Caribbean are uncovered and considerations for policymakers are noted.
There are two main findings: 1) Despite encouragement by UNESCO and Commonwealth
Secretariat policy documents, there was no evidence of 'horizontal borrowing' between
Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago and 2) Possibilities for cross-national attraction were
limited due to the overriding attention paid to the global 'centre' for 'vertical borrowing'
rather than concern for regional growth and cohesion. There appear to be three tenets of
limitations to 'horizontal borrowing': 1) Island policymakers look internationally for
innovation, thereby rejecting policies advocating 'borrowing' from each other; 2) Sharing is
not part of the island histories and cultures; and 3) Forces of tradition bind existing teaching
and education values. Although some of the implications of this thesis may be valuable in
other contexts, the findings cannot be extrapolated to the whole of the Caribbean, to other
small states or to developing countries in general. As states are often treated similarly in
policies advocating 'horizontal borrowing', more analysis is needed to unpack patterns of
influence, dynamics of change and the needs of under-researched countries.


BACKGROUND
Environmental lead exposure has been linked to alterations in growth and endocrine function. It is not known whether such exposure affects pubertal development.

METHODS
We analyzed the relations between blood lead concentration and pubertal development among girls (defined as females 8 to 18 years of age) who were enrolled in a cross-sectional study (the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) in which race was self-reported or proxy-reported: 600 were non-Hispanic white, 805 were non-Hispanic African-American, and 781 were Mexican-American girls. Puberty was measured on the basis of the age at menarche and Tanner stage for pubic-hair and breast development.

RESULTS
Geometric mean lead concentrations were less than 3 microg per deciliter (0.144 micromol per liter) in all three groups. As compared with concentrations of 1 microg per deciliter (0.048 micromol per liter), lead concentrations of 3 microg per deciliter were associated with decreased height (P<0.001), after adjustment for age, race, and other factors, but not with body-mass index or weight. Blood lead concentrations of 3 microg per deciliter were associated with significant delays in breast and pubic-hair development in African-American and Mexican-American girls. The delays were most marked among African-American girls; in this group, the delays in reaching Tanner stages 2, 3, 4, and 5 associated with a lead concentration of 3 microg per deciliter as compared with 1 microg per deciliter were 3.8, 5.3, 5.8, and 2.1 months, respectively, for breast development and 4.0, 5.5, 6.0, and 2.2 months, respectively, for pubic-hair development; the associated delay in age at menarche was 3.6 months. In white girls, there were nonsignificant delays in all pubertal measures in association with a lead concentration of 3 microg per deciliter.

CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that environmental exposure to lead may delay growth and pubertal development in girls, although confirmation is warranted in prospective studies.


The appropriateness of restorative justice (RJ) for gendered violence
 offences such as domestic violence and sexual assault has always been and
 still is highly contested. This paper focuses on the appropriateness of RJ
 measures in addressing sexual assault, primarily with reference to experience
 of restorative dialogues as practiced at the Centre for Victims of Sexual
 Assault in Copenhagen, and it takes a feminist approach to the application of
 RJ measures to sexual assault. Within this framework, the paper tackles two
 issues in particular: the privacy element of RJ versus the public aspect of
 the criminal justice system (CJS), and the intersection of the CJS and RJ in
 cases of sexual assault. In relation to the relationship between CJS and RJ,
 the authors argue that RJ could be used for victims of sexual assault, not
 primarily as part of diversion programmes, but when offered apart from and/or
 parallel to the CJS. In relation to the private/public debate, the authors
 argue that while RJ encounters, by taking place in highly confidential
 settings, might have a negative impact on efforts by women's movements to
 move violence against women out of the private and into the public realm,
 creating high standard alternatives for individual women who are in need of
 support and constantly generating public debate about gendered violence is a
 good feminist response to this complex issue.


The Feistel construction is one of the most studied ways of building block ciphers. Several generalizations were then proposed in the literature, leading to the Generalized Feistel Network, where the round function first applies a classical Feistel operation in parallel on an even number of blocks, and then a permutation is applied to this set of blocks. In 2010 at FSE, Suzaki and Minematsu studied the diffusion of such construction, raising the question of how many rounds are required so that each block of the ciphertext depends on all blocks of the plaintext. They thus gave some optimal permutations, with respect to this diffusion criteria, for a Generalized Feistel Network consisting of 2 to 16 blocks, as well as giving a good candidate for 32 blocks. Later at FSE'19, Cauchois et al. went further and were able to propose optimal even-odd permutations for up to 26 blocks. In this paper, we complete the literature by building optimal even-odd permutations for 28, 30, 32, 36 blocks which to the best of our knowledge were unknown until now. The main idea behind our constructions and impossibility proof is a new characterization of the total diffusion of a permutation after a given number of rounds. In fact, we propose an efficient algorithm based on this new characterization which constructs all optimal even-odd permutations for the 28, 30, 32, 36 blocks cases and proves a better lower bound for the 34, 38, 40 and 42 blocks cases. In particular, we improve the 32 blocks case by exhibiting optimal even-odd permutations with diffusion round of 9. The existence of such a permutation was an open problem for almost 10 years and the best known permutation in the literature had a diffusion round of 10. Moreover, our characterization can be implemented very efficiently and allows us to easily re-find all optimal even-odd permutations for up to 26 blocks with a basic exhaustive search.


This Policy Paper aims to provide a better understanding of the drivers of youth unemployment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region by examining some common factors and then delving deeper into the case of Morocco, a relatively stable country that has historically been a source of large emigration, especially towards Europe. The MENA region has some of the highest total and youth unemployment rates in the world. High youth unemployment is especially worrisome because it can have lasting effects on lifetime employability and can be the cause of political instability. Migration pressures can increase as it tends to be the young that emigrate. The analysis in this paper argues that even though the rate of growth of the region's young population is likely to moderate over the next few years, it is expected to experience another bulge in the 2020's, and high unemployment is likely to remain a persistent feature in the foreseeable future in several MENA countries.


EMBnet's 2013 Annual General Meeting (AGM) and associated events were hosted in the TRYP Valencia Oceanic Hotel, Valencia, Spain, from 14 to 18 May. The AGM, the silver anniversary of EMBnet's foundation, provided a timely opportunity both to review our progress since the " EMBnet Moving Forward: 2010 & beyond " workshop hosted in Ruvo di Puglia, Italy (Attwood et al ., 2010), and to showcase the work of our allied SeqAhead project. EMBnet has undergone significant changes since 2010: it has rebranded and launched a new website; it has formed new alliances; it has incubated new initiatives (notably, GOBLET) and multidisciplinary research projects (namely, SeqAhead and AllBio); and it has formally introduced structural changes to streamline our activities and broaden our membership. The events allied to the AGM included a full-day EMBnet hands-on tutorial on " RNA-seq and ChIP-seq data analysis " given by Endre Barta (U. of Debrecen, Hungary) and Eija Korpelainen (CSC- IT Center for Science, Finland), and on " NGS and structural Biology ",  given by Goran Neshich (EMBRAPA, Brazil), Jose R. Valverde (CNB-CSIC, Spain) and Gert Vried (CMBI, Holland); the two-day SeqAhead " The Next NGS Challenge: Data Processing and Integration " conference and Management Committee meeting; a full-day EMBnet workshop; and finally, the business meeting itself. Here, we review the motivation for the EMBnet workshop, and present its main conclusions.


Economic geographers have drawn upon concepts from institutional economics and economic sociology in recent years to understand processes of regional development within an increasingly globalized economy. In this paper, we assess the influence of this institutional `turn' in economic geography and regional development studies. Two interrelated themes provide the focus of our critique. First, we emphasize the neglect of power and politics in relation to potential intraregional tensions and divisions and the effects of wider processes of uneven development and political-economic regulation. Second, we are critical of the tendency to reify the region over other geographical scales as an object of empirical enquiry and a site of policy intervention. In response to these shortcomings, we conclude by emphasizing the need to rediscover `a sense of political economy' (Martin and Sunley, 2001), suggesting that the potential of institutional approaches can best be realized by linking these to a reworked spatial political economy. While this will inevitably run up against conceptual and methodological difficulties given the differing origins and orientations of the two bodies of knowledge, such a theoretical synthesis could combine a sensitivity to difference, context and contingency with a stronger appreciation of the realities of uneven development and contested social relations under advanced global capitalism.


Previous studies have surveyed the potential impact of loss-of-function (LoF) variants and identified LoF-tolerant protein-coding genes. However, the tolerance of human genomes to losing enhancers has not yet been evaluated. Here we present the catalog of LoF-tolerant enhancers using structural variants from whole-genome sequences. Using a conservative approach, we estimate that each individual human genome possesses at least 28 LoF-tolerant enhancers on average. We assessed the properties of LoF-tolerant enhancers in a unified regulatory network constructed by integrating tissue-specific enhancers and gene-gene interactions. We find that LoF-tolerant enhancers are more tissue-specific and regulate fewer and more dispensable genes. They are enriched in immune-related cells while LoF-intolerant enhancers are enriched in kidney and brain/neuronal stem cells. We developed a supervised learning approach to predict the LoF-tolerance of enhancers, which achieved an AUROC of 96%. We predict 5,677 more enhancers would be likely tolerant to LoF and 75 enhancers that would be highly LoF-intolerant. Our predictions are supported by known set of disease enhancers and novel deletions from PacBio sequencing. The LoF-tolerance scores provided here will serve as an important reference for disease studies.


This article analyses the conjunctures of risk and security that have recently emerged in the securitization of HIV/AIDS. Although these partially corroborate Ulrich Beck's notion of risk society, important elements of the securitization of HIV/AIDS resist his understanding of risk as a `danger of modernization'. The article therefore turns to François Ewald's alternative theorization of risk as a `neologism of insurance', and shows that insurance is a risk-based security practice widely used to manage the welfare of populations. Such a biopolitical approach to risk is also valuable for analysing the securitization of HIV/AIDS, which, even though it is unfolding outside the domain of insurance, similarly draws upon multiple risk categories (`security risks', `risk groups' and `risk factors') in efforts to improve the collective health of populations. Analysed through a wider concept of risk as a `biopolitical rationality', the conjuncture of risk and security in the securitization of HIV/AIDS thus emerges as a principal site where the institutions of sovereign power in international relations are being absorbed and integrated within a wider biopolitical economy of power.


Baikal omul (Coregonus migratorious Georgi) is a typical representative of the coregonid fi shes with a complicated intraspecifi c structure consisting of several large and many small populations and three eco-morphotypes. Therefore, it is diffi cult to identify intraspecifi c groups from a mixed catch. Despite basic identifi cation characteristics being well-studied, it is still necessary to identify diagnostic characters for the different intraspecifi c groups. Therefore, we studied differences in the contour shapes of otholiths of omul in specimens from large spawning rivers such as the Verkhnyaya Angara (Upper Angara), Selenga and Bolshaya Rechka. Digitised contour shapes of individual otoliths were analysed based on measurements of a large number of otolith radii, starting from the geometrical centre and measuring 60 equally-spaced radii. Discriminant analysis with step-by-step inclusion of variables (i.e. additional radii) was performed to detect the most informative combination of measurements. Total classifi cation success was 87%. We succeeded in fi nding radii for discrimination of the contour shape in the rostrum, anterostrum, ventral and postrostrum areas. The following areas of sagittae are recommended for diagnostics of morpho-ecological groups of omul: a contour shape of rostrum in the deep-pelagic omul and a contour shape of postrostrum in pelagic and coast-pelagic omul. These studies demonstrate the general usefulness of this technique and its prospects for the discrimination of intraspecifi c groups of coregonid fi shes.


Leonard Levy's new book, a compendium of his law review articles, book chapters, and basic shorter writings on themes with which he has long been identified, is a treasure chest of sound and reasonable analysis of American constitutional history. As one reviewer of the manuscript put matters: "There is not a clinker amongst them." For anyone who thinks that liberal analysis has grown soft and flabby, a good dose of Levy's book should set the record straight. Seasoned Judgments is divided into three parts: Rights, Constitutional History, and The Marshall Court. In this progression from the general to the concrete, Levy never ignores the context as well as the content of the judicial process. Indeed, it is this linkage that separates him from nearly all other commentators and writers on the subjects covered. Whether discussing why the original Constitution lacked a Bill or Rights, or why the Fourth Amendment uses the imperative form "shall not" rather than the conditional form "ought not," the reader enters a world of explanation rich in detail and carful scholarly elaboration. Well-known as editor in chief of the multivolumed Encyclopedia of the American Constitution, this new volume extracts some of Levy's own contributions to that effort. As a result, one can, for the first time, gain a clear sense of the author's own profound sense of the major issues confronting American law from the founding fathers to the present. The analysis of such still unresolved issues as flag desecration, the exclusionary rule, testimonial compulsion, taxation without representation, and the nature of the Constitution itself, will be of tremendous appeal to historians and political scientists as well as attorneys and judges.


BACKGROUND This study aimed to characterize initial clinical presentations of patients served by emergency medical services (EMS) who die following injury, with particular attention to patients with occult ("talk-and-die") presentations. METHODS This was a population-based, multiregion, mixed-methods retrospective cohort study of fatally injured children and adults evaluated by 94 EMS agencies transporting to 122 hospitals in seven Western US regions from 2006 to 2008. Fatalities were divided into two main groups: occult injuries (talk-and-die; Glasgow Coma Scale [GCS] score ≥ 13, no cardiopulmonary arrest, and no intubation) versus overt injuries (all other patients). These groups were further subdivided by timing of death: early (<48 hours) versus late (>48 hours). We then compared demographic, physiologic, procedural, and injury patterns using descriptive statistics. We also used qualitative methods to analyze available EMS chart narratives for contextual information from the out-of-hospital encounter. RESULTS During the 3-year study period, 3,358 persons served by 9-1-1 EMS providers died, with 1,225 (37.1%) in the field, 1,016 (30.8%) early in the hospital, and 1,060 (32.1%) late in the hospital. Of the 2,133 patients transported to a hospital, there were 612 (28.7%) talk-and-die patients, of whom 114 (18.6%) died early. Talk-and-die patients were older (median age, 81 years; interquartile range, 67–87 years), normotensive (median systolic blood pressure, 138 mm Hg; interquartile range, 116–160 mm Hg), commonly injured by falls (71.3%), and frequently (52.4%) died in nontrauma hospitals. Compared with overtly injured patients, talk-and-die patients had relatively fewer serious head injuries (13.7%) but more frequent extremity injuries (20.3% vs. 10.6%) and orthopedic interventions (25.3% vs. 5.0%). EMS personnel often found talk-and-die patients lying on the ground with hip pain or extremity injuries. CONCLUSION Patients served by EMS who "talk-and-die" are typically older adults with falls, transported to nontrauma hospitals, with subtle clinical indications of the severity of their injuries. Improving recognition of talk-and-die patients may avoid fatal outcomes in a portion of these patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Epidemiologic study, level III.


SUMMARY Youth workers routinely experience moments in their professional practice with young people when, despite their experience and training, they are simply at a loss for what to do, how to respond, and how to be helpful to the youth. These experiences of not-knowing are seldom shared with other youth workers, which contributes to a climate of shame and humiliation. Professional supervision seldom attends to how youth workers experience these moments and their personal and vocational costs. This study presents a phenomenological investigation of how youth workers experience moments of not knowing what to do, identifies five central themes of the experience, and makes recommendations for improved youth work practice and supervision. This chapter presents the research question and its significance to the field of American youth work.


The scaling laws of mixed third‐order structure functions for isotropic, homogeneous, and incompressible magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence have been recently applied in solar wind studies, even though there is recognition that isotropy is not well satisfied. Other studies have taken account of the anisotropy induced by a constant mean magnetic field. However, large‐scale shear can also cause departures from isotropy. Here we examine shear effects in the simplest case, and derive the third‐order laws for MHD turbulence with constant shear, where homogeneity is still assumed. This generalized scaling law has been checked by data from direct numerical simulations (DNS) of two‐dimensional (2D) MHD and is found to hold across the inertial range. These results suggest that third‐order structure function analysis and interpretation in the solar wind should be undertaken with some caution, since, when present, shear can change the meaning of the third‐order relations.


For years, the EU has refrained from criticising China's attempts to shape globalisation according to its
own interests. Member states have allowed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to tip the balance of power
towards the companies that China owns or subsidises.
Alarmed by recent Chinese takeovers in strategic industries, the EU has flagged up its intention to
toughen rules on foreign investment flows into Europe. The brand-new EU Strategic Outlook on China
adopts a multifaceted approach and defines the 'Middle Kingdom' simultaneously as a cooperation and
negotiation partner with whom the Union needs to find a balance of interests, an "economic
competitor" in pursuit of technological leadership, and a "systemic rival" promoting alternative models
of governance.
This paper takes stock of BRI investments in Europe and of member states' concerns about economic
and national security. It then examines the EU-wide legal bulwarks and regulatory responses that are
intended to hedge against unfair practices. It concludes that, while a more realistic and assertive
European approach toward Chinese market behaviour is welcome, the EU should take China up on its
pledge to embolden the BRI with 'soft connectivity', i.e. a legal infrastructure, rather than risk mutual
harm by adopting too protectionist a stance. This should benefit not just the EU and China but also the
other '16+1' countries along the central corridor of the BRI, which passes through the Caucasus, the
Balkans and Eastern Europe – all in the spirit of the EU's 2018 connectivity strategy with Asia.


In this paper, the preparation of graphene oxide was achieved by Hummers method and the surface modification was achieved by poly(hexaneditiol), which was a synthetic thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer. The c-PHDT/GO/PF composites were prepared by blending, rolling and compression molding techniques. Then, the as-prepared samples were characterized by FTIR, Raman, XRD, TGA and POM to obtain information on their structures and properties. After that, the effects of c-PHDT/GO content on the mechanical properties, friction performance and dynamic mechanical performance of c-PHDT/GO/PF composites were studied by Mechanical and Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) methods. Also, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used for the characterization of wear and fracture surface morphology. The results revealed that the reinforcing effect of c-PHDT/GO was significant as a considerable enhancement on the mechanical performance of c-PHDT/GO/PF composite as compared to pure phenol-formaldehyde composites was observed: the impact strength, bending modulus and bending strength increased from 1.63 kJ/m2, 8.61 GPa and 41.55 MPa to 2.31 kJ/m2, 10.16 GPa and 54.40 MPa respectively at the c-PHDT/GO content = 0.75%. Moreover, the initial storage modulus increased by 28.4%, while the wear mass loss decreased by 17.8%. More importantly, the reinforcement by c-PHDT/GO was further enhanced as compared to GO/PF and p-PHDT/GO/PF composites, the impact strength of c-PHDT/GO/PF composite increased by 27.6% and 11.1%, the bending strength increased by 11.8% and 7.6%, the initial storage modulus increased by 16.2% and 4.2% and the mass loss due to wear decreased by 12.7% and 8.8%, respectively. Based on these results, we can conclude that the surface modification of GO by poly(hexanedithiol), which includes synergistic effect by c-PHDT and GO, improves the interfacial adhesion between GO and the resin matrix, thus reinforcing the composites.


C158 Introduction: Ixabepilone (BMS-247550) is a novel, semi-synthetic analog of epothilone B that induces microtubule stabilization and is active in patients (pts) with breast cancer as well as other tumor types. Preclinical data suggests that a more prolonged infusion of ixabepilone, with the aim of minimizing Cmax but maintaining an efficacious threshold concentration, may result in reduced neurotoxicity with preserved efficacy. This study was designed to investigate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of a Cremophor free formulation of ixabepilone given as a 24-h infusion in pts with advanced solid malignancies.
 Methods: Eligible pts had normal renal and hepatic function and may have received up to three prior chemotherapy regimens. Cremophor free ixabepilone administered as a 24-h intravenous infusion every 21 days (cycle). A standard "3+3" dose escalation design with the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of ixabepilone determined by evaluating dose limiting toxicities (DLTs) during cycle one. Ixabepilone pharmacokinetics were evaluated on Day 1 of the first cycle.
 Results: Twenty-nine pts (mean age: 58.8, ranging 37-75; male/female: 18/11) have been enrolled on five cohorts with doses ranging from 10-40 mg/m2 receiving a total of 86 cycles of ixabepilone. Tumor types: lung (14 pts), gastrointestinal (7 pts), gynecologic (4 pts), breast (3 pts), and other (1 pt) cancers. First pt enrolled at 40 mg/m2 experienced the DLT of febrile neutropenia and died with hepato-renal syndrome due to liver metastasis. No additional DLTs were observed in the pts enrolled subsequently in the expanded dose level 30 mg/m2, 35 mg/m2 or the expanded dose level 40 mg/m2. The MTD has not yet been reached. Incidence of Grade 3/4 neutropenia, thrombocytopenia and febrile neutropenia occurred in 36, 16, and 8%, respectively. One Grade 3/4 event was reported for each of the following toxicities: deep vein thrombosis, fatigue, epistaxis, and pulmonary embolism. Most pts discontinued treatment due to disease progression. One pt discontinued ixabepilone after six cycles due to Grade 2 sensory neuropathy related to treatment. A total of twenty-one pts were evaluable for pharmacokinetic analysis. In the 40 mg/m2 group, the peak concentration of ixabepilone was about 1/4th of that observed in pts treated with 40 mg/m2 over 3 hours and geometric mean of the area under the concentration-time curve from time zero to infinity was similar. No responses were observed. One pt with non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), treated with 20 mg/m2 of ixabepilone had stable disease for 15 cycles. Two additional pts with NSCLC and breast cancer had stable disease for 8 cycles.
 Conclusion: Ixabepilone administered over 24 hrs in a Cremophor free formulation was generally well tolerated. The MTD has not yet been reached.


The process of sequential restoration presented by Cooper & Trayner (1986) is applied to a N–S cross-section through the Irish Variscides to demonstrate that this approach improves the accuracy of thin-skinned structural modelling and allows the progressive deformation of a marginal belt to be examined. The principles and methods of sequential restoration are illustrated. The cross-section is restored in four steps and gives a bulk shortening of 52%. In this model, the fold belt evolved as the basal décollement migrated northwards, and considerable ductile shortening by folding and cleavage formation preceded faulting, although faulting gradually became more important towards the north. The section is divided into four structural domains based upon different deformation histories. Each is restored independently by removing the ductile strain before restoring the faulting. From this example it is clear that many models derived from single-step balancing, especially those through ductile-deformed areas, should be re-examined.


Despite recent advances in our understanding of contracting behavior, economic contract theory has yet to identify the principal causes and effects of contract breach. In this Essay, I argue that opportunism is a primary explanation for why commercial parties deliberately breach their contracts. I develop a novel variation on opportunism that I identify as "shading;" a behavior that more accurately describes the vexing problems courts face in rooting out strategic behavior in contract litigation. I provide some empirical support for the claim that shading behavior is both pervasive in litigation over contract breach and extremely difficult for generalist courts to detect, and I offer an explanation for why this is so. In contrast to courts of equity in pre-industrial England, generalist courts today are tasked with the challenge of interpreting contracts in a heterogeneous global economy. This has left generalist courts incapable of identifying with any degree of accuracy which of the litigants is behaving strategically. I advance the claim that ex ante design by commercial parties is more effective in deterring opportunism in litigation than ex post evaluation of the contractual context by generalist courts. I illustrate this claim by focusing on the critical roles of uncertainty and scale in determining how legally sophisticated parties, both individually and collectively, design their contracts. By deploying sophisticated design strategies tailored to particular environments, parties are able both to reduce the risk of shading and to cabin the role of the decision maker tasked with policing this difficult to verify behavior. I conclude that judges and contract theorists must attend to the unique characteristics of the contracts currently being designed by sophisticated parties because it is the parties, and not the courts, that reduce the risks of opportunistic shading in contract adjudication.


The chronic impact of ambient air pollutants on lung function in adults is not fully understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the association of long-term exposure to ambient air pollution with lung function in adult participants from five cohorts in the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE). Residential exposure to nitrogen oxides (NO2, NOx) and particulate matter (PM) was modelled and traffic indicators were assessed in a standardised manner. The spirometric parameters forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) from 7613 subjects were considered as outcomes. Cohort-specific results were combined using meta-analysis. We did not observe an association of air pollution with longitudinal change in lung function, but we observed that a 10 μg·m−3 increase in NO2 exposure was associated with lower levels of FEV1 (−14.0 mL, 95% CI −25.8 to −2.1) and FVC (−14.9 mL, 95% CI −28.7 to −1.1). An increase of 10 μg·m−3 in PM10, but not other PM metrics (PM2.5, coarse fraction of PM, PM absorbance), was associated with a lower level of FEV1 (−44.6 mL, 95% CI −85.4 to −3.8) and FVC (−59.0 mL, 95% CI −112.3 to −5.6). The associations were particularly strong in obese persons. This study adds to the evidence for an adverse association of ambient air pollution with lung function in adults at very low levels in Europe. The ESCAPE study finds that, even at very low levels, air pollution has adverse effects on lung function in adults http://ow.ly/A1ssB


Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) is relatively a new crop in Malaysia. This fast growing species has been choosen and introduced in Malaysia to ensure a continuous supply of raw material for the composite industry, and as alternative solution for the shortage in rubberwood supply.
An attempt was made to develop a multi-layered kenaf board (MLKB) utilising different parts of kenaf stem: bast, core and a combination of bast and core fibres. The objectives of this study were: 1) to evaluate methods of retting and separating of kenaf fibres (bast and core fibres) for kenaf board production, 2) to determine the effects of resin content and bast to core proportion on the physical and mechanical properties of MLKB, and 3) to determine the properties of kenaf board with woven-bast mat as core. The kenaf bast and core were separated manually. The retting process (to separate bast fibres from the pectic materials) was carried out by submerging the bast in either cold water or alkali (NaOH) at certain duration. Three levels of alkali concentration were used: 1, 3, and 5%. The crude bast fibres were than combed and washed several times until straight and silky fibres were produced. The core portion was chipped into ≤ 2 cm size particles. Both bast fibres and core particles were then dried to about 5% moisture content. Multi-layered kenaf boards were fabricated using urea formaldehyde (UF) and melamine urea formaldehyde (MUF) resins as binders. Four types of 0.50 g/cm3 density MLKB were made with varying bast : core proportions. Homogenous particleboards utilising 100% rubberwood particles were used as control. Since bast fibres have low wettability, a low molecular weight phenol formaldehyde (LPF) resin was used to pretreat the bast fibres prior to normal blending with either UF or MUF resin. An attempt was also made to produce a kenaf board with woven bast fibre mat as core. The properties of boards were tested using MS standards 1737: 2005. Data were subjected to Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and the effects were further analysed by means separation using Least Significant Difference (LSD) at p ≤ 0.05.
The study indicates that treatment of kenaf bast with different alkali concentrations significantly affected the properties of kenaf bast fibres such as fibre and lumen diameter, cell wall thickness and chemical components. Kenaf bast fibres that have been treated with 5% NaOH gave the lowest amount of holocellulose, hemicellulose, α-cellulose, and lignin (48.7%, 29.7%, 19.0%, and 8.5% respectively.) High yield of holocellulose was obtained for treatment with water alone. Both the kenaf core and rubberwood have similar buffering capacity which is more sensitive towards acid. Bast fibre, on the other hand is more sensitive towards alkali. Due to its morphological properties, kenaf core inner surface exhibited higher wettability than outer surface.
Kenaf board comprising bast materials in the middle layer were stiffer than that of homogeneous 100% rubberwood. The incorporation of LPF resin in the fibres of MUF-bonded board comprising 70% kenaf core on the surface and 30% bast in the middle layer produced boards of reasonably good strength and dimensional stability. The modulus of elasticity (MOE) was 873 MPa, modulus of rupture (MOR) 8.9 MPa, internal bonding (IB) 0.32 MPa, thickness swelling (TS) 12.6%, and water absorption (WA) 118.9%. The presence of bast long fibres had improved the linear expansion (LE) length-wise by about 16.2%. All the kenaf board have higher MOR than that of 100% rubberwood.
The woven technique applied to improve the performance of the MLKB was found to be effective, producing 8.2% stronger and 22.3% stiffer board. The IB was also improved by 61.9%. The dimensional stability of these boards was superior to that of MLKB. Boards having 100% kenaf core consistently gave superior performance in mechanical strength but relatively poor in TS and WA due to the high porosity and absorbent of the core itself. The linear regression between IB and strength showed higher R2 values were obtained for all boards containing bast fibres compared to those having 100% core particles. The lack of fibre bonding among the bast fibres was found to be the dominant factor affecting the performance of woven-layered kenaf board (WLKB).


A consortium was created to investigate electroceramic materials that show ionic or mixed ionic-electronic conduction (MIEC), for application as oxygen separation membranes and in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC, electrolytes and cathodes). The focus is on dense structures as supported thin layers (5-20 µm) for reduced temperature operation (600-750°C). Under these conditions grain boundary effects are important. Zirconia, ceria and gallate are considered for SOFC electrolytes. The nature and the amount of the dopants will be varied, and sintering aids added. These parameters will influence the grain size and the grain boundary composition. The effects on microstructure, and conduction and strength properties will be examined by high resolution SEM/TEM, impedance spectroscopy and load testing under fast thermal cycling, respectively. A systematic study on the variation of the crystallite size of starting powders (prepared by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis - USP) and its effect on the grain boundary resistance is planned, for the case of zirconia electrolyte. Of special interest is also the compatibility between ceria and zirconia, when cofired at high temperatures: diffusion couples will be made, and studied by HR-SEM/EDX. Thin layers of these materials will be deposited on anode supports of planar shape, by tape casting, screenprinting or electrostatic spray pyrolysis (ESP). Dip coating and electrophoretic deposition (EPD), for example on tubular supports, is equally envisaged. Special attention is given to the conductivity measurement of such thin layers (in particular that of grain boundaries), and compared with that of bulky samples. Different results due to the thin layer microstructure have been observed. MIEC materials of the perovskite family La1-xSrx(Mn, Fe, Co)O3-x are considered as SOFC cathodes. Thin dense layers will be deposited by ESP on zirconia and ceria electrolytes. The effect of the annealing temperature, and therefore the grain size, on the electrochemical performance and the thermal-cycling performance of such cathode/electrolyte interfaces will be studied. Candidate MIEC Materials for oxygen separation membranes are intended to be fabricated as dense pellets (compaction) or tubes (extrusion). These can be single phase (e.g. La1-xBaxCo1-yFeyO3-d) or composites (e.g. ceria/La-chromite mixtures). They will be subjected to oxygen permeation measurements, i.e. under a large oxygen partial pressure gradient of for example CH4/air. Microstructural effects for permeation stability and mechanical stability will be of first importance: changes (grain size, grain boundaries, microporosity) will be undertaken. In view of their application, it is planned to try and deposit thin dense films of these materials on porous supports (e.g. of ceria): by ESP on porous plates, and by dip coating on porous tubes (made f.ex. by slip casting). Wherever possible, wet chemical synthesis routes are employed to obtain the ceramic starting powders, such as coprecipitation, citrate gel or dyanate complexation, colloidal synthesis or combustion synthesis.


The 18O content of atmospheric O2 is an important tracer for past changes in the biosphere. Its quantitative use depends on knowledge of the discrimination against 18O associated with the various O2 consumption processes. Here we evaluated, for the first time, the in situ 18O discrimination associated with soil respiration in natural ecosystems. The discrimination was estimated from the measured [O2] and δ18O of O2 in the soil‐air. The discriminations that were found are 10.1 ± 1.5‰, 17.8 ± 1.0‰, and 22.5 ± 3.6‰, for tropical, temperate, and boreal forests, respectively, 17.9 ± 2.5‰ for Mediterranean woodland, and 15.4 ± 1.6‰ for tropical shrub land. Current understanding of the isotopic composition of atmospheric O2 is based on the assumption that the magnitude of the fractionation in soil respiration is identical to that of dark respiration through the cytochrome pathway alone (∼18‰). The discrimination we found in the tropical sites is significantly lower, and is explained by slow diffusion in soil aggregates and root tissues that limits the O2 concentration in the consumption sites. The high discrimination in the boreal sites may be the result of high engagement of the alternative oxidase pathway (AOX), which has high discrimination associated with it (∼27‰). The intermediate discrimination (∼18‰) in the temperate and Mediterranean sites can be explained by the opposing effects of AOX and diffusion limitation that cancel out. Since soil respiration is a major component of the global oxygen uptake, the contribution of large variations in the discrimination, observed here, to the global Dole Effect should be considered in global scale studies.


This paper discusses research completed in 2012 as part of a Master of Criminology and Corrections degree through the University of Tasmania into measures of success in drug court participation. Visits were made to nine drug courts and various associated programs internationally and interviews were conducted with a wide range of stakeholders. Data from interviews with 16 current participants in the Tasmanian Court Mandated Diversion program provided first-hand information about the benefits of program participation, and a form designed to collect this information is included. The emphasis of the paper is on capturing the impact of drug court participation and how success can be measured, evaluated and demonstrated. Cost savings are considered with a view to securing the ongoing financial viability of such programs as they are demonstrated to represent good use of public money. Practical recommendations from my observations of 16 drug courts worldwide are made for consideration by the local drug court program.


This fifth economic update also examines prospects for economic prosperity in the context of rapid urbanization; in particular, how the growth of cities can be harnessed to create productive jobs for a labor force that is expected to double in the next 15 years. By 2030, Dar es Salaam will be a mega city of over 10 million people. As demonstrated by many countries in the world, cities encourage the creation and expansion of businesses by reducing distances between suppliers and customers. Can Dar es Salaam and other Tanzanian urban areas become thriving cities? Can they avoid becoming metropolis slums? Urbanization comes with significant challenges, notably in terms of increased pressure on infrastructure, housing, and service provision. The quality of the business climate in urban Tanzania will need to be improved, as most small and large entrepreneurs suffer from the uncertainty, corruption, and insecurity that characterize the business environment. This economic update argues that these challenges need to be addressed with a sense of urgency.


Francisella tularensis subsp. tularensis is a highly virulent pathogen for humans especially if inhaled. Consequently, it is considered to be a potential biothreat agent. An experimental vaccine, F. tularensis live vaccine strain, derived from the less virulent subsp. holarctica, was developed more than 50 years ago, but remains unlicensed. Previously, we developed a novel live vaccine strain, by deleting the chaperonin clpB gene from F. tularensis subsp. tularensis strain, SCHU S4. SCHU S4ΔclpB was less virulent for mice than LVS and a more effective vaccine against respiratory challenge with wild type SCHU S4. In the current study, we were interested to determine whether a similar mutant on the less virulent subsp. holarctica background would also outperform LVS in terms of safety and efficacy. To this end, clpB was deleted from clinical holarctica strain, FSC200. FSC200ΔclpB had a significantly higher intranasal LD50 than LVS for BALB/c mice, but replicated to higher numbers at foci of infection after dermal inoculation. Moreover, FSC200ΔclpB killed SCID mice more rapidly than LVS. However, dermal vaccination of BALB/c mice with the former versus the latter induced greater protection against respiratory challenge with SCHU S4. This increased efficacy was associated with enhanced production of pulmonary IL-17 after SCHU S4 challenge.


Mineral processing and metallurgy production centers may leave a far-reaching fingerprint of soil contamination. This scenario is particularly relevant in the mining district of Linares (Southern Spain), where former industrial sites are now dedicated to other land uses. Within this context, we selected five sectors of concern in Linares region, which are currently used as agricultural and residential areas. The study began with an edaphic characterization, including grain-size fractioning and soil chemical analyses, which were complemented by mineralogical and sequential extraction information. Anomalous soil concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn were found, with higher values than the admissible regional guideline limits. Moreover, chemical speciation indicated that in general, Pb, Zn, and Cd were highly available and bound mainly to the carbonate fraction. In addition, health risk assessment evidenced potential threats by Pb and As. Regarding remediation approaches, we observed that, in soils affected by mining and ore dressing activities, the clay and silt size fractions contained the highest pollution load, making them suitable for a size classification treatment. By contrast, in areas affected by metallurgical activity, pollutants were prone to be evenly distributed among all grain sizes, thereby complicating the implementation of such remediation strategies.