Since the early 1800s railroads have served as a critical element of the transportation infrastructure in the United States and have generated profound changes in technology, finance, business-government relations, and labor policy. By the 1850s railroads, at least in the northern states, had evolved into the nation's first big businesses, replete with managerial hierarchies that in many respects resembled the structure of the US Army. After the Civil War ended, the railroad network grew rapidly, with lines extending into the Midwest and ultimately, with the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in 1869, to the Pacific Coast. The last third of the 19th century was characterized by increased militancy among railroad workers, as well as by the growing danger that railroading posed to employees and passengers. Intense competition among railroad companies led to rate wars and discriminatory pricing. The presence of rebates and long-haul/short-haul price differentials led to the federal regulation of the railroads in 1887. The Progressive Era generated additional regulation that reduced profitability and discouraged additional investment in the railroads. As a result, the carriers were often unprepared for the traffic demands associated with World War I, leading to government operation of the railroads between 1917 and 1920. Highway competition during the 1920s and the economic crises of the 1930s provided further challenges for the railroads. The nation's railroads performed well during World War II but declined steadily in the years that followed. High labor costs, excessive regulatory oversight, and the loss of freight and passenger traffic to cars, trucks, and airplanes ensured that by the 1960s many once-profitable companies were on the verge of bankruptcy. A wave of mergers failed to halt the downward slide. The bankruptcy of Penn Central in 1970 increased public awareness of the dire circumstances and led to calls for regulatory reform. The 1980 Staggers Act abolished most of the restrictions on operations and pricing, thus revitalizing the railroads.


Chitin is produced by a variety of organisms using enzymes called chitin synthases and was recently discovered in certain vertebrates. In our ongoing investigations into the presence of vertebrate chitin, we unexpectedly found it within the electrosensory organs, known as Ampullae of Lorenzini, of diverse cartilaginous fishes. We used histochemical reagents, chemical analyses, and enzymatic digestions to confirm our findings. Further, in situ hybridization with a sequence from the little skate (Leucoraja erinacea) revealed that chitin synthase expression is localized to cells inside the organs. These findings indicate that cartilaginous fishes endogenously synthesize chitin and beg further investigation into the function of chitin in the electrosensory system.


Global support for Conservation Agriculture (CA) as a pathway to Sustainable Intensification is strong. CA revolves around three principles: no-till (or minimal soil disturbance), soil cover, and crop rotation. The benefits arising from the ease of crop management, energy/cost/time savings, and soil and water conservation led to widespread adoption of CA, particularly on large farms in the Americas and Australia, where farmers harness the tools of modern science: highly-sophisticated machines, potent agrochemicals, and biotechnology. Over the past 10 years CA has been promoted among smallholder farmers in the (sub-) tropics, often with disappointing results. Growing evidence challenges the claims that CA increases crop yields and builds-up soil carbon although increased stability of crop yields in dry climates is evident. Our analyses suggest pragmatic adoption on larger mechanized farms, and limited uptake of CA by smallholder farmers in developing countries. We propose a rigorous, context-sensitive approach based on Systems Agronomy to analyze and explore sustainable intensification options, including the potential of CA. There is an urgent need to move beyond dogma and prescriptive approaches to provide soil and crop management options for farmers to enable the Sustainable Intensification of agriculture.


Gaze is an important cue thought to facilitate effective social interaction and communication. Previous studies have shown that gaze could induce an attentional shift toward a location that match gaze direction and this attentional shift could in turn enhance sensory information processing in simple perceptual tasks. However, less is known about how gaze cues may influence selective attention and long-term memory in more complex real-world tasks. To examine this issue, we monitored eye movements via an infrared eye-tracking camera in 95 male and female adults, while they were reading and listening to sentences containing autographical information. On some trials, the sentence was presented by itself. On other trials, there was also an animated facial stimulus, which either gazed toward the sentence (congruent), gazed directly to the viewer (neutral), or gazed away from the sentence (incongruent) . We found that the congruent gaze cue effectively induced overt shifts of attention to the sentence as the probability that the eyes landed on the sentence increased compared to the incongruent gaze cue. Moreover, the degree of gaze-induced attentional modulations in the eye movement data positively correlated with the degree of attentional modulations in long-term memory performance. Taken together, these results suggest that gaze could induce overt attentional shifts toward relevant information in a complex behavioral task that requires learning and memory. Moreover, the attentional enhancement of memory performance varies across individuals depending on the degree at which social cues influenced attentional and oculomotor systems.


Mobile robots are notoriously unreliable. In order to make significant improvements in mobile robot reliability, we need quantitative methods and precise language for measuring and discussing reliability. Such methods exist within the reliability engineering literature but have seen little use in the design of mobile robots. In this report we present an overview of reliability engineering methods which can be used to predict the probability of failure for mobile robots. We also present here a novel extension to the concept of mean time to failure that incorporates the effects of operating conditions on failure rate. Finally, we demonstrate how these techniques can be used in mobile robot mission design to predict the probability of completing mission tasks. Using these methods, a mission designer can make informed decisions trading reliability against other variables such as cost.


Abstract. Fire alarm methods become increasingly complicated and functionally more competent and responsible in recent years. All are intended to fulfill the conditions: protection of property and assets and protection of life. Audio and visual signs are sent to notify people about concerning fire or CO concentration in range zone along with UAV this all is part of fire alarm assembly. Fire sirens and sensors are usually set in fire alarm operations for more effective safety for nearby formations. The advanced fire alarm sign comprises using either a sound or a flash and some additional features such as sending a message or a phone call or e-mail and it will also help us know about the smoke level and temperature of the fire. Its important part is that it will have the priority to save the life of people as well as prevent the infrastructure from the fire so to do the job simultaneously the advanced features are utilized this also includes using IoT to use it wirelessly with UAV and CCTV which will help in audio and visuals for the accident site along with that it will also send message to people living near the accident location so that they can help people by rescuing them.


Issue framing has become one of the most important means of elite influence on public opinion. In this paper, we introduce a method for investigating issue framing based on statistic analysis of large samples of language use. Our method uses a technique called Random Indexing (RI), which enables us to extract semantic and associative relations to any target concept of interest, based on co-occurrence statistics collected from large samples of relevant language use. As a first test and evaluation of our proposed method, we apply RI to a large collection of Swedish blog data and extract semantic relations relating to our target concept "outsiders". This concept is widely used in the public debate both in relation to labour market issues and socially related issues.


The relationship between universities and the free enterprise system has become increasingly controversial as researchers and universities reap profits from scientific investigations. A review is given of developments in this relationship and issues which have been raised at symposia of university leaders and researchers, and by individual professors and students. These issues include conflict of interest, secrecy, patent ownership, research priorities, the role of graduate students, public confidence, and the traditional norms of scientific research. It is concluded that future university deliberations about these concerns should represent a broad range of disciplines and viewpoints, and be open to students, the public, and the press.


The visuo‐motor channel hypothesis (Jeannerod, 1981) postulates that grasping movements consist of a grip and a transport component differing in their reliance on intrinsic vs. extrinsic object properties (e.g. size vs. location, respectively). While recent neuroimaging studies have revealed separate brain areas implicated in grip and transport components within the parietal lobe, less is known about the neural processing of extrinsic and intrinsic properties of objects for grasping actions. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging adaptation to examine the cortical areas involved in processing object size, object location or both. Participants grasped (using the dominant right hand) or passively viewed sequential pairs of objects that could differ in size, location or both. We hypothesized that if intrinsic and extrinsic object properties are processed separately, as suggested by the visuo‐motor channel hypothesis, we would observe adaptation to object size in areas that code the grip and adaptation to location in areas that code the transport component. On the other hand, if intrinsic and extrinsic object properties are not processed separately, brain areas involved in grasping may show adaptation to both object size and location. We found adaptation to object size for grasping movements in the left anterior intraparietal sulcus (aIPS), in agreement with the idea that object size is processed separately from location. In addition, the left superior parietal occipital sulcus (SPOC), primary somatosensory and motor area (S1/M1), precuneus, dorsal premotor cortex (PMd), and supplementary motor area (SMA) showed non‐additive adaptation to both object size and location. We propose different roles for the aIPS as compared with the SPOC, S1/M1, precuneus, PMd and SMA. In particular, while the aIPS codes intrinsic object properties, which are relevant for hand preshaping and force scaling, area SPOC, S1/M1, precuneus, PMd and SMA code intrinsic as well as extrinsic object properties, both of which are relevant for digit positioning during grasping.


Best-selling statistics author, Fredrick J. Gravetter, and co-author Lori-Ann B. Forzano have written a text for research methods that helps student see how interesting and exciting experimental and non-experimental research can be. Inviting and conversational, RESEARCH METHODS FOR THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES, Second Edition leads students through the research process from start to finish. Organized to match the research process, the text opens with tips and strategies for generating research ideas, moves to selecting measures and participants, and then offers an examination of research strategy and design. This step-by-step approach emphasizes the decisions researchers must make at each stage of the process. The authors' avoid a "cookbook" approach to the facts by linking terminology with applied concepts; their "lecture in a book" style makes the text accessible to students by emphasizing discussion and explanation of topics. Each chapter ends with a set of student exercises and activities.


There are multiple factors that influence the quality of health and the health care experience of Aboriginal patients. Some of these factors include health professionals' clinical decision-making and miscommunication between doctor and patient. A more "culturally competent" health workforce is a recommended strategy in addressing the extensively documented health disparities between Australia's Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples. Culture, its importance in, and connection to health, is being increasingly explored in medical curricula with the expectation of improved health outcomes. This literature review on cultural competency in medical curricula reveals an emerging awareness of the paucity of data showing evidence of positive health outcomes for Aboriginal patients of "culturally competent" medical professionals. This highlights the need for there to be evidence of more than just practitioner satisfaction but also of meaningful shifts in health outcomes for Aboriginal patients of a more culturally knowledgeable medical profession.


In this paper we investigate the role of the academic status in the following behaviour of computer scientists on Twitter. Based on a uses and gratifications perspective, we focus on the activity of a Twitter account and the reciprocity of following relationships. We propose that the account activity addresses the users' information motive only, whereas the user's academic status relates to both the information motive and community development (as in peer networking or career planning). Variables were extracted from Twitter user data. We applied a biographical approach to correctly identify the academic status (professor versus PhD student). We calculated a $2\times 2$ MANOVA on the influence of the activity of the account and the academic status (on different groups of followers) to differentiate the influence of the information motive versus the motive for community development. Results suggest that for computer scientists Twitter is mainly an information network. However, we found significant effects in the sense of career planning, that is, the accounts of professors had even in the case of low activity a relatively high number of researcher followers -- both PhD followers as well as professor followers. Additionally, there was also some weak evidence for community development gratifications in the sense of peer-networking of professors. Overall, we conclude that the academic use of Twitter is not only about information, but also about career planning and networking.


In this book U.S. and European experts explore possible roles for armed services, intelligence services, and the private sector in homeland security in different countries. The contributors examine lessons learned from transformation programs for homeland security, analyze evolving conceptions of security, and suggest a joint road map for immediate and long-term policy action at national, European, and transatlantic levels. Contributors include Sandra Bell (Homeland Security and Resilience Department, RUSI), Heiko Borchert (Dr. Heiko Borchert and Co. and Dusseldorf Institute for Foreign and Security Policy, DIAS),Yves Boyer (Fondation pour la Recherche Strategique), Anja Dalgaard-Nielsen (Danish Institute for International Studies), Gerd Foehrenbach (Bundeswehr Center for Transformation), BG Gustav Gustenau (Austrian Ministry of Defense), Daniel Hamilton (Center for Transatlantic Relations), Lawrence J. Korb (Center for American Progress), Gustav Lindstrom (European Union Institute for Security Studies), Pauline Neville-Jones (QinetiQ Group plc and the UK's Information Assurance Advisory Council), and Alexander Schuller (Free University-Berlin).


Rates of bedrock erosion in ingrown meandering rivers can be inferred from the location of buried relict flood-plain and river-bank surfaces, associated paleosols, and radiocarbon dates. Two independent methods are used to evaluate the long-term rates of limestone bedrock erosion by the Duck River. Radiocarbon dates on samples retrieved from buried Holocene flood-plain and bank surfaces indicate lateral migration of the river bank at average rates of 0.6-1.9 m/100 yr. Such rates agree with lateral bedrock cliff erosion rates of 0.5-1.4 m/100 yr, as determined from a comparison of late Pleistocene and modern bedrock cliff and terrace scarp positions. These results show that lateral bedrock erosion by this river could have occurred coevally with flood-plain and terrace formation and that the resulting evolution of valley meander bends carved into bedrock is similar in many respects to that of channel meanders cut into alluvium. 11 references, 5 figures.


Abstract Most adverse health effects of cigarette smoking are attributed to the products of combustion. Efforts to avoid the adverse health effects of cigarette smoking have led to the promotion of alternative products that are perceived to be less harmful. In this paper, we review the available literature for evidence of the effectiveness of the products commonly presented as alternatives to cigarette smoking, and discuss evidence-based information on whether they should be promoted as safe alternatives for long-term use or are effective as cessation aid. Water pipe smoking is becoming prevalent among young people and the electronic cigarette has been recently introduced as smoking alternative in smoke-free areas. Available limited data suggest that while smokers may perceive these alternatives as safer than cigarette smoking, they contain toxic substances and therefore are not harmless alternatives. Data on herbal products are not easily available and where they are, evidence shows that these products are also not effective alternatives. Smokeless tobacco products vary in composition and health effects worldwide. The available literature suggests that these products may be associated with adverse health outcomes and that they cannot be promoted as 'safe' alternative tobacco products. Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) formulations, such as chewing gums and skin patches, have been well studied and evidence suggests that all forms are effective smoking cessation aids, either used alone and in combination with other NRT or cessation medication and behavioural therapy. Primary care physicians should therefore only offer NRT to smokers who are willing to quit in combination with behavioural therapy or other cessation medications approved by the South African Medicines Control Council.


The Carbon Nanomaterials Sourcebook contains extensive, interdisciplinary coverage of carbon nanomaterials, encompassing the full scope of the field—from physics, chemistry, and materials science to molecular biology, engineering, and medicine—in two comprehensive volumes. Written in a tutorial style, this second volume of the sourcebook: • Focuses on nanoparticles, nanocapsules, nanofibers, nanoporous structures, and nanocomposites • Describes the fundamental properties, growth mechanisms, and processing of each nanomaterial discussed • Explores functionalization for electronic, energy, biomedical, and environmental applications • Showcases materials with exceptional properties, synthesis methods, large-scale production techniques, and application prospects • Provides the tools necessary for understanding current and future technology developments, including important equations, tables, and graphs Each chapter is dedicated to a different type of carbon nanomaterial and addresses three main areas: formation, properties, and applications. This setup allows for quick and easy search, making the Carbon Nanomaterials Sourcebook: Nanoparticles, Nanocapsules, Nanofibers, Nanoporous Structures, and Nanocomposites, Volume II a must-have reference for scientists and engineers.


Biodegradable blended electrospun mats are promising for biomedical applications such as wound dressing, tissue engineering, and drug delivery. Electrospun mats based on polyesters can be modified by the addition of other polymers or proteins to accelerate the degradation, improve mechanical properties or biocompatibility. However, relatively little is known about the distribution of the components throughout the blended mats. In the present work, we prepared polylactide (PLA), bovine serum albumin (BSA), and the blended PLA–BSA electrospun mats. We demonstrated that PLA and BSA are miscible in a common solvent HFIP (1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol) at concentrations below 3%, but become immiscible as concentration increases. We used three methods (fluorescence microscopy, EDX, and Raman microspectroscopy) to validate that PLA and BSA can be blended in a single electrospun fiber despite the phase separation in the blend. The homogeneity of the blend influences on the homogeneity of the distribution of PLA and BSA components throughout the electrospun mat, as measured by Raman microspectroscopy. When the blended electrospun mats were incubated in water, they demonstrated the prolonged release of BSA. The presented results show a step-by-step approach for manufacturing blended electrospun mats made of immiscible components, which involves the analysis of component miscibility, the mat morphology, and composition. This approach can be used for the rational design of multicomponent electrospun mats.


It is demonstrated numerically that the supercontinuum generation and third-harmonic generation that accompany optical filamentation in nonlinear dispersive bulk media can be described as first-order scattering processes akin to the first Born approximation. In particular, for an incident ultrashort pulse the angularly resolved spectrum of the transmitted pulse is shown to be accurately determined using first-order scattering of the incident field from the nonlinearly modified refractive index due to the optical filament. Thus, although an optical filament is a highly nonlinear object, the accompanying supercontinuum generation and third-harmonic generation are driven parametrically by the filament and have negligible back action upon it.


The purpose of this study was to present the effect of Knowledge Management on Sustainable Competitive Advantage using Knowledge Management enablers. A substantial part of the study was dedicated to providing a detailed analysis of Employee empowerment, Information Technology Systems, Organizational Culture, Top Management Leadership Commitment and Organizational Strategy and their influence on Sustainable Competitive Advantage. A framework synthesized from a review of the literature was offered. Although each of these were viewed as critical to the success of the entire process when examined individually, they were considered most influential when viewed as forming a comprehensive gestalt for effectively managing knowledge. A case study of CARE International in Kenya (CIK) was carried out. The objectives of study were; to find out how employee empowerment influences SCA in CIK, to assess how information technology systems affect SCA in CIK, to find out how organizational culture affects SCA in CIK, to assess the effect of management leadership commitment on SCA in CIK and to examine the effect of organizational strategy on SCA in CIK. The study population was all the employees in CARE International in Kenya. The study was a descriptive case study. Both the primary and secondary data were collected using triangulation: structured questionnaires, interviews, participant observation and document analysis. The questionnaires were administered by the researcher through a drop and collect method to ensure high response rates. Firstly information was gathered through questionnaires and interviews, then from funding proposals and report backs were covered, which was e supplemented by information about KM in place at the time. Purposive and random sampling techniques were used to sample 259 employees from a population of 579 employees comprising 82 senior staff and 497 junior staff respectively. Statistical tools such as cross-tabulation and correlation were used to analyze the data. The study used graphs and pie charts to represent rinformation and facts. From the study, there is substantial evidence to show that KM has a strong positive correlation with SCA. Descriptive statistics and reliability analysis were presented to provide further insight. The following significant results were found: a strong and significant positive linear relationship iv between KM and SeA (IT, employee empowerment, organizational culture, organizational strategy, management leadership commitment). The variables under study, which are KM variables, produced strong positive correlation with competitive Advantage, an indicator that a full adoption by elK would significantly enhance their competitive advantage against other NGOs. Developing KM is a long-term journey. It needs time and effort to establish an effective and standardized KM programme. For elK, we observe that there are existing and potential KM obstacles and constraints, which are retarded by the restricted resources and financial supports. Those pressures impede the development and advancement of KM. However, KM is vital to the NGO sector, if the problems of limited resources have not yet been resolved, the growth of KM will be at a standstill and these organizations will not be competitive in the sector. Finally, recommendations were offered under the five key KM enablers for consideration. The five key enablers were used because SeA is usually influenced mostly by them. This, in itself, is a key idea as using these themes in the initial planning stages of KM will substantially reduce the issues that could otherwise arise. The recommendations offered are practical ideas, drawn from experience, and intended for practitioners working with NGOs but are also based on the theory . behind the KM concept and are just as relevant for consideration by KM and development theorists alike.


The coordination of the attitude among different spacecraft belonging to a multiple platform system (formation or constellation) is a basic requirement in several missions, mainly the ones involving sensors like radars or optical interferometers. It is also an open topic in research, above all as it matches the characteristics of the current trend towards interoperability and federated systems. Different approaches are possible to define and chase such a coordinated attitude. The classic control strategy is the so-called leader-follower architecture, where all spacecraft depend on ("follow") the behavior of a single master. Alternatively, the behavioral approach involves a continuous re-selection of the desired target configuration which is computed on the basis of the behavior of all the platforms. A third possibility is to define a "virtual" architecture, especially suitable with respect to the mission requirements, which is not dependent on the current kinematic state of the platforms. The paper proposes a unified treatment of these concepts by using some fundamental definitions of the consensus dynamics and cooperative control. The convergence to the targeted configuration is addressed both analytically, by using Lyapunov stability criteria, and numerically, by means of numerical simulations. The attitude requirements and constraints are highlighted and a solution for the control algorithm - involving continuous actuators on each platform - is developed. A comparative analysis of different optimal control strategies, the Linear Quadratic Regulation (LQR) and the State Dependent Riccati Equation (SDRE) - suitably modified to address the needs of coordination - is presented. The results show the general value of the proposed approach with respect to either linear or nonlinear models of the dynamics.


The number of sensors, actuators and electronic control units present in cars have increased in the last few years. The Internet-of-Things (IoT) model has transformed modern vehicles into a co-engineered interacting network of physical and computational components. Vehicles have become a complex cyber-physical system where context detection has become a challenge. In this paper, we present a rule based approach for context detection in vehicles. We also discuss various attack surfaces and vulnerabilities in vehicular IoT. We propose a system which collects data from the CAN bus and uses it to generate SWRL rules. We then reason over these rules to mine vehicular context. We also showcase a few use-cases as examples where our system can detect if a vehicle is in an unsafe/anomalous state.


Everything we think, do and refrain from doing is determined by our brain. From religion to sexuality, it shapes our potential, our desires and our characters. Taking us through every stage in our lives, from the womb to falling in love to old age, Dick Swaab shows that we don't just have brains: we are our brains. "A blockbuster about the brain ...provocative, fascinating, remarkable." (Clive Cookson, Financial Times). "A giant in the field." (Zoe Williams, Guardian). "Engrossing, intriguing and enlightening." (Robin Ince). "Enchantingly written." (The Times Higher Education). "Wide-ranging, fun and informative ...as an ice-breaker at parties, it is unmatched." (Bryan Appleyard, Sunday Times).


Many light field displays are fundamentally different from other displays in that they do not have quantized pixels, quantized angular outputs, or a physical screen position, which can make definitions and characterization problematic. We have determined that it is more appropriate to express the spatial resolution in terms of spatial cutoff frequency rather than a physical distance as in the case of a display with actual quantized pixels. This concept is then extended to also encompass angular resolution. The technique exploits the fact that when spatial resolution of a sinusoidal grating pattern is halved, its contrast ratio is reduced by a known proportion. An improved model, based on an earlier design concept, has been developed. It not only can be used to measure spatial and angular cutoff frequencies, but also can enable comprehensive characterization of the display. This model provides fast, simple measurement with good accuracy. It does not use special equipment or require time-consuming subjective evaluations. Using the model to characterize images in a rapid, accurate manner validates the effectiveness of this technique.


The journalistic coverage of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, involved various media platforms and the flow of information between mass media and social media. This phenomenon is not new; therefore, the research question that motivates this article is to what extent transmedia strategies were effectively applied to the Russian official news coverage of the Sochi Olympic Games. The theoretical framework focuses on transmedia journalism, and the method is based on the analytical model regarding transmedia news coverage of planned events developed by Gambarato and Tarcia. The research findings demonstrate that, although transmedial features are incorporated in the Russian coverage, there is modest content expansion and limited engagement with the audience.


Recently developed MinHash-based techniques were proven successful in quickly estimating the level of similarity between large nucleotide sequences. This article discusses their usage and limitations in practice to approximating uncorrected distances between genomes, and transforming these pairwise dissimilarities into proper evolutionary distances. It is notably shown that complex distance measures can be easily approximated using simple transformation formulae based on few parameters. MinHash-based techniques can therefore be very useful for implementing fast yet accurate alignment-free phylogenetic reconstruction procedures from large sets of genomes. This last point of view is assessed with a simulation study using a dedicated bioinformatics tool.


The driven transport of plastic systems in various disordered backgrounds is studied within mean field theory. Plasticity is modeled using nonconvex interparticle potentials that allow for phase slips. This theory most naturally describes sliding charge density waves; other applications include flow of colloidal particles or driven magnetic flux vortices in disordered backgrounds. The phase diagrams exhibit generic phases and phase boundaries, though the shapes of the phase boundaries depend on the shape of the disorder potential. The phases are distinguished by their velocity and coherence: the moving phase generically has finite coherence, while pinned states can be coherent or incoherent. The coherent and incoherent static phases can coexist in parameter space, in contrast with previous results for exactly sinusoidal pinning potentials. Transitions between the moving and static states can also be hysteretic. The depinning transition from the static to sliding states can be determined analytically, while the repinning transition from the moving to the pinned phases is computed by direct simulation.


Experimental results on a template-assisted technique to fabricate uniform nano- and microchannels are presented. Different template materials, polystyrene and poly(vinyl alcohol) electrospun and spider silk fibres were coated with silica. After calcination mechanically stable and transparent channels with uniform tubular diameter were obtained. The diameters ranged between 150 nm and 4 μm, depending on the size of the fibre template. By coating crossed fibres we prepared connected channel junctions that were solvent- and airtight. The channels and junctions remained tight even when applying a pressure above 3 bar as verified by laser scanning confocal microscopy. The flow of liquids in the channels was monitored and described by the Lucas–Washburn equation. We varied the viscosities and surface tensions of the liquids and measured the filling velocities over a distance of several millimeters as well as very close to the channel entrance. The late stage of capillary filling can be described well by the Lucas–Washburn equation. The early stage was slower than predicted. We attribute the delayed filling to the velocity dependence of the contact angle and modeled the filling behaviour by dynamic wetting theories.


The paper proposes a new class of continuous-time asset pricing models where negative jumps play a crucial role. Whenever there is a negative jump in asset returns, it is simultaneously passed on to diffusion variance and the jump intensity, generating self-exciting co-jumps of prices and volatility and jump clustering. To properly deal with parameter uncertainty and in-sample over-fitting, a Bayesian learning approach combined with an efficient particle filter is employed. It not only allows for comparison of both nested and non-nested models, but also generates all quantities necessary for sequential model analysis. Empirical investigation using S&P 500 index returns shows that volatility jumps at the same time as negative jumps in asset returns mainly through jumps in diffusion volatility. We find substantial evidence for jump clustering, in particular, after the recent financial crisis in 2008, even though parameters driving dynamics of the jump intensity remain difficult to identify.


The synthesis of dual purpose modified fullerenes with pyridine-as well as amine-functional groups is reported. Addition of these fullerenes to a polymer : fullerene bulk-heterojunction blend based on a thiophene-quinoxaline donor polymer is found to modify the active layer/cathode interface of inverted solar cells (glass/ITO/active layer/MoO3/Al). In particular the open-circuit voltage of devices is increased from 0.1 V to about 0.7 V, which results in a drastic rise in photovoltaic performance with a power conversion efficiency of up to 3%. At the same time, presence of the functionalised fullerene additives prevents the detrimental formation of micrometre-sized fullerene crystals upon annealing at 140 degrees C. As a result, the device performance is retained, which promises significantly increased thermal stability of the bulk-heterojunction blend nanostructure.


It has traditionally been argued that the development of telecommunications infrastructure is dependent on the quality of countries' political institutions. We estimate the effect of political institutions on the diffusion of three telecommunications services and find it to be much smaller in cellular telephony than in the others. By evaluating the importance of institutions for technologies rather than for industries, we reveal important growth opportunities for developing countries and offer policy implications for alleviating differences between countries in international telecommunications development.


With the adoption of the 2020 Vertical Merger Guidelines, the U.S. antitrust agencies have updated their guidance on vertical mergers for the Twenty-First Century. Although economists have long recognized the procompetitive benefits most vertical mergers generate, the law has not always followed suit, and has sometimes condemned vertical mergers for making the merged firm more efficient. In this article, we attempt to catalogue the extensive list of efficiencies that vertical mergers can generate, trace the often halting efforts to incorporate these insights into the law, and propose a framework that courts and agencies can use to assess the likely competitive effects of vertical transactions. We draw heavily upon leading cases, particularly Baker Hughes and AT&T, with two refinements. First, consistent with the final Guidelines (but not the earlier draft) and the economic literature noting a symmetry between unilateral anticompetitive effects (raising rivals' costs) and procompetitive effects (the elimination of double marginalization), which we call the "unilateral effects tradeoff," we argue a plaintiff alleging a raising rivals cost (RRC) theory of harm must also address EDM as part of its prima facie case. Second, if the plaintiff carries its prima facie burden, then the defendant should be able to argue, and courts and Agencies should seriously consider, the full range of procompetitive efficiencies, which we call a "holistic efficiency analysis."


Background Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DQ has emerged as the alloantibody most frequently associated with the generation of de novo donor-specific antibody (DSA), antibody-mediated-rejection, and unfavorable transplantation outcome. Methods The generation of HLA-DQ de novo DSA was interrogated in 40 transplant recipients who were immunologically naive before their failed transplantation. Eplet and epitope analyses were performed using HLAMatchmaker and Cn3D software. Results Ten DQA and thirteen DQB eplets or eplet combinations were identified. All but one revealed an epitope footprint that includes both the DQ&agr; and DQ&bgr; chains. Four examples are illustrated in detail, representing a range of different epitope landscapes. A disparity between antigen density and mean fluorescence intensity values for some alleles within an eplet group was noted, with mean fluorescence intensity values of the lowest fluorescence bead being one tenth of the highest fluorescence bead, despite the fact that the amount of antigen on these beads were not significantly different. Conclusion Our data support the need for changing the manner in which HLA-DQ antigens and antibodies are evaluated for organ transplantation. The current nomenclature system does not reflect the true nature of HLA-DQ polymorphism. Moreover, epitope immunogenicity likely involves more than the mere presence of a specific eplet. Because our field contemplates the use of epitope matching as an approach to improve organ allocation and overall outcomes, it is imperative to have accurate characterization of the immunogenicity of each epitope. This will pave the way to identifying acceptable mismatches and will allow risk stratification for generating de novo HLA-DSA after transplantation.


INTRODUCTION To say that poverty remains one of the most pressing issues of our time is a colossal understatement. A staggering number of people on the planet live in poverty. In the United States alone, the working poor and those living at or below the poverty line make up 12.6 percent of our populace. (1) While these individuals may not all be in imminent danger of starving or homelessness, they often lack basic safeguards that those in the upper socio-economic levels of society take for granted: basic health insurance, access to pension programs, disability coverage, and the certainty of a living wage that keeps pace with inflation. Poverty and its attendant social manifestations (crime, illiteracy, malnutrition, etc.) are urgent social problems. Why, then, is poverty often ignored in law school? Even though religion and philosophy, two areas deeply concerned with social issues such as income inequality, inform many legal doctrines, there is, in my experience, noticeably less discussion now about poverty and income inequality in law schools than there was twenty years ago. Whether in the classroom or in faculty workshops and other forums for legal conversation, the problems of poor people do not command the attention they did a generation ago. According to the great scholar of comparative religion Diana Eck, all major religious traditions share a strong emphasis on the centrality of compassion. (2) A corollary of compassion for others is mindfulness of the material conditions of the impoverished. John Rawls, whom many students read in law school, bases his utilitarian theory of justice on the logic that in a society where one's position is uncertain, a person should always maximize the well being of the society's poorest members. (3) Rawls is not alone in advocating a philosophy or world view that takes into account the material conditions of our least advantaged citizens. (4) These considerations form integral parts of the several academic disciplines from which the study and practice of law emerges. With such strong foundations and current need, it is more than a little disappointing that poverty issues seem to be falling by the wayside in almost every area of the law school experience. Legal discourse is now dominated by the language and analytical tools of law and economics. The focus has shifted to economic efficiency, wealth maximization, the development of optimal default rules, and other language imported into the legal academy through the law and economics movement. (5) While the discourse of law and economics has made many impressive contributions to the pantheon of legal scholarship, its rise has had unfortunate consequences for those concerned about fostering discourse in the areas of poverty law and material conditions. Partly because the language and method of law and economics place a heavy emphasis on value-neutral discourse, the poverty conversation has, itself, become impoverished, when it takes place at all. The singular emphasis on economics leads to the regrettable omission of candidly compassionate and morality-centered solutions to many of society's most pressing issues. Solutions which aim to decrease income inequality and focus on the material conditions of our most vulnerable and impoverished citizens are in desperately short supply, particularly in the areas in which I teach--ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act), insurance, and employment law. The central problem is that it is not always useful to have value-neutral conversations about subjects that cannot be fully understood without some measure of compassion. I. WHAT ARE THE MATERIAL CONDITIONS ISSUES IN INSURANCE AND BENEFITS LAW? The conditions of the working poor and a growing number of the middle class in the United States have been declining steadily over the past decade, especially in the areas of insurance and benefits. There are nearly forty-seven million Americans without any health insurance at all. …


Communities of Innovation: Composition, Climate, and Process Variables in Group Innovation Bradley D. Marianno Department of Sociology, BYU Master of Science Drawing upon the Communities of Innovation (COI) framework, this study seeks to identify the composition (functional demographic diversity), team climate (vision, participatory safety, task orientation, support for innovation), and process (group reflection, group flow, group conflict, dynamic expertise) variables that influence team-level innovation. Using data from 15 business school teams enrolled in a class on innovation and entrepreneurship, I explore the extent to which the proposed composition, team climate, and process variables discriminate between high-ranking and low-ranking innovative teams. I also investigate the degree to which these variables are conceptually and empirically distinct. Given the relative importance of dynamic expertise as a group process, I seek to answer how dynamic expertise is fostered in COIs. Finally, this study seeks to answer the degree to which the proposed composition, team climate, and process variables influence team level innovation. I found significantly greater levels of vision, participatory safety, support for innovation, group reflection, group flow, and dynamic expertise and significantly lower levels of group conflict in high-ranking innovative teams. No significant differences in levels of task orientation and functional diversity existed. Furthermore, the identified COI elements, particularly the team climate measures, are moderately correlated, suggesting that some elements of the COI are not empirically distinct. I found dynamic expertise to be of particular importance to COIs, and demonstrated that a supportive environment and group flow are particularly important to its development. Finally, results from a multinomial logistic regression model showed that support for innovation, group flow, and dynamic expertise were positively associated with the likelihood of being in a high-ranking innovative team. Implications for the COI framework are discussed.


Calculating the mutual coupling between antennas on vehicles using full-wave simulations requires a vast amount of computer resources due to the electrical size of the structures. We therefore propose an alternative and approximate method to determine mutual coupling between antennas on vehicles for the case where there is line-of-sight (LOS) between the antennas. The proposed method is based on approximating the mutual coupling between LOS antennas on vehicles as near-field transmission between antennas in free space. We begin the analysis with a brief review of four methods for calculating the near-field free-space transmission. Of the investigated methods, we demonstrate that a nonsingular form of the near-field transmission integral originally proposed by Yaghjian (1982) is the most suitable for LOS antennas on vehicles. We introduce a modification to this method, in order to only use the antenna far-fields and geometrical separation to determine the mutual coupling. The comparison with full-wave simulations indicates that the proposed method has a good accuracy for LOS antennas. This paper ends with a full-scale mutual coupling calculation for two monopoles on an aircraft under LOS conditions, demonstrating a root mean square (rms) accuracy of 6 dB for frequencies up to 5 GHz, as compared with full-wave simulations.


Currently there i s a lack of consistency in outcomes measured across studies evaluating nonpharmacological health and social care community-based interventions for people living with dementia, which obstructs comparisons for effectiveness and makes the interpretation of results and meta analysis difficult. One way to address this is to use and report a core outcome set—a list of core outcomes that should be measured and reported as a minimum across all relevant effectiveness trials. In phase 1, outcomes were extracted from existing trials (n = 124) and key stakeholders (people living with dementia, care partners, and health and social care professionals; policymakers and researchers) were recruited to interviews and focus groups (n = 55) in order to identify important outcomes. On the back of unsuccessful attempts elsewhere at involving people living with dementia in a Delphi survey, in phase 2 the research team facilitated substantial involvement of people living with dementia as co-researchers in order to design a modified, accessible, and innovative two-round Delphi survey method. Across the stakeholder groups, the excellent response rate in the Delphi (86.3% response rate between rounds—R1 n = 285; R2 n = 246) reflects the substantive work undertaken to ensure the method was accessible to people living with dementia. The final core outcome set was ratified at a consensus meeting (again, modified to accommodate people living with dementia), where 13 outcomes were finalized as core. The next phase of the study will undertake a systematic review to assess how outcomes should be measured.


We have come a long way in our understanding of the mechanisms involved in producing an exaggerated scar. One of the important factors to consider is that, as in so many other medical conditions, the answer lies in a multipronged approach. It serves no purpose targeting one area in a cascade of events that result in scarring. Thus we previously published a set of principles that govern the sequential areas of control that we have used to minimise scarring - support, hydration, collagen maturation and controlled inflammation. These principles will be elaborated on in respect of new scientific facts and with particular reference to the practical management of different wound sites.


textabstractIn adults, personality disorders are among the most common mental disorders in
the general population (Torgersen, Kringlen, & Cramer, 2001) and patient samples
(Zimmerman, Rothschild, & Chelminski, 2005). Prevalence rates vary from 13.4%
in the general population, to 56.5% in treated addicted patients, and 60.4% in
psychiatric outpatients (Verheul & van den Brink, 1999). Furthermore, among
adults seeking specialized treatment, personality disorders are associated with low
quality of life (Soeteman, Verheul, & Busschbach, 2008) and high societal costs
(Soeteman, Hakkaart-van Roijen, Verheul, & Busschbach, 2008). Since the
inclusion of personality disorders in the DSM-III in 1980, much research has been
conducted investigating the effectiveness of treatments for these patients. Based
on this literature, psychotherapy is generally considered the treatment of choice for
adult patients with personality disorders (Landelijke Stuurgroep
Richtlijnontwikkeling in de GGZ, 2008). Much less is known about personality
disorders in adolescents. To the best of our knowledge, the study of Grilo and
colleagues (1998) is the only published prevalence study among adolescent
patients. Most research on personality disorders in adolescents is derived from the
Children in the Community study (CIC; see for example Chen, Cohen, Kasen, &
Johnson, 2006; Johnson et al., 2000; Johnson, Chen, & Cohen, 2004; Kasen et
al., 2007), which was carried out in the general population. Valuable information to
yield arguments in favor of reimbursing treatments for this particular patient group,
like the burden of disease or costs, is virtually non-existing. Furthermore, there are
almost no outcome studies available in this particular group of patients. This thesis
aims to address these above mentioned issues, thereby filling in the existing gap.


Myths relating the slaying of a large reptile by a hero or trickster deity appear in many mythologies across Eurasia and beyond, in Polynesia and the Americas. They are an important part of the creation myths. The killing of the monster liberates the dammed up waters as to make the world fertile and inhabitable for humans. Related is the connection between summer solstice and the marriage of the dragon slayer (or a hunter) with a local virgin, ultimately, the marriage of sun and moon, as found from Old India via China and Japan to the Kekchi Mayas. Such myths are traced back to a reconstructed Late Paleolithic mythology, called "Laurasian" that incorporates myths from the beginning of the world to its final destruction. Historical Comparative Mythology is to be added as another approach in our quest to understand early humans.


As part of the VELACS (VErification of Liquefaction
Analysis Using Centrifuge Studies) Project, a series of dynamic centrifuge model tests were duplicated at different Universities (U.C. Davis, UC Berkeley, Caltech, Cambridge, Colorado, MIT, Princeton, and RPI) to assess the repeatability of the test results and to provide a data base for a Class A (before the event) type prediction of the test results. This paper will present the results obtained on different centrifuges, the evaluation of the repeatability of the results, and discussions on the use
fulness of the results for the validation of constitutive models and numerical procedures. The experience and lessons
learnt from this practice show that standardization of dynamic centrifuge modeling is very important in order to achieve repeatability of test results. The results resented here are based on the materials published in a Proceedings of the VELACS Symposium.


Anthony Grafton is erudite and elegant in the style of the best historical writers who make the past come alive for the reader. In a full-scale presentation of the world of scholarship, from the Renaissance to the modern period, Grafton sets before us in three-dimensional detail such seminal figures as Poliziano, Scaliger, Kepler, and Wolf. He calls attention to continuities, moments of crisis, and changes in direction. The central issue in Defenders of the Text is the relation between humanism and science from the mid-fifteenth century to the beginning of the modern period. Treatments of Renaissance humanism in English have emphasized the humanists' commitment to rhetoric, ethics, and politics and have accused the humanists of concentrating on literary matters in preference to investigating the real world via new developments in science, philosophy, and other technical disciplines. This revisionist book demonstrates that humanism was neither a simple nor an impractical enterprise, but worked hand-in-hand with science in developing modern learning. Anthony Grafton makes clear that humanism remained an integral and vital part of European culture until the eighteenth century, maintaining a technical component of its own--classical philology--which developed in as rich, varied, and unexpected a way as any other field of European thought. Attention to the text led the humanists to develop a whole range of cools and methods that lent power to science and learning for centuries to come. Grafton shows the continued capacity of classical texts to provoke innovative work in both philology and philosophy, and traces a number of close and important connections between humanism andnatural science. His book will be important to intellectual historians, students of the classics and the classical tradition, and historians of early modern science.


Background & objectives: Students bullying, especially in the adolescence period, is a prevalent problem in the schools, that emotional dysregulation is posed as a one cause of it. Considering this issue, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between emotion regulation and emotion expression styles with bullying behaviors in adolescent students. Methods: The method of this study was correlation. Whole male students of secondary and high schools in Ardabil at 90-91 educational year comprised statistical population of this research. Two hundred thirty students, were selected by multistage cluster sampling method, responded to the questionnaires of bullying/victimization, emotion regulation and emotion expression. Gathered data were analyzed by Pearson correlation and multiple regression tests. Results: The results showed that victimization by bullying has positive relationship with cognitive reappraisal (r= 0.15, p<0.02), emotion suppression (r= 0.47, p<0.001), and positive expression (r= 0.25, p<0.02), but has negative relationship with impulse severity (r= -0.35, p<0.001), and negative emotion expression (r= -0.43, p<0.001). Furthermore bullying has a positive relationship with cognitive reappraisal (r= 0.14, p<0.03), impulse severity (r= 0.31, p<0.003), and negative expression (r= 0.29, p<0.001), but has negative relationship with emotion suppression (r= 0.28, p<0.001), and positive expression (r= 0.24, p<0.001). In sum emotion regulation and emotion expression styles explained 36 percent of the variance of the victimization by bullying and 19 percent of the variance of the bullying. Conclusion: This research demonstrated that emotion dysregulation at the adolescent period plays important role in bullying and victimization, thus the training of emotion regulation abilities is suggested as the one of interventions methods for this behavioral problems.


This paper presents the results of studies of the optical characteristics of fibrous tissues. It is shown that the macroscopic anisotropy of the refractive indices in fibrous biological tissues has an anomalous character of the frequency dependence far from the absorption bands, and an explanation is proposed for this effect. Moreover, it is shown in this paper that the dispersion dependence of the degree of depolarization of radiation transmitted through biological tissue is well approximated by a power function with an exponent equal to −4.


Cross-disciplinary research (CDR) is a necessary response to many current pressing problems, yet CDR practitioners face diverse research challenges. Communication challenges can limit a CDR team's ability to collaborate effectively, including differing use of scientific terms among teammates. To illustrate this, we examine the conceptual complexity and cross-disciplinary ambiguity of the term hypothesis as it is used by researchers participating in 16 team building workshops. These workshops assist CDR teams in finding common ground about fundamental research assumptions through philosophically structured dialogue. Our results show that team members often have very different perceptions about the nature of hypotheses, the role of hypotheses in science, and the use of hypotheses within different disciplines. Furthermore, we find that such assumptions can be rooted in disciplinary-based training. These data indicate that potentially problematic terminological differences exist within CDR teams, and exercises that reveal this early in the collaborative process may be beneficial.


ABSTRACT Social media data are increasingly used by researchers to gain insights on individuals' behaviors and opinions. Platforms like Twitter provide access to individuals' postings, networks of friends and followers, and the content to which they are exposed. This article presents the methods and results of an exploratory study to supplement survey data with respondents' Twitter postings, networks of Twitter friends and followers, and information to which they were exposed about e-cigarettes. Twitter use is important to consider in e-cigarette research and other topics influenced by online information sharing and exposure. Further, Twitter metadata provide direct measures of user's friends and followers as opposed to survey self-reports. We find that Twitter metadata provide similar information to survey questions on Twitter network size without inducing recall error or other measurement issues. Using sentiment coding and machine learning methods, we find Twitter can elucidate on topics difficult to measure via surveys such as online expressed opinions and network composition. We present and discuss models predicting whether respondents' tweet positively about e-cigarettes using survey and Twitter data, finding the combined data to provide broader measures than either source alone.


The gamma-ray binary LS I +61 303 is composed of a Be star and a compact companion orbiting in an eccentric orbit. Variable flux modulated with the orbital period of ~26.5 d has been detected from radio to very high-energy gamma rays. In addition, the system presents a superorbital variability of the phase and amplitude of the radio outburst with a period of ~4.6 yr. We present optical photometric observations of LS I +61 303 spanning ~1.5 yr and contemporaneous Halpha equivalent width (EW Halpha) data. The optical photometry shows, for the first time, that the known orbital modulation suffers a positive orbital phase shift and an increase in flux for data obtained 1-yr apart. This behavior is similar to that already known at radio wavelengths, indicating that the optical flux follows the superorbital variability as well. The orbital modulation of the EW Halpha presents the already known superorbital flux variability but shows, also for the first time, a positive orbital phase shift. In addition, the optical photometry exhibits a lag of ~0.1-0.2 in orbital phase with respect to the EW Halpha measurements at similar superorbital phases, and presents a lag of ~0.1 and ~0.3 orbital phases with respect noncontemperaneous radio and X-ray outbursts, respectively. The phase shifts detected in the orbital modulation of thermal indicators, such as the optical flux and the EW Halpha, are in line with the observed behavior for nonthermal indicators, such as X-ray or radio emission. This shows that there is a strong coupling between the thermal and nonthermal emission processes in the gamma-ray binary LS I +61 303. The orbital phase lag between the optical flux and the EW Halpha is naturally explained considering different emitting regions in the circumstellar disk, whereas the secular evolution might be caused by the presence of a moving one-armed spiral density wave in the disk.


The threat of emergency measures introduced in face of COVID-19 has largely been framed in terms of individual rights We argue that it is not the protection of the sovereign individual that is most at stake, but the relations between political subjects and the institutions that enable their robust political participation Drawing on Hannah Arendt's analysis of the ways in which isolation and the incapacity to discern truth or reality condition totalitarianism and are exacerbated by it, we argue that the dangers for the evacuation of democratic politics are stark in our era We consider contemporary political action in concert in Germany to illustrate this critique of COVID-19 emergency measures Drawing on the legal concept of "appropriateness," we explicate how the German critical response to the shutdown is founded on a concern for democratic principles and institutions, and aims to achieve two crucial goals: governmental transparency and social-political solidarity


The iminodiacetate-Ni2+-hexahistidine system is extensively used in protein purification. In this study, an anionic conjugated polyelectrolyte (CPE) with a poly(p-phenylene ethynylene) backbone and iminodiacetate side chains, named PPEIDA, was designed and synthesized. Recognition and visualization of hexahistidine-tagged (His-tagged) proteins using PPEIDA was demonstrated.


This paper studies heterogeneity in the reaction to rank feedback. In a laboratory experiment, individuals take part in a series of dynamic real-effort contests with intermediate feedback. To solve the identification problem in estimating the causal effect of rank feedback on subsequent effort provision we implement a random multiplier in the first round of each contest. The realization of this multiplier then serves as a valid instrument for rank feedback. While rank feedback has a robust effect on subsequent effort provision on average, an explicit analysis of between-subject heterogeneity reveals that a substantial fraction of participants in fact react entirely opposite than the aggregated results indicate. We further show that this heterogeneity has consequences for overall outcomes, thereby arguing that heterogeneous sensitivities to rank feedback could have implications for the design of various policies in education and organizations.


Present study it aimed at to identify to know common between scientific knowledge and local knowledge on ecology and biology of pirarucu (Arapaima mock-ups), contributing with useful information for implementation and consolidation of projects of participative handling fishing boat in region.  57 half-structuralized interviews had been carried through, with fishing of Manaus and Manacapuru during period of June to December of year 2002. It was observed that professional fishermen also have accurate and comprehensive information in relation to knowledge of subsistence fishermen in coastal aspects of reproduction, predation, migration, growth and mortality. Aspects that are not equivalent among commercial fishermen and coastal urban dwellers are subsistence aspects of type of power and size of fishing recruitment. We conclude that fishermen of central Amazonia have necessary knowledge that allow participatory management of bass, and a deep knowledge in behavioral, biological and ecological processes of this kind, so you can actually contribute to the participation of management in local fisheries.


Introduction: Sickle cell disease is an inherited disorder, with multiorgan dysfunction resulting from vaso-occlusion and chronic haemolysis. Avascular necrosis of long bones is a known complication. Anaesthetists are frequently involved throughout perioperative period, which involves preoperative assessment, management of acute pain and prevention of postoperative complications.

Case presentation: We report a case of a 56 year old female patient with sickle cell disease who underwent total hip replacement for avascular necrosis of femoral head under spinal anaesthesia combined with general anaesthesia.

Conclusion: Meticulous perioperative care which includes careful planning, ensuring adequate oxygenation, hydration, tissue perfusion and pain control is vital in successful management of these patients.


We study path planning on grids with blocked and unblocked cells. Any-angle path-planning algorithms find short paths fast because they propagate information along grid edges without constraining the resulting paths to grid edges. Incremental pathplanning algorithms solve a series of similar pathplanning problems faster than repeated single-shot searches because they reuse information from the previous search to speed up the next one. In this paper, we combine these ideas by making the anyangle path-planning algorithm Basic Theta* incremental. This is non-trivial because Basic Theta* does not fit the standard assumption that the parent of a vertex in the search tree must also be its neighbor. We present Incremental Phi* and show experimentally that it can speed up Basic Theta* by about one order of magnitude for path planning with the freespace assumption.


This thesis analysed the rhetorical strategies of Caliph Ali bin Abi Talib through his
selected speeches in Nahjul Balaghu, the most authentic compilation of Caliph Ali
Bin Abi Talib's speeches.
The research questions were designed to investigate the invention of Caliph Ali Bin
Abi Talib, within the Classical Canons of Rhetoric. The present study concerned on
the extent and the pattern of the usage of logos, the usage pathos and the usage of
ethos. However, the analysis of the usage of parhos was limited to the elements of
arousing fear only.
A total of 75 speeches compiled in the English translation of Nahjul Balagha were
content analysed. Each speech was coded for types of logos used (analogy, irony,
divine testimony, peer testimony, factual illustration, hypothetical illustration,
specific instance, maxim, oath, supernatural), for types of fear appeal used (death,
loss of possessions. difficulties, other elements of arousing fear) and for types of
ethos used (practical wisdom. moral virtue, trustworthiness. goodwill).
Findings showed Caliph Ali Bin Abi Talib used all kinds of rhetorical invention in
his speeches. The most popular strategy used by Caliph Ali Bin Abi Talib was
practical wisdom, followed by analogy, maxim, factual illustration and hypothetical
illustration. But in term of logos, analogy was the most popular proof. Death was the
most consistent strategy used in arousing fear, while practical wisdom was
commonly used in term of ethos. The findings also revealed that Caliph Ali Bin Abi
Talib used different invention on different issue of the speech. Overall, Caliph Ali
Bin Abi Talib's rhetorical strategies are in agreement with the Aristotle's rhetoric.


3-Hydroxyanthranilic acid (3-HAA), a metabolite of L-tryptophan, accumulates in monocyte-derived cells (THP-1),but not in other celllines tested(MRC9, H4, U373MG, Wil-NS), following immune stimulation that induces indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), a rate-limiting enzyme in the L-tryptophan-kynurenine pathway. We examined whether metabolites of the L-tryptophan-kynurenine pathway act to induce apoptosis in monocytes/macrophages. Of the L-tryptophan metabolites tested, only 3-HAA at a concentration of 200µmol/L was found to induce apoptosis in THP-1 and U937 cells. The addition of ferrous or manganese ions further enhanced apoptosis and free radical formation by 3-HAA in these two types of cells. The apoptotic response induced by 3-HAA was significantly attenuated by the addition of antioxidant, α-tocopherol or Trolox (a water-soluble analogue of vitamin E), and the xanthine oxidase inhibitor, allopurinol. In addition, the 3-HAA-induced apoptotic response was slightly attenuated by catalase, but not by superoxide dismutase (SOD), indicating that generation of hydrogen peroxide is involved in this response. Interferon-γ (IFN-γ), an inducer of IDO, potently induced apoptosis in THP-1 cells, but not in U937 cells, in the presence of ferrous or manganese ions. This different susceptibility to apoptosis inducer between THP-1 and U937 cells may depend on the capacity of the cells for 3-HAA synthesis following IDO induction by IFN-γ. Furthermore, apoptosis was suppressed by cycloheximide in THP-1 cells, suggesting that newly synthesized proteins may be essential for apoptotic events. These results suggest that 3-HAA induces apoptosis in monocytes/macrophages under inflammatory or other pathophysiological conditions.


In 2002, the Supreme Court in Gonzaga University v. Doe held that the nondisclosure provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) did not establish an individual right enforceable through 42 U.S.C. §1983. Chief Justice Rehnquist's requirement of clear and unambiguous proof that Congress intended to establish an individual right on behalf of a class including the plaintiff placed an additional burden on plaintiffs by effectively demanding proof that Congress would have wanted thousands of private suits. The requirement eroded the Court's precedent emphasizing the presumptive enforcement of federal statutory rights through §1983. This Article will focus on the impact of Gonzaga in future §1983 cases rather than on whether the Court was correct in its holding. Two specific proposals are presented. First, the Court should consider legislative history in determining congressional intent to establish individual rights. Second, consistent with the Court's decision in Wright v. City of Roanoke Redevelopment & Housing Authority, the Court should consider agency regulations in defining the scope of a right as long as there is sufficient evidence that Congress intended to establish an individual right. By considering evidence in a statute's legislative history and administrative regulations defining the scope of statutory rights, lower courts are more likely to find Congress's intent than through a textualist approach, which is likely to underestimate those instances where Congress really intends to establish an individual right.


This research was designed to assess the significance of using Building Information Modeling BIM standards to enhance efficiency in the Qatari construction industry. The need for more efficient processes arose in part from the Qatari government's increased level of investment in infrastructure and the accompanying desire to secure the country's 2030 vision. A questionnaire was used to collect primary data from the Qatari construction industry. Three questions guided this research: i What are the current challenges facing the Qatari construction industry in the smooth deliverance of projects?" ii "What strategies does the industry use in the promotion of an integrated business model that is technological centric?" iii "What are the possible challenges that the industry would face if it were to adopt BIM as a standard for all projects in the Qatari construction industry?" The outcome of the research shows that using BIM as a standard could not reduce the inefficiencies faced by the industry. While the respondents to the survey had realised that the industry had challenges, the implementation of BIM seemed not to be in line with the difficulties experienced in the industry. This finding was supported by a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.001 for many survey questions. While the industry could be using BIM in general, it still does not form part of the strategy to promote collaborative working. The research did not emphasise the process of implementing BIM standards because most contracts did not require the use of BIM; neither do regulators. The research highlights the challenges of implementing BIM as a standard in a modern construction industry that is facing inefficiency. Even though clients have the capacity to apply innovative strategies, they are stifled by complex business structures and processes. Inefficient delivery of facilities raises questions about the management structures used by the industry. With a large expatriate workforce, Qatar needs systematic tools and approaches such as BIM for managing construction processes regardless of the level of experience and exposure of its managers. Adopting BIM could significantly improve working relations on projects. The research shows that the construction industry would require a standardised BIM process if companies were to deliver on their targets. There is value in adopting tools and techniques that would enhance collaborative tendencies by professionals working in the industry. However, the overall strategy to implement a standardised BIM approach would initially exacerbate current problems before it could bring forth improvements to the construction process.


Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a causative agent of acute and chronic hepatitis, leading to the development of hepatic cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. We prepared extracts from 61 marine organisms and screened them by an in vitro fluorescence assay targeting the viral helicase (NS3), which plays an important role in HCV replication, to identify effective candidates for anti-HCV agents. An ethyl acetate-soluble fraction of the feather star Alloeocomatella polycladia exhibited the strongest inhibition of NS3 helicase activity, with an IC50 of 11.7 µg/mL. The extract of A. polycladia inhibited interaction between NS3 and RNA but not ATPase of NS3. Furthermore, the replication of the replicons derived from three HCV strains of genotype 1b in cultured cells was suppressed by the extract with an EC50 value of 23 to 44 µg/mL, which is similar to the IC50 value of the NS3 helicase assay. The extract did not induce interferon or inhibit cell growth. These results suggest that the unknown compound(s) included in A. polycladia can inhibit HCV replication by suppressing the helicase activity of HCV NS3. This study may present a new approach toward the development of a novel therapy for chronic hepatitis C.


Using the Welsh Government's Strategy for Older People as its example, this thesis
aims to address questions arising from government encouragement, and sometimes
insistence, on co-production in circumstances where the mechanisms are not
defined and the legitimacy of any outcome is unchallenged. It seeks to find out what
motivates older people to become involved in voluntary activity, considering why lay
people may feel they have a legitimate right to speak or act for others, and why
partnerships view them as legitimate representatives. Using network and power
theories, it considers how and why people engage with or are missed from the
mechanisms developed to engage them.
The thesis starts with a review of academic literature and other knowledge sources.
Following chapters address the challenges inherent in a research question which
aims to consider the potential for co-production mechanisms to exclude, and give an
outline of the policy context.
The chapters on Motivation, Networking and Legitimacy illustrate contradictory
claims of legitimacy, the importance of networking (rather than committee-based)
skills, and the influence of clique membership and allegiance. The thesis concludes
that in the example considered, power was unevenly balanced and this did govern
and sometimes limit the approaches to co-production adopted, resulting in some
people being excluded from the process entirely. However, it was not a simple
imbalance of power between statutory organizations and older people. The
approaches adopted, both very formal and less formal, attracted people who were
motivated and suitably skilled to build their social networks. Consequently, whilst the
research started by questioning whether existing approaches to co-production
exclude, and so are not legitimate and lead to outcomes which are unjust, it ends by
questioning whether concepts of legitimacy are just. This contribution to existing
theories of legitimacy lead to questions which currently are not being addressed.


The tobacco industry has long held a susceptible group of the public in its sway. As a child I remember the Marlborough cigarette adverts - the rolling plains of North America and an impossibly rugged, handsome man riding into the sunset on his beautiful horse - cigarette in hand. I heard that the man in the advert died of lung cancer. I have no idea whether or not this was true, but statistically we have known for a very long time now that cigarette smoking is the single most important risk factor for at least two types of lung cancer. We also now know that cigarette smoking is the single largest risk factor for a host of otherwise preventable causes of premature death and that it has a directly additive effect on many others.


This special issue is designed to bring together some of the recent cutting edge research in the area of International Money and Finance (IMF). Both theoretical and empirical papers will be considered and the topic of the paper should clearly fall within the scope of IMF. Examples of topics of special interest are: the economics of exchange rates (such as equilibrium exchange rates and exchange rate forecasting), tests of the efficient markets hypothesis in forward and futures markest; the determination of capital movements; globalisation issues; open economy macro issues, such as developments in the New Open Economy Macroeconomics; and Transition economies and the International Monetary System.


The activist aspect of translation that has illocutionary and perlocutionary dimensions is a sort of speech act that rouses, inspires, bears witness, mobilizes and incites to rebellion, actually participating in social movement and political change. In this way, translators are the producers of new knowledge signifying the assertion of power by choosing deliberately to subvert the traditional allegiance of translation and also interjecting their own world view and politics into their work, and these translators undertake the work they do because they believe the texts they produce will benefit humanity or impact positively upon the receptor culture in ways that are broadly ideological. This paper investigates the issue of an Islamic Marxist translators' agency applying Pierre Bourdieu's sociological concepts (habitus, field, capital) in the socio-political context of Iran in the 1960s and 1970s. This study surveys how based on his habitus Ali Shariati, an Islamic Marxist translator and thinker, translated some texts to transfer new knowledge to society as cultural capital which intensified the initiation and facilitation of social reform and political change in Iran in the 1970s. The paper peruses some texts translated by Ali Shariati to show that he wielded his own politics in translation to illuminate Iranians' thought against the imperial regime to stimulate them to subvert the Pahlavi dynasty.


Contractualism is often seen as a kind of self-interested bargaining in which individuals engage to preserver their own desired outcome. If individuals are only out for themselves, then no one achieves his or her desired end. Yet, if individuals constrain some of their desires and are assured that others will do the same, then, the contractors can avoid mutual destruction. It is not hard to see why Contractualism is often viewed as a way to explain the origins of morality within civil society. In this paper, I take up a version of Contractualism espoused by Nicholas Southwood called Deliberative Contractualism. The outcome of a perfectly deliberative rational process is what grounds morality or says Southwood. I consider two objections against Southwood's account. I first consider the way Southwood criticizes a nearby Contractualist view and demonstrate that the same criticisms that Southwood levels against that account apply to Southwood's. I end with a modest conclusion. While I don't resolve the problems in either account, I do think I give more clarity to the debate about what it takes to ground morality.


In this work, FeCo nanoparticles were synthesized in Core-Shell conformation by synthesis called Sol-Gel-Proteic route. This method is derived from the conventional sol-gel, and used as edible gelatin precursor organic. First was prepared a solution containing nitrates of iron and cobalt and gelatin edible, which was under constant agitation so that the mixture became uniformly dispersed, prior to remain in the oven for 48 hours at a temperature of 100 °C. Then, the obtained xerogel was macerate and kept in a rotary kiln for 2 hours at 700 °C with an air flow of 40 mL/min to promote oxidation of the sample. From the oxidation process, the work was divided into two parts. In the first part tried to obtain samples in which the core consisted of the FeCo alloy, while the shell was composed by Fe3O4. In the second we tried to obtain the opposite structure, with the core formed by the oxide and the shell formed by the alloy. Some conditions were varied during synthesis so as to try to control size of the core and shell, oxidation temperature and observe changes in the magnetization saturation. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Thermogravimetry, Vibrant Sample Magnetometry and Mössbauer Spectroscopy, and the results obtained compared with literature studies. SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZARTION OF MAGNETIC NANOPARTICLES OF FeCo WITH CORE-SHELL STRUCTURE PRODUCED BY SOL-GEL-PROTEIC METHOD


An existing coal loading pier located in Norfolk, Virginia was completed in 1961 for the purpose of loading ocean going ships. It was determined that dredging adjacent to the pier would provide an increase in loading capacity and productivity for pier operations. Since the existing pier is supported by concrete piles, there was a concern that the lateral stability of these piles would be significantly reduced by the sloughing of surrounding support soils into the adjacent dredged areas. To prevent this, a wall of some kind would be required to retain these soils and ensure the integrity of the existing piles. Analysis of data obtained from the extensive project test program, verification section, and production work indicate that the twin stem jet grouting system, in what is believed to be its first U.S. application, yielded a consistent, better quality end product than was produced with a single stem jet grouting system, in addition to substantial production rate increases.


In this work, we review the most recent advances in instrumentation, calibration strategies, and method development that have contributed to improving the analytical figures of merit and to expanding the applications of inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). We particularly discuss new ICP OES developments involving low Ar consumption, plasma dual-view arrangements, mixed-gas plasmas, and high-resolution systems. New strategies to improve sample introduction involving electrothermal vaporization, ultrasound nebulization, chemical vapor generation, and temperature-controlled spray chambers are also examined. In addition, novel approaches to minimize matrix effects and improve sensitivity and accuracy are also reviewed. Finally, a perspective of opportunities for improvement and future research in ICP OES is presented.


What are Your Core Competencies? Leadership for the Future: Core Competencies in Healthcare (2002). Austin Ross, Frederick J. Wenzel, and Joseph W. Mitlyng. Foundation of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Chicago: Health Administration Press. 389 pages hardcover. $60. In the foreword to this book, Howard Zuckerman describes healthcare as undergoing continuous change characterized by turbulence, volatility, and uncertainty. So true! The health sector represents about half of the SRA's members and a large segment of all research dollars. In the past 40 years, we have witnessed the creation of Medicare and Medicaid, the evolution of health insurance from catastrophic hospital care to health promotion and prevention services. We have moved from initiatives of expanded access to mandatory cost controls and capitated incentives of managed care and reduced lengths of stay, to the shifting policy arenas of state government and business purchasers. I believe we all have much to learn from the health sector and leadership competencies is one application of skills that research administrators might find useful. Management exists in the context of its organization, but the pace, dependence on technology, and culture have several points of similarity in any business sector. Even if your area of research administration does not deal with health, you will discover applicable lessons about leadership and the core competencies needed for a dynamic 21st century in the recent book by Ross, Wenzel and Mitlyng. Competencies are driven by an organization's environment, competitors, and constituencies. This book recognizes the organizational history and culture, system factors, personal leadership abilities, and key knowledge areas that form the base upon which competence develops in management and executive teams. Personal leadership skills often transcend the field of practice and include core competencies such as decision-making, risk-taking, mentoring, team-building, and conflict resolution. The authors use a case-study format to build a foundation of common scenarios and discussion material as a way to motivate self-assessment. Chapter 1 reviews the evolution of healthcare management but those in other sectors could create a similar milestone progression. Leaders must be developed and the authors reviewed literature from the past 20 years to identify key traits for leadership. Executives do not need personal competence in every area but they must create a well-rounded management team with an essential core of knowledge and abilities. Chapter 2 is a very brief review of competencies as they appeared in the 1980s and progressed to the current period. Core competencies (behaviors or performance) are described as a set of interrelated skills that are defined, characterized, and broadly applicable across an environment. The essential elements of the leader include creating a vision, energizing people, setting direction, and selecting a course of action. Research into critical core competencies in healthcare by Hudak et al. in 1997 (p.27) enumerated six subsets or domains of management knowledge that form a critical core: leadership and strategy, relationships, resource, functional, stakeholder, and patient care or customer. Physician research identified performance domains that specified financial, human resources, planning and marketing, information, and risk management as well as governance, business operations, and professional responsibility. Academic programs in health administration listed six key areas of competence, namely, leadership, critical thinking, analytic competence, management competence, political and community development, and communications competence. Thus, the leadership domains converge. Part II moves from general background to organizational (system) competence and includes Chapters 3 through 10. Governance, the focus of chapter 3, is an excellent review of the role of the board in carrying out the mission, vision, and strategic planning without getting into management. …


The constant current controllers at high voltage direct current (HVDC) rectifier stations and the outer loops which set the reference to the current controller have potential to introduce negative damping on the nearby generating units. It is therefore vital to investigate the torsional interaction behavior between turbine-generator (TG) units and the HVDC systems over a frequency range of interest. In this paper, subsynchronous torsional interaction (SSTI) phenomenon for hydroelectric TG units with small generator-to-turbine inertia (GTI) ratios interconnected to an HVDC system has been investigated. The sensitivity of different system parameters, such as generating capacity and loading, DC power flow, AC network strength and current controller gains, towards electrical damping contribution is also examined. Hydro units with different shaft systems are examined for SSTI proneness by conducting perturbation analysis. The impact of hydroelectric TG units with different GTI ratios has also been examined by applying a three-phase to ground fault at the rectifier station. Simulation studies have been carried out in PSCAD®/EMTDC© environment. Due to lack of modal damping with relatively low decrement factor and logarithmic decrement, sustained and growing TG torque oscillations are noted for certain operating conditions of hydro units with small GTI ratios interconnected with an HVDC system.


Abstract Focussing on a regional Government sponsored support programme for technology-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the aim of this paper is to conduct a multi-level exploration of the relationships between policy interpretation and support programme design and the development of innovation capability among participant SMEs within a U.K peripheral region. The Innovplus programme was designed and implemented in Northern Ireland to help nascent high technology companies become more competitive and to contribute to the goals of the Regional Innovation Strategy. A knowledge-based absorptive capacity framework is used as the theoretical lens to explore the relationships between policy interpretation and programme design and the development of innovation capability within participant SMEs. The findings show that the design of the Innovplus programme, while linked to a coherent Regional Innovation Strategy, lacks consistency in relation to the policy and practical interpretation of knowledge and innovation. This inconsistency is reflected in the practical design of the programme, limiting its effectiveness as a result. In terms of the development of innovation capability, it was found that recognition and development of nascent absorptive capacity drivers in potential form was essential before participant SMEs could transition to realised absorptive capacity.


The article discussed the idea of skilled helping in relation to what has been put forward as practical theological facilitation. It has been argued that various helping relationships, amongst which the author refers to coaching, facilitation, and therapy has more in common than what differentiates them if epistemology is viewed as a unifying concept. As such the scope of practical theology in terms of the contexts and themes in which it might be involved is said to widen. The public dimension of the organisational context, more so than the congregational context, has been put forward as an important habitus of practical-theological facilitation. The organisational involvement of the practical-theological facilitator in terms of professional-vocational skilled helping takes on an actual role through facilitation and other helping modalities.


With the advancement in the digital techniques and technology, it is the need of the hour to design and develop some system for automatically recognize the person with the help of biometric system. Biometrics is a technique of authenticate the identity of the person by using unique physiological or behavioral characteristics. Since these properties are unique for individual person so it can be used for recognizing the person. Gait recognition is one of the techniques of person identification in which the gaits of the human being is monitored and analyses for identifying the unknown person. This paper presents a brief review work in various method of gait recognition.


ABSTRACT Machining cracks in ground sintered reaction-bonded silicon nitride (SRBSN) rods and bars were analyzed by fractographic techniques. Grinding flaw sizes were as small as 12 µm and as large as 80 µm and correlated strongly with grinding direction and wheel grit size. Some grinding treatments had no deleterious effect on strength since the machining cracks were very small and fracture occurred from the material's inherent flaws. The telltale signs of machining damage may be detected with conventional low power optical microscopy using simple fractographic techniques. The telltale signs are summarized in a new series of schematic drawings which will aid pattern recognition for engineers and fractographers.


This article analyses the Knowledge Management (KM) and Project Management (PM) practices of manufacturing firms based in Baja California to determine their level of importance in generating competitive advantage in the manufacturing sector in Baja California. Key questions researched in this paper are: 1) How is KM managed through information technologies and organisational systems, ensuring empirical and industrial success? and 2) How do PM strategies increase competitiveness in the Baja California manufacturing sector? The research analyses currently-implemented management systems used for improved KM and PM, based on knowledge and new advantage orientation. One of the limitations found in this research is that several firms do not adopt standardised policies relating to knowledge procurement and development. Although competitiveness is perceived as vital for organisations, the combination of KM and PM are not yet fully developed and integrated into organisational processes to increase competitiveness. It is found that KM and PM have influence and correlations with competitiveness.


The conceptual rainfall–runoff (HBV model) is applied to evaluate impacts of future climate changes on the hydrological system of the Richmond River catchment, Australia. Daily observed rainfall, temperature and discharge and long-term monthly mean potential evapotranspiration from the hydro-meteorological stations within the catchment over the period 1972–2014 were used to run, calibrate and validate the HBV model before the simulation. Future climate signals were extracted from a multi-model ensemble of eight global climate models (GCMs) of the CMIP5 under three scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5). The calibrated HBV model was forced with the downscaled rainfall and temperature to simulate future streamflow at catchment outlet for the near-future (2016–2035), mid (2046–2065) and late (2080–2099) 21st century. A baseline run, with baseline climate period 1971–2010, was used to represent current climate status. Almost all GCMs' scenarios predict slight increase in annual mean rainfall during the beginning of the century and decrease towards the mid and late century. Modelling results also show positive trends in annual mean streamflow during the near-future (13–23%), and negative trends in the mid (2–6%) and late century (6–16%), under all scenarios compared to the baseline-run. Findings could assist in managing future water resources in the catchment.


In the two decades since it was adopted, the Family and Medical Leave Act (hereinafter "FMLA" or "the Act") has been consistently criticized for its failure to achieve its stated goal of enabling workers "to balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families." Since it was signed into law in 1993, legal scholars and women's rights groups, while applauding the accomplishments of the Act, have expressed their dissatisfaction with the status of family and medical leave law in the United States. It has been argued that the FMLA should be expanded to cover more workers, for more reasons, for longer periods of time, and to provide for income replacement and a right to return to work on a part-time basis.I echo the calls for more comprehensive job-protected leave. However, in this article, I focus exclusively on how FMLA's bonding leave fails mothers. Specifically, FMLA bonding leave poses several primary and subsidiary problems for mothers, mother-infant bonding, and attachment. First, the FMLA poses accessibility problems through its stringent coverage limitations, eligibility requirements, and lack of income replacement. Due to these accessibility issues, the FMLA excludes most mothers from accessing its job-protected bonding leave, frustrating the primary congressional intention behind the bonding leave provision. Second, the FMLA poses subsidiary applicability problems due to the length, inflexibility, and vulnerability of the leave. The inflexible twelve-week bonding leave entitlement is therefore substantively lacking. It falls short of providing an environment that would facilitate healthy parent-infant bonding as intended by the Act. As a result of these primary and subsidiary dilemmas, FMLA's bonding leave fails to address the bonding and attachment needs of mothers and infants.