Minimal access surgery (MAS) or laparoscopic surgery has revolutionized our surgical world since its introduction in the 1980s. Its benefits of faster recovery, lesser wound pain which in turn reduced respiratory complications, allows earlier mobilization, minimize deep vein thrombosis, minimize wound infection rate are well reported and accepted. It also has significant long-term benefits which are often neglected by many, such as reduced risk of incisional hernia and lesser risk of intestinal obstruction from post-operative bowel adhesion. The continuous development and improvement in laparoscopic equipment and instruments, together with the better understanding of laparoscopic anatomy and refinement of laparoscopic surgical techniques, has enable laparoscopic surgery to evolve further. The evolution allows its application to include not only elective conditions, but also emergency surgical conditions. Performing laparoscopy and laparoscopic procedure under surgical emergencies require extra cautions. These procedures should be performed by expert in these fields together with experienced supporting staffs and the availability of appropriate equipment and instruments. Laparoscopic management for emergency groin hernia conditions has been reported by centers expert in laparoscopic hernia surgery. However, laparoscopy in emergency hernia repair includes a wide variety of meanings. Often in the different reports series one will see different meanings for laparoscopic repair and open conversion when reading in details. In this article we analyze down to details on how laparoscopy in emergency groin hernia repair benefits patients. The surgical technique and special precaution required during the operation for emergency hernia conditions will also be discussed upon. The discussion on laparoscopic management for emergency ventral and incisional hernia will be left to the end of this article.


We present a new algorithm for image restoration in limited-angle chromotomography. The algorithm is a generalization of the technique considered previously by the authors, based on a hybrid of a direct method of inversion and the iterative method of projections onto convex sets. The generalization is achieved by introducing a new object domain constraint. This constraint takes advantage of hyperspectral data redundancy and is realized by truncating the singular-value decomposition of the spatial–chromatic image matrix. As previously, the transform domain constraint is defined in terms of nonzero singular values of the system transfer function matrix. The new algorithm delivers high image fidelity, converges rapidly, and is easy to implement. Results of experiments on real data are included.


While state of the art Cross-Language Information Retrieval (CLIR) systems are reasonably accurate and largely robust, they typically make mistakes in handling proper or common nouns. Such terms suffer from compounding of errors during the query translation phase, and during the document retrieval phase. In this paper, we propose two techniques, specifically, transliteration generation and mining, to effectively handle such query terms that may occur in their transliterated form in the target corpus. We explore systematically the effect of the transliteration techniques on the overall retrieval performance of a baseline state-of-the-art CLIR system. The baseline CLIR engine employed is a language modeling based system using query likelihood based document ranking and a probabilistic translation lexicon learned from a bilingual parallel corpora. Transliteration generation approach generates the possible transliteration equivalents for the out of vocabulary (OOV) terms during the query translation phase. The mining approach mines potential transliteration equivalents for the OOV terms, from the first-pass retrieval from the target corpus, for a final retrieval. An implementation of such an integrated system was employed for the participation of Microsoft Research India (MSR India) team in the cross-language information retrieval evaluation shared task organized by the Forum for Information Retrieval Evaluation 2010[1]. MSR India participated in two cross-language evaluation tasks, namely the Hindi-English and Tamil-English tasks, in addition to the English-English monolingual task. Using all of the title-description-and-narrative information in the topic, our system achieved the peak retrieval performance of a MAP of 0.5133 in the monolingual English-English task. In the cross-language tasks, the system achieved a peak performance of a MAP of 0.4977 in Hindi-English task and 0.4145 in the Tamil-English task. The Hindi-English cross-language retrieval performance improved from 92% to 97% to the English-English monolingual retrieval performance, underscoring the effectiveness of the integrated CLIR system in enhancing the performance of the baseline CLIR system.


By means of scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS), photoelectron spectroscopy, and first-principles calculations, we have studied the bismuth (Bi) adsorbate-stabilized InSb(100) substrate surface which shows a c(2X6) low-energy electron diffraction pattern [thus labeled Bi/InSb(100)c(2X6) surface] and which includes areas with metallic STS curves as well as areas with semiconducting STS curves. The first-principles phase diagram of the Bi/InSb(100) surface demonstrates the presence of the Bi-stabilized metallic c(2X6) reconstruction and semiconducting (4X3) reconstruction depending on the chemical potentials, in good agreement with STS results. The existence of the metallic c(2X6) phase, which does not obey the electron counting model, is attributed to the partial prohibition of the relaxation in the direction perpendicular to dimer rows in the competing reconstructions and the peculiar stability of the Bi-stabilized dimer rows. Based on (i) first-principles phase diagram, (ii) STS results, and (iii) comparison of the measured and calculated STM and photoemission data, we show that the measured Bi/InSb(100)c(2X6) surface includes metallic areas with the stable c(2X6) atomic structure and semiconducting areas with the stable (4X3) atomic structure.


The enactment of scientific workflows involves the distribution of tasks to distributed resources that exist in different administrative domains. Such resources can range in granularity from a single machine to one or more clusters and file systems. The use of such distributed resources during workflow enactment can be an error prone process and may lead to faults, which can range in type, frequency of occurrence and complexity. However, the level of fault tolerance available within many existing workflow engines varies significantly, ranging from no support available (requiring the user to intervene) or re-execution of a workflow automatically when a fault is detected. Many scientific workflows have to operate over heterogeneous infrastructure in the presence of failures -- therefore dealing with such failures in a more coherent way, so that a similar set of techniques can be applied across workflow engines is an important challenge. In this paper, we extend the concept of Quality of Service (QoS) -- where particular performance constraints need to be adhered to, with the concept of Quality of Resilience (QoR) -- a metric used to assess how resilient workflow enactment is likely to be in the presence of failures. We believe such a metric can guide: (i) the formulation of a workflow -- as a user annotated Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG); (ii) subsequent enactment of it over available resources. We identify how QoR must be considered at different levels -- from a user, workflow enactor and resource management perspectives. We identify the architectural elements that may be included within scientific workflows to support QoR and demonstrate the use of QoR in the Weka4WS data mining workflow system.


ABSTRACT Digital assistive technology has potential for supporting older adults who depend upon community healthcare services. To boost the efficiency of those services, technological devices are often installed for care recipients as part of governed practice. However, the varying adoption of technology risks widening the digital divide. In response, the Assisted Living project engaged older adults in co-creating knowledge about users' needs, to guide the development of technological solutions designed to support everyday living. This study sought to investigate how eight older adults in an assisted living facility in Norway, aged 81–92 years, evaluated user inclusion in a 3-year technology-oriented research project. Individual interviews, dialogue cafés, interventions with environmental sensors, and a final focus group discussion constituted sites for co-creation of knowledge. Participants' answers to standardised questionnaires and statements during dialogue café meetings were collated into tables and the focus group discussion was thematically analyzed, with three themes identified: motivation for project engagement, experiencing and understanding participation in the project, and mixed feelings towards environmental sensors at home. The project revealed that older adults with impairments could nevertheless meaningfully contribute opinions about their needs. Applying a critical occupational perspective raised awareness regarding sociocultural assumptions about older adults in assisted living as frail and unable to participate, which may reinforce ageist and ableist stereotypes, as well as promote occupational injustice.


Background Although proven to be associated with bronchial obstruction, chest signs are not listed among cues that should prompt spirometry in the early diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in established guidelines. Aims We aimed to explore how chest findings add to respiratory symptoms and a history of smoking in the diagnosis of COPD. Methods In a cross-sectional study, patients aged 40 years or older, previously diagnosed with either asthma or COPD in primary care, answered questionnaires and underwent physical chest examination and spirometry. Results Among the 375 patients included, 39.7% had forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity <0.7. Hyperresonance to percussion was the strongest predictor of COPD, with a sensitivity of 20.8, a specificity of 97.8, and likelihood ratio of 9.5. In multivariate logistic regression, where pack-years, shortness of breath, and chest findings were among the explanatory variables, three physical chest findings were independent predictors of COPD. Hyperresonance to percussion yielded the highest odds ratio (OR = 6.7), followed by diminished breath sounds (OR = 5.0), and thirdly wheezes (OR = 2.3). These three chest signs also gave significant diagnostic information when added to shortness of breath and pack-years in receiver operating-characteristic curve analysis. Conclusion We found that chest signs may add to respiratory symptoms and a history of smoking in the diagnosis of COPD, and we conclude that chest signs should be reinstated as cues to early diagnosis of COPD in patients 40 years or older.


Excessive use of inorganic fertilizers mainly NPK causes soil degradation, environment pollution, decreases production, and reduces soil biological activity. System of rice intensification is one method of rice cultivation. SRI main principles are seed transplanting at young age (7-11 days old), transplanting use single seedling methode, seedlings at wide plant spacing ≥ 25x25 cm, intermittent irrigation and field conditions are not flooded, and reduction of chemical fertilizers and application of organic fertilizer. This research was conducted at Situgede Village, West Bogor District, Bogor. The research design was split plot randomized complete block design with three blocks. Two rice cultivation system as the main plot and five combinations of fertilizer application as sub plot. In the main plot consisted of two rice cultivation which is conventional and SRI while the subplot consisted of five combinations of fertilizer application is no fertilition, 100% inorganic fertilizers (Urea = 250 kg ha-1, SP-36 = 75 kg ha-1 and KCl = 50 kg ha-1), 75% inorganic fertilizers (Urea = 187 kg ha-1, SP-36 = 56.8 kg ha-1 and KCl = 37.5 kg ha-1) + 200 kg of bio-organicfertilizer, 50% inorganic fertilizers (Urea = 125 kg ha-1, SP-36 = 37.5 kg ha-1 and KCl = 25 kg ha-1) + 200 kg of bio-organicfertilizer and 50% inorganic fertilizers (Urea = 125 kg ha-1, SP-36 = 37.5 kg ha-1 and KCl = 25 kg ha-1). The results showed that SRI method produced maximum number of tillers higher that of 25.8 tillers/hill or an increase of 64.33% compared with conventional methods. Wet and dry shoot weight of wet and dry weight of root is greater in successive SRI method of 13.3%, 19.1%, 1.40% and 41.8% compared with the conventional method. The number of productive tillers, grain number/panicle, 1000 grains weight, root wet weight and dry grain at SRI method was higher than those in conventional method respectively 58.6%, 37.0%, 2.50%, 25.1% and 32.6%. The uptake of N and P in the SRI method higher at 72.0% and 100% compared to conventional method. Application 50% inorganic fertilizer + 200 kg bio-organic fertilizer, producing more fresh weight biomass, plant dry weight, wet weight and dry weight, number of productive tillers, 1000 grain weight respectively 13.9%, 42.0%, 49.8%, 74.0%, 10.7% and 2.48% compared with the dosage recommendations dose or 100% inorganic fertilizer. N, P and K uptake at 50% inorganic fertilizer + 200 kg of bio-organic fertilizer treatment higher (55.6%, 66.7% and 46.2%) than the full recommendation dose of inorganic fertilizer. Bio-organic fertilizer can be used as substitute of NPK fertilizer. Keywords : Bio-organic fertilizer, inorganic fertilizer, System of Rice Intensification (SRI)


Mytella charruana is a Central/South American mussel that has been found as an introduced species along the southeastern Atlantic coast of the United States since 2004. Previous experiments have determined the lethal thermal minimum of M. charruana to be between 6-9° C. Continuous byssal thread production is essential for mussel survival as it is used for attachment to substrates in natural environments, but may decrease when environmental conditions deviate from their optimum. We sought to determine whether M. charruana exhibits a non-lethal, thermal response involving a reduction in byssal thread production. Mytella charruana and, for comparison, a native mussel species, Geukensia demissa, were collected for this study. Water temperature was manipulated with chillers to near lethal temperatures (10°, 13° C) and newly produced byssal threads of all mussels were counted and cut daily for seven days. Both mussel species had lower byssal thread production at the colder tested temperatures (10°, 13° C) than in the control (23° C). However, G. demissa produced some threads at 10° C while M. charruana produced none. Also, G. demissa showed no difference in mean byssal thread production between 13° and 23o C. Mytella charruana had significantly fewer byssal threads at 13° C than at 23° C. Our results suggest that G. demissa can withstand colder temperatures than M. charruana, owing to their increased ability to produce byssal threads at lower temperatures. These results have implications for the survival and future spread of non-native M. charruana.


Antenatal steroids (ANS) are among the most important and widely utilized interventions to improve outcomes for preterm infants. A significant body of evidence demonstrates improved outcomes in preterm infants (24-34 wk) delivered between 1 and 7 days after the administration of a single course of ANS. Moreover, ANS have the advantage of being widely available, low cost, and easily administered via maternal intramuscular injection. The use of ANS to mature the fetal lung is, however, not without contention. Their use in pregnancy is not FDA approved, and treatment doses and regimens remain largely unoptimized. Their mode of use varies considerably between countries, and there are lingering concerns regarding the safety of exposing the fetus to high doses of exogenous steroids. A significant proportion of women deliver outside the 1- to 7-day therapeutic window after ANS treatment, and this delay may be associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes for both mother and baby. Today, animal-based studies are one means by which key questions of dosing and safety relating to ANS may be resolved, allowing for further refinement(s) of this important therapy. Complementary approaches using nonhuman primates, sheep, and rodents have provided invaluable advances to our understanding of how exogenous steroid exposure impacts fetal development. Focusing on these three major model groups, this review highlights the role of three key animal models (sheep, nonhuman primates, rodents) in the development of antenatal steroid therapy, and provides an up-to-date synthesis of current efforts to refine this therapy in an era of personalised medicine.


Having students learn and be assessed in groups is a means to develop among students intellectual and interactive skills/competencies described as generic or "wicked", as well as of producing deeper learning of various types of knowledge (e.g. organicistic, contextualistic, formistic, mechanistic). This paper reports assessments constituting and reflecting strategies of learning in groups. The assessments and the strategies were crafted while working with students on four courses presented annually in recent years and covering accounting, management and finance for public services and private activities in various organisations. Data about group experiences and their implications for working as accountants were collected from students during assessments and are used to elaborate the strategies. The paper provides insights into reducing impediments among students and teachers to shifting learning from teacher-centred to learner-centred, and suggests areas for further research in reducing institutional impediments.


In this article I present some ideas, based on qualitative research into young children's drawing, related to the developing discourse on young children's thinking and meaning making. I question the relationship between perception and conception and the nature of representation, challenging traditional ideas around stage theory and shifting the focus from the drawings themselves to the process of drawing, and thus to the children's own purposes. I analyse examples of my observations (made in naturalistic settings within a nursery classroom) to reveal the range of representational purposes and meaning in children's drawing activity. My analysis shows that, rather than being developmentally determined, the way children configure their drawings is purposeful; children can recognise the power of drawing to represent, and that they themselves can be in control of this. I explore aspects of the process, including transformation and talk to show the importance of understanding drawing in its specific contexts. I show how children's drawing activity is illuminated by the way in which it occurs and the other activities linked to it, presenting drawing as part of children's broader, intentional, meaning-making activity. As an aspect of the interactive, communicative practices through which children's thinking develops, representation is a constructive, self-directed, intentional process of thinking in action, through which children bring shape and order to their experience, rather than a developing ability to make visual reference to objects in the world. I suggest that in playing with the process, children are actively defining reality rather than passively reflecting a given reality.


This book marks a new development in the field of grammaticalisation studies, in that it extends the field of grammaticalisation studies from relatively homogeneous languages to those possessing well-established and institutionalised second language varieties. In Hypothetical Modality, special reference is made to Singaporean English, a native-speaker L2 dialect of considerable importance in the South-East Asian region, and to the expression in the dialect of hypothetical modality, which appears to be indistinguishable from non-hypothetical modality in terms of the use of preterite or past forms of modal verbs. Within a grammaticalisation framework, a number of factors can be seen to be relevant to an explanation, including substratum and contact features such as tense/aspect marking, levels of lexical retention as an individual (psychological) phenomenon, and the fact that such dialects have a discontinuity in their development. In addition, the book defines pragmatic approaches to the understanding of hypothetical modality, in both diachronic and synchronic terms.


We present a novel large-scale dataset and accompanying machine learning models aimed at providing a detailed understanding of the interplay between visual content, its emotional effect, and explanations for the latter in language. In contrast to most existing annotation datasets in computer vision, we focus on the affective experience triggered by visual artworks and ask the annotators to indicate the dominant emotion they feel for a given image and, crucially, to also provide a grounded verbal explanation for their emotion choice. As we demonstrate below, this leads to a rich set of signals for both the objective content and the affective impact of an image, creating associations with abstract concepts (e.g., "freedom" or "love"), or references that go beyond what is directly visible, including visual similes and metaphors, or subjective references to personal experiences. We focus on visual art (e.g., paintings, artistic photographs) as it is a prime example of imagery created to elicit emotional responses from its viewers. Our dataset, termed ArtEmis, contains 455K emotion attributions and explanations from humans, on 80K artworks from WikiArt. Building on this data, we train and demonstrate a series of captioning systems capable of expressing and explaining emotions from visual stimuli. Remarkably, the captions produced by these systems often succeed in reflecting the semantic and abstract content of the image, going well beyond systems trained on existing datasets. The collected dataset and developed methods are available at https://artemisdataset.org.


This article discusses the author's experience in managing fibrous dysplasia of faciomaxillary region. Data was accumulated from 2005 – 2011. All these cases were managed by the author. Commonest bone involved by fibrous dysplasia was maxilla (Literature search did not reveal any female preponderance in monostotic fibrous dysplasia15)In the author's series all of them were females. All of them were monostotic fibrous dysplasia. Introduction: Fibrous dysplasia is a benign slow growing fibro-osseous disease characterised by replacement of normal bone with varying degrees of fibrous tissue / immature woven bone. This was first described by Lichtenstein in 19381 who called it "perverted activity of bone forming mesenchyme".


This thesis considers the linkages between the age composition of the population and the incidence of unemployment. The first two chapters investigate the macro implications of demographic change, the second two focus on the age-variation in experience of unemployment at the micro level. It is well known both that the probability of being unemployed varies with age and that, thanks to large fluctuations in the birth rate over the last half century, the age composition of the labour force has undergone profound change. We employ a shift-share analysis to identify the role played by shifts in the composition of the labour force in determining the behaviour of the unemployment rate. If workers acquire human capital as they age, demographic change implies a shift in the distribution of skills across the workforce. Drawing on an established theoretical model, we re-examine the evolving mismatch between the demand for, and the supply of, different skills in the labour market, and the role it played in determining the aggregate unemployment rate over the recent past. If we want to understand the extent to which it is the same individuals who are unemployed through time, we have to look beyond the aggregate unemployment rate. We therefore focus on the distribution of unemployment across individuals - and in particular across age groups - when we aggregate across their separate spells, and the implications a concentration of unemployment on a small number of individuals might have for wage setting behaviour. If past experiences of unemployment scar individuals - increasing their probability of being unemployed in the future - this might explain the persistence in experiences of unemployment we observe. Drawing upon the survival analysis literature, we investigate a particular variant of the scarring hypothesis - that past experiences of unemployment significantly reduce the conditional probability of escaping current spells.


Virtually everyone seems to agree that spam causes tremendous harm, but there is surprisingly little consensus on exactly what those harms are. This Essay examines various harms that spam purportedly causes to assess if the harm is real and if spam is treated dichotomously compared to other media communications. Based on this analysis, the Essay concludes that many harms purportedly caused by spam are not appropriate policy justifications for regulation.


Imagine having some marbles, pebbles, or other objects that you want to lay out in a neat triangular pattern. How many do you need to end up with a complete triangle? Three will do; so will 6, 10, 15, and... These numbers are called triangular numbers. Ask the same question for a triangular pyramid. Four will do; so will 10, 20, 35, and... the so-called pyramidal numbers. This book looks at the discovery of the multiplicity of properties and uses triangular numbers and their many extensions possess. Although often displayed in a triangular array named after the seventeenth-century French philosopher Blaise Pascal, triangular numbers were known many centuries earlier. In this book A.W.F. Edwards traces the Arithmetical Triangle back to its roots in Pythagorean arithmetic, Hindu combinatorics, and Arabic algebra, and gives an account of the progressive solution of combinatorial problems from the earliest recorded examples to the work of Renaissance and later mathematicians. He shows how Pascal's work -- so modern in style -- in establishing the properties of the numbers and their application in various fields led to Newton's discovery of the binomial theorem for fractional and negative indices and to Leibniz's discovery of calculus.


We study wage bargaining in which the union is uncertain about the firm's willingness to pay and threat payoffs vary over time. Strike payoffs change as replacement workers are hired, as strikers find temporary jobs, and as inventories or strike funds run out. We find that bargaining outcomes are substantially altered if threat payoffs vary. If dispute costs increase in the long run, then dispute durations are longer, settlement rates are lower, and wages decline more slowly during the short run (and may even increase). The settlement wage is largely determined from the long-run threat, rather than the short-run threat.


Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) coupled with Acute Respiratory Failure (ARF) usually heralds a dismal patient outcome1. Admission to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) along with Invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) in PTB patients is usually associated with very high mortality2. Non-invasive Ventilation (NIV) when applied early in such patients has the potential to prevent intubation and improve prognosis in terms of reduced morbidity and/or mortality 3. We conducted a prospective study in our Institute where NIV was applied to 35 patients with smear-positive PTB who had concurrent ARF. Fourteen patients (40%) improved on NIV and were later discharged on treatment (survivors). The remaining patients (60%) were candidates for IMV but none survived. Statistically significant predictors of mortality in our study were multiple courses of anti-tubercular treatment in the past, advanced disease as assessed radio-graphically, presence of leucocytosis, drug resistance and pH < 7.25. Our study is unique in the fact that it has addressed NIV in active PTB on which very scant literature is available. Our results indicate that a significant proportion of PTB patients with ARF may benefit from NIV based on astute and diligent patient selection and prompt institution of the procedure along with ATT and other supportive therapy. Our study also provides some tentative evidence that patients who fail NIV may not benefit from IMV. How much of this is due to the advanced lung disease and poorer metabolic status of the patient along with co-existent nosocomial infections needs to be elucidated by further studies.


The present study examined and compared the leisure activities and communication about leisure among peers of a large sample of preadolescents without disabilities and their peers with identified disabilities. All responded to a questionnaire about leisure. Findings revealed that these preadolescents participated in a large number and variety of leisure pursuits alone, with family, and with friends. Leisure choices and interests were often discussed with peers. The variables of disability and in particular of gender impacted the choice of leisure activities and the conversations about leisure. Implications for educators in general and special education are discussed. ********** Recreation and leisure activities are important aspects of life for all individuals in our society. According to Driver (1992), leisure has important benefits for humans in at least six areas, including physiological aspects (reduced incidence of disease and increased sense of wellness); psychophysiological aspects (reduction of tension and anxiety, improved sense of well-being); psychological aspects (improved sense of self-esteem, freedom and independence, improved problem-solving capabilities, and enhanced perception of quality of life); social/cultural aspects (pride in one's community, cultural and historical awareness, and increased family bonds); environmental aspects (awareness of the need to protect the environment, to maintain outdoor recreational sites as well as protecting cultural, historic, and heritage sites); and economic aspects (opportunities for employment in the leisure industry, which is one of the biggest industries in the world in terms of employment and income generation). Many experts have stressed the importance of the involvement of children in leisure and recreation activities in terms of growth and development in cognitive, physical, social, and language areas, as well as for psychological well being and achievement of long-term goals (Crowder, 1988; Demchak, 1994; Johnson, Bullock, Ashton-Shaeffer, 1997; Smith, 1995). The question regarding child and adolescent preferences of leisure and recreation pursuits has been examined by several researchers. York, Vandercook, and Stave (1990) reported that, for middle school students, the favorite independent activities were watching television and reading, while the favorite activities with peers were shopping and going to the movies. The favorite family activity was eating out, while the favorite school activity was talking, and the favorite community activity was sports. The most frequently identified activities categories were physical activities (i.e., sports) and using audiovisual and electronic equipment (e.g., radios, stereos, and computers). Agnew and Petersen (1989) reported in their study of 600 high school students that the most popular leisure activities were noncompetitive sports, followed by passive entertainment and competitive sports. The least popular leisure activities were housework, organized activities, hanging out, music, and games. Children's choices of leisure activities have been found to be influenced by a number of factors. Mauldin and Meeks (1990) and Meeks and Maudlin (1990) identified age and gender as two of the major factors affecting children's choices of leisure activities. Preschool children, for example, had more leisure time than older children, yet spent little of that time in the types of structured activities that were more typical of children in their teens. The degree to socializing as a leisure activity also increased with age. Gender differences were reflected in the greater amount of leisure time spent by males as compared to females, who tended to spend more time in household chores and personal care. Males in the study also spent significantly more time engaged in active and spectator sports, while females spent significantly more time socializing. Gender also was a factor in an Australian study (Garton & Pratt, 1991) involving a large sample of high school students, with sports preferred by males, while females tended to choose activities such as reading, playing musical instruments, visiting museums, and social activities. …


A chemically synthesized peptide representing the C-terminal subunit (p13-C) of the p13 protein of GB virus B (GBV-B), the most closely related virus to hepatitis C virus (HCV) showed ion channel activity in artificial lipid bilayers. The channels had a variable conductance and were more permeable to potassium ions than to chloride ions. Amantadine but not hexam-ethylene amiloride (HMA) inhibited the ion channel function of p13-C in the lipid membranes. However, neither agent was able to inhibit the replication and secretion of GBV-B from virus-infected cultured marmoset hepatocytes, which were harvested from a marmoset that was infected in vivo or inhibit replication after in vitro infection of naive hepatocytes. These data suggest that the GBV-B ion channel, contrary to the data derived from the lipid membranes, is either resistant to amantadine or that virus replication and secretion are independent of ion channel function. As the p7 protein of HCV also has ion channel activity that is apparently resistant to amantadine in vivo, the former possibility is most likely. Ion channels are likely to have an important role in the life cycle of many viruses and compounds that block these channels may prove to be useful antiviral agents.


In this paper, we introduce a deep spiking delayed feedback reservoir (DFR) model to combine DFR with spiking neuros: DFRs are a new type of recurrent neural networks (RNNs) that are able to capture the temporal correlations in time series while spiking neurons are energy-efficient and biologically plausible neurons models. The introduced deep spiking DFR model is energy-efficient and has the capability of analyzing time series signals. The corresponding field programmable gate arrays (FPGA)-based hardware implementation of such deep spiking DFR model is introduced and the underlying energy-efficiency and recourse utilization are evaluated. Various spike encoding schemes are explored and the optimal spike encoding scheme to analyze the time series has been identified. To be specific, we evaluate the performance of the introduced model using the spectrum occupancy time series data in MIMO-OFDM based cognitive radio (CR) in dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) networks. In a MIMO-OFDM DSS system, available spectrum is very scarce and efficient utilization of spectrum is very essential. To improve the spectrum efficiency, the first step is to identify the frequency bands that are not utilized by the existing users so that a secondary user (SU) can use them for transmission. Due to the channel correlation as well as users' activities, there is a significant temporal correlation in the spectrum occupancy behavior of the frequency bands in different time slots. The introduced deep spiking DFR model is used to capture the temporal correlation of the spectrum occupancy time series and predict the idle/busy subcarriers in future time slots for potential spectrum access. Evaluation results suggest that our introduced model achieves higher area under curve (AUC) in the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve compared with the traditional energy detection-based strategies and the learning-based support vector machines (SVMs).


Epilepsy is a disease related to central nervous system disorder where brain activity become unusual, thereby a patient experience a seizures or periods of strange behaviour, vibrations, and sometimes loss of consciousness. It might be due to genetic disorder or some sort of brain injury, such as shock or stroke. It requires a long duration treatment of drug therapy for getting cured. As per various researches half of patients do not pass the initial antiepileptic treatment and around 35 per cent are highly resistant to medical treatment, demonstrating the rising requirement for more effectual and improved tolerated medicines. Levetiracetam is an adjunctive management of seizures in victims with epilepsy, the fourth most general neurological chaos distressing individuals of different age groups. Its pharmacokinetic compensation comprise fast and approximately full absorption, limited irrelevant binding with plasma protein, no activation of enzymes, no connections with other products, and unfair metabolism external the liver.Yet another advantage is the provision of an intravenous injection. This has been shown to be efficient as adjunctive treatment for partial-onset refractory seizures, primary widespread tonic-conic seizures, and juvenile myoclonic seizure. In addition, controlled release of carbamazepine was found to be similar to first-line treatment for partial-onset seizure, together in effectiveness and acceptability.


Problem statement: Tuberculosis is a leading global mortality factor which has not been effectively controlled, with 1.7 million deaths per year and 8.9 million new cases. Aerobic microbe Mycobacterium Tuberculosis H37Rv (MTB) is the causative agent of tuberculosis. Approach: It is unique among prokaryotes due to its exceptional features contributing to its survival within the hostile environment of macrophages. Results: It modifies both its intracellular and local tissue environment and proliferates within macrophages resulting in caseous granulomas, the characteristic lesions of TB. MTB derived cAMP intoxicates host cells and thus enable MTB for long term persistence within macrophages by modifying its intracellular environment. Apart from these, there are several unique structural components of MTB which interfere in the pathways of immune system and thus eluding it from destruction. Conclusion: The dormant state of MTB is the major factor which provides this pathogen ability to survive host inflammatory mediators and antibiotic treatment. It is indispensable to delineate the unusual features of MTB that enable its escape from the host immune system, in order to design an efficacious drug against the unpardonable form of tuberculosis.


The carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) consists of 26 and 52 heptad-repeats in yeast and mammals, respectively. Studies in yeast showed that the strong periodicity of the YSPTSPS heptads is dispensable for cell growth and that di-heptads interspersed by spacers can act as minimal functional units (MFUs) to fulfil all essential CTD functions. Here, we show that the MFU of mammalian cells is significantly larger than in yeast and consists of penta-heptads. We further show that the distance between two MFUs is critical for the functions of mammalian CTD. Our study suggests that the general structure of the CTD remained largely unchanged in yeast and mammals; however, besides the number of heptad-repeats, also the length of the MFU significantly increased in mammals.


NOAA polar orbiting satellite electron flux data have been studied for their time correlations with earthquakes. Electron and proton bursts have also been studied when precipitating into the atmosphere, in order to distinguish correlations with seismic activity from seasonal variations of particle fluxes and solar activity. Data from the dusk/noon NOAA-15 have been analysed using a set of adiabatic coordinates. Specifically, electron and proton data from July 1998 to December 2014 have been compared with nearly 1500 main shocks occurring worldwide during the same period, all with magnitudes greater than or equal to 6. When considering 30 100 keV precipitating electron bursts, detected by the vertical NOAA-15 telescope and earthquake epicentre projections at altitudes greater than 1400 km, a significant correlation was observed. The electron precipitation excesses were detected 2 3 hrs prior to large seismic events. The stability of this correlation was observed also when considering different electron bursts at each satellite semi-orbit; even if the correlation distribution was no longer a Poissonian. The significance of the correlation peak was evaluated utilising a super-Poissonian distribution. The observation of precipitating electron bursts was used to calculate an increasing probability of strong earthquake occurrence for the Indonesian Region. Article history: Received 30 January 2017 Revised 5 October 2017 Accepted 6 October 2017


The Senegal River basin (Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal) is a key agricultural production area in sub-Saharan Africa. Here, rice fields are left fallow during the cooler winter season, when the night temperatures reach 16 °C but the maximum daily temperatures remain above 30 °C. This season was used for the first time to conduct multi-environmental trials of durum wheat. Twenty-four elite breeding lines and cultivars were tested for adaptation during seasons 2014-15 and 2015-16 at two stations: Kaedi, Mauritania and Fanaye, Senegal. Phenological traits, grain yield and its components were recorded. Top grain yield was recorded at 5,330 kg ha -1 and the average yield at 2,484 kg ha -1 . The season lasted just 90 days from sowing to harvest. Dissection of the yield in its components revealed that biomass and spike fertility ( i.e. number of seeds produced per spike) were the most critical traits for adaptation to these warm conditions. This second trait was confirmed in a validation experiment conducted in 2016-17 at the same two sites. Genotype × environment interaction was dissected by AMMI model, and the derived IPC values used to derive an 'AMMI wide adaptation index' (AWAI) to asses yield stability. The use of a selection index that combined adjusted means of yield and AWAI identified three genotypes as the most stable and high yielding: 'Bani Suef 5', 'DAWRyT118', and 'DAWRyT123'. The last two genotypes were also confirmed among the best in a validation trial conducted in season 2016-17. The data presented here are meant to introduce to the breeding community the use of these two research stations along the Senegal River for assessing heat tolerance of wheat or other winter cereals, as well as presenting two new ideal germplasm sources for heat tolerance, and the identification of spike fertility as the key trait controlling adaptation to heat stress.


This report is the third in our Food Brexit Briefing series. It argues that the absence of serious consideration of food flows into, out of and through Northern Ireland is a significant policy omission in the ongoing Brexit negotiations. There has been much talk of the importance of Northern Ireland, but next to no detailed attention to the food implications of Brexit for Northern Ireland. The report makes the case that there is an urgent need to get down to detail over border arrangements, contingency planning and resource allocation. This is too important to leave to last-minute makeshift or muddle.

Food is central to the economy of Northern Ireland, and the continuing supply of safe, high quality, healthy food is currently dependent on the absence of border controls between Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Great Britain and the rest of the European Union. Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of food criss-cross these borders every year. They are currently free from inspection because of shared, underpinning EU Single Market regulation. An unplanned or mishandled food border imposition is likely to have powerful, destabilising consequences for the integrated nature of food supply, trade and access within Northern Ireland for many years to come. It would raise important challenges for food safety, put jobs at risk, potentially constrain Northern Ireland's access to health-supporting foods such as fruit and vegetables, and create opportunities for food fraud and crime.

The report, by Gary McFarlane and Tony Lewis, both senior environmental health professionals and officers of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, and Professor Tim Lang, of the Centre for Food Policy at City, University of London, is based on a thorough review of food flows into, from and through Northern Ireland, and the practical experience of its authors.

The report dismisses talk of 'technological fixes' to help maintain the smooth flow of goods as vague, unavailable now and unrealistic. It calls for all the governments and bodies involved in food and Brexit – the European Union, United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland itself – to set political differences aside in order to resolve the considerable practical challenges of cross-border food traffic. The authors make more than 30 recommendations to help that process.


The new, decentralized, anonymous digital currency Bitcoin has in less than three years gone from a proof-of-concept to being traded for about €78 million on a daily basis. Its ascendancy offers up a puzzle for financial regulators and other law-enforcers worldwide, while also promising to fulfill the political visions of a group of market-anarchist cryptographers. While it is still a very small economy in absolute terms, Bitcoin also poses some interesting challenges to traditional economic institutions, and is thus an interesting case for economic sociology. Using the notion of material embeddedness, this paper examines the possible implications of a further propagation of Bitcoin. If the currency proves a success, this will have ramifications for a large number of economic institutions, such as the possibility of taxation of untraceable money, the credit economy and interest rates, and international currency control.


Stretching from the years during the Second World War when young couples jitterbugged across the dance floor at the Zenda Ballroom, through the early 1950s when honking tenor saxophones could be heard at the Angelus Hall, to the Spanish-language cosmopolitanism of the late 1950s and 1960s, Mexican American Mojo is a lively account of Mexican American urban culture in wartime and postwar Los Angeles as seen through the evolution of dance styles, nightlife, and, above all, popular music. Revealing the links between a vibrant Chicano music culture and postwar social and geographic mobility, Anthony Macias shows how by participating in jazz, the zoot suit phenomenon, car culture, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and Latin music, Mexican Americans not only rejected second-class citizenship and demeaning stereotypes, but also transformed Los Angeles.

Macias conducted numerous interviews for Mexican American Mojo , and the voices of little-known artists and fans fill its pages. In addition, more famous musicians such as Ritchie Valens and Lalo Guerrero are considered anew in relation to their contemporaries and the city. Macias examines language, fashion, and subcultures to trace the history of hip and cool in Los Angeles as well as the Chicano influence on urban culture. He argues that a grass-roots "multicultural urban civility" that challenged the attempted containment of Mexican Americans and African Americans emerged in the neighborhoods, schools, nightclubs, dance halls, and auditoriums of mid-twentieth-century Los Angeles. So take a little trip with Macias, via streetcar or freeway, to a time when Los Angeles had advanced public high school music programs, segregated musicians' union locals, a highbrow municipal Bureau of Music, independent R & B labels, and robust rock and roll and Latin music scenes.


MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short noncoding RNAs, which post-transcriptionally regulate gene expression. miRNAs are transcribed as precursors and matured to active forms by a series of enzymes, including Dicer. miRNAs are important in governing cell differentiation, development, and disease. We have recently developed a feederand serumfree protocol for direct derivation of endothelial cells (ECs) from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and provided evidence of increases in angiogenesis-associated miRNAs (miR-126 and -210) during the process. However, the functional role of miRNAs in hESC differentiation to vascular EC remains to be fully interrogated. Here, we show that the reduction of miRNA maturation induced by Dicer knockdown suppressed hES-EC differentiation. A miRNA microarray was performed to quantify hES-EC miRNA profiles during defined stages of endothelial differentiation. miR-99b, -181a, and -181b were identified as increasing in a timeand differentiation-dependent manner to peak in mature hESC-ECs and adult ECs. Augmentation of miR-99b, -181a, and -181b levels by lentiviral-mediated transfer potentiated the mRNA and protein expression of EC-specific markers, Pecam1 and VE Cadherin, increased nitric oxide production, and improved hES-EC-induced therapeutic neovascularization in vivo. Conversely, knockdown did not impact endothelial differentiation. Our results suggest that miR-99b, -181a, and -181b comprise a component of an endothelialmiRNA signature and are capable of potentiating EC differentiation from pluripotent hESCs. STEM CELLS 2012;30:643–654 Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.


Gas-phase water-soluble organic matter (WSOM g) is ubiquitous in the troposphere. In the summertime, the potential for these gases to partition to particle-phase liquid water (H 2 O ptcl) where they can form secondary organic aerosol (SOA AQ) is high in the Eastern US and low elsewhere, with the exception of an area near Los Angeles, CA. This spatial pattern is driven by mass concentrations of H 2 O ptcl , not WSOM g. H 2 O ptcl mass concentrations are predicted to be high in the Eastern US, largely due to sulfate. The ability of sulfate to increase H 2 O ptcl is well established and routinely included in atmospheric models; however WSOM g partitioning to this water and subsequent SOA formation is not. The high mass concentrations of H 2 O ptcl in the southeast (SE) US but not the Amazon may help explain why biogenic SOA mass concentrations are high in the SE US but low in the Amazon. Furthermore, during the summertime in the Eastern US, the potential for organic gases to partition into liquid water is greater than their potential to partition into organic matter (OM) because concentrations of WSOM g and H 2 O ptcl are higher than semi-volatile gases and OM. Thus, unless condensed phase yields are substantially different (> ∼ order of magnitude), we expect that SOA formed through aqueous-phase pathways (SOA AQ) will dominate in the Eastern US. These findings also suggest that H 2 O ptcl is largely anthropogenic and provide a previously unrecognized mechanism by which anthropogenic pollutants impact the amount of SOA mass formed from biogenic organic emissions. The previously reported estimate of the controllable fraction of biogenic SOA in the Eastern US (50 %) is likely too low.


The objective of the paper is to examine price transmission process between wholesale and retail markets by adopting Asymmetric Price Transmission (APT) Model.  The paper has taken a case of Onion ((Allium cepa L.) wholesale and retail markets in Tamil Nadu state, India.   The paper used wholesale and retail prices data from secondary sources.  The results show that high margin at retail and wholesale levels of prices points to possibility of distortion in prices which may lead to an asymmetric process in the vertical market. The speed and magnitude of price changes and also the type of asymmetry in the vertical market system has identified the presence of both positive and negative asymmetry. With respect to speed, where the markets have shown negative asymmetry, there is evidence of retail prices responding much faster to decrease in wholesale prices than to increases in wholesale prices. Where a positive asymmetry holds, the result is the opposite. Keywords : Vegetables, Asymmetry, Efficiency, Market Integration and Symmetry


The Trans-Suture Suite (TSS) of granitic plutons located in Northern Britain span the Iapetus Suture and represent a particularly enigmatic stage of post-Caledonian Devonian magmatism. Despite calc-alkaline affinities, proximity to the Iapetus Suture precludes a direct relationship to active subduction. Furthermore, the absence of inherited zircons distinguishes the TSS from plutons of a similar age throughout the Scottish Highlands, and is not easily reconciled with the abundance of peraluminous and S-type granites. Micro-analytical techniques are employed to analyse accessory zircon and apatite from three TSS plutons (Criffell, Fleet and Shap) in order to investigate connections between magmatic and tectonic processes within a continental suture zone. Accessory minerals contain a robust and accessible record of magma evolution. However, their trace element compositions are shown to document the final stages of pluton emplacement only, and are determined primarily by competitive crystallisation of other accessory phases at shallow crustal levels. By contrast, whole-rock compositions record an earlier stage of magma evolution that occurred in deeper and open-system crustal hot zones. The absence of inherited zircon in the final crystal assemblage reflects resorption during rapid and potentially adiabatic ascent of super-liquidus and water-rich magmas from the crustal hot zone. The concentrations of REE in apatite inclusions decrease with increasing crystallisation of other accessory minerals and in some samples have been distinguished on the basis of their host phase. In metaluminous granodiorites, no preferred crystallisation sequence is observed between host phases. In peraluminous samples, zircon-hosted apatite compositions appear more primitive compared to those hosted by other phases and reflects earlier saturation of zircon in these magmas. The isotopic record of zircon is shown to be biased towards earlier stages of magma evolution in peraluminous magmas and provides a means of assessing zircon isotope compositions in the context of often protracted histories during silicic magma evolution. The Mn content of apatite varies independently to whole-rock composition, correlating positively with decreasing oxygen fugacity and indices of increasing reduction. Apatite is proposed as a robust and effective redox proxy with application to magmatic, detrital and lunar studies of redox conditions. Zircon O-HfU-Th-Pb isotope compositions have identified increasing degrees of compositional heterogeneity in more silicic components of the TSS, including the involvement of more mafic magmas in the generation of the large S-type pluton of Fleet. Compositional trends between zircons from plutons emplaced on both sides of the Iapetus Suture are used to identify a common Avalonian component beneath the Southern Uplands and English Lake District related to Avalonian underthrusting beneath the Laurentian margin during the late Caledonian. New geochronological dating indicates that pluton emplacement occurred during periods of both preand post-Acadian transtension. The distinguishing characteristics of these plutons relative to other Caledonian plutons reflect their unique emplacement into the hydrated lithosphere of the Iapetus Suture Zone. Oxygen isotope disequilibrium between the magmatic compositions recorded by zircon and those of the whole-rock and some quartz crystals reflect hydrothermal alteration of the latter two archives. Hydrothermal alteration and exchange caused by 18 O-rich magmatic fluids has elevated the δ 18 O compositions of the whole-rock and some quartz crystals, with most disequilibrium observed around the outer margins of the plutons due to further fluid interaction with local 18 O-rich sediments. The hydrothermal history of the TSS is markedly different from that of the British Tertiary Igneous Province where hydrothermal alteration resulted from circulation of meteoric water, reflecting significantly different magmatic and emplacement histories.


Sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus, C. urophasianus) are dependent upon live sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) for all life processes across their entire range. This paper describes habitats used by sage-grouse as documented in the scientific literature. The leaves of sagebrush are eaten by sage-grouse throughout the entire year and comprise 99 percent of their winter diets. Spring (late March through May) habitats are those with intermixed areas of taller (40 to 80 cm) sagebrush with canopy cover of 15 to 25 percent and taller (>18 cm) grass/forb cover of at least 15 percent. Sites used for display have shorter vegetation, frequently few or only short sagebrush plants, but with taller, more robust sagebrush within 100 to 200 m that is used for escape cover. Nesting cover mimics that used overall during spring but with clumps of tall (>50 cm), dense (about 25 percent) live sagebrush and abundant forbs (>10 to 12 percent cover). Early brood rearing areas are those within 200 m (initial 3 to 7 days posthatch) to 1 km (up to 3 to 4 weeks posthatch) of nest sites. Forbs and taller (>18 cm) grasses are important for broods; forbs provide succulent foods, grasses provide hiding cover, and the grass/forb mixture supports insects used by chicks. Summer use areas are those with abundant succulent forbs with live, taller (>40 cm), and robust (10 to 25 percent canopy cover) sagebrush useful for cover. These areas continue to be used into fall when sagegrouse move to higher benches/ridges where they forage on remaining succulent forbs such as buckwheat (Eriogonum spp.) and switch to more use of sagebrush leaves. Winter (early December to mid- March) use areas are often on windswept ridges, and south to southwest aspect slopes as well as draws with tall, robust live sagebrush. Height (25 to 35 cm) of sagebrush above the surface of the snow in areas used in winter is important, as is canopy cover (10 to 30 percent). Management of habitats used by sage-grouse should initially focus on maintaining all present use areas. Practices to enhance sagebrush habitats to benefit sage-grouse are reviewed, as is the need to annually monitor sage-grouse numbers along with systematic monitoring of the health of sagebrush ecosystems.


Sharing our stories has been described, by those in the field as well as by popular opinion, as a way to foster healing and reconciliation following violent conflict. This article argues that sharing stories is in itself not necessarily helpful. It is when our stories are shattered by the story of another that meaningful change can begin to take place and new stories can emerge. This idea will be explored in the South African context, with reference to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission as well as current events. It will consider storytelling and reconciliation using John Lederach's four-part model of justice, truth, mercy and peace.


Background/Context Students experiencing homelessness are also often living in poverty and may share many of the same characteristics and experiences with children in low-income housing. Scholars aim to understand the impacts of homelessness above and beyond the effects of poverty, but studies are mixed. Contextual factors—such as the localized implementation of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (McKinney-Vento), which aims to reduce barriers to school success for students experiencing homelessness—are often overlooked by scholars but may play an important role in explaining inconsistencies between single-site studies. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study Our purpose is to examine the impacts of homelessness above and beyond poverty. We ask two questions: "To what extent does homelessness impact students' academic growth?" and "To what extent does chronic homeless-ness impact students' academic growth?" In making sense of our findings, we consider the unique context of our study site. Setting We draw data from Midtown, a pseudonym for a Midwestern city that has experienced rising homelessness. Midtown has a nationally recognized program aimed at overseeing McKinney-Vento. Research Design We conducted a secondary analysis of a longitudinal administrative district dataset. For our first question, we used ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, with and without student fixed effects, with standard errors clustered at the school level. To help isolate the impact of homelessness apart from poverty, we (a) limited our sample to include only those students who have experienced sustained poverty (history of free lunch status) and stable housing prior to fourth grade, (b) included relevant covariates to adjust for other between-group differences, (c) used student fixed effects to control for any remaining time-invariant, unobserved between-group differences, and (d) examined achievement growth (rather than absolute achievement). To examine our second research question (chronic homelessness), we used OLS regression, with standard errors clustered at the school level. Conclusions/Recommendations Notwithstanding the fact that Midtown devotes considerable resources toward McKinney-Vento, the impact of homelessness remains evident in our fixed effects model. Turning to chronic homelessness, our results showed no discernible impact on achievement growth. We speculate that as time goes on, the Midtown district may play an important role in buffering families. Our study suggests that in order to reduce the impact of homelessness on academic achievement, it is important to be aware of when students become homeless—so that their needs can be met right at this critical juncture. Specific recommendations, such as the ongoing use of residency questionnaires and surveys, are discussed.


Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are a common type of vascular malformation in the brain that are a major cause of hemorrhagic stroke. This condition has been independently linked to 3 separate genes: Krev1 interaction trapped (KRIT1), Cerebral cavernous malformation 2 (CCM2), and Programmed cell death 10 (PDCD10). Despite the commonality in disease pathology caused by mutations in these 3 genes, we found that the loss of Pdcd10 results in significantly different developmental, cell biological, and signaling phenotypes from those seen in the absence of Ccm2 and Krit1. PDCD10 bound to germinal center kinase III (GCKIII) family members, a subset of serine-threonine kinases, and facilitated lumen formation by endothelial cells both in vivo and in vitro. These findings suggest that CCM may be a common tissue manifestation of distinct mechanistic pathways. Nevertheless, loss of heterozygosity (LOH) for either Pdcd10 or Ccm2 resulted in CCMs in mice. The murine phenotype induced by loss of either protein reproduced all of the key clinical features observed in human patients with CCM, as determined by direct comparison with genotype-specific human surgical specimens. These results suggest that CCM may be more effectively treated by directing therapies based on the underlying genetic mutation rather than treating the condition as a single clinical entity.


Most students do not enroll in introductory astronomy as part of their major; for many, it is the last science course they will ever take. Thus, it has great potential to shape students' attitudes toward STEM fields for the rest of their life. We therefore argue that it is less important, when assessing the effectiveness of introductory astronomy courses, to explore traditional curricular learning gains than to explore the effects that various course components have on this attitude. We describe the results of our analysis of end-of-semester surveys returned by a total of 749 students in 2014-2015, at 10 institutions that employed at least part of the introductory astronomy lecture and lab curriculum we first implemented at UNC-Chapel Hill in 2009. Surveys were designed to measure each student's attitude, and to probe the correlation of attitude with their utilization of, and satisfaction with, various course components, along with other measures of their academic background and their self-assessed performance in the course. We find that students' attitudes are significantly positively correlated with the grade they expect to receive, and their rating of the course's overall effectiveness. To a lesser degree, we find that students' attitudes are positively correlated with their mathematical background, whether they intend to major or pursue a career in STEM, and their rating of the effectiveness of the instructor. We find that students' attitudes are negatively correlated with the amount of work they perceived the course to involve, and, surprisingly, the size and reputation of their home institution. We also find that, for the subsets of students who were exposed to them, students' attitudes are positively correlated with their perception of the helpfulness of the lecture component of the course, and of telescope-based labs that utilized UNC-CH's Skynet Robotic Telescope Network.


The novel core network architecture presented in this paper realizes distributed all-optical switching of payload by partitioning the network into a number of geographically limited domains, where two-way reservations are effective. Thus, inside each domain, loss is eliminated, while traffic from many nodes can be aggregated into single bursts, improving efficiency. Clustered nodes contribute contiguous optical slots, which are marshaled into composite optical frames destined for other clusters, under the guidance of a reservation-based control protocol. The lossless aggregation of traffic from several core nodes allows the use of cost-effective bufferless all-optical transport among the domains with electrical buffers employed at the periphery of the system. The end result is a triple improvement in loss probabilities, efficiency, and cost. This is achieved by exploiting three features of the architecture: the distributed switching functionality (as in early LANs when centralized switching was expensive), localized reservations (avoiding the intolerable delays of end-to-end reservations), and a reduced number of source-destination pairs (by means of node clustering into reservation domains)


We consider the automatic annotation of faces of people mentioned in news. News stories provide a constant flow of potentially useful image indexing information, due to their huge diffusion on the web and to the involvement of human operators in selecting relevant images for the stories. In this work we investigate the possibility of actually exploiting this wealth of information. We propose and evaluate a system for automatic face annotation of image news that is fully unsupervised and does not require any prior knowledge about topic or people involved. Key feature of our proposal is that it attempts to identify the essential piece of information -- how a person with a given name looks like -- by querying popular image search engines. Mining the web allows overcoming intrinsic limitations of approaches built above a predefined collection of stories: our system can potentially annotate people never handled before since its knowledge base is constantly expanded, as long as search engines keep on indexing the web. On the other hand, leveraging on image search engines forces to cope with the substantial amount of noise in search engine results. Our contribution shows experimentally that automatic face annotation may indeed be achieved based entirely on knowledge that lives in the web.


This paper examines the effects of adult civic education programs on political participation, civic competence, and support for democratic values in three developing democracies, the Dominican Republic, Poland and South Africa. I show that participation in civic education programs conducted by NGOs in each country had meaningful impact on local-level political participation in all three countries, and modest impact on individuals' knowledge, efficacy and support for values such as political tolerance. The effects of the programs were sharply increased when individuals were trained more frequently and with more active, participatory teaching methods. The results have important implications regarding the extent to which democratic political orientations can be "engineered" through civics training conducted by civil society groups, as well as important policy implications regarding how such programs should best be structured and implemented in practice.


Corporate governance of banks differs considerably from general corporate governance. For banks the scope of corporate governance goes beyond the shareholders (equity governance) to include debtholders (debt governance). From the perspective of bank supervision debt governance is the primary governance concern. Equity governance and debt governance face partly parallel and partly divergent interests of management, shareholders, debtholders, and supervisors. Failures in the corporate governance of banks contributed to the financial crisis. Corporate law reforms are less suited for bank governance, strengthening supervisory law requirements is more promising. Prominent proposals include clearer separation of the management and control function, possibly by a two-tier board as in Switzerland and Belgium; establishment of a separate risk committee of the board or an independent chief risk officer; dealing with the problem of complex or opaque bank structure; and group-wide corporate governance in single entities as well as in the bank group. Appropriate supervisory law requirements are needed for bank-internal procedures, specifically for risk management, internal control and compliance, and internal and external auditing. Supervisory fit and proper tests for the board, the management and major shareholders of banks are useful. Qualification and experience of bank board members is at least as important as independence. But the severe requirements of bank regulation and bank supervision must not spill over to the corporate governance of the firm.


The aim of this research is to identify the determinants and consequences of interlocking board membership in New Zealand and whether this interlocking affects the firm performance. This research used a sample of 276 firm years and 1,783 directors from New Zealand listed companies. A two-fold approach analysing the overlap of directors' names, boards, and company levels was used. This research finds that New Zealand firms are highly interlocked. While concentrated ownership firms react negatively to interlocking, this research finds that interlocking is negatively impacting firm performance in New Zealand. This research also finds that New Zealand firms were significantly interlocked under both approaches, which resulted in negative firm performance. This study has wide application to the New Zealand Financial Market Authority and Institute of Directors New Zealand to evidence the possible effects of directors of being involved ("busy") in more than one company at the same time. This is the first paper on firm and board interlocking based on New Zealand stock exchange data following the corporate governance best practice code 2004 regime which identified both the determinants and consequences of interlocking.


One of the challenging issues in managing the existing large digital image libraries and databases is Content Based Image Retrieval (CBIR). The accuracy of image retrieval methods in CBIR is subject to effective extraction of image features such as color, texture, and shape. In this paper, we propose a new image retrieval method using contourlet transform coefficients to index texture of the images. We employ the properties of contourlet coefficients to model the distribution of coefficients in each sub-band using the normal distribution function. The assigned normal distribution functions are used effectively at the next stage to extract the texture feature vector. Simulation results indicate that the proposed method outperforms other conventional texture image retrieval methods such as, Gabor filter and wavelet transform. Moreover, this method shows a noticeable higher performance compared to another contourlet based CBIR method.


E. coli DH5α harbouring pET28a+ plasmid vector was lysed by alkaline lysis and the clarified plasmid solutions
were subjected to ultrafiltration experiments using two types of ultrafiltration membrane; i.e., cellulose
generated (Ultracel) and polyethersulfome PES (Biomax). Transmembrane pressures (TMP) through vacuum
suction of 0.1 to 0.7 bar were applied to the plasmid sample, and the corresponding flow rates and fluxes for
both filters were investigated. Even though, these two filters showed a slight different in the flux, a marked
different in DNA transmission were observed. DNA transmission were generally higher with cellulose generated
filters, whereby DNA transmission by Ultracel filter was at44.3, 63.9, 74.1, 55.6 and 54.5% at TMP of 0.1, 0.18,
0.39, 0.6 and 0.7 bar, respectively. Meanwhile, for PES filters the DNA transmission was at 22.3, 38.1, 39.1,
38.0 and 37.5% at TMP of 0.1, 0.3, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.7 bar, respectively. With the cellulose generated filter, DNA
transmission reached an optimum (~70%) at about 0.6 bar after which the transmission depleted at higher TMP
of 0.7 bar. Throughout all of the TMP, DNA transmissions observed were generally lower with PES filter. The
properties of the filter material could have contributed to the differences in DNA permeation


Balance of payments data are sometimes used to try to predict currency or financial crises. A high current account deficit relative to GDP, a large proportion of external debt relative to equity flows, and a large proportion of investment portfolio flows versus longer-term debt or direct investment have been considered "warning signals" of potential impending financial crises in some economies. Using balance of payments data for these purposes suggests the need for a careful understanding of what underlies the data. This article aims to further our understanding of some of the elements in New Zealand's balance of payments current account and financial account data so that we can make more insightful interpretations of developments in the balance of payments. It provides several examples of how corporate financing choices could affect measured flows. Because of legal arrangements, certain corporate transactions may result in the overstatement of one type of capital flow relative to another in economic terms. Therefore, analysis of capital flows at face value could be misleading when interpreting the flows from a macro-financial stability perspective.


This thesis contributes to the body of scholarship on Walter Benjamin, his ideas about aesthetics, and the political implications of technologically mediated art. It disambiguates Benjamin's concept of aura, by considering aura's conceptual prerequisite of physical presence, and the perceptual presence offered by Virtual Reality (VR). Building on other research exploring the topic, this thesis takes a Research-Creation approach, using art-making as a method to navigate theory and vice versa. Specific technologies used include VR, 3D printing/scanning, computer numerical control (CNC), and photogrammetry. Outputs include two large (physical) lion sculptures, a VR experience featuring the same lion models (virtually) and a vending machine dispensing inexpensive artist multiples. The relationship between two-dimensional (2D) media and three- dimensional (3D) objects, is presented as challenging the Benjamin binary of original/reproduction, arguing it is not so much reproduction alone that diminishes aura but the translation (flattening) of an object from 3D to 2D.


ABSTRACT: Following the devastating floods of the 1940s, thousands of flood retarding structures were constructed in the Great Plains. The impacts of these structures on streamflow characteristics and their effectiveness in reducing floods under dry, average, and wet climatic conditions were investigated in this study. The setting for the study was a 160 km2 (61.9 mi2) experimental watershed in southwestern Oklahoma that contained 13 flood retarding structures, which controlled 65% of the drainage area. Thirty-three years of precipitation and eight years of streamflow data, in conjunction with computer simulations, were used to evaluate changes due to the flood retarding structures in annual, monthly, and daily streamflow characteristics at the outlet of the watershed. Simulation results indicate that installation of the flood retarding structures leads to a decrease in average annual streamflow of about 3%, which was attributed to an increase in average annual evaporation of this same amount due to the free water surface of the reservoirs created by the flood retarding structures. On a monthly time scale, the simulation results showed that under dry climatic conditions, the flood retarding structures caused a reduction in mean streamflow for all months of the year. On the other hand, during average and wet climatic conditions, changes in mean streamflow varied by month with May and October showing the greatest decreases, respectively. As expected, the greatest impact of the flood retaiding structures was on daily flow characteristics and maximum daily flows. Noticeable differences include the reduction of maximum daily discharges on the day of a storm event and the increase in streamflow from principal spillway releases in the days immediately following storm events. Annual maximum daily discharges were reduced by about 33%, with the reduction of the 5 and 10 year maximum daily flows being 23.8 to 14.6 cms (840 to 515 cfs) (39%) and from 36.0 to 20.6 cms (1,270 to 727 cfs) (43%), respectively. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the flood retarding structures in reducing annual peak runoff events, thereby reducing flooding and related property damage. However, the flood retarding structures also reduce low streamflow values by trapping baseflow runoff from drainage areas above the impoundment structures. From a water quality and stream habitat preservation point of view, maintenance of a minimum baseflow can be critical.


OF DISSERTATION CONDUIT BOND FINANCING OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS— PERSPECTIVE FROM THE U.S. AND CHINA As an alternative way to issue bonds, conduit financing has been widely used by local governments and nonprofit organizations. Conduit financing allows one entity to issue debt on behalf of single or multiple borrowers. In the state of California in the U.S., a local agency is allowed to issue municipal bonds in compliance with law, but can also borrow through a joint powers agency (JPA). In this case, the JPA serves as a conduit. Conduit financing is preferred by local agencies in certain circumstances because it is more convenient or fixed issuance costs can be split between several conduit borrowers through bond pooling. In China, various Chinese local government issued debts through the local government financial vehicles (LGFV); LGFV is viewed as a conduit. Conduit operations, however, bring extra financial and administrative burdens. In this dissertation I examine borrowing costs of local governments in the U.S. and in China, particularly paying attention on debts issued through conduits. The chapter 2 provides a background context and theoretical foundation of the whole dissertation. In addition, two mechanisms--borrowing through JPAs in the U.S. and through Chinese local government funding platforms will be compared to identify the similarity and distinctive perspectives. Based on data from California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission (CDIAC), the third chapter of my dissertation aims to probe into two issues: (1) what drives local agencies to use conduit? (2) Did conduit financing produce lower TIC than other revenue bonds? The emergence and existence of this type of conduit is profoundly historical and political. One reason for this is informational asymmetry in the municipal bond market. The disclosure requirements of the municipal bond market are weaker than the corporate bond market, and plenty of small issuers are less known by municipal bond investors. Although bond pooling provided by conduits is supposed to lower borrowing costs, most bonds issued by JPAs finance a single local agency. Therefore, it is important to investigate the incentives for these local agencies to use conduits instead of arm's-length investors. As a matter of fact, during the borrowing process, the JPA is a type of financial intermediary that can reorganize small issues more efficiently. Hence, sophisticated local agencies with strong backgrounds prefer to borrow directly from the credit market under their name. To avoid selection bias and potential endogeneity problems, a two-stage least squares (2SLS) regression will be used. My empirical results show that ceteris paribus, TICs of California local governments are significantly reduced through conduit financing. Chapter 4 focuses on Chinese local government debts issued through the local government financial vehicles (LGFV). Specifically, this chapter addresses two questions: (1) in Chinese quasi-municipal credit markets, is there any evidence that the quasimunicipal bond market is influenced by market principles? (2) How are borrowing price, borrowing volume, and infrastructure expenditure interconnected? Using data from 2007 to 2012, through a simultaneous equation model, I found that the municipal credit system in China has the mixed characteristics of relationship-based and market-based systems; and that the available fiscal resources and debt have a complementary relationship. To my knowledge, there are very few studies that consider drivers of debt financing choices of local governments and empirically examined the impact of conduit financing on their borrowing costs. My research seeks to bridge this gap. Since most local governments have been burdened with heavy debts, understanding how the conduit financing fiscally influence local governments is very important.


ABSTRACT Protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase is a member of a family of bacterial enzymes that cleave the aromatic rings of their substrates between two adjacent hydroxyl groups, a key reaction in microbial metabolism of varied environmental chemicals. In an appropriate genetic background, it is possible to select for Acinetobacterstrains containing spontaneous mutations blocking expression ofpcaH or -G, genes encoding the α and β subunits of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase. The crystal structure of the Acinetobacter oxygenase has been determined, and this knowledge affords us the opportunity to understand how mutations alter function in the enzyme. An earlier investigation had shown that a large fraction of spontaneous mutations inactivatingAcinetobacter protocatechuate oxygenase are either insertions or large deletions. Therefore, the prior procedure of mutant selection was modified to isolate Acinetobacter strains in which mutations within pcaH or -G cause a heat-sensitive phenotype. These mutations affected residues distributed throughout the linear amino acid sequences of PcaH and PcaG and impaired the dioxygenase to various degrees. Four of 16 mutants had insertions or deletions in the enzyme ranging in size from 1 to 10 amino acid residues, highlighting areas of the protein where large structural changes can be tolerated. To further understand how protein structure influences function, we isolated strains in which the phenotypes of three different deletion mutations in pcaH or -G were suppressed either by a spontaneous mutation or by a PCR-generated random mutation introduced into theAcinetobacter chromosome by natural transformation. The latter procedure was also used to identify a single amino acid substitution in PcaG that conferred activity towards catechol sufficient for growth with benzoate in a strain in which catechol 1,2-dioxygenase was inactivated.


Covering everything from signal processing algorithms to integrated circuit design, this complete guide to digital front-end is invaluable for professional engineers and researchers in the fields of signal processing, wireless communication and circuit design. Showing how theory is translated into practical technology, it covers all the relevant standards and gives readers the ideal design methodology to manage a rapidly increasing range of applications. Step-by-step information for designing practical systems is provided, with a systematic presentation of theory, principles, algorithms, standards and implementation. Design trade-offs are also included, as are practical implementation examples from real-world systems. A broad range of topics is covered, including digital pre-distortion (DPD), digital up-conversion (DUC), digital down-conversion (DDC) and DC-offset calibration. Other important areas discussed are peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction, crest factor reduction (CFR), pulse-shaping, image rejection, digital mixing, delay/gain/imbalance compensation, error correction, noise-shaping, numerical controlled oscillator (NCO) and various diversity methods.


For the past years, the University of Santo Tomas had an increasing energy consumption. Through an energy audit, possible energy conservation opportunities and programs may help decrease the energy expenses of the university. After calculating the 4-Academic Year Monthly Average of the buildings in the university, it was shown that instructional buildings contributed the largest. Among these instructional buildings is Beato Angelico Building, the university's lone building for architecture, fine arts and design programs, which was chosen as the subject of the study. An ASHRAE Level 2 energy audit was used in the energy auditing process and showed that HVAC contributes 68.50% of total energy consumption while plug equipment, and lighting contribute 23.30%, and 8.21% respectively. The identified energy activity centers which contributed 80% to the total power consumption of the building were classrooms, art laboratories, computer laboratories, and offices. Energy conservation opportunities present in these areas were known after careful analysis. Through the energy audit, various energy policies, strategies and recommendations had been proposed, which contributed to an energy conservation of 19.21% that resulted to lesser energy expenses for the university.


Article history: Received 20 November 2013 Received in revised form 24 January 2014 Accepted 29 January 2014 Available online 5 April 2014


The rapid redox cycling of iron is one of the most pervasive geochemical processes catalyzed by microbial organisms. Numerous microbial metabolisms rely on transferring electrons to and from iron, even in "extreme" environments considered challenging for life due to high acidity, high alkalinity, high temperature, low organic content, or low water abundance. Recent efforts to explore the iron biogeochemistry of extreme systems, such as hydrothermal vents, seafloor basalts, serpentinizing systems, and acid mine drainage, have significantly expanded our expectations regarding the distribution and activity of iron-dependent life on Earth, and potentially other iron-rich silicate planets, such as Mars.


The subject of the author's research is the genesis of integrated corporate reporting as an innovative model of business reporting. The article discusses the problems of theoretical and methodological nature associated with the process of forming integrated corporate reporting at the present stage. The authors studied the composition of integrated reporting for the main industry sectors, and it is concluded that it is practically no different from reporting in the field of sustainable development. As a research tool for processing and systematizing information, the methods of classification, grouping, comparative analysis, synthesis, aggregation, comparison of alternatives are used. One of the reasons for the current situation, according to the authors, is the lack of appropriate methodological and accounting and analytical support for the preparation of corporate integrated reporting that meets modern requirements and high quality standards of the generated reports, which, according to the authors, should be based on the idea of disclosing the use of capital and conditions of added value creation.


Sixty percent of the epilepsies start in childhood, and most of the clinically significant and often life-changing aspects of the disease occur at this time. Childhood epilepsy is frequently a complex disorder, demanding integrated medical, educational and community services. Its treatment encompasses acute and disability medicine. The many types or syndromes of childhood epilepsy present both diagnostic and management challenges. Although many children with epilepsy will be referred to specialist units, the majority will initially present to paediatricians and paediatric neurologists. This book addresses epilepsy as an evolving disorder from presentation, through active disease and finally to either spontaneous remission or a chronic lifelong condition. Structured on the child's age at presentation, Childhood Epilepsy offers a practical overview for paediatricians, paediatric neurologists and primary care practitioners who treat children with epilepsy in their daily practice.


Purpose The purpose of this review is to describe the prevalence of psychological distress in parents of children with type 1 diabetes (T1DM), the relationship between parental psychological distress and health outcomes, and parents' psychological experience of having a child with T1DM. Clinical and research implications are presented. Method A systematic mixed-studies review was undertaken to review the quantitative and qualitative research on the parental experience of having a child with T1DM. A total of 34 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Results The prevalence of parental psychological distress across all studies ranged from 10% to 74%, with an average of 33.5% of parents reporting distress at diagnosis and 19% of parents reporting distress 1 to 4 years after diagnosis. Parental psychological distress in parents of children with T1DM, regardless of how it was defined, was associated with higher child self-report of stress and depressive symptoms, more problematic child behavior, and lower child self-report of quality of life. Parental psychological distress also had negative effects on diabetes management. Themes of the qualitative synthesis indicated that parents perceived T1DM as a difficult diagnosis that contributed to significant family disruption. Adjustment occurred over time; however, ongoing stress was experienced. Conclusions Screening for psychological distress in parents of children with T1DM is indicated, and preventive interventions are needed.


Aim: Heating by nanoparticles, which are located in the tissue to be treated, is a well-recognized method in hyperthermic oncology. Our objective is to investigate selective, nanoscopic heating without concentrating extra artificial nanoparticles. We have in silico calculation to study the heating of the transmembrane protein clusters (rafts) on cell-membrane. The transmembrane protein domains have significantly higher dielectric constant than their lipid neighborhood in the membrane. This difference causes a local gradient in the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), which could be a factor of heating of the membranes locally, as well as exciting the receptors for various signal transduction in the cells. We suppose that this process determines the observed cellular effects of modulated electro-hyperthermia (mEHT, trade-name: oncothermia). Materials and Methods: In silico models with highly specialized software (Computer Simulation Technology (CST), Darmstadt, Germany) were performed visualizing the selectivity for the membrane domains. Local raft models were created to simulate the electromagnetic (EM) effect of a 13.56 MHz excitation between two perfect electrical conductor plates, simulating the equipotential conditions of the sides of the membrane in the vicinity of the raft. The simulations were performed with near-field (EQS) solver of CST. The electric field, current density, and electric loss density were monitored by the simulations. The applied material properties and parameters refer to the recent literature. Results: In silico models show ten times higher energy-absorption of the transmembrane domains than that of its lipid-membrane surrounding, and intra- and extracellular neighborhood. Depending on the size, orientation, and location of the membrane rafts, the value of SAR varies, but we use only two simplified models to see the absorption properties. Taking into account the characteristics of the EM field effects we showed that the selective energy-absorption increased further by the cell-cell interactions. The model-calculation could confirm the opportunity of the local membrane heating. Conclusion: Our results indicate the heating in nanoscopic range with energy-absorption by the transmembrane proteins. The heated protein-clusters (membrane rafts) are used the same way as the artificial nanoparticles, while these absorbers are natural parts of the biological system.


Simulated conditions of hiking in rain, wind, and cold, without protective rainwear, were used to investigate wet-cold hypothermia in 18 male subjects. Thermal, metabolic, and motor responses were monitored during an attempted 5-h walk (5.1 km/h) at 5 degrees C, with continuous exposure to rain (7.4 cm/h) and wind (8.0 km/h) over the final 4 h. The majority of subjects (11) could not complete the protocol because of intolerance of wet-cold conditions during the last 2 h. Therefore, data from 5 subjects who completed the protocol in rain and control conditions were used to describe the general pattern of response. During the 1st h of walking, core temperature rose 1 degree C to 38.1 degrees C. The subsequent 2 h of rain caused substantial cold stress, indicated by a 40% increase in heat production due to shivering and significant loss of strength and manual dexterity. However, core temperature only decreased to 37.1 degrees C, merely eliminating the initial exercise hyperthermia. Over the last 2 h of rain, core temperature remained relatively stable at 36.8 degrees C, decreasing slightly to 36.4 degrees C by 5 h. Two other subjects developed significant hypothermia (35 degrees C). One demonstrated fatigue of shivering after 2.5 h of rain, confirming the exhaustion hypothesis of wet-cold hypothermia. The older cooled rapidly when he failed to maintain the walking pace. We conclude that if a person can tolerate the intense discomfort of prolonged wet-cold exposure, he or she has the potential to resist significant core hypothermia for at least 4 h of walking under the conditions of this experiment. Exceptions to this generalization occur, making exposure of < 4 h a hypothermia risk for some individuals. Exposures > 4 h would involve increasing probability of rapid decline into hypothermia, associated with exhaustion of shivering and exercise heat production.


For several years, courts have been improperly calculating damages in cases involving the unlicensed use of genetically-modified (GM) seed technology. In particular, when courts determine patent damages based on the hypothetical negotiation method, they err in exaggerating these damages to a point where no rational negotiator would agree. In response, we propose a limited affirmative defense of an implied license due to the patent's status as a de facto standard essential patent. To be classified as a de facto standard essential patent, the farmer must prove three elements that reflect the peculiarities of GM seeds used in farming: (1) dominance, (2) impracticability, and (3) necessary to fulfill a basic need. Based on the approaches used by courts and standard setting organizations in licensing standard essential patents in technological fields such as cell phones and software, designation of some GM seeds as standard essential patents allows the courts to imply a license from patentees to farmers on reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) terms. Doing so shifts the case from a tort-based patent infringement suit to a breach of contract dispute and alters the damages regime from one based in compensation, deterrence, and punishment (a tort approach) to one based solely in compensation (a contractual approach). As a result of this novel proposal, the damages calculations in these suits return to economic reality.


Many patterning events in plants are regulated by the phytohormone auxin. In fact, so many things are under the influence of auxin that it seems difficult to understand how a single hormone can do so much. Auxin moves throughout the plant via a network of specialized membrane-bound import and export proteins, which are often differentially expressed and polarized depending on tissue type. Here, we review simulation models of pattern formation that are based on the control of these transporters by auxin itself. In these transport-feedback models, diversity in patterning comes not from the addition of more morphogens, but rather by varying the mechanism that regulates the transporters.