The key obstacle to communicating images over wireless sensor networks has been the lack of suitable processing architecture and communication strategies to deal with the large volume of data. High packet error rates and the need for retransmission make it inefficient in terms of energy and bandwidth. This paper presents novel architecture and protocol for energy efficient image processing and communication over wireless sensor networks. Practical results show the effectiveness of these approaches to make image communication over wireless sensor networks feasible, reliable and efficient.


This is the first history of Mozambique from the 15th century to the present. The Mozambican people have had contact with Muslim and European traders for nearly 1000 years, and their history is given a unity by the influence of commerce and seaborne trade. Indeed Mozambique itself consists of a series of ancient sea and river ports with their commercial hinterlands. Through 21 chapters the book traces two major themes: the gradual development of forms of overall political control - by the Karanga and Maravi ruling dynasties, Afro-Portuguese feudal families, the Nguni military monarchies and the chiefs and sheikhs who ran the slave trade - and the periodic crises that led to disintegration and social dislocation. Disintegration, often associated with drought and ecological disaster, led to a recurring pattern of banditry, and the breakdown of society into warring factions. Although its frontiers were drawn in 1891, Mozambique did not become a unified state till the 1930s, and many of these themes continued during the colonial era, the large concession companies taking over from Nguni and Afro-Portuguese chiefs in providing a form of feudal political control. Under the Portuguese colonial administration Mozambique provided railway and port facilities for South and Central Africa while large areas became in effect labour reserves. A thriving plantation economy also developed, the country becoming a leading producer of cash crops. An extended final chapter looks at Mozambique since independence, when the country's development fell victim to South Africa's attempts to destabilise its neighbours, and its fragile institutions were broken down once again by banditry and drought.


Today the problem of semantic interoperability in information search on the Internet is solved mostly by means of centralization, both at a system and at a logical level. This approach has been successful to a certain extent. Peer-to-peer systems as a new brand of system architectures indicate that the principle of decentralization might offer new solutions to many problems that scale well to very large numbers of users.In this paper we outline how the peer-to-peer system architectures can be applied to tackle the problem of semantic interoperability in the large, driven in a bottom-up manner by the participating peers. Such a system can readily be used to study semantic interoperability as a global scale phenomenon taking place in a social network of information sharing peers.


Purpose: We analyze the ability of standard quality assurance (QA) checks in radiation therapy to prevent errors commonly observed in the course of clinical operations. Methods and Materials: Near‐miss and error reports were collected over a 3‐year period by means of voluntary reporting systems at two academic medical centers. We analyzed 250 near‐misses, events that did not affect patients but which had the potential to do harm with at least "moderate side effects" (level 3 or greater on the French ASN scale) if they had not been detected prior to treatment. We determined which of these events could be detected by 13 commonly employed QA measures, including but not limited to physician plan review, physics chart check, port films, cone‐beam CT. We then determined which events could have been detected by in vivo portal dosimetry with an electronic portal imaging device(EPID). Results: QA checks vary greatly in their ability to detect reported errors. Port films, one of the most effective measures in place, had a 53% detection efficiency, while pre‐treatment IMRT QA had a detection efficiency close to 0%. EPID‐dosimetry had a detection rate of 83%. In some cases, EPID‐dosimetry would have detected errors which were introduced after the initial IMRT QA. Conclusions: No single QA check currently employed is 100% effective at detecting common errors. Most checks currently in use are less than 50% effective. By contrast, the data indicate that in vivo EPID‐dosimetry may be substantially more effective. Further work is needed to determine if these patterns hold across multiple institutions. Pilot research grant from Elekta Inc.


This paper deals with a very practical issue. In many countries there is a gap between school and university mathematics. The transition period from school to university can be hard for many students. Even students with good marks in school mathematics experience psychological difficulties at university and sometimes fail the first year university mathematics courses. Often the pass rate in the first year university mathematics is around 50%. Different parties – school teachers, university lecturers, first year university students, administrators, researchers – might have different views on the reasons for the gap and the ways to narrow or fill it. The purpose of this paper is to present responses of university lecturers worldwide to a short survey concerning the transition period between the school and university mathematics.


To understand the effects of large-scale asset purchase programs recently implemented by central banks, we study how markets absorb large demand shocks for risk-free debt. Using high-frequency identification, we exploit the structure of the primary market for U.S. Treasuries to isolate demand shocks. These shocks are sizable, leading to large movements in Treasury yields and impacting corporate borrowing rates. Informed by a preferred habitat model of the term structure, we test for "local" demand effects and find evidence consistent with theoretical predictions. Crucially, this local effect is strongest when financial markets are disrupted. Our estimates are consistent with the view that quantitative easing worked mainly via market segmentation, with a potentially limited role for other channels.


Background and Aim: This study aimed to investigate the association of Internet addiction and self-control with mental health among students of the University of Applied Sciences and Technology(UAST) in Ilam city, Iran. Materials and Methods: Data collection tools included the Mental Health Goldenberg scale, Tanji Self-control Inventory and Young Internet Addiction questionnaires. The sample consisted of 101 UAST students in Ilam City, Iran. Results: Analysis of the data showed a statistically significant negative relationship between internet addiction and mental health and a positive association between self-control and mental health in maleand female-students. Conclusion: It can be concluded that he more a student uses the Internet, the more likely he/she is to be less healthy mentally, while if a student has more self-control, he/she is more likely to be healthier mentally.The use of the Internet among the new generation in the society is spreading, becoming an important part of life. It has been said that teenagers are at a high risk. Hence the responsible authorities should consider mental health as a factor preventing extreme behavior of young people.


Fault tolerance is an essential methodology for digital systems, particularly for those that serve applications where failure has safety implications or where interruption of operations imposes serious financial penalties. There is no single fault tolerance technique that suits or is optimal in all circumstances. A taxonomy of fault tolerance techniques is presented and branches and leaves of this taxonomy are described in terms of areas of applicability, effectiveness of fault tolerance, and cost of implementation. Gaps in coverage and deficiencies of an individual technique can be overcome by employing a hierarchical structure of fault tolerance provisions, also referred to as defense-in-depth. The large selection of techniques that have been described and the continuing improvements provided by studies in the field support an encouraging outlook.


In the wider debate about the environmental sustainability of various human activities, the literature lacks a specific link between the discussion and the use of differentiated analytical tools for conceptualizing and measuring sustainable development. This paper explores a key issue in the sustainability debate: developing differential analytical tools to define and apply the concept of sustainability. This work seeks to build a theoretical bridge between the root concept of sustainable development and a new concept, critical loads, which both defines and measures the \f2unsustainability\f1 of certain anthropogenic activities. The development of the sustainability concept is briefly reviewed, followed by the discussion of the difficulty of applying this concept due to relationships between anthropogenic activities and environmental degradation, policy makers can better apply the concept of sustainable development. The author assesses the critical loads concept as a way for policy makers to assess differentiated levels of unsustainability. To illustrate this, the author explores the use of the critical loads concept to assess environmental degradation in Siberia, which is currently being used to contribute to a sustainable development policy for the region. Moving from a dichotomous, relatively static view of human-environment interactions to one which captures varying degrees of these interactions reveals greater insights about the political, economic, and physical relationship between nature and its most influential species, \f2 Homo sapiens\f1.


Proponents of social capital theory have long argued that it is not only in the best interest of civic life to build social capital but that social capital is vital for the economic health of communities. Yet past studies have failed to distinguish among different types of social capital and relied on inaccurate measures of economic health. This study reexamines what has become conventional wisdom by analyzing the social capital of American metropolitan areas and its impact on economic wellbeing. It improves upon past studies by examining different types of social capital (i.e. trust, group membership, social networks) and substituting the change in competitive advantage jobs from shift-share analysis for total job growth in addition to traditional economic development measures of wealth creation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to empirically test, and find significant, the long hypothesized importance of social capital in job creation at the level of the metropolitan economy. The study finds that bridging social capital positively impacts the economic welfare of communities with respect to job creation. The effect on job creation is substantial and equal to or exceeds that of many traditional factors related to urban economic growth. However, neither bridging nor bonding social capital is found to have an effect on per capita income change. Practitioners who attempt to create jobs through strategic planning, local public policy and economic development programs should incorporate bridging social capital to maximize the potential for success.


This work presents our research into visualization for digital repository search interfaces, motivated by the prevalence of existing hierarchical data structures and the general lack of contextualization present in existing systems. We develop the ResultMap concept, a treemap-based visualization system that we have applied to keyword search engine and faceted classification data environments, and present the results of their empirical evaluation.
We organize this work as follows: Chapter 1 provides an introduction to our problem area, motivates our general approach of leveraging hierarchical structure (via ResultMaps) for context, and proposes a thesis statement and corresponding research questions. Chapter 2 discusses related work, and includes a survey and design characterization of faceted navigation tools. Chapter 3 defines the key visual and interactive features of the ResultMap concept and justifies their basic design.
Chapter 4 presents our implementation and evaluation of ResultMaps applied to digital library search engine result pages (SERPs). Chapter 5 consists of two major portions: a presentation of our formal data and query models for faceted environments and our implementation and evaluation of ResultMaps in a faceted UI context. In Chapter 6 we conclude—based on our results from Chapter 4 and Chapter 5—with a set of principles for designing both visual search interfaces themselves and designing their evaluation. We finish with suggestions for future research in this area.


Many researchers have proposed that straight men prefer women's faces displaying feminine shape characteristics at least partly because mating with such women will produce healthier offspring. Although a prediction of this adaptation-for-mate-choice hypothesis is that straight men will show stronger preferences for feminized versus masculinized versions of women's faces than will gay men, only one previous study has directly tested this prediction. Here we directly replicated that study by comparing 623 gay and 3163 straight men's preferences for feminized versus masculinized versions of faces. Consistent with the adaptation-for-mate-choice hypothesis of straight men's femininity preferences, we found that straight men showed significantly stronger preferences for feminized female faces than did gay men. Consistent with previous research suggesting that gay men place a premium on masculinity in potential romantic partners, we also found that gay men showed significantly stronger preferences for masculinized versions of male faces than did straight men. Together, these findings indicate the sexual orientation contributes to individual differences in men's face preferences.


In the first sub-section of the thesis, signal design for both linear and nonlinear system identification is considered. To identify a linear system using a perturbation test, a binary signal is sufficient and has the advantage of maximising the power available within a specified peak-to-peak amplitude. For this purpose, a program was written to generate five classes of binary and near-binary signal. However, to identify a nonlinear system with a Hammerstein structure, a multi-level signal is required, and methods to optimise such a signal are proposed.

In the second sub-section, the detection of the departure from linearity for direction dependent processes is considered. It was found that only signals based on maximum length sequences allow the detection of such characteristics due to the coherent patterns formed in the cross correlation function. The 'combined' linear dynamics of the system are identified. The modelling of such processes using Wiener and neural network models is investigated. Practical results from an electronic nose are presented. The control of direction-dependent processes using the PID controller is then examined, with the design rules set according to the identified 'combined' dynamics.

The thesis then moves on to the topic of autotuning. The autotuning of Smith predictors for processes with significant dead time is considered. The frequency response of the process is identified in closed-loop using a multi sine signal. Tuning rules for robust control are suggested which relate the controller parameters to the process parameters. A real application using a hot-air flow device is illustrated.

The final sub-section of the thesis looks at the identification of Wiener-Hammerstein models. A new technique using linear interpolation is proposed which is based on the symmetry properties of the Volterra kernel. This method has the advantages that only a single experiment is needed, and it is simple to use since no optimisation or recursive computations are required. Simulation examples are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the technique, and its robustness in the presence of noise and input signal distortion.


As globalisation begins to accelerate, the need for personnel to staff organisations will reach a critical juncture. Two issues appear to be heading for conflict: 1) the need for adequate supply of global managers; 2) the need to change the staffing regimen of the past to meet the needs of the evolving global organisations. While there has been an ongoing debate in the academic literature about the effectiveness and the rate of success of expatriate managers, it is increasingly clear that that selection, training/development, compensation, performance appraisal of expatriate managers will have to change to reflect current environmental/political circumstances. We address the modifications that need to be made to the historic/traditional concept of expatriation to include creative solutions and means of implementing them as a way for expatriate managers to fit the staffing requirement of the 21st century global organisation. One might say, that it could be 'a last ditch' effort to improve the probabilities of success of expatriate managers in global organisations.


A large majority of companies in Latin America are micro or small firms, making them an important part of the region's economy. These firms are a relevant source of jobs, but a lack of managerial skills and resources threatens their survival. In this study, we analyze a set of supply chain best practices and define the more relevant practices for micro and small enterprises in a growth context. Based on a set of interviews and immersion, by way of site visits, with 15 small and micro firms located in Mexico City, we develop a system dynamics model that illustrates the influence of these supply practices on company growth. Our results show that, after quality and service baselines are met, practices related to capacity building, collaboration, and market expansion drive faster growth and should be prioritized by companies that aim for expansion. These insights are a major step in developing more effective assessments and training for micro and small firms in Latin America and improving the overall economic performance of the region. Capstone Advisor: Dr. Josué C. Velázquez Martínez Title: Executive Director, Supply Chain Management Blended Program Capstone Co-Advisor: Dr. Cansu Tayaksi Title: Postdoctoral Associate


Croatian settlement in Sydney has a dynamic history of arrivals, desertions, internment, collective departures, and a continuously rich social and political life although only several hundred Croatians lived in Sydney until 1949. At least 5,000 Croatians lived in Australia in 1947, mostly from the coastal region of Dalmatia, mainly from the Makarska area and the island of Korcula. They made up around 80 per cent of all migrants from what was then Yugoslavia and a majority among the approximately 425 'Yugoslavs' who in lived in Sydney in that period. Many more arrived afterwards and at least 118,046 people in Australia, 33,930 in Sydney, were of Croatian ancestry in 2006.3 The experience of Croatians in Sydney is observed through two historical periods, linked by continuous market gardening in the northern suburbs of Mona Vale and Warriewood, and the western suburbs of Cabramatta and Blacktown. Inevitably, it must be understood against the background of the dramatic political and social events that Croatia and Croatians experienced over the twentieth century.


Abstract There is a need in a practical scenario for ion heating up to high temperatures in a mirror based neutron source. Such a scenario could be developed with the ion cyclotron heating. Fundamental harmonic ion cyclotron heating of deuterium and second harmonic heating for tritium are studied numerically from the point of view of antenna coupling and heating efficiency. The behavior of the antenna loading resistance and radio-frequency power shine-through the cyclotron zone with the heating frequency, plasma density and temperature and the antenna position is analyzed.


Public Policy and Private Interest explains the complexities of the policy making process in a refreshingly clear way for students who are new to this subject. The key topics it explains are: How policy originates, is refined, legitimised, implemented, evaluated and terminated in the forms of theoretical models of the policy process; Which actors and institutions are most influential in determining the nature of policy; The values that shape the policy agenda such as ideology, institutional self-interest and resource capabilities; The outcome of policies, and why they succeed or fail; The main policy theories including the very latest insights from network theory and post-modernism; How national policy is influenced by globalization. The text is fully illustrated throughout with a broad range of national and international case studies on subjects such as the banking crisis, the creation of unitary authorities and global environmental policy and regulation. Combining both a clear summary of debates and theories in public policy and a new and original approach to the subject, this book is essential reading for students of public policy and policy analysis.


Significant transportation agency resources are allocated to meet maintenance, operations, safety, and air quality goals. Although there is a significant amount of overlap between these areas, decisions to meet agency goals in one area often do not consider goals in the others and, as a result, miss opportunities to leverage funds and make better informed decisions overall. There are a number of areas of overlap between capital improvements designed to improve operations, maintenance, safety, and air quality goals that provide a rich opportunity to leverage funds and use resources more cost-effectively while meeting agency goals in two or more of the areas. The objective of this research is to develop analytical tools that can efficiently evaluate common capital projects used to meet agency goals in one area (operations, safety, air quality, and maintenance) but that also have a significant impact on the others.


Near the fiftieth anniversary of ICSID, the international organization of the World Bank Group specializing in international investment dispute settlement, the organization has become nearly synonymous with the field of international investment law. But how and why this confluence developed is a gap in the rich literature on ICSID. In an attempt to breach this gap, this article traces ICSID's past and present, relying on a rich variety of sources with three broad objectives in mind: First, it offers a corrective to the prevailing view among international lawyers and legal scholars that ICSID is simply another arbitration facility and that its role in developing modern international investment law has been limited to enabling investor-State arbitration proceedings. Second, it provides evidence contradicting claims among practitioners and scholars that ICSID is experiencing an unprecedented crisis. Finally, it assesses the dynamics that have impacted ICSID's emergence and long-term development with the broader aim of contributing to the theoretical understanding of the evolution of international organizations. The article reveals ICSID's deep roots and far-reaching impact, and argues that while the challenges of the organization are serious and merit action, most are not unprecedented, and much can be learned from corrective measures taken in the past.


Nitrogen (N) is the most limiting mineral nutrient in the soils of the major maize producing areas of West and Central Africa. Low soil N and sub-optimal application of N fertilizers lead to N deficiency and poor grain yield (GY) in maize. Maize varieties with improved grain yield under low soil N and increased performance under optimal N availability could be beneficial to low input agriculture. This study evaluated the performance of a selection of experimental and commercial hybrids under suboptimal and optimal N fertilizer applications. Significant differences were observed among the hybrids, as well as significant interactions between hybrid and N level for GY and other measured attributes, with the severity of variation increasing as the level of N decreases. Mean GY reductions across the years was 76.5% at no-N and 35.4% at low-N. Depending on N treatment, GY varied from 0.48 to 4.42 Mg ha-1, grain N content from 0.17 to 1.26 g plant-1, total N content at harvest from 0.33 to 2.00 g plant-1, above ground biomass at silking from 30.6 to 91.2 g plant-1 and at maturity from 39.9 to 191.1 g plant-1. Number of kernels was the GY component most severely reduced by N stress and had significant (p = 0.001) positive correlation with GY at all N levels. Six hybrids (4001/4008, KU1409/4008, KU1409/9613, 4008/1808, 4058/Fun 47-4, and 1824/9432) which showed consistent above average grain yields under no-N, low-N, high-N and across N levels were found and their use could further be investigated.


Research has identified a correlation between prenatal markers of testosterone (2D4D) and sport performance. This relationship is thought to be explained by several important psychophysiological variables such as physical fitness and mental toughness. The current study sought to add to this body of research by examining the differences between high and low 2D4D, in measures of gender identity (Bem Sex Role Inventory) and mental toughness (the 48-item version of the Mental Toughness Questionnaire). A sample of 116 recreational (n = 59) and competitive netballers (n = 57) completed the psychological measures and provided right-hand scans from which 2D4D ratio measures were drawn. The key results included a large effect of low digit ratio on emotional control, life control, and interpersonal confidence. These findings suggest that 2D4D could provide a marker for sporting potential and mental toughness in female sport participants. However, future research may wish to establish the relative contribution of prenatal factors (e.g., 2D4D) and socialization factors (e.g., involvement in a sporting context) on sporting ability and related psychological variables.


This paper introduces a practical approach for superresolution, the process of reconstructing a high-resolution image from the low-resolution input ones. The emphasis of our work is to super-resolve frames from dynamic video sequences, which may contain significant object occlusion or scene changes. As the quality of super-resolved images highly relies on the correctness of image alignment between consecutive frames, we employ the robust optical flow method to accurately estimate motion between the image pair. An efficient and reliable scheme is designed to detect and discard incorrect matchings, which may degrade the output quality. We also introduce the usage of elliptical weighted average (EWA) filter to model the spatially variant point spread function (PSF) of acquisition system in order to improve accuracy of the model. A number of complex and dynamic video sequences are tested to demonstrate the applicability and reliability of our algorithm.


To identify separate effects of gender, castration and exogenous oestrogen on growth, castrated lambs of both sexes and entire male lambs (n = 8) were implanted subcutaneously with three sizes of oestradiol-17β implants, or not implanted, and grazed on ryegrass and white clover pasture for 180 days. A group of non-implanted entire female lambs (n = 8) was run together with the others. Non-implanted entire male lambs grew faster, had heavier heads, less internal, non-carcass fat and more protein and less fat and water in the carcass than non-implanted entire females. In addition, they had higher 12th vertebral spine, thicker tibia, and heavier and larger humerus than entire female lambs. Castration of male lambs reduced live-weight gain, weight of head and content of protein in the carcass whereas it increased carcass fat content. In addition, it caused lengthening of cannon bones and reduced height of 12th vertebral spine and length of tibia. In females, gonadectomy increased height of 12th vertebral spine and diameter to length ratio of the radius. Oestradiol treatment increased live-weight gain, reduced total internal and carcass fat, and increased water and protein content of the carcass in gonadectomized animals of either sex, and increased weight of carcass and head in spayed ewe lambs. Oestradiol treatment inhibited longitudinal growth of cannon bones and stimulated that of vertebral column and ribs, but had little effect on the dimensions of limb bones apart from increasing their diameter. Oestradiol treatment had no effect on muscle length but increased muscle girth and weight, except for m. splenius in ram lambs where muscle weight was reduced. Effects of oestradiol on skeletal measurements in most cases were linearly related to dose of oestradiol. It was concluded that the variable effects of sex steroids on the skeleton were related to the differential pattern of skeletal maturation. In early maturing bones acceleration of the growth process by an exogenous sex steroid caused elongation to cease prematurely, whereas in late-maturing bones the acceleration effect on elongation did not result in premature cessation. This observation may explain the often contradictory reports in the literature on the effects of sex steroids on linear growth of bone.


Electrical resistivity tests have long been used in geo-environmental site characterization because they provide qualitative data to identify the presence of contaminants in soil. The measurement of soil electrical resistivity is affected by many intervening factors, which are usually studied separately in the laboratory and are important to ensure the correct interpretation of in situ test data. This paper presents the evaluation of the influence of the diameter of test specimens on electrical resistivity measurements of a particulate medium in the laboratory, using two different techniques, copper plates and a resistivity probe. The data were discussed considering Archie's Law, and it indicates that the geometry of test specimen has a greater effect than the measurement technique. The larger test specimen allows more current pathways for electron propagation because electric current travels along the path of least resistance to the passage of electrons. The findings from this research can be used to guide a laboratory test investigation and its data interpretation.


A previous lectin binding study demonstrated the presence of high molecular-mass mucin-like glycoproteins (HMGP) on the surface of hamster tracheal surface epithelial (HTSE) secretory cells (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 1987;84:9304). In the present study, we intended to isolate and characterize these HMGP from the plasma membrane of the primary HTSE cells and then to determine whether or not these membrane HMGP are Muc-1 mucins, a type of mucins originally discovered on the surface of some carcinomas. A subcellular fraction enriched with the plasma membrane was obtained using a sucrose density gradient centrifugation. This fraction contained high molecular-mass glycoconjugates which were excluded from Sepharose CL-4B gel. Biochemical characterization of these glycoconjugates revealed the following characteristics: (1) susceptibility to both pronase and mild alkaline treatments, but totally resistant to proteoglycan-digesting enzymes; (2) partitioning in the detergent phase of Triton X-114 and resistance to digestion by phosphatidylinositol phospholipase C or D; (3) a buoyant density of 1.5 g/ml based on CsCl density gradient centrifugation; (4) polydispersity in terms of both size and charge density; and (5) lack of immunoreactivity with an anti-Muc-1 mucin antibody. We conclude that the plasma membrane of HTSE cells at confluence contains HMGP, which seem to be the integral membrane proteins but different from Muc-1 mucins, and that these membrane HMGP appear to share some similarities with secreted mucins in terms of size and charge.


The black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas), hereafter referred to as jackal, is a common mesocarnivore throughout southern and eastern Africa. This species is a generalist omnivore, and research has shown it is very adaptable to different ecosystems, including both natural and anthropogenically modified habitats (Minnie, Avenant, et al., 2016). Historically, they occurred in ecosystems dominated by up to six species of large (>20 kg) carnivores, along with several other mesocarnivores. Under such natural conditions, jackals typically feed on prey ranging from small rodents to small antelope and scavenge on large carnivore kills (Minnie, Avenant, et al., 2016; Skinner & Chimimba, 2005). However, most of the arable land in South Africa has been transformed into agricultural farms and extensive livestock farms, and large carnivores have been extirpated over most of the country (van Sittert, 1998). Under such human-dominated conditions, jackals appear to thrive, and they have become the dominant predator on farmland throughout most of South Africa (Klare, Kamler, Stenkewitz, & Macdonald, 2010; Minnie, Avenant, Drouilly, & Samuels, 2018; Minnie, Avenant, et al., 2016). Consequently, jackals prey heavily on ungulates in game farms (Klare et al., 2010), and prey heavily on sheep on livestock farms (Kamler, Klare, & Macdonald, 2012; Minnie, Avenant, et al., 2018). In response, human persecution of jackals typically is high on farmland and game farms, and jackal control activities are a standard management practice on most farms (Drouilly, Nattrass, & O'Riain, 2018; Kamler, Stenkewitz, & Macdonald, 2013; Minnie, Avenant, et al., 2016; Minnie, Zalewski, Zalewska, & Kerley, 2018). The high level of persecution of jackals in South Africa is controversial (Nattrass, Drouilly, & O'Riain, 2019). Although intensive jackal control can significantly reduce jackal densities on livestock farms compared to nearby reserves (Kamler et al., 2013), others believe persecution does not affect jackal densities due to compensatory mechanisms and immigration (Minnie, Gaylard, & Kerley, 2016; Minnie, Zalewski, et al., 2018). Nonetheless, under natural condition with large carnivores present, jackals might experience high mortality levels similar to those in human-hunted populations. For example, jackals have reportedly been killed or consumed by lions (Panthera leo; Schaller, 1972; Stander, 1992), spotted hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta; van Lawick & van Lawick-Goodall, 1970), brown hyaenas (Hyaena brunnea; Mills, 1982), leopards (P. pardus; Schaller, 1972; Estes, 1991), cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus; Hayward, Hofmeyr, O'Brien, & Kerley, 2006) and African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus; Kamler, Davies-Mostert, Hunter, & Macdonald, 2007), yet the effects of these natural mortalities on jackal populations have never been quantified. Similarly, although the effects of human-caused mortalities on the genetic and population structure of jackals have been reported (Minnie, Gaylard, et al., 2016; Minnie, Zalewski, et al., 2018; Tensen, Drouilly, & van Vuuren, 2018), the effects of human-caused mortalities on the annual survival of a jackal population have never been determined.


This paper addresses the nature of, and conditions for, resilience and hope after parental suicide. The author presents her understandings regarding the young child's experience of parental suicide, and identifies a number of phases, or stages, that children experience in their social atom when coping with this traumatic event. She describes how her analysis of the shifting sociometric patterns in the family system influences the way in which interventions are made to facilitate social atom repair. The ideas are illustrated with three case studies from practice.


: Stand-alone systems in remote regions require the utilization of renewable resources; however, their natural intermittence requires the implementation of energy-storage systems that allow a continuous power supply. More than one renewable source is usually available at the same site. Thus, the choice of a hybrid system seems viable. It is relevant to study hybrid systems as they could reduce energy storage; however, sizing the hybrid system might have several implications, not only for the available daily energy, but also for the required daily energy storage and surplus seasonal energy. In this work, we present a case study of a stand-alone, conventional household powered by photovoltaic and marine-current-energy systems in Cozumel, Mexico. The analysis of different hybridization degrees serves as a guidance tool to decide whether hybrid systems are required for a specific situation; in contrast to previous approaches, where ideal consumption and generation profiles have been utilized, yearlong profiles were utilized here. The renewable potential data were obtained on site at an hourly resolution; requirements such as size of and cycles in the daily and seasonal energy storage were analyzed according to the degree of participation or hybridization of the proposed renewable systems through an algorithm that evaluates power generation and daily consumption throughout the year. A further analysis indicated that marine-current-energy implementation reduces the size of the daily energy-storage system by 79% in comparison to the use of only a photovoltaic system due to the similarity between the energy-demand profile and the marine-current-energy production profile. The results indicate that a greater participation of marine currents can help decrease daily storage while increasing seasonal storage by 16% compared to using only solar energy. On the other hand, hybridization enabled a reduction in the number of daily charge and discharge cycles at 0.2 hybridization degrees. It also allowed us to reduce the seasonal energy storage by 38% at 0.6 hybridization degrees with respect to only using energy from marine currents. Afterwards, energy-storage technologies were evaluated using the TOPSIS Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis to validate the best-suited technology for the energy-storage system. The evaluation considered the characteristics of the technology and the periods of energy storage. In this work, hybrid storage systems were mandatory since, for daily storage, lithium-ion batteries are better suited, while for seasonal storage, hydrogen-producing systems are more suitable to manage the amount of energy and the storage duration due to the high seasonal renewable-energy variations.


Despite the participatory and democratic promises of Web 2.0, many marginalized individuals with fluid or non-normative identities continue to struggle to represent themselves online. Facebook users, in particular, are told to use "authentic identities," an idea reinforced throughout the site's documentation, "real name" and other policies, and in public statements by company representatives. Facebook's conception of authenticity and real names, however, has created problems for certain users, as demonstrated by the systematic deactivation of many accounts belonging to transgender and gender variant users, drag queens, Native Americans, abuse survivors, and others. In view of the struggles of marginalized users, Facebook policy appears paradoxical: the site simultaneously demands authenticity yet proscribes certain people from authentic self-presentation. In this work, we examine Facebook's construction of "authenticity" and show how it excludes multifaceted, fluid, or non-normative identities. Using content analysis and close reading, we analyze site documentation and data from The Zuckerberg Files (an online archive of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg's public remarks) to understand the platform's mechanisms for enforcing authenticity. We find that Facebook positions itself as a type of administrative identity registrar, raising vital questions regarding the ethics and consequences of identity enforcement online today.


It remains uncertain which continuum and emission line diagnostics best indicate the bolometric powers of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), especially given the attenuation caused by the circumnuclear material and the possible contamination by components related to star formation. Here we use mid-IR spectra along with multiwavelength data to investigate the merit of various diagnostics of AGN radiative power, including the mid-IR [Ne iii] λ25.89 μm and [O iv] λ25.89 μm fine-structure lines, the optical [O iii] λ5007 forbidden line, and mid-IR 24 μm, 5 GHz radio, and X-ray continuum emission, for complete samples of 46 2Jy radio galaxies (0.05 < z < 0.7) and 17 3CRR FRII radio galaxies (z < 0.1). We find that the mid-IR [O iv] line is the most reliable indicator of AGN power for powerful radio-loud AGNs. By assuming that the [O iv] is emitted isotropically, and comparing the [O iii] and 24 μm luminosities of the broad- and narrow-line AGNs in our samples at fixed [O iv] luminosity, we show that the [O iii] and 24 μm emission are both mildly attenuated in the narrow-line compared to the broad-line objects by a factor of ≈2. However, despite this attenuation, the [O iii] and 24 μm luminosities are better AGN power indicators for our sample than either the 5 GHz radio or the X-ray continuum luminosities. We also detect the mid-IR 9.7 μm silicate feature in the spectra of many objects but not ubiquitously: at least 40% of the sample shows no clear evidence for these features. We conclude that, for the majority of powerful radio galaxies, the mid-IR lines are powered by AGN photoionization.


The testability problem of word-oriented memories (WOMs) for pattern sensitive faults is addressed. A novel design for testability (DFT) strategy allows efficient built-in self-testing (BIST) of WOMs. By proper selection of the memory array tiling scheme, it is possible to implement O(√n) BIST algorithms which test WOMs for various types of neighbourhood pattern sensitive faults (NPSFs). The inputs of the column decoders are modified to allow parallel writing into multiple words, and coincidence comparators are added to allow parallel verification of row data with minimal effect on chip area and performance.


Large cardamom (Amomum subulatum) is an economically valuable, ecologically adaptive, and agro-climatically suitable perennial cash crop grown under tree shade in the eastern Himalayas. In Sikkim, India, the focus of this study, large-cardamom production peaked early in the 21st century, making India the largest producer in the world, but dropped sharply after 2004; Nepal is now the largest producer. This crop is an important part of the local economy, contributing on average 29.2% of the income of households participating in this study. Farmers and extension agencies have worked to reverse its decline since 2007, and thus, there is a steady increase in production and production area. After reviewing the literature, we carried out extensive field research in 6 locations in Sikkim in 2011–2013 to investigate the causes of this decline and measures being undertaken to reverse it, using a combination of rapid rural appraisal, participatory rural appraisal, structured questionnaire, and field sampling techniques. Study participants attributed the decline in large-cardamom farming to 4 broad types of drivers: biological, socioeconomic, institutional/governance-related, and environmental/climate-change-related. Altered seasons, erratic or scanty rainfall, prolonged dry spells, temperature increase, soil moisture loss, and increasing instances of diseases and pests were prominent factors of climate change in the study region. Multistakeholder analysis revealed that development and implementation of people-centered policy that duly recognizes local knowledge, development of disease-free planting materials, training, subsidies, and improved irrigation facilities are central to improving cardamom farming and building socioeconomic and ecological resilience.


The United States Supreme Court purported to apply "ordinary contract principles" in its decision reversing the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in M&G Polymers USA v. Tackett . The Sixth Circuit had held that plaintiffs, retired employees of M&G, were entitled to lifetime healthcare benefits under their union's agreement with M&G. According to the Supreme Court, the Sixth Circuit wrongly relied on a false set of "inferences" established in International Union v. Yard-Man, Inc. to find that "in the absence of extrinsic evidence to the contrary, the provisions of [the collective bargaining agreement] indicated an intent to vest retirees with lifetime benefits." The Supreme Court therefore remanded the case for a determination under "ordinary contract principles," and without the benefit of the inferences, what the parties' intentions were with respect to the duration of retiree healthcare benefits.This Article documents the various errors of the Supreme Court in applying "ordinary contract principles." In doing so, the Article suggests how courts should proceed in contract cases like M&G. I will argue that "ordinary contract principles" should have led the Court, not to abandon what the Supreme Court called the "Yard-Man inferences," but to treat them as probative, along with all other evidence concerning the duration of healthcare benefits. Because of the Supreme Court's mistakes, its attempt to clear up the Sixth Circuit's treatment of the duration of retiree healthcare benefits undoubtedly failed. More litigation is likely inevitable.


This project arises from an EPSRC Ideas Factory convened to examine the nature and origins of the UK productivity gap in conjunction with the Advanced Institute of Management (AIM). The initiative brought together researchers from a wide range of disciplines. The proposal combines expertise at the macro-economic level with detailed company and sector level insights from the engineering and construction participants to develop the concept of knowledge leakage and investigate its impact on UK productivity. Knowledge leakage is introduced as mechanisms through which information or knowledge that is critical to an organisation is lost or 'leaked'. The concept of knowledge leakage is discussed through a review of literature from numerous disciplines and the relationship between knowledge leakage and the UK productivity gap is examined. The results from an initial scoping study are presented in two sections; Firstly notions of what knowledge is critical to organisations is presented; Secondly the impact of HR, culture, trust and supply chain relationships, among other concepts, on the potential for knowledge leakage is discussed.


Most of the algorithms for inverse reinforcement learning (IRL) assume that the reward function is a linear function of the pre-defined state and action features. However, it is often difficult to manually specify the set of features that can make the true reward function representable as a linear function. We propose a Bayesian nonparametric approach to identifying useful composite features for learning the reward function. The composite features are assumed to be the logical conjunctions of the pre-defined atomic features so that we can represent the reward function as a linear function of the composite features. We empirically show that our approach is able to learn composite features that capture important aspects of the reward function on synthetic domains, and predict taxi drivers' behaviour with high accuracy on a real GPS trace dataset.


"Contaminant Transport and Behavior in the Subsurface, James H. Clarke, Danny D. Reible, and Robert D. Mutch, Jr. Problems with the Remediation of Diffusion-Limited Fractured-Rock Systems, Robert D. Mutch and Joanna I. Scott Chemical Stablilization of Contaminated Soils, Jesse R. Conner Soil Vapor Stripping, David J. Wilson and Ann N. Clarke Thermally Enhanced Vapor Stripping, Ann N. Clarke, David J. Wilson, and Paul R. dePercin Thermal Desorption, Richard J. Ayen, Carl P. Swanstrom, and Carl R. Palmer Enhanced Biodegradation for On-Site Remediation of Contaminated Soils and Groundwater, Ronald E. Hoeppel and Robert E. Hinchee Saturated Zone Remediation of VOCs Through Sparging, Ann N. Clarke, Robert D. Norris, and David J. Wilson In Situ Vitrification, Kenton H. Oma Soil Surfactant Flushing/Washing, David J. Wilson and Ann N. Clarke "


Nearly every treatment of scientific evidence begins with a faithful comparison between the Frye and Daubert standards. Since 1993, jurists and legal scholars have spiritedly debated which standard is preferable and whether particular states should adopt one standard or the other. These efforts beg the question: Does a state's choice of scientific admissibility standard matter? A growing number of scholars suspect that the answer is no. Under this theory, the import of the Supreme Court's Daubert decision was not in its doctrinal standard, but rather in the general consciousness it raised about the problems of unreliable scientific evidence. This Article empirically examines this question. Using data provided by the Federal Judicial Center, the National Center for State Courts, and the New York and Connecticut court systems, we apply a novel approach of using removal from state to federal court to measure litigants' perceptions of scientific admissibility standards in practice. Our analysis strongly supports the theory that a state's choice between Frye and Daubert does not matter in tort cases. The results raise larger questions about the efficacy of tort reform through procedural rules, suggesting that the judiciary in some contexts may be more responsive to educative measures than to doctrinally based procedural reforms.


This project will deal with a number of aspects of WAS-only-reduction technologies for both industrial and municipal wastewater treatment applications. The objectives of this project include the following:

1. Developing an evaluation methodology that can be used to independently assess the effectiveness of WAS-reduction technologies

2. Demonstrating the previously listed methodology with at least one WAS-reduction technology

This study includes not only the primary goals of establishing the degree of WAS reduction and corresponding capital and operation and maintenance (O&M) costs, but also such details as impacts on dewaterability (e.g., changes in polymer requirements, and maximum solids content achievable), changes in volatile solids reduction and corresponding biogas production in anaerobic digestion, possible odor issues in terms of in-plant processing requirements or ultimate product quality for disposal that result from these processes, and the change in characteristics of the recycle streams back to the main process (such as increased nutrient return, increased total suspended solids [TSS] return, phosphorus removal, etc.). In addition to the more technical parameters, the adopted approach also considers evaluations of operability, reliability, and maintainability on each of the leading processes. Some of these effects were determined by laboratory testing and plant data evaluation. Others were investigated through comprehensive modeling using standard industry models such as ASM 2d for liquid-stream biological treatment and the ADM1 model for anaerobic digestion.

A key objective of this work is an impartial validation of these technologies and the development of a methodology for assessment of additional technologies that currently do not exist, but could be developed in the future. This requires not only real world operating data, but also a degree of understanding of the fundamental mechanism behind the process. As such, a critical part of this project involves the discussion of the potential underlying mechanisms for each of the validated technologies.

This title belongs to WERF Research Report Series .

ISBN: 9781843393948 (Print)

ISBN: 9781780403489 (eBook)


Purple soil of China is suitable for planting a variety of food and cash crops, owing to its rich nutrients and high natural fertility. In purple soil areas, farmers often apply excessive fertilizers to fields to maintain yields in continuous cropping systems. However, excessive fertilizer application can result in high nutrient concentrations in soils and nutrient pollution in the water environment. The fertilization tolerance (FT) of purple soil should be determined by considering critical values to both maximize crop production and minimize environmental risk of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) loss. In this study, farmland fields with 18% slope plots planted with the typical crop of corn (Zea mays L.) were used to investigate the effects of varied fertilizer application levels on crop yields and the main soil fertility indexes, as well as on N and P loss from purple soil. The main results showed that corn yield increased with fertilization level when the fertilization amount ranged from 375 to 1,500 kg ha–1 and declined with overfertilization (1,875 kg ha–1). The grain yield, which increased with fertilization levels in 2011, was not significantly higher than in 2012 (p > 0.05), while the 1,000 grain weight in 2011 was significantly higher than in 2012 (p < 0.05). The actual amounts of soil ammonifying bacteria, nitrifying bacteria, denitrifying bacteria, and organic P bacteria during the various growth periods were significantly greater at the fertilization amounts of 1,125 kg ha–1 and 1,500 kg ha–1 than in other treatments both in 2011 and 2012 (p < 0.05). Compared to the fertilization amount of 750 kg ha–1, urease and alkaline phosphatase activities with the fertilization amounts of 1,125 kg ha–1 and 1,500 kg ha–1 significantly increased in both 2011 and 2012 (p < 0.05), while significant reductions in both years were observed at the fertilization amounts of 1,875 kg ha–1 and 375 kg ha–1. Total N and total phosphorous concentrations in runoff water rose with an increase in fertilization rate in both 2011 and 2012. The effects of three types of fertilization on crop yield, soil fertility, and N and P loss were standardized to values ranging from 0 to 1, with an integrated index of these effects then evaluated to determine the FT, which is here defined as the amount of fertilizer applied to a soil that maintains not only high soil productivity but also high soil fertility and water environmental security. In this study, the range of FT was 750 to 1,120 kg ha–1 (organic compound fertilizer of potassium nitrate [KNO3]) at plot scale. Therefore, the FT for purple soil ensures not only high output but also that the quality of the regional soil and water environment reaches certain quality requirements.


AbstractPrestack Kirchhoff depth migration is commonly used in borehole seismic imaging, where there is uneven illumination due to the limitations of the source-receiver geometry. A new vertical seismic profile (VSP) migration/imaging workflow has been established that incorporates the structure-dip information derived from a newly developed structure tensor analysis into the existing VSP Kirchhoff migration/imaging technique. This allows us to better image the structures in the vicinity of a borehole and the far-field dipping events away from the borehole. We tested the workflow with the HESS salt model. The results were compared with those from reverse time migration, which found that Kirchhoff migration combined with structure-dip information not only reduced ambiguities of the imaging result but also allowed for imaging dip structures (e.g., fault) in the far region from the borehole. This allows for imaging dip structures and provides a useful extension of existing VSP imaging capabilities using Kirc...


The direct partial oxidation of methane to oxygenates still remains one of the greatest challenges in catalysis. Metal-containing zeolites hold great potential for the direct partial oxidation of methane to oxygenates. The nature of the active sites in these materials is, however, still a matter of debate and has been addressed in this PhD thesis for Cu-ZSM-5 and Co-ZSM-5 zeolites. For activated Cu-ZSM-5 zeolites the CT band at 22700 cm-1 is linearly related to the metal loading and to the activity of the samples for the production of methanol from methane and oxygen. Thus, a quantitative structure-performance relationship between the CT band intensity and the amount of methanol produced has been established. The presence of at least two copper species was observed and confirmed by UV-Vis-NIR DRS, TEM and FT-IR measurements. Part of the copper is present as Cu-O nanoclusters on the outer surface. Based on catalytic experiments and FT-IR measurements of adsorbed pivalonitrile we showed that Cu-O species on the outer surface are inactive for methanol production. A minor part of copper is present inside the microporous channels as visualized by FT-IR of adsorbed NO after pivalonitrile adsorption, which most likely gives rise to the CT band at 22700 cm-1. These copper species inside the zeolite channels are involved in the oxidation of methane to methanol. In addition, for the first time the possibility to partially oxidize methane to methanol and formaldehyde at low temperature over Co-ZSM-5 using air is shown. The influence of the preparation method on the nature of the cobalt species is investigated. The catalytic activity and selectivity for methane oxidation as a function of the cobalt speciation is additionally discussed. Based on UV-Vis-NIR and FT-IR spectroscopy, H2-TPR, TEM and kinetic measurements it is concluded that cobalt in ion-exchange positions results mainly in the formation of formaldehyde, while larger Co-oxide particles prepared by impregnation result in the formation of methanol. Often zeolites for methane oxidation consist of small crystals agglomerated to larger entities of typically > 2 ?m. This might hamper the accessibility of the active sites in the zeolite/zeolite aggregates and merits a more detailed investigation. Therefore, the role of pore accessibility on the catalytic performance of Co-ZSM-5 zeolites for the production of oxygenates from methane has been investigated. Alkaline treatment of templated Na-ZSM-5 zeolites with NaOH solutions resulted in the creation of intercrystalline mesopores within the zeolite agglomerates, while preserving the micropore volume and crystallinity. It was found that the zeolite external surface area increased with increasing NaOH concentration and pretreatment time. These alkaline treated samples were loaded with cobalt and a linear relationship between the number of cobalt oxidic species and the external surface area of the zeolite could be established. This in turn leads to a linear relationship between the ZSM-5 surface area and the amount of methanol produced over Co-ZSM-5 from methane and oxygen. Attempts to remove extra framework alumina species by an acid treatment were successful. However, this acid treatment increased, after Co-deposition, the amount of highly dispersed Co2+ inside the ZSM-5 channels, which resulted in a higher selectivity towards formaldehyde.


Colin Powell's warning to George W. Bush before the invasion of Iraq, that "this will become the first term," proved overly optimistic (Woodward 2004, 150). The war consumed Bush's second term as well, leaving a radically altered political configuration in its wake. The 2004 election had elevated Bush's Republican Party to its most dominant position in national government since the 1920s. Four years later, Barack Obama, a young African American Democrat unknown to most Americans at his campaign's outset, occupied the White House, and Democrats controlled the House and Senate by margins as wide as before the Republican revolution of 1994. The war was not the only reason for this remarkable reversal of party fortunes; the economy's downward slide during 2008 and then plunge off the cliff in September contributed to it, as did other Bush administration failures, such as the response to Hurricane Katrina. But the economic crisis was so devastating because it compounded damage that the war had already inflicted on the president and his party. Although the situation in Iraq improved markedly over the year leading up to the election, a development for which Bush and his controversial "surge" strategy could take considerable credit, the damage proved irreversible. Though the economy became the dominant electoral issue in 2008, the Iraq War was, through direct and indirect pathways, ultimately the single most important contributor to Obama's presidential victory. My purpose here is to flesh out and defend this argument empirically. I begin by describing the political context that had emerged by the end of the Bush presidency, largely as a consequence of the public's reaction to the war and the president. I then examine how the war and the president influenced the primary and general election outcomes, mainly through analyses of two major election studies, the time-series component of the 2008 American National Election Study (ANES 2009) and the 2008 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES; Ansolabehere 2009a). Finally, I briefly compare Bush's effect on his party's nominee to the influence of Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton on the fates of George H. W. Bush and Al Gore. The War, the President, and the Republican Party The most important effects of the Iraq War on the 2008 presidential election had already registered well before the first caucuses in Iowa. Because I have already presented the evidence for this conclusion in some detail (Jacobson 2009b, 2009c), I merely summarize it here. Popular support for the Iraq War and approval of Bush's performance as president bore close to a one-to-one relationship from the war's initiation until early 2008. As Americans soured on the war, they soured on its architect as well. The monthly average of support for the war measured in national surveys fell from 73% in April 2003 to 33% five years later. (1) Bush's mean monthly approval ratings fell in near lockstep, dropping from 71% to 28%. The close correspondence between the two trends was no accident, for the proportion of respondents in individual surveys who offered consistent responses to questions about the president and the war--positive toward both or negative toward both--remained steady at an average of about 84% across the entire period (Jacobson 2009b, 175). As the war and the president grew increasingly unpopular, so did the Republican Party. The mean proportion of Americans rating it favorably fell from 55% in surveys taken during the first half of 2003 to 41% during the second half of 2008; meanwhile, the Democratic Party's favorability ratings grew modestly, from 52% to 55%, leaving the Democrats with a 14-point advantage on this dimension, among the widest ever recorded (Jacobson 2009c, 8). (2) More crucially, the Republicans' share of major party identifiers also shrank over this period, dropping by nearly 7 percentage points and leaving the party at its lowest ebb since the early 1980s (Jacobson 2009b, 194-95). …


Over the last 50 years, a steady stream of accounts have been written on the separation principle of stochastic control. Even in the context of the linear-quadratic regulator in continuous time with Gaussian white noise, subtle difficulties arise, unexpected by many, that are often overlooked. In this paper we propose a new framework for establishing the separation principle. This approach takes the viewpoint that stochastic systems are well-defined maps between sample paths rather than stochastic processes per se and allows us to extend the separation principle to systems driven by martingales with possible jumps. While the approach is more in line with "real-life" engineering thinking where signals travel around the feedback loop, it is unconventional from a probabilistic point of view in that control laws for which the feedback equations are satisfied almost surely, and not deterministically for every sample path, are excluded.


The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of carbohydrates supplementation on the stallion semen cryopreservation. Semen was collected from 3 stallions using artifi cial vagina twice a week. Collected semen was evaluated macroand microscopically. Semen showed >60% progressive motility was then divided into 3 tubes and diluted with skim milk 1:1, centrifuged at 1006 g for 10 minutes. Supernatan was removed and each pellet rediluted either with skim milk extender supplemented with 50 mM trehalose (ST); 50 mM raffi nose (SR) or 100 mM fructose (SF) with the concentration of sperm were 200x10 6 ml -1 . Extended semen packed into minitub 0.3 ml and equilibrates at 4 o C for 2 hours, freezes in the liquid nitrogen vapor for 10 minutes and stored in liquid nitrogen container -196 o C for further evaluation. After 24 hours, the semen was thawed at 37 o C for 30 second. The results of this experiment indicated that trehalose supplementation in skim milk was found to signifi cantly improve the percentage of sperm motility (P<0.05) for stallion 1 and 3 compared to raffi nose and fructose. But in all stallions, trehalose and fructose were superior compared to raffi nose.


Development of joint irrigation infrastructure increasingly depends on investment decisions made by individual farmers. Farmers base their decisions to invest on their current knowledge and understanding. As irrigation infrastructure development is ultimately a group decision, it is beneficial if individuals have a common understanding of the various values at stake. Sharing the personal reasoning behind individual decisions is a promising approach to build such common understanding. This study demonstrates application of participatory crossover analysis at a workshop in Tasmania, Australia. The workshop gave farmers the opportunity to discuss their broader considerations in investment decisions, beyond just financial or monetary factors. It centered on the question, "In what conditions would you—the individual farmer—invest?" The participants' willingness to pay, in the form of crossover points, was presented as a set of scenarios to start an explorative discussion between irrigators and non-irrigators. Evaluation feedback indicates that the workshop enabled participants to share new information, improved understanding of differences between neighbors, and generated more respect for others and their decisions. As expected, reasoning went beyond economic concerns, and changed over time. Lifestyle choices, long-term intergenerational planning, perceived risks, and intrinsic motivations emerged as factors influencing water valuation. Simply having a facilitated discussion about the reasons underlying individuals' willingness to pay seems to be a useful tool for better informed decision-making about joint irrigation infrastructure, and is worth testing in further case studies.


According to a large amount of clinical practices, it is an important measure to take surgical treatment for patients with lower cervical vertebra fracture and dislocation associated with spinal cord injury. This measure is widely recognized in the medical world because it can effectively promote the recovery of the neurological function of spinal cord, and improve the effect of anatomical reduction. At present, there are two commonly applied surgical approaches for the treatment of this disease, namely anterior cervical decompression, This study observed and explored the treatment effect of different approaches through grouping, and studied the method of selecting the best approach. The report content was as shown below.


The mechanisms by which dietary sodium modulates cardiovascular risk are not fully understood. This study investigated whether sodium intake is related to carotid structure and hemodynamics and to plasma matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity in hypertensive adults. One hundred thirty-four participants were cross-sectionally evaluated by clinical history, anthropometry, carotid ultrasound, and analysis of hemodynamic, inflammatory, and metabolic variables. Daily sodium intake (DSI) was estimated by 24-h recall, discretionary sodium, and a FFQ. In 42 patients, plasma MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities were also analyzed. The mean DSI was 5.52 ± 0.29 g/d. Univariate analysis showed that DSI correlated with common carotid artery systolic and diastolic diameter (r = 0.36 and 0.34; both P < 0.001), peak and mean circumferential tension (r = 0.44 and 0.39; both P < 0.001), Young's Elastic Modulus (r = 0.40; P < 0.001), intima-media thickness (r = 0.19; P < 0.05), and internal carotid artery resistive index (r = 0.20; P < 0.05). Multivariate analyses revealed that only artery diameter, circumferential wall tension, and Young's Elastic Modulus were independently associated with DSI. Conversely, plasma MMP-9 activity was associated with DSI (r = 0.53; P < 0.001) as well as with common carotid systolic diameter (r = 0.33; P < 0.05) and Young's Elastic Modulus (r = 0.38; P < 0.01). In conclusion, sodium intake is associated with carotid alterations in hypertensive adults independently of systemic hemodynamic variables. The present findings also suggest that increased MMP-9 activity might play a role in sodium-induced vascular remodeling.


The radio communication and navigation systems can be strongly affected by the ionospheric conditions, which are controlled by solar phenomena associated with radiation variations and solar wind disturbances. These phenomena can generate ionospheric large-scale plasma redistribution and irregularities with scale sizes varying from centimeters to hundred kilometers. These ionospheric irregularities can produce rapid fluctuations in the amplitude and phase of global navigation satellite system (GNSS) signals, degrading the accuracy of GNSS measurements. Here we give a short review of the ionospheric variations associated with solar phenomena, and the actual state of art in the investigations of long-term (seasonal and solar cycle scales) TEC variations and climatology of scintillations, with focus on the southern American sector. It also presented a new TEC calibration procedure when applied to single-frequency PPP.


Despite their widespread influence, Martin Heidegger's works have rarely been assessed for their own direct significance as political theory. In this article I undertake such an assessment by drawing out the political implications of Heidegger's understanding of freedom and community in two of his early works. Specifically, I argue that, although Heidegger's thought has been interpreted as advocating political conservatism, it in fact propounds a new kind of radicalism which is neither precisely conservative nor progressive, although decidedly revolutionary. When this is brought to light, it is easier to see the connection between Heidegger's works and the earlier Philosophy of Freedom, as well as ways in which they anticipate important trends in contemporary political thought.


This work tackles low delay adaptive video streaming over error-prone networks. Our framework consists of an encoding station, an edge server and a set of clients with various access rates. The edge server is capable of performing simple error concealment operations on the incoming data before forwarding the adapted media to its clients. We study two encoding scenarios: versions (multiple encodings at various output rates) and layers. We develop a unified end-to-end distortion model, which we use to derive the optimal coding strategy for both scenarios. Finally we analyze the performance of MPEG-4 coded versions against MPEG-4 FGS-coded layers in rate-constrained lossy environments. Experiments show that versions perform better than layers when the constraint on the aggregate rate is somewhat relaxed, for low to medium packet loss ratios.


Based on a detailed trade-level dataset, we analyze the proprietary trading behavior of German banks in the months directly preceding and following the Lehman collapse in September 2008. The default of Lehman Brothers was a shock to the German banking system that was both unexpected and exogenous. We examine banks' immediate reactions as well as their responses to unconventional monetary policy measures introduced shortly after the event - the introduction of full allotment and the change in eligibility criteria for collateral in central bank refinancing operations. Our results show that market liquidity tightened after the Lehman collapse but there is no evidence of fire sales in the German banking sector. Instead, we observe a broad-based flight to liquidity. The European Central Bank's unconventional monetary policy had a strong impact on banks' trading behavior by inducing shifts towards eligible securities and reducing pressure on market liquidity. This suggests that the ECB's measures contributed to stabilizing the financial system after the Lehman collapse.


This paper shows that how costly to establish market and to operate it. It goes almost without saying that conflict arises when actions of one country adversely affect domestic market of other countries, or efforts to protect domestic market have reciprocal effects on other countries. What is the nature of market today? In a free trade system, the ownership of common market occurs, when market expansion by countries has unrestricted access, because no one country owns the common market. Since market expansion by countries has such excessive access, and no one country is legally allowed to protect its domestic market, then no one country has a claim on its domestic market. When there is unlimited access and no claim on domestic market, the market has qualities of international public good, such as joint  consumption and high exclusion costs. When the market becomes international public good, a country tends to overgraze in other countries. Since overgrazing activities of one country Innict the other ones, conflict among countries must develop. The tragedy of the commons Is a rule.


The extraction of features for automated assessment for breast cancer detection and diagnosis requires identification of the breast tissue. The pectoral muscle in medio-lateral oblique (MLO) mammogram images is one of the few landmarks in the breast. Yet, it can bias and affect the results of any mammogram processing method. To avoid such effects it is often necessary to automatically identify and segment the pectoral muscle prior to breast tissue image analysis. We propose the use of Independent Component Analysis (ICA) for identification and subsequent removal of the pectoral muscle. The identification is posed as classification of image subsections corresponding to pectoral muscle and breast tissue as represented by a set of ICA basis functions. Average classification rates 97.3% and 83.3% for pectoral muscle and breast tissue respectively have been obtained.


The adaptor protein NEMO, which is required for activation of the kinase IKKβ, also controls its specificity to ensure NF-κB activation. Activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) transcription factors [for example, in response to tumor necrosis factor–α (TNF-α) receptor (TNFR) signaling] depends on activation of inhibitor of κB (IκB) kinase β (IKKβ), which phosphorylates IκB, leading to its degradation. NF-κB proteins are then released and translocate to the nucleus to activate the transcription of target genes. IKKβ constitutes part of a complex containing IKKα and NEMO (also known as IKKγ), which is an adaptor protein that binds to ubiquitin chains assembled at receptors such as activated TNFRs, so that IKKβ can be activated. Noting studies that have implicated IKKβ in other signaling pathways, including the DNA damage response and autophagy, Schröfelbauer et al. investigated how IKKβ is targeted toward stimulus-specific substrates. Experiments in wild-type and NEMO-deficient cells showed that a constitutively active form of IKKβ (IKKβEE) required NEMO to phosphorylate IκB and activate NF-κB. Reconstitution of NEMO-deficient cells with wild-type or mutant forms of NEMO showed that the C-terminal zinc finger (ZF) of NEMO was required for NF-κB activation in the presence of IKKβEE. Coimmunoprecipitation studies showed that NEMO bound to IκB through the ZF region and that this interaction was increased in the presence of IKKβ, suggesting formation of a ternary complex. Expression of mutant NEMO that enabled IKKβ activation but failed to bind to IκB resulted in the enhanced phosphorylation of alternative IKKβ substrates and enhanced activation of autophagy, which does not require NF-κB activation. Together, these data suggest that in addition to being required for the activation of IKKβ, NEMO acts as a scaffold protein to direct IKKβ to IκB and ensure NF-κB activation. B. Schröfelbauer, S. Polley, M. Behar, G. Ghosh, A. Hoffmann, NEMO ensures signaling specificity of the pleiotropic IKKβ by directing its kinase activity toward IκBα. Mol. Cell 47, 111–121 (2012). [PubMed]


Many years of research have been dedicated toward the definition of sophisticated quality of service (QoS) measurement tools and methods. Nonetheless, the results given to end users by most commonly used online speed measurement tools are still far from being accurate. Among other factors, the reliability of the measurement methods is affected by different static and dynamic constraints of involved network nodes and TCP/IP implementations. The clarification of such uncertainties will help establish the baseline for the definition of any comparable and technically feasible measurement methodology, in terms of measurement periods, number of concurrent connections, and convergence time. This article presents a comprehensive description of the research work and proposes mechanisms, aiming to obtain a full understanding of cross-layer effects during a speed test targeting end users.


Background: Although medical educators acknowledge the importance of ethics in medical training, there are few validated instruments to assess ethical decision-making. One instrument is the Ethics in Health Care Questionnaire – version 2 (EHCQ-2). The instrument consists of 12 scenarios, each posing an ethical problem in health care, and asking for a decision and rationale. The responses are subjectively scored in four domains: response, issue identification, issue sophistication, and values. Goals: This study was intended to examine the inter-rater and inter-case reliability of the AHCQ-2 and validity against a national licensing examination of the EHCQ-2 in an international sample. Methods: A total of 20 final year McMaster students and 45 final year Glasgow students participated in the study. All questionnaires were scored by multiple raters. Generalizability theory was used to examine inter-rater, inter-case and overall test reliability. Validity was assessed by comparing EHCQ-2 scores with scores on the Canadian written licensing examination, both total score and score for the ethics subsection. Results: For both samples, reliability was quite low. Except for the first task, which is multiple choice, inter-rater reliability was 0.08–0.54, and inter-case reliability was 0.14–0.61. Overall test reliability was 0.12–0.54. Correlation between EHCQ-2 task scores and the licensing examination scores ranged from 0.07 to 0.40; there was no evidence that the correlation was higher with the ethics subsection. Conclusions: The reliability and validity of the measure remains quite low, consistent with other measures of ethical decision-making. However, this does not limit the utility of the instrument as a tool to generate discussion on ethical issues in medicine.


Schools provide social groups with different types of knowledge, thereby reproducing the social division of labor and reinforcing the ideological, social and economic status quo. They are often structured in ways that parallel the organization of society at large and distribute and legitimate values that flow from dominant groups. By functioning in this way they reinforce social arrangements that privilege the most powerful. Simultaneously, however, schools can function to subvert social patterns. The very mission of public schooling represents inclusiveness and the education of all people. Furthermore, the cultivation of inquiry can foster dissent, deviance, and an authority-subverting culture of critical discourse (Gouldner 1979). This article highlights how schools serve in the perpetuation of racialized patterns of inequality. It also provides insight into ways to improve our effectiveness in educating youth about civic responsibility and the importance of socially conscious leadership, broadly understood to be the millennial goals for academia.


This paper provides an empirical assessment of CO2 emissions abatement in the UK power sector during the trial period of the EU ETS. Using an econometrically estimated model of fuel switching, it separates the impacts of changes in relative fuel prices and changes in the EUA price on the utilization and emissions of coal and natural gas-fired generating units. We find clear statistical evidence that the CO2 price did impact dispatch decisions, resulting in natural gas utilization that was from 19% to 24% higher and coal utilization that was 16% to 18% lower than would have otherwise occurred in 2005 and 2006. Abatement as a result of fuel switching in the power sector is estimated to have been between 13 million and 21 million tons of CO2 in 2005 and 14 and 21 million tons in 2006.


The nature of optical scattering from laser-induced thermal gratings created in the gas phase is investigated. Thermal gratings are produced with the illumination geometry used to perform degenerate four-wave mixing (DFWM) measurements. Such scattering from thermal gratings can act as a phase-matched interference signal. A solution to the linearized hydrodynamic equations is developed to model the dynamics of the thermal grating. Predictions of this model that uses realistic gas properties are shown to compare favorably with laboratory measurements. The model includes the effects of finite-rate energy deposition, damping by viscosity and thermal conduction, mass diffusion of the excited-state grating, and electrostrictive compression.


The Greatest Love Story of All Time is a laugh-out-loud debut novel from the Marie Claire blogger, Lucy Robinson. It's Fran's thirtieth birthday and things are good...She's bluffed her way into a Very Posh Job and her outlandishly handsome and talented boyfriend Michael is escorting her to the Ritz with a bulge the shape of a ring box in his pocket. But something has gone wrong. Very wrong. By the end of the evening Fran is howling in bed with a bottle of cheap brandy and one of Michael's old socks. In her quest to figure out why her life has suddenly gone down the pan, Fran comes up with a fail-safe plan: live like a badger, stalk a stranger called Nellie and cancel her beloved Gin Thursdays in favour of drinking gin every night. But then Fran's friends force a very different plan on her and it's nowhere near as fun. How could eight dates possibly make her feel better? But eventually she agrees. And so begins the greatest love story of all time...Praise for Lucy Robinson: "The new Marian Keyes...romantic and laugh-out-loud hilarious." (Cosmopolitan). "An absolute must-read." (Huffington Post). "Prepare for public-transport belly laughs." (Glamour). "Refreshingly playful." (Red). Lucy Robinson is the author of The Greatest Love Story of All Time, A Passionate Love Affair with a Total Stranger and The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me. Lucy worked in theatre and then television documentaries before starting a blog for Marie Claire about her laughably unsuccessful foray into the world of online dating. She did not meet a man during this time but she did become a novelist: every cloud has a silver lining. She now lives in Bristol with her partner, The Man, whom she met when she took off to Buenos Aires to become a bohemian writer in 2010.


Ventrally-located intramedullary cervical spinal cord cavernomas are rare entities in the pediatric population. Surgical access to these lesions is challenging. The authors present the complete resection of a symptomatic ventral cervical intramedullary cavernoma through an anterior approach in a 15-year-old boy. The lesion was accessed following left anterolateral dissection, C3-4 discectomy and C3/C4 partial corpectomy. The authors will discuss the rationale for intervening in this patient and for selecting this anterior approach over other approaches, such as the anterolateral, posterolateral or posterior approach. The steps, pitfalls and pearls of this surgical approach will be demonstrated in a detailed video. The video can be found here: http://youtu.be/-ARTp6g13hgs.


CONTEXT
Dysmenorrhea, the occurrence of painful menstrual cramping of the uterus, is a major cause of activity restriction and absences from school and work among young women. Standard pharmaceuticals used to treat dysmenorrhea are not effective for all women and have side effects that limit their use. Studies elsewhere have shown beneficial effects for use of vitamin K1 as an acupoint treatment, but the acceptability of this treatment to women in the United States has been unknown.

OBJECTIVE
The study intended to examine the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effects of acupuncture point injection of vitamin K1 as an alternative treatment for primary dysmenorrhea among US women.

DESIGN
The research team conducted a pilot study using a blinded, randomized, crossover trial design.

SETTING
The study took place at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

PARTICIPANTS
The study was conducted in the San Francisco Bay Area among women 18 to 25 y of age who had been diagnosed with primary dysmenorrhea. Fourteen women completed all of the study's visits.

INTERVENTION
Women with primary dysmenorrhea were randomized into 2 groups to receive bilateral injections of vitamin K1 in the Spleen-6 (SP-6) acupuncture point at the start of menstruation and then, following a 2-mo washout period, saline in a nonacupuncture point at the start of menstruation. One group received the vitamin K1 injection first, while the other group received the saline injection first.

OUTCOME MEASURE
Dysmenorrhea pain intensity was measured using a 0-10 numeric rating scale (NRS), before and after injections.

RESULTS
Women had an average 2.5-point decrease in pain after a vitamin K1 injection in the SP-6 acupoint (P < .001), as compared with a 1.8-point decrease after a saline injection (P < .001). Change scores for vitamin K1, as compared with a saline injection, approached statistical significance (P < .10). Intensity and duration of menstrual symptoms, as measured by the Cox retrospective symptom scale, also decreased following injections. After participating, 94% of the women remained agreeable to receiving the injection therapy, and 77% reported they would come every month were the treatment available.

CONCLUSIONS
Findings suggested high acceptability for an acupuncture point injection of vitamin K1 as treatment for primary dysmenorrhea among young women in San Francisco. Pain decreased with both treatments, with a trend toward greater pain reduction for the vitamin K1/SP-6 injection. This finding is consistent with outcomes from the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital in Shanghai, China, where the protocol was developed.


Conventional adsorption models are not able to describe exactly the competitive adsorption of natural organic matter (NOM) and micropollutants during drinking water treatment with activated carbon. This problem is a consequence of the complex structure of natural organic matter. In the last years, two user-oriented model approaches, the tracer model (TRM) and the equivalent background compound model (EBCM), were proposed to overcome the difficulties in modelling the competitive adsorption in such multi-component systems. In this paper, these model approaches, as well as a simplified model for batch processes, are compared and opportunities and limitations are pointed out. The different aspects of model application are exemplarily discussed for the adsorption of two pesticides, atrazine and diuron, from Elbe River water onto activated carbon. As can be seen from the examples and from a series of studies, both models are suitable for modelling the micropollutant adsorption in the presence of NOM. The EBCM is somewhat easier to handle whereas the TRM allows for the consistent and parallel description of micropollutant and NOM adsorption.


The Pliocene lake sediments at Willershausen, Germany, have yielded a diversity of remarkably preserved fossils, including crayfish and insects. The internal structure of the cuticle of the crayfish Astacus and of insects is preserved, but shows evidence of some degradation. Chitin and amino acids survive, although the quantity that remains is variable. The proportion of chitin in the cuticle of the modern crayfish Pacifastacus (12.2%) is higher than that in Astacus from shallow depths in the Willershausen paleolake (5%), indicating that the fossils have undergone degradation. Analyses of the cuticles of these crayfish following demineralization show that some chemical components, which were presumably bound to the carbonate, are lost. The proportion of chitin (40%) in the cuticle of a weevil from the deeper part of the stratified paleolake (below the chemocline) is comparable to that in the cuticle of modern beetles. A much lower proportion of chitin (2-5%) survives in the cuticle of insects from the shallower oxygenated part of the paleolake, indicating that intensive degradation has occurred. Thus depositional setting, and biomineralization, influence the preservation of the organic constituents of fossil arthropod cuticles.


The study is guided by the definition of poverty by Clarence (1979:11) who defines it as lack of good nutrition, good health, education opportunities and similar dimensions of welfare. Poverty not only encompasses issues about income, but it also highlights or affects or includes all areas of life such as health, safety, education, food. shelter and basic services like energy, water and sanitation. This study will therefore seek to find out what NGOs specifically WORLD VISION KENYA are doing to empower the rural people so that they can be able to afford the life's basic needs and hence rise above poverty line. Availability of water, increased level of education, better living conditions, will be main variables to be examined in order to determine if their availability have contributed to poverty reduction. The study will focus on WORLD VISION KENYA activities in Kenya and especially in TaitaTaveta district, Voi Region. This study should reveal all the activities of WORLD VISION KENYA and how they contribute to rural poverty reduction in the areas of their operation. The study should enable other NGOs who might be interested in reducing poverty and also enlighten any other interested parties including the government, on measures they can take to contribute to the efforts of eradicating poverty. This information is to be obtained through interviewing the members of the communities where WORLD VISION KENYA has its operations in Taita Taveta district Voi region. Structured questions will be used and also visits to projects initiated by WORLD VISION KENYA to see how sustainable they are. The findings of the study will focus on answering the following questions. a) What contribution has the WORLD VISIONKENYA to rural development hence alleviation or reduction of poverty? b) How available are such resources like water, health care, education and others. What about creation of employment, population control, sanitation? How has WORLD VISION KENYA assisted positively in availing these? c) How do NGOs. specifically. WORLD VISION KENYA been able to sustain the projects they initiate? d) What lessons do the operations of WORLD VISION KENYA teach other NGO's the government and other interested parties in poverty alleviation?


The development of backside reflectors (BSRs) is crucial for the efficiency of future low cost thin-film silicon solar cells. In this work, the scattering efficiency of bare aluminum BSRs with different pore sizes and ordering of surface microstructures are investigated. The BSRs were fabricated by utilizing the process of self-ordering anodic oxidation on aluminum foils resulting in regions with an approximately hexagonally periodic surface microstructure. It was found that the total and diffuse light scattering reflectance spectra showed opposite tendencies when increasing the pore size of the microstructures. When the pore size was increased to 700 nm, more than 68% of the incident light with wavelengths from 250 nm to 800 nm was reflected by scattering. For a similar geometry, except that it had less ordering, this number was increased to around 80%. This large fraction of reflected light observed in the form of scattering is promising for the use of the considered geometries as BSRs in thin-film silicon solar cells.


The present study examined HIV/AIDS stigmatization on relatives and associates of people living with HIV/AIDS in Ghana. After seeking informed consent from relatives and associates of HIV/AIDS patients on hand at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, using purposive sampling technique, a sample of 60 responded to the HIV Stigma Scale and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale. One Way Analysis of variance, Pearson Product Moment Correlation and Independent t-test were the statistical tools used for the analysis of the 3 hypotheses. Analysis of results indicates that no significant difference exists between the levels of stigma experienced by various associates of patients with HIV/AIDS. However, female associates of children with HIV/AIDS experienced more stigma than their male counterparts. The study found no significant relationship between stigma level and psychological distress among relatives and associates of the patients living with HIV/AIDS. From the Ghanaian setting, it is conclusive that regardless of the nature of relationship existing between people living with HIV/AIDS and their significant others, some level of stigma is still experienced across board. The implications of the study were discussed in line with the literature and the concept of Indigenous Cultural and Family Insurance.


ABSTRACT This paper, a continuation of a previous study (Friedman and others, 1968), concerned with the chemical characteristics of interstitial waters of shelf sediments, considers these same characteristics for lagoonal, deltaic, river estuarine, and salt water marsh and cove environments. For each coring station the chemical characteristics are compared for surface, bottom, and interstitial waters; in many cores changes within the sediment profile have also been measured. At each station, the pH and Eh were measured aboard ship on surface and bottom waters and at regular predetermined intervals along the core. In the laboratory ashore, salinity and the concentrations of calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and strontium were measured. Despite the heterogeneity of the sediments in the cores, all cores contained a high mud fraction and most can best be described as muddy and silty sands or sandy and silty muds. Values of pH and Eh are lower in interstitial waters than in the overlying waters. In lagoonal and river delta cores, and in a core taken from the mouth of the river estuary, the chlorinity is higher in interstitial waters than in overlying waters. However four miles upstream, in the river estuary, the changes are reversed, and the chlorinity in the interstitial waters is lower relative to overlying waters. In salt water marsh and cove environments, the chlorinity above and. below the water-sediment interface is for the most part the same. The Ca/Cl ratio is higher and the Mg/Cl, K/Cl, Na/Cl, and Sr/Cl ratios re lower in the interstitial waters than in the overlying waters for all environments studied regardless of increase or decrease of chlorinity below the water-sediment interface. Biological processes are responsible for the decreases in pH and Eh below the water-sediment interface. Increase in the Ca/Cl ratio and decreases in the ratio of cations to Cl depend on the interaction between clay minerals and water, particularly on cation exchange. The K/Cl ratio in the interstitial waters of the continental shelf and open ocean increases, an observation at variance with that in the transitional environments of the present study and that in formation waters from ancient stratigraphic units.


Dendritic cells and mast cells are involved in the organization of inflammatory cell infiltrates in general, and in vascular wall in particular. The behaviour of these cells in myocardial infarction is still to be studied in detail. Myocardial samples were taken at autopsy from the left ventricle of subjects respectively affected by (1) acute myocardial infarction, (2) previous myocardial infarction, (3) coronary artery disease and (4) traumatic death assumed as controls. Tissue sections were stained with haematoxylin and eosin and immunohistochemistry; organ sections were also stained with triphenyltetrazolium. Loss of acidophilia and disappearance of nuclei and intercalated disks were found in acute infarction. Massive infiltration of dendritic cells was found in acute and previous infarction, while mast cell numbers were similar to controls. Localized lack of reactivity with triphenyltetrazolium, indicating lack of viable tissue, was observed only when autopsy was conducted within 48 h from death. The results indicate that: dendritic cells react early to myocardial injury; they may be regulators of the inflammatory and scarring response in this tissue; their increase may be a useful marker of acute myocardial infarction.


The purpose of this paper is to examine how the boundaryless career, a concept developed within the United States, also applies within a French context. To do so we examine the career histories of 30 managers (16 in the United States and 14 in France) concerning the extent of their boundarylessness. We utilize a qualitative method through semi-directive interviews and dual coding to understand how individuals approach their professional pursuits. We build upon the theoretical basis of the boundaryless career, as proposed by Arthur & Rousseau (1996) and Sullivan & Arthur (2006). The literature seldom deals with the application of the boundaryless concept within non-US contexts. Our results show that within our French population, the boundaryless career concept co-exists with the traditional career model, with indications that French managers are willing to move within a company, but are reluctant to inter-company changes. Cultural influences and social structures tend to influence this trend through legal and social statutes. The paper concludes with general contributions and suggests avenues for further research.