Rice is a strategically important crop due to it being a staple food commodity. The rice industry is heavily regulated and completely protected from direct foreign competition. However, technical efficiency remains low. Numerous farm studies have shown the widespread existence of inefficiencies among rice producers. Despite the general adoption of the green revolution technology, enormous differences in farm technical efficiency still exists intra and inter farms, within regions and nations. Even though farms face similar environmental conditions and apply the same production techniques, yield levels still differ between them. Many believe that management skills must be the X factors that contribute to the differences in technical efficiency between farms. This study attempts to examine the farm technical efficiency levels and the effects of management variables on efficiency. The purpose of the study was to analyze the roles of management proxied as a soft technology variable in determining the technical efficiency of paddy farms in MADA, Kedah. Three hundred and seventy five farm records of MADA paddy farmers in Season 1, 2002 were analyzed for the levels and determinants of technical inefficiency. Data collected included a) production variables: paddy output, land, fertilizer, chemicals, labour, and b) management demographic variables: planning, organizing, directing, controlling, age, education and family size. The data were comparatively analysed via the parametric (Stochastic Frontier Analysis) and non parametric (Data Envelopment Analysis) framework according to regions and farm size. The estimated efficiency indexes and the determinants of technical inefficiency yielded by each method were compared and analysed. The empirical results were subsequently examined to ascertain the extent to which they served the needs of policymakers. Determinants of inefficiency which include planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, control, age, education and experience were analyzed using, i) Battesse and Coelli (1995) model, and ii) Tobit model.
Results indicated that farmers have an average farm size of 2.04 hectares. Most farmers were generally old with households' size becoming smaller implying less family labour hours available for farm work. Most farmers have low education levels but are rather well experienced in paddy planting with the knowledge generally being passed down from elders and experienced on the job rather than formal training.Stochastic Frontier Analysis showed a wide variation in the estimated technical efficiencies, ranging from 37 to 98 percent, indicating opportunities for improvement in the technical efficiency of farms. Parameter estimates show systematic technical inefficiency effects do exist. Management variables that exert positive effects on efficiency are organizing, staffing and controlling. Motivational variables that promote efficiency include maintaining way of life, maintaining environment and increasing farm size. Demographic variables that are positively related to efficiency are experience, household size and education levels.
Data Envelopment Analysis indicated that efficiency levels, ranging from 26 to 100 percent, vary across farms and within each production regions. Most farms are technically efficient with 60 percent of the sample above the mean efficiency score. Efficient farms that are well managed have proper planning, organizing and control schedules. Most of these farms are managed by rather old, very experienced but lowly educated farmers. Farm objective of maintaining environment was the main characteristics of efficient farms. Personal aspects which include years of experience and age exert positive effects on efficiency.
The comparative analysis for the mean technical efficiency for the sample were estimated to be 88 percent for SFA, 72.5 percent for DEA Constant Returns to Scale and 83.1 percent for DEA Variable Returns to Scale. This implies that more work can still be done to increase the efficiency levels. The technical inefficiency effects were found to be significant in explaining the levels of and variation in farm earnings. Organizing, staffing, controlling, environment conscious, maintaining way of life, maintaining farm size, age and experience exert positive factors on farm efficiency.
In conclusion, policymakers should not be indifferent to the choice of the frontier models used to score efficiency relationships. They may be well advised to wait until additional research clarifies reasons why DEA and SFA models yield divergent results before they introduce these methods into the policy process. Thus, farm policies should focus more on improving the skills and techniques of farm operations. Correct application and timeliness of farm operation will promote the optimal usage of inputs. Training and extension services can also help farms acquire new technology so that they can be at the frontier of paddy production.


The aging Whidbey Island and Harpers Ferry class ships, LSD-41 and 49 respectively, comprise just over one third of the amphibious navy. However, a solution to the capability gap created by the loss of these ships is needed to maintain the effectiveness of the amphibious fleet across a broad spectrum of mission areas. This research effort considers future ship designs and fleet architectures to meet the capability gaps left by the decommissioning of the LSD-41 and 49 class ships. With respect to lift capacity, performance capability, cost and a risk assessment, the analysis showed the LPD-17 or a LSD(X) approximately 30% larger than the existing classes to be acceptable replacement classes. This analysis also supports further research to determine the most robust fleet architecture apart from the current eleven LHA or LHD, eleven LPD and eleven LSD paradigm.


This work deals with the theory of Relativity and its diffusion in Italy in the first decades of the XX century. Not many scientists belonging to Italian universities were active in understanding Relativity, but two of them, Max Abraham and Tullio Levi-Civita left a deep mark.
Max Abraham engaged a substantial debate against Einstein between 1912 and 1914 about electromagnetic and gravitation aspects of the theories.
Levi-Civita played a fundamental role in giving Einstein the correct mathematical instruments for the General Relativity formulation since 1915.
This work, which doesn't have the aim of a mere historical chronicle of the events, wants to highlight two particular perspectives:
on one hand, the importance of Abraham-Einstein debate in order to clarify the basis of Special Relativity, to observe the rigorous logical structure resulting from a fragmentary reasoning sequence and to understand Einstein's thinking;
on the other hand, the originality of Levi-Civita's approach, quite different from the Einstein's one, characterized by the introduction of a method typical of General Relativity even to Special Relativity and the attempt to hide the two Einstein Special Relativity postulates.


Two new stygobiont amphipods are described from anchialine caves located in the Jaragua region (Pedernales Prov., Dominican Republic, Hispaniola). Ottenwalderia kymbalion gen. et sp. nov. is the first lysianassoid known to have penetrated into completely fresh waters, and the fourth colonizing hypogean habitats. Bahadzia jaraguensis sp. nov. is the second representative of this West Indian thalasso-stygobiont genus to be reported from fresh waters; it exhibits the most troglomorphic aspect (i.e. elongation of first antennae and sixth pereiopods) recorded for the genus. Its diagnosis is complemented with a key to the species of the genus Bahadzia. The in situ swimming behaviour of both taxa is briefly described. It is postulated that both amphipods share a rather recent, Plio-Pleistocene marine origin, having invaded passively the continental waters in the way described by the so-called Regression model.


Benthic macroinvertebrate community structure and functional groups on leaf detritus in a thermal, post-thermal and an undisturbed stream, and in the Savannah River immediately downstream from each stream mouth, were compared over a 7 wk (48d) period from December 1982 to February 1983. Ambient temperatures n the post-thermal and undisturbed streams ranged from 4 to 8 and 4 to 11/sup 0/C, respectively, and from 7 to 12/sup 0/C in the Savannah River. Temperatures in the thermal stream fluctuated irregularly between 7 to 31/sup 0/C and in the river below this stream mouth between 7 to 22/sup 0/C. A total of 13,993 macroinvertebrates representing at least 51 families and 84 genera was collected. Numbers of organisms and taxa were depressed at the thermal stream site, whereas numbers of both organisms and taxa increased at the river site receiving thermal influence. Chironomids of the subfamily Orthocladiinae comprised 46 to 60% of the fauna at all sites except in the thermal stream, where they comprised 5%. Physa (Gastropoda), Ablabesmyia (Tanypodinae) and Tanytarsus (Chironominae) each contributed over 20% of the fauna at the thermal stream. Cheumatopsyche (Trichoptera) represented 12 to 13% of the riverine fauna at the ambient sites, but 25% at the thermally-perturbedmore » site. Collectors (mostly gatherers) contributed 51 to 75% at all sites except the thermal stream where scrapers dominated with 39%. Filterer relative abundance increased from 16 to 19% at the ambient river sites to 29% at the thermally-perturbed river site, suggesting that suspended carbon transport from the thermal stream occurred and subsidized the macroinvertebrate community in the Savannah River. 48 references, 3 figures, 2 tables.« less


Title of Dissertation: THE GENETIC BASIS OF PIGMENT PATTERN DIFFERENTIATION IN LAKE MALAWI AFRICAN CICHLIDS Claire T. O'Quin, Doctor of Philosophy, 2014 Directed By: Dr. Thomas D. Kocher, Professor, Department of Biology The cichlids of East Africa are a well-known group of fishes that display a wide range of phenotypic diversity, including differences in tooth shape, facial and body morphology, visual palettes, and body coloration. This diversity in phenotype was generated within the last 10 million years via an adaptive radiation. The cichlids of Lake Malawi are particularly known for their wide variation in male color patterns, which is thought to have been driven by sexual selection. Given their recent evolution, different species of cichlids can be intercrossed in the lab to identify the underlying genetic basis of phenotypic traits via a forward genetics approach. Using this methodology, I created a hybrid cross between two cichlid species, Metriaclima zebra and M. mbenjii that differ in several pigmentation traits in an attempt to identify the underlying genetic basis of these traits. After quantifying these pigmentation traits, I was able to use the Castle-Wright equation to estimate that a small number of genes underlie these traits. I was then able to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) for three traits, dorsal fin xanthophores, caudal fin xanthophores, and pelvic fin melanophores. The QTL for dorsal and caudal fin xanthophores were found to overlap on the same linkage group. I was able to identify and preliminarily analyze the candidate gene, AAK1, for this shared QTL region. In addition to this pigmentation work, I was also able to identify a genomic region where a potential XY sex determiner is located and analyze a candidate gene, GSDF. THE GENETIC BASIS OF PIGMENT PATTERN DIFFERENTIATION IN LAKE MALAWI AFRICAN CICHLIDS


A market anomaly (or market inefficiency) is a price distortion typically on a financial market that seems to contradict the efficient-market hypothesis. Such anomalies could be calendar, technical or fundamental related and have been shown empirically in a number of settings for financial markets. This paper extends this stream of research to two-sided auction platforms in Electronic Commerce and empirically analyzes whether calendar anomalies are persistent on such markets. Our empirical study analyzes 78,068 transactions completed between buyers and sellers on a German auction platform and covers the period between April 2005 and May 2009. We observe a persistent turn-ofthe-month effect and a day-of-the-week effect that would allow buyers to realize small additional surpluses (0.3% price discount). Prices are also persistently lower in the highly competitive Christmas trade period while sellers benefit from higher prices at the beginning of every year. Overall our results support the common notion that two-sided auction platforms are rather efficient markets on which we however can observe some marginal market inefficiencies.


We introduce Whistler, a trainable text to speech (TTS) system that automatically learns the model parameters from a corpus. Both prosody parameters and concatenative speech units are derived through the use of probabilistic learning methods that have been successfully used for speech recognition. Whistler can produce synthetic speech that sounds very natural and resembles the acoustic and prosodic characteristics of the original speaker. The underlying technologies used in Whistler can significantly facilitate the process of creating generic TTS systems for a new language, a new voice, or a new speech style.


The Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment (NAIRU) is a variable of interest to policy makers as it provides an estimate of the degree of labour market slack in the economy. However, the NAIRU is unobservable, and must be estimated using statistical models. This is most commonly undertaken within the Phillips curve framework, which estimates the relationship between price or wage growth and unemployment. This is a key equation for understanding economic conditions, and is used to forecast wages growth at the Australian Treasury. Australia's NAIRU was previously thought to be around 5 per cent. We have considered a range of alternative specifications for estimating the wage Phillips curve, and this working paper details Treasury's updated model. We consider specification choices that include: updating the measures of inflation and inflation expectations; the introduction of a productivity gap term; the inclusion of a structural break to allow for the flattening of the Phillips curve; and other changes to bring the model more in-line with the recent literature. The updated model produces estimates of the NAIRU between 4.5 and 5 per cent over the last few years immediately prior to the COVID-19 recession.


Polybutene-1 (PB-1), a typical semicrystalline polymer, in its stable form I shows a peculiar temperature dependent strain-whitening behavior when being stretched at temperatures in between room temperature and melting temperature of the crystallites where the extent of strain-whitening weakens with the increasing of stretching temperature reaching a minima value followed by an increase at higher stretching temperatures. Correspondingly, a stronger strain-hardening phenomenon was observed at higher temperatures. The strain-whitening phenomenon in semicrystalline polymers has its origin of cavitation process during stretching. In this work, the effect of crystalline lamellar thickness and stretching temperature on the cavitation process in PB-1 has been investigated by means of combined synchrotron ultrasmall-angle and wide-angle X-ray scattering techniques. Three modes of cavitation during the stretching process can be identified, namely "no cavitation" for the quenched sample with the thinnest lamellae where only shear yielding occurred, "cavitation with reorientation" for the samples stretched at lower temperatures and samples with thicker lamellae, and "cavitation without reorientation" for samples with thinner lamellae stretched at higher temperatures. The mode "cavitation with reorientation" occurs before yield point where the plate-like cavities start to be generated within the lamellar stacks with normal perpendicular to the stretching direction due to the blocky substructure of the crystalline lamellae and reorient gradually to the stretching direction after strain-hardening. The mode of "cavitation without reorientation" appears after yield point where ellipsoidal shaped cavities are generated in those lamellae stacks with normal parallel to the stretching direction followed by an improvement of their orientation at larger strains. X-ray diffraction results reveal a much improved crystalline orientation for samples with thinner lamellae stretched at higher temperatures. The observed behavior of microscopic structural evolution in PB-1 stretched at different temperatures explains above mentioned changes in macroscopic strain-whitening phenomenon with increasing in stretching temperature and stress-strain curves.


Abstract. The activation and hygroscopicity of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) are key to the understanding of aerosol–cloud interactions and their impact on climate. They can be measured by scanning the particle size and supersaturation in CCN measurements. The scanning of supersaturation is often time-consuming and limits the temporal resolution and performance of CCN measurements. Here we present a new approach, termed the broad supersaturation scanning (BS2) method, in which a range of supersaturation is simultaneously scanned, reducing the time interval between different supersaturation scans. The practical applicability of the BS2 approach is demonstrated with nano-CCN measurements of laboratory-generated aerosol particles. Model simulations show that the BS2 approach may also be applicable for measuring CCN activation of ambient mixed particles. Due to its fast response and technical simplicity, the BS2 approach may be well suited for aircraft and long-term measurements. Since hygroscopicity is closely related to the fraction of organics/inorganics in aerosol particles, a BS2-CCN counter can also serve as a complementary sensor for fast detection/estimation of aerosol chemical compositions.


In this paper, the authors examine the impact of reductions in barriers to migration on the consumption of rural households in China. The authors find that increased migration from rural villages leads to significant increases in consumption per capita, and that this effect is stronger for poorer households within villages. Household income per capita and non-durable consumption per capita both increase with out-migration, and increase more for poorer households. The authors also establish a causal relationship between increased out-migration and investment in housing and durable goods assets, and these effects are also stronger for poorer households. The authors do not find robust evidence, however, to support a connection between increased migration and investment in productive activity. Instead, increased migration is associated with two significant changes for poorer households: increases both in the total labor supplied to productive activities and in the land per capita managed by the household. In examining the effect of migration, we pay considerable attention to developing and examining our identification strategy.


Studies and research reveal that most English language learners (ELLs) encounter challenges when they write an academic paper in English due to lack of grammar. As most international universities require passing international tests as TOEFL, IELTS, GMAT, GRE, and other tests with high level, most international students fail to achieve this requirement. The reason, as some studies and research reveal, is attributed to lack of pedagogical grammar, namely in writing. Hence, this paper focuses on how to teach pedagogical grammar to help ELLs write effectively in academic situations. The paper is based on literature review and interviewing nine ELLs, regarding the challenges they encounter while writing in academic situations. The researcher has used qualitative research method to fulfill this study, trying to investigate about the challenges that ELLs encounter while writing in academic situations. This study is directed to explore whether teaching pedagogical grammar is helpful to enhance and enrich ELLs academic writing or not. Findings of this study show that ELLs encounter challenges in writing in academic contexts due to lack of grammar. The findings also show that lack of pedagogical grammar results in low level of grades and achievement in the four language skills, namely writing. This study also provides recommendations that might be used to further investigate and provide some strategies, regarding teaching pedagogical grammar in writing contexts to enhance ELLs academic writing.


PURPOSE
To compare the incidence and severity of acute and chronic hematologic toxicity (HT) in patients treated with three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) and intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for curative treatment of cervical cancer and to ascertain the dosimetric parameters of two techniques associated with acute and chronic HT.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 127 patients with cervical cancer receiving concomitant pelvic radiotherapy (RT) and cisplatin were evaluated. Pelvic bone marrow (BM) was contoured for each patient and divided into five sub-regions: lumbosacrum (LS), ilium (IL), lower pelvis (LP), pelvis (P), and whole pelvis (WP). The volume of each BM region receiving 10, 20, 30, and 40 Gy was calculated (V10, -V20, -V30, and -V40). The lowest level of hemoglobin, leukocyte, neutrophil, and platelet counts were obtained during chemoradiotherapy and six months after RT. The nadir values were graded according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (version 3.0).

RESULTS
Grade 2 or greater acute anemia, leukopenia, neutropenia, thrombocytopenia was observed in 2%, 41.5%, 12% ,and 0% in 3DCRT group and in 27%, 53%, 24.5%, and 4.5% in IMRT group, respectively. Grade 2 or greater chronic anemia, leukopenia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia was observed in 11%, 10%, 6%, and 0% in 3DCRT group and in 11%, 9%, 4.5%, and 0% in IMRT group, respectively. LS-V30, 40; IL-V10, 20, 30, 40; LP-V10, 20 ,40; P-V10, 20, 30, 40, and TP-V10, 20, 30, 40 were significantly reduced with IMRT planning compared to 3DCRT planning. Logistic regression analysis of potential predictors showed that none of the dosimetric parameters were significant for predicting acute and chronic HT.

CONCLUSION
The present findings showed that IMRT planning reduced irradiated BM volumes compared to 3DCRT planning. However, no difference between the two techniques was observed in terms of acute and chronic HT. Further studies are needed to confirm these results.


Abstract We review the state of knowledge on global volcanogenic Hg emissions to the atmosphere and present new data from seven active volcanoes (Poás, Rincón de la Vieja, Turrialba, Aso, Mutnovsky, Gorely and Etna) and two geothermal fields (Las Pailas and Las Hornillas). The variability of Hg contents (c. 4–125 ng m−3) measured in gaseous emissions reflects the dynamic nature of volcanic plumes, where the abundances of volatiles are determined by the physical nature of degassing and variable air dilution. Based on our dataset and previous work, we propose that an average Hg/SO2 plume mass ratio of c. 7.8×10−6 (±1.5×10−6; 1 SE, n=13) is best representative of open-conduit quiescent degassing. Taking into account the uncertainty in global SO2 emissions, we infer a global volcanic Hg flux from persistent degassing of c. 76±30 t a−1. Our data are derived from active volcanoes during non-eruptive periods and we do not have any direct constraint on the Hg flux during periods of elevated SO2 flux associated with large-scale effusive or explosive eruptions. This suggests that the time-averaged Hg flux from these volcanoes is even larger if the eruptive contribution is considered. Conversely, closed-conduit degassing and geothermal emissions contribute modest amounts of Hg.


Objective
The electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a treatment method used in major depression, mania,
schizophrenia, and mixed affective conditions. The side effects of this therapy include
arrhythmia, hypertension, headache, prolonged seizures, amnesia, muscle pain, and nausea.
The characteristics of post-ECT headache and the effect of pre-ECT headache on post-ECT
headache were investigated in our study.

Methods
After obtaining the approval of the ethics committee, we retrospectively reviewed 337
patients aged between 18 and 70 who had an ECT indication and were applied ECT due to
one of the diagnoses of major depression, psychosis, or bipolar affective disorder as per the
DSM V criteria. The localization, severity and duration of post-ECT headache, the conditions
accompanying it and the need for its treatment were evaluated in line with the International
Classification of Headache Disorders 2018 criteria. Headache was questioned immediately
after the ECT, and at the 2nd and 4th hours.

Results
From the 337 patients, 96 female (28.5%) and 241 male (71.5%), 33 patients (9.8%) were
found to have pre-ECT headache and 49 patients (14.5%) post-ECT headache. While pre-ECT
headache was more common among women (p=0.004), no difference was found between
the genders in post-ECT headache (p=0.853). While there was also no difference between
the severities of pre-ECT and post-ECT headaches (p=0.66), 10 (30.3%) out of 33 patients with
pre-ECT headache also had post-ECT headache (p<0.001). The mean duration of post-ECT
headache was 1.87 ± 3.55 hours and the mean severity (VAS) score was 4.61 ± .56. Only 9
(18.3%) of the patients with post-ECT received treatment.

Conclusion
The post-ECT headache in our study was mostly bilateral, more of a throbbing nature, mild to
moderate in severity, tolerable, and not accompanied by conditions such as nausea, vomiting
or dizziness. There was an association between pre-ECT and post-ECT headaches. Contribution
was made to the characteristics of the headache in excess of the current criteria.


The main goal of the present paper is to analyze the effects of currency collapses (a large devaluation of country's nominal exchange rate) on real gross domestic products of six Asian countries (Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, South Korea, and Turkey). A yearly data is collected from the WDI of the World Bank over the period 1980-2011. The econometric model includes the real GDP growth rate, inflation rate, and dummy variable (as a proxy variable for the currency collapse devaluation). The currency collapse devaluation is calculated using a criterion similar to M. Bussiere et al. (Journal of International Money and Finance, Vol.31, 2012: 680-708). Applying a panel econometric method, the estimated results show that both the inflation rate and currency collapses affect the real GDP growth rate negatively. The implication of finding is that the persistence of the currency crash matters for selected Asian countries.


Anaphylaxis is an acute systemic reaction, which is produced by the mast cells due to release of different chemical mediators. Anaphylaxis is the result of alteration in physiology of mast cell and is responsible for the various physiological changes. Objective of the present study was to evaluate the antianaphylactic activity of polyherbal formulation against the active anaphylaxis with the help of mesenteric mast cells of rats. The study was carried out by sheep serum induced active anaphylaxis model, triple antigen induced symptomatic active anaphylaxis model and compound 48/80 induced rat paw edema model. The rats which are pretreated with standard drug prednisolone (10 mg) and polyherbal formulation (250 mg) shows beneficial effect against active anaphylaxis. Antianaphylactic activity of polyherbal formulation against active anaphylaxis may be possibly due to the membrane stabilizing potential.


Photolithotrophy (use of light as energy source, CO2, as carbon source) and then diazotrophy (use of N2, as N source), became important as prebiotically-synthesized organic compounds were consumed. 13C/12C data suggest that ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase-oxygenase has dominated photolithotrophic CO2, fixation over the last 3.5 Ga. The long-term decline in atmospheric CO2, can be related to carbon isotope evidence for a CO, accumulating mechanism in aquatic plants over the last 100 Ma and of C4, metabolism in terrestrial plants over 10 Ma. Increasing biogenic O2, levels permitted, via an O3, UV screen, photolithotrophs to grow in high-light environments and, via O2, availability for respiration and biosyntheses, to produce large and (on land) homoiohydric plants. This greatly increased the productivity and diversity of photolithotrophy. Diazotrophy is less strongly coupled to homoiohydry and to photochemistry than is CO2, fixation. Symbiotic N2, fixation in land plants partially effects these two couplings, and permits novel methods of dealing with O2, inactivation of nitrogenase.


Significance Physical exercise is well known for its positive effects on general health (specifically, on brain function and health), and some mediating mechanisms are also known. A few reports have addressed intergenerational inheritance of some of these positive effects from exercised mothers or fathers to the progeny, but with scarce results in cognition. We report here the inheritance of moderate exercise-induced paternal traits in offspring's cognition, neurogenesis, and enhanced mitochondrial activity. These changes were accompanied by specific gene expression changes, including gene sets regulated by microRNAs, as potential mediating mechanisms. We have also demonstrated a direct transmission of the exercise-induced effects through the fathers' sperm, thus showing that paternal physical activity is a direct factor driving offspring's brain physiology and cognitive behavior. Physical exercise has positive effects on cognition, but very little is known about the inheritance of these effects to sedentary offspring and the mechanisms involved. Here, we use a patrilineal design in mice to test the transmission of effects from the same father (before or after training) and from different fathers to compare sedentary- and runner-father progenies. Behavioral, stereological, and whole-genome sequence analyses reveal that paternal cognition improvement is inherited by the offspring, along with increased adult neurogenesis, greater mitochondrial citrate synthase activity, and modulation of the adult hippocampal gene expression profile. These results demonstrate the inheritance of exercise-induced cognition enhancement through the germline, pointing to paternal physical activity as a direct factor driving offspring's brain physiology and cognitive behavior.


The pioneering linguist Benjamin Whorf (1897--1941) grasped the relationship between human language and human thinking: how language can shape our innermost thoughts. His basic thesis is that our perception of the world and our ways of thinking about it are deeply influenced by the structure of the languages we speak. The writings collected in this volume include important papers on the Maya, Hopi, and Shawnee languages as well as more general reflections on language and meaning.


Abstract The NIF Ge-doped CH capsule should be free of isolated defects on the outer surface. The allowed number and dimensions of large isolated defects over the entire capsule surface is given by the isolated feature specification. To date NIF-thickness (146 μm) capsules are plagued by a few isolated large domes on the outer surfaces that otherwise meet the atomic force microscope (AFM) spheremap modal power spectra specification. The large domes on the capsule surfaces were mostly caused by particulate contamination from the wear of an agitation tapping solenoid inside the coater. By eliminating the solenoid and using an alternate rotation agitation, most thick-walled capsules become free of large isolated defects and meet the AFM spheremap modal power spectra standard. The number and size of the isolated defects on the outer surface were characterized with a high resolution phase-shifting diffractive spherical interferometer and checked against the NIF isolated defect specification. The results show the isolated defects on the rolled capsule are below the isolated defect specification. The growth modeling of the remaining nanometer-height domes on the capsules indicates most of these small domes come from the mandrel surface. The rolled capsules meet the layer thickness, doping levels and wall thickness specifications and have good wall uniformity of ±0.1.0.2 μm.


Unconditional cash transfers are on the rise in Sub-Saharan Africa, with recent estimates indicating a doubling of programmes between 2010 and 2014. This brief provides an overview of the comprehensive impacts across eight domains of two unconditional cash transfer programmes implemented by the Zambian Government: The Child Grant Programme (CGP) and the Multiple Category Targeting Programme (MCP). Although the primary objective of these programmes is poverty mitigation rather than economic empowerment, we document protective and productive outcomes in order to assess whether these programmes generate transformative effects and have the potential to offer a sustained pathway out of poverty for poor households.


Purpose: Physician Assistant (PA) programs often set minimum GPA and graduate record examination (GRE) requirements for admission, citing that candidates with higher admission scores will perform better in the PA program. However, to date, there are limited published studies with inconsistent results that have investigated the validity of using these preadmission characteristics to predict performance in PA programs or on the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE). The development of a physician assistant college admission test (PA-CAT) that has predictive validity to determine PANCE success would give PA admissions committees an additional resource to make decisions. This study was conducted to determine the strength of the relationship between PA-CAT and undergraduate cumulative and science GPA. Methods: The PA-CAT is comprised of 180 questions covering 12 subject areas based on research identifying the relative importance of that subject to success in the PA curriculum. The exam was administered through a secured computer-based testing to 479 newly admitted PA students across the United States. Regression analysis was conducted with Rasch scale scores as the dependent variable and two independent variables (undergraduate GPA and undergraduate science GPA). Results: The PA-CAT Rasch scale scores are positively correlated with undergraduate GPA (r=0.16) and undergraduate science GPA (r=0.22). Although these correlation coefficients are statistically significant (pConclusion:Early results from this research study demonstrates there is a statistically significant relationship between the PA-CAT and undergraduate science GPA in newly admitted PA students. Limitations of the study include the fact that students voluntarily took this exam without consequence. Further study is needed to determine if the exam can be generalized to the entire PA applicant pool thereby providing a valid instrument for admissions decisions.


This Article argues that our growing powers of genetic testing to identify individual health risks threaten to unravel the moral logic of health insurance. Some people are blessed with healthy genes and environments, while others are cursed with ill health. Spreading among groups the unknown risk that any particular individual or group will suffer disease and disability promotes values of social solidarity and mutual support by encouraging people, even if unwittingly, to share their fates with others.But increasingly reliable methods of genetic testing have private insurance providers clamoring for access to new types of predictive health information. The availability of more precise information about health risks that people did not choose and cannot control will make it possible for insurers to more finely disaggregate risk and premium levels among individuals. Smaller risk pools have serious costs: they diminish the incentive to participate; genetic risk classifications will put pressure on providers to deny coverage to those with the worst genetic luck; and fear of genetic discrimination will discourage individuals from reaping the health benefits of genetic testing. I argue that antidiscrimination legislation -- Congress's solution to these problems as of 2005 when this Article was written -- would cripple private insurance providers. I conclude that society should abandon the longstanding system of setting health insurance rates according to individual risk-factors, and, in its place, adopt a community rating system that balances free-market values with those of mutual trust and solidarity.


Previous studies of a simple four-fermion model with staggered fermions in 3D have shown the existence of an exotic quantum critical point, where one may be able to define a continuum limit of the Paramagnetic Strong Phase (or the PMS phase). We believe the existence of the critical point suggests a new mechanism for generating fermion masses. In this work we begin the search for this quantum critical point in 4D by extending the 3D model to 4D. Unlike in 3D, now we do find evidence for an intermediate spontaneously broken phase (FM phase) and are able compute the phase boundaries accurately. In terms of the bare coupling, the width of the intermediate region appears to be quite small.


Brittain, Ian Stuart, Jul 2002.
Disability sport, and especially elite disability sport, has been all but ignored in terms of academic research in this country. This thesis, therefore, is an attempt to begin redressing this situation. It focuses on the Great Britain Paralympic track and field squad, that competed in the Sydney Paralympic Games between 18th and 29th October
2000. Through a series of in-depth interviews, which took a focused life history approach, the researcher attempted to gain a greater understanding of the kinds of factors, both positive and negative, that had an affect upon the lives of these athletes from the time they first took up the sport of athletics to the present day. In line with current research in the field of disability studies it adopts a social construction approach. The results of the analysis are set within the social model of disability in order to try and highlight the impacts of the perceptions of disability, embedded in the dominant medical model discourse, on these athletes' attempts to get involved and
progress within the sport of athletics. Key findings highlighted by this research are the major influence that the medical model discourse of disability has on the perceptions of large areas of the able-bodied population with regard to disability in general and disability sport in particular. Able-bodied perceptions of disability greatly influence
not only to what extent people with disabilities are able to operate within the society they live in, but also how they view themselves and their own abilities. This research also highlights some of the ways these socially constructed perceptions of disability are recreated and reinforced. In keeping with the emancipatory approach adopted for
this research, the athletes were given the opportunity to comment upon an initial draft of the research findings. This was an attempt to be inclusive and keep the participants informed. Also it was an attempt to try and portray as accurate and as authentic
account of the sporting life of an athlete with a disability as is possible. Throughout this thesis the researcher attempts to give an open and reflective account of the whole research process in order to make the reader aware of the possible effects of the researcher's own background on the research outcomes. In conjunction with the
athletes, suggestions are made about how to better inform policies or strategies for British disability sport in general and disability athletics in particular.


Coastal and estuarine systems worldwide suffer from a range of anthropogenic influences, such as eutrophication and high fishing pressure. Portunid crabs are abundant in such systems globally and the magnitude of degradation and variations in environmental conditions can influence the dynamics of the fisheries they support. This Thesis investigated two major components relating to portunid crabs: (i) a review and summary of the literature on portunid biology and behaviour and an assessment of how they vary among species and regions (Chapter 2); and (ii) a study of the dietary composition of the Blue Swimmer Crab Portunus armatus and how it varies among two estuaries and a coastal embayment and seasons in temperate south-western Australia (Chapter 3). Portunids are highly fecund, fast growing, short-lived species, with high natural mortalities and are opportunistic predators. These characteristics vary among species, but also between different populations. The dynamics of portunid fisheries are therefore reliant not only on the biology of the fished species but also on the local environmental conditions, through their influence on portunid biology. These factors need to be taken into consideration by fishery managers. The diet of P. armatus is dominated by shelled molluscs, polychaetes and small crustaceans. Dietary composition varied significantly between the Peel-Harvey and Swan-Canning estuaries and three sites (habitats) within Cockburn Sound and this variation was greater in magnitude than the seasonal variation. The diet of crabs in the Peel-Harvey Estuary was distinct from that of crabs in the Swan-Canning Estuary and Cockburn Sound because of greater consumptions of the bivalves A. semen and S. trigonella and fragments of their shells in the former. Differences in the dietary composition follow closely the known variation in the benthic macroinvertebrates assemblages, i.e. the prey availability, between systems and sites. Seasonal variation was greater in the estuaries than Cockburn Sound and is likely caused by greater seasonal changes in the prey availability driven by much greater seasonal fluctuations in salinity in estuaries than in nearby coastal marine waters. Qualitative assessment shows the diet of P. armatus in the Peel-Harvey Estuary has changed since 1994/5 and reflects changes in the prey availability driven by anthropogenic modifications to the system. The results from this Thesis provide information on the role of P. armatus in the benthic food webs of these systems and is valuable for the continued Marine Stewardship Council certification of the P. armatus fishery in the Peel-Harvey Estuary and identifying potential functional groups for use in ecosystem models of these three systems.


Rett syndrome (RTT), a rare but severe neurological disorder is associated with a mutation in the methyl CpG binding protein 2 (MECP2) gene on the X chromosome occurring in 1:9000 live female births. Apparently normal development is followed by a regression in hand and communication skills, and subsequent development of hand stereotypies and abnormal gait. These characteristics are usually accompanied with comorbidities such as sleep problems and scoliosis. Over 80% of RTT individuals have specific sleep problems including night waking and difficulty falling asleep.

Using a cross-sectional survey design, this study explored types of sleeping problems observed and relationships with variables such as age and genotype; and finally investigated specific management strategies. Participants mainly comprised families registered in the International Rett Syndrome Phenotype Database (InterRett) with a child of any age who has a confirmed RTT diagnosis and/or a MECP2 mutation. New families were invited via InterRett Facebook page and parent Listserve RettNet. A web-based questionnaire using freely available software, "REDCap" was developed to collect data. The independent variables tested were age group, mutation type, epilepsy, scoliosis, mobility and uses of sleep hygiene strategies while dependent variables tested include the presence, nature and frequency of sleep problems. Descriptive statistics were used to examine each variables and regression models including simple logistic regression and multinomial logistic regression models were employed to investigate the relationships between phenotype, treatments and sleep problems.

Findings from this study showed sleep problems were more pronounced in RTT cases than in the general population. The prevalence of most sleep problems were higher in younger children and those with a p.Arg294* mutation. Other covariates including severe seizure activity was associated with poor sleep by taking into account the effect of age, mutation type, scoliosis and mobility. Non-pharmacological interventions were more perceived by families as effective in comparison to pharmacological medications.


OBJECTIVES
The aim of the present study was to compare 12-hour shifts during weekends with 8-hour shifts during weekdays with respect to sleep, sleepiness, physical effort, and performance.

METHODS
Thirty-one subjects at a power plant participated. Sleep, sleepiness, and physical effort were measured with a diary. About half of the subjects carried out a reaction-time test during both 8- and 12-hour morning and night shifts. The remaining subjects carried out a vigilance task.

RESULTS
Sleepiness was higher and physical effort lower on the 12-hour night shift than on the 8-hour night shift. However, the subjects who had the same level of physical effort on 8- and 12-hour night shifts did not differ with respect to sleepiness. During the 12-hour morning shift, sleepiness was lower and the sleep length was longer than on the 8-h morning shift. The subjects who had the same amount of sleep for 8- and 12-hour morning shifts showed no difference in sleepiness. Sleep did not differ between 8- and 12-hour night shifts. There was no difference between 8- and 12-hour shifts with respect to performance.

CONCLUSIONS
It was suggested that the difference in sleepiness between 8- and 12-hour shifts is related to differences in sleep length for the morning shift, and to differences in physical effort for the night shift, rather than to shift duration. Thus the most likely conclusion is that 12-hour shifts do not cause increased sleepiness or impaired performance or disturbed sleep.


An equation to predict the thickness of nonwoven, needle-punched geotextiles under normal compressive loading is proposed. The equation is t = ( t 0 − t ∞ ) e − α σ + t ∞ in which, t0 is the initial thickness, t∞ is a limiting thickness, σ is the normal stress, and α is an empirical coefficient. Comparison with thickness data obtained in multiple tests on eight different geotextiles using an in-plane, radial flow device results in excellent agreement for normal stresses up to about 372 kPa. Mean square errors are typically less than 0.017 mm. An equation for the limiting thickness, t∞, is developed based on the observation that under compressive loads at the limiting thickness, nonwoven, needle-punched geotextiles have their porosity reduced to about 91% of the initial value.


Far on the other side of the mountains, next to an enchanted castle, grows a tree with three golden oranges. It is there that the three brothers -- Santiago, Tomas, and Matias -- must journey if they wish to find a wife. Once they reach their destination, the brothers must carefully pick the oranges and bring them back to the old woman who lives in a cave on the cliffs overlooking the sea. But, "In order to find your wives, you will need to work together," the old woman has said. "Woe to you if you do not follow my advice!" Each of the brothers wants something different. Santiago wants a wife who is beautiful. Tomas wants one who is both rich and beautiful. But Matias, the youngest brother, longs for a woman who is kind, joyful, and loving...someone he could love very much in return. Will the brothers be able to avert misfortune by working together? Will they be strong enough to break the spell that a wicked sorcerer has placed on the castle? Master storyteller Alma Flor Ada offers a poetic and magical retelling of a well-loved traditional story about Blancaflor, a mythical young woman who appears in various stories throughout the Hispanic world. Reg Cartwright's boldly colorful and exquisitely stylized art is a perfect accompaniment.


Adam Smith is not an optimistic describer of a providential order moved by an always-successful invisible hand. I present some of the more pessimistic analysis of Smith, which, unfortunately, seems to be most appropriate to describe and analyze our current affairs. This reading of Smith may provide an explanation for the events started in the fall of 2008. The 'beautiful system of natural liberty' that Smith describes is a system that may be achieved only under rare circumstances. Smith recognizes systematic biases in human behaviours, ranging from overestimation of probability of success to almost blind admiration for the rich. He recognizes the dangers of concentrated interests. He recognizes the fundamental role of justice and morality in a well-functioning society, so that laws should serve the general population, not the interest of a few at the expense of the many. Smith makes a few policy recommendations, suggesting that the beautiful system that results from human actions but not human design would be threatened otherwise. Dismissing or failing to recognize its potential weaknesses may lead to its crumbling into ruins.


Summary 1. A single intravenous administration of rabbit tonin antiserum into one-kidney one-clip hypertensive rats restored blood pressure to normal in seven out of ten animals. There was little change in blood pressure in two-kidney one-clip hypertensive, uninephrectomized or sham-operated rats. 2. Infusion of tonin in control rats did not modify arterial blood pressure. However, in indomethacin salt-treated rats a marked increase in arterial blood pressure was observed under tonin infusion. 3. Plasma tonin activity was significantly increased in human essential and renovascular hypertension. 4. These findings strongly suggest that tonin is important in the maintenance of high blood pressure. However, other factors (possibly prostaglandins and sodium) have to be modified in order to activate the tonin-angiotensirt I1 system.


Steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) are an attractive option for lateral load resisting systems for both new and retrofit construction. They, however, present various challenges that can result in very thin web plates and excessively large boundary elements with moment connections, neither of which is economically desirable. Moreover, SPSW also suffers from buckling at small loads which results in highly pinched hysteretic behavior, low stiffness, and limited energy dissipation. To mitigate these shortcomings, a new type of SPSW has been developed and investigated. The buckling resistant steel plate shear wall (BR-SPSW) utilizes a unique pattern of cut-outs to reduce buckling. Also, it allows the use of simple shear beam-column connections and lends tunability to the shear wall system. A brief discussion of the concept behind the BR-SPSW is presented. A detailed parametric study is presented that investigates the sensitivity of the local and global system behavior to the geometric design variables using finite element models as the main tool. The key output parameters which define the system response are discussed in detail. Analytical solutions for some output parameters like strength and stiffness have been derived and resulting equations are proposed. Finally, preliminary suggestions have been made about how this system can be implemented in practice to improve the seismic resistance of the buildings. The proposed BR-SPSW system was found to exhibit relatively fuller hysteretic behavior with high resistance during the load reversals, without the use of moment connections.


The vision of the North/West Passage Corridor is to immediately influence ongoing standards development and utilize effective methods for sharing, coordinating, and integrating traveler information across state borders. While travel information reflects the initial destiny, maintenance and operations and planning and programming are long-term visions. The vision provides a framework to guide the states' future projects in the corridor. Conversely, a set of near-term goals and objectives are also identified in the plan and are based on the issues and needs currently faced in the corridor. Building upon the high-level architecture and assessment, a series of projects were then identified in the strategic plan. Projects were selected based on their ability to achieve the traveler information and maintenance operations goals identified earlier in the strategic plan. The projects are presented in a recommended sequence and contain details on approach, potential benefits, affected stakeholders, and estimated costs. With this strategic plan, the North/West Passage states have developed a set of recommended projects geared toward achieving their near-term goals. These projects may be folded into annual work plans or used to secure future funding for the corridor. The plan also establishes a process for future project development that will enhance deployment efforts in the corridor. Ultimately, this plan will help the North/West Passage achieve their vision to influence ongoing standards development and utilize effective methods for sharing, coordinating, and integrating traveler information across state borders.


William Wordsworth is usually remembered as the quintessential Victorian Poet Laureate: a dull, worthy, establishment figure, with impeccable middle class, Tory, Anglican credentials, whose moralistic poetry has been required reading for generations of yawning school children. Yet, there is so much more to Wordsworth than "Daffodils" and "The Prelude". This selection of letters and autobiographical fragments introduces us to the real Wordsworth: the rebellious schoolboy, who vandalised his family portraits, became a supporter of the French Revolution and fathered an illegitimate daughter in France; the radical poet whose flouting of the conventions of the day attracted the ridicule of the reviewers and forced him to endure thirty years of rejection, obscurity and financial hardship before achieving belated critical and popular success; the devoted brother, husband and father who could still write passionate love letters to his wife after ten years of marriage and the birth of five children; and, finally, the revered patriarch whose poetry formed the hearts and minds of a generation, whose opinions were sought by writers, politicians, churchmen and educationalists throughout the English speaking world, but who thought nothing of vaulting walls, skating on the Lakes or climbing Helvellyn even in his seventies.


ABSTRACT Most mitochondrial proteins are synthesized with cleavable amino-terminal targeting signals that interact with the mitochondrial import machinery to facilitate their import from the cytosol. We previously reported that the presequence of the F1-ATPase β subunit precursor (pre-F1β) acts as an intramolecular chaperone that maintains the precursor in an import-competent conformation prior to import (P. Hajek, J. Y. Koh, L. Jones, and D. M. Bedwell, Mol. Cell. Biol. 17:7169–7177, 1997). We also found that a mutant form of pre-F1β with a minimal targeting signal (Δ1,2 pre-F1β) is inefficiently imported into mitochondria because it rapidly folds into an import-incompetent conformation. We have now analyzed the consequences of reducing the pre-F1β targeting signal to a minimal unit in more detail. We found that Δ1,2 pre-F1β is more dependent upon the Tom70p receptor for import than WT pre-F1β is, resulting in a growth defect on a nonfermentable carbon source at 15°C. Experiments using an in vitro mitochondrial protein import system suggest that Tom70p functions to maintain a precursor containing the Δ1,2 pre-F1β import signal in an import-competent conformation. We also identified PDR3, a transcriptional regulator of the pleiotropic drug resistance network, as a multicopy suppressor of the mitochondrial import defects associated with Δ1,2 pre-F1β in a tom70Δ strain. The overproduction of PDR3 mediated this effect by increasing the import of Δ1,2 pre-F1β into mitochondria. This increased the mitochondrial ATP synthase activity to the extent that growth of the mutant strain was restored under the selective conditions. Analysis of the transcription patterns of components of the mitochondrial outer membrane import machinery demonstrated that PDR3 overproduction increased the expression of TOM72, a little studied TOM70homologue. These results suggest that Tom72p possesses overlapping functions with Tom70p and that the pleiotropic drug resistance network plays a previously unappreciated role in mitochondrial biogenesis.


Problem According to the Pew Study (2009), the majority of African Americans are Protestants (78%) as compared to 51% of the United States population as a whole. However, African American men (16%) are more likely than African American women (9%) to be unaffiliated with any religion. The Pew Study also noted that nearly one-in-five African Americans under age 30 (19%) are unaffiliated with any religion. Pastoral observation further reveals a disproportionate number of women attending regular church services compared to men at Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Church. This is a historical problem not only with the Bethel Church, but also in many churches across denominational communities. The consequence of a large imbalance in the ratio of men-to-women within the congregation presents a need for a ministry directed toward reaching men, especially within the urban context. Purpose The purpose of this project is to identify a prescriptive approach in relationship authoring among African American men. Utilizing a small group of men who are members of Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Church, it is desired that in the formulation of authentic male relationships, church growth will be a by-product of friendship evangelism. Additionally, men within Bethel church will experience deeper, more meaningful relationships with one another and be able to disciple other men in relationship-building experiences. Method In order to create a robust healthy church environment of African American (AA) men, male members of Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Church (BSDAC) were invited to participate in an intervention project. This proposed project involved a process of establishing a curriculum for training, discipling, and integrating men into a community of authentic relationship building (ARB). Participants were asked to journal their experience, views, and reflections of Bible studies, socials, community engagement, and outreach opportunities. The journals would be part of the process of compiling and evaluating a qualitative research strategy that also included interviews of participants. Result The project was successful in partially completing the task I originally desired. However, my expectation regarding church growth was not realized in the outcomes. I believe the main factor affecting this was the length of time needed to develop trusting and equitable friendships with men outside the church, so that participants could then invite them to a church encounter. The interviews and reflections of participants indicate the men experienced the following: a) Increased sensitivity to personal reflection in relationship authoring; b) Increased priority to build relationships; c) Greater awareness of male leadership; and d) Clear opposition to journaling. Conclusion This project has demonstrated that there is no one method for achieving a greater representation of African American men in churches. It can, perhaps, be used in conjunction with a number of other intentional initiatives to reach the objectives set forth by a congregation to grow male participation in church, as well as enrich the relational lives of men already in attendance. Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Church has the potential to be a groundbreaking congregation in Kansas City, Kansas, that reaches out to African American men. Considering the population of men in the community and the dearth of churches with a specific initiative to invest in this community, makes it a church with no rival in ministering to men.


AIM(S)
To explore the associations between the presence of periodontal pathogens and the expression of toll-like receptors (TLR-2 and TLR-4) in the placental tissue of patients with hypertensive disorders compared to the placentas of healthy normotensive patients.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
A case-control study was performed. From a cohort composed of 126 pregnant women, 33 normotensive healthy pregnant women were randomly selected, and 25 cases of patients with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including gestational hypertension and pre-eclampsia, were selected. Placental biopsy was obtained after aseptic placental collection at the time of delivery. All of the samples were processed and analysed for the detection of Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Treponema denticola and Tannerella forsythia using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. Determination of the expressions of TLR-2 and TLR-4 was performed in samples of total purified protein isolated from placental tissues and analysed by ELISA. The data were assessed using descriptive statistics. The associations among variables were estimated through multiple logistic regression models and the Mann-Whitney test to evaluate the differences between the two groups.

RESULTS
A significant increase was observed in the expression of TLR-2 in the placentas of patients with hypertensive disorders (p = 0.04). Additionally, the multiple logistic regression models demonstrated an association between the presence of T. denticola and P. gingivalis in placental tissues and hypertensive disorders (OR: 9.39, p = 0.001, CI 95% 2.39-36.88 and OR: 7.59, p = 0.019, CI 95% 1.39-41.51, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS
In the present study, pregnant women with periodontal disease presented an association in the placental tissue between the presence of T. denticola and P. gingivalis and hypertensive disorders. Additionally, increased expression of TLR-2 was observed. However, further studies are required to determine the specific roles of periodontal pathogens and TLRs in the placental tissue of patients with pregnancy-related hypertensive disorders.


In the spring of 1993, two Mycenaean (14th-12th centuries BC) chamber tombs were discovered by accident at Pylona, not far from Lindos on the southern coast of Rhodes. Excavations uncovered a cemetery site of six tombs and a series of remarkable finds: human remains, pottery, bronze objects, and jewellery. The excavation reports are published here with a complete catalogue of finds, including the extensive and especially fine pottery discoveries. Chapter six is a detailed illustrated study by P. J. P. McGeorge of the skeletal remains from the tombs, presented as a catalogue of finds and a concluding summary on the general health, living conditions, and customs of the community. The work also includes a further three specialist appendices: an ICP-AES analysis of some of the Pylona vessels (M.J. Ponting and the author); a review of the textile remains (D. de Wild); and chemical analyses of glass beads and the copper sword find (H. Mangou).


CGIwithR is a package for use with the R statistical computing environment, to facilitate processing of information from web-based forms, and reporting of results in the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), through the Common Gateway Interface (CGI). CGIwithR permits the straightforward use of R as a CGI scripting language. This paper serves as an extended user manual for CGIwithR, supplementary to the R help pages installed with the package.


Background: Throughout history, menopause has been regarded as a transition in a woman's life. With the increase in life expectancy, women now spend more than a third of their lives in menopause. During these years, women may experience intolerable symptoms both physically and mentally, leading them to seek clinical advice. It is imperative for healthcare providers to improve the quality of life by reducing bothersome menopausal symptoms and preventing disorders such as osteoporosis and atherosclerosis. The current treatment in the form of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is sometimes inadequate with several limitations and adverse effects. Objective and rationale: The current review aims to discuss the need, efficacy, and limitations of current HRT; the role of other ovarian hormones, and where we stand in comparison with ovary-in situ; and finally, explore towards the preparation of an HRT model by regeneration of ovaries tissues through stem cells which can replicate a functional ovary. Search methods: Four electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science and CINAHL) were searched from database inception until 26 April 2018, using a combination of relevant controlled vocabulary terms and free-text terms related to 'menopause', 'hormone replacement therapy', 'ovary regeneration', 'stem cells' and 'ovarian transplantation'. Outcomes: We present a synthesis of the existing data on the efficacy and limitations of HRT. HRT is far from adequate in postmenopausal women with symptoms of hormone deprivation as it fails to deliver all hormones secreted by naïve ovarian tissue. Moreover, the pharmacokinetics of synthetic hormones makes them substantially different from natural ones. Not only does the number and type of hormones given in HRT matter, but the route of delivering and their release in circulation are also imperative. The hormones are delivered either orally or topically in a non-physiological uniform manner, which brings along with it several side effects. These identify the need for a hormone delivery system which replicates, integrates and reacts as per the requirement of the female body. Wider implications: The review outlines the strengths and weaknesses of HRT and highlights the potential areas for future research. There is a tremendous potential for research in this field to understand the collective roles of the various ovarian hormones and to devise an auto-regulated hormone delivery system which replicates the normal physiology. Its clinical applications can prove to be transformative for postmenopausal women helping them to lead a healthy and productive life.


Abandoned mine lands AMLs associated with past coal-mining scar Pennsylvania's landscape with environmental and safety hazards. Reclamation projects eliminate and reduce hazards AMLs pose. Due to the large number of AMLs and limited funds, precedence is given to reclaim the most hazardous sites first. These sites are identified through an assessment process that assigns priorities to AMLs. However, priorities are out-dated and do not accurately reflect the current spatial distribution of land use and census data. This article presents a GIS methodology for the prioritization of AMLs using the process of extrapolation and focal statistics. By incorporating current assessment techniques into GIS with current land use and census data, AML priorities were reassigned to accurately reflect the current spatial landscape. Results indicate that current AML priorities assigned by the state do not accurately reflect current land use and census data and underestimate the safety hazards of many sites, including high priority sites.


A rhyolite porphyry in the Radzimowice deposit at Bukowinka Hill has a SHRIMP zircon U-Pb age of 314.9 ± 3.1 Ma. This is consistent with previous zircon dating of a monzogranite and a rhyodacite (ca. 315 Ma) in the Żeleźniak sub-volcanic intrusion (ZI), considered to be the igneous rocks, representing the oldest magmatic pulses in the region. First-stage mesothermal auriferous sulphide mineralization in the deposit was connected to hydrothermal processes, associated with the rhyodacite intrusions. This was followed by tectonic activity and younger alkaline magmatism in a post-collisional geotectonic setting. The first-stage Au-bearing sulphide mineralization was cataclased and overprinted by younger epithermal base-metal sulphides with microscopic Au, associated with Bi-Te-Ag minerals. The younger magmatic pulses are represented by porphyritic andesites and lamprophyric dykes, which cut the ZI. Zircon from these dykes yielded ages of 312.8 ± 2.8 Ma for an andesite porphyry and 312.4 ± 4 Ma for a lamprophyre. All these magmatic pulses, evidenced in the Radzimowice deposit, are considered to be the oldest post-orogenic sub-volcanic magmatism cutting the basement of the intramontane basins in the Sudetes, on the NE margin of the Bohemian Massif. A rhyolite porphyry in the famous 'Organy' exposure at Wielislaw Zlotoryjski (WZ) on the SE margin of the North-Sudetic Basin is younger, 297.5 ± 2.8 Ma. Vein-type auriferous ore mineralization, hosted by Early Palaeozoic graphitic schists in intimate contact with rhyolite porphyry in WZ, is also correlated with this magmatism. The auriferous ore mineralization at Radzimowice and Wielislaw Zlotoryjski formed at different times, during different magmatic pulses and successive hydrothermal stages, despite several similarities in geologic setting and country- and host-rock compositions. There was a transition from a post-collisional to a within-plate setting over about 20 Ma in Late Carboniferous-Early Permian times, with the older Żeleźniak and Bukowinka sub-volcanic intrusions in the uplifted part of the Kaczawa Metamorphic Complex (ZI) and the younger Wielislaw Zlotoryjski sub-volcanic intrusion in the metamorphic basement of an intramontane basin.


Macrophages play an important role in the innate immune system by producing inflammatory cytokines in response to substances derived from bacteria and viruses. Recently, omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to have beneficial effects in inflammatory diseases. In this study, we investigated the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on inflammatory responses and cell death induced by the Gram-negative bacterium Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans in macrophages. A. actinomycetemcomitans invasion induced secretion of interleukin (IL)-1β and expression of inflammasome-associated factors, including nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3), adaptor apoptosisassociated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain (ASC), caspase-1, caspase-4, and cleaved-gasdermin D (GSDMD), in THP-1 cells. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid suppressed NLRP3, ASC and caspase-1 expression as well as IL-1β secretion by THP-1 cells in response to A. actinomycetemcomitans invasion. Moreover, DHA impaired assembly of ASC, suppressed the expression of caspase-4 and cleaved-GSDMD, and suppressed cell death in A. actinomycetemcomitans-invaded THP-1 cells. Taken together, our data suggest that DHA attenuates the secretion of IL-1β and cell death induced by A. actinomycetemcomitans invasion of macrophages via suppression of inflammasome-associated factors.


Russia's horrific war in Ukraine has sharply revived debate over charges of Russia's fascist behavior. The most vocal voices in this debate are Yale historian Timothy Snyder, who has proclaimed that "Putin's regime... is the world center of fascism," and authored an op-ed in The New York Times entitled "We Should Say It: Russia Is Fascist." Similar arguments are advanced by Rutgers political scientist Alexander Motyl, who asserted in a recent piece that Russia fits the textbook definition of fascism. State leaders currently fighting against Russia share that view: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has labelled Russia's actions as fascist and drawn parallels between Putin's Russia and Nazi Germany. Polish President Andrzej Duda followed suit, stating that "today Russian leaders are behaving in exactly the same way, like Hitler, like the German SS, like the German pilots of the fascist army during World War II." Among Russian social scientists abroad as well as those courageously resisting at home, the debate about Russia's "fascism" has also become central in discussing post-February 24 transformations, most of them concluding that Russia does not (yet?) fit the typology.


Background Clinical programs for preventing β-thalassemia are presently based on prospective carrier screening and prenatal diagnosis. This paper report an achievement of a pregnancy with unaffected embryos using in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET), in combination with preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), for a couple at risk of having children with β-thalassemia.Methods A couple carrying different thalassemia mutations, both a codon 41-42 mutation and the IVS Ⅱ 654 mutation, received standard IVF treatment, with intracytoplasmic sperm injection, embryo biopsiy, single cell polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA analysis. Only unaffected or carrier embryos were transferred to the uterine cavity. After confirmation of pregnancy, a prenatal diagnosis was performed.Results Of a total of 13 embryos analyzed for β-globin mutations, PGD indicated that 2 were normal,3 were affected, and 6 were carriers. Diagnosis could not be made in the other 2 embryos. Three embryos were transferred to the uterus on the third day after oocyte retrieval. Ultrasonography revealed a twin pregnancy with one blighted ovum. The prenatal genetic diagnosis revealed that both fetuses were unaffected, and two healthy boys were born, confirming the results of PGD.Conclusions We developed a single-cell based primer extension preamplification (PEP)-PCR assay for the detection of β-thalassemia mutations. The assays were efficient and accurate at all stages of the procedure, and resulted in the birth of PGD-confirmed β-thalassemia free children in China. PEP was used here in PGD for β-thalassemia.


Tearful crying is a ubiquitous and likely uniquely human phenomenon. Scholars have argued that emotional tears serve an attachment function: Tears are thought to act as a social glue by evoking social support intentions. Initial experimental studies supported this proposition across several methodologies, but these were conducted almost exclusively on participants from North America and Europe, resulting in limited generalizability. This project examined the tears-social support intentions effect and possible mediating and moderating variables in a fully pre-registered study across 7,007 participants (24,886 ratings) and 41 countries spanning all populated continents. Participants were presented with four pictures out of 100 possible targets with or without digitally-added tears. We confirmed the main prediction that seeing a tearful individual elicits the intention to support, d = .49 [.43, .55]. Our data suggest that this effect could be mediated by perceiving the crying target as warmer and more helpless, feeling more connected, as well as feeling more empathic concern for the crier, but not by an increase in personal distress of the observer. The effect was moderated by the situational valence, identifying the target as part of one's group, and trait empathic concern. A neutral situation, high trait empathic concern, and low identification increased the effect. We observed high heterogeneity across countries that was, via split-half validation, best explained by country-level GDP per capita and subjective well-being with stronger effects for higher-scoring countries. These findings suggest that tears can function as social glue, providing one possible explanation why emotional crying persists into adulthood.


Flights of fancy and fear, ecstatic highs, dreadful falls and beckoning skies: these are the images British film-maker Peter Greenaway collects and dissects in "Flying out of This World", the second volume in a series developed by the Louvre and devoted to innovative writing on the visual arts. As guest curator, Greenaway selected from the Louvre's collection of European prints and drawings 91 masterpieces that illustrate the human longing for flight. Greenaway's text, a compilation of brief commentaries that combine description, allusion and interpretation, illuminates the images as depictions of flight desired and denied. Including works by Redon, Goya, Brueghel, Michelangelo, Mantegna, Rubens, Poussin and Delacroix, this volume offers a combination of literary and visual art, of sight and insight. A pursuit through the Bible, classical mythology, cosmology, theology, etymology, ornithology and meteorology, "Flying out of This World" is not just an illustrated history of imagined flight, but a meditation on its meaning as a metaphor for the human condition, caught between a weighty body and a soaring spirit.


[1] A numerical model for wave propagation in an unstable plasma with inhomogeneities is developed. This model describes the linear interaction of Langmuir wave packets with an electron beam and takes into account the angular diffusion of the wave vector due to wave scattering on small-amplitude density fluctuations, as well as suppression of the instability caused by the removal of the wave from the resonance with particles during crossing density perturbations of relatively large amplitude. Using this model, the evolution of the wave packets in inhomogeneous plasmas with an electron beam is studied. To analyze data obtained both in space experiments and numerical modeling, a Pearson technique was used to classify the spectral density distributions. It was shown that both experimental distributions obtained within the Earth's foreshock aboard the CLUSTER spacecraft and model distributions for the logarithm of wave intensity belong to Pearson type IV rather than normal. The main reason for deviations of empirical distributions from the normal one is that the effective number of regions where the waves grow is not very large and, as a consequence, the central limit theorem fails to be true under the typical conditions for the Earth's electron foreshock. For large amplitudes, it is suggested that power law tails can result from variations of wave amplitudes due to changes of group velocity in the inhomogeneous plasma, in particular due to reflection of waves from inhomogeneities. Citation: Krasnoselskikh, V. V., V. V. Lobzin, K. Musatenko, J. Soucek, J. S. Pickett, and I. H. Cairns (2007), Beam-plasma interaction in randomly inhomogeneous plasmas and statistical properties of small-amplitude Langmuir waves in the solar wind and electron foreshock,


Abstract : The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) facilitated a two-day Technology Adoption Planning workshop for the Standard Systems Group (SSG) Transformation Team (Vice Director and the Directors of the 2-letter organizations) on October 27 and 28, 2003 at the Alabama TechnaCenter in Montgomery, Alabama. Other pertinent SSG personnel, with responsibility for partnering with the SEI on the tasks in the FY03-04 SEI/SSG work plan also were invited and attended. The purpose of the workshop was to initiate the planning for phase 2 of the SSG/SEI partnership. (Phase 1 was the Enterprise Assessment conducted in January 2003 and out briefed in May 03). The workshop was focused on producing a tactical plan for incorporating the recommended SEI technical solutions (based on SSG-expressed needs during Phase 1) into the ongoing SSG transformation activities.


Abstract
This paper tries to give a philosophical answer towards problem of dynamics in Pancasila.
It is expected able to give justification for Pancasila; so that it will enrich teoritical sides and develop Pancasila praxis as natonal foundation and ideology of Indonesian people.It is hoped that this paper will give a contribution for keeping consistency, relevance, and contextualization of Pancasila is always needed by Indonesian people who are continuously developing according to world development. The realization of the expectation will make Pancasila able to play a role: internally, it functions as a glue of unity and union of Indonesian people and directs nation struggle towards its ideals. Externally, it functions as a nation identity so that Indonesian people are different from other people.

Key Words: dynamics in Pancasila, consistency, relevance, contextualization, identity.


It is shown that efficient Faraday rotation can be obtained in a fiber coil if the circumference of the coil is exactly equal to the beat length of the birefringence caused by bending. The essential elements of a practical, compact isolator based on this principle are demonstrated. Forty-five degrees of Faraday rotation were obtained in a 40-turn, 15-mm-diameter coil placed in the field of a permanent magnet (~0.29 T). The design of optical filters and magnetic sensors is also discussed.


Alu-mediated rearrangement of tumor suppressor genes occurs frequently during carcinogenesis. In breast cancer, this mechanism contributes to loss of the wild-type BRCA1 allele in inherited disease and to loss of heterozygosity in sporadic cancer. To identify genes required for suppression of Alu-mediated recombination we performed a genomewide screen of a collection of 4672 yeast gene deletion mutants using a direct repeat recombination assay. The primary screen and subsequent analysis identified 12 candidate genes including TSA, ELG1, and RRM3, which are known to play a significant role in maintaining genomic stability. Genetic analysis of the corresponding human homologs was performed in sporadic breast tumors and in inherited BRCA1-associated carcinomas. Sequencing of these genes in high risk breast cancer families revealed a potential role for the helicase PIF1 in cancer predisposition. PIF1 variant L319P was identified in three breast cancer families; importantly, this variant, which is predicted to be functionally damaging, was not identified in a large series of controls nor has it been reported in either dbSNP or the 1000 Genomes Project. In Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Pfh1 is required to maintain both mitochondrial and nuclear genomic integrity. Functional studies in yeast of human PIF1 L319P revealed that this variant cannot complement the essential functions of Pfh1 in either the nucleus or mitochondria. Our results provide a global view of nonessential genes involved in suppressing Alu-mediated recombination and implicate variation in PIF1 in breast cancer predisposition.


Episodes of relationship completion through song: Case studies of music therapy research in palliative care Author: Amy Clements-Cortes VDM Verlag, 2009 ISBN 978-3-639-14542-7Episodes ofrelationship completion through song: Case studies of music therapy research in palliative care examines how music therapy can be effective in assisting those who are dying in relationship completion. The author believes that relationship completion is part of holistic care of the dying and is necessary for improved palliation and avers music therapists are well-positioned to assist patients with such aspects of illness. She describes songwriting, lyric discussion and analysis, life review and the creation of musical gifts as beneficial techniques for assisting persons with relationships at end of life. Using four case studies with adults deemed palliative (3-6 months prognosis to live), themes of relationship completion emerged, have been collected and analyzed. This book poignantly demonstrates how the music therapy process can effectively reach into the pain and suffering of the dying person to bring resolution and wholeness.The book has ten chapters, beginning with an introduction which includes the author's personal motivations for the research. Chapters 2 and 3 present the constructs, definitions, literature review research methodology and procedures. Chapters 4-7 are data chapters that present four case studies, an analysis of the data and emerging themes, clientcomposed song lyrics, and artistic pieces that the author crafted based on the experiences of the participants and that each one verified. Chapter 8 is a cross case chapter which includes a thematic analysis of participant experience and an examination of the process motifs arising from the progression of participant engagement in music therapy. Chapter 9 is a summary of revealed knowledge of the research study and implications for music therapists and allied health care professionals in palliative care. Chapter 10 is a personal reflection by Amy as a musician, music therapist, music educator and researcher. In addition, Amy compiled a CD called Episodes of Relationship Completion which is an artistic portrayal of the study results. The songs represent key sentiments that participants expressed to help them complete relationships they identified as significant www.notesbyamy.com.Relationships in this study involve "any relationship that the dying person has a desire to complete that is of an intrapersonal (with oneself), interpersonal (with other people), and/or transpersonal nature (with God, pets, nature etc.) (pp. 22-27). The literature shows that relationship, whether intrapersonal, interpersonal or transpersonal, are highly valued in terminally ill people. According to Byock, there are ten tasks for the end-of-life. He defines them as:...sense of completion with worldly affairs, sense of completion in relationships with the community; sense of meaning about one's individual life; experienced love of self; experienced love of others; sense of completion in relationships with family and friends; acceptance of the finality of life and of one's existence as an individual; sense of a new self beyond personal loss; sense of meaning about life in general; and surrender to the transcendent and the unknown (p. 3).Understanding how music therapy can assist in relationship completion, one of these landmark tasks, is the central inquiry of the book. According to Byock, there are five sentiments that permit relationship to reach completion once they are expressed. These are: "I love you," "Thank you," "Forgive me," "I forgive you," and "Goodbye" (p. 15).Implicitly, a secondary question in the book is how music therapists introduce the concept of relationship completion to clients. ClementsCortes believes that the techniques employed in receptive, creative, recreative and combined approaches of music therapy "are useful with respect to relationship completion in potentially three ways: a) to bring focus or clear thinking to set the work of relationship completion in motion b) to serve as launching points or reflections about relationships, and/or c) to become vehicles or tools for expression of the various sentiments that permit relationships to close. …


There is ample evidence to indicate that the origins of the crop of innovative and engrossing films produced in the post-revolutionary period in Iran can be directly traced to the cinematic achievements of Iran's pre-revolutionary film industry. It is true that a number of films, produced after the establishment of the Islamic republic in Iran, have been recognized in major international film festivals and acclaimed by European and American film critics in recent years. But, it is also true that a number of Iranian films and directors were also praised by nearly the same critics and in the same festivals. Indeed, some of the most prominent of Iran's contemporary filmmakers, such as Bahram Beyza'i, Abbas Kia Rostami and Daryush Mehrju'i, were trained--and produced some of their best works--in the pre-revolutionary era. Clearly, these favorable notices, at times overly flattering, about recent Iranian films have not been appreciated by some Iranians, particularly in the exile community. They claim that praising films produced in a country where every aspect of film production is under the total control of an intrusive regime, is no less than condoning the rigid and intolerable restrictions that have been imposed on artistic freedoms in general, and cinematic expressions in particular, in the Islamic republic of Iran.
One can not obviously deny the existence of pervasive censorship in Iran nor underestimate the frustration of independent directors and filmmakers who must constantly face a host of obstacles aimed at restricting their freedom of action and artistic expression. Nevertheless, conscious as one must be about these trying circumstances, the task of assessing the works of Iranian contemporary filmmakers, on their own merits, need not be neglected.


While evolution of the Eurasian Basin and North Atlantic starting at ~55 Ma are well known, this holds not true for the Fram Strait. The Lena Trough, a mid-ocean ridge in the centre of the Fram Strait, is the only deep water connection of the Arctic Ocean. The lack of geophysical data prevented any detailed model for the geodynamic history of this gateway so far. New multi-channel seismic and aeromagnetic data show the straits opening as far south as 81°N at ~16 Ma. Before, intermediate-depth water exchange might have existed through deep grabens of the recent Yermak Plateau. Its basement topography is very rough and the plateau-like bathymetry is a young feature. Large drift deposits on oceanic crust younger than 10 Ma indicate strong current activity and erosion of the surrounding shelves after opening of the gateway. Furthermore, the data show that the Fram Strait was in place long before the high frequency glacial/interglacial cycles started in the northern hemisphere at ~3 Ma. Though the gateway might have played an important role in the long-term cooling of the northern hemisphere, it is unlikely to have been solely responsible for the intensification of the northern hemisphere glaciations in the Late Pliocene/Pleistocene.


Matthew McGuire, for the Masters of Science degree in Professional Media & Media Management, presented on Friday, November 14th 2014, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Spatial Dichotomies: Research into the Development of 3D Representation Chair of Committee: Robert Spahr This research paper covers how 3D technology influences different industries over time. Key points within the research find that over time humans consistently gravitate toward increasing their ability to recreate depth, texture and image. Industry leaders in education, film, medical, television, and the Web will find literature and discussion of how to adjust their modes of production and manufacturing in the future. Each of these industries will be reviewed throughout the report. The data in the report identifies 3D technology in two sections: object and screenbased technology. Each chapter contains social and financial elements that assist and react to new technology in the market. Additionally, to help show the effects on the different industries there are trends and time lines to show how individual industries develop. In each industry, there are multiple ways that 3D technology can be effective and ineffective. The research goes over transitions in early media to compare to transitions in modern mediums of art and science. After covering a short history on the transformation that society has had with the image, the paper covers public demand for new virtual settings in education and entertainment. Image-based research indicates that users will on average continuously desire more depth and interactivity in content.


The European Union (EU) Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires EU member states to produce and implement river basin management plans, which are to be designed and updated via participatory processes that inform, consult with, and actively involve all interested stakeholders. The assumption of the European Commission is that stakeholder participation, and institutional adaptation and procedural innovation to facilitate it, are essential to the effectiveness of river basin planning and, ultimately, the environmental impact of the Directive. We analyzed official documents and the WFD literature to compare implementation of the Directive in EU member states in the initial WFD planning phase (2000–2009). Examining the development of participatory approaches to river basin management planning, we consider the extent of transformation in EU water governance over the period. Employing a mixed quantitative and qualitative approach, we map the implementation "trajectories" of 13 member states, and then provide a detailed examination of shifts in river basin planning and participation in four member states (Germany, Sweden, Poland and France) to illustrate the diversity of institutional approaches observed. We identify a general tendency towards increased, yet circumscribed, stakeholder participation in river basin management in the member states examined, alongside clear continuities in terms of their respective pre-WFD institutional and procedural arrangements. Overall, the WFD has driven a highly uneven shift to river basin-level planning among the member states, and instigated a range of efforts to institutionalize stakeholder involvement—often through the establishment of advisory groups to bring organized stakeholders into the planning process.


This study was conducted on data which  collected from the filed Cattle in the college  of Agriculture / University of Baghdad for the period from 1/7/2013 to 1/10/2013, which included 28 cows of Holstein Friesian to show the effect of sex of birth and the stage of lactation on Milk production  and  the main components. Our results showed The highest average milk production for female foster cows recorded in the first week with a value of 233L . The results show that had no significant effect  of sex of birth on milk production  and  the main components. The results  showed  that the highest values of milk fat, lactose and minerals in the seventh week of lactation, which values were (3.559, 4.337and 0.638%) respectively, while the highest protein value was recorded in the third week (2.821%). There was no significant interaction  among chemical components  and stage of lactation , despite the superiority of the milk of female foster cows on the milk of male foster cows in some traits


Bovine tuberculosis (TB), caused by Mycobacterium bovis, has serious consequences for Britain's cattle industry. European badgers (Meles meles) can transmit infection to cattle, and for many years the British government culled badgers in a series of attempts to reduce cattle infections. We investigated the impact of badger culling on the spatial distribution of M. bovis infection in badger and cattle populations in replicated areas in England. M. bovis infection was significantly clustered within badger populations, but clustering was reduced when culls were repeated across wide areas. A significant spatial association between M. bovis infections in badgers and cattle herds likewise declined across successive culls. These patterns are consistent with evidence that badgers are less territorial and range more widely in culled areas, allowing transmission to occur over greater distances. Prior to culling, M. bovis infections were clustered within cattle populations. Where badger culling was localised, and in unculled areas just outside widespread culling areas, cattle infections became less spatially clustered as badger culling was repeated. This is consistent with expanded badger ranging observed in these areas. In contrast, clustering of infection in cattle persisted over time on lands where badgers were repeatedly culled over wide areas. While this lack of a temporal trend must be interpreted with caution, it might reflect persistent infection within, and continued transmission between, cattle herds in areas where transmission from badgers to cattle had been reduced by badger culling. Continued spatial association of infections in cattle and badgers in such areas might partly reflect transmission from cattle. Synthesis and applications: Our findings confirm that badger culling can prompt spatial spread of M. bovis infection, a phenomenon likely to undermine the utility of this approach as a disease control measure. Possible evidence of transmission from cattle, both to other cattle and to badgers, suggests that improved cattle controls might yield multiple benefits for TB management.


Objective To report the arrest of euploid embryos with high mtDNA content. Design A report of 2 cases. Setting Private fertility clinic. Patients 2 patients, 45 and 40 years old undergoing IVF treatment. Interventions Mature oocytes were collected and vitrified from two ovarian stimulations. Postthaw, survived mature oocytes underwent fertilization by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number were done using next generation sequencing (NGS). The only normal embryo among the all-biopsied embryos had the highest "Mitoscore" value and was the only arrested embryo in both cases. Therefore, the embryo transfer was cancelled. Main Outcome Measures Postthaw survival and fertilization rate, embryo euploidy, mtDNA copy number, and embryo development. Results In both patients, after PGS only 1 embryo was euploid. Both embryos had the highest mtDNA copy number from all tested embryos and both embryos were arrested on further development. Conclusions These cases clearly demonstrate the lack of correlation between mtDNA value (Mitoscore) and chromosomal status of embryo.


This work addresses a particular case of the group shop scheduling problem (GSSP) which will be denoted as the fixed group shop scheduling problem (FGSSP). In a FGSSP, job operations are divided into stages and each stage has a set of machines associated to it which are not shared with the other stages. All jobs go through all the stages in a specific order, where the operations of the job at each stage need to be finished before the job advances to the following stage, but operations within a stage can be performed in any order. This setting is common in companies such as leaf spring manufacturers and other automotive companies. To solve the problem, we propose a novel heuristic procedure that combines a decomposition approach with a constraint programming (CP) solver and a restart mechanism both to avoid local optima and to diversify the search. The performance of our approach was tested on instances derived from other scheduling problems that the FGSSP subsumes, considering both the cases with and without anticipatory sequence-dependent setup times. The results of the proposed algorithm are compared with off-the-shelf CP and mixed integer linear programming (MILP) methods as well as with the lower bounds derived from the study of the problem. The experiments show that the proposed heuristic algorithm outperforms the other methods, specially on large-size instances with improvements of over 10% on average.