In the first essay, a critical examination of three commonly used stochastic price processes is presented. Each process is described and rejected as a possible model of lumber futures prices. A mean reverting generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) model, developed by Bollerslev (1986), is proposed as a stochastic process for lumber futures prices. The essay provides the steps that should be taken to ensure that a proper price process is used in each application. In the second essay, a flexible harvesting strategy known as the "reservation price" strategy is presented. When the current price is below the reservation price, the forest owner delays the harvest. An optimal stopping model is used to derive an expression for the optimal sequence of reservation prices under price uncertainty. A solution method using a Monte Carlo backward recursion algorithm is presented. The Monte Carlo simulation procedure may be applied when analytical solutions are difficult or intractable. In the third essay, a simulation model is used to estimate the per acre value of land devoted to timber production under different harvesting strategies, stumpage price processes, and site qualities. By following the reservation price strategy, forest owners can increase the expected land value and reduce the variability in land values relative to a fixed rotation strategy. For an estimated mean reverting GARCH process, the reservation price strategy increases the value of timberland by 33.0 percent for a site index of 90 and by 22.1 percent for a site index of 60 relative to a fixed rotation strategy.


Objective We have assessed the effectiveness of tacrolimus for minor flares in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Methods The medical records of 313 patients were retrospectively reviewed over a period of seven years, from 2006 to 2013. We enrolled patients with minor flare treated with add-on tacrolimus, without glucocorticoid (GC) intensification (tacrolimus group). Minor flare was defined as a ≥1-point increase in a total score between 3 and 11 in the SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI). We enrolled as controls patients who were administered increased doses of GC for minor flare (GC group). All patients were followed for one year. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of responders. Results There were 14 eligible patients in the tacrolimus group and 20 eligible patients in the GC group. The mean SLEDAI at flare tended to be higher in the tacrolimus group than in the GC group (7.5 vs. 6.2, p = 0.085). A mean dose of 1.6 mg tacrolimus/day was administered for flare, while the mean GC dose was 13.7 mg/day in the GC group. The proportion of responders was 86% (12/14) in the tacrolimus group and 75% (15/20) in the GC group (p = 0.67). The mean dose of GC at 12 months was higher in the GC group than in the tacrolimus group (9.7 mg/day vs. 7.1 mg/day, p < 0.05). Only one patient discontinued tacrolimus because of fatigue after three months. Conclusion Adding tacrolimus without increasing the GC dose may provide an effective treatment option for minor flares in patients with SLE.


Byline: T. Sathyanarayana Rao Humans have dark side that loves crime and violence. We all may deny it but the contrary is true. And it applies regardless of our age, caste, social status, region, religion or education. The television, movies, sports and many happenings reported in news papers and magazines are indicative of our obsession with the fact and fiction of crime and violence. Modern culture is infact can be referred to as the most violent culture in history in the number of crimes and in the nature brutality.[sup] [1] Recently, Nithari hogged the lime light and the press was full of wild speculations and assumptions.[sup] [2] It was so much everywhere because crime somehow intrigues people. It can attract or repel but it does happen. It can amuse so also frighten us. It can generate anger when it affects near or dear ones in our community. The crime arouses so much of interest or passion, yet its understanding as to why it occurs and what we can do about it has often remained a problem. Public officials, politicians, experts and consultants and anyone who matters often offer simple and incomplete discourses on the events and method of solution for eradicating crime. Solutions offered may be more policing, setting up of closed circuit TVs, increasing street lighting, putting up sturdy locks, karate classes for the people on the one hand and stiff penalties, speedy imprisonment or capital punishment on the other hand for the criminals. 'Experts' dole out abstract interpretations that have any practical value. In short, as in most areas of human behavior, there is no shortage of experts but there are few effective solutions.[sup] [3] Bartol argues effectively that 'our inability to prevent crime is partly due to our problems in understanding criminal behavior, a complex phenomenon. Since crime is complex, it goes without saying that explanations of crime require complicated, involved answers. Research indicates that most people have a very limited tolerance for complexity and ambiguity. They apparently want simple, straight forward answers for even a very complex issue. As behavioral scientists we need to understand that criminal behavior is a vastly complex, yet poorly understood phenomenon. There is no all encompassing psychological explanation for crime, than there is sociological, anthropological, psychiatric, economic or historic one.[sup][3] Without the help of many disciplines, for sociology or psychology to reach the basic 'truth' is almost impossible. In most, understanding criminal behavior calls for an inter disciplinary approach integrating data, theory and the practical view point of each discipline. Human nature and crime Bartol[sup] [3] again reviews underlying assumptions about human nature and identifies 3 major domains: *'Conformity' perspective: Classical example is the strain theory of Merton R. K. which argues that 'humans are fundamentally good people and conforming beings who are strongly influenced by values and attitudes of the society in which they live. It assumes that humans, as creatures of conformity who want to do the 'right' thing'. 'Right' thing therefore is what the society says is the 'right' thing. For example, the American society advocates 'accumulation of wealth or status is all important and many continue to accept these well advertised goals'. Education, social network, contacts and family influence can help access these to many but not to all. When there is 'perceived discrepancy', between materialist values and goals cherished and the availability of legitimate means, then crime and delinquency occurs. Groups and individuals experience high level of 'strain' are forced to decide whether to accept of violate norms or laws, consequently they conform, withdraw or rebel. *'Non-conformist' perspective: Assumes that human beings are basically undisciplined creatures, given the chance would flout society's convention and commit crime indiscriminately. …


This research evaluates existing policy and planning practices, both in New Zealand and overseas, and identifies a framework for appraising and evaluating the benefits and costs of bus-based infrastructure (bus stops and shelters, bus interchanges and bus priority) and the risks to successful project delivery. It suggests a combination of multi-criteria analysis and cost-benefit analysis can provide local authorities with useful tools for assessing proposed projects. At the heart of this appraisal method is the appraisal summary table (AST), which gives a summarised overview of the expected benefits, costs and risks relating to a project. The AST provides procedures suitable for both ex-ante and ex-post evaluation, and integrates risk management considerations into project appraisal from the outset. The proposed framework would usefully inform future revisions of the Economic evaluation manual and Guidelines for public transport infrastructure and facilities. Sustained application and refinement of the framework should ensure more systematic recording of the quantitative and qualitative benefits and risks of public transport infrastructure projects.


Earthquakes are the result of slip along faults and are due to the decrease of rock frictional strength (dynamic weakening) with increasing slip and slip rate. Friction experiments simulating the abrupt accelerations (>>10 m/s2), slip rates (~1 m/s), and normal stresses (>>10 MPa) expected at the passage of the earthquake rupture along the front of fault patches, measured large fault dynamic weakening for slip rates larger than a critical velocity of 0.01–0.1 m/s. The dynamic weakening corresponds to a decrease of the friction coefficient (defined as the ratio of shear stress vs. normal stress) up to 40%–50% after few millimetres of slip (flash weakening), almost independently of rock type. The microstructural evolution of the sliding interfaces with slip may yield hints on the microphysical processes responsible for flash weakening. At the microscopic scale, the frictional strength results from the interaction of micro- to nano-scale surface irregularities (asperities) which deform during fault sliding. During flash weakening, the visco-plastic and brittle work on the asperities results in abrupt frictional heating (flash heating) and grain size reduction associated with mechano-chemical reactions (e.g., decarbonation in CO2-bearing minerals such as calcite and dolomite; dehydration in water-bearing minerals such as clays, serpentine, etc.) and phase transitions (e.g., flash melting in silicate-bearing rocks). However, flash weakening is also associated with grain size reduction down to the nanoscale. Using focused ion beam scanning and transmission electron microscopy, we studied the micro-physical mechanisms associated with flash heating and nanograin formation in carbonate-bearing fault rocks. Experiments were conducted on pre-cut Carrara marble (99.9% calcite) cylinders using a rotary shear apparatus at conditions relevant to seismic rupture propagation. Flash heating and weakening in calcite-bearing rocks is associated with a shock-like stress release due to the migration of fast-moving dislocations and the conversion of their kinetic energy into heat. From a review of the current natural and experimental observations we speculate that this mechanism tested for calcite-bearing rocks, is a general mechanism operating during flash weakening (e.g., also precursory to flash melting in the case of silicate-bearing rocks) for all fault rock types undergoing fast slip acceleration due to the passage of the seismic rupture front.


Social ideas of the 20th century, that had an impact on town-planning concepts, have lost their relevance. We have inherited huge urban territories built up in the form of microdistricts, which do not currently correspond to the idea of safe and decent life. Transition from building microdistricts to quarter site development has become the most radical change in the Russian urban policy. At the same time, there are certain problems of designing modern quarters both in the historical environment and in new territories. Unbuilt sites will likely house hybrids of microdistrict and quarter planning. In the historical centers of cities, building of quarters requires solution of transport problems, provision of pedestrian areas and creation of new architecture of high quality, which never copies buildings of previous epochs. Designing buildings 'in the styles', which is typical of the historical center development, does more harm to the cities than brand new architectural decisions of built-in structures.


A Python package called PySUNDIALS has been developed which provides an interface to the suite of nonlinear differential/algebraic equation solvers (SUNDIALS) using ctypes as a foreign function interface (FFI). SUNDIALS is a C implementation of a set of modern algorithms for integrating and solving various forms of the initial value problem (IVP). Additionally, arbitrary root finding capabilities, time dependent sensitivity analysis, and the solution of differential and algebraic systems are available in the various modules provided by SUNDIALS. A significant focus of the project was to ensure the python package conforms to Python language standards and syntactic expectations. Multiple examples of the SUNDIALS modules (CVODE, CVODES, IDA and KINSOL) are presented comparing PySUNDIALS to C SUNDIALS (for verification of correctness), and comparing PySUNDIALS to various other comparable software packages. The examples presented also provide benchmark comparisons for speed, and code length. Specific uses of the features of the SUNDIALS package are illustrated, including the modelling of discontinuous events using root finding, time dependent sensitivity analysis of oscillatory systems, and the modelling of equilibrium blocks using a complete set of implicit differential and algebraic equations. PySUNDIALS is available as open source software for download. It is being integrated into the systems biology software PySCeS as an optional solver set, on an ongoing basis. A brief discussion of potential methods of optimization and the continuation of the project to wrap the parallel processing modules of SUNDIALS is presented.


The exhibition focused on ready-to-wear fashion in the post-war period. It was original in that it linked the design, production, retail, distribution and consumption of these popular fashions. This develops Entwistle's view that "a sociological account of fashion and dress must acknowledge the connections between production and consumption, considering the relationship between different agencies, institutions, individuals and practices" ('The Fashioned Body', Polity Press 2000 p.3)

Methodologically it drew on primary archive material, including unpublished business records. Eg. Horrockses, various archives of designers preserved in the National Archive of Art and Design, (Victoria and Albert Museum), textile collections and records in Abbot Hall Museum and Art Gallery, Kendal, and interviews with the designer Pat Albeck. I also used oral history as a means of understanding what these clothes meant to the women that purchased them, or copied them. The exhibition endeavoured to look at the clothing choices of ordinary women, in contrast to the majority of exhibitions that deal with elite and haute couture clothing.

Organised in collaboration with the staff of the Harris Museum and Art Gallery, Preston. Boydell acted as the curator, sourcing the exhibits, writing the text panels and labels as well as the accompanying pamphlet.

Funding was applied for collaboratively (a Textile Society Museum Award in was gained in 2000 (£1000) and also from the National Arts Collection Fund (£4190), V&A Purchase Fund (£7380) and the Friends of the Harris Museum (£3000) for money to purchase a number of important pieces that were loaned to the exhibition, and which are now in the permanent collection).

Invited by the following organisations to lecture
Textile Society seminar – 2/3/2002 (attendance 40)
Public lecture on Horrockses – Gallery of Costume, Platt Hall Manchester – 25/4/2001 (attendance 20)
Costume & Textile Society of Wales, National Museum of Wales, 9/2/2002 (attendance 30)


Today, AI is used in many high-stakes decision-making applications in which fairness is an important concern. Already, there are many examples of AI being biased and making questionable and unfair decisions. Recently, the AI research community has proposed many methods to measure and mitigate unwanted biases, and developed open-source toolkits for developers to make fair AI. This course will cover the recent development in algorithmic fairness, including the many different definitions of fairness, their corresponding quantitative measurements, and ways to mitigate biases. This course is open to beginners and is designed for anyone interested in the topic of AI fairness.


People often encounter objects that are perceptually indistinguishable from objects that they have seen before. When this happens, how do they decide whether the object they are looking at is something never before seen, or if it is the same one they encountered before? To identify these objects people surely use background knowledge and contextual cues. We propose a computational theory of identifying perceptually indistinguishable objects(PIOs) based on a set of experiments which were designed to identify the knowledge and perceptual cues that people use to identify PIOs. By identifying a PIO, we mean deciding which individual object is encountered, not deciding what category of objects it belongs to. In particular, identifying a PIO means deciding if the object just encountered is a new, never before seen object, or if it has been previously encountered, which previously perceived object it is. Our agent's beliefs and reasoning are based on an intensional representation (Maida & Shapiro 1982). Intensional representations model the sense (Frege 1892) of an object rather than the object referent, itself. The terms of our representation language, SNePS (Shapiro & the SNePS Implementation Group 2002; Shapiro & Rapaport 1992), denote mental entities. Some such entities are propositions; others are abstract ideas; others are the agent's "concepts" or "ideas" of objects in the world. This is important for the task of identifying PIOs, because before the identification task is complete, the agent may have two mental entities, e1 and e2, that it might or might not conclude correspond to the same object in the world.


Abstract Social learning can occur when information is transferred from existing customers to potential customers. It is especially important when the information that is conveyed pertains to experience attributes, i.e., attributes of products that cannot be fully verified prior to the first purchase. Experience attributes are prevalent and salient when consumers shop through catalogs, on home shopping networks, and over the Internet. Firms therefore employ creative and sometimes costly methods to help consumers resolve uncertainty; we argue that uncertainty can be partially resolved through social learning processes that occur naturally and emanate from local neighborhood characteristics. Using data from Bonobos, a leading U.S. online fashion retailer, we find not only that local social learning facilitates customer trial but also that the effect is economically important because about half of all trials were partially attributable to it. Merging data from the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, we find that neighborhood social capital, i.e., the propensity for neighbors to trust each other and communicate with each other, enhances the social learning process and makes it more efficient. Social capital does not operate on trials directly; rather, it improves the learning process and therefore indirectly drives sales when what is communicated is favorable. Abstract "Social learning" can occur when information is transferred from existing customers to potential customers. It is especially important in cases where the information that is conveyed pertains to experience attributes , i.e., attributes of products that cannot be fully verified prior to the first purchase. Experience attributes are prevalent and salient when consumers shop through catalogs, home shopping networks, and over the Internet. Firms therefore employ creative and sometimes costly methods to help consumers resolve uncertainty; we argue that uncertainty can be partially resolved through social learning processes that occur "naturally" and emanate from local neighborhood characteristics. Using data from Bonobos.com, a leading US online fashion retailer, we find that local social learning not only facilitates customer trial, but also that the effect is economically important as about half of all trials were partially attributable to it. Merging data from the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey we find that "neighborhood social capital", i.e., the propensity for neighbors to trust each other and communicate with each other, enhances the social learning process, and makes it more efficient. Social capital does not operate on trials directly; rather, it improves the learning process and therefore indirectly drives sales when what is communicated is favorable.


Paper mills discharge two distinct types of effluent : water containing cellulose waste and water from the machines. It is for the latter, which contains relatively little oxidizable matter, that recycling problems arise. A further distinction must also be made between mills using fresh (frequently imported) pulp and mills using waste paper stock. Water quality requirements vary considerably according to use, e.g. in stuff chests, for wire-cleaning, in boilers, and between production and auxiliary circuits. Water economy is primarily associated with minimal loss of solids and should therefore be sought first of all in the actual manufacturing process. Substantial economy can be achieved by use of circuits operating "in cascade" at gradually decreasing rates of flow. Internal recycling with local partial treatment is already in use, but should be more generally applied (see Fig. 1). Thus, the effluent is either processed as a whole, or each of its components by a different method using different equipment. Flocculation can be resorted to in various processes, e.g. multi-plate, simple or floc-bed sediment trap. Pre-coat filters, flotation equipment and rapid-action sand filters are also suitable. The following examples of high-performance equipment for present or future use are discussed ; - Waco pre-coat filters (Fig. 3); -Seelar floc-bed separators (Fig. 2). Recycling by a single station at which all the effluent is processed require high-performance equipment as regards total suspended matter, COD, BOD and colour. Optimalization studies of circuits and processes are almost invariably necessary for efficient recycling system design. Such studies are carried out stagewise in close collaboration with the factory management and independent water processing and papermaking specialists. Contact must also be maintained with the regional finance authorities for all matters relating to cost and pollution. The following are typical design factors : - a) Individual equipment : Reduction of oxidizable and suspended matter and colour, buffer effect, discharge, local arrangements, cost, reagent and power requirements, maintenance and supervision, down-times, etc. b) The overall plant : Modification of sewers, circuits, head losses and water-hammer, COD and BOD control in closed circuit operation, fermentation, smells, slimes, corrosion, temperature rise limits, combination with higher production rates, etc. c) Non-technical factors : Modification of end products, marketing variations. Final conclusion : Efficient recycling depends very closely on efficient clarifier operation combined with sound overall design.


Pre-hearing compulsory Appropriate Dispute Resolution processes (ADR) is increasingly popular in the Australian judicial system, with expectations of achieving fair, quick and efficient resolution of disputes and a reduction in the number of lengthy expensive court based proceedings. While new jurisdictions are enthusiastically incorporating compulsory pre-hearing ADR there is little research on longstanding institutions. The private nature of these court annexed ADR processes can be an inherent weakness; allowing less rigorous use of ADR processes to go unchecked and potentially lessening achievement of substantive justice for individual appellants.
In Victoria the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service (ACCS) conciliates all disputes between WorkCover insurers and workers as a compulsory step before proceedings can be taken in court. This paper seeks indicators of how well the ACCS is currently achieving the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013 (the Act)'s Objectives compared to historical outcomes by examining trends in new applications and resolution rates, and levels of human resources. These statistical trends are derived from 10 consecutive Annual Reports. Key areas explored include power imbalances, work intensification, fairness and selection of assessment criteria. This analysis found resolution rates are slowly declining and workloads are intensifying. Questions remain about how these trends will impact on public confidence in these justice processes and what is meant by 'reasonable efforts to bring the parties to agreement'. Developing assessment criteria for conciliation processes is identified as a future industry wide project essential for the credibility of mandatory statutory ADR.


Delayed recall of material is better when the material is retrieved on a previous occasion relative to when the material is restudied -- a phenomenon known as the testing effect. The studies reported here aimed to better understand the link between a person's memory and favorability judgments through the testing effect. Both memory and favorability judgments can be enhanced through persuasive messages, but both weaken over time. Considering that being tested decreases forgetting of the material and aids delayed retention, would being tested on a material decrease the decay in favorability judgments? I provided participants with a set of arguments that made the case for a topic and asked them to learn the arguments either through test or restudy. Either an immediate or 2 day delayed favorability judgment task was then given. A marginal testing effect was found in the memory tests. However, there was no testing effect found in favorability judgments.


Microfluidic device technology provides unique physical phenomena which are not available in the macroscopic world. These may be exploited towards a diverse array of applications in biotechnology and biomedicine ranging from bioseparation of particulate samples to the assembly of cells into structures that resemble the smallest functional unit of an organ. In this paper a general overview of chip-based particle manipulation and separation is given. In the state of the art electric, magnetic, optical and gravitational field effects are utilized. Also, mechanical obstacles often in combination with force fields and laminar flow are employed to achieve separation of particles or molecules. In addition, three applications based on dielectrophoretic forces for particle manipulation in microfluidic systems are discussed in more detail. Firstly, a virus assay is demonstrated. There, antibody-loaded microbeads are used to bind virus particles from a sample and subsequently are accumulated to form a pico-liter sized aggregate located at a predefined position in the chip thus enabling highly sensitive fluorescence detection. Secondly, subcellular fractionation of mitochondria from cell homogenate yields pure samples as was demonstrated by Western Blot and 2D PAGE analysis. Robust long-term operation with complex cell homogenate samples while avoiding electrode fouling is achieved by a set of dedicated technical means. Finally, a chip intended for the dielectrophoretic assembly of hepatocytes and endothelial cells into a structure resembling a liver sinusoid is presented. Such "artificial micro organs" are envisioned as substance screening test systems providing significantly higher predictability with respect to the in vivo response towards a substance under test.


A growing lack of consumer confidence and demands from the consumer protection movement pressure marketing to broaden its functions beyond the design of a good marketing mix, so that businesses commit themselves to social responsibility (SR). However, the dimensions of this amplified marketing function are unknown. The objective of this article is to identify and validate the dimensions that make up the new construct called Socially Responsible Marketing (SRM). To accomplish this, content analysis was performed on the normative and diagnostic instruments for social responsibility; and the proposal for SRM dimensions and items was submitted to a panel of 40 experts for consideration. As a result, six dimensions were identified and, preliminarily, 141 items were selected. The content of these dimensions suggests that SRM ought to invade all levels of the organization. The identification and content of these dimensions constitutes a valuable contribution to the academic marketing community, companies, consumers and those responsible for designing public policies. With this study, the first steps have been taken toward developing a reliable, valid scale that permits measuring consumer attitude toward socially responsible marketing in later confirmatory studies.


The pupillary light response is often assumed to be a reflex that is not susceptible to cognitive influences. In line with recent converging evidence, we show that this reflexive view is incomplete, and that the pupillary light response is modulated by covert visual attention: Covertly attending to a bright area causes a pupillary constriction, relative to attending to a dark area under identical visual input. This attention-related modulation of the pupillary light response predicts cuing effects in behavior, and can be used as an index of how strongly participants attend to a particular location. Therefore, we suggest that pupil size may offer a new way to continuously track the focus of covert visual attention, without requiring a manual response from the participant. The theoretical implication of this finding is that the pupillary light response is neither fully reflexive, nor under complete voluntary control, but is instead best characterized as a stereotyped response to a voluntarily selected target. In this sense, the pupillary light response is similar to saccadic and smooth pursuit eye movements. Together, eye movements and the pupillary light response maximize visual acuity, stabilize visual input, and selectively filter visual information as it enters the eye.


This study aimed to evaluate the successful implementation of 1Office integration system at PT Grundfos Indonesia by an adaptation to DeLone and McLean model. The 1Office is a system that should be applied in all Grundfos's companies, according to the instructions from its headquarter. There are 6 variables to evaluate in the DeLone and McLean model, namely Service Quality, System Quality, Information Quality, Use, User Satisfaction and Net Benefits. Using a quantitative approach, questionnaires were used as a technique for data collection. The data obtained then was analyzed using SEM PLS (Structural Equation Modeling Partial Least Square) and purposive sampling on 60 users. The results showed that Service Quality has a positive effect on Use and User Satisfaction, so does System Quality on User Satisfaction. Furthermore, User Satisfaction has a positive influence on Net Benefits as the effectiveness of using information systems, which has an impact on user groups, organisations, suppliers, and customers at PT. Grundfos Indonesia.Keywords: 1Office system, DeLone and McLean model, PT Grundfos Indonesia, SEM PLS


This study investigates the distribution of the inorganic constituents in the interstitial waters obtained in drill sites of th e Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 152 in the Irminger Sea and off the east coast of Greenland. These studies are accompanied by detailed analyses of the distribution of the oxygen isotopes of the interstitial waters as well as by the strontium isotope 87Sr/86Sr ratio of the dissolved strontium in Sites 918 and 919. In the shelf Sites 914 -916 and in the basin Site 918 there is evidence for the input of meteoric waters in the deeper parts of the drill holes, probably originating from reservoirs in the unde rlying basement rocks, which were subaerially deposited in Paleocene time. Strontium isotopic studies indicate several depth horizons where reaction between pore waters and volcanic material alter contemporaneous seawater signatures. All sites show evidence for a substantial input of volcanic material, typically showing considerably enhanced ratios of titanium over aluminum in the sediment. Lithium isotopes, for the first time determined in detail in ODP sites, indicate a complex pattern, sugges ting reactions and exchange with the solid phases. The complex pattern will be of interest to future studies of the distribution of this isotopic ratio. Oxygen isotopic studies, in addition to showing evidence for meteoric water inputs at depth, show two othe r important features: (1) In the upper sediment column higher than present δ18O(H2O) values indicate the presence of a predicted glacial maximum in the isotopic composition in seawater; a chloride maximum also typically occurs, but at a depth somewhat different from that of δ18O(H2O), mostly because of different diffusive boundary conditions. (2) A minimum in δ18O(H2O) occurs at about 250 meters below seafloor (mbsf) in Site 918, a phenomenon not expected from the distribution of the inorganic constituents. Instead of a minimum at about 550 mbsf, where concentration extrema in calcium, magnesium, and chloride imply the involvement of alteration of volcanic ash, no distinct extremum in δ18O(H2O) is detected.


Changes in water temperature and stratification dynamics can have a significant effect on hydrodynamics and water quality in reservoirs. Therefore, to assess future climate impacts, projections of three regional climate models for Europe, under the IPCC A1B emission scenario (2081–2100), were used with the CE-QUAL-W2 water quality model to evaluate changes in the thermal regime of 24 Portuguese reservoirs, representing different geographic regions, morphologies, volumes and hydrological regimes. Simulation results were compared with reference simulations for the period 1989–2008 and changes in water temperature and thermal stratification characteristics were evaluated. Future inflow scenarios were estimated from precipitation-runoff non-linear correlations and outflows were estimated considering present water uses, including hydropower, water supply and irrigation. Results suggest a significant increment in the mean water temperature of the reservoirs for the entire water volume and at water surface of 2.3 and 2.5 °C, respectively, associated with a runoff reduction of approximately 23%. Overall, variations in annual stratification patterns are characterized by changes in the mean annual length of stratification anomaly that ranged from −21 to +39 days. Results also show the influence of depth and volume over the reservoir9s temperature anomaly, highlighting the importance of future water uses and operation rule curves optimization for reservoirs.


Three strains of Plasmodium falciparum, Vietnam Oak Knoll (FVO), Uganda Palo Alto (Hawaii) (FUP-H) and Uganda Palo Alto (Cayenne) (FUP-C), were examined in 154 Aotus nancymai monkeys as suitable models for testing blood-stage vaccines. The Vietnam Oak Knoll strain had the greatest number of animals with maximum parasite counts > 200,000/microliters. Uniformity of the parasitemia curve increased from passage 4 to passage 6 with an accompanying decrease in the number of days required to reach maximum parasitemia or required treatment. The Uganda Palo Alto (Hawaii) strain was highly infectious, but many animals had extended prepatent periods and extended days to maximum parasitemia. The FUP-H strain would require a greater number of animals per test group to detect partial protection because of the greater number of low-density maximum parasite counts in control animals. The Uganda Palo Alto (Cayenne) strain was poorly adapted to intact A. nancymai. However, five of six splenectomized monkeys inoculated during passage 6 with 10(5) parasites had maximum parasite counts > 200,000/microliters. For the testing of vaccines against primary parasitemia in the A. nancymai model system, the FVO at passage 4 level would appear preferable to passage 6 parasites following a challenge with 10(5) parasites. A similar pattern could be obtained using FUP-H if the challenge was 10(6) parasites. To measure immune memory against recrudescence or rechallenge infection, FUP-C at an early passage in splenectomized A. nancymai would appear to be the appropriate model.


In 16 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, from 5% to 26% of adults aged 15-49 are HIV-positive. Because HIV transmits through memorable sexual or skin-piercing events, researchers working with Africans with new infections should be able to identify the risks that led to their infections and so explain how HIV transmits so extensively in Africa. But that has not happened. Much of the research into adults' risks for HIV in Africa has been conducted through randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of interventions to prevent HIV infections. This review identified 44 RCTs from previous reviews, searches of trial registries, and other records. These RCTs followed a total of more than 120,000 adults in Africa and observed more than 4,000 incident infections. For 10 interventions, HIV incidence was significantly lower among adults who received the intervention than among other adults. The projected impact of all apparently successful interventions on Africa's epidemics is limited by various factors, including their promise of only partial protection, high cost, dangerous side effects, and/or conflicting information. The major failure in these 44 RCTs is not the disappointing menu of conditionally successful interventions, but rather their failure to identify what is different about sexual and/or blood-borne HIV transmission in Africa that allows such terrible epidemics. With few exceptions, RCTs did not identify sexual partners who infected participants or report HIV incidence in participants with and without unprotected sex or skin-piercing events. Information from these 44 RCTs is thus insufficient to guide HIV prevention in Africa. No study team has made their data available for others to analyze, and only four explain in detail the data they collected. Some procedures were ethically dubious; for example, 6 studies did not warn participants that partners had tested HIV-positive. African governments should insist on better research – thorough, open, and ethical – to explain their epidemics, and should reestablish their HIV prevention programs on complete and accurate public messages about all risks.


The purpose of this paper is to show how leaders can be supported in creating and managing into international teams in a different effective and efficient ways. This paper tries to fill the gap between the more theoretical findings as presented in the literature and a pragmatic approach which can be used for execution by these leaders with the theirs teams. The main findings in the research is that although the leaders have a vast set of factors they require to do their jobs, it seems that the major issue is the different 'view on the world' and in more detail the differences between a leader and his team if he or she comes from a different cultural background, according, their emotions, communication, motivators, and knowledge. The paper aims to support people who work in international teams in different roles and locations.


The observer presented in this paper, which was based on the use of three minimalistic bio-inspired Visual Motion Sensors (VMS) detecting Optic Flow (OF) cues, states was intended as a backup solution in the case of Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) failure. Contrary to most previous Guidance Navigation and Control (GNC) solutions for planetary landing, which have involved a sensor suite including an IMU, an innovative strategy is presented here for estimating states without any need for inertial measurements, based solely on information about the relative velocity of the images of the surrounding environment. A Linear Parameter Varying (LPV) observer designed on a LPV system linearized around a reference trajectory, estimates: the ventral OF, the expansion OF and the local pitch angle. A previously developed observer was applied here to a larger class of nonlinear systems by making an ingenious change of variable. Simulations performed on a lunar landing scenario yielded satisfactory performance and showed the robustness of the OF based observer to initial uncertainties and measurement noise.


The through transmission method of longitudinal ultrasonic pulses was used to investigate the collective acoustic properties of a porous media model of cohesionless spherical particles. The results of this investigation showed dispersion and filtering effects for the transmitted acoustic waves. At low frequencies the wave velocity decreased with increase in frequency and particle size. In contrast at high frequencies the wave velocity decreased with increase in particle size, for relatively large particles (kR≫1). Calculated results from existing theoretical models for porous media by M. A. Biot, were compared to the experimental results. It was found that new modifications of the existing theoretical model for porous media were necessary in order to interpret the data in a quantitative manner.


We consider the ghost-free higher-order corrections to the Starobinsky model in the old-minimal supergravity, focusing on a sector among several scalar fields in the model that reproduces the scalaron potential in the original Starobinsky model. In general, higher-order corrections cannot be forbidden by symmetries, which likely violate the flatness of the scalaron potential and make inflation difficult in explaining the present Universe. We find a severe constraint on the dimensionless coupling of the R-4 correction as -5.5 x 10(-8) < s < 9.1 x 10(-8) from the recent results of the Planck observation. If we start from the chaotic initial condition, the constraint becomes much more severe. However, in the case in which the coupling of the R-4 correction is positive, the scalaron potential has a local maximum with two local minima at the origin and infinity, which admits topological inflation. In this case, inflation can take place naturally if the coupling satisfies the observational constraints.


In this paper we document instances where change in the magnitude of natural oil seepage coincided with fluctuations of fluid temperature in a seafloor mud volcano. Oil slicks were detected floating near commercial oil fields in the northern Gulf of Mexico in a time series of six satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images collected over a 10 month interval. The oil escaped naturally from a complex of fluid expulsion features at seafloor depths of about 600 m. One of these features was a 50-m-wide, mud- and brine-filled crater. Temperature in the crater fluctuated rapidly during an interval of ~1 yr (minimum 6.1 °C, maximum 48.3 °C, mean 26.1 °C, standard deviation 9.07). The areas of the oil slicks in the SAR images fluctuated repeatedly between 1000 ha. The largest oil slicks detected by SAR occurred along with the fastest increase in fluid temperature.


A growing body of research suggests that immigration undermines native support for the welfare state. However, the mechanisms behind this relationship and the possible moderating effects of institutions remain inconclusive. In this study, we identify via survey experiments how means-tested programs and targeted spending exacerbate the negative effect of immigration on public support for redistribution. Our findings suggest that different institutional settings can attach different weights to identity considerations across the whole socio-economic spectrum. We conclude by discussing the implications of our results for previous contradictory findings in the literature, and for the effectiveness of welfare policies in times of increasing ethnic diversity.


The Autonomous Surface / Sub-surface Survey System (ASSSS) research program combines long endurance autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) and long endurance autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to create an integrated cooperative navigation system effectively transforming the capabilities and accuracy of AUV survey. ASV is leading the project, working alongside National Oceanography Centre, a world leading research center and developer of AUV systems, Sonardyne International a leading developer of subsea acoustic positioning, communications and sonar systems and SeeByte a developer of software solutions for autonomous systems. The system architecture enables an ASV to provide regular position updates to the AUV system removing the need for the AUV to surface from depth to update its internally calculated position, a Cooperative Localization Scheme will increase the efficiency and accuracy of AUV survey. With the combination of the high accuracy sonar systems positioned close to the seabed on the AUV and accurate position from the ASV this will provide game changing solutions. The ASV communicates with the AUV through 2 key methods; acoustics to provide short mission updates and positioning information and optical communication technology to enable the system to upload the data from the survey sensors. With the data uploaded to the ASV it is then possible for it to process this data to enable summary data to be passed back through satellite communications. Future projects will look at how the data processed onboard can be used to adaptively update the mission in situations where data may indicate further investigation is required. Due to the endurance and autonomy, this system will also bring the possibility of completing subsea operations from a shore base, without the need for ships to be mobilized, significantly reducing data acquisition costs and improving safety. This transition to autonomy will save cost, reduce risk, and increase flexibility across a range of applications including mine countermeasures, weapons testing, hydrography, environmental science, security, and surveillance.


Background: Prevalence of diabetes mellitus is estimated to increase annually. Numerous people use traditional medicine, such as the Poidium guajava leaf to prevent this disease. This study aimed to analyse the effect of Psidium guajava leaf to inhibit glucose absorption in intestine epithelial membrane of wistar rats. Methods: This laboratory experimental study used 5 wistar rats as subjects in the Laboratory of Biochemistry at Padjadjaran University from 10−26 October 2012. All rats were given three solutions by in situ perfusion method. The first was 25 ml 3.0 X 10-3 M glucose solution, the second was 25 ml 3.0 X 10-3 M glucose solution with 1 ml Psidium guajava infusion added, and the third was 25 ml 3.0 X 10-3 M glucose solution. The sample from each solution was taken five times at 0, 15, 30, 45, and 60 minutes after the solutions were given. The spectrophotometer was to quantify the concentration of glucose from the samples. Data were analyzed using Friedman and Wilcoxon test. Results: The means of glucose concentration for each solution from the first solution to the third were 6.126 mg/dl, 2.447 mg/dl, and 5.345 mg/dl. The probability value showed significant difference between the first and second solutions (p ≤ 0.05). Conclusions: Psidium guajava leaf infusion can inhibit glucose absorption in wistar rat intestine and the effect is reversible. [ AMJ .2015;2(4):546–9] DOI:  10.15850/amj.v2n4.508


We examined the effects of spermine binding to aspartate at site 172 on the accessibility of internal trimethylammonioethylmethane thiosulphonate (MTSET) to substituted cysteines within the pore of a Kir2.1 channel. Spermine prevented MTSET modification in Q164C and G168C mutants, indicating that sites 164 and 168 are located externally to the spermine binding site. The rates of MTSET modification were significantly reduced by spermine in I176C mutants, indicating that site 176 is located internally to D172 and that the bound spermine hinders the reaction of MTSET with cysteine at site 176. Spermidine, putrescine and Mg2+ also decreased MTSET modification at site 176. The order of effect is putrescine > spermidine ∼ spermine ≈ Mg2+. To account for the electrostatic and physical repulsion between MTSET and polyamines, possible locations of polyamines in the pore are discussed. In D172C mutants, the spermine that bound to sites 224 and 299 completely inhibited channels at +40 mV, yet MTSET remained accessible to site 172. In addition, in the D172C mutant, spermine did not affect the exit rate of Ba2+ bound to the threonine at the site 141. These results indicate that spermine bound at the cytoplasmic pore induces channel closure at positions 141‐172. The effects of spermine on the accessibility of amino acids in the pore may shed light on the structural and functional relationships of the Kir2.1 channels during inward rectification.


This chapter offers seven perspectives, and a conclusion, on what is, arguably, the 'thorniest' issue in contemporary EU-China relations: the human rights question. The study examines a number of fundamental ambiguities in Sino-European relations, and points to the legacies of past civilisational encounters, in as far as they continue to have an impact on current EU-China interaction ('dualities', 'encounters'). The chapter then briefly discusses how the EU-China dialogue can be conceptualised from the point of view of international relations theory and discourse in China and Europe ('embeddings', 'discourses'). The essay proceeds to an analysis of the role of ideas, identity-politics and perceptions in EU-China human rights discussions and examines how EU China foreign policy can be understood to be constructed around some key elements and frameworks ('identities', 'pathways'). The chapter closes by emphasising the roles of intellectual exchange and knowledge-based co-operation and by offering a brief closing assessment of the likely future course of EU-China debates over human rights ('connectivities', 'appraisals').


OBJECTIVE
Because most programs serve either children and their families or adults, a critical component of service and treatment continuity in mental health and related services for individuals transitioning into adulthood (ages 14-25) is coordination across programs on either side of the adult age divide.

METHODS
This study was conducted in Clark County, Washington, a community that had received a Partnership for Youth Transition grant from the Federal Center for Mental Health Services. Social Network Analysis methodology was used to describe the strength and direction of each organization's relationship to other organizations in the transition network. Interviews were conducted before grant implementation (n=103) and again four years later (n=99).

RESULTS
The findings of the study revealed significant changes in the nature of relationships between organizations over time. While the overall density of the transition service network remained stable, specific ways of connecting did change. Some activities became more decentralized while others became more inclusive as evidenced by the increase in size of the largest K-core. This was particularly true for the activity of "receiving referrals." These changes reflected more direct contact between child and adult serving organizations.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE
The two separate child and adult systems identified at baseline appeared more integrated by the end of the grant period. Having greater connectivity among all organizations regardless of ages served should benefit youth and young adults of transition age. This study provides further evidence that Social Network Analysis is a useful method for measuring change in service system integration over time.


This paper develops power control algorithms for energy efficiency (EE) maximization (measured in bit/Joule) in wireless networks. Unlike previous related works, minimum-rate constraints are imposed and the signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio takes a more general expression, which allows one to encompass some of the most promising 5G candidate technologies. Both network-centric and user-centric EE maximizations are considered. In the network-centric scenario, the maximization of the global EE and the minimum EE of the network is performed. Unlike previous contributions, we develop centralized algorithms that are guaranteed to converge, with affordable computational complexity, to a Karush-Kuhn-Tucker point of the considered non-convex optimization problems. Moreover, closed-form feasibility conditions are derived. In the user-centric scenario, game theory is used to study the equilibria of the network and to derive convergent power control algorithms, which can be implemented in a fully decentralized fashion. Both scenarios above are studied under the assumption that single or multiple resource blocks are employed for data transmission. Numerical results assess the performance of the proposed solutions, analyzing the impact of minimum-rate constraints, and comparing the network-centric and user-centric approaches.


In this fascinating book, Sandy Black charts the development of knitting, from domestic handcraft to one of the most sophisticated computer controlled textile production processes used in high fashion. Using stunning new photography, Knitting draws on the V&A's superlative collection of knitted fashions and artefacts, ranging from commonplace articles of everyday use to virtuoso examples of the knitter's craft, including finely knit and embroidered silk stockings, intricate lacewear, Victorian beaded bags and knitted dresses from designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier and Julien Macdonald. It will inform and inspire all those interested in this popular craft and thriving industry.


There are vast differences between discovery of hard-copy documents and those stored electronically, and the difference should be recognized THE USE of electronic methods to create, transmit and store information has changed dramatically the way in which document retrieval and production in discovery should be viewed. Last October, the U.S. Judicial Conference's Federal Civil Rules Advisory Committee, through its Discovery Subcommittee, met to hear testimony for and against the proposition that the current problems with electronic discovery warrant changes in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.(1) Although a few of the testifying witnesses supported change, several representatives of bar groups and the judiciary did not see any need for immediate action. But there is an urgent need to treat the discovery of electronic records differently from traditional documents, and amendments to the Federal Rules are necessary to help impose order in an area of the law that is both unpredictable and increasingly subject to abuse. ELECTRONIC RECORDS ARE DIFFERENT The subcommittee has asked for comments on whether the use of electronic records represents a mere evolution in the discovery regime or whether it has fundamentally changed the landscape of discovery such that amendments to the rules are warranted. Two major differences create a need for the subcommittee to act and propose a different set of discovery rules. First, the sheer volume of information available in the electronic context is materially different. Take, for example, the matter of routine inter-office communications. The use of electronic mail has increased geometrically the number of places where "copies" of those types of documents may be located. Instead of merely residing in filing cabinets filled with hard copies, electronic documents may exist both in systems designed to retain and manage such records, as well as in systems not intended for that purpose. "Copies" of electronic records may be heroically retrieved from locations not ordinarily available to the persons engaged in such communications. For instance, part or all of "deleted" documents may be reconstructed from the hard drives of originating personal computers or from network servers relating to the computers. Such documents or document fragments also may be reconstructed from the personal computers or servers of recipients. Additionally, copies might be retrieved from "back-up" tapes that are created daily, weekly or monthly for disaster recovery purposes. The costs, including the burden and inconvenience to the ordinary operation of a business enterprise, could be enormous if all possible locations must be searched. If multiple litigation occurs in overlapping time frames, the costs would increase geometrically. These and other practical problems are not readily apparent to some courts, which have failed to perceive that different burdens exist with respect to electronic records.(2) A second major difference is the entirely new class of "embedded" information that may be available in the electronic discovery world. Obtaining this information, which may include such data as editing histories or creation and access dates, usually requires the application of forensic technologies and can increase discovery costs substantially. It is yet to be seen whether this type of electronic information is within the scope of discovery, and it may be necessary to clarify definitions in the rules relevant to this information.(3) In short, whether acknowledged or not, the retrieval of electronic information for purposes of discovery is different in kind and burden from the efforts associated with hard-copy discovery. FAILURE TO DIFFERENTIATE To protect against discovery abuse, Rule 26(c) allows issuance of "protective" orders, and courts are directed by Rule 26(b)(2) to balance the likely benefit against the burden or expense to the producing party on a case-by-case basis. …


Understanding the patterns and mechanisms of the process of desistance from criminal activity is imperative for the development of effective sanctions and legal policy. Methodological challenges in the analysis of longitudinal criminal behaviour data include the need to develop methods for multivariate longitudinal discrete data, incorporating modulating exposure variables and several possible sources of zero-inflation. We develop new tools for zero-heavy joint outcome analysis which address these challenges and provide novel insights on processes related to offending patterns. Comparisons with existing approaches demonstrate the benefits of utilizing modeling frameworks which incorporate distinct sources of zeros. An additional concern in this context is heaping of self-reported counts where recorded counts are rounded to different levels of precision. Alternatively, more accurate data that is less burdensome on participants to record may be obtained by collecting information on presence/absence of events at periodic assessments. We compare these two study designs in the context of self-reported data related to criminal behaviour and provide insights on choice of design when heaping is expected. The contributions of this research work include the following: (i) Developing a general framework for joint modeling of multiple longitudinal zero-inflated count outcomes which incorporates a variety of probabilistic structures on the zero counts. (ii) Accommodating a subgroup of subjects who are not at-risk to engage in a particular outcome (iii) Incorporating the effect of a time-dependent exposure variable in settings where some outcomes are prohibited during exposure to a treatment. (iv) Illustrating the extent to which heaping of zero-inflated counts, arising from a variety of heaping mechanisms, can introduce bias, impeding the identification of important risk factors (v) Identifying situations where there is very little loss of efficiency in the analysis of presence/absence data, depending on the partition of the time for the presence/absence records and the underlying rate of events. (vi) Providing recommendations on the design of studies when heaping is a concern. (vii) Modeling of multiple longitudinal binary outcomes where a mixture model approach allows differential rates of recurrence of i events, and where the underlying process generating events may resolve.


ABSTRACT Digital technologies enable small-scale farmers to reduce some constraints to participate in Agriculture Value Chains (AVCs). Small-scale farmers face significant challenges and barriers to adopting digital technology. This study contributes to the literature on digital development in three ways: present the economic, political, and social factors affecting digital adoption in the AVCs; highlight the implications for governance and institutional challenges;adds knowledge to the analytical value of the Choice Frameworkto study digital technology adoption. This paper after identifying more than 100 papers and articles, uses a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) aligned with Cooper's [(2010). Research synthesis and meta-analysis: A step-by-step approach (5th ed.). Sage] approach to examine 52 articles published from 2014 to 2019, ultimately selecting the most relevant 36 studies. The study uses the Choice Framework that operationalizes the Capabilities Approach (CA) as a theoretical window for this research. Papers were classified into four different categories: economic; political; social factors; institutional/governance. The findings show: - the role of the state in governance and institutional support is critical to facilitate the collaboration and participation of different actors;-the importance to develop a comprehensive localized developmental implementation framework that can support the adoption of digital solutions to support small-scale farmers. Limitations for this study are highlighted and areas for further research are suggested.


Article 22 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) of the WTO offers, as last resort countermeasures, withdrawal of the concessions the state parties had agreed to in their schedules of commitments. The problem is that such a withdrawal of concessions would have very little impact on the economy and consequently on the behaviour of the respondent state if that party happened to be a developed state vis-A -vis a small, developing country. To deal with this situation a remedy of "collective countermeasures†, contained in Article 54 of the Draft Articles on State Responsibility of the International Law Commission (ILC), has been proposed; it has been argued that this remedy should apply, as a general principle of public international law, as a last resort in WTO disputes. The counter-arguments are, first, that the WTO regime is a self-contained regime and therefore the general principles of international law do not apply in this case, and, second, that the WTO legal system is based on a distinct idea of "compliance†with WTO rules as a primary remedy, as opposed to reparative and punitive justice. The concept of "compliance†with WTO rules is akin to the concept of "liberalization†, which is a linchpin of the WTO multilateral system. Therefore the idea of "collective countermeasures†or, in other words, "collective punishment†is repugnant to the principles of WTO law, and it is argued that the present remedies under Article 22 of the DSU are adequate.


Nectar-feeding birds are commonly the most abundant birds in Australian eucalypt forests and woodlands, where they play a key role as pollinators of native plants. Among the nectar-feeders, honeyeaters (Meliphagidae) are particularly aggressive and may exclude other birds from the habitats they occupy thereby affecting the composition of avian communities and the distribution of species on a landscape scale. Such behaviour has cascading effects on ecosystems, changing the abundances and kinds of plant-eating arthropods. A comprehensive knowledge of the ecology of honeyeaters is therefore basic to the conservation management of Australia's natural environments. In this paper, we describe the foraging ecology of honeyeaters in the Great Western Woodland (GWW) during the spring, comparing the use of resources between species and locations. Species of honeyeaters in the GWW differ morphologically, and in social and dispersive behaviour, but aggregate in multi-species flocks on blossoming eucalypts (Eucalyptus spp.), the main source of nectar. There are differences among the species of honeyeaters in the eucalypts frequented as nectar sources, with these differences reflecting differences among species in habitat. Species also differ in foraging manoeuvres (the way food is taken), substrates, and heights, as well as the plant species visited when feeding on foods other than nectar (e.g., lerp, arthropods, and fruit). The use of substrates and foraging manoeuvres differed between locations. Differences in foraging ecology between locations were primarily related to differences in flowering phenology and vegetation structure (e.g., height, type of bark) and floristics, which in turn affected the food resources available to honeyeaters. Our observations support arguments that the long-term conservation of nectar-feeders cannot be achieved by relying on a fragmented system of widely dispersed conservation reserves. This is especially true in an era of accelerated climate change. Instead, a landscape scale, if not a continental scale, approach to ecosystem conservation that emphasizes habitat connectivity is required.


We examine the impact of radiotherapy in the treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) of the skin. Data at two Canadian institutions (Allan Blair Cancer Centre and London Regional Cancer Program) were collected and charts were retrieved from the registry of 1987 to 2005. A total of 79 patients with definite MCC were studied. All except three had a primary skin lesion. Six patients presented with nodal metastases and three patients with distant metastases. Fourteen patients were referred to the cancer centers at the time of recurrence: 2/14 with local recurrence, 8/14 with nodal recurrence, 2/14 with both local and nodal recurrence, and 2/14 with distant recurrence. The series consisted of 40 males and 39 females with a median age of 80 years (range 48-94). The median follow up was 21 months (range 0.5-150.4). Twenty-two patients (group A) received radiotherapy at the time of presentation,21 being post-operative adjuvant treatment and one being primary treatment without surgery. The 5-year cause-specific survival rate (CSSR) was 42%. The 5-year rates equals the 10-year rate since the CSSR plateaus at a survival of 4.5 years and thereafter, patients died from causes other than MCC. The 5-year overall survival rate (OSR) was 19% for group A. Fifty-seven patients (group B) had surgery alone without post-operative adjuvant radiotherapy. 5-year and 10-year CSSRs were both 63% (P=0.8, using the logrank test when comparing the two groups of patients). The 5-year OSR was 30% and the 10-year OSR was 13% (P=0.6, group A versus group B). Morbidity from radiotherapy was minimal. Only one patient with an ankle lesion did not take the skin graft well and had drainage for one year before healing. One patient had lymphoedema of the arm (which required a pressure garment) after axillary dissection and radiotherapy of 50 Gy in 25 fractions over 35 days. Radiotherapy after surgical excision is well tolerated. It is recommended if there are high risk factors for recurrence and radiotherapy should be started as soon as possible after referral.


This paper documents the temporal and spatial incidence of veldfire in the Etosha National Park from 1970-1979. The data analysed indicate that most veld-fim are caused by lightning and occur chiefly from October-December. There were three times as many naturally caused fires in 1975- 1979 as in the preceding five-year period. Virtually all vegetated areas of the park burned at least once during the period 1970-1979. These and other findings are discussed in relation to climate and management practices.


Necrotising enterocolitis is a serious disorder in preterm infants with a mortality of up to 60%. Therefore, early and precise diagnosis and rapid initiation of proper treatment are essential. Clinically suspected diagnosis is usually confirmed by typical findings on plain abdominal radiograph, for example, pneumatosis intestinalis, portal venous gas and, in case of intestinal perforation, pneumoperitoneum. Recently, there has been growing evidence that with real-time ultrasound, intramural air and portal gas can be better detected than with x-ray. Furthermore, ultrasound is able to assess the bowel wall directly and detect bowel wall thickening or thinning, reduced peristalsis or disturbed bowel wall perfusion. Intra-abdominal fluid, both intraluminal or extraluminal is also visible. However, data regarding the diagnostic validity and prognostic value of abdominal ultrasound are limited and often focused on a single finding rather than a combination of them. Additionally, until now, ultrasound findings seem to have little influence on therapeutic decisions. Therefore, the value of abdominal ultrasound in the diagnosis of necrotising enterocolitis has to be determined by further studies until its use can be generally recommended.


The numerical simulation and estimation of flows inside channels is an essential tool for various applications due to the critical contribution in pipe control and inspection issues. In the present paper a simple, flexible and accurate numerical methodology is developed for the incompressible flows study inside sudden expansion pipes. Due to the nature of the physical domain the Cartesian grid approach is indicated for the domain discretization while it is combined with a block nested refinement technique in order to overcome the large number of computational cells are created due to the high aspect ratio of the specific problems. We develop testing of the refinement technique concerning the accuracy in various refinement factors as well as the step angle influence to the flow behavior and characteristics inside the pipe. The Navier-Stokes equations are solved using third accuracy upwind schemes in combination with the artificial compressibility technique for the pressure and the flux-vector splitting technique for the relating vectors. The flow behavior and variables are presented for various Reynolds numbers and step angle values in order to identify the optimum relation among expansion ratio, flow rate and separation zones. Corresponded results by the literature and by other numerical techniques are used for validation purposes presenting accepted convergence. Key-words: flow in pipes, sudden expansion, block nested grids, Navier-Stokes equations


Concentrations of 119 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and 13 perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in marine sediments measured throughout Puget Sound (n = 10) and Bellingham Bay (n = 30), Washington, USA, are reported. These data are among the first measurements of PPCPs and PFASs in marine sediments from the Pacific Northwest and provide a comparison to previous measurements of these chemicals in influent, effluent, and biosolids from municipal wastewater treatment plants throughout the region. The concentrations of both PPCPs and PFASs in sediments from Puget Sound and Bellingham Bay ranged from very low to non‐detectable for most compounds. Only 14 of the 119 PPCPs and 3 of 13 PFASs were quantifiable in sediments. Diphenhydramine (an antihistamine) was most frequently detected (87.5% of samples), with a maximum concentration of 4.81 ng/g dry weight and an estimated mean detected concentration of 1.68 ng/g. Triclocarban (an antibacterial) was detected in 35.0% of the samples, with a maximum concentration of 16.6 ng/g dry weight. Perfluoroalkyl substances were detected in 2.5% of analyses. Perfluorobutanoate, perfluorooctane sulfonate, and perfluorooctane sulfonamide were detected in 7, 5, and 1 sample(s) each, respectively, with the highest concentrations observed for perfluorooctane sulfonate (1.5 ng/g). Detected concentrations were often highest within the industrial harbor in Bellingham Bay and near the cities of Seattle and Bremerton. Environ Toxicol Chem 2013;32:1701–1710. © 2013 SETAC


Isocyanates have been a leading chemical cause of occupational asthma since their utility for generating polyurethane was first recognized over 60 years ago, yet the mechanisms of isocyanate asthma pathogenesis remain unclear. The present study provides in vivo evidence that a GSH mediated pathway underlies asthma-like eosinophilic inflammatory responses to respiratory tract isocyanate exposure. In naïve mice, a mixture of GSH reaction products with the chemical allergen, methylene-diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), induced innate immune responses, characterized by significantly increased airway levels of Chitinase YM-1 and IL-12/IL-23β (but not α) subunit. However, in mice immunologically sensitized to MDI via prior skin exposure, identical GSH-MDI doses induced substantially greater inflammatory responses, including significantly increased airway eosinophil numbers and mucus production, along with IL-12/IL-23β, chitinases, and other indicators of alternative macrophage activation. The "self"-protein albumin in mouse airway fluid was uniquely modified by GSH-MDI at position (414)K, a preferred site of MDI reactivity on human albumin. The (414)K-MDI conjugation appears to covalently cross-link GSH to albumin via GSH's NH2-terminus, a unique conformation possibly resulting from cyclized mono(GSH)-MDI or asymmetric (S,N'-linked) bis(GSH)-MDI conjugates. Together, the data support a possible thiol mediated transcarbamoylating mechanism linking MDI exposure to pathogenic eosinophilic inflammatory responses.


This paper examines the mechanisms by which a polymer is dispersed in a co-rotating twin-screw extruder. An experimental investigation of the morphological evolution has been carried out on a 45-mm co-rotating twin-screw extruder. Polyethylene/polystyrene (PE/PS) blends in the low concentration range (i.e., 5-15 wt% of PE) were used as a model system. The following general trends were observed. First, the minor phase right after melting is predominantly in a fibrillar form. Secondly, droplet and fiber diameter at this early stage of compounding are already in the micron or sub-micron range. Even though a wide variety of mixing section configurations were used, the fibers created in the early compounding stages were relatively stable throughout extrusion. Morphological evolution after melting must therefore be discussed in terms of variation in the fiber fraction (i.e., fiber to droplet transition) rather than in a change in particle diameter. A control volume model for the flow in kneading blocks is used to interpret the morphological results and to predict the deformation and breakup of dispersed phase fibers under shear and in absence of coalescence. Theoretical results indicate that fiber breakup under shear is not likely in the kneading block under the normal processing conditions, which is confirmed by morphological observations made at the mixing section exit. The influence of several geometrical parameters on mixing and pumping in kneading blocks is also discussed with the use of flow model results.


This essay responds to "The Sex Bureaucracy," in which Jacob Gersen and Jeannie Suk identify a "bureaucratic turn in sex regulation" — one that has expanded the reach of sexual regulation to include "nonviolent, non-harassing, voluntary sexual conduct" (or in their words, "ordinary sex"). In their view, the Department of Education's campaign against sexual assault on college campuses epitomizes this bureaucratic shift. While applauding the authors' attention to the intersection of sexuality and governance, we challenge their account of the "bureaucratic turn" as an unprecedented event. Drawing on examples from across U.S. history, we show how administrative agencies and unelected bureaucrats have persistently and robustly regulated sex and sexuality, including "ordinary sex." Building on this more historical and nuanced portrait of America's "sex bureaucracy," we then identify what is truly new and striking about the slice that Gersen and Suk explore. In the Department of Education's regulation of sex, we see clearly how consent — and specifically, affirmative consent — has replaced marriage as the boundary marker between licit and illicit sexual conduct. At a time when marriage no longer holds force as the distinguishing feature of lawful sex and sexuality, enthusiastic, unambivalent expressions of consent provide the state with documentable signals of appropriate sex and sexuality, while also, we speculate, reinforcing an ascendant neoliberal logic of citizenship and governance. In short, the "sex bureaucracy" is old, but innovative, and very much deserving of our scrutiny.


The Influence of Blood Glucose Fluctuation Switching from Once-Weekly GLP-1 to Once-Weekly DPP-4 Inhibitors. Abstract Omarigliptin is a new once-weekly DPP-4 inhibitor developed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Once-weekly oral administration of omarigliptin reduces dosing frequencies and improves treatment adherence, and potentially contributes to achieving optimal glycemic control compared with once-daily DPP-4 inhibitors. We investigated the effect of omarigliptin on blood glucose fluctuation compared with once-weekly injection dulaglutide in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Fast blood glucose profiles in Self-Monitoring Blood Glucose (SMBG) were 116.5±10.7 (omarigliptin), and 158.2±43.0 (dulaglutide), respectively. Omarigliptin was initiated with the dose of 25 mg weekly. Blood glucose fluctuation was significant improved after switching from dulaglutide to omarigliptin.


Many factors impacted the credit risk environment in the past decade, the most significant of which were the Basel II Capital Accord requirements. Foremost in the financial industry's focus was, and still is, the implementation of these requirements and their associated outcomes. In the aftermath of the Basel II implementation, credit risk managers' focus will return to understanding the portfolio philosophy in managing their credit portfolios. They will be required to adapt an integrated risk management framework, taking into account the interdependence of various building blocks, data fields and model outcomes. This paper develops and proposes a portfolio approach to the management of loan portfolios within an integrated risk management framework. The significance of this approach for the credit portfolio risk management environment and its role in maximising shareholder value are highlighted.


The shear strength of masonry is the function of many factors, but current research indicates
that bond quality is the primary factor. The bond strength is a key parameter representing
structural integrity and water-tightness of the masonry system. However, masonry is
characterized by low bond strength, and is quite a complex material to analyse due to its
inherent variations. The quality of the bond is reliant on, the weather, the quality of the
workmanship and the quality of materials used.
Therefore, this study investigated ways of improving the bond performance of mortar joints by
the use of admixtures as well as examining the efficacy of Acoustic Emission (AE) techniques
in monitoring fracture mechanisms. Laboratory based Acoustic Emission (AE) monitory
techniques were used on masonry triplets under static and repeated shear loading, in order to
investigate the shear bond strength characteristics, and to identify a mortar that will exhibit the
long-term properties needed for a masonry structure to be subjected to cyclic loading, such as
masonry arch bridges. The FE micro-modelling method was used to predict the shear
behaviour of the triplet. Moreover, Photo-elastic analyses were used to investigate the stress
distributions within the triplets under shear stress, in order to check the output from FE
analyses.
The investigation showed that the addition of SBR to mortar improves its performance under
both static and cyclic loading when compared to the control sample, all in contrast to the
addition of Latex 114 admixture which had the opposite effect. Additionally, the AE technique
was found to be useful tool in providing valuable data about the full fracture behaviour during
static and cyclic loading. The FE analyses proved to be capable of predicting shear strength to
a reasonable degree of accuracy. The Photo-elastic technique was found to be a reliable and
simple method of checking the stress profile output from the FE analyses.


Additive manufacturing by laser sintering is able to produce high resolution metal constructs for orthopedic and dental implants. In this study, we used a human trabecular bone template to design and manufacture Ti-6Al-4V constructs with varying porosity via laser sintering. Characterization of constructs revealed interconnected porosities ranging from 15–70% with compressive moduli of 2579–3693 MPa. These constructs with macro porosity were further surface-treated to create a desirable multi-scale micro-/nano-roughness, which has been shown to enhance the osseointegration process. Osteoblasts (MG63 cells) exhibited high viability when grown on the constructs. Proliferation (DNA) and alkaline phosphatase specific activity, an early differentiation marker, decreased as porosity increased, while osteocalcin, a late differentiation marker, as well as osteoprotegerin, vascular endothelial growth factor and bone morphogenetic proteins 2 and 4 increased with increasing porosity. Three-dimensional (3D) constructs with the highest porosity and surface modification supported the greatest osteoblast differentiation and local factor production. These results indicate that additively manufactured 3D porous constructs mimicking human trabecular bone and produced with additional surface treatment can be customized for increased osteoblast response. Increased factors for osteoblast maturation and differentiation on high porosity constructs suggest the enhanced performance of these surfaces for increasing osseointegration in vivo.


Wireless ad hoc networks are the networks with no infrastructure and that have limited battery. It is necessary that the nodes in the network use their energies efficiently. In this study, on-demand and position based algorithms that minimize end-to-end packet delays and that use their node energies most effectively are proposed. The proposed algorithm helps to transport packets to their destinations by keeping the data transfer power of nodes in the lowest level. The algorithm is exposed to a performance evaluation test via a simulation program that is developed in MATLAB.


Mushrooms have long been used for medicinal and food purposes for over a thousand years, but a complete elucidation of the health-promoting properties of mushrooms through regulating gut microbiota has not yet been fully exploited. Mushrooms comprise a vast, and yet largely untapped, source of powerful new pharmaceutical substances. Mushrooms have been used in health care for treating simple and common diseases, like skin diseases and pandemic diseases like AIDS. This review is aimed at accumulating the health-promoting benefits of edible mushrooms through gut microbiota. Mushrooms are proven to possess anti-allergic, anti-cholesterol, anti-tumor, and anti-cancer properties. Mushrooms are rich in carbohydrates, like chitin, hemicellulose, β and α-glucans, mannans, xylans, and galactans, which make them the right choice for prebiotics. Mushrooms act as a prebiotics to stimulate the growth of gut microbiota, conferring health benefits to the host. In the present review, we have summarized the beneficial activities of various mushrooms on gut microbiota via the inhibition of exogenous pathogens and, thus, improving the host health.


The final years of the nineteenth century were an important period in the development of the English educational system as the legislation and reforms formed the foundations of the present system. The last occupant of the office of Vice-President of the Committee of Council on Education, Sir John Gorst (1835-1916), was involved with many of these measures. He had been actively involved in the promotion of reforms in education and child welfare since his stay in New Zealand in 1860-3, and continued this interest and work after he lost office in 1902. Membership of the Fourth Party in 1880-4 ensured prominence for his early parliamentary career but as time passed his characteristically forthright manner and progressive ideas earned him the hostility of the Conservative party leaders but the approbation of the social reformers. Gorst has, however, been curiously neglected by historians of education and there has as yet been no detailed study of his career. This thesis is an attempt to fill this gap by describing and evaluating his work, and whilst the main part of the thesis is concerned with Gorst's efforts and achievements during the period 1895-1906, attention is also paid to his earlier career and his various roles connected with improving the quality of the educational provision for the children of the nation.


We present Climb, an experimental generic image processing library written in Common Lisp. Most image processing libraries are developed in static languages such as C or C++ (often for performance reasons). The motivation behind Climb is to provide an alternative view of the same domain, from the perspective of dynamic languages. More precisely, the main goal of Climb is to explore the dynamic way(s) of addressing the question of genericity, while applying the research to a concrete domain. Although still a prototype, Climb already features several levels of genericity and ships with a set of built-in algorithms as well as means to combine them.


The paper examines the approaches to management and settlement of inter-state disputes and their implications for regional collaboration in the Southeast Asian Region. The focus of the paper is on approaches to management and settlement of border and territorial disputes between the ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). First the paper provides an overview of achievements in management and settlement as well as of remaining challenges of unsettled disputes. Then the paper outlines the core elements of ASEAN's framework of dispute settlement mechanisms. In assessing the implications for regional collaboration, the focal point of analysis is on the relationship between bilateral approaches and the regional framework for dispute settlement established through ASEAN. A key dimension is an assessment of whether bilateral approaches strengthen or weaken the ASEAN framework.


This article discusses the development of web archiving in Singapore and its relationship to copyright law. The author describes legal deposit, its definition and historical development, the differences between voluntary and compulsory legal deposit, and the practices of such approaches within the National Library of Singapore. It highlights two main projects, the Singapore Memory Project and Web Archive Singapore (WAS). The paper analyses how the implementation of legal deposit for preserving web material creates a complex relationship between copyright and digital heritage, and describes difficulties that cover the information lifecycle of web archiving. Finally, the paper presents a set of conclusions and recommendations regarding the need for modifying copyright legislation to foster research activities within Singapore's knowledge economy.


Rising list prices are often used to illustrate the burden of prescription drug spending, but payers routinely negotiate rebates from manufacturers that generate differences between list and net prices. List prices are easily available and affect patient cost-sharing, but net prices are confidential and affect innovation incentives. We use novel data on medicines sold in a retail setting to quantify rebate growth, the sensitivity of pharmaceutical price indices to list versus net prices, and contribution of net price growth to revenue growth. From 2012 to 2017, we find average rebates increased from 32% to 48%, owing entirely to growth in rebate-levels over a product lifetime rather than shifts towards high rebate products. Annual inflation of list prices was 12% while that of net prices was 3%, implying that financial rewards to manufacturers per unit sold have not grown proportionally to list prices. This pattern is mirrored in 19 of the 20 top drug classes by revenue including insulins, where list and net price inflation were 16% and 2% annually respectively. Finally, we find price growth explains 76% of revenue growth when measured by list prices but 31% of revenue growth when measured by net prices. Moreover, new product entry is the most important factor affecting pharmaceutical revenue growth. These findings provide a cautionary note on using list prices for policy analysis.


Inspiraling binary neutron stars (BNSs) are expected to be one of the most significant sources of gravitational-wave signals for the new generation of advanced ground-based detectors. We investigate how well we could hope to measure properties of these binaries using the Advanced LIGO detectors, which began operation in September 2015. We study an astrophysically motivated population of sources (binary components with masses and spins of less than 0.05) using the full LIGO analysis pipeline. While this simulated population covers the observed range of potential BNS sources, we do not exclude the possibility of sources with parameters outside these ranges; given the existing uncertainty in distributions of mass and spin, it is critical that analyses account for the full range of possible mass and spin configurations. We find that conservative prior assumptions on neutron-star mass and spin lead to average fractional uncertainties in component masses of ∼16%, with little constraint on spins (the median 90% upper limit on the spin of the more massive component is ∼0.7). Stronger prior constraints on neutron-star spins can further constrain mass estimates but only marginally. However, we find that the sky position and luminosity distance for these sources are not influenced by the inclusion of spin; therefore, if LIGO detects a low-spin population of BNS sources, less computationally expensive results calculated neglecting spin will be sufficient for guiding electromagnetic follow-up.


In cryptographic applications, there is often a need for protecting privacy of users besides integrity of message transmitted in a public channel. In information-theoretic (or unconditional) security setting, a model of GA-codes (Group Authentication codes) which can ensure both the integrity of the message and the anonymity for senders was proposed. In this model, there are multiple senders and a single receiver. And, one of the senders can generate an authenticated message anonymously. That is, the receiver can verify the validity of the authenticated message, but he cannot specify the sender of it. In GA-codes, it is assumed that both the sender and receiver are honest. However, it may be unnatural and an ideal assumption in several situations. In this paper, we remove the assumption and newly propose a formal definition (i.e., the model and security definitions) of GA2-codes (Group Authentication codes with Arbitration). In GA2-codes, it is assumed that the sender or the receiver can be dishonest and thus a dispute between them may occur. To resolve such a dispute, we introduce an honest arbiter in GA2-codes. This model can be considered as natural extension of that of both the GAcodes and the traditional A2-codes (Authentication codes with Arbitration). In addition, we propose a construction which meets our security definition of GA2-codes by using polynomials over finite fields. We also consider the case that the arbiter is not always honest and call this model GA3-codes (GA2codes with protection against arbiter's attack), which is further extension of GA2-codes and be naturally considered from a similar setting of the traditional A3-codes (A2-code with protection against arbiter's attack).


The study of Theodor Adorno has largely ignored or dismissed the enigmatic and provocative moments in his writing on the body. Dialectics of the Body corrects this gap by arguing that Adorno's analysis of reified society emanates and returns to the body and that hope and desire are present throughout Adorno's philosophy.


We report that the negative material responses of acoustic metamaterials can lead to a plethora of surface resonant states. We determine that negative effective-mass density is the necessary condition for the existence of surface states on acoustic metamaterials. We offer the microscopic picture of these unique surface states; in addition, we find that these surface excitations enhance the transmission of evanescent pressure fields across the metamaterial. The evanescent pressure fields scattered from an object can be resonantly coupled and enhanced at the surface of the acoustic metamaterial, resulting in an image with resolution below the diffraction limit. This concept of acoustic superlens opens exciting opportunities to design acoustic metamaterials for ultrasonic imaging.


The findings of the Jali Commission on Conditions in South African Prisons, and particularly the Grootvlei scandal, awake everyone all to the reality that ethics is being seriously undermined and denied the South African prison practice. It changed the face of a once proud and dignified South African Department of Correctional Services into a benighted monstrosity.
Taking the content of the previous paragraph and recent news headlines on conditions in South African prisons into consideration, it is evident that there is an urgent need to speak about ethics in corrections and to endeavour to make it work in South African prisons. The crux of the matter is that we have developed awesome hardware, powerful weapons, thousands of new prisons and a cornucopia of new get-tough legislation, but we have not paid similar detailed attention to ethics.
The fact of the matter is that a correctional environment must have an ethical basis because it deals with people. An ethical basis is something that corresponds to values, norms and standards. Ethics in corrections also determine the correctional official's attitude to work, also known as work ethics. It boils down to principled thinking which takes place when people decide to tell the truth, to respect other's rights and to obey a set of moral guidelines - things which will enable the correctional official to act professionally at all times.
In this article the author strives towards creating an ethical system based on the knowledge, the skills and the attitude needed to act ethically. The intention is to include these in the vision, mission and day-to-day operations of correctional facilities. It represents an effort to create an organisation culture, based on ethical principles, to counteract the fast-growing tentacles of corruption in the South African correctional system.


See also the event "China-Russia relations and their impact on Europe" held on 21 June 2016. EU countries are complementary to Russia on the Chinese market. However, Chinese exports are increasingly relevant substitutes for EU exports on the Russian market. This means that an increase in China-Russia economic cooperation should have a negative impact on European exports. The authors simulate a scenario in which trade tariffs between Russia and China are eliminated, which is found to reduce EU exports to Russia. Finally, a more granular approach to the question analyses which sectors in Europe will be more affected by the increasing economic links between China and Russia, and finds that electronic machinery, equipment and machinery, and nuclear reactors will be particularly affected. Such findings obviously show quickly China is moving up the ladder in terms of export structure and how strategically important it is for Europe to continue upgrading its industry to compete at the highest level of that ladder.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Diminished folate status is associated with enhanced colorectal carcinogenesis. This study investigated the potential chemopreventive role of dietary folate in the dimethylhydrazine colorectal cancer model. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rats were fed diets containing either 0, 2 (daily dietary requirement), 8 or 40 mg folate/kg diet for 20 weeks. After five weeks of diet, rats were injected with dimethyl-hydrazine (44 mg/kg) weekly for 15 weeks. Fifteen weeks after the first injection of dimethylhydrazine, all rats were killed. Folate status was determined, and the entire colorectum from each rat was analysed for macroscopic and microscopic neoplasms. RESULTS: Plasma and colonic folate concentrations correlated directly with dietary folate levels (p < 0.005). The incidence of microscopic neoplasms was similar among the four groups. However, the incidence and the average number of macroscopic tumours per rat decreased progressively with increasing dietary folate levels up to 8 mg/kg diet (p < 0.05). In the strongly procarcinogenic milieu used in this study, folate supplementation at 20 times the basal requirement was associated with rates of macroscopic tumour development that were intermediate, and not statistically distinct, from rates observed at either 0 or 8 mg/kg diet. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that in this rat model, (a) increasing dietary folate up to four times the basal requirement leads to a progressive reduction in the evolution of macroscopic neoplasms from microscopic foci; and (b) folate supplementation beyond four times the requirement does not convey further benefit.