The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanism of Cd-tolerance in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC 6301 and to establish whether the prokaryotic metallothionein (MT) locus, smt, is involved. Cd-tolerant cell lines of Synechococcus PCC 6301 were developed by step-wise selection, of a culture that had undergone prolonged maintenance in liquid medium. The Cd-tolerant cell lines AO.8, A1.3 and A1.7 (tolerant to 0.8, 1.3, 1.7 µM Cd, respectively) were phenotypically different to the non-selected line AO. Genomic DNA from AO and the Cd-tolerant lines AO.8, A1.3 and A1.7 was analysed by Southern hybridisation. A ca. 4-fold increase in hybridisation to radiolabelled smtA (prokaryotic metallothionein gene), relative to AO, was observed in genomic DNA from A1.7. Equivalent amounts of DNA were loaded onto each track, and no difference in hybridisation to a control gene, psaE (photosystem I gene), was observed. Indeed, the hybridisation of DNA from Al .7 to psaE was slightly less than that observed in AO. Genomic DNA isolated from AO, AO. 8, A1.3 and A1.7 was also analysed after 2, 4, 7 and 12 subcultures in the presence of the respective Cd concentrations. An increase in hybridisation to smtA, relative to AO, was observed in DNA from all Cd-tolerant cell lines. Additionally, unique additional restriction fragments, both larger and smaller than that in AO, were observed in DNA from A1.3 and A1.7. A similar restriction pattern was observed in 3 independent restrictions of DNA from A1.3 after 2 subcultures. Cd-tolerant cell lines were also developed from a 'clonal' culture of Synechococcus PCC 6301. An increase in tolerance was marked by an increase in growth lag, which reduced upon subsequent maintenance of the Cd-tolerant line in the presence of Cd. Genomic DNA from the non-selected line CO and Cd-tolerant lines C1.4, CI.8, C2.6 and C3.2 (tolerant to 1.4, 1.8, 2.6, 3.2 µM Cd, respectively) were analysed after 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 subcultures. In all the Cd-tolerant lines, an increase in hybridisation to smtA, and additional larger (ca. 11 kb) and smaller (ca. 5.45 kb) restriction fragments, relative to CO (ca. 5.8 kb), were observed. However, amplification and rearrangement in DNA from CI .4 were evident only after 2 subcultures. Additionally, restriction fragment equivalent in size to that observed in CO was lost in CI.8, C2.6 and C3.2, and the presence of Cd did not affect DNA restriction with Sah under in vitro and short term in vivo conditions. The rearrangement in Cd-tolerant line C3 .2 was observed on a minimal HindIII-SalI fragment (ca. 350 bp smaller than that in CO) and isolated from size-fractionated genomic libraries. The alteration was mapped by PCR to a 600 bp region in the 5' flank of smtA. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the clones identified a deletion of 352 bp within a region of 360 bp encoding the C- terminal end of smtB (repressor of smtA transcription), rendering it non-functional. Increased basal level of smtA expression (derepressed expression) and indications for complete loss of the excised fragment were observed in Cd-tolerant line C3.2. Rearrangement was detected in DNA from C3.2 even after maintenance in the absence of Cd for 3 subcultures. The clone bank pPLAN Bal-Ba7 and pPLAN B2 (carrying Bamm restriction fragments of Synechococcus PCC 7942 plasmids) were used to study the plasmid/chromosomal localisation of smtA. Weak hybridisation of pPLAN Ba2 to smtA was observed, but further Southern analysis of plasmid and genomic DNA suggested chromosomal localisation of smtA. PCR and Southern hybridisation were used to detect homologues of smtA in other cyanobacterial strains. Putative homologues were identified in Synechococcus PCC 7942, Synechococcus D562, Oscillatoria D814 and Synechocystis D840 (= PCC 6803) by heterologous probing. However, no hybridisation to smtA was observed in DNA isolated from Calothrix D184 and Microchaete D578.


The grounding system has an important role to maintain safe and reliable operation of highvoltage
(HV) power facility (usually substation). The main task of a grounding system is to
discharge maximum ground fault current expected into the soil, without exceeding safety
limits for touch and step voltages within the substation and the surrounding area.
It is desirable that the substation grounding provides a near zero resistance to remote earth.
The prevailing practice is to install a grounding grid of horizontal ground electrodes (buried
bare copper conductors) supplemented by a number of vertical ground rods connected to the
grid, and by a number of equipment grounding mats and interconnecting cables. The
grounding grid provides a common ground for the electrical equipment and for all metallic
structures at the substation. It also limits the surface potential gradient. Grounding is
traditionally modeled as a pure resistance. This is a good approximation at low frequencies,
but as the frequency gets higher, inductance starts to play an important role.
National and international standards give detailed guidelines for grounding system design, as
well as for testing, under power frequency conditions, but only limited recommendations for
high frequency and transient conditions are available.
The main performance metrics of the grounding system are: grounding grid integrity,
grounding system impedance, and touch and step voltage.
The performance metrics should be periodically tested. The goal is to perform the test when
the substation is in-service (to avoid interruption of service and costly downtime). Due to
conductive interference in the grounding system (usually several amperes, up to about 15 A),
caused by power frequency, its harmonics and background noise, the active HV substation is
an extremely challenging environment for the measurement on grounding system. This is
further compounded by the impact of very low impedance of the grounding system (typically
less than 0.5 Ω).
Essential data to calculate safety risks in advance is often not available. Measurements are
therefore an essential supplement to the theory. Unlike the theoretical approaches, empirical
approaches are not widely available in the literature due to the arduous work involved, the
difficulty to obtain permissions, and safety restrictions.
There is a continual interest in scientific community and standardization bodies to improve
the measurement of performance metrics of the grounding system. The drawbacks of actual
measurement methods are related to less or more subjectivity and requirements for high level
of test current (up to 100 A AC and up to 300 A DC). In this thesis, in order to avoid
mentioning drawbacks, we elaborated and experimentally verified the efficient methods.
The overall contribution of this thesis is the substantial enhancement of the grounding system
measurement by eliminating the current restrictions found in the IEEE standards 80 and 81,
respectively.
The original works, that constitute the core of this thesis, have been published in referring
publications.
This thesis is divided into three parts. Part I includes Chapters 2 and 3. Part II includes
Chapters 4 to 7. Part III contains Chapter 8.
Part I gives an extensive review of published literature related to the analytical and simulation
investigations of earth electrode systems. Part I also analyzes the existing methods for
measurement performance metrics of the grounding system. Critical review of the constraints
inherent in existing methods was given.
Part II includes original contributions of the thesis: new method for measurement of
grounding grid integrity (Ch.4); an effective method (so called FSM) for eliminating the
effect of conductive interference at power frequency (Ch. 5); new method for grounding
system impedance measurement (so called FOP-FSM) (Ch.6); new method for measurement
of touch and step voltage (so called FEM-FSM) (Ch.7). Our experiment-driven verification
approach of the proposed measurement methods is based on totally 49 power facilities
(voltage range: 110 kV, 220 kV and 400 kV) in Serbia.
Part III gives an extensive review of thesis results. Part III also proposes and elaborates
directions for further automation of the proposed measurement methods.


In this paper we present, analyse and critique an episode from a secondary school lesson involving an introduction to the definition of the scalar product. Although the teacher attempted to be explicit about the difference between a definition and a theorem, emphasizing that a definition was just an arbitrary assumption, a student rejected the teacher's definition in favour of his own alternative. With reference to this particular case, we seek to explore some ways in which teachers can introduce mathematical definitions to students so as to support, rather than attempt to circumvent, their mathematical sense making. In this regard, we believe that it is important to develop learning opportunities for students that help them to gain some appreciation of important structural and historical reasons that underpin the definitional choices made.


Large scale streaming systems aim to provide high throughput and low latency. They are often used to run mission-critical applications, and must be available 24x7. Thus such systems need to adapt to failures and inherent changes in workloads, with minimal impact on latency and throughput. Unfortunately, existing solutions require operators to choose between achieving low latency during normal operation and incurring minimal impact during adaptation. Continuous operator streaming systems, such as Naiad and Flink, provide low latency during normal execution but incur high overheads during adaptation (e.g., recovery), while micro-batch systems, such as Spark Streaming and FlumeJava, adapt rapidly at the cost of high latency during normal operations. Our key observation is that while streaming workloads require millisecond-level processing, workload and cluster properties change less frequently. Based on this, we develop Drizzle, a system that decouples the processing interval from the coordination interval used for fault tolerance and adaptability. Our experiments on a 128 node EC2 cluster show that on the Yahoo Streaming Benchmark, Drizzle can achieve end-to-end record processing latencies of less than 100ms and can get 2-3x lower latency than Spark. Drizzle also exhibits better adaptability, and can recover from failures 4x faster than Flink while having up to 13x lower latency during recovery.


We consider different variants of network design problems. Given a set of points in the plane we search for a shortest interconnection of them. In this general formulation the problem is known as Steiner tree problem. We consider the special case of octilinear Steiner trees in the presence of hard and soft obstacles. In an octilinear Steiner tree the line segments connecting the points are allowed to run either in horizontal, vertical or diagonal direction. An obstacle is a connected region in the plane bounded by a simple polygon. No line segment of an octilinear Steiner tree is allowed to lie in the interior of a hard obstacle. If we intersect a Steiner tree with the interior of a soft obstacle, no connected component of the induced subtree is allowed to be longer than a given fixed length. We provide polynomial time approximation schemes for the octilinear Steiner tree problem in the presence of hard and soft obstacles. These were the first presented approximation schemes introduced for the problems. Additionally, we introduce a (2+epsilon)-approximation algorithm for soft obstacles. We then turn to Euclidean group Steiner trees. Instead of a set of fixed points we get for each point a set of potential locations (combined into groups) and we need to pick only one location of each group. The groups we consider lie inside disjoint regions fulfilling a special property so-called alpha-fatness. Roughly speaking, the term alpha-fat specifies the shape of the region in comparison to a disk. We give the first approximation algorithm for this problem and achieve an approximation ratio of (1+epsilon)(9.093alpha +1). Last, we consider Manhattan networks. They are allowed to contain edges only in horizontal and vertical direction. In contrast to Steiner trees they contain a shortest path between each pair of points. We introduce insights into the structure of Manhattan networks, particularly in the context of so-called staircases. We give three new approximation algorithms for the Manhattan network problem, the first with approximation ratio 3 and two algorithms with ratio 2. To this end we introduce two algorithms for the Manhattan network problem of staircases. The first algorithm solves the problem to optimality the second yields a 2-approximation. Variants of both algorithms are already known in the literature. Since we use a slightly different definition of staircases and we need special properties of them, we adopt the algorithms to our situation. The 2-approximation algorithms achieve the best known approximation ratio of an algorithm for the Manhattan network problem known so far. Last we give an idea how we could possibly find an algorithm with better approximation ratio.


Transmission network was recognized as natural monopoly and almost everywhere subject to some kind of regulation in a restructured electricity market. The role of the transmission system is to provide an indiscriminate access for all market players along with an acceptable level of reliability and security. Regulating authorities have to decide about the augmentation investment. As an on going research on forming a robust algorithm for the expansion planning of transmission system in Queensland State, Australia, this paper presents two procedures for the quasi-optimal short-term augmentation of the transmission system. The proposed approaches can accommodate (1) Security of the power delivery to the load points of the transmission system in terms of single line outages (2) Minimization of the transmission system lost load (3) Providing full competitive electricity market for market participants (4) Construction and maintenance costs of transmission augmentation options and (5) Operation efficiency of the transmission grid in their planning frameworks. Each expansion option of the transmission system is evaluated by the aforementioned criteria through designation of a set of indices. The proposed procedures benefits from the concepts of the sensitivity analysis and dynamic programming as well as aggregation method, weighted sum function, in their multi- criteria decision making. The introduced procedures are very promising in case of short term expansion planning of the transmission system. Considering the sensitivity analysis concept employed, in case of long term planning the method is appreciable in smart detection of the suitable zones for expansion. The procedures would be very useful in case of large scale power systems. A 6 bus test system and modified IEEE 30 bus test system are used to validate the effectiveness of the proposed procedures.


The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted our society by forcing shutdowns and shifting the way people interacted worldwide. In relation to the impacts on the electric grid, it created a significant decrease in energy demands across the globe. Recent studies have shown that the low demand conditions caused by COVID-19 lockdowns combined with large renewable generation have resulted in extremely low-inertia grid conditions. In this work, we examine how an attacker could exploit these scenarios to cause unsafe grid operating conditions by executing load-altering attacks (LAAs) targeted at compromising hundreds of thousands of IoT-connected high-wattage loads in low-inertia power systems. Our study focuses on analyzing the impact of the COVID-19 mitigation measures on U.S. regional transmission operators (RTOs), formulating a plausible and realistic least-effort LAA targeted at transmission systems with low-inertia conditions, and evaluating the probability of these large-scale LAAs. Theoretical and simulation results are presented based on the WSCC 9-bus and IEEE 118-bus test systems. Results demonstrate how adversaries could provoke major frequency disturbances by targeting vulnerable load buses in low-inertia systems and offer insights into how the temporal fluctuations of renewable energy sources, considering generation scheduling, impact the grid's vulnerability to LAAs.


DUNN, J. M. AND WEST, M. R. (EDS.) (2009). FROM SCHOOLHOUSE TO COURTHOUSE: THE JUDICIARY'S ROLE IN AMERICAN EDUCATION. WASHINGTON D.C.: THE BROOKINGS INSTITUTION. Beginning in the second half of the twentieth century, state and federal courts in the United States have been increasingly called upon to determine whether school policies violate laws by a variety of litigants, including state officials, school districts, students, parents, and teachers. Consequently, school law scholars have called for increasing both educators' and lawyers' knowledge in the area of law and education.1 Recognizing that secondary school policy has become more affected by the judiciary calls for an assessment of the trends in the various areas and of the types of challenges being asserted. In From Schoolhouse to Courthouse: The Judiciary's Role in American Education, edited by Joshua M. Dunn and Martin R. West, an array of scholars illuminate developments and trends in courts' involvement in various areas of school litigation. The volume is organized into three sections: Context, Settled Issues, and Persistent Issues. Context provides an introduction to the area that can be appreciated by readers with varying levels of familiarity, and the latter two sections contain summative and predictive descriptions of each chapter's litigation area. As a whole, the volume provides balanced perspectives on the specific areas of law and unveils tensions inherent in the legal precedent. Part I of the book, which provides context for the discussion, begins with The Supreme Court as School Board Revisited by Martin R. West and Joshua M. Dunn, who provide an introduction to the judiciary's involvement in education and the volume itself. Specifically, West and Dunn describe the increased role of judicial oversight and the impact of the increased judicial oversight on school teachers and administrators. They then provide an explanation for the increased role of the judiciary, including new doctrines and congressional actions that created private rights of action.2 The chapter also explains the different dynamics involved in constitutional versus statutory litigation, including the important distinction that in the arena of statutory interpretation, Congress can amend a law in case of disagreement with Supreme Court's interpretation. West and Dunn briefly describe the two sides of the scholarly debate over judicial involvement in these areas, but ultimately express their agreement with those who "doubt the judiciary's claim on the title of the least-imperfect branch"3 by proposing that the judiciary's limits for policymaking mean that "deferring to representative branches would seem to be the more prudent course of action."4 At the same time, the authors are careful to point out that they are not calling for the judiciary to ignore rights violations that are clear. The second chapter, Taking Remedies Seriously: Can Courts Control Public Schools, by R. Shep Melnick, describes the available judicial remedies. After noting the growth of judicial involvement in education midway through the twentieth century, Melnick turns his attention to the nature of school organizations, and how it contributes to challenges faced by judges in constructing remedies for violations of legally enforceable rights. Melnick first draws on James Q. Wilson's description of schools as "coping organizations" in reference to the difficulties in observing activities and measuring outcomes in schools.5 Melnick then describes the remedies themselves including: structural injunctions, § 1983 and constitutional torts, and private rights of action and federal mandates. The final chapter in Part I, School Superintendents and the Law: Cages of Their Own Design? by Frederick M. Hess and Lance D. Fusarelli, describes how administrators' perceptions of and approaches to the law shapes outcomes. Five superintendents are profiled, including three who attained their position through "traditional" means and two "nontraditional" superintendents, both former attorneys who did not have backgrounds as educators. …


Abstract Understanding the critical host plant factors that determine oviposition behavior and survival of boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, on cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., is important for developing successful pest management strategies. However, published information is both conflicting and limited regarding how different cotton fruit sizes affect boll weevil oviposition choices and subsequent larval survival to adulthood. Consequently, we used a standard based on fruit size diameter to evaluate boll weevil feeding and oviposition punctures, and survival to adulthood on 10 different cotton fruit sizes: squares of diameter 1.5–2.0 (pinhead), 3.0–3.5 (matchhead), 5–6, 7–8, or 9–10 mm; candle; and bolls of diameter 10–15, 15–20, 20–30, or >30 mm. Oviposition and feeding punctures were significantly affected by cotton fruit size. Females did not oviposit in pinhead squares. The fewest eggs were oviposited in boll sizes >30 mm. The highest number of eggs was recorded in square sizes of 5–6 and 7–8 mm. Boll weevil survival to adulthood was highest on square sizes of 7–8 or 9–10 mm (58.6–59.7%). No survival occurred in matchhead squares or bolls >30 mm. Duration of development was longest on boll sizes of 15–20 and 20–30 mm (18.2–18.8 d). The growth index (percentage immature survival divided by immature developmental time) of female boll weevils was 2.8-fold higher in 7–8- or 9–10-mm diameter squares than in 20–30-mm diameter bolls. This study will improve our capacity to develop methods to predict fruit losses and changes in boll weevil populations in the field, given a starting density of fruit suitable for oviposition, and a corresponding initial population density of weevils.


High quality toroid and solenoid inductors, exhibiting quality factors as high as 87 at 14.5 GHz and 35 at 6.4 GHz are presented in this paper. The inductors are fabricated using only two plating steps which reduces the complexity of the fabrication. The process lowers the number of ohmic contacts between the electroplated layers improving the performance of the device. The fabrication process is low-temperature and fully compatible with CMOS technology which makes it suitable for post-IC processing.


Eighty second-grade students participated in a five day study to assess the potential benefits of utilizing expressive writing as a tool to reduce math anxiety and increase math achievement in highly math-anxious (HMA), primary-age children. This quasi-experimental design used a three-way mixed ANOVA to assess if students with high math anxiety, as measured on the MASYC-R survey, would show decreased levels of math anxiety after expressively writing about mathematical concerns for one week, compared to their peers who wrote expressively about a topic of choice. At posttest, many students did show an increase in math achievement and a decrease in anxiety, however, results indicated no statistically significant three-way or two-way interaction between anxiety, time, and type of expressive writing within this study. Both the MASYC-R and the i-Ready computational assessment were found to be reliable measures for assessing math anxiety in young children and mathematical computation respectively. Utilization of a larger sample size, a longer time frame for the study, and incorporating a true control group are suggestions for future research in the area of expressive writing as a means to reduce math anxiety in young children.


This paper examines the roles of physical capital, human capital, and social capital in China's economic growth during the reform period 1981–2010. Empirical estimation confirms that physical capital and human capital contribute to the economic growth, probably due to the capital accumulation and the improvement of labor productivity. The impact of social capital turns from being insignificant in the 1980s and the 1990s to be positive in the 2000s, suggesting its rising importance in recent decades. A declining role of physical capital in the economic growth in China from 1990s to 2000s is also found. The findings hold for several additional robustness checks, including focusing on longer term determinants of the economic growth, subregional analysis, and endogeneity. Furthermore, the foreign direct investment inflows and adjustment of economic ownership structure are also important for economic growth in China.


We propose and demonstrate a microfiber Fabry–Perot interferometer (MFPI) fabricated by taper-drawing microfiber at the center of a uniform fiber Bragg grating (FBG). The MFPI employing the two separated sections of FBG as reflectors and a length of microfiber as its cavity is derived. Theoretic study shows that the reflection spectrum of such MFPI is consisted of two parts – interference fringes induced by multi-beam interference and reflection spectrum envelope induced by FBGs. Temperature affects both interference fringes and reflection wavelength of FBGs while ambient refractive index (RI) only influences the interference fringes, i.e., MFPI has different response to temperature and RI. Therefore, MFPI for simultaneous sensing of RI and temperature is experimentally demonstrated by tracking a reflection peak of interference fringes and the Bragg wavelength of the FBGs, which are respectively assisted by frequency domain processing and Gaussian fitting of the optical spectrum. Consequently, wavelength measurement resolution of 0.5 pm is realized.


The artistic development in China experienced drastic changes during the Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976. Traditional Chinese art was denounced, whereas propaganda art became predominant in shaping the public's loyalty towards the Communist Party and the country. Two major groups of art exhibitions emerged during the Revolution—the unofficial Red Guard art exhibitions organized by student activists in collaboration with local communes and art schools between 1966 and 1968, and the state-run national exhibitions from 1972 to 1975. These exhibitions were significant to this period because they were held frequently in the capital city Beijing and occasionally elsewhere, and through art they presented unique revolutionary beliefs to the Chinese people in a public setting. While the Red Guard art exhibitions and the national exhibitions certainly created different national narratives, I argue that the national exhibitions were in fact an attempt to revise the national narrative created by the Red Guard art exhibitions in order to re-establish a more utopian, consistent, and official national narrative. This paper unravels the intricate relationship between the two groups of exhibitions by comparing their exhibition venues, ideological focuses, work selection and quality editing.


Background: Only one in 10 newly established business enterprises survives for longer than 10 years in the South African business environment. The primary reasons behind the demise of these small enterprises include the lack of access to financing, lack of financial and managerial skills, lack of expertise, as well as economic factors such as poor sales and weak growth prospects. The new norm in industrial markets is that business organisations must possess a remarkable amount of agility to survive and succeed. Success is important for South African small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) given their significant contributions to the national economy.Objectives: This study investigated the connection between organisational agility, business best practices and the performance of SMEs in South Africa.Method: A quantitative approach using the cross-sectional survey research design was employed in which a structured questionnaire was administered to 564 randomly selected owner-managers of SMEs. Hypotheses were tested using the structural equation modelling procedure, which was conducted after implementing a confirmatory factor analysis to test the psychometric properties of the measurement scales.Results: Hypotheses tests indicated that the four business best practices, namely, technology capability, collaborative innovation, organisational learning and internal alignment, exerted a significant positive influence on organisational agility. Also, organisational agility exerted a significant positive influence on business performance.Conclusion: The study demonstrates that the performance of SMEs can be improved significantly through a proper alignment between the four business best practices considered in this study. Improving the level of organisational agility in SMEs is also important in stimulating their performance. The results of the study can be applied to assist SMEs to survive and flourish in turbulent and dynamic markets, where agile organisational abilities are a requirement for success.


Experiments were performed in a vertical channel to study the behaviour of a monodisperse bubble suspension for which the dual limit of large Reynolds number and small Weber number was satisfied. Measurements of the liquid-phase velocity fluctuations were obtained with a hot-wire anemometer. The gas volume fraction, bubble velocity, bubble velocity fluctuations and bubble collision rate were measured using a dual impedance probe. Digital image analysis was performed to quantify the small polydispersity of the bubbles as well as the bubble shape. A rapid decrease in bubble velocity with bubble concentration in very dilute suspensions is attributed to the effects of bubble–wall collisions. The more gradual subsequent hindering of bubble motion is in qualitative agreement with the predictions of Spelt & Sangani (1998) for the effects of potential-flow bubble–bubble interactions on the mean velocity. The ratio of the bubble velocity variance to the square of the mean is O(0.1). For these conditions Spelt & Sangani predict that the homogeneous suspension will be unstable and clustering into horizontal rafts will take place. Evidence for bubble clustering is obtained by analysis of video images. The fluid velocity variance is larger than would be expected for a homogeneous suspension and the fluid velocity frequency spectrum indicates the presence of velocity fluctuations that are slow compared with the time for the passage of an individual bubble. These observations provide further evidence for bubble clustering.


Background: Patients living with a chronic illness face many challenges in their lives such as an altered body image, physical pain or discomfort, the need for frequent medical visits and the negative side effects of treatment. To this extent their sense of personal or subjective well-being may be compromised by the severity and chronicity of their illness. The aim of the present study was to explore the level of subjective well-being and its relationship with coping, quality of life and support from family and friends among a sample of Black South Africans attending semi-rural public clinics for treatment for hypertension and diabetes. This study was part of a larger project on treatment adherence to medication among patients living with these conditions.
Methods: A convenience sample of 117 patients aged between 22 and 82 years (M=52.36, SD=13.24), receiving treatment for hypertension (n=79) or diabetes (n=24) at three primary health care clinics in the Boland area of the Western Cape were asked to participate in this study. Of the total sample, 14 (12%) were diagnosed with both conditions. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire battery consisting of the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Coping Strategy Indicator, the Functioning Assessment of Non-Life Threatening Conditions and the Perceived Social Support Scale.
Results: The mean score of the Satisfaction with Life Scale was 28.70, which was significantly higher than those of other studies using this mea-sure. In order to address the problem of experiment-wise error, commonly associated with the use of multiple statistical comparisons, we used the Bonferronni correction in arriving at probability levels in determining statistical significance. On average the sample as a whole appeared to be
largely satisfied. The mean scores on the two of the subscales of the Coping Strategy Indicator were significantly different from those obtained from other South African samples. On the Functioning Assessment of Non-Life Threatening Conditions, the mean scores on the subscales but not the total score was significantly higher than other South African samples. Conclusions: In general, participants scored significantly higher on all of the measuring instruments compared with other South African samples, indicating high levels of life satisfaction, coping, and support from others. We found no relationship between life satisfaction and gender. Age however correlated positively with satisfaction with Life, Support from family, social and emotional well being and Quality of Life, which concurs with the findings of previous studies. Contrary to other studies we found a significant negative correlation between education and SWLS but no relationship between employment and SWLS. Our sample also reported higher levels of support from friends and family that were significantly higher than those of other South African samples. The mean scores on all the subscales of the Coping Strategy Indicator were higher than that of other South African samples. South African Family Practice Vol. 50 (3) 2008: pp. 68-68d


General Description The 73XX series is a set of three-terminal low power high voltage regulators implemented in CMOS technology. They allow input voltages as high as 15V. The series features extremely low quiescent current which is typically 2μA. They are available with several fixed output voltages ranging from 2.1V to 5.0V. CMOS technology ensures low voltage drop and low quiescent current. Although designed primarily as fixed voltage regulators, these devices can be used with external components to obtain variable voltages and currents.


How did intellectuals and politicians confirm or reinforce national categories, even when they ostensibly promoted visions of an international community ? The article addresses this question through a case study of the League of Nations' mechanisms for intellectual cooperation. After a brief discussion of institutional aspects, namely the establishment of League-affiliated committees and institutes in the 1920s, the article focuses on the interplay of transnational and national practices. National actors – for instance intellectuals and organisations from Central and Eastern Europe – targeted the League bodies, evoking both cultural internationalism and national interests. Furthermore, nationhood was projected at international congresses – sometimes openly, sometimes in more subtle terms – with the pronouncements of delegates from Fascist Italy providing an interesting case in point. Finally, the article discusses how individuals sought to reconcile the multilayered nature of their activities ; to this end, it considers several figures who were involved in the League's efforts to foster a 'societe des esprits'.


Nowadays, employee is considered essential in an organization. The active role of the employee should be concerned by practitioners and academicians. This study aimed to investigate the antecedent and consequent variables of employee engagement.Distributive justice, absorptive capacity, and job design were believed as the antecedent factors influencing work engagement. Meanwhile, organizational citizenship behavior was believed as the consequent or output factor of employee engagement. The respondents were 134 employees of SMEs in Central Java, Indonesia.The results showed that distributive justice and absorptive capacity influenced employee engagement, whereas job design had no significant influence on employee engagement.Moreover, employee engagement had an effect on organizational citizenship behavior.


Extracted from text ... SA Pharmaceutical Journal - October 2006 26
PHARMACEUTICAL PRACTITIONER
You can contact Gerald Jacobs, our labour lawyer, for free phone help on any labour matter, at (021) 439 9510,
083 459 7733 or firstname.lastname@example.com
A prescription for PUBLIC
HOLIDAYS HOLIDAYS: A Mixed Blessing!
Gerald Jacobs "Oh no! Not another public holiday this month!"
moaned Charlie to his all-enduring wife Mona
(Oh yes!...role reversal for a change), tearing
out what little grey hair remained (of his, not
hers). "Are they meshuge? (Sesotho for "mad"
- as in Lesotho Highlands Mad Cow Disease).
How am I supposed to run a successful
business ..


In recent years, the debate on electricity market design in the EU has focused on the fitness-for-purpose of the existing dominant design, the appropriateness of energy policy that underpins the existing market design, and on the process through which energy policy is coordinated with market design. In this paper, we contribute to this debate on all three levels. First, we propose a 'module-and-level'-based framework to illustrate our diagnosis of coordination issues present in the EU's power markets. We apply this framework to make a systematic identification of existing misalignments between the components of current market design and physical RES integration/financial RES support schemes. Secondly, we argue that the role of energy policy is not just in managing existing trade-offs between competitiveness, sustainability, and reliability, but also in encouraging innovations that increase the compatibility of energy policy objectives in the future. Finally, we propose a seven-step condition-dependent evolution of power market design, where the government/regulatory authority plays the role of meta-coordinator, matching the adaptation of market-based coordination modules with a hybrid future where distributed energy resources coexist with centralised generation, while decentralised market participants trade with each other and with incumbents.


Since data is often multi-faceted in its very nature, it might not adequately be summarized by just a single clustering. To better capture the data's complexity, methods aiming at the detection of multiple, alternative clusterings have been proposed. Independent of this research area, semi-supervised clustering techniques have shown to substantially improve clustering results for single-view clustering by integrating prior knowledge. In this paper, we join both research areas and present a solution for integrating prior knowledge in the process of detecting multiple clusterings. We propose a Bayesian framework modeling multiple clusterings of the data by multiple mixture distributions, each responsible for an individual set of relevant dimensions. In addition, our model is able to handle prior knowledge in the form of instance-level constraints indicating which objects should or should not be grouped together. Since a priori the assignment of constraints to specific views is not necessarily known, our technique automatically determines their membership. For efficient learning, we propose the algorithm SMVC using variational Bayesian methods. With experiments on various real-world data, we demonstrate SMVC's potential to detect multiple clustering views and its capability to improve the result by exploiting prior knowledge.


Accurate measures of both clinical image quality and patient radiation risk are needed for successful optimisation of medical imaging with ionising radiation. Optimisation in diagnostic radiology means finding the image acquisition technique that maximises the perceived information content and minimises the radiation risk or keeps it at a reasonably low level. The assessment of image quality depends on the diagnostic task and may in addition to system and quantum noise also be hampered by overlying projected anatomy. The main objective of this thesis is to develop methods for assessment of image quality in simulations of projection radiography. In this thesis, image quality is quantified by modelling the whole x‐ray imaging system including the x‐ray tube, patient, anti‐scatter device, image detector and the observer. This is accomplished by using Monte Carlo (MC) simulation methods that allow simultaneous estimates of measures of image quality and patient dose. Measures of image quality include the signal‐to‐noise‐ratio, SNR, of pathologic lesions and radiation risk is estimated by using organ doses to calculate the effective dose. Based on high‐resolution anthropomorphic phantoms, synthetic radiographs were calculated and used for assessing image quality with model‐observers (Laguerre‐Gauss (LG) Hotelling observer) that mimic real, human observers. Breast and particularly chest imaging were selected as study cases as these are particularly challenging for the radiologists. In chest imaging the optimal tube voltage in detecting lung lesions was investigated in terms of their SNR and the contrast of the lesions relative to the ribs. It was found that the choice of tube voltage depends on whether SNR of the lesion or the interfering projected anatomy (i.e. the ribs) is most important for detection. The Laguerre‐Gauss (LG) Hotelling observer is influenced by the projected anatomical background and includes this into its figure‐of‐merit, SNRhot,LG. The LG‐observer was found to be a better model of the radiologist than the ideal observer that only includes the quantum noise in its analysis. The measures of image quality derived from our model are found to correlate relatively well with the radiologist's assessment of image quality. Therefore MC simulations can be a valuable and an efficient tool in the search for dose‐efficient imaging systems and image acquisition schemes.


In this paper, drawing on research in The National Archives, I discuss the claim that Thomas Cromwell protected religious radicals in Calais in the late 1530s. It has become a seemingly impregnable orthodoxy that Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII's leading minister, was a religious reformer, though exactly what kind is less often considered. Whatever the finer points of his theological standpoint, Cromwell is then confidently presented as pressing Henry VIII into evermore protestant directions, and consequently leaving himself vulnerable to the charges of religious radicalism that ultimately brought him down in 1540. And on this view Cromwell supposedly used Calais as a sort of laboratory or model for the religious reforms that he supposedly sought, reforms that - it is asserted - went beyond what Henry VIII was willing to accept in England. Such an account is, I aim to show, seriously misleading. Cromwell emerges as the king's servant, not as the leader of some proto-protestant faction. More positively, my study aims to offers intriguing insights into the character of the church as it developed after the break with Rome. If these events in Calais have too long been misunderstood, nonetheless they have a wider significance. Here, as early as the late 1530s, we can see features that would characterise church and state over a much longer period, not least in the reigns of Elizabeth, James and Charles I. Here we have fears of papists and papist plots, with suspicions that a leading nobleman in a position of authority and strategic importance, Lord Lisle, Lord Deputy of Calais, owed greater loyalty to the pope than to the monarch. Here we have fears of religious radicalism and the associated undermining of social order as preachers were seen as ridiculing existing church services. Here we have charges of papist sympathies by one side and of religious radicalism by the other, dismissed in turn as exaggerated or prejudiced. Here we have damaging accusations against those in authority in church and state, of encouraging, or turning a blind eye to, what they were expected to repress. Here we have royal government somewhere in the middle, denouncing the pope and rejecting blatant superstition, but also denouncing religious extremism. None of this was trivial. Lives and liberties were at stake: those who fell foul of accusations, whether well-founded, whether malicious, found themselves subject to interrogation, trial, even death. Compared to the late 1530s, accusations of popery and of religious radicalism were no doubt sharper in the years following Queen Elizabeth's suspension of Archbishop Grindal in the late 1570s, and fears of popery and fears of religious radicalism were undoubtedly more heightened and more persuasive in 1640-42. Yet this study of events in Calais in the late 1530s reveals, already, the same potentially explosive mixture of divisions and suspicions. Not just in the long run but also very immediately, all this was the complex and often unhappy consequence of Henry VIII's break with Rome and the very distinctive reformation which he had embraced.


Monthly Amazon River discharge is correlated to historical monthly sea surface salinity (SSS) in the western tropical Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. At Barbados a very high inverse correlation (R 2 0.92) exists if the discharge is lagged by two months, which corresponds to the travel time from the Amazon mouth to Barbados. Due to its proximity to Barbados, a small amount of the correlation can also be attributed to the Orinoco River. Between Barbados and the central Caribbean Sea (75W) the peak correlation of Amazon River discharge and SSS occurs at progressively longer lag times, representing the longer travel time. The correlation is highest at Barbados and diminishes with distance downstream. Downstream of the central Caribbean Sea (75W) no correlation is evident, as the Amazon water becomes too diluted to be clearly defined by available data. The results of the analysis are used to calculate surface current speeds of 0.34 0.09 m/s from the Amazon mouth to Barbados and 0.10 0.02 m/s from Barbados to the central Caribbean Sea (75W). Downstream of Barbados a subsurface maximum in correlation develops. The correlation is eroded more strongly at shallower depths due to more intense surface processes (e.g., evaporation and precipitation).


Compilation of resources for the military officers in the seminar. This research guide includes library resources, but particularly focuses on .gov resources that will be useful for research during and after the seminar.


Discussion among homoeopaths in South Africa provides the impression that there is a degree of misunderstanding and ignorance about homoeopathy, and opinions are varied on its application and efficacy amongst the South African public. An over the counter (OTC) medicine, is a medicine which is sold without a prescription directly to the public, which includes homoeopathic medicines. OTC medicines may be sold at any retail outlet, i.e. a pharmacy or general store. There is much evidence pointed towards the growth and rise in over the counter sales in complementary and alternative medicine, a growth of more than 17% in total, homoeopathy is a major part of the complementary and alternative medicine group, having its own growth of more than 16% over a four year period. Self-medication in the form of over the counter medicines forms the main part of this industry (Caldis, 2000). The market was previously examined by the Mintel Group for complementary medicines and its growth in sales, in April 2003. Since then, the market has continued to expand, growing by 45% in real terms from 1999 to 2004. Greater consumer awareness of alternative medicines, an interest in healthy lifestyles, and the willingness to self-medicate certain conditions have all contributed to the increased value of sales (Mintel, 2005). Whenever the economic and public health benefits of self-medication are discussed, it is important to address inequalities in health. This means that not every citizen may feel sufficiently confident to practice responsible self-medication. It is also evident that not everybody has the financial means to do iii so. The whole notion of responsible self-medication both in a traditional sense and in the future is based on the concept of choice. Allowing individuals certain options when they suffer minor, self-limiting or chronic diseases is the fundamental consideration behind responsible self-medication (AESGP, 2004). Methodology A non-experimental descriptive survey was conducted to determine the perceptions of registered South African Homoeopaths regarding the availability of over the counter homoeopathic remedies. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed and 68 anonymous responses were obtained. Raw data was analysed using descriptive statistics and the relationships between variables tested for correlations. Results Respondents perceived homoeopathic OTC medicine sales and their availability in health shops and pharmacies, as contributing to the promotion of the profession as well as increasing its accessibility to the public. Other benefits perceived were the cost effectiveness of homoeopathic OTC medicines and convenience for home usage. The majority of respondents felt that there should be certain restrictions regarding the availability of OTC homoeopathic medicines, such as, the limitations regarding the availability of certain potencies. Participants also expressed concern over the degree of training held by retail outlet staff. Certain respondents felt that homoeopathic medicines should only be iv available with a prescription or used under the guidance of their practitioner. Other negative aspects of over the counter homoeopathic medicines were: incorrect use of medication, overdosing, and potential negative effects the patient may experience if the OTC medicine interacts with other medication, as well as the concern over the risks of self-medicating without the advice from a practitioner. Conclusions and recommendations The majority of respondents were in favour of the availability of homoeopathic OTC medicines to the public, provided that they are suitably regulated to ensure patient safety and quality control. Furthermore the regulation of the relevant retail outlets including education of staff in this regard was recommended. Respondents also were in favour of the awareness of the profession that homoeopathic OTC medicines created.


The influential work of Ramey and Ramey (1995) highlighted an empirical relationship that has now come to be regarded as conventional wisdom—that output volatility and growth are negatively correlated. We reexamine this relationship in the context of globalization—a term typically used to describe the phenomenon of growing international trade and financial integration that has intensified since the mid-1980s. We employ various econometric techniques and a comprehensive new dataset to analyze the link between growth and volatility. Our findings suggest that, while the basic negative association between growth and volatility has been preserved during the 1990s, both trade and financial integration attenuate this negative relationship. Specifically, countries that are more open to trade appear to face a less severe tradeoff between growth and volatility. We find a similar, although slightly less robust, result for the interaction of financial integration with volatility. We also investigate some of the channels, including investment and credit, through which different aspects of global integration could affect the growth-volatility relationship.


This paper examines the government's new proposal to amend Forest Act 1993 that seeks to redefine community rights and reassert government control in the management of community forests. We analyse the content of the amendment proposal as well as the reasons given for enacting such changes. Drawing on the experience of community forestry in Nepal, as well as widely accepted principles of community based natural resource management, we assess the assumptions behind the proposed amendment and also predict potential consequences of the changes. We conclude that the proposed changes curtail rights given to the community under community forestry, reduce the autonomy of local communities and in due course negatively affect the incentive to conserve and manage community forests. The proposed increase in roles of the forest officials in community forest management will expand bureaucratic control over community processes, and cultivates upward accountability in forest management groups. The proposal takes the wrong assumption that increased techno-bureaucratic control will fix the emerging cases of over-harvesting of timber in community forests. Overall, the proposed changes are against the action verified lessons from Nepal and abroad that localised control and management of natural resources is more effective and efficient than government control. The proposal however does raise some important points that need to be considered – such as tax, timber marketing and the like, which requires more informed analysis and stakeholder debate before formulating such a legal amendment proposal. Based on good practices from Nepal and beyond, we have also proposed alternatives to address emerging challenges and move towards more democratic and fair governance of forest in Nepal.


The second and last EJPAE issue of 2019 is finally due – in 2020. Running a journal is interesting since there are many parameters that are out of the editor's control – such as when reviewers return reviews, when authors return their revisions and so on. And since this journal is run voluntarily, the typesetting and finalising have to fit into my schedule at university. Sometimes this is frustrating, but everyone is gentle and patient, and when I see the great result, such and in this issue, I feel really proud!
The issue starts off with an amazing article by Juvas Marianne Liljas about a Swedish reform school, the Siljan School in Tallberg, based on the ideals of the Swedish pedagogue Ellen Key. The article is unusually empirical for EJPAE, but uses the empirical data theoretically to discuss aesthetic schooling in an early nineteen century rural setting. The eduction offered in this was an alternative to a more modernistic and mechanical education, and in the Siljan School the child's needs were in focus and hence the arts were important ingredients in how the school was run. The article is illustrated with photography from the school which gives a strong sense of being in the milieu where the education took place.
The second article deals with the complex issues concerning the ethics involved in preforming research in a school environment. The Finnish researches Cecilia Bjork and Marja-Leena Juntunen investigate what virtue ethics can offer researchers in music education and suggest solutions to ethical challenges that are relational and relative to each situation. In an approach critical of a rules and laws based practice of choosing a safe way out of possible ethical issues, they choose a completely different path. Instead of depending on predetermined solutions, researchers should make use of practical wisdom with deep respect for all involved parties and the research. The article should be read by all who do empirical research as it provides a framework to think about many different aspects of the ethics of performing research in a school environment, and how to develop the virtues necessary to become an ethical researcher.
Also on the topic of suggesting a new framework for thinking, the third and last article deals with music as a revolutionary tool in society. The Greek researcher Alexandros Kioupkiolis suggests a new paradigm for thinking about music education as a vehicle for social change. Kioupkiolis uses the concept of the commons to create a framework of collaborative action where autonomous creation and equality – both creatively and regarding ownership. To do this he goes through the history of the commons and current practices of the commons to suggest how music education can benefit from similar ideas. The presented ideas challenge current ideologies of authorship and copyright that were not designed for a public education in the first place. To delve into this article is to enter a possible world of a joyous and unpretentious education that fosters happy, creative and skilled citizens – in the arts and in general.
Ketil Thorgersen
Editor in Chief Stockholm February 18th 2020


The Court of Justice of the European Union has declined its jurisdiction in a case filed for the annulment of what has become known as the EU-Turkey deal in its decision of 28 February 2017. For the time being, the deal therefore stands. The deal is regarded by many as an emergency measure taken to save the Common European Asylum System. But is this measure really able to do that, and if so at what cost? Are the parties to the deal aware of each other's motives, and do these motives affect the nature of the agreement? This contribution seeks to find an answer to these and other questions related to the «deal».


The main focus of this thesis is the investigation of the dissociation dynamics of aryl halides using femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy. In the monohalogenated aryl halides, iodo-, bromo- and chlorobenzene, the rate of dissociation following excitation at 266 nm in the gas phase increased with increasing mass of the halogen atom. This process was assigned to predissociation of the initially excited singlet (π, π*) state via a repulsive triplet (n, σ*) state due to spin-orbit interaction. In addition to the predissociative mechanism, a direct dissociation channel was observed in iodobenzene. The rate of the predissociation in bromobenzene was found to be faster in the condensed phase than in the gas phase, which can be explained by solvent-induced symmetry perturbations. Ab initio calculations of the potential energy surfaces of the ground state and several low lying excited states in bromobenzene have been performed in order to verify the suggested mechanism. Substituting one of the hydrogen atoms in bromobenzene affected the predissociation rate significantly. In o-, m- and p-dibromobenzene the predissociation rate increased with decreasing distance between the bromine atoms in accordance with an increased spin-orbit interaction introduced by the bromine substituent. The fastest predissociation rate was observed in 1,3,5-tribromobenzene. With chlorine and fluorine substitution, inductive and conjugative effects were found to be of importance. In the o- and m-isomers of the dihalogenated aryl halides, an additional faster dissociation channel was observed. Guided by ab initio calculations of the potential energy surfaces in the dibromobenzene isomers, we ascribed the fast dissociation pathway to predissociation of an initially excited triplet state. Upon methyl group substitution in bromobenzene, the decreased lifetime of the initially excited state was attributed to an incresaed density of coupled states.Another system which has been studied in the condensed phase is diiodomethane. Using Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics simulations we observed a prompt dissociation and subsequent recombination to the isomer, iso-diiodomethane, in acetonitrile solution.Vibrational wavepacket dynamics in the C (1Σ+) state of NaK were studied using a direct ionization probing scheme. A simple analytical expression for the pump-probe signal was developed in order to see what factors that govern direct ionization of the vibrational wavepacket. Our experimental data was consistent with a photoionization transition dipole moment that varies with internuclear distance.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate various problems experienced by cottage-based women entrepreneurs to launch and develop their ventures in Oman and to focus on women going beyond their traditional family roles for various reasons to establish themselves in Omani society.

Design/methodology/approach
The study applies a mixed research approach using a quantitative survey of 142 cottage-based Omani women entrepreneurs and qualitative face-to-face interviews with ten women entrepreneurs, presented as six short case studies. The intensity of the business-related problems is determined through the exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis is used to confirm the model by determining the goodness of fit between hypothesized model and sample data.

Findings
Access to government for current business needs, access to specialized suppliers for staying ahead of the competition and high cost of raw materials were the problems mentioned as being important, while marketing-oriented problems were of least concern.

Research limitations/implications
This study was undertaken in one region of Oman only and thus poses problems when extrapolating the findings to other areas.

Practical implications
The study suggests how policymakers can support women entrepreneurs to diversify and start new ventures while simultaneously contributing to the socio-economic development of Oman.

Originality/value
Research on cottage entrepreneurship in the context of an Arab country is scarce and the study provides an overview of the obstacles and support required for the development of women entrepreneurship in Oman.


Part I: Becoming Strengths and Solution-Based (SSB): Creating a Context for Change. The Philosophical Inventory: Expanding Awareness and Impact of Beliefs. Dismantling Your Status Quo: Challenging Assumptions and Gaining Insight. Creating New Meaning: All Our Actions are Meaningful. Taking the "ic" Out of the Person: Seeing the Core Within. Composing Your Theoretical Worldview: What I Believe. Me, Myself, and I: Understanding Personal Strengths. How I Describe What I Do: Examining Personal Theory and Principles of Change. The Key is Collaboration: Working "with" Clients. Expectations and Next-pectations: Learning Clients' Preferences for Therapy. The Body Knows: The Influence of Words. What are Words for? Terminology as a Pathway of Connection. Individuality, Uniqueness, and Strength: Working with People Who Have a Long List of Labels. Becoming the Hero of Your Own Story: Changing Narratives and Lives through a Creative Process. Part II: Getting Focused: Exploring Strengths and Solutions in Information-gathering. It's Your Life: Creating Space for the Client's Story. Hello, My Name is: Meeting Yourself Again. Lowering Walls and Building Bridges: Initial Steps in Creating Collaborative Relationships. Stone Soup: Acknowledging Strengths, Potential, and Contributions to Change. Stenographer: I Said What?. What's the Effect? Exploring the Influences of Problems. What Does That Look Like? Translating Ambiguity Through Action-Talk. G-O! Focusing on Goals and Outcomes. Goals for Goal Setting: Charting a Clear Course. From Problem-Talk to Solution-Talk: Creating Possibilities Through Language. Future Screening: Creating a Vision for the Future. Destination Imagination: Envisioning the Future Through Miracles, Dreams, and the Extraterrestrial. I Can See Clearly Now: Developing a Future Focus. From Here to Where? Service Planning for Change. In Many Ways: Mapping Paths of Change. The Spokes of Life: Cultivating Resources. What Tips the Scale? Weighing the Benefits of Change. Embracing Your State: A Race with Yourself. Matching Up: Creating a Fit Between Therapist and Client. The Filing Cabinet: Categorizing My Favorite Methods. Song for Myself: Celebrating Strength, Capacity, and Individuality. Part III: Reconnection to Self: Experience, Affect, and Emotion. Getting in Touch with Emotion: Hearing What Feelings Have to Say. The Culture of Emotion: Aligning Emotion and Change. Flipping the Switch: Tuning into Self. "And" Now for Something Completely Different: The Use of Words to Build New Connections. It's All Me: Embracing Internal Experience. In a Moment's Notice: Internalizing the Experience of Now. The 360 Self: Integrating Internal Experience and Aspects of Self. Body Over Mind: Settling Down Through Abilities. Let it Be: Accepting What Is. Let the Music Do the Talking: Sometimes Words Are Not Enough. Using Positive Relationships to Enhance Positive Change: What Makes You Feel Good? Finding Meaning with Therapeutic Tattoos: Looking For Strengths In Unusual Places. The Oasis of the Mind: The Return Of Memories Past. Part IV: Exploring New Worlds of Possibility: Changing Perspectives and Perceptions. Life Pursuits and the Meaning of it All: Why Am I Here? The Inner Limits: Interviewing Self for Solutions. What in the World? Noticing Between Session Change. Pollyanna Grows Up: From Positives to Strengths. The Art of the Frame: Using Reality-Defining Language. Completing the Puzzle of Your Life: Putting the Pieces Together. My Biography: In Your Own Words. 20,000 to 1: It Only Takes One. Dear Diary: What Were My Strengths Today? Life Witnesses: Meaningful Connections and Enduring Relationships. Gratitudes: Appreciating Others. Vantage Point: Multiple Angles, Multiple Solutions. History is Now: The Wisdom of Others. The Road Less Traveled: Exploring the Hidden Possibilities During Life's Most Challenging Times. Being the Author of Your Life: Say What You Need to Say. More on Meeting Yourself Again: Living with Yourself. Part V: Lives in Motion: Changing Patterns of Action and Interaction. Getting off the Hamster Wheel: Going Forward With Purpose. The Collaborative Counselor: Two Heads are Better Than One. Keeping the Momentum: Being Proactive and Enhancing Change. You Don't Say: The "No-Talk" Client. Changing It Up: Altering Problem Patterns. Being a Creature of Habit: Identifying, Establishing, and Maintaining Rituals. The Economy of Movement: When Smaller Changes Lead to Bigger Ones. Decision-Making and a Healthy Amount of Worry: Making Stress Your Friend. From Mountains to Mole Hills: Taking Things One Step At a Time. Raindrops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens: What are My Favorite Things? Replacing Street Behavior: Walking the Fine Line. Taking Stock: Clients' Increasing Their Control over Their Lives. Shuffling the Deck: Creating Cards to Create Change. Part VI: Narratives of Transformation? Change, Progress, Transitions, and Endings. Building Momentum: Extending Change in the Future. Developing Your Own Take Home Message: Tell Me What You Think. Filling the Void: It Can Be Better Than You Thought. Creating Your Own GPS: A New Map For A New Day. Building the Fire Inside: Sustaining Change in Your Life. Giving Credit to Yourself: A New Look In the Mirror. The Crossroads of Change: Maintaining New Patterns. In Honor of You: Incorporating Ritual Into the Transition Process. Sharing the Credit: Acknowledging the Contributions of Others. Maintaining the Course: Negotiating Future Hurdles. Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You: Preparing Clients for their Next Great Adventure. Spreading the News: Strengthening New Stories. Where Do We Go From Here? Using Original Goals as Benchmarks for Charting a Future Course. Part VII: Creating a Culture of Care and Respect: Consultation, Supervision, and Development. The Reflective Consultation: A Conversational Approach to Generating Change. You Say You Want a Revolution: Taking the Initiative to Cultivate Change. Bringing Out the Best: Assessing Organizational Strengths. Putting Out the Fire: How Supervisors can Help Stave off Burnout. Effectively Using an Airplane Oxygen Mask: Practicing Self-Care, First. The Windmill: Generating Energy Through Congruence. The Inner Mister Rogers: Cultivating Acceptance and Compassion During Supervision. The Benefits of Self-Reflection: Maximizing Counselor Effectiveness. Interviewing Your Supervisor: Is Your Supervisor as Strengths and Solution-Focused as You Are? Reinventing the Cookbook: Proactive And Reflective Ways to Use this Book. We are Only as Strong as Our Weakest Link: Strengthening the Use of this Book.


Background
The relationship between sugar and health is affected by energy balance, macronutrient substitutions, and diet and lifestyle patterns. Several authoritative organizations have issued public health guidelines addressing dietary sugars.

Purpose
To systematically review guidelines on sugar intake and assess consistency of recommendations, methodological quality of guidelines, and the quality of evidence supporting each recommendation.

Data Sources
MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science (1995 to September 2016); guideline registries; and gray literature (bibliographies, Google, and experts).

Study Selection
Guidelines addressing sugar intake that reported their methods of development and were published in English between 1995 and 2016.

Data Extraction
Three reviewers independently assessed guideline quality using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation, 2nd edition (AGREE II), instrument. To assess evidence quality, articles supporting recommendations were independently reviewed and their quality was determined by using GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) methods.

Data Synthesis
The search identified 9 guidelines that offered 12 recommendations. Each of the reviewed guidelines indicated a suggested decrease in the consumption of foods containing nonintrinsic sugars. The guidelines scored poorly on AGREE II criteria, specifically in rigor of development, applicability, and editorial independence. Seven recommendations provided nonquantitative guidance; 5 recommended less than 25% to less than 5% of total calories from nonintrinsic sugars. The recommendations were based on various health concerns, including nutrient displacement, dental caries, and weight gain. Quality of evidence supporting recommendations was low to very low.

Limitation
The authors conducted the study independent of the funding source, which is primarily supported by the food and agriculture industry.

Conclusion
Guidelines on dietary sugar do not meet criteria for trustworthy recommendations and are based on low-quality evidence. Public health officials (when promulgating these recommendations) and their public audience (when considering dietary behavior) should be aware of these limitations.

Primary Funding Source
Technical Committee on Dietary Carbohydrates of the North American branch of the International Life Sciences Institute. (PROSPERO: CRD42015029182).


The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak vividly demonstrates the burden that respiratory infectious diseases impose in an intimately connected world. Unprecedented containment and mitigation policies have been implemented in an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, screening and testing of travelers, isolation and quarantine, and school closures. A key goal of such policies is to decrease the encounters between infected individuals and susceptible individuals and decelerate the rate of transmission. Although such social distancing strategies are critical in the current time of pandemic, it may seem surprising that the current understanding of the routes of host-to-host transmission in respiratory infectious diseases are predicated on a model of disease transmission developed in the 1930s that, by modern standards, seems overly simplified. Implementing public health recommendations based on these older models may limit the effectiveness of the proposed interventions.


The public perception of climate change is characterized by heterogeneity, even polarization. Deliberative discussion is regarded by some as key to overcoming polarization and engaging various publics with the complex issue of climate change. In this context, online engagement with news stories is seen as a space for a new "deliberative democratic potential" to emerge. This article examines aspects of deliberation in user comment threads in response to articles on climate change taken from the Guardian. "Deliberation" is understood through the concepts "reciprocity", "topicality", and "argumentation". We demonstrate how corpus analysis can be used to examine the ways in which online debates around climate change may create or deny opportunities for multiple voices and deliberation. Results show that whilst some aspects of online discourse discourage alternative viewpoints and demonstrate "incivility", user comments also show potential for engaging in dialog, and for high levels of interaction.


Background: Postprandial glucose (PPG) and insulin responses play a role in carcinogenesis. We evaluated the association between dietary glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL), markers of carbohydrate intake and PPG, and lung cancer risk in non-Hispanic whites. Methods: GL and GI were assessed among 1,905 newly diagnosed lung cancer cases recruited from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX) and 2,413 healthy controls recruited at Kelsey-Seybold Clinics (Houston, TX). We assessed associations between quintiles of GI/GL and lung cancer risk and effect modification by various risk factors. ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using multivariable logistic regression. Results: We observed a significant association between GI [5th vs. 1st quintile (Q) OR = 1.49; 95% CI, 1.21–1.83; Ptrend <0.001] and lung cancer risk and GIac (5th vs. 1st Q OR = 1.48; 95% CI, 1.20–1.81; Ptrend = 0.001) and lung cancer risk. We observed a more pronounced association between GI and lung cancer risk among never smokers (5th vs. 1st Q OR = 2.25; 95% CI, 1.42–3.57), squamous cell carcinomas (SCC; 5th vs. 1st Q OR = 1.92; 95% CI, 1.30–2.83), and those with less than 12 years of education (5th vs. 1st Q OR = 1.75; 95% CI, 1.19–2.58, Pinteraction = 0.02). Conclusion: This study suggests that dietary GI and other lung cancer risk factors may jointly and independently influence lung cancer etiology. Impact: Understanding the role of GI in lung cancer could inform prevention strategies and elucidate biologic pathways related to lung cancer risk. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(3); 532–9. ©2016 AACR.


The UNIDROIT Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment stands as one of the most ambitious and successful international harmonizing instruments on private law. The recent project to apply this Convention to mining, agricultural, and construction equipment (MAC Protocol) has encountered several challenging issues arising from the characteristics of the equipment and associated with the particularities of the finance praxis in the relevant sectors, and in particular, the delimitation of the scope that required formulation of innovative solutions. The aim of this paper is two-fold. Firstly, the paper analyses the delimitation of the scope of application in the MAC Protocol, revealing the underlying intricacies and explaining the resulting scoping mechanism. The solution adopted for the delimitation of the scope implies an original formula to define the covered equipment, an innovative mechanism to delimit the scope based on the use of Harmonised System codes, and relevant decisions on treaty design. As a consequence, the Protocol needs to provide for a very particular amendment mechanism. To that end, the current draft Article XXXIII was created. Therefore, secondly, the paper examines the amendment procedure incorporated in the MAC Protocol to that end in the light of treaty amendment practice and treaty design options, considering underlying policy concerns, and procedural alternatives to set a framework for the discussion of the draft Article XXXIII.


Oncoprotein 18 (Op18; also termed p19, 19K, p18, prosolin, and stathmin) is a regulator of microtubule (MT) dynamics and is phosphorylated by multiple kinase systems on four Ser residues. In addition to cell cycle-regulated phosphorylation, external signals induce phosphorylation of Op18 on Ser-25 by the mitogen-activated protein kinase and on Ser-16 by the Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent kinase IV/Gr (CaMK IV/Gr). Here we show that induced expression of a constitutively active mutant of CaMK IV/Gr results in phosphorylation of Op18 on Ser-16. In parallel, we also observed partial degradation of Op18 and a rapid increase of total cellular MTs. These results suggest a link between CaMK IV/Gr, Op18, and MT dynamics. To explore such a putative link, we optimized a genetic system that allowed conditional coexpression of a series of CaMK IV/Gr and Op18 derivatives. The result shows that CaMK IV/Gr can suppress the MT-regulating activity of Op18 by phosphorylation on Ser-16. In line with these results, by employing a chemical cross-linking protocol, it was shown that phosphorylation of Ser-16 is involved in weakening of the interactions between Op18 and tubulin. Taken together, these data suggest that the mechanism of CaMK IV/Gr-mediated suppression of Op18 activity involves both partial degradation of Op18 and direct modulation of the MT-destabilizing activity of this protein. These results show that Op18 phosphorylation by CaMK IV/Gr may couple alterations of MT dynamics in response to external signals that involve Ca2+.


Abstract A number of recent influential reports recommend the use of proactive and preventative approaches such as Positive Behavioural Support (PBS) in the management of challenging behaviours. Although evidence supporting the use of PBS is mainly drawn from studies of learning disability and child populations, it is recognised that PBS could have a much wider utility. In this study, PBS was implemented in a medium secure forensic mental health service, a novel context. Impact was evaluated using an adapted version of the Checklist of Challenging Behaviour at baseline and then at 3 monthly intervals for a year. Significant reductions were observed in aggression frequency, management difficulty and severity and other challenging behaviour frequency and management difficulty. Reductions in challenging behaviour were still evident after six months for the full group and twelve months for the sub-group with the exception of other challenging behaviour management difficulty. In contrast, no such significant differences were found for a control group. This study indicated that PBS was an effective intervention in the management of challenging behaviour in this forensic mental health context.


OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCEPrevention of rebleeding is the most important aspect of the management of hemorrhagic moyamoya disease, because rebleeding causes significant morbidity and mortality. CLINICAL PRESENTATIONA 26-year-old male patient with a history of moyamoya disease since the age of 3 years and multiple strokes was in a semicomatose state at presentation. He was found to have intraventricular and periventricular hemorrhages abutting the atrium of the right ventricle. His hospital course was complicated by a second hemorrhage. Both bleeding events were believed to be secondary to a ruptured right lateral posterior choroidal aneurysm. INTERVENTIONThe aneurysm was excised and revealed histopathology consistent with a true saccular aneurysm. Frameless stereotactic guidance was used during surgery to minimize damage to collateral vessels and to shorten the surgical corridor. CONCLUSIONThe management of hemorrhagic moyamoya disease should be modified based on the source of hemorrhage and its relation to a specifically located aneurysm. In the case of aneurysms arising from the choroidal artery, the general belief is that most of these represent pseudoaneurysms and have a tendency to regress spontaneously. Because of the rebleeding risk, we recommend early intervention in treating ruptured intracranial aneurysms using the least invasive surgical techniques.


In two studies, we investigated how Hong Kong university students reacted to descriptions of China as multicultural vs. assimilatory, examining effects on emotions, prejudice toward Mainland Chinese, attitudes toward Hong Kong/China culture mixing, and cultural identities. Study 1 compared a multicultural priming condition to a control condition and found that the multiculturalism prime significantly reduced desire to socially distance from Mainland Chinese. Study 2 compared multiculturalism, assimilation, or control primes' effects, and found that the multiculturalism prime, through increased positive emotions, indirectly reduced social distancing from Mainland Chinese and disgust toward culture mixing, and increased Chinese ethnic identity and multicultural identity styles; the assimilation prime had the opposite indirect effects through increasing negative emotions. Results show new evidence of the importance of emotion in how non-immigrant regional groups, who are both minority and majority culture members, react to different diversity models. Multicultural frames increased positive emotions, with downstream positive effects on both intergroup attitudes and integrated identities.


Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Treatment by Moneka Angilene Patterson MS, Walden University, 2014 BS, Lander University, 2008 Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice Walden University November 2017 Abstract Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine system disorder that affects women of reproductive age. If not treated properly, PCOS can lead to infertility. Lack of proper treatment of PCOS may also result in medical complications such as diabetes or heart disease. The rural clinic where this project took place did not have a mandatory guideline for treatment of PCOS; therefore, no standardized method of diagnosis or treatment of PCOS existed. The purpose of this project, guided by the IOWA evidence-based practicePolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine system disorder that affects women of reproductive age. If not treated properly, PCOS can lead to infertility. Lack of proper treatment of PCOS may also result in medical complications such as diabetes or heart disease. The rural clinic where this project took place did not have a mandatory guideline for treatment of PCOS; therefore, no standardized method of diagnosis or treatment of PCOS existed. The purpose of this project, guided by the IOWA evidence-based practice model, was to educate providers on the evidence-based guideline for diagnosis and treatment of PCOS outlined by the Endocrine Society Taskforce. The guideline was selected after a comprehensive literature review and was used to develop an educational program that was provided to 5 nurse practitioners, the medical director and staff. A pretest post-test design was used to determine if the participants understood the content from the guideline that was presented. Results showed that the researcher-developed test administered to participants yielded scores of 74 on the pre-test and increased after the education program with all participants scoring 100 on the post-test. The guideline used for the education was then presented to the clinic for implementation with the assistance of the medical director's support. The project provided an evidence-based guideline for diagnosing and treating PCOS and raised awareness of PCOS among all staff in a rural clinic where many patients with PCOS are treated. Positive social change may result as providers are better prepared to deliver evidence-based care for PCOS and as infertility and complications of untreated PCOS are reduced. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Treatment by Moneka Angilene Patterson MS, Walden University, 2014 BS, Lander University, 2008 Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice Walden University November 2017 Acknowledgments I would like to thank all of the faculty, friends, and family members who have helped me reach this point in my academic career. I would like to say a special thank you to my husband Keyon Patterson, who sacrificed so much in order for me to accomplish this goal.


The primary objective of the research reported here was to decipher information on the relationship between size and age from the keratin plates of the carapace of hawksbill turtles, Eretmochelys imbricata. This required a detailed description of the development and differentiation of the keratin plates, and the formulation of a morphological model, consistent with all past observations, in which integrated changes in structure and pigmentation. Particular attention here was applied to estimating somatic growth rates from the spatial arrangement of the colour pattern. During the course of the study, advances in egg incubation, embryology and captiveraising were made, which are reported. They have implications for efforts being made to produce E. imbricata for conservation and/or commercial purposes, through captive breeding and raising. Similarly, a morphometric analysis was carried out so that any shape changes likely to affect the utility of any morphological age indicator found could be accounted for. The keratin plates of E. imbricata have a laminate structure, with each lamina being a corrugated band of -keratin, separated by spaces that reflect light differently and are a zone of weakness. These laminae are not annual structures, and at least 3 to 5 are laid down each year. Growth arrest lines across the dorsal surface of a keratin plate form in consecutive winters, and they separate short shelves of keratin at the margin of imbrication, on the ventral surface of the keratin plate: both indicate annual growth and if present have opportunistic utility for aging. However, they are difficult to read in most individuals. The colour pattern within the keratin plates is also an index of annual growth. It results from isolated colonies of melanocytes in the dermis, secreting melanin that becomes trapped within the keratin laminae. The pigmentation tends to form in zigzag rows, across the growing edge of the C1 plates, and gives the appearance of moving backwards across the keratin plate when in reality, the plate is growing forward, surrounding the pigment layer. In E. imbricata greater than 400-500 mm SCL these rows of pigmentation are highly correlated with successive winters, and they can be used to quantify the size-age vii relationship in captive-raised and wild E. imbricata. In animals less than 400-500 mm SCL, in addition to winter bands there are supernumerary bands that need to be corrected for. When used in conjunction with a mark-recapture study, the assessment of colour bands can provide a wealth of new information on annual growth rates not otherwise available. When applied to a stockpile of E. imbricata shell plates, a size-age relationship can be derived for the wild population from which the shell plates came, although corrections for individuals up to 400-500 mm SCL may be needed.


AIM
Our aim in this study was to investigate the efficacy of intravenous administration of cilostazol and compare these effects with intravenous usage of nimodipine in subarachnoid hemorrhage model.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
Twenty-five male New Zealand White rabbits were assigned randomly to 1 of 5 groups. Animals in group 1 (n=5) served as controls, group 2 (n=5) was the SAH-only group, group 3 (n=5) was treated with intravenous 10 mg/kg cilostazol, group 4 (n=5) was treated with 0.05 mg/kg intravenous nimodipine, and group 5 (n=5) served as the vehicle group and treated with a mixture of dimethyl sulfoxide and phosphate buffer solution. Basilar arteries were removed from the brain stems and analyzed. The vessels were measured using computer-assisted morphometry (SPOT for Windows Version 4.1). Statistical comparisons were performed using the Kruskall-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests.

RESULTS
Basilar artery wall thicknesses in group 3 and 4 were smaller than the group 2 and this was statistically significant at p < 0.05. The mean arterial cross-sectional areas in group 3 and 4 were higher than group 2 and this was also statistically significant at p < 0.05.

CONCLUSION
Our results demonstrate that intravenous administration of both cilostazol and nimodipine significantly attenuates cerebral vasospasm after SAH.


Research design is fundamental to all scientific endeavors, at all levels and in all institutional settings. In many social science disciplines, however, scholars working in an interpretive-qualitative tradition get little guidance on this aspect of research from the positivist-centered training they receive. This book is an authoritative examination of the concepts and processes underlying the design of an interpretive research project. Such an approach to design starts with the recognition that researchers are inevitably embedded in the intersubjective social processes of the worlds they study. In focusing on researchers' theoretical, ontological, epistemological, and methods choices in designing research projects, Schwartz-Shea and Yanow set the stage for other volumes in the Routledge Series on Interpretive Methods. They also engage some very practical issues, such as ethics reviews and the structure of research proposals. This concise guide explores where research questions come from, criteria for evaluating research designs, how interpretive researchers engage with world-making, context, systematicity and flexibility, reflexivity and positionality, and such contemporary issues as data archiving and the researcher's body in the field.


Protected areas (PAs) have been the most widely used tool to conserve ecosystem services. New PAs are created every year and the effective PAs block some economic development. Yet that opportunity cost of conservation leads PAs to have isolated locations and even to suffer considerable PA degazettements, downsizings and degradation (jointly 'PADDD'). Adding to a sparse literature on PADDD, we assess some drivers of PAs' size reductions, i.e., degazettements and downsizings. We base our empirical efforts upon a simple model of size reductions that result from interactions between agencies with differing objectives, conservation versus development. Gradients across space for the agency benefits and costs yield predictions about where each agency is most against, or for, size reductions for PAs. Analyzing Brazilian Amazon data from a relatively new and growing global data set from PADDDtracker, we find size reductions are influenced by: distance to cities and roads, i.e., transport that affects private profits and public enforcement costs; PA size, which affects enforcement costs; and previous deforestation in a PA, which lowers impacts of PADDD.


The threat of COVID-19 has increased the health risks of going to an office or factory, leading more workers to do their jobs remotely. In this paper, we provide results from firm surveys on both small and large businesses on the prevalence and productivity of remote work, and expectations about the persistence of remote work once the COVID-19 crisis ends. We present four main findings. First, while overall levels of remote work are high, there is considerable variation across industries. The Dingel and Neiman (2020) measure of suitability for remote work does a remarkably good job of predicting the industry level patterns of remote work - highlighting the challenge of moving many industries to remote work. Second, remote work is much more common in industries with better educated and better paid workers. Third, in our larger survey, employers think that there has been less productivity loss from remote working in better educated and higher paid industries. Fourth, more than one-third of firms that had employees switch to remote work believe that remote work will remain more common at their company even after the COVID-19 crisis ends.


Background: Review of the literature indicates that a number of barriers affect the success of minority nursing students and contribute to the high attrition rate. Identified barriers include feeling of loneliness, alienation, isolation, as well as academic and financial difficulties. To increase minority representation in the nursing work force and retention in nursing schools require understanding of perceived educational experience. Methods: The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived educational experience of minority nursing students at a southeast rural regional university in Georgia. These students were also enrolled in a comprehensive nursing workforce diversity project called SCRUBS Program, a comprehensive retention program designed to support minority nursing students' academic achievement. Data were collected from forty-six participants of which 90% were African American; 5% Hispanic and 5% other. Of the 46 participants, 85% were female and 15% male. Results: Participants perceived their educational experience as "good, challenging, stressful, but overall positive and worth it." Though participants noted that the nursing program curriculum was rigorous and overwhelming, available resources including mentoring, tutoring, peer socialization, and resources from the SCRUBS Program enhanced their educational experience. Conclusions: These findings have implications for retention of minority students in nursing education. The need to create a supportive and an inclusive cultural climate is essential for minorities' academic success in nursing programs.


We study the interaction between input distributions, learning algorithms, and finite sample sizes in the case of learning classification tasks. Focusing on the case of normal input distributions, we use statistical mechanics techniques to calculate the empirical and expected (or generalization) errors for several well-known algorithms learning the weights of a single-layer perceptron. In the case of spherically symmetric distributions within each class we find that the simple Hebb rule, corresponding to maximum-likelihood parameter estimation, outperforms the other more complex algorithms, based on error minimization. Moreover, we show that in the regime where the overlap between the classes is large, algorithms with low empirical error do worse in terms of generalization, a phenomenon known as overtraining.


Bean common mosaic virus (BCMV), Bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV) and Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) are seed-borne viruses in beans causing severe damage and reduction of yield and quality of this crop. Since there are lots of reports on the occurrence of mixed infection of BCMV, BCMNV and CMV, thus setting up an accurate, reliable and rapid method for detecting of these viruses in bean crops could play an important role in prevention of their spread and damages and also screening of healthy plants. For this purpose, in the present study, we tried to set up a multiplex RT-PCR for simultaneous detection of BCMV, BCMNV and CMV as well as an internal control gene, 18S rRNA. To do this end, the infection of bean plants to above mentioned viruses was confirmed by DAC-ELISA. Following total RNA extraction, cDNA was synthesized using random hexamer primers. cDNA fragments were successfully amplified using specific primers in expected sizes as almost 470 bp for BCMV, 500bp for internal control, 704 bp for BCMNV and 870 bp for CMV, respectively. The results of this study showed that this method is capable of detecting BCMV, BCMNV and CMV in 100 ng of total RNA.


South of the Loch Maree Fault in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland, an unexplained step-wise thickening of Torridon Group strata, from c. 200–1000 m, occurs towards the Loch Maree Fault, within the trailing edges of the stacked thrust sheets of the Achnashellach Culmination in the Caledonian Moine Thrust Zone. This thickening cannot be explained readily by Caledonian thrust tectonics alone, and suggests that thrusting was superimposed upon a pre-Caledonian non-layer-cake template giving rise to a thrust-parallel thickness change of Torridon Group strata in the thrust belt. Cross-section constructions within the culmination constrain discrete abrupt thickness changes of the Torridon Group succession preserved within the Coire nan Clach and Toll Ban thrust sheets. We infer the existence of a pre-existing discontinuity in the form of either a set of pre-Caledonian faults striking parallel or sub-parallel to the long-lived Loch Maree Fault in its southwestern wall, or palaeovalleys creating locally greater thicknesses of Torridon Group sediments in the pre-thrust template. Such palaeovalleys may have been eroded along pre-existing discontinuities. In either case, these discontinuities will have contributed to generating step-wise thickness changes in preserved Torridon Group strata prior to Cambro-Ordovician overstep and then contributed to controls on the observed (lateral) variations in thrust architecture and the northwards step-wise thinning of the Achnashellach Culmination towards the Loch Maree Fault. This northern termination of the Achnashellach Culmination demonstrates the importance of the pre-thrust template in constraining the three-dimensional architecture of lateral changes within fold-and-thrust belts.