Few modern artists so consistently embodied a fuzzy logic of their own as did the Indian painter Maqbool Fida Husain (1915–2011). His critics tried to define him as a reckless defamer of Hindu values, but another way to define him is as a dutiful devotee of a vision that was inclusive, rather than exclusive, and that understood all boundaries and identities as fluid or blurry, rather than as fixed and immutable. Or one might say that Husain strove to project what Ashis Nandy has called "Indian-style secularism," celebrating creation, humanity, and beauty in the multiple religious forms of the subcontinent. Having lived and painted in India all his life, he was forced into exile in his nineties by right-wing Hindu politicians. In London, he continued to work on a new interpretation of Indian civilization as universally relevant, in a sequence of paintings with themes from the Mahabharata, while, in Doha, a royal patron commissioned him to paint a series relating Islamic and Christian civilization. The two series are shown, in this essay, to best exhibit Husain's view of "all distinctions" as "political, artificial."


'There can be few physicians so dedicated to their art that they do not experience a slight decline in spirits when they learn that their patient's complaint is giddiness. This frequently means that after exhaustive enquiry it will still not be entirely clear what it is that the patient feels wrong and even less so why he feels it.'
This is especially true in a busy practice. My aim is to provide some knowledge of basic anatomy and physiology, but, more importantly, a stepwise approach to a dizzy patient. Of course it is very easy to over-complicate or over-simplify this topic. However, by the end of this article you should be able to distinguish vertigo from other forms of dizziness. You will also be able to differentiate vertigo further into peripheral and central pathologies and advise the correct treatment options. It is estimated that approximately 90% of individuals over 65 years of age have visited their physician at least once with vertigo as their primary complaint. Complex cases should, however, be identified and referred to a specialised unit.


This technical paper, prepared as a part of FEDESARROLLO's research programme on Colombian economic policy analysis, presents the new database developed for the its long-run Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model. The database takes the form of a detailed Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) estimated for the 1994 year. The dociment list all the relevant data sources and data adjustments that were necessary to archive a consistent SAM.


Forward genetic screens are powerful tools for the unbiased discovery and functional characterization of specific genetic elements associated with a phenotype of interest. Recently, the RNA-guided endonuclease Cas9 from the microbial immune system CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) has been adapted for genome-scale screening by combining Cas9 with guide RNA libraries. Here we describe a protocol for genome-scale knockout and transcriptional activation screening using the CRISPR-Cas9 system. Custom-or ready-made guide RNA libraries are constructed and packaged into lentivirus for delivery into cells for screening. As each screen is unique, we provide guidelines for determining screening parameters and maintaining sufficient coverage. To validate candidate genes identified from the screen, we further describe strategies for confirming the screening phenotype as well as genetic perturbation through analysis of indel rate and transcriptional activation. Beginning with library design, a genome-scale screen can be completed in 6-10 weeks followed by 3-4 weeks of validation.


Whole-body CO2 stores are known to increase with cooling in reptiles and amphibians (-[CO2]/T ). The aim of this study was to determine the mechanism(s) producing this inverse relationship. The [CO2]/T coefficients were determined for eight reptilian and one amphibian species and were found to differ by a factor of approximately 10, from -0.21 mmol kg-1 °C-1 in the Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise Testudo graeca to -0.02 mmol kg-1 °C-1 in the bullfrog Rana catesbeiana. The [CO2]/T coefficients were correlated with values in the literature for in vivo plasma pH/T coefficients ([CO2]/T=-0.188.24pH/T; r2=0.87). Plasma electrolyte concentrations (Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl-, inorganic phosphate, SO42- and lactate), [protein], [CO2], PCO2 and pH were measured in chronically cannulated resting black racer snakes Coluber constrictor. When the temperature was reduced from 30 to 10 °C, pH increased slightly (by -0.0028 pH units °C-1), PCO2 decreased by 7 mmHg, [CO2] increased by 3.2 mmol l-1 and [HPO42-+H2PO4-] increased by 0.7 mmol l-1. Concentrations of protein and of the remaining electrolytes were not significantly different (P>0.05) at 30 and 10 °C. Net plasma protein charge, calculated from the principle of electroneutrality (the sum of the cations in mequiv = the sum of anions in mequiv), was -0.48 mequiv g-1 protein at 30 °C and -0.38 mequiv g-1 protein at 10 °C. This 21 % decrease was attributed to the increases in [CO2] (i.e. carbonic acid) and inorganic phosphate concentration. Between 30 and 10 °C, skeletal muscle pH and [CO2] in C. constrictor increased (by -0.009 units °C-1 and -0.125 mmol kg-1 °C-1, respectively), [Na+] and [Cl-] each decreased by approximately 12 mequiv l-1, and [K+] and the percentage of water did not change significantly. It is concluded that the increase in whole-body CO2 stores with cooling in reptiles and amphibians results from the passive effects of temperature changes upon the ionization constants of proteins and the active adjustment of PCO2 (ventilatory regulation), so that -pK is greater than -pH. Active transmembrane ion-exchange processes do not appear to be involved.


In order to determine the relation between the visual impression of graininess and the objectively determined granularity of a wide range of granularity types, a series of samples was prepared containing uniformly exposed black-and-white materials and prints (transparencies) containing varying degrees of mottle. These samples were judged by the method of paired comparisons at different magnifications and scanned to obtain the standard deviation σ(D) for a wide range of scanning apertures. The psychophysical relationship between the two functions, (1) graininess versus magnification and (2) granularity σ(D) versus the square root of the scanning area, depends on the character of the scanning operation performed by the eye. An estimate of the size of the effective scanning spot of the eye can be obtained from these data.


In my thesis, I analyze the development of the most often forgotten work by Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein – The Old and the New. The production of the film from 1926 to 1929 was during a tumultuous period of economic transition during the Soviet Union when the socialist state moved from the mixed markets of the New Economic Policy (NEP) to the centralized planning of the First Five-Year Plan. The development of The Old and the New mirrors the economic period. I analyze how Eisenstein actively adapted his cinematic practice to accommodate the changing landscape of Soviet economic policy. Additionally, I explore the influence that Eisenstein's work on an uncompleted film adaptation of Karl Marx's Capital had on the development of his theories of montage and his completion of The Old and the New. I argue that Eisenstein's theories of montage were transformed by his studying of Marx's dialectical method, and, as a result, his completed version of The Old and the New differs significantly from its original conception as The General Line. Finally, I evaluate the ways in which Eisenstein sought to inspire economic development. From this I develop my theory of "the ecstasy of economics." Epitomized by the most famous scene of the film "the cream separator scene," Eisenstein works to infuse a sense of fervor around the idea of collectivization and development. The protagonist Marfa experiences a moment of pure bliss, while kneeling before the cream separator, which not only inspires her to transform her village, but strives to provoke the whole of the Soviet Union toward the same "ecstasy of economics" that Eisenstein envisioned.


The time-resolved pump-probe technique has been implemented to study the temperature-dependent thermal boundary resistance (TBR) at Al–Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) interface, which is between metal and phase change semiconducting material. This study is made possible due to the accurate knowledge of the thermal properties (thermal conductivity and specific heat in the 20–400°C temperature range) of the GST layer. The measure of the acoustic oscillation damping permits characterization of the adhesion at the Al–GST interface, a quantity that can be related to the temperature-dependent TBR in the 25–300°C range.


An important conclusion from the literature on hydropower is that if there are no other constraints than the available water reservoirs for a year, and operating costs are ignored, the competitive (and socially optimal) outcome is characterized by the (present value) price being constant through the year. A second important conclusion is that the outcome under monopoly generally will differ from this, provided that the demand functions differ across different days (or other sub-periods) of the year. We show that even if the demand function is the same all days of the year, the monopoly outcome will generally differ from the competitive outcome. The difference is caused by the profit function of a price-setting producer of hydropower being non-concave. This non-concavity can be caused by short-run capacity limits either on exports and imports of electricity, or on the supply of alternative electricity sources.


The Basel II Accord requires participating banks to quantify operational risk according to a matrix of business lines and event types. Proper modeling of univariate loss distributions and dependence structures across those categories of operational losses is critical for proper assessment of overall annual operational loss distributions. We illustrate our proposed methodology using Loss Data Collection Exercise 2004 (LDCE 2004) data on operational losses across five loss event types. We estimate a multivariate likelihood-based statistical model, which illustrates the benefits and risks of using extreme value theory (EVT) in modeling univariate tails of event type loss distributions. We find that abandoning EVT leads to unacceptably low estimates of risk capital requirements, while indiscriminate use of EVT to all data leads to unacceptably high ones. The judicious middle approach is to use EVT where dictated by data, and after separating clear outliers that need to be modeled via probabilistic scenario analysis. We illustrate all computational steps in estimation of marginal distributions and copula with an application to one bank's data (disguising magnitudes to ensure that bank's anonymity). The methods we use to overcome heretofore unexplored technical problems in estimation of codependence across risk types scales easily to larger models, encompassing not only operational, but also other types of risks.


Abstract This two-part study addresses the development of reliable estimates of the mass and fall speed of single ice particles and ensembles. Part I of the study reports temperature-dependent coefficients for the mass-dimensional relationship, m = aDb, where D is particle maximum dimension. The fall velocity relationship, Vt = ADB, is developed from observations in synoptic and low-latitude, convectively generated, ice cloud layers, sampled over a wide range of temperatures using an assumed range for the exponent b. Values for a, A, and B were found that were consistent with the measured particle size distributions (PSD) and the ice water content (IWC). To refine the estimates of coefficients a and b to fit both lower and higher moments of the PSD and the associated values for A and B, Part II uses the PSD from Part I plus coincident, vertically pointing Doppler radar returns. The observations and derived coefficients are used to evaluate earlier, single-moment, bulk ice microphysical parameterization sc...


Key-dependent message security, short KDM security, was introduced by Black, Rogaway and Shrimpton to address the case where key cycles occur among encryptions, e.g., a key is encrypted with itself. It was mainly motivated by key cycles in Dolev-Yao models, i.e., symbolic abstractions of cryptography by term algebras, and a corresponding soundness result was later shown by Adao et al. However, both the KDM definition and this soundness result do not allow the general active attacks typical for Dolev-Yao models and for security protocols in general. We extend these definitions so that we can obtain a soundness result under active attacks.We first present a definition AKDM as a KDM equivalent of authenticated symmetric encryption, i.e., it provides chosen-ciphertext security and integrity of ciphertexts even for key cycles. However, this is not yet sufficient for the desired soundness, and thus we give a definition DKDM that additionally allows limited dynamic revelation of keys.We show that this is sufficient for soundness, even in the strong sense of blackbox reactive simulatability (BRSIM)/UC and including joint terms with other operators. We also present constructions of schemes secure under the new definitions, based on current KDM-secure schemes. Moreover, we explore the relations between the new definitions and existing ones for symmetric encryption in detail, in the sense of implications or separating examples for almost all cases.


Earthy bauxite (aluminum ore) deposits over limestone bedrock cover over 20% of Jamaica's surface area. With the shortage of arable land in Jamaica, there is great interest in using post-mined bauxite lands for agriculture. The purpose of this study was to compare physical and chemical properties of pre- and post-mined bauxite soils that are relevant in assessing suitability of these lands for small-scale agriculture. Pedons were described and sampled for characterization at two pre-mined sites and four post-mined sites near Mandeville, Jamaica. Post-mined soils were generally steeper, shallower, and higher in limestone rock fragments than pre-mined soils. Pre-mined soils consisted of Ap and Bo horizons making up clayey Oxisols with low charge and low bulk density. The new caret (^) symbol, which indicates horizons formed from human transported material, was helpful in describing pedons of post-mined soils. Post-mined soils consisted of ^Ap horizons (replaced topsoil) and 2^C horizons (fill material) over limestone. Some post-mined pedons also had 2Bob or 3Bob horizons (Bo in situ buried by replaced topsoil and/or fill material). Post-mined soils had higher bulk density in the ^Ap horizons than pre-mined Ap horizons and higher pH throughout due to the incorporation of limestone rock fragments. In ^Ap horizons, organic matter and granular structure increased with time after reclamation and establishment of grass cover.


This paper proposes an information system for drilling and mining company in order to promote information dissemination for an Integrated Management Systems QHSE. It is intended to be an essential tool for any organization that has implemented an Integrated Management System and that ambition for its continuous improvement. The opinion of the future users and managers of the platform was taken into account in order to provide an objective response to the difficulties identified in disseminate SGI QAS information and, at the same time, to reflect the reality of the company. The proposal consists of a list of requirements and two documents: a Platform Management Procedure and a User Manual. These documents define responsibilities, usage rules, access and information system functionalities, which will facilitate the acceptance of the system into the day-to-day work of the organization.


English wood pastures have become a target for ecological restoration, including the restoration of pollarded trees and grazing animals, although pigs have not been frequently incorporated into wood pasture restoration schemes. Because wood pastures are cultural landscapes, created through the interaction of natural processes and human practices, a historical perspective on wood pasture management practices has the potential to provide insights for modern restoration projects. Using a wide range of both written and artistic sources form the Middle Ages, this article argues that pigs were fed in wood pastures both during the mast season when acorns were available and at other times as grazing fields. Pollarded pedunculate oak (Quercus robur) likely dominated these sustainable cultural landscapes during the medieval period.


Interference between two perpendicular surface plasmon polariton (SPP) beams was studied using a leakage radiation microscope, which allows for the observation of SPP propagation without disturbing the two-dimensional interference pattern formed at the region where the beams cross each other. Interference fringes were observed at the image plane of the microscope. Experimental results were discussed using both classical and quantum descriptions of light. Features observed in the Fourier-plane image directly demonstrate that, in correspondence with the widespread quantum description of light, photons do not propagate following the classical lines of electromagnetic energy flow.


This is the second IIASA Working Paper on DEMP-1 -- the Demoeconometric Model of Poland. This model seeks to examine the process of economic growth and its impact on the time-behavior of demographic variables, such as birth, death, and migration rates, and population totals in urban and rural areas. The paper presents the reduced form of the model and illustrates some of its uses: counterfactual simulation results and direct multiplier analysis. The counterfactual simulation was based on two scenarios, one extrapolating to the 1970's the moderate growth experienced in the 1960's and one assuming from the start (since 1960) a high rate of growth, as was observed in the period 1971-1976. The analysis of direct multipliers shows that trends and sharp shifts of economic policy, which occur from time to time because of changes in relevant economic and administrative decisions, play an especially large role in the impact of economics on demographic factors.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the current state of the practice with regard to the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) material for road base and subbase applications and the potential for such use by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). To achieve the objectives of the study, a comprehensive review of the literature was conducted and the current state of the practice by other state departments of transportation was analyzed. The results indicated that the use of RAP in road base and subbase materials is viable and has been implemented by a number of transportation agencies. There seemed to be no major environmental concerns associated with using unbound RAP without chemical stabilization agents. Numerous sources of RAP are available in Virginia. Based on practices adopted by other state transportation agencies, the study recommends that VDOT allow the use of RAP in a road base material on highway construction projects. The study further recommends that the allowable percentage of RAP in a blend be phased in gradually to allow VDOT to gain familiarity with the materials and processes involved. Compaction testing could be performed with current methods while alternative procedures were analyzed for suitability. Once a standard specification has been developed, sites for long-term field studies will be identified to implement further the recommendations stemming from this study. There is a potential for significant economic benefits if RAP is used in base and subbase applications. Approximately 30% in material cost savings could be realized with a 50/50 blend of RAP and virgin aggregate. In addition, this application would likely result in a substantial reduction in the amount of RAP material currently stockpiled in Virginia.


Microorganisms are the great sources of Natural Products (NPs); these are imperative to their survival apart from conferring competitiveness amongst each other within their environmental niches. Primary and secondary metabolites are the two major classes of NPs that help in cell development, where antimicrobial activity is closely linked with secondary metabolites. To capitalize on the effects of secondary metabolites, co-culture methods have been often used to develop an artificial microbial community that promotes the action of these metabolites. Different analytical techniques will subsequently be employed based on the metabolite specificity and sensitivity to further enhance the metabolite induction. Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) and Gas Chromatography (GC)-MS are commonly used for metabolite separation while Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Mass Spectrometry (MS) have been used as tools to elucidate the structure of compounds. This review intends to discuss current systems in use for co-culture in addition to its advantages, with discourse into the investigation of specific techniques in use for the detailed study of secondary metabolites. Further advancements and focus on co-culture technologies are required to fully realize the massive potential in synthetic biological systems.


We present the discovery and extensive early-time observations of the Type Ic supernova (SN) PTF12gzk. Our light curves show a rise of 0.8 mag within 2.5 hr. Power-law fits (f(t)∝(t − t0)n) to these data constrain the explosion date to within one day. We cannot rule out a quadratic fireball model, but higher values of n are possible as well for larger areas in the fit parameter space. Our bolometric light curve and a dense spectral sequence are used to estimate the physical parameters of the exploding star and of the explosion. We show that the photometric evolution of PTF12gzk is slower than that of most SNe Ic. The high ejecta expansion velocities we measure (∼30, 000 km s−1 derived from line minima four days after explosion) are similar to the observed velocities of broad-lined SNe Ic associated with gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) rather than to normal SN Ic velocities. Yet, this SN does not show the persistent broad lines that are typical of broad-lined SNe Ic. The host-galaxy characteristics are also consistent with GRB-SN hosts, and not with normal SN Ic hosts. By comparison with the spectroscopically similar SN 2004aw, we suggest that the observed properties of PTF12gzk indicate an initial progenitor mass of 25–35 M☉ and a large ((5–10) × 1051 erg) kinetic energy, the later being close to the regime of GRB-SN properties.


Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP) is a rare hematologic emergency, congenital or acquired, characterized by ischemic damage of various organs because of platelet aggregation. It is the common name for adults with microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, with or without neurologic or renal abnormalities, and without another etiology; children without renal failure are also described as TTP. Plasma exchange (PE) is the main stay of treatment in combination with steroids and immunosuppressive therapies. The monoclonal antibody against CD20 Rituximab decreases the production of antibodies from B lymphocytes and it is used for antibodies-mediated diseases including TTP. We present our data on retrospective analysis of rituximab in treatment of TTP at University of Cincinnati in a series of 22 patients from 1997 to 2009. Our results showed that PE with immunosuppressive therapy resulted in decreased duration of PE, relapse rate, and increased duration of remission in patients with TTP.


Popular commercial fiction emerged in the nineteenth century, with serialised novels and sensational penny dreadfuls. Today it remains a multi-million dollar industry giving pleasure to many, but it is also a field of growing interest for scholars and students of literature. This Companion covers the major developments in the history of popular fiction, with specially commissioned chapters on pulp fiction, bestsellers, and comics and graphic narratives. The volume also examines the public and personal everyday contexts within which popular texts are read, highlighting the ways in which such narratives have circulated across a variety of constantly changing media, including theatre, television, cinema and new computer-based digital forms. Case studies from key genres – crime fiction, romance and Gothic horror – as well as a full chronology and guide to further reading make this collection indispensable to all those interested in this complex and vibrant cultural field.


Seed dispersal is an ecological process crucial for forest regeneration and recruitment. To date, most studies on frugivore seed dispersal have used the seed dispersal effectiveness framework and have documented seed‐handling mechanisms, dispersal distances and the effect of seed handling on germination. In contrast, there has been no exploration of "disperser reliability" which is essential to determine if a frugivore is an effective disperser only in particular regions/years/seasons or across a range of spatio‐temporal scales. In this paper, we propose a practical framework to assess the spatial reliability of frugivores as seed dispersers. We suggest that a frugivore genus would be a reliable disperser of certain plant families/genera if: (a) fruits of these plant families/genera are represented in the diets of most of the species of that frugivore, (b) these are consumed by the frugivore genus across different kinds of habitats, and (c) these fruits feature among the yearly staples and preferred fruits in the diets of the frugivore genus. Using this framework, we reviewed frugivory by the genus Macaca across Asia to assess its spatial reliability as seed dispersers. We found that the macaques dispersed the seeds of 11 plant families and five plant genera including at least 82 species across habitats. Differences in fruit consumption/preference between different groups of macaques were driven by variation in plant community composition across habitats. We posit that it is essential to maintain viable populations of macaques across their range and keep human interventions at a minimum to ensure that they continue to reliably disperse the seeds of a broad range of plant species in the Anthropocene. We further suggest that this framework be used for assessing the spatial reliability of other taxonomic groups as seed dispersers.


As a technology ML is oblivious to societal good or bad, and thus, the field of fair machine learning has stepped up to propose multiple mathematical definitions, algorithms, and systems to ensure different notions of fairness in ML applications. Given the multitude of propositions, it has become imperative to formally verify the fairness metrics satisfied by different algorithms on different datasets. In this paper, we propose a stochastic satisfiability (SSAT) framework, Justicia, that formally verifies different fairness measures of supervised learning algorithms with respect to the underlying data distribution. We instantiate Justicia on multiple classification and bias mitigation algorithms, and datasets to verify different fairness metrics, such as disparate impact, statistical parity, and equalized odds. Justicia is scalable, accurate, and operates on non-Boolean and compound sensitive attributes unlike existing distribution-based verifiers, such as FairSquare and VeriFair. Being distribution-based by design, Justicia is more robust than the verifiers, such as AIF360, that operate on specific test samples. We also theoretically bound the finite-sample error of the verified fairness measure.


This study proposes an approach for building a semi-automatic consultancy (question-answering) system via mobile/Internet networks. This approach is a combination of natural language (text) processing and machine learning method. For building the system, at first, we need to build modules for sending and receiving messages via SMS/Email/Webpage. These modules are used for users to send/receive their questions that need to be consulted. While waiting for answering from the system, the user will be recommended similar questions which have been answered in the past by using Cosine similarity. Next, a message classification module is built using a combination of text processing (e.g., word segmentation, stop word deletion) and machine learning method (e.g., SVM). Finally, a whole web-based system is conducted to integrate these modules. The proposed approach is applied for a case study of consulting on Vietnam National Entrance Test, which is an important test for the pupils to get into universities. Initial results show that the system can automatically classify the questions at 82.33% of accuracy, thus, this approach could be promising for (semi) automatic online consultancy systems.


The success of the Bitcoin project challenges the academic eCash discourse of the last 30 years. In this paper, it is explained why some of Bitcoin's fundamentals indeed contain the elements to design sustainable money promoting self-equilibrium and thus also challenge the conventional notion of "moneyness." This is coherent with a social theory of money as outlined in (The 2014). In fact, Bitcoin's success is, amongst others, due to the fact of implicitly assuming an equivalence between collective information and aggregate money stock by linking money supply directly to fundamental value via a data-based productivity measure called proof-of-work. The data-based productivity notion is further explored in subsequent cryptocurrency concepts like Permacoin. However, not all proof-of-difficulty concepts make economic sense, and it is likely that concepts which dispense with scaling energy consumption are void of economic meaning in the "real world." Finally, a new quantity theory of money is presented explaining how a data- based productivity notion of an eCash scheme is linked with network topology, relevant information creation, and fundamental value of goods and services produced within the network/social group, that is, real GDP. The causality implies purely endogenous "money supply" and is not dependent on a central point of trust like central banks in today's monetary system. From a theoretical perspective, it is also argued that Bitcoin's "block chain," the public ledger based on hashing computational puzzles is, in principle, an early technical implementation of a Walrasian auctioneer in a confined market as described by the general equilibrium framework in economics. Nevertheless, the challenge remains to move from a data-based productivity measure to an information-based productivity measure, which might proof to be difficult as the "veil of money" appears to be astonishingly firm.


Polymeric micelles are potentially efficient in encapsulating and performing the controlled release of various hydrophobic drug molecules. Understanding the fundamental physicochemical properties behind drug–polymer systems in terms of interaction strength and compatibility, drug partition coefficient (preferential solubilization), micelle size, morphology, etc., encourages the formulation of polymeric nanocarriers with enhanced drug encapsulating capacity, prolonged circulation time, and stability in the human body. In this review, we systematically address some open issues which are considered to be obstacles inhibiting the commercial availability of polymer-based therapeutics, such as the enhancement of encapsulation capacity by finding better drug–polymer compatibility, the drug-release kinetics and mechanisms under chemical and mechanical conditions simulating to physiological conditions, and the role of preparation methods and solvents on the overall performance of micelles.


As surgical proficiency and the development of medical techniques have improved, uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has emerged as a minimally invasive alternative in the surgical management of lung cancer. The spectrum of uniportal VATS indications is now almost equal to that of conventional VATS. Recent decades have witnessed the emergence of numerous uniportal VATS techniques. A significant proportion of these have to be converted into a multiport approach and even open thoracotomy due to the difficulty of managing the upper lobe vein and bronchus, particularly for the technically challenging left upper lobectomy. Although many successfully uniportal VATS left upper lobectomies have been reported, their procedures were modularized without describing refined techniques or operative improvements. This report describes a patient who was clinically diagnosed with stage IB (T2aN0M0) primary lung cancer of the left upper lobe (LUL), and who underwent left upper lobectomy and systematic lymph node dissection. During the operation, the placement of a single incision was readjusted to obtain optimal angulation; the versatile electrocautery hook and curved suction tube were used in conjunction with each other; accessible, cost-effective modified instruments were used; and new operative tricks were created; in addition, the operative sequence was alternated and the nerves were preserved to ensure a smooth procedure, improve efficiency, embody tumor-free operation and ensure safety. These are all good ideas that are worth disseminating.


Apart from scaling up foreign aid by NGOs, informed choices of private donors could also encourage an efficient and targeted use of NGO funds in international development cooperation. We assess the determinants of private donations across a large sample of US based NGOs with foreign aid activities. OLS and 2SLS estimations indicate that donors hardly make use of publicly available information on NGO characteristics, notably the "price of giving" and the degree of specialization, when deciding on donations. They rather rely on the frequently offered option to designate donations to preferred purposes – even though this behavior would be rational only under conditions that are unlikely to hold.


Medical opinions in court constitute a great challenge in regard to communication between physicians and lawyers. Considerable differences in their professional training and requirements frequently result in misunderstandings. Therefore physicians and lawyers need to learn more about each other and interact when evaluating opinions. A synergistic rather than a conflicting approach would help judges to find the happy medium between accepting medical reports unreservedly and coming to their own conclusions in more or less total disregard of the medical opinion presented in court. The expert, on the other hand, must ensure that the judge will understand the opinion as it was meant. Neither of them can call upon a translator.


The Xinanjiang rainfall–runoff model has been successfully applied in many humid and sub-humid areas in China since 1973. The wide application is due to the simple model structure, the clear physical meaning of the parameters and the well-defined model calibration procedure. However, due to a data scarcity problem and short runoff concentration time, its applications to small drainage basins are difficult. Therefore, we investigate the model application in Lianghui, a small drainage basin of Zhejiang province in China. By using generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE) methodology, the sensitivity of parameters of Xinanjiang model was investigated. The data clearly showed that equifinality phenomenon was evident in both water balance parameter calibration and runoff routing parameter calibration procedures. The results showed that K (evapotranspiration conversion coefficient), C s (recession constant in channel system) and S m (areal free water storage capacity of surface soil) are the most sensitive parameters for the water balance parameter calibration while C s , S m and W m (mean area tension water capacity) are the most sensitive parameters for runoff routing parameter calibration. The conclusion is favourable for understanding parameters of Xinanjiang model in order to provide valuable scientific information for simulating hydrological processes in small drainage basins.


At a secret location in the home counties of England, 15 000 cannabis plants are being grown quite legally. They are being bred from strains whose names—Hindu Kush, Skunk, Northern Lights, Gloria—are redolent of the Amsterdam coffee house scene. Their psychoactive seed heads, which stand over two metres high, are carefully studied—but never smoked. For these plants are being cultivated as part of the world's first commercial trial of medicinal cannabis.

The company behind the trial, GW Pharmaceuticals, based at Porton Down Science Park in Wiltshire, has had a rather good fortnight. Firstly, the home secretary, David Blunkett, announced on 23 October that the government would liberalise the law concerning possession and use of cannabis. He also indicated that he would be ready to license cannabis for medicinal use to treat multiple sclerosis and other conditions as soon as research trials were completed. Most commentators (including, albeit grudgingly, the Daily Mail leader writers) seemed to approve. On 24 October shares in GW Pharmaceuticals …


BACKGROUND
Medical clowns are increasingly used for diminishing pain and anxiety during painful procedures being performed on children in the hospital setting. Cortisol levels rise as a response to emotional distress.

OBJECTIVES
To investigate whether medical clown-assisted interventions to reduce child's distress during venipuncture have an effect on cortisol levels.

METHODS
During a 1 year period, children requiring blood work or intravenous access in the pediatric emergency department were prospectively randomized to either the presence or absence of a medical clown during the procedure. The child's distress was evaluated using the Faces Pain Scale - revised (FPS-R) for the 4-7 year age group and the visual analog scales (VAS) for those aged 8-15 years. Serum cortisol levels were measured in blood samples obtained by venipuncture.

RESULTS
Fifty-three children aged 2-15 years were randomly assigned to the study group (with medical clown, n=29) or to the control group (without medical clown, n=24). Combined pain scores of the study group and control group were 2.2 and 7.5 respectively (P < 0.001). No difference in mean cortisol levels was found between the study group and the control group at all ages (16.4 µg/dl vs. 18.3 µg/dl, P = 0.65).

CONCLUSIONS
In this pilot study, medical clowns reduced the distress from venipuncture in children. No effect on cortisol levels was observed.


Abstract
This study sought to explore the views and perceptions of education stakeholders (i.e. teachers, heads of schools and curriculum specialists) on the integration of environmental education into primary education curricula in Tanzania. The study also sought for stakeholders' views and perceptions to explain why EE has not been a successful story despite having been integrated in schools for decades. Empirical studies by Kimaryo (2011) and Mtaita (2007) discovered that although EE was included in Tanzanian primary schools since 1960's and was even stressed in the policy of education in 1990's; yet, the condition of environment has rather deteriorated.
Studies that have been conducted in this field, mainly explained the success or failure of EE implementation basing on teachers and students as key agents, thus capturing a narrow view to explain the phenomenon. As argued by Klitgaard (1973) in the theory of diffusion of innovations in education, success or failure of educational innovations and reforms cannot be a priori attributed to only one part of the educational system. He says educational systems operate in a chain of command where different actors and levels of authorities need to function properly and collaborate with other levels so as to ensure successful implementation of change and reforms in curriculum. For this reason, this study involved the curriculum specialists and heads of schools besides teachers. Moreover, none of the studies has explored how the school theory promotes or hinders the integration of EE into the curriculum.
The study attempted to answer the following four questions:
Which views and perceptions do teachers have on the environment, environmental changes and challenges?
How do teachers perceive EE integration, content adequacy and relevance; And which instructional methods and resources do they use in integrating EE content into their subject curriculum?
How do teachers perceive their motivation and professional development on environmental education issues?
How do heads of schools and curriculum specialists perceive EE integration, and how do they motivate teachers to successfully integrate EE into their teaching?
The study is qualitative in nature, employing research techniques such as interviews and document analysis to answer the inquiry. Data was obtained from five primary schools' teachers, heads of schools and curriculum specialists with a total of 30 participants taking part in the study. Grounded theory and thematic strategies were employed in data analysis.
The findings from teachers revealed that environmental changes and challenges are mainly seen as anthropogenic. The issue of climate change was a concern for a majority of participants. Awareness of the concept of 'pillars of sustainability' (i.e. ecology, economy and culture) is generally low and their balance is perceived impossible without addressing the poverty issue. Teachers' competence and motivation are low due to lack of resources and professional training, large class sizes and work load as well as lack of government priority on environmental issues. Moreover, results revealed that EE goals and principles are incompatible with the traditional role and goals of schooling, and as EE is not a subject in itself, it is marginalized in teaching. Findings from heads of schools and curriculum
specialists confirmed most of the findings from teachers, and acknowledged that very little support for teachers to implement EE was provided. In general, results concluded that there was no perspective for effective implementation of EE in the near future, unless there is due priority given from top authorities downwards.
The study recommends capacity building of teachers as well as involvement in planning and development for curricula reforms. Government priority on environmental issues is insisted on and urged to set concrete criteria for EE competence assessment in curricula. To ensure environmental sustainability the government should keep striving to fight poverty. Lastly the study proposes a model to improve the implementation of EE in primary schools. The findings of this study hold imperative implications for the government through the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training in Tanzania, curriculum specialists, and heads of schools as well as teachers as they are key players in determining the success or failure of educational innovations and reforms.


Patient-specific modeling of a cell death–promoting pathway may lead to personalized treatment strategies. Pathway activity as a biomarker Understanding signaling networks may enable prediction of disease mechanisms or responses to therapeutic strategies. Fey et al. showed that constructing a pathway that reproduces the all-or-nothing, switch-like activation of the stress-activated kinase JNK could be used to stratify neuroblastoma patients. Switch-like activation of JNK leads to cell death. By integrating patient-specific information about the abundance of the components of the JNK pathway in neuroblastoma samples into the model, the authors simulated the activity of the pathway and accurately predicted survival on the basis of the dynamic properties of the pathway. Thus, pathway activity served as a biomarker. The results also showed that alterations in the network that prevent the switch-like activation of JNK were associated with poor survival of neuroblastoma patients, thus providing potential molecular mechanisms for the inherent resistance of some of these tumors to treatment. Signaling pathways control cell fate decisions that ultimately determine the behavior of cancer cells. Therefore, the dynamics of pathway activity may contain prognostically relevant information different from that contained in the static nature of other types of biomarkers. To investigate this hypothesis, we characterized the network that regulated stress signaling by the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway in neuroblastoma cells. We generated an experimentally calibrated and validated computational model of this network and used the model to extract prognostic information from neuroblastoma patient–specific simulations of JNK activation. Switch-like JNK activation mediates cell death by apoptosis. An inability to initiate switch-like JNK activation in the simulations was significantly associated with poor overall survival for patients with neuroblastoma with or without MYCN amplification, indicating that patient-specific simulations of JNK activation could stratify patients. Furthermore, our analysis demonstrated that extracting information about a signaling pathway to develop a prognostically useful model requires understanding of not only components and disease-associated changes in the abundance or activity of the components but also how those changes affect pathway dynamics.


Soil water repellency occurs widely in horticultural and agricultural soils when very dry. The gradual accumulation and breakdown of surface organic matter over time produces wax-like organic acids, which coat soil particles preventing uniform entry of water into the soil. Water repellency is usually managed by regular surfactant applications. Surfactants, literally, are surface active agents (SURFace ACTive AgeNTS). Their mode of action is to reduce the surface tension of water, allowing it to penetrate and wet the soil more easily and completely. This practice improves water use efficiency (by requiring less water to wet the soil and by capturing rainfall and irrigation more effectively and rapidly). It also reduces nutrient losses through run-off erosion or leaching. These nutrients have the potential to pollute the surrounding environment and water courses. This project investigated potential improvements to standard practices (product combination and scheduling) for surfactant use to overcome localised dry spots on water repellent soils and thus improve turf quality and water use efficiency. Weather conditions for the duration of the trial prevented the identification of improved practices in terms of combination and scheduling. However, the findings support previous research that the use of soil surfactants decreased the time for water to infiltrate dry soil samples taken from a previously severely hydrophobic site. Data will be continually collected from this trial site on a private contractual basis, with the hope that improvements to standard practices will be observed during the drier winter months when moisture availability is a limiting factor for turfgrass growth and quality.


The idea of matched-pulse (MP) reflectometry is here introduced as an improvement for fault-detection techniques in wire networks. As opposed to existing reflectometry methods, the testing signal is network dependent and self-adaptive and designed in a way as to maximize the probability of detection of an echo associated to an eventual fault. The detection performance of this novel technique is investigated by means of a mathematical analysis comparing it to standard time-domain reflectometry (TDR) methods. It is proven that the more complex the network, the better the performance that the MP approach will provide. This is opposed to common understanding, as standard TDR techniques yield degrading detection probabilities in the case of the complex networks. Furthermore, the MP approach is shown to be particularly interesting for soft-fault detection, as it provides an improved performance as soon as the fault is weakly reflective. Our findings show that the MP approach is expected to bring a substantial improvement in the likelihood of properly detecting faults in configurations that are deemed critical for standard reflectometry techniques, particularly when dealing with noisy networks under test. Experimental results measured on coaxial complex networks support these claims.


This Article discusses the normative trajectory of international obligations assumed by Southeast Asian countries (particularly the Organizational Purposes that mandate compliance with international treaties, human rights, and democratic freedoms), and the inevitable emergence of a body of discrete "ASEAN law" arising from the combined legislative functions of the ASEAN Summit and the ASEAN Political, Economic and Social Communities. I discuss several immediate and short-term challenges from the increased constitutionalization of international obligations, such as: 1) the problem of incorporation (or lack of direct effect) and the remaining dependence of some Southeast Asian states on their respective constitutional mechanisms to transform international obligations into binding constitutional or statutory obligations; 2) the problem of hybridity and normative transplantation, which I illustrate in the interpretive issues regarding the final text of the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement which draws some provisions from GATT 1994 and parallel language similar to the US and German Model BITs; and 3) the problem of diffuse or insufficient judicial oversight within ASEAN, seen through lingering dependence on national court implementation despite the regional effort at standardization of legal norms on specific areas of trade, security and human rights. I conclude that leaving these problems unaddressed could impede Southeast Asia's vast potential to contribute to the project of constitutionalization of international law.


Flood mitigation is a strategy that is growing in importance across Europe. This growth corresponds with an increasing emphasis on the need to learn to live with floods and make space for water. Flood mitigation measures aim at reducing the likelihood and magnitude of flooding and complement flood defenses. They are being put in place through the implementation of actions that accommodate (rather than resist) water, such as natural flood management or adapted housing. The strategy has gained momentum over the past 20 years in an effort to improve the sustainability of flood risk management (FRM) and facilitate the diversification of FRM in the pursuit of societal resilience to flooding. Simultaneously, it is increasingly argued that adaptive forms of governance are best placed to address the uncertainty and complexity associated with social-ecological systems responding to environmental challenges, such as flooding. However, there have been few attempts to examine the extent to which current flood risk governance, and flood mitigation specifically, reflect these aspired forms of adaptive governance. Drawing from EU research into flood risk governance, conducted within the STAR-FLOOD project, we examine the governance of flood mitigation in six European countries: Belgium, England, France, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden. Using in-depth policy and legal analysis, as well as interviews with key actors, the governance and implementation of flood mitigation in these countries is evaluated from the normative viewpoint of whether, and to what extent, it can be characterized as adaptive governance. We identify five criteria of adaptive governance based on a comprehensive literature review and apply these to each country to determine the "distance" between current governance arrangements and adaptive governance. In conclusion, the flood mitigation strategy provides various opportunities for actors to further pursue forms of adaptive governance. The extent to which the mitigation strategy is capable of doing so varies across countries, however, and its role in stimulating adaptive governance was found to be strongest in Belgium and England.


This article investigates whether country characteristics can determine diversification benefits provided by single-country exchange traded funds (ETFs) to U.S.-based investors during crises and non-crises periods. We find several country-specific characteristics, including prior correlation, foreign direct investment, GDP growth rate, inflation rate, and inclusion in the G7 are significant in explaining diversification benefits during non-crises periods. We find that most of the coefficients lose significance during the crises periods in both raw and contagion corrected models, proving the choice of which international funds to invest is difficult for investors in today's global financial marketplace. This study finds that investors seeking protection from extreme U.S. market returns are not able to identify which single-country ETFs will serve to diversify their portfolios during extreme market movements using easily accessible finance and economic variables. The results of this study further complicate the decisions investor face in creating a well-diversified portfolio and serve as a warning to individual investors and managers attempting to determine which country single-country ETFs will provide diversification benefits using traditional estimation tools.


This paper develops a theoretical framework for four sustainability paradigms (weak sustainability, a-growth, de-growth, strong sustainability) within cooperative and non-cooperative scenarios, and includes changes in four values (a sense of responsibility to nature and future generations; aversion to inequality for current and future generations). The model assesses the feasibility of sustainability solutions for a shared environment as a function of specific value changes in each country by interpreting these value changes as support for environmental policies. The solutions are defined in terms of consumption, use of the environment, and welfare of representative individuals in each country; they are characterised by efficiency and equality at both intra- and inter-generational levels; they are checked for internal consistency and consistency with alternative approaches such as utilitarianism, egalitarianism (i.e., Arneson, Dworkin, Sen), and contractarianism. Theoretical insights are obtained by comparing contextual stability and relative effectiveness of the environment's use among countries in alternative scenarios. A case study of the Baltic Sea operationally suggests that the currently adopted strong sustainability (i.e., an ecosystem approach) in a non-cooperative scenario (i.e., countries attempt to maximize their own rather than overall welfare) is internally consistent, relatively efficient, and consistent with Dworkin egalitarianism. A-growth was never feasible, but de-growth in which Denmark, Finland, Germany, and Sweden increase environmental protection would increase intra-generational equality; de-growth or weak sustainability in which Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia increase environmental RD weak sustainability and de-growth consistent with Arneson and Dworkin egalitarianism would improve the environmental status.


Introductions: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a heterogeneous group of disorders with different manifestations. There is lack of data locally. In this study, we describe the clinical profile and functional outcome of patients with JIA attending two rheumatology clinics in Lalitpur, Nepal. Methods: This cross sectional study wasconducted at Patan Hospital and Aarogya Health Home, Lalitpur, Kathmandu, Nepal. The medical records of patients with juvenile arthritis during the period between Jan 2013 to Dec 2015 were retrospectively reviewed for clinical profile and functional outcome of disease. Results: A total of 81 patients with arthritis diagnosed before age 16 years were seen during this period. Seventy eight patients with JIA included 41 males and 37 females. Mean age of onset was 9.21 years. Polyarticular JIA was seen 32 (42.2%), oligoarticular in 24 (30.7%), enthesitis-related 13 (16.6%), and systemic-onset in 6 (7.7%). Systemic complications were seen in 14 (17.9%) cases. Five cases had uveitis. Joint deformities were present in 28 (35.8%). Sixty seven (86%) children continued their education. Functional limitation (Steinbrocker's functional class III and IV) was seen in 4 (5.1%). One child with oligoarticular JIA died. Conclusions: The clinical profile of JIA in Nepalese patients is similar to studies from other parts of the World. During the short follow up, functional limitation was not a major problem. Keywords: clinical profile, functional outcome, juvenile idiopathic arthritis


Background High-throughput targeted sequencing of the 16S ribosomal RNA marker gene is often used to profile and characterize the taxonomic composition of microbial communities. This type of big high-through sequencing data is rapidly being applied to various infectious diseases like diarrhea. While many studies are limited to single "snapshots" of these communities, there is increasing recognition that longitudinal profiling of these communities are required to understand community dynamics and the complex relationships between dynamics and phenotypes of interest. Statistical methods that determine microbial features that are differentially expressed are required as an initial step to characterizing phenotypic associations with community dynamics in big data and infectious diseases. Results We present a novel method for longitudinal marker-gene surveys based on smoothing splines that allows discovery and inference of time periods where specific microbial features are differentially abundant. We applied our method to three 16S marker-gene surveys, including, groups of gnotobiotic mice on two diets, patients challenged with ETEC (H10407), and a vaginal microbiome of healthy women. Employing our methodology we recover known bacterial differences and highlight a few extra species providing insight into when specific changes occurred. Additionally, in the cohort challenged with ETEC we recover proposed probiotic bacteria Bacteroides xylanisolvens, Collinsella aerofaciens, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii associatons with healthy individuals. Conclusions The method presented is, to our knowledge, the first flexible method of its kind implemented as a software capable of detecting time periods of differential abundance for microbial features species between two or more sample groups of interest. Our method is available within the metagenomeSeq open-source software for analysis of metagenomic package available through the Bioconductor project and is termed metaSplines.


Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes, (Mart) Solms), a floating aquatic plant, has long been recognised as a potential commercial resource but, despite many attempts, its conversion from a nuisance into an asset has not been achieved on a significant scale. The thesis is an analysis and assessment of the options for overcoming the many difficulties encountered in the use of water hyacinth. Following a literature survey, from which a process flow path for optimum use of water hyacinth is devised, the thesis leads to an evaluation of the key components of the proposed system for use of water hyacinth as a large-scale energy resource. The principle component of a system to produce energy from water hyacinth is the anaerobic digester. Trials with high-rate anaerobic digesters were conducted in Bangladesh and Thailand.
In Bangladesh, with the assistance of senior personnel from the Department of Chemistry of Dhaka University, an 8.3 cubic metre, multi-stage, upflow anaerobic digester was built within the grounds of the Housing and Building Research Institute in Dhaka. Trials with this unit, and associated laboratory work, demonstrated and quantified both the need and the scope for pre-treatment of raw water hyacinth prior to anaerobic digestion. Initial experimentation in Bangladesh laid down the foundations for an understanding of water hyacinth and led to the experimental programme performed in Thailand.
In Thailand, following an extensive search and selection of suitable juicing apparatus, a series of batch reactors were run with juice made from separate parts of the whole plant. These results were compared with each other and with a reactor running on juice made from whole plant. The conclusion drawn from this experimentation was that, when mechanically pre-treated, the root section of the plant will contribute more to gas production than will the stem portion. In many previous trials the root has been discarded because of its resistance to anaerobic digestion in a raw form.
A multi-stage upflow anaerobic digester was conceived with inclined weir plates, intended to resist blocking of the flow paths by insoluble solids in water hyacinth juice. A series of four of these units were built on a laboratory scale and trials carried out over a period of one month. These trials demonstrated that the proposal to juice water hyacinth prior to low-solids, high-rate anaerobic digestion is one that is technically feasible.
The final sections of the thesis use an economic model of the proposed system to conclude that small-scale (3 m3 biogas per day) and medium- scale (1,000 m3 biogas per day) utilisation of water hyacinth will be difficult to achieve in a commercial setting. Large-scale (above 100,000 m3 biogas per day) utilisation of water hyacinth, however, is concluded to be of significant commercial potential.


While it is important to track trends in the number of road accidents in different countries using national statistics, there is a need for data with more detailed information, so called in-depth accident data. For this reason, several accident data projects emerged worldwide in recent years. However, also different data standards were established and so comparative analysis of international in-depth data has been very hard to conduct, so far. This is why the project iGLAD (Initiative for the Global Harmonization of Accident Data) was established and created the prerequisites for building up a standardized dataset out of the common denominator of different in-depth accident databases from Europe, USA and Asia. In the first phase, the project received funding from ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturer's Association) to compile an initial database. To accomplish this, a suitable data scheme has been defined, a pilot study has been conducted as proof of concept and the recording of the first common data base has been initiated. Also, to prepare the project for its self-supporting continuation in the next years, a business model has been developed. This paper reports the history and status of the project, the current challenges and the creation of a capable consortium to maintain the data. In mid-2014, the initial database containing 1,550 cases from 10 different countries will be completed and a first detailed view on this data will be possible. (A)


Exploiting the increasingly wide use of Light-emitting Diode (LED) lighting, in this paper, we study the problem of using visible LED lights for accurate localization. The basic idea is to leverage the existing lighting infrastructure and apply trilateration to localize any devices with light sensing capability (e.g., a smartphone), using LED lamps as anchors. Through the design of Epsilon, we identify and tackle several technique challenges. In particular, we establish and experimentally verify the optical channel model for localization. We adopt BFSK and channel hopping to enable reliable location beaconing from multiple, uncoordinated light sources over the shared optical medium. We handle realistic situations towards robust localization, for example, we exploit user involvement to resolve the ambiguity in case of insufficient LED anchors. We have implemented the Epsilon system and evaluated it with a small scale hardware testbed as well as moderate-size simulations. Experimental results confirmed the effectiveness of Epsilon: the 90th percentile accuracies are 0.4m, 0.7m and 0.8m for three typical office environments. Even in the extreme situation with a single light, the 90th percentile accuracy is 1.1m. We believe that visible light based localization is promising to significantly improve the positioning accuracy, despite few open problems in practice.


Intelligent systems built upon complex machine learning and data mining models (e.g., deep neural networks) have shown superior performances on various real-world applications. However, their effectiveness is limited by the difficulty in interpreting the resultant prediction mechanisms or how the results are obtained. In contrast, the results of many simple or shallow models, such as rule-based or tree-based methods, are explainable but not sufficiently accurate. Model interpretability enables the systems to be clearly understood, properly trusted, effectively managed and widely adopted by end users. Interpretations are necessary in applications such as medical diagnosis, fraud detection and object recognition where valid reasons would be significantly helpful, if not necessary, before taking actions based on predictions. This workshop is about interpreting the prediction mechanisms or results of the complex computational models for data mining by taking advantage of simple models which are easier to understand. We wish to exchange ideas on recent approaches to the challenges of model interpretability, identify emerging fields of applications for such techniques, and provide opportunities for relevant interdisciplinary research or projects.


Framed within Role and Reference Grammar, this chapter provides a finer-grained account of the English resultative constructions (e.g. He hammered the metal flat / into a knife ), which enriches the constructional schema suggested in Van Valin (2005). In so doing, we mainly follow the work carried out by Nolan (2011a, b) and Diedrichsen (2010, 2011), while also drawing on insights coming from the family of Construction Grammars (e.g. Goldberg 1995; Goldberg & Jackendoff 2004, inter alios ). In turn, a further step is taken here by proposing the incorporation of additional features such as the motivation of the construction and its family resemblance connection; two essential issues which heavily depend upon the role of metaphor and metonymy (Ruiz de Mendoza & Mairal 2011).


'A stunner. I am heartbroken to have finished it' Ali Smith In Jackie Kay's first collection of stories, ordinary lives are transformed by secrets. Her world might seem familiar -- sex, death and family cast long shadows -- but the roles of mothers, daughters and lovers are imagined and revealed in the most surprising of ways. Sometimes it is the things that we choose to hide within ourselves which can transform us -- and that has never been more true than in Jackie Kay's warm, exuberant storytelling. She sees the extraordinary in everyday life, and lights it up with humour and generosity in a way that is uniquely her own. 'If stories like these can still be written, the short story form must still be alive, not to say kicking' Irish Times


Understanding the behavior of emerging workloads is important for designing next generation microprocessors. For addressing this issue, computer architects and performance analysts build benchmark suites of new application domains and compare the behavioral characteristics of these benchmark suites against well-known benchmark suites. Current practice typically compares workloads based on microarchitecture-dependent characteristics generated from running these workloads on real hardware. There is one pitfall though with comparing benchmarks using microarchitecture-dependent characteristics, namely that completely different inherent program behavior may yield similar microarchitecture-dependent behavior. This paper proposes a methodology for characterizing benchmarks based on microarchitecture-independent characteristics. This methodology minimizes the number of inherent program characteristics that need to be measured by exploiting correlation between program characteristics. In fact, we reduce our 47-dimensional space to an 8-dimensional space without compromising the methodology's ability to compare benchmarks. The important benefits of this methodology are that (i) only a limited number of microarchitecture-independent characteristics need to be measured, and (ii) the resulting workload characterization is easy to interpret. Using this methodology we compare 122 benchmarks from 6 recently proposed benchmark suites. We conclude that some benchmarks in emerging benchmark suites are indeed similar to benchmarks from well-known benchmark suites as suggested through a microarchitecture-dependent characterization. However, other benchmarks are dissimilar based on a microarchitecture-independent characterization although a microarchitecture-dependent characterization suggests the opposite to be true


Stress field in functionally graded (FG) rotating disks with non-uniform thickness and variable angular velocity is studied numerically. The elastic modulus and mass density of the disks are assumed to be varying along the radius as a power-law function of the radial coordinate, while the Poisson's ratio is kept constant. The governing equations for the stress field is derived and numerically solved using the finite difference method for the case of fixed-free boundary conditions. Additionally, the effect of material gradient index (i.e., the level of material gradation) on the stress field is evaluated. Our results show that the optimum stress field is achieved by having a thickness profile in the form of a rational function of the radial coordinate. Moreover, a smaller stress field can be developed by having greater mass density and elastic modulus at the outer radius of the disk (i.e., ceramicrich composites at the outer radius). The numerical results additionally reveal that deceleration results in shearstress development within the disks where a greater deceleration leads to greater shear stress; however this has almost no effect on the radial and circumferential stresses. Furthermore, the shear stress can cause a shift in the location of the maximum Von Mises stress, where for small deceleration, maximum Von Mises stress is located somewhere between the inner and outer radii, while for large deceleration it is located at the inner radius.


A comparative qualitative study titled Speak up! was conducted with children in eight European countries. The aims were to increase our knowledge about European children in vulnerable situations or with special needs and to elicit their views about their rights and what needs to be improved. The methodology of the project involved playing a children's rights game and holding in-depth discussions in focus groups with children in vulnerable situations and with control groups. The vulnerable groups comprised children with disabilities, asylum-seeking children, children living in 'urban pockets of poverty', Roma children, Traveller children, children in juvenile justice institutions and children in care. The control groups were made up of children with mixed backgrounds from ordinary classes in regular school. According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC) all children have the right to be listened to, however many children, particularly children in vulnerable situations or with special needs, have very little experience of being listened to. They face discrimination due to disability, ethnic background or social disadvantage, as well as for being under 18 years old. The methodology of the Speak up! project shows that children in vulnerable situations or with special needs can take part in research and other activities where they communicate their experiences and suggest ideas for how to improve their situation in line with the UN CRC. Consultations need to be adapted to their specific circumstances and ommunication needs, and the children need to be able to trust the interviewer/moderator.


The present study examines the degree to which different kinds of information guide behavioral predictions, the kind of information that people believe is relevant to behavioral predictions, and the individual differences associated with the perception and use of specific kinds of information used by people when they make such predictions. One hundred and fourteen participants completed the Attributional Complexity Scale (ACS), California Adult Q-Sort (CAQ), and the Self-Monitoring Scale (SM) and made behavioral predictions for scenarios describing a person (e.g., anxious vs. relaxed) in some situation (e.g.,interview vs. chatting with friend). For each scenario, the degree to which each participant's predictions were made by using either dispositional, situational, or interactional information was determined. Predictions were more strongly associated with dispositional distinctions, but the use of situational information was also apparent. In sum, the Behavioral Prediction Assessment (BPA) tool gives a reliable measure of individual differences in which people form predictions about others' social behaviors. Future research might evaluate the meaning of these differences and their links to predictive accuracy.


Abstract. Anthropogenic methane emissions originate from a large number of fine-scale
and often transient point sources. Satellite observations of atmospheric
methane columns are an attractive approach for monitoring these emissions but
have limitations from instrument precision, pixel resolution, and measurement
frequency. Dense observations will soon be available in both low-Earth and
geostationary orbits, but the extent to which they can provide fine-scale
information on methane sources has yet to be explored. Here we present an
observation system simulation experiment (OSSE) to assess the capabilities of
different satellite observing system configurations. We conduct a 1-week
WRF-STILT simulation to generate methane column footprints at
1.3 × 1.3 km2 spatial resolution and hourly temporal resolution
over a 290 × 235 km2 domain in the Barnett Shale, a major
oil and gas field in Texas with a large number of point sources. We sub-sample
these footprints to match the observing characteristics of the recently
launched TROPOMI instrument (7 × 7 km2 pixels, 11 ppb
precision, daily frequency), the planned GeoCARB instrument
(2.7 × 3.0 km2 pixels, 4 ppb precision, nominal twice-daily
frequency), and other proposed observing configurations. The information
content of the various observing systems is evaluated using the Fisher
information matrix and its eigenvalues. We find that a week of TROPOMI
observations should provide information on temporally invariant emissions at
∼ 30 km spatial resolution. GeoCARB should provide information
available on temporally invariant emissions ∼ 2–7 km spatial
resolution depending on sampling frequency (hourly to daily). Improvements to
the instrument precision yield greater increases in information content than
improved sampling frequency. A precision better than 6 ppb is critical for
GeoCARB to achieve fine resolution of emissions. Transient emissions would be
missed with either TROPOMI or GeoCARB. An aspirational high-resolution
geostationary instrument with 1.3 × 1.3 km2 pixel resolution,
hourly return time, and 1 ppb precision would effectively constrain the
temporally invariant emissions in the Barnett Shale at the kilometer scale
and provide some information on hourly variability of sources.


ABSTRACT Conventional cores from five wells in the Greensburg-Joseph Branch fields area of St. Helena Parish, Louisiana, were described and sampled to determine the depositional environments, lithology, and diagenesis of the First Tuscaloosa Sand, the producing sand of the Lower Tuscaloosa Formation in this intermediate-depth part of the trend. The cores totalled 172 feet in length and were taken from the upper half of the sand, which is typically about 30 feet thick where productive, or from the overlying finer-grained section. Greensburg and Joseph Branch fields occur in an area of limited low relief structural nosing; neither anticlinal closures greater than 20 feet nor faults were recognized by structure contour mapping. Based on the updip and lateral shaling out of the First Tuscaloosa Sand and the virtual absence of structure, Greensburg field is interpreted to be a stratigraphic trap; Joseph Branch is a one-well field, likely also a stratigraphic trap. The First Tuscaloosa Sand appears to have been deposited in a distributary channel which crossed the subaerial lowland part of a delta. It is a very fine- to fine-grained sandstone for the most part, with a few thin shale interbeds. Ripple laminations, clay clasts, and deformational structures characterize the channel fill portion of the section. Intense bioturbation of sand tops, unidirectional trough cross-bedding, and flaser structures were recognized in places, indicative of a deltaic environment influenced by tidal currents. Petrographic analysis of 20 thin-sections from selected intervals revealed that the First Tuscaloosa Sand is primarily a sublitharenite, with scattered quartzarenite intervals. The average sandstone consists of 68.3% framework grains, 11.4% matrix, 12.9% cement, and 7.4% pore space. Quartz, almost all of which is monocrystalline, is by far the dominant framework grain. Cementing by quartz overgrowths appears to represent a significant proportion of the pore filling, but could not be quantified. Calcite (up to 25.5%) and siderite (up to 27.0%) are also important cements. Matrix, particularly as chlorite pore-linings around quartz grains, occupies up to 36.0% of the sandstone volume. The First Tuscaloosa Sandstone has been extensively modified by diagenesis. Initial (primary) porosity was reduced by compaction and later by formation of quartz overgrowths. Secondary porosity developed as a result of the dissolution of unstable grains and late-stage carbonate cements. Chlorite grain rims appear to have formed after quartz overgrowth precipitation in zones now carbonate cement-poor.


We propose a new method for decomposing seasonal data: a seasonal-trend decomposition using regression (STR). Unlike other decomposition methods, STR allows for multiple seasonal and cyclic components, covariates, seasonal patterns that may have noninteger periods, and seasonality with complex topology. It can be used for time series with any regular time index, including hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly data. It is competitive with existing methods when they exist and tackles many more decomposition problems than other methods allow. STR is based on a regularized optimization and so is somewhat related to ridge regression. Because it is based on a statistical model, we can easily compute confidence intervals for components, something that is not possible with most existing decomposition methods (such as seasonal-trend decomposition using Loess, X-12-ARIMA, SEATS-TRAMO, etc.). Our model is implemented in the R package stR, so it can be applied by anyone to their own data.


Selecting operations based on the run-time type of an object is key to many object-oriented and functional programming techniques. We present a technique for implementing open and efficient type switching on hierarchical extensible data types. The technique is general and copes well with C++ multiple inheritance. To simplify experimentation and gain realistic performance using production-quality compilers and tool chains, we implement a type switch construct as an ISO C++11 library, called Mach7. This library-only implementation provides concise notation and outperforms the visitor design pattern, commonly used for case analysis on types in object-oriented programming. For closed sets of types, its performance roughly equals equivalent code in functional languages, such as OCaml and Haskell. The type-switching code is easier to use and is more expressive than hand-coded visitors are. The library is non-intrusive and circumvents most of the extensibility restrictions typical of the visitor design pattern. It was motivated by applications involving large, typed, abstract syntax trees.


New interactive applications, artifacts, and systems are constantly being added to our environments, and there are some concerns in the human–computer interaction research community that increasing interactivity might not be just to the good. But what is it that is supposed to be increasing, and how could we determine whether it is? To approach these issues in a systematic and analytical fashion, relying less on common intuitions and more on clearly defined concepts and when possible quantifiable properties, we take a renewed look at the notion of interactivity and related concepts. The main contribution of this article is a number of definitions and terms, and the beginning of an attempt to frame the conditions of interaction and interactivity. Based on this framing, we also propose some possible approaches for how interactivity can be measured.


Abstract. The aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (ATOFMS) provides size-resolved information on the chemical composition of single particles with high time resolution. Within SAPUSS (Solving Aerosol Problems by Using Synergistic Strategies), continuous ATOFMS measurements of ambient particles were made simultaneously at two urban locations: urban background (UB) site and roadside (RS) site in the city of Barcelona (Spain) from 17 September to 18 October 2010. Two different instrumental configurations were used: ATOFMS (TSI 3800) with a converging nozzle inlet (high efficiency at about 800–2000 nm) at the UB site and ATOFMS (TSI 3800-100) with an aerodynamic lens inlet (high efficiency at about 300–700 nm) at the RS site. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that two ATOFMS instruments have been deployed in the same field study. The different instrument configurations had an impact on the observed particle types at the two sites. Nevertheless, 10 particle types were detected at both locations, including local and regional elemental carbon (22.7–58.9 % of total particles), fresh and aged sea salt (1.0–14.6 %), local and regional nitrate-containing aerosols (3–11.6 %), local lead-containing metallic particles (0.1–0.2 %), and transported Fe-nitrate particles (0.8–2.5 %). The ATOFMS at the UB also characterized four particle types: calcium-containing dust (0.9 %), Saharan dust (1.3 %), vanadium-containing particles (0.9 %), and vegetative debris (1.7 %). By contrast, the high statistical counts of fine particles detected at the RS allowed identification of eight particle types. Four of these contained organic nitrogen of primary and secondary origin, which highlights the complex nature of the sources and processes that contribute to this aerosol chemical component. Aminium salts were found related to coarse sulfate-rich particle types, suggesting heterogeneous reaction mechanisms for their formation. The other four particle types mainly containing organic carbon were found spiking at different types of the day, also showing a complex single-particle mixing state relationship between organic carbon and nitrate. This ATOFMS study clearly shows that the composition of atmospheric fine particles in Barcelona, and likely other Mediterranean urban areas, is complex, with a wide range of local and regional sources combining with chemical processing to produce at least 22 different particle types exhibiting different temporal behaviour. The advantage of using two ATOFMS instruments is also demonstrated, with the nozzle-skimmer configuration enabling detection of coarse dust particles and the aerodynamic lens configuration allowing better identification of particles rich in organic carbon and amines. Overall, we find that organic nitrogen is a considerable fraction of the single particles detected, especially at the traffic-dominated RS site. Further studies are needed, especially at high time resolution, to better understand the sources and properties of particulate organic nitrogen.


Platelet microparticle (PMP)-induced angiogenesis plays a key role in tumour metastasis and has been proposed to contribute towards cardiovascular disease by enhancing atherosclerotic plaque vulnerability. However, the mechanisms underlying PMP induced angiogenesis are ill defined. Recent reports demonstrate that PMPs deliver micro-RNAs (miRNAs) to recipient cells, controlling gene expression. We therefore evaluated whether miRNA transfer was a key regulator of PMP-induced angiogenesis. Co-culturing PMPs with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) on extracellular matrix gel induced robust capillary like structure formation. PMP treatment altered the release of angiogenesis modulators from HUVEC, including significantly reducing production of anti-angiogenic thrombospondin-1 (THBS-1). Both functional responses were abrogated by treating PMPs with RNase, suggesting the transfer of PMP-derived RNA was a critical event. PMPs were an abundant source of miRNA Let-7a, which was transferred to HUVEC following co-incubation. Using luciferase reporter assays we have shown that Let-7a directly targets the 3'UTR of the THBS -1 mRNA. HUVEC transfection with a Let-7a anti-sense oligonucleotide reduced the ability of PMPs to inhibit THBS-1 release, and significantly decreased PMP induced in vitro angiogenesis. Antibody neutralisation of THBS-1 reversed the anti-angiogenic effect of let-7a inhibition in PMP treated HUVEC, highlighting Let-7a dependent translational repression of THBS-1 drives angiogenesis. Importantly, plasmid overexpression of Let-7a in HUVEC alone induced robust tubule formation on extracellular matrix gel. These data reveal a new role for Let-7a in promoting angiogenesis and show for the first time PMPs induced angiogenic responses occur through miRNA regulation of HUVEC.


Characteristics of patch antennas like beam scanning, high gain, or steering capability are possible only when discrete patch elements are combined to form arrays. The elements of an array may be spatially distributed to form a linear, planar, or volume array. Conventional antennas and microstrip antennas are crucial for application in modern communication and navigation systems. Microstrip antennas can conform to planar and non-planar surfaces. Hence they find wide usage in military and civilian applications like aerospace structures where weight and space are a restriction. The design of a four-element circularly polarized and linearly polarized microstrip antenna array, which is based on Uniform and Binomial power distribution, using FEKO is presented in this paper. Keywordsmicrostrip patch array, linear polarization, circular polarization, binomial distribution, pin fed


The reliance on expert knowledge—required for analysing security logs and performing security audits—has created an unhealthy balance, where many computer users are not able to correctly audit their security configurations and react to potential security threats. The decreasing cost of IT and the increasing use of technology in domestic life are exacerbating this problem, where small companies and home IT users are not able to afford the price of experts for auditing their system configuration. In this paper, we present GraphBAD, a graph‐based analysis tool that is able to analyse security configurations in order to identify anomalies that could lead to potential security risks. GraphBAD, which does not require any prior domain knowledge, generates graph‐based models from security configuration data and, by analysing such models, is able to propose mitigation plans that can help computer users in increasing the security of their systems. A large experimental analysis, conducted on both publicly available (the well‐known KDD dataset) and synthetically generated testing sets (file system permissions), demonstrates the ability of GraphBAD in correctly identifying security configuration anomalies and suggesting appropriate mitigation plans.


Mobile Telecommunication standardization in Europe builds on a history formed by European and International standardization bodies, the governments as regulators and the R&D departments of PPT-owned telecommunication operators. This paper describes the standardization approach related to the implementation of the public CPA (Content Provider Access) platform and business model for provision of content services for mobile phones in Norway. CPA builds on complementary services and common incentives for mobile telecommunication operators and content providers to create an open, transparent and easy to access service platform through standardization, but is at the same time developed outside both the scope and the central control of standardization organizations and their standardization practices. The nature of this process can be attributed to processes of convergence. Applying an Information Infrastructure perspective, we discuss the standardization process as open, where the trajectory of development is determined by heterogeneous actors with different and possibly conflicting agendas, powers, needs and incentives. Our aims are both to identify and describe new approaches to standardization as well as new kinds of standards within telecommunications.


Abstract The Sonnblick Dome forms a large antiformal structure within the Pennine of the SE Tauern Window. The structural and metamorphic evolution of this area is relatively well constrained. However, mineral age determinations of the Alpine event within the Zentralgneis granitoid basement remain ambiguous due to a lack of isotopic equilibration during the Alpine event. In this paper we use a newly developed technique, namely Rb-Sr microsampling, in an attempt to place more reliable age constraints upon Alpine deformation. The new age determinations range between c. 22 Ma and 28 Ma. The oldest ages are interpreted to result from shearing related to the earliest stages of dome formation while the youngest ages probably represent late fabric development during uplift of the Zentralgneis complex. A clustering of six fabric ages around 25.5 ± 0.3 Ma is thought to represent the peak of deformation activity associated with formation of the dome. These new data can be fitted into a model for the metamorphic and structural evolution of the SE Tauern Window. In most of the rocks studied isotopic disequilibrium is apparent between and within minerals. It is clear that large feldspar augen did not attain isotopic equilibrium despite amphibolite facies metamorphism. In fact, even where chemical equilibrium was achieved isotopic homogenization did not always occur. The Rb-Sr data from white mica suggest that isotopic equilibration may occur during isochemical rotation of grains suggesting differing mechanisms for chemical and isotopic movement within grains. The data presented herein suggest that small-scale, in-situ sampling methods may provide the most reliable method for deformation chronology in basement gneisses.


Background: The mechanisms regulating internalization of plasma membrane cholesterol in mammalian cells are not well understood. Results: A cell line haploinsufficient for U60 snoRNA expression exhibits impaired plasma membrane to ER cholesterol trafficking and increased de novo cholesterol synthesis. Conclusion: U60 snoRNA expression regulates cholesterol homeostasis by affecting internalization of plasma membrane cholesterol. Significance: This is the first study to implicate a snoRNA in regulation of cholesterol homeostasis. Mobilization of plasma membrane (PM) cholesterol to the endoplasmic reticulum is essential for cellular cholesterol homeostasis. The mechanisms regulating this retrograde, intermembrane cholesterol transfer are not well understood. Because mutant cells with defects in PM to endoplasmic reticulum cholesterol trafficking can be isolated on the basis of resistance to amphotericin B, we conducted an amphotericin B loss-of-function screen in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells using insertional mutagenesis to identify genes that regulate this trafficking mechanism. Mutant line A1 displayed reduced cholesteryl ester formation from PM-derived cholesterol and increased de novo cholesterol synthesis, indicating a deficiency in retrograde cholesterol transport. Genotypic analysis revealed that the A1 cell line contained one disrupted allele of the U60 small nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) host gene, resulting in haploinsufficiency of the box C/D snoRNA U60. Complementation and mutational studies revealed the U60 snoRNA to be the essential feature from this locus that affects cholesterol trafficking. Lack of alteration in predicted U60-mediated site-directed methylation of 28 S rRNA in the A1 mutant suggests that the U60 snoRNA modulates cholesterol trafficking by a mechanism that is independent of this canonical function. Our study adds to a growing body of evidence for participation of small noncoding RNAs in cholesterol homeostasis and is the first to implicate a snoRNA in this cellular function.


Critiques of current attempts to build resilience in remote communities in northern Australia have generally been criticised as top-down and failing to produce meaningful outcomes. A component of the project was scoping resilience in remote communities that highlighted the challenges with current government efforts to plan for rather than with communities. Living with hazards requires that government leave space for communities to define and articulate what it takes to build hazard-smart communities. What does it mean to be hazard-smart? Who should be responsible for building hazard-smart communities? Communities in central Arnhem Land are using participatory-action research tools to talk about what it would take to ensure the survival of people facing significant hazards. Based on experiences with Cyclone Lam, communities have identified and made suggestions for what an inclusive community-led process would look like as an emergency management framework. This paper identifies key elements providing direction on how communities and governments can work together.


When two states have a dispute, the other 188 states in the world are more than passive observers. They do not want the dispute to spread. They want the dispute to be resolved in a way that does not stimulate further related disputes. In brief, the uninvolved nations have an interest in peaceful conflict-resolution. That interest coincides with existing international law which is itself peace-seeking (international law shuns anarchy). International law is a coherent, complex, self-adapting, and purposive system; it makes its presence felt in all international disputes and controversies because it represents the aggregate interest of all the states not directly involved in a given dispute. There are many payoffs in conceptualizing international law as a system suggested in this paper, but by far the most important is to transfer zero-sum international wars and conflicts into n-person non-zero-sum games. These games involve maximin strategies of both conflict and cooperation. Indeed, they account for the vast amount of cooperation in the world - cooperation that accumulates over time even as disputes or wars cancel themselves out.


This article presents key results of a ten-year study of media coverage of agricultural biotechnology in the Philippines, the only country in Asia to date to approve a biotech food/feed crop (Bt corn) for commercialization. The top three national English newspapers - Manila Bulletin, Philippine Daily Inquirer, and Philippine Star were analyzed to determine patterns of media attention measured by coverage peaks, tone, source of news, keywords, and media frames used. Biotechnology news was generally positive but not high in the media agenda. News coverage was marked by occasional peaks brought about by drama and controversial events which triggered attention but not long enough to sustain interest. The study provides a glimpse into the role of mass media in a developing country context. It shows how a complex and contentious topic is integrated into the mainstream of news reporting, and eventually evolves from an emotional discourse to one that allows informed decision making.


We show that similarly to the logarithmic mean-velocity profile in wall-bounded turbulence, the landscape topography presents an intermediate region with a logarithmic mean-elevation profile. Such profiles are present in complex topographies with channel branching and fractal river networks resulting from model simulation, controlled laboratory experiments, and natural landscapes. Dimensional and self-similarity arguments are used to corroborate this finding. We also tested the presence of logarithmic profiles in discrete, minimalist models of networks obtained from optimality principles (optimal channel networks) and directed percolation. The emergence of self-similar scaling appears as a robust outcome in dynamically different, but spatially bounded, complex systems, as a dimensional consequence of length-scale independence.