Drought, fire, and windstorms can interact to degrade tropical forests and the ecosystem services they provide, but how these forests recover after catastrophic disturbance events remains relatively unknown. Here, we analyze multi‐year measurements of vegetation dynamics and function (fluxes of CO2 and H2O) in forests recovering from 7 years of controlled burns, followed by wind disturbance. Located in southeast Amazonia, the experimental forest consists of three 50‐ha plots burned annually, triennially, or not at all from 2004 to 2010. During the subsequent 6‐year recovery period, postfire tree survivorship and biomass sharply declined, with aboveground C stocks decreasing by 70%–94% along forest edges (0–200 m into the forest) and 36%–40% in the forest interior. Vegetation regrowth in the forest understory triggered partial canopy closure (70%–80%) from 2010 to 2015. The composition and spatial distribution of grasses invading degraded forest evolved rapidly, likely because of the delayed mortality. Four years after the experimental fires ended (2014), the burned plots assimilated 36% less carbon than the Control, but net CO2 exchange and evapotranspiration (ET) had fully recovered 7 years after the experimental fires ended (2017). Carbon uptake recovery occurred largely in response to increased light‐use efficiency and reduced postfire respiration, whereas increased water use associated with postfire growth of new recruits and remaining trees explained the recovery in ET. Although the effects of interacting disturbances (e.g., fires, forest fragmentation, and blowdown events) on mortality and biomass persist over many years, the rapid recovery of carbon and water fluxes can help stabilize local climate.


Atherosclerosis a type of arteries' hardening that is caused by the formation of atheromatous plaque in the vessel wall. CABG is proposed as a standard of care for patients with coronary artery disease. This method besides its advantages has a variety of side effects that in addition to physiological mortality and morbidity suffers from psychological effects that are reviewed in this paper. The surgery is associated with multiple psychiatric symptoms for patients. Among them the pre and post-surgical mental problems and disorders are more important. Also As mentioned before depression is commonly reported as a consequence of coronary artery bypass surgery and it is associated with a great risk of mortality, morbidity, increased medical care and reduced performance in daily activities. Quality of life means the ability to perform daily affairs satisfactorily that includes a wide range of features and physical and mental factors. Scientific evidence suggests that 32% of heart patients in hospitals have severe depression that is continued after a year. However, it has been more than 40 years that delirium has been reported as an adverse postoperative cardiac surgery event. The analysis of the relief and relaxation method used by the nurses and its relationship with the incidence of post-surgical delirium helps to identify the areas that require training and practical changes.


Studies have demonstrated a correlation between stress and an increased risk of breast cancer. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is up- regulated in chronic stress and induces proliferation and chemotaxis of 4T1 breast cancer cells via Y5 receptor (Y5R) activation. In the studies performed in this thesis, we characterize NPY-Y5R as a regulatory system that promotes breast cancer metastasis. We compared three cancer cell sublines derived from the same murine mammary fat pad tumour, that greatly differ in metastatic potential (67NR, 168FARN, and 4T1) in addition to a 4T1-Y5R knockdown established in our labs. In this thesis we demonstrate significance of up-regulation and cytoplasmic localization of Y5R to support an aggressively metastasizing breast cancer cell line. Using cellular MRI we characterized the knockdown of Y5R to alter breast carcinogenesis and metastasis. In this respect, NPY and its Y5 receptor could be therapeutic targets to combat breast cancer metastasis.


This study examines how a social psychological bias referred to as pluralistic ignorance may occur in corporate boards and how this bias could contribute to strategic persistence in response to relatively low firm performance. Our theory suggests that under conditions of low performance, there may be a systematic tendency for outside directors to underestimate the extent to which fellow directors share their concerns about the viability of the firm's corporate strategy. This reduces the propensity for individual directors to express their concerns about the current corporate strategy in board meetings, decreasing the likelihood that boards will initiate strategic change in response to low firm performance. We also posit factors that may moderate the extent to which pluralistic ignorance occurs on boards. We suggest that demographic homogeneity among outside directors (with respect to gender, functional background, education, and industry of employment) and the density of friendship ties among them will significantly moderate the occurrence of pluralistic ignorance on boards. We test our hypotheses with original survey data from a large sample of outside directors at medium-sized U.S. companies and find support for our theory. We discuss contributions of our theory and findings to the literatures on corporate governance, strategic persistence and change, and group decision-making processes in organizations.


Information and communication technology (ICT) has transformed how we live our lives and the way we interact in different contexts. Benefits of ICT and its upcoming efficiencies (i.e. energy efficiency) are becoming the heart of many public services' reforms which have influenced the time, distance and space concepts. At present, not only there is a lack of clarity about what high-quality ICTbased urban services look like, and an urgent need to articulate a clear vision of 'better' services, but also the integration of this new transformations in spatial urban planning (e.g. service delivery planning) has not been comprehensively considered. Therefore, the main debate in this paper comprises of simplifying the e-services delivery process and architecture and its integration to the spatial planning process. Illustration of the resulted benefits of such integration is another outcome of the paper. This paper aims at developing a conceptual framework of e-services and its impact on urban public service delivery in line with developing an integrated process of e-services and spatial urban planning. The main outcomes of the research are comprised of an integrated conceptual service delivery process as well as strategies to achieve and optimize such integration.


Humpback Dolphins (Sousa spp.): Current Status and Conservation, Part 2 is part of Advances in Marine Biology, a series that has been providing in-depth and up-to-date reviews on all aspects of marine biology since 1963 - more than 50 years of outstanding coverage from a reference that is well known for its contents and editing. This latest addition to the series includes updates on many topics that will appeal to postgraduates and researchers in marine biology, fisheries science, ecology, zoology, and biological oceanography. Specialty areas for the series include marine science, both applied and basic, a wide range of topical areas from all corners of marine ecology, oceanography, fisheries management, and molecular biology, and the full range of geographic areas from polar seas to tropical coral reefs. * Reviews articles on the latest advances in marine biology* Authored by leading figures in their respective fields of study* Presents materials that are widely used by managers, students, and academic professionals in the marine sciences* Provides value to anyone studying bottlenose dolphins, deep-sea macrofauna, marine invertebrates, pinna nobilis, and ecology, amongst other study areas


An overview of some key issues involved in single-channel blind dereverberation is presented, beginning with a discussion on the nature of time-varying acoustic channels, the problem of long acoustic impulse responses and an introduction to model-based solutions. The paper then discusses an approach in which the acoustic source is modelled by a time-varying AR process, and the channel by a linear time-varying all-pole filter. In each case, the time-varying filter coefficients are modelled as a linear combination of basis functions. Bayesian inference is used to estimate these coefficients. Although the propsed model needs validating against real acoustic sources and channels, it is proposed as an initial step towards solving the single-channel blind dereverberation.


Professional development in collections care offered for people in small museums has traditionally been offered through site visits, face-to-face conferences or workshops given by experts, and classes offered through various organizations. This is now changing to online contact offered through webinars, listservs, social media, and online courses.  On the one hand, online contact offers the possibility of reaching a much larger audience for instructors and it can significantly lower the cost for participants. This talk will look at the changes in professional development for smaller institutions including the advantages and disadvantages of online professional development over face-to-face contact using real-world examples.
Click on Video link on the right to view presentation.


We report a Lab-on-chip micro device for rotating a spherical object such as bovine cell in three dimensional (3D) spaces. Micro device consists of two pairs of orthogonal vertical wall electrode along with bottom transparent indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. Photolithography technique is employed to fabricate bottom part of the micro device. On the other hand micro milling is applied to fabricate the top electrodes of 500 μm height. The entire device is only 75X25 mm in length and width upon which particle rotation is achieved. Micro device works entirely on this dielectrophoresis (DEP) phenomenon to rotate the cell in 3D spaces. Rotating fields are optimized through simulation and results are presented along with analysis. The experiments are carried out to determine the cell rotation rate. Rotation of cell in 3D spaces has its unique advantages in automation of high throughput mammalian cloning procedures. Cloning procedures such as enucleation requires a cell to be rotated in 3D spaces for genetic material extraction. Enucleation also requires the cell to be precisely rotated and controlled. This precise rotation control is achieved by electrorotation through DEP.


As in other economic activities, companies in the hospitality industry have proposed several practices and implemented technology solutions to pursue environmental sustainability of their activities and minimise their impact on climate change. Some applications of information and communication technologies (ICT) may contribute to the reduction of the demand of supplies, water and energy by hotels. In the present paper, we aim at exploring the influence of the hotel category on the implementation of environmental-friendly technologies in hotels. Considering a sample of Spanish hotels in the most important cities, we evaluate the relationship between the level of implementation of certain technology solutions and the hotel category. As a result, we observe that, in general, the higher the hotel category, the more intensive the investment in technology solutions. Notwithstanding, for some particular technologies, no significant differences across hotel category are observed. Therefore, we conclude that lodging in an environmental friendly hotel is not a category consideration and we provide a set of recommendations for practitioners and policy makers that may orientate their decisions on ICT for the hospitality industry.


Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a symmetric polyarthritis arising from autoimmune dysregulation leading to severe disability and increased risk of co- morbidities and death. A chronic disproportionate inflammatory process lies at the heart of disease pathogenesis. Breach of self-tolerance, subsequent immune effector cell activation in the context of abundant expression of effector cytokines all contribute to uncontrolled inflammation. Molecular safeguards that normally operate to promote immune regulation appear defective in RA. Intensive basic and translational research over the last 30 years have contributed the emergence of an array of new therapeutics for the treatment of RA, which has transformed patient outcomes. The identity of the cytokine targeting treatments that have been most successful elucidates a functional hierarchy that implicates elements of both innate and adaptive immunity. In particular, dysregulation of TNFα and IL-6 biology are at the core of effector pathways and as such unravelling their detailed regulation is of critical importance. Moreover their primary synthesis places myeloid cells, and, in particular, blood-derived monocytes at the heart of pathogenic circuitry.
Best current clinical practice is to treat early disease and deploy aggressive treatments directed towards restoration of immune balance in virtually all patients. However only a proportion of such patients will actually have poor prognosis disease and in reality merit such aggressive interventions - the identification of such clinical endotypes is a major challenge for the next decade. The field of epigenetics and consequent regulatory control of inflammatory cells offers rich potential in this regard. Examples of such regulatory elements are small RNA species – microRNAs (miRs), which serve as negative regulators of cellular transcription and thereby repress protein translation. Importantly they do so across functionally integrated pathways, operating beyond individual moieties. A growing body of evidence implicates a significant role of miRs in the regulation of inflammatory processes in the context of RA.
Objectives: To identify miR species that are differentially regulated in patients with poor response to therapeutic intervention, compared to patients with well- controlled disease and healthy controls. Thereafter, to characterise candidate
2
miRs arising from these investigations to thereby determine their functional significance. Together these studies will shed light on a substantially ignored area of RA biology, namely the underlying mechanisms that subserve drug resistance in RA.
Key Results: Microarray profiling of CD14+ monocytes derived from patients with drug resistance upon receipt of DMARDs or biologic treatments, compared with good responders or matched healthy controls identified the miR-23a~24-2~27a cluster to be significantly repressed in monocytes from resistant RA. Further analysis identified that two members of the cluster, miR-23a and miR-27a are implicated in a feedback loop regulating the IL-6 pathway. Thus IL-6 stimulation of primary monocytes suppresses the expression of this miR cluster, permitting expression of their direct molecular target, namely IL-6R, thus sensitising cells to further IL-6 signalling. I also observed that cells lacking miR-23a and miR-27a express higher levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNFα and IL-6 when stimulated with LPS, further confirming that lack of these miRs has direct implications for chronic inflammatory processes.
The remaining member of this miR cluster, miR-24, was shown to directly target methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase but not dihydrofolate reductase enzymes, implicating it in the target pathway of methotrexate (MTX), the most commonly used anchor DMARD. Although this is unlikely to confer disease resistance, this interaction suggests that miR-24 levels could be predictive of tolerability of methotrexate use. The potential biomarker capabilities of miR-24 in relation to MTX use, or miR-23a and miR-27 with regards to responsiveness to anti-IL-6 or JAK signalling inhibition therapeutics will be evaluated in my future work.
Conclusion: This series of studies has elucidated highly novel pathways that mediate amplification of inflammatory responses in blood-derived monocytes through feedback pathways operating via regulatory miRs. Furthermore, analysis of a distinct cohort of RA patients allowed identification of miR species that have the potential to be utilized as clinical biomarkers for treatment efficacy or tolerability evaluation. Although a separate validation study is required, the detailed investigation of the role of these miRs performed here provides a clear mechanistic insight into their function and will certainly support future discovery .


OBJECTIVE
Assess the Regional Extension Center (REC) program's progress toward its goal of supporting over 100,000 providers in small, rural, and underserved practices to achieve meaningful use (MU) of an electronic health record (EHR).

DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING
Data collected January 2010 through June 2013 via monitoring and evaluation of the 4-year REC program.

STUDY DESIGN
Descriptive study of 62 REC programs.

DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS
Primary data collected from RECs were merged with nine other datasets, and descriptive statistics of progress by practice setting and penetration of targeted providers were calculated.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
RECs recruited almost 134,000 primary care providers (PCPs), or 44 percent of the nation's PCPs; 86 percent of these were using an EHR with advanced functionality and almost half (48 percent) have demonstrated MU. Eighty-three percent of Federally Qualified Health Centers and 78 percent of the nation's Critical Access Hospitals were participating with an REC.

CONCLUSIONS
RECs have made substantial progress in assisting PCPs with adoption and MU of EHRs. This infrastructure supports small practices, community health centers, and rural and public hospitals to use technology for care delivery transformation and improvement.


ABSTRACT
To investigate more flexible methods for measuring overall sensory differences, the performance of three nonattribute-specified difference test methods was compared using Signal Detection Theory. A-Not A, 2-AFC, and 2-AFCR tests were performed with experienced subjects over repeated sessions. Learning effects were investigated to determine how much training would be needed before subjects could perform these tests consistently. Results in d′ showed that in early sessions, the 2-AFC and 2-AFCR performed better (higher d′) than A-Not A and that after two sessions, the test performance stabilized on that level. Learning effects for the A-Not A test were poorer in the earlier sessions, with performance levels increasing, even after six sessions. In business situations where the tested products frequently vary, the use of 2-AFC and 2-AFCR would be recommended because they are more sensitive in the earlier sessions, requiring less training time than A-Not A.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Sensory difference tests are important tools for business decision making. Food companies may save a lot of money by employing more effective methodologies. For sensory difference tests to be used accurately and efficiently, test performances need to be investigated with consideration for food discrimination constraints and objectives. This article explored the performance of nonattribute-specified 2-AFC and 2-AFCR tests over several sessions in comparison to the results of a standard signal detection measure, A-Not A, to use the differences between these methods as a basis for inference concerning the cognitive strategies and relative test effectiveness of nonattribute-specified 2-AFC and 2-AFCR for food discrimination, in practical situations when both the reference product and test product(s) change frequently. This article suggested the applicability of a nonattribute-specified 2-AFCR procedure for discriminating small differences without much prior training.


The structural modeling of spatial dependence, using a geostatistical approach, is an indispensable tool to determine parameters that define this structure, applied on interpolation of values at unsampled points by kriging techniques. However, the estimation of parameters can be greatly affected by the presence of atypical observations in sampled data. The purpose of this study was to use diagnostic techniques in Gaussian spatial linear models in geostatistics to evaluate the sensitivity of maximum likelihood and restrict maximum likelihood estimators to small perturbations in these data. For this purpose, studies with simulated and experimental data were conducted. Results with simulated data showed that the diagnostic techniques were efficient to identify the perturbation in data. The results with real data indicated that atypical values among the sampled data may have a strong influence on thematic maps, thus changing the spatial dependence structure. The application of diagnostic techniques should be part of any geostatistical analysis, to ensure a better quality of the information from thematic maps.


ABSTRACT The small Mahakamby Island (= Island of the Shrimp) is located in the Mozambique Channel (Indian Ocean) along the northwestern coast of the Mahajanga Province, (Soalala District, NW Madagascar). Miocene outcrops of Mahakamby were examined during the expeditions of two naturalists from the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris: the first by Perrier de la Bâthie in 1915 and the second by Waterlot in 1922. Among the fossil invertebrates collected during the Waterlot's Mission, some decapod crustaceans were partially reported by Collignon & Cottreau (1927) but their specimens are nowadays almost completely lost. However, additional materiel collected by Waterlot was rediscovered in the palaeontological collections of the Paris Museum. It allows a review and a discussion of the crustacean samples previously studied on the basis of iconographic material. Moreover, new specimens of brachyurans, collected during the Waterlot mission, are here assigned for the first time to Portuninae Rafinesque, 1815.


At the 2010 negotiations of the Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) for a decision on biofuels and bio-diversity, biofuels were portrayed as holding many different, conflicting characteristics. Using Callon's (1986) concept of translation, we find that the COP10 biofuel negotiations failed to advance beyond the first moment of translation, problematization, when actors are defined in relation to each other. We trace attempts by various actors to fix the identity of biofuels throughout the negotiations, using strategies such as rendering political issues "technical," relying on formal text to stabilize contested identities, and restricting the sources of knowledge relied upon. We suggest that the CBD parties experiment with new strategies, taking advantage of the COP's legal flexibility and the CBD's institutional history of engaging with the political nature of scientific knowledge.


We investigate the problem of combined spatial and temporal instabilities of electrically driven viscous jets with finite electrical conductivity in the presence of either constant or variable applied electric field. A mathematical model leads to a lengthy equation for the unknown spatial growth rate and temporal growth rate of the disturbances. This equation is solved numerically using Newton's method. We investigated two cases of water jets and glycerol jets. For water jets and in the case of either constant or variable applied field, we found two new modes of instabilities which grow simultaneously in time and space and lead to significant reduction in the jet radius. However, in the case of glycerol jets, we found two new modes of instabilities in the presence of constant applied field but only one mode of instability in the presence of variable applied field. For the glycerol jets, the combined temporal and spatial instabilities are less stronger and lead to an increase in the jet radius. The instabilities for both types of water and glycerol jets were found to be restricted to particular domain in their wavelength and were enhanced with the strength of the electric field.


What is a sports physiotherapist? How does a professional become a sports physiotherapist?
These questions are at the heart of the SPA Project. This innovative three-year project is being funded by the European Union Leonardo da Vinci programme. It was initiated by the International Federation of Sports Physiotherapy (IFSP), an international resource for sports physiotherapists. The SPA Project is the result of collaboration between the IFSP and five higher education institutions from across Europe. It is supported by the Member Organisations of IFSP, WCPT, National Olympic Committees and other interested organisations and individuals from across the globe.

The first step of the project involved the development of competencies and standards. The following questions had to be answered: what is distinct about a sports physiotherapist? What are the core roles and behaviours of the sports physiotherapist? What level of mastery should they aim to achieve? Answers to these questions will impact on employers, educators, and the individual sports physiotherapist.

Competencies provide answers to these questions by describing the core roles and behaviours of the sports physiotherapist, while standards focus on the level of mastery required of the specialist1, 2. The process of developing sports physiotherapy competencies and standards allowed the communication of international differences as well as similarities3.

Achieving a common description of the sports physiotherapist is important for several reasons. Some of these are political: shared understandings allow greater international mobility for professionals. The competencies and standards can also be used to increase professional recognition and to ensure quality of service provision. However, there are a variety of benefits for the individual sports physiotherapist. Developing a career pathway is difficult without a defined goal. The competencies and standards allow the professional to target their professional development. Evidence of knowledge and skills can be documented using the portfolio approach. An audit toolkit is under development to facilitate this process. Learning needs can be identified, allowing individuals to seek appropriate learning opportunities. Educators will be able to design courses to be more appropriate to the sports physiotherapist's needs.


We report transport mobility measurements for clean, two-dimensional (2D) electron systems confined to GaAs quantum wells (QWs), grown via molecular beam epitaxy, in two families of structures, a standard, symmetrically doped GaAs set of QWs with Al0.32Ga0.68As barriers and one with additional AlAs cladding surrounding the QWs. Our results indicate that the mobility in narrow QWs with no cladding is consistent with existing theoretical calculations where interface roughness effects are softened by the penetration of the electron wave function into the adjacent low barriers. In contrast, data from AlAs-clad wells show a number of samples where the 2D electron mobility is severely limited by interface roughness. These measurements across three orders of magnitude in mobility provide a road map of reachable mobilities in the growth of GaAs structures of different electron densities, well widths, and barrier heights.


The dynamic proxy API is one of Java's most widely-used dynamic features, permitting principled run-time code generation and link- ing. Dynamic proxies can implement any set of interfaces and for- ward method calls to a special object that handles them reflectively. The flexibility of dynamic proxies, however, comes at the cost of having a dynamically generated layer of bytecode that cannot be penetrated by current static analyses. In this paper, we observe that the dynamic proxy API is stylized enough to permit static analysis. We show how the semantics of dynamic proxies can be modeled in a straightforward manner as logical rules in the Doop static analysis framework. This concise set of rules enables Doop's standard analyses to process code behind dynamic proxies. We evaluate our approach by analyzing XCorpus, a corpus of real-world Java programs: we fully handle 95% of its reported proxy creation sites. Our handling results in the analysis of significant portions of previously unreachable or incompletely- modeled code.


Shit(ting) as a problem is not an a priori position. It is made a problem through socially mediated discursive and non-discursive practices. Problematizations of human waste promoted by formal governance institutions have dominated the conversation, while the ways in which slum residents experience shit(ting) as a problem receive considerably less attention. This article examines how human waste and its attendant practices are represented as a problem in Agra, India. Using Foucauldian-based analysis, this research makes visible problematizations of urban shit(ting) and exposes the divergent logics employed by urban actors. Ethnographic interviews and document analysis reveal six ways in which various actors experience shit(ting) as a problem?as: (1) inconvenient; (2) dangerous; (3) contagion; (4) undignified; (5) polluting; (6) primitive. Inconvenience was the problematization invoked most frequently by slum residents, but never by governance groups, meaning that issues of inconvenience were absent from formal planning processes. This absence can, in part, be attributed to the toilet's ability to address multiple problems simultaneously. Findings from this research support the call to acknowledge the situatedness of urban inquiry through analysis of problematizations. In doing so, scholars and practitioners gain access to a more complete toolkit for developing and evaluating urban sewage initiatives.


This paper presents a case study of how livestock policies are made and implemented in a national context, and how they can be improved to better serve the interests of the poor. In Senegal, approximately one-third of all households depend on livestock for some portion of their livelihood, yet, the sector has not received significant state or private investment, nor has it received a significant amount of bi-lateral and international assistance. The study used the key informant method supplemented with official documents, newspaper sources and recently published research on the livestock sector. Interviews helped reveal policymakers' concerns, whereas field trips allowed the researcher to talk to farmers and learn their perspectives from the bottom. Newspapers contained many lively stories of how well-intentioned policies went awry at the implementation stage, while published research analyzed various political, institutional and technical aspects of policymaking in the sector. The author concludes that poor producers in the sector remain relatively unorganised and disadvantaged in the policy-formation process. Macro-economic forces and the distribution of political influence focus state attention on the concerns of large-scale producers and importers of dairy and poultry products rather than on the concerns of poor producers. The unexpected alliance between human rights organizations, some of the most active public pressure groups in Senegal today, and livestock producers during l'affaire du Doli however demonstrates the potential for new issue linkages to strengthen the political position of livestock producers. Strategic entry points are recommended that can both improve the performance of the sector and the participation of the poor in productive activities. With sufficient resources to back up programs and efforts to identify political allies for the cause, it may be possible to make livestock policies better serve the interests of the poor.


In this study, we utilize transgenic zebrafish with fluorescently labeled blood vessels to identify and characterize a mutant (y10) that displays specific defects in the formation of arteries, but not veins. We find that y10 encodes phospholipase C gamma-1 (plcg1), a known effector of receptor tyrosine kinase signaling. We further show that plcg1y10 mutant embryos fail to respond to exogenous Vegf. Our results indicate that Plcg1 functions specifically downstream of the Vegf receptor during embryonic development to govern formation of the arterial system.


In this paper, laser ablation of widely used metal (Al, Cu. stainless-steel), semiconductor (Si), transparent material (glass, sapphire), ceramic (Al2O3, AlN) and polymer (PI, PMMA) in industry were systematically studied with pulse width from nanosecond (5-100ns), picosecond (6-10ps) to sub-picosecond (0.8-0.95ps). A critical damage zone (CDZ) of up to 100um with ns laser, ≤50um with ps laser, and ≤20um with sub-ps laser, respectively was observed as a criteria of selecting the laser pulse width. The effects of laser processing parameters on speed and efficiency were also investigated. This is to explore how to provide industry users the best laser solution for device micro-fabrication with best price. Our studies of cutting and drilling with ns, ps, and sub-ps lasers indicate that it is feasible to achieve user accepted quality and speed with cost-effective and reliable laser by optimizing processing conditions.


Of the many factors determining host biocompatibility responses to implanted biomedical polymers, the cellular interactions at the tissue/material interface have been recognized to be some of the most important. The present study has combined results both from an in vitro cell culture system and from an in vivo animal model to examine this host response. In vitro results suggest that a variety of polymer materials can differentially activate human monocytes to produce a protein(s) having different biological activities. The polymers tested induce the production of the regulatory inflammatory protein interleukin 1 as well as a factor that enhances fibroblast proliferation and collagen synthesis. The observed activities of these factors appear to be related but not identical, and are dependent upon the specific polymer. Evaluation of exudate and tissue responses to these same polymer materials in an in vivo model are also presented. Both in vitro and in vivo results support the hypothesis that monocyte/macrophage activation with subsequent synthesis of regulatory factors such as interleukin 1 plays a significant role in determining the host response to biomedical polymer implants.


A 24-year-old Chinese gentleman presented with two weeks history of sudden floaters in his right temporal visual field associated with blurring of vision. This ex-smoker also reported chronic, bloody cough for two years and recent pleuritic chest pain. Examination revealed a thin patient with right eye visual acuity of 6/18 associated with optic nerve dysfunction, optic disc swelling and macula star, retinal vasculitis and retinitis. Despite anti-tuberculosis medication and corticosteroids, he developed neovascularisation. Subsequent vitreous haemorrhage necessitated trans pars plana vitrectomy, membrane peeling, endolaser and silicone oil injection. Final visual acuity was 6/9 with quiescent retinopathy.


Primary sternal tuberculosis is very rare. Only few cases have been reported in the English-language literature. We present a case of primary sternal tuberculosis that had intractable drainage for 18 months. Diagnosis was confirmed with biopsy, and there were no other tuberculous foci. No improvement was achieved in the status of the wound despite 4 months of chemotherapy. We applied the principles as in bacterial osteomyelitis of sternum, resected the wound and covered it with a pectoralis major musculocutaneous rotational flap. The wound healed, and there was no recurrence 24 months after surgery.


The article analyses legal regulation of social relations in the sphere of labour market taking into account main tendencies of its transformation in Russia a well as in foreign states The article deals with current problems in regulating labour relations such as the need to create new guarantees in the sphere of employment taking into consideration new types employment; increasing tendency to employ people on the basis of civil contracts; problems related to temporary employment contracts; part-time work; extension of boundaries of informal sector in labour market; problems related to the activity of non-governmental employment organisations, etc. The said problems in Russia are to be solved by drafting recommendations for improving the respective legal basis. International norms and principles embodied in the documents of International Labour Organisation are to be taken into account. The article surveys existing problems and methods to solve them, presents views expressed in various congresses and conferences. The article is also based on sociological and economical research which confirms the existence of the said problems and helps to estimate their scope.


Augmenting a Mincerian earnings function with governorate level data, this paper estimated the external return to higher education for individuals in Egypt in 2010. The results suggested that these externalities are negative and exist only for female workers, while for males these externalities were again negative but statistically insignificant. A unit increase in governorate average higher education is associated with a 68% decrease in females' hourly wage. This could be explained by the fact that education degrees are simply used as a device to signal higher ability without raising productivity. Another reason could be excess supply of higher education graduates in the Egyptian labor market. These results have been tested through a number of robustness checks. Results survived to the introduction of individual and governorate level variables; it is not due to imperfect substitutability across workers; it still holds when treating local human capital as endogenous variable and instrumented it.


Spray drying is a well established technique for material processing and scale-up. This study investigated the formation of pharmaceutical cocrystals by spray drying. The cocrystal formation mechanisms in spray-drying and solution methods, based on triangular phase diagrams, are discussed. The solvent evaporation of stoichiometric solutions of incongruently saturating cocrystals resulted in a mixture of phases, as dictated by the thermodynamic phase diagram. In contrast, spray drying of similar solutions of incongruently saturating systems generated pure cocrystals. It is thus suggested that the formation of cocrystals by spray drying could be kinetically controlled and/or mediated by the glassy state of the material.


In the world of globalized media, provocative images trigger culture wars between traditionalists and cosmopolitans, between censors and defenders of free expression. But are images censored because of what they mean, what they do, or what they might become? And must audiences be protected because of what they understand, what they feel, or what they might imagine?

At the intersection of anthropology, media studies, and critical theory, Censorium is a pathbreaking analysis of Indian film censorship. The book encompasses two moments of moral panic: the consolidation of the cinema in the 1910s and 1920s, and the global avalanche of images unleashed by liberalization since the early 1990s. Exploring breaks and continuities in film censorship across colonial and postcolonial moments, William Mazzarella argues that the censors' obsessive focus on the unacceptable content of certain images and the unruly behavior of particular audiences displaces a problem that they constantly confront yet cannot directly acknowledge: the volatile relation between mass affect and collective meaning. Grounded in a close analysis of cinema regulation in the world's largest democracy, Censorium ultimately brings light to the elusive foundations of political and cultural sovereignty in mass-mediated societies.


Modern vehicles are becoming smarter and smarter thanks to the continuous development of new Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS). For example, some new commercial vehicles can detect pedestrians on the road and automatically come to a stop avoiding a collision. Some others can obtain information about traffic congestion through the cellular network and suggest the driver another route to save time. Nevertheless, drivers (and our society as well) are always striving for a safer, cleaner, and more efficient way of traveling and standard, non-cooperative ADAS might not be sufficient. For this reason the research community started to design a vehicular application called "platooning". Platooning simultaneously tackles safety and traffic congestion problems by cooperatively coordinating vehicles in an autonomous way. Traffic flow is optimized by using an advanced Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), called Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC), which drastically reduces inter-vehicle gaps. By being autonomously coordinated, platooning vehicles implicitly implement automated emergency braking, a fundamental application for freeway safety. The idea is to form optimized road trains of vehicles where the first drives the train, while the others autonomously follow at a close distance, without requiring the driver to steer, accelerate, or brake. Platooning can have an enormous impact on future transportation systems by increasing traffic flow (and thus reducing congestion), increasing safety, reducing CO2 emissions, and reducing the stress of driving. This application is extremely challenging due to its inter-disciplinary nature. Indeed, it involves control theory, vehicle dynamics, communication, and traffic engineering. In this thesis we are mostly concerned with the communication aspects of this application, which is fundamental for making the vehicles cooperate, improving the efficiency of the application with respect to a pure sensor-based solution. Application requirements are very tight and, given that the envisioned communication technology will be IEEE 802.11-based, there are concerns on whether these requirements can really be met. The focus of the thesis is in this direction.
The first contribution is the design of PLEXE, an extension for the widely used vehicular simulation framework Veins that enables research studies on various platooning aspects, including design and evaluation of control algorithms, communication protocols, and applications. The tool is open source and free to download and use, and it realistically simulates both communication and vehicle dynamics. This makes PLEXE a valid testing platform before real world deployment. The second contribution is a set of undirected information broadcasting (beaconing) protocols that specifically take into account the requirements of the application. We initially develop four static (i.e., periodic) approaches and compare them against two state of the art dynamic protocols, showing that our approaches are capable of supporting the application even in heavily dense scenarios. Then, we propose a dynamic protocol that further improves the application (increasing safety) and the network layer (reducing resource usage) performance.
The final contribution is a platooning control algorithm that, compared to state of the art approaches, is re-configurable at run-time and that can be adapted to network conditions. We thoroughly test the algorithm in highly challenging scenarios. These scenarios include a realistic network setup where the road is shared by human- and automated-driven vehicles. Human-driven vehicles interfere with automated-driven ones by sending data packets on the same channel. Moreover, we also consider a scenario with realistic vehicle dynamics, which takes into account vehicles' engine and braking characteristics. The algorithm is shown to be robust to network and external disturbances, to have a fast convergence, and to be very stable.
The results in this work thus represent a big step towards the real world implementation of platooning systems.


We use continuous measurements of GPS sites from across the Rio Grande Rift, Great Plains, and Colorado Plateau to estimate present-day surface velocities and strain rates. Velocity gradients from five east-west profiles suggest an average of ∼1.2 nanostrains/yr east-west extensional strain rate across these three physiographic provinces. The extensional deformation is not concentrated in a narrow zone centered on the Rio Grande Rift but rather is distributed broadly from the western edge of the Colorado Plateau well into the western Great Plains. This unexpected pattern of broadly distributed deformation at the surface has important implications for our understanding of how low strain-rate deformation within continental interiors is accommodated.


The morphology analysis of the pre-modern town in the East-European space is encumbered by the lack of maps and zoning plans, as well as by the small quantity of preserved documentary sources. In the case of Iași, the Russian military maps of the 18th century, together with the General plan of Iași made by the French engineer Joseph Bayardi, creates the base for analysis, corroborated by the historical documentary sources recently edited. The general analysis we carry out considers the origins, emergence, evolution and distribution of the town quarters/cores, the streets configuration as well as the size, distribution and evolution of urban plots. The analysis uses both cartographic and documentary sources, supported by analogies with the similar situations in the rest of Moldavia, which are documented by archaeology, and in Central and Western Europe, when the analogy is appropriate.


Vocational education and culinary arts have gained a new respect. Since the mid-1970s, the status of culinary artists (cooks and chefs) has changed from domestic to professional. This change and the many changes in food technology have brought about a heightened awareness of the need for better training for culinary professionals. Improved communication between education and industry have provided students with skills more suited to meet the needs of the job market. The United States is regarded as the leader in the field of culinary arts due to the development of vocational facilities, developments in the areas of food science and agricultural methods, and more refined techniques for the presentation of materials. Use of a competency-based curriculum allows teachers to assess each student's capabilities. Students at Johnson and Wales University (J&W), Rhode Island, are developing electronic portfolios used by employers recruiting on campus. These portfolios describe the competencies of each student that will link him or her with jobs appropriate for the skill levels the student possesses. Evolution in vocational culinary education has prompted the development of new programs. J&W has begun a four-year bachelor of science in culinary arts, the first of its kind in the United States. Faculties working in this field will require higher credentials. J&W is on the verge of linking branch campuses by two-way interactive television to compensate for a shortage of trained faculty. (YLB) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. **********************************************************************


The suicide panorama is not static but continually changing with the development of society. In this article changes in suicide rates and attitudes towards suicide in Sweden from pre-modern to modern time are described, with suicidal murders as an interesting transitional form. The rates of homicide have decreased, while those of suicide have increased. Changes in attitudes towards suicide have reached different groups in society at different times, leading to very heterogeneous suicide patterns. With increasing social homogeneity there now seems to exist a tendency back towards larger homogeneity of suicide as well. In order to develop suicide prevention into a vital branch of public-health services humanistic, linguistic and social research in suicidology must be encouraged.


Quantitative data such as the type, quantity, and bulk density as received and after in situ compaction, are required for the proper management of a landfill site. Without quantitative data we cannot determine for example whether too much cover material is used, with the resultant shortening of the life of the landfill site. Such data are also required for planning of the use of the existing site, and also for the acquisition of future sites or the use of alternative waste treatment processes. An estimate of the growth of the rate of waste generation is also required for planning purposes. The estimate should be based on data collected over a period of time supplemented by information on anticipated changes in factors such as housing and other building development in the area served by the landfill site.

It may be argued that information is already available on the per-capita waste generation in major cities in the world (e.g. refs. l to 4) and also in a number of cities in Australia (e.g. refs. 5 to 10). The per-capita waste generation has been found, however, to vary from city to city. This is not surprising, since it is expected that waste generation is affected by the standard of living of the population, the type of housing, development activities, and many other factors that may be peculiar to the locality. On-site surveys are therefore required to obtain data for particular localities, and the recognition of the importance of such surveys is indicated by the increasing number of survey results being reported in the literature (e.g. ref. 2,4).

The aim of this paper is to present methods for data collection required for the proper and effective management of landfill sites. The methods range from a simple survey involving field weighing and vehicle count, to a comprehensive survey that takes into account the physical and chemical composition of the waste. It has to be borne in mind that the method selected should depend upon the objective to be achieved. If the objective of the survey is the estimation of the life of a landfill site then a simple field weighing survey is what is required, on the other hand if incineration is to be considered as an alternative waste treatment process then a more comprehensive survey needs to be carried out to include at least the calorific value of the waste and the properties of ash formed.


In Vintage Living Texts teachers and students will find the essential guide to the works of Ian McEwan. Vintage Living Texts is unique in that it offers an in-depth interview with Ian McEwan, relating specifically to the texts under discussion. This guide deals with McEwan's themes, genre and narrative technique, and a close reading of the texts is accompanied by likely exam questions - as well as providing a rich source of ideas for intelligent and inventive ways of approaching the novels. Also included in this guide are detailed reading plans for all three novels, questions for essays and discussion, contextual material, suggested texts for complementary and comparative reading, extracts from reviews, a biography, a bibliography and a glossary of literary terms. Whether a teacher, student or general reader, the Vintage Living Texts series gives you the chance to explore new resources and enjoy new pleasures. The Vintage Living Texts series includes: Louis de Bernieres, Margaret Atwood and Sebastian Faulks.


The intersection of intellectual property and human rights is a relatively new site in the search for balance in intellectual property law and policy. Although this intersection opens up intellectual property to a unique kind of interdisciplinary analysis, only the human rights system appears to have seized the opportunity, while its intellectual property rights counterpart remains reluctant to engage. There are, so far, different competing first impressions over the nature of the intersection between intellectual property and human rights. Despite empirical credence of the conflict narrative, the co-existence of complementary thesis of the intellectual property and human rights interface has greater prospects for a meaningful and balanced rapprochement between the two. This chapter argues for critical scrutiny of the human rights appeal of intellectual property rights in order to avoid its potential for being hijacked by stronger stakeholders at the expense of their weaker opponents for whom intellectual property rights have strong paradoxical ramifications.


Background Systematic reviews of preclinical studies, in vivo animal experiments in particular, can influence clinical research and thus even clinical care. Dissemination bias, selective dissemination of positive or significant results, is one of the major threats to validity in systematic reviews also in the realm of animal studies. We conducted a systematic review to determine the number of published systematic reviews of animal studies until present, to investigate their methodological features especially with respect to assessment of dissemination bias, and to investigate the citation of preclinical systematic reviews on clinical research. Methods Eligible studies for this systematic review constitute systematic reviews that summarize in vivo animal experiments whose results could be interpreted as applicable to clinical care. We systematically searched Ovid Medline, Embase, ToxNet, and ScienceDirect from 1st January 2009 to 9th January 2013 for eligible systematic reviews without language restrictions. Furthermore we included articles from two previous systematic reviews by Peters et al. and Korevaar et al. Results The literature search and screening process resulted in 512 included full text articles. We found an increasing number of published preclinical systematic reviews over time. The methodological quality of preclinical systematic reviews was low. The majority of preclinical systematic reviews did not assess methodological quality of the included studies (71%), nor did they assess heterogeneity (81%) or dissemination bias (87%). Statistics quantifying the importance of clinical research citing systematic reviews of animal studies showed that clinical studies referred to the preclinical research mainly to justify their study or a future study (76%). Discussion Preclinical systematic reviews may have an influence on clinical research but their methodological quality frequently remains low. Therefore, systematic reviews of animal research should be critically appraised before translating them to a clinical context.


The debate relating to formal qualifications for peer support in mental health reflects conflicting ideas about the nature of this new occupation. Three discourses among peer supporters/peer support managers in New Zealand are identified in relation to training and qualifications. The health professionalism discourse sees peer support as a set of tools which can be developed through education and training. The grassroots discourse holds onto the non-hierarchical, nonprofessional and inclusive nature of peer support as a form of relational 'common sense'. The transformational peer support discourse sees peer support training as potentially instigating radical revisioning within one's life journey. While seeing peer support training as crucial, its proponents are circumspect about formal qualifications in mental health. This article identifies these three discourses, discusses them in relation to the development of peer support as a new occupation, and draws a comparison with the professionalisation of counselling in the 20th century.


Background The majority of the world's poorest women (income < $1.90/day) reside in fragile, conflict and violence (FCV)-affected countries, like the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Health services in these settings have traditionally focused on immediate relief efforts, communicable diseases and malnutrition. Recent data suggests there is need to widen the focus to include cancer, as its incidence and mortality rates are rising. Methods Employing competency-based learning strategies, Congolese health professionals were trained to perform same-day cervical cancer screening and treatment of precancerous lesions of the cervix; same-day clinical breast examination and breast ultrasound diagnostics; surgical treatment of invasive cancers of the breast and cervix; and infusion of cytotoxic chemotherapy. Outpatient breast and cervical cancer care clinics, a chemotherapy suite and surgical theatres were outfitted with equipment and supplies. Results Combining local and regional hands-on training seminars with wise infrastructure investments, a team of US and Zambian oncology experts successfully implemented a clinical service platform for women's cancers in a private sector health facility in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Conclusion We forged a novel partnership between oncology health professionals from Africa and its Diaspora, international philanthropic organisations, a cancer medicine access initiative and an established African cancer centre to build women's cancer services in a FVC-affected African setting.


This thesis presents the results of a study on the Swallow Hirundo rustica carried out in Central Scotland between April 1986 and August 1989. Their social behaviour and life history are described. Adults were found to be markedly faithful to both their mate and site. Notable differences between results observed here and with other similar studies were the apparent lack of any sexually selected infanticide or intra-specific nest parasitism. These results were attributed to differences in colony size. Intraand inter-sexual variation in adult body size was measured and the presence of any age-related trends identified. Older birds had significantly bigger wing and outertail lengths but skeletal measures and inner tail-length did not vary in size. Swallows were found to be sexually size dimorphic for several parameters and these findings were discussed in relation to three hypotheses. Variation in reproductive performance between years and individuals was described. Clutch size and number of young fledged was lower for secondthan first-broods but even after controlling for this, breeding performance still declined seasonally. Possible mechanisms associated with this common finding were explored. The number of broods attempted in a season made an important contribution to seasonal reproductive performance. Double brooded Swallows: (i) bred earlier, (ii) were older and (iii) were more successful during their first brood (c/. single-brooded). Since any measure of seasonal performance is likely to be an incomplete measure of fitness, attention was also given to understanding what factors affected adult and juvenile survival. Offspring which hatched earliest and from first broods were most likely to be recruited. There was no evidence to support a positive association between fecundity and parental survival in Swallows studied here, however. The role of individual characteristics in shaping reproductive performance was examined. Body size was only weakly associated, whereas parental age was strongly correlated with breeding success; yearlings laid later, had smaller clutch sizes and fledged fewer young during a season. Although females which were monitored over two successive seasons laid earlier in their second season they did not differ significantly for any other parameter compared. Data from other studies were reviewed and possible hypotheses to explain age-related trends were considered. It was concluded that the improved performance of older Swallows was related at least in part to individual differences and selective mortality. In an attempt to manipulate reproductive effort brood sizes were experimentally altered by adding (Enlarged) or removing (Reduced) one, two or three nestlings shortly after hatch. Un-manipulated broods served as Controls. The size of the first brood reared affected the probability that a second clutch would be laid as well as the timing (lBI) and, (iii) success (but not size) of the second clutch. The effect of manipulation on the IBI and occurrence of second brood was asymmetrical. Temporal variation, however, could not explain differences in future fecundity between first brood treatment categories. Early deser·tion in relation to clutch or brood reduction was discussed in relation to the "Concorde Fallacy". Although most pairs were able to rear additional young, nestling quality was adversely affected. Juvenile survival was related to brood size such that parents which reared Control broods were most likely to produce recruits. Manipulation of brood size also had an effect on adult survival but the effect differed between sexes and broods. The clearest and most significant result was that Swallows which reared Reduced broods (first or second) were more likely to survive (ct. Control or Enlarged broods). These findings were not attributed to differential dispersal of adults. A review of the literature indicated that this was the first study to publish results on the possible effects of manipulation of second broods for parental survival. The pattern of adult body mass during the nesting cycle was described. Males and females reached a minimum mass when the nestlings were aged between Days.,2and 16 (NP II) and Days 17-23 (NP III) respectively. Only during these two stages were males heavier than females. Possible implications associated with a decrease in mass while feeding nestlings (ef. incubation) were discussed. Analyses of a sample of adult carcasses enabled body condition to be determined precisely. Quantitative methods of assessing the condition of live birds in the field were developed and validated against carcass analysis results. Muscle thickness as measured by a portable ultra-sound device and body mass were both considered to give reliable estimates of condition. A number of predictions following from the assumption that parental condition was related to current and future fecundity or overwinter survival were tested. There appeared to be no significant relationship between condition while feeding first brood nestlings and, a) the illI or b) occurrence of second broods. This applied to parents rearing both natural and experimental broods. There was some evidence to suggest that the condition of parents after the brood had fledged might be of greater importance. More data are necessary to confirm this finding, however. Female condition at any stage in the nesting cycle (lst or 2nd brood) was not related to overwinter survival. Data for males, however, supported the prediction such that birds in poorer condition during NP II were less likely to survive. Possible reasons for differences between the sexes were explored. One suggestion proposed was that females were better able to regulate their effort to maximise fitness and and so males were possibly "victims" of their partners variability. The possibility that singleand double-brooded species may vary in their allocation of resources was considered and there was some evidence to support this suggestion for Swallows observed here.


ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: Trauma in pregnancy is the leading cause of non-obstetric maternal mortality, with 20% of maternal deaths directly attribute to the injuries. The most common cause of trauma in pregnancy is motor vehicle accident and domestic violence. Other causes of trauma in pregnant patients are penetrating injuries and falling down accidents. The incidence of maternal visceral injury with penetrating abdominal trauma is only 15% to 40% compared with 80% to 90% in non-pregnant women. Goring injury during the pregnancy is the least reported cause of trauma in pregnancy. CASE PRESENTATION: 42-year-old Gravid V Para IV mother with gestational age of 30 weeks +2 days referred from primary hospital with a diagnosis of 2nd trimester pregnancy and blunt abdominal trauma. She complained goring injury to the lower abdomen of 15 hours duration. On physical examination, she was acutely sick looking with tender abdomen but superficial lacerations or bruises. Focused Abdominal Sonography for Trauma showed ruptured uterus with significant peritoneal collection. With the impression of uterine rupture she was operated at Axum Comprehensive specialized hospital with intraoperative finding of intact skin with bridged fascia. The uterus completely ruptured on the anterior lower uterine segment (10 cm) with freshly dead fetus in the peritoneal cavity. Following standard procedures uterus was repaired in two layers and patient's post operative course was unremarkable. Conclusion: Trauma in pregnancy is a common phenomenon; however, it is unusual to find goring injury in pregnancy. It is one of the penetrating types of trauma with catastrophic complication to the mother and fetus. So, we need to have high index of suspicion of uterine rupture in case of such kind of circumstances.KEYWORDS: trauma, pregnancy, goring injury, uterine rupture (Ethiopian Journal of Reproductive Health; 2019; 11;2:61-65)


IN SITU AORTIC ROOT IN VITRO TESTING OF THE STENTED AND STENTLESS PORCINE AORTIC HEART VALVES by Sean Parker Background The stent, Delrin® support frame, for porcine heart valves has been blamed for reduced durability of these valves due to the additional stress caused by the relative stiffness of the stent. There is a tendency among surgeons to do away with the stent in the aortic position and use porcine stentless valves which are sewn directly in the aortic position after removing diseased valve. These stentless valves are extremely difficult to test and no appropriate holder has been designed for this purpose. New approach for in vitro testing of these valves has been developed at Sheihigh, Inc., Millburn NJ. The stentless valves are sewn in real porcine heart; the aortic root is dissected out and the aortic root is connected to a holder then inserted in the Pulse Duplicator System. This aortic root is kept fresh with antiseptic solutions but not fixed with glutaraldehyde since it can become stiffer than the natural aorta. Method In vitro hemodynamics, blood flow performance, of porcine bioprostheses were tested under physiological conditions using the pulse duplicator system. The system is comprised of a test chamber in which the porcine bioprosthesis is inserted, a pressure transducer, a flow probe, an amplifier pair, and real time software to analyze the fluid dynamics of stented and unstented porcine bioprostheses. Thirteen Shethigh Porcine valves were tested in the Pulse Duplicator System for this study which include 7 25mm valve, 4 stented and 3 stentless, and 6 23mm valves, 3 stented and 3 stentless. Results Preliminary results from testing three of each stented and stentless 23mm valves at a rate of approximately 90 Beats Per Minute (BPM) showed an average of a 6% increase in the Effective Orifice Area (EOA) of the Stentless bioprosthesis over the standard Stented bioprosthesis. The EOA ranged from a high of 2.41cm 2 for the 25mm stentless to a low of 2.18cm 2 for the 25mm stented bioprosthesis. The mean EOA for the stented bioprostheses was 1.94cm 2 and 2.06cm2 for the stentless bioprostheses. Conclusion The series of tests which were performed using aortic roots and sizers to size the aortic root to implant the valve into the proper size root revealed that sizing the root is critical when trying to achieve a maximum Effective Orifice Area. Sizing of the stented valve implanted is not as critical due to the stent providing a predefined area for the valve, but then there is no means for the valve to distend at high flow rates. The stentless bioprosthesis is superior to the standard bioprosthesis in the sense there is no stress on the valve comparable to the stented bioprosthesis. At high flow rates the EOA of the stentless valve is not limited to the inside diameter of the valve because it is allowed to distend outward at times of high flow rates. Using stentless valves is of importance at times of high flow rates in order to eliminate the stenosis, the abnormal narrowing of the orifice, opening, in a heart valve, which is produced in stented valves. IN SITU AORTIC ROOT IN VITRO TESTLNG OF THE STENTED AND STENTLESS PORCINE AORTIC HEART VALVES


For undergraduate or advanced undergraduate courses in Classical Natural Language Processing, Statistical Natural Language Processing, Speech Recognition, Computational Linguistics, and Human Language Processing. An explosion of Web-based language techniques, merging of distinct fields, availability of phone-based dialogue systems, and much more make this an exciting time in speech and language processing. The first of its kind to thoroughly cover language technology at all levels and with all modern technologies this text takes an empirical approach to the subject, based on applying statistical and other machine-learning algorithms to large corporations. The authors cover areas that traditionally are taught in different courses, to describe a unified vision of speech and language processing. Emphasis is on practical applications and scientific evaluation. An accompanying Website contains teaching materials for instructors, with pointers to language processing resources on the Web. The Second Edition offers a significant amount of new and extended material. Supplements: Click on the "Resources" tab to View Downloadable Files:Solutions Power Point Lecture Slides Chapters 1-5, 8-10, 12-13 and 24 Now Available! For additional resourcse visit the author website: http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~martin/slp.html


A series of mono- and difunctionalized [2]catenanes, incorporating a bipyridinium-based cyclophane component interlocked with a dioxyarene-based macrocyclic polyether, have been self-assembled. The methodology relies upon the complementarity between the π-electron-deficient and the π-electron-rich macrocyclic components. Hydrogen-bonding interactions between the acidic hydrogen atoms on the bipyridinium units and the polyether oxygen atoms, as well as π-π stacking and edge-to-face T-type interactions between the complementary aromatic units, are responsible for these self-assembly processes. These [2]catenanes have been designed in order to locate one reactive functional group-either a hydroxyl group or a carboxylic acid function-onto one or both macrocyclic components. In principle, polymerization or copolymerization of these monomeric [2]catenanes can be realized by condensations at the reactive functional groups to generate main-chain, side-chain, and dendritic polycatenanes. Indeed, the versatility of this design logic has been demonstrated by some preliminary experiments. A main-chain oligo[2]catenane incorporating 17 repeating units connected by urethane linkages was synthesized by the condensation of a monomeric difunctionalized [2]catenane bearing one hydroxymethyl group on each of its two macrocyclic components with a diisocyanate derivative. The geometries adopted in the solid state by some of the monomeric [2]catenanes were examined by single-crystal X-ray analyses. Interestingly, in the case of a monofunctionalized [2]catenane bearing one carboxylic acid group on its π-electron-rich macrocyclic component, pseudobis[2]catenanes are observed in the solid state as a result of the formation of hydrogen-bonded dimers between the carboxylic acid groups of adjacent molecules.


A Lie system is a system of differential equations describing the integral curves of a $t$-dependent vector field taking values in a finite-dimensional real Lie algebra of vector fields, a Vessiot--Guldberg Lie algebra. We define and analyze Lie systems possessing a Vessiot--Guldberg Lie algebra of Hamiltonian vector fields relative to a Jacobi manifold, the hereafter called Jacobi--Lie systems. We classify Jacobi--Lie systems on $\mathbb{R}$ and $\mathbb{R}^2$. Our results shall be illustrated through examples of physical and mathematical interest.


The Big Data revolution is upon us. Technological advances in the degree to which third parties can record information about individuals, along with increases in the use of predictive analytics, are transforming the way that business is conducted in practically all sectors of the economy. This is particularly true in the insurance industry, where a firm's ability to forecast the future is the central determinant of its profitability.Scholars and the media have touted the potential benefits of Big Data analytics — it will enable businesses to tailor their practices to suit consumers' preferences and increase the efficiency of their operations. The Big Data movement's potential negative impacts, however, have garnered significantly less attention. Commentators have focused on privacy and data security concerns as the primary problems associated with Big Data analytics. There have been essentially no attempts to assess how these developments affect consumers' other interests or, more broadly, the extent to which they justify additional regulation of markets.This Article fills this gap. It identifies eight societal interests that will be affected by insurers' uses of data — actuarial fairness, loss prevention, autonomy, non-discrimination, justice, utility maximization, privacy, and good faith — and describes how regulators could act to ensure that markets generate an optimal balance of these values. While laissez-faire regulatory approaches are superior for some types of insurance, more extensive state interventions are needed for products that are sold to individual consumers. Where additional regulation is needed, community rating rules, authorization requirements for policy modifications, and claims handling standards are the mechanisms best suited to guaranteeing that insurance markets continue to advance public interests in the Big Data era.


Abstract Primary almandine and spessartine-rich garnet and zinnwaldite phenocrysts occur along with feldspar (plagioclase and sanidine) phenocrysts, in the rhyolite of Profitis Ilias, which is located on the SE coast of the island of Chios, Greece. The distinctive mineralogical composition of this rhyolite is described. Although formed in the back-arc tectonic environment of the Aegean volcanic arc, the Profitis Ilias rhyolite shows significant trace element compositional differences when compared with typical arc or back-arc volcanic rocks of the area. It shows extreme depletion in Sr and Ba and enrichment in Nb and Mn, and has much more affinity with A-type granites and particularly Li-mica granites. Apparently, both zinnwaldite and spessartine-rich garnet can be generated as primary phases from a granite melt enriched in volatile constituents at low P-T. This granite melt could be the residual product of an un-exposed, earlier formed, typical back-arc granite of the area, enriched in volatile constituents from a subcrustal source above the active mantle of the eastern Aegean area. The extensive and deep faulting in the broad eastern Aegean lithosphere section would have facilitated the rapid ascent of that volatile-enriched granite melt, the parent of the Profitis Ilias rhyolite.


To meet the requirements of interoperability, the enactment of workflow systems for processes should tackle the problem of data integration for effective data sharing and exchange. This paper aims at flexibly describing workflow entities and relationships by innovative ontology engineering, which are emerging in process-centred environments, supported by Resource Description Framework (RDF) based languages and tools. Our novel framework takes into consideration to position the ontology level in the data integration dimension. Having taken a more realistic approach towards interoperability, we present basic constructs of a workflow specific ontology, with a suite of classes and properties selectively created. In particular, we demonstrate an example description of Event Condition Action (ECA) rules by extensions of RDF. As an inter-lingua, the proposed vocabulary and semantics can be mapped onto other process description languages as well as the simple XML-based data representation of our earlier workflow prototype.


Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a condition that accounts for approximately 50 % of HF cases with the prevalence increased with advancing age. As of now, no effective treatment is available for HFpEF, which calls for continued efforts towards novel therapies. Despite many concerns about safety and effectiveness of exercise training in HF patients, results from clinical trials have suggested exercise training is safe, improves exercise capacity and health status in HF patients. In some cases, animal models may mimic the human condition closely. In HFpEF, Dahl salt-sensitive (SS) rat is an experimental model that have recently been reported to develop cardiac hypertrophy induced by pressure overload and progressing to diastolic dysfunction with normal left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). In order to better understand the mechanisms underlying processes behind HFpEF, we aimed in the present study, to investigate benefits of high intensity interval training intervention in order to prevent and/or delay the development of HFpEF in female Dahl SS rats, and search for the potential effect of this intensity of exercise training modulating unfolded protein response (UPR) in HFpEF.Method and Results: Female Dahl SS rats were randomized into low-salt (LS, n = 20), high-salt (HS, n = 40) and high intensity interval training (HIT, n = 20)groups. HIT was performed three times per week, with four intervals of four minutes at 90 % VO2max, separated by three minutes at 60 % VO2max. Non-invasive blood pressure measured in different time points showed sustained hypertensive levels in HS rats, followed by cardiac remodeling and diastolic dysfunction with normal LVEF assessed by echocardiography. Maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) was measured before the HS rats start the high-salt diet and at different time points to adjust the exercise training intensity. Although exercise training had no effect either reducing blood pressure levels or preventing pathological cardiac hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction, exercise tolerance was improved in HS rats after HIT. Moreover, the expression of proteins involved in endoplasmic reticulum stress, such as GRP74, ATF6α, pIRE1, and CHOP, was measured using western blot, and showed no difference related to HFpEF condition, with no effect of HIT modulating UPR. Survival distribution was significantly reduced in HS compared to LS rats, and HIT did not prevent increased mortality in female Dahl SS rats fed a high-salt diet for 28 weeks.Conclusions: Taken together, our data showed that high-salt diet induced cardiac hypertrophy in female Dahl SS rats with symptoms for HFpEF, and that ER stress was not associated with the development of the disease. We also showed that HIT did not reverse cardiac remodeling and hemodynamic overloading in HFpEF, with no modulation of the UPR.


This article summarizes achievements of basic research and their implementation in clinical treatment of one of the most common inherited bleeding disorders hemophilia A, which is caused by genetic deficiency of coagulation factor VIII (FVIII). We discuss the structure of FVIII, its major interactions in the intrinsic pathway of blood coagulation, and the catabolism of FVIII. We also discuss achievements in the contemporary clinical practice of treatment of hemophilia A. Replacement therapy has substantially improved by development of purification and virus inactivation procedures, allowing preparation of safe and effective therapeutic plasma-derived FVIII concentrates. We give special attention to the principles used in the development of contemporary recombinant FVIII products, which do not inherit a potential risk for viral or prion transmission. Development of FVIII inhibitory antibodies is the major complication of FVIII replacement therapy. We summarize the accumulated knowledge regarding epitopes of FVIII inhibitors and mechanisms by which they inactivate FVIII and discuss approaches to overcome the effects of inhibitors and to prevent their formation by induction of im-munotolerance. We also analyze the main concepts and scientific priorities in the gene-therapeutic approach for treatment of hemophilia A.


There is continuing debate about what explains cooperation and self-sacrifice in nature and in particular in humans. This paper suggests a new way to think about this famous problem. I argue that, for an evolutionary biologist as well as a quantitative social scientist, the triangle of two players in the presence of a predator (passing and shooting in 2-on-1 situations) is a fundamental conceptual building-block for understanding these phenomena. I show how, in the presence of a predator, cooperative equilibria rationally emerge among entirely selfish agents. If we examine the dynamics of such a model, and bias the lead player (ball possessor with pass/shoot i.e. cooperate/defect dilemma) in the selfish direction by only an infinitesimal amount, then, remarkably, the trajectories of the new system move towards a cooperative equilibrium. I argue that "predators" are common in the biological jungle but also in everyday human settings. Intuitively, this paper builds on the simple idea – a familiar one to a biologist observing the natural world but perhaps less so to social scientists – that everybody has enemies. As a technical contribution, I solve these models analytically in the unbiased case and numerically by an O(h5) approximation with the Runge-Kutta method.


In most watershed-modeling studies, flow is calibrated at one monitoring site, usually at the watershed outlet. Like many arid and semi-arid watersheds, the main reach of the Santa Cruz watershed, located on the Arizona-Mexico border, is discontinuous for most of the year except during large flood events, and therefore the flow characteristics at the outlet do not represent the entire watershed. Calibration is required at multiple locations along the Santa Cruz River to improve model reliability. The objective of this study was to best portray surface water flow in this semi-arid watershed and evaluate the effect of multi-gauge calibration on flow predictions. In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was calibrated at seven monitoring stations, which improved model performance and increased the reliability of flow predictions, in the Santa Cruz watershed. The most sensitive parameters to affect flow were found to be curve number (CN2), soil evaporation and compensation coefficient (ESCO), threshold water depth in shallow aquifer for return flow to occur (GWQMN), base flow alpha factor (ALPHA_BF), and effective hydraulic conductivity of the soil layer (CH_K2). In comparison, when the model was established with a single calibration at the watershed outlet, flow predictions at other monitoring gauges were inaccurate. This study emphasizes the importance of multi-gauge calibration to develop a reliable watershed model in arid and semi-arid environments. The developed model, with further calibration of water quality parameters will be an integral part of the Santa Cruz Watershed Ecosystem portfolio Model (SCWEPM), an online decision support tool, to assess the impacts of climate change and urban growth in the Santa Cruz watershed.


The demands for high-performance solid components are constantly increasing. The reason for this development are the steadily growing requirements such as weight reduction, higher resistance to load stresses, and more functional integration. By using material compounds, for example high-strength steel and aluminium alloy, hybrid massive components, whose properties are specially adapted to the specific application, can be manufactured. The first challenge is the joining of two dissimilar materials like steel and aluminium alloy by laser beam welding. In particular, the formation of hard and brittle intermetallic phases (IMP) has a high influence on the mechanical properties of the joining zone. The second challenge is to examine the machinability of such dissimilar compounds. The machining process is mandatory in order to reach an adequate level of accuracy of shape and dimensions. Furthermore, the functionalization of the hybrid compounds will be realized with the machining process where required surface roughness and lifetime-determining residual stresses are adjusted. Connections between induced residual stresses and material properties have been investigated. A significant influence of machining parameters on the surface and subsurface properties is evident. In particular, the cutting edge rounding has a deep impact on the residual stresses as well as on surface roughness.


The article describes the process of labour migration from China to Russia and shows its modelling using the agent-based approach. This approach allows us to simulate an artificial society in a computer program taking into account the diversity of individuals under consideration, as well as to model a set of laws and rules of conduct that make up the institutional environment in which the members of this society live. A brief review and analysis of agent-based migration models presented in the foreign literature are given. The agent-based model of labour migration from China to Russia developed by the Central Economic Mathematical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences simulates human behaviour close to reality, which is based on their internal purposes, determining the agents choice of territory as a place of residence. Therefore, at the development of the agents of the model and their behaviour algorithms, as well as the organization of the environment in which they exist and interact, the main characteristics of the population of two neighbouring countries and their demographic processes have been considered. Using the model, two experiments have been conducted. The purpose of the first of them was to assess the effect of depreciation of the rubble against the yuan on the overall indexes of labour migration, as well as its structure. In the second experiment, the procedure of the search of the information by agents for the migratory decision-making was changing. Namely, all generalizing information on the average salary by types of activity and skill level of employees, both in China and Russia, became available to all agents irrespective of their qualification level.


Even after good calibration, the measurement accuracy of a Shack- Hartmann sensor can be affected by the fabrication and alignment tolerances of the wavefront sensing optical system. The shifts of the Shack-Hartmann spots caused by misalignments correspond to ray intercept errors on the detector that typically have to be converted into a meaningful input wavefront measurement error. This conversion cannot be directly obtained from a conventional tolerance analysis using optical design software, because of the intrinsic wavefront sampling by the lenslet array. The tolerancing method proposed in this paper solves the problem of converting conventional merit function degradation into input wavefront measurement error without employing a separate wavefront reconstruction algorithm. Using the proposed method, this investigation shows the effect of fabrication and misalignment errors on the accuracy of a calibrated Shack- Hartmann sensor, as a function of input wavefront vergence.


Language modeling is one of many problems in language processing that have to grapple with naturally high ambient dimensions. Even in large datasets, the number of unseen sequences is overwhelmingly larger than the number of observed ones, posing clear challenges for estimation. Although existing methods for building smooth language models tend to work well in general, they make assumptions that are not well suited to training with limited data.
This thesis introduces a new approach to language modeling that makes different assumptions about how best to smooth the distributions, aimed at better handling the limited data scenario. Among these, it assumes that some words and word sequences behave similarly to others and that similarities can be learned by parameterizing a model with matrices or tensors and controlling the matrix or tensor rank. This thesis also demonstrates that sparsity acts as a complement to the low rank parameters: a low rank component learns the regularities that exist in language, while a sparse one captures the exceptional sequence phenomena. The sparse component not only improves the quality of the model, but the exceptions identified prove to be meaningful for other language processing tasks, making the models useful not only for computing probabilities but as tools for the analysis of language. Three new language models are introduced in this thesis. The first uses a factored low rank tensor to encode joint probabilities. It can be interpreted as a "mixture of unigrams" model and is evaluated on an English genre-adaptation task. The second is an exponential model parameterized by two matrices: one sparse and one low rank. This "Sparse Plus Low Rank Language Model" (SLR-LM) is evaluated with data from six languages, finding consistent gains over the standard baseline. Its ability to exploit features of words is used to incorporate morphological information in a Turkish language modeling experiment, with some improvements over a word-only model. Lastly, its use to discover words in an unsupervised fashion from sub-word segmented data is presented, showing good performance in finding dictionary words. The third model extends the SLR-LM in order to capture diverse and overlapping influences on text (e.g. topic, genre, speaker) using additive sparse matrices. The "Multi-Factor SLR-LM" is evaluated on three corpora with different factoring structures, showing improvements in perplexity and the ability to find high quality factor-dependent keywords. Finally, models and training algorithms are presented that extend the low rank ideas of the thesis to sequence tagging and acoustic modeling.


Lipreaders' eye movements were monitored in real time to determine where they direct their attention on the speaker's face to obtain linguistically relevant information for speech perception. Full‐motion video sequences displaying a full‐face view of a male speaker were presented without sound to proficient lipreaders who were deaf or hearing. A still frame of the speaker's face was displayed for 1 s preceding and following each video segment. The video was followed by a display of a written sentence that was identical or different from the sentence produced by the speaker. Lipreaders indicated same/different by pressing a button. Results indicate that eye gaze was most often directed at the mouth as the speaker produced the sentence but occasionally moved to other parts of the face. The number of these off‐mouth gazes during speech varied among lipreaders and with sentence characteristics. Both task and lipreader characteristics influence where people look for information on the face of the speaker. [Wor...


This article examines the breadth of the current forecast literature as it relates to public budget making. It serves to provide summary information to decision-makers who otherwise do not have the resources to learn more than a small amount focused on much more narrowly defined areas of forecasting (such as the politics of forecast bias). Next, it serves those who perform forecasting related to budgeting by reviewing the current methods and practices commonly used in this domain. It also provides a ground level for future public budget forecasting research. Finally, this article identifies several areas in which the public forecasting literature needs additional development. Several of these areas, such as the effectiveness of nonregression-based forecasting techniques, are quite important to the majority of governments in the United States and other subnational jurisdictions, where budget offices are limited and resource investments in technology are scarce.


Background
The use of foodbanks has risen sharply in the UK; however, the epidemiology of UK food insecurity is undeveloped. This study contributes to the field by analysing socio-demographic risk factors for food insecurity in a female, ethnically diverse population.

Methods
Data from the Born in Bradford (BiB) cohort were matched with data on food insecurity from the nested BiB1000 study (N = 1280). Logistic regression was used to model food insecurity in relation to ethnicity and socio-demographic factors.

Results
Food insecurity, reported by 13.98% of the sample, was more likely among White British than Pakistani women (crude Odds Ratio (OR) 1.94, 95% CI: 1.37; 2.74, adjusted OR 2.37, 95% CI: 1.57; 3.59). In fully adjusted analyses, food insecurity was associated with a range of socio-economic measures, particularly the receipt of mean-tested benefits (adjusted OR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.41; 3.15) and perception of financial insecurity (adjusted OR 8.91, 95% CI: 4.14; 19.16 for finding it difficult/very difficult compared to living comfortably).

Conclusions
The finding that food insecurity prevalence may be higher than previously thought and that food insecurity is highly associated with socio-economic status, notably benefit receipt, is a cause for concern necessitating an urgent policy response.


Climate models predict, and empirical evidence confirms, that more extreme precipitation regimes are occurring in tandem with warmer atmospheric temperatures. These more extreme rainfall patterns are characterized by increased event size separated by longer within season drought periods and represent novel climatic conditions whose consequences for different ecosystem types are largely unknown. Here, we present results from an experiment in which more extreme rainfall patterns were imposed in three native grassland sites in the Central Plains Region of North America, USA. Along this 600 km precipitation–productivity gradient, there was strong sensitivity of temperate grasslands to more extreme growing season rainfall regimes, with responses of aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) contingent on mean soil water levels for different grassland types. At the mesic end of the gradient (tallgrass prairie), longer dry intervals between events led to extended periods of below‐average soil water content, increased plant water stress and reduced ANPP by 18%. The opposite response occurred at the dry end (semiarid steppe), where a shift to fewer, but larger, events increased periods of above‐average soil water content, reduced seasonal plant water stress and resulted in a 30% increase in ANPP. At an intermediate mixed grass prairie site with high plant species richness, ANPP was most sensitive to more extreme rainfall regimes (70% increase). These results highlight the inherent complexity in predicting how terrestrial ecosystems will respond to forecast novel climate conditions as well as the difficulties in extending inferences from single site experiments across biomes. Even with no change in annual precipitation amount, ANPP responses in a relatively uniform physiographic region differed in both magnitude and direction in response to within season changes in rainfall event size/frequency.


On 17 August 1999 the Mw 7.5 I zmit, Turkey, earthquake produced surface rupture in excess of 120 km, and perhaps as much as 200 km, with up to 5 m of dextral slip, along a western portion of the North Anatolian fault zone. The 12 November 1999 Mw 7.1 Duzce, Turkey, earthquake produced a 40-km-long sur- face rupture, including 9 km of rupture overlap with the eastern end of the August event. Our mapping focused on the 40-km-long Karadere rupture segment, the east- ernmost segment of the August event, as well as on the western 20 km of the No- vember rupture. Maximum dextral slip along the Karadere segment is approximately 1.5 m, and the average slip on this segment is close to 1 m. Although slip along the Karadere segment is considerably less than that on segments to the west, this segment is of particular interest for three reasons: (1) the western boundary of the Karadere segment is defined by the most striking structural discontinuity along the entire Au- gust surface rupture (i.e., a 5-km-wide zone of no surface rupture, as well as a 25 change in trend from E-W to ENE), and such a discontinuity may have important implications for rupture dynamics; (2) surface rupture terminates at the east end of the Karadere rupture segment at a 1.5- to 3-km-wide extensional step-over at Eften Lake; and (3) the 12 November 1999 Duzce earthquake reruptured the easternmost 9 km of the Karadere segment, raising interesting questions about rupture dynamics and interactions between events on adjacent fault segments. The details of the 17 August 1999 and l2 November 1999 surface rupture traces suggest that rupture may have partially propagated across the Eften Lake extensional step-over, although this step-over seems to have acted as an effective barrier to rupture propagation.


The phenomenon and the development of new media introduce a new communication's form of social media that requires an individual to have a virtual identity. This identity is an outstanding image of self-presentation that is built up deliberately by an individual in cyberspace. Through social networks, e.g., Facebook, a person acts as producer and simultaneously as gatekeeper of a message who can express a thought without any restrain. Basically, this study aimed to investigate how Muslim women created and constructed their virtual identity in a profile of Facebook. Furthermore, this study keened to determine the factors that affected the virtual identity of Muslim women on Facebook. The methodology was descriptive qualitative with discourse analysis approach. Data collection was carried out by examining documents obtained from the subjects' profiles in Facebook and interviews. Purposive sampling was conducted to select the subjects based on the research topics, which were the subjects actively used Facebook, understood the issues, and were trustworthy. Data analysis technique used in his study was discourse analysis approach as developed by Teun A. Van Dijk. It was employed to examine the textual, image, in this case Facebook's profile of Muslim women. The conclusions in this study are there is a propensity of the masquerade of virtual identity including user's name, profile picture, and statuses carried out by Muslim women in Facebook. Subsequently, the factors of age, role, and their devotion on Islamic teachings also affected Muslim women in making up their virtual identity. Keywords: Cyber identity, Muslm women; Social Media; Virtual identity