The antiproliferative activities of n‐hexane, chloroform, aqueous‐methanol and aqueous extracts of the aerial parts of the Achillea millefolium aggregate on three human tumour cell lines were investigated by means of MTT assays. The chloroform‐soluble extract exerted high tumour cell proliferation inhibitory activities on HeLa and MCF‐7 cells, and a moderate effect on A431 cells; accordingly, it was subjected to detailed bioactivity‐guided fractionation. As a result of the multistep chromatographic purifications (VLC, CPC, PLC, gel filtration), five flavonoids (apigenin, luteolin, centaureidin, casticin and artemetin) and five sesquiterpenoids (paulitin, isopaulitin, psilostachyin C, desacetylmatricarin and sintenin) were isolated and identified by spectroscopic methods. The antiproliferative assay demonstrated that centaureidin is the most effective constituent of the aerial parts of yarrow: high cell growth inhibitory activities were observed especially on HeLa (IC50 0.0819 µm) and MCF‐7 (IC50 0.1250 µm) cells. Casticin and paulitin were also highly effective against all three tumour cell lines (IC50 1.286–4.76 µm), while apigenin, luteolin and isopaulitin proved to be moderately active (IC50 6.95–32.88 µm). Artemetin, psilostachyin C, desacetylmatricarin and sintenin did not display antiproliferative effects against these cell lines. This is the first report on the occurrence of seco‐pseudoguaianolides (paulitin, isopaulitin and psilostachyin C) in the Achillea genus. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This paper looks into the Philippine secondary art market, which has recently emerged with the country's booming economy. Specifically, the paper aims to determine the effect of the August 2015 stock market sell-off on prices and profitability of art auction sales in the Philippines. Works of art may be considered as alternative investment goods for stocks. There may be greater demand for artworks as part of an investment diversification strategy when the equity market is bearish. On the other hand, artworks may also be part of a conspicuous consumption behavioral pattern, such that when income and wealth levels fall, the demand for artworks drops. To determine the net effect of stock market conditions on the Philippine art market, an empirical model is estimated using the ratio of the auctions' hammer price to the starting bid as a measure of art market profitability and vitality. Our regression results reveal that artworks are more of a conspicuous consumption good in the Philippines. Reduced income and wealth after the stock market plunge in August 2015 led to lower willingness to pay for artworks and lower returns in the September 2015 auctions compared to the September 2014 auctions. The "poorer rich" effect appears to prevail over the alternative investment effect in the Philippines.


Toll-like receptors (TLRs) recognize conserved motifs associated with pathogens, which allows them to differentiate "self" from "nonself" and to initiate immune responses. Whereas TLRs that recognize bacterial and fungal structures are found in the plasma membrane, TLRs that recognize bacterial and viral nucleic acids are located inside of cells (see Bauer). Barton et al. investigated the functional importance of the intracellular localization of TLR9, a TLR that is activated by DNA containing unmethylated CpG motifs, which occur frequently in bacterial and viral DNA. Immunofluorescence analysis of chimeric receptors containing the extracellular domain of CD4 and transmembrane or cytosolic domains of TLR9 or TLR4 (which localizes to the plasma membrane) revealed that localization depended on the TLR transmembrane domain. TLR9N4C, a chimeric receptor that contained the TLR9 ectodomain and the TLR4 cytosolic and transmembrane domains, localized to the cell surface. When expressed in HEK293T cells and stimulated with CpG oligonucleotides (CpG DNA), TLR9N4C activated an NF-κB-luciferase reporter as effectively as TLR9; furthermore, the response of TLR9N4C to CpG DNA, unlike that of TLR9, was insensitive to pharmacological blockade of endosomal acidification. Similarly, dendritic cells expressing TLR9N4C responded to CpG DNA as effectively as cells expressing TLR9 did. However, dendritic cells expressing TLR9N4C, unlike those expressing TLR9, failed to respond to herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2). Moreover, macrophages expressing TLR9N4C, but not macrophages expressing TLR9, were stimulated by exposure to extracellular mammalian DNA. Thus, the authors propose that the intracellular localization of TLR9 may be critical to its ability to discriminate self from viral nucleic acids. G. M. Barton, J. C. Kagan, R. Medzhitov, Intracellular localization of Toll-like receptor 9 prevents recognition of self DNA but facilitates access to viral DNA. Nat. Immunol. 7, 49-56 (2006). [PubMed] S. Bauer, Toll-erating self DNA. Nat. Immunol. 7, 13-15 (2006). [PubMed]


Teaching flexibly can accommodate different learning styles. Less emphasis has been placed on the merits of students being assessed in different ways. Students experience a sense of increased ownership, engagement responsibility for their learning when offered involvement/choice in assessment processes. To engage students with their own assessment, and to inform my own assessment practices, I asked students to chose between two assessment weighting options in 2nd yr Zoology units. Cohorts had either completed 2 core Zoology 2nd yr units ("experienced" = 2008), or had completed only the 1st semester ("inexperienced" = 2009).
While those students who had "experienced" both units, and so both assessment patterns did not display a clear preference, as a group, for either option, they made far more strategic decisions about their preference. Reasons given for their choice were with a view to longer term and bigger picture factors such as final grades and overall time management during the semester and year. Students who had only actually experienced one of the assessment options took a "grass is always greener" approach, with a clear preference for the semester 2 option in which they were yet to participate. Reasons given showed primary concern for shorter term factors such as degree of difficulty or specific weighting of the immediate task. Such decisions presumably reflect the students' progress as maturing learners. The 2009 data, particularly, highlighted to me the importance of managing student expectations, and have allowed me to accommodate student concerns about assessment in the delivery of a Sem 2 2009 2nd yr Zoology unit.


The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of specific airline business decisions on aircraft accident propensity. Airline safety affects everyone and has large regulatory and policy implications. Existing research has focused largely on three areas: airline financial health, safety and the resulting effects of accidents. I use both Poisson and Negative Binomial models to study two different airline features: low-cost carriers and flight length, and how they relate to the probability of an aircraft accident. Based on results using a Generalized Negative Binomial model, I find statistically significant evidence at the 99% confidence level that a 1-unit increase in the flight length leads to a 0.11% decrease in the number of accidents. I also find statistically significant evidence at the 99% confidence level that when an airline is classified as a low-cost carrier, the number of accidents decreases by 79.16%. These results indicate that a homogenous safety regulation framework is not appropriate for the airline industry with regard to flight length and cost structure.


The vision processor (VP) and vision controller (VC), two integrated products dedicated to video compression, are discussed. The chips implement the P*64, JPEG, and MPEG image compression standards. The VP forms the heart of the image compression system. It performs discrete cosine transform (DCT), quantization, and motion estimation, as well as inverse DCT, and inverse quantization. The highly parallel and microcode-based processor performs all of the JPEG, MPEG, and P*64 algorithms. The VC smart microcontroller controls the compression process and provides the interface to the host system. It captures pixels from a video source, performs video preprocessing, supervises pixel compression by the VP, performs Huffman encoding, and passes the compressed data to the host over a buffered interface. It takes compressed data from the host, performs coder decoding, supervises decompression via the VP, performs postprocessing, and generates digital pixel output for a video destination such as a monitor.<<ETX>>


The history-making development of the Chinese economy has entered a new phase. China is moving aggressively from a strategy of imitation to one of innovation. Driven both by domestic needs and by global ambition, China is establishing itself at the forefront of technological innovation. Western businesses need to prepare for a tidal wave of innovation from China that is about to hit Western markets, and Chinese businesses need to understand the critical importance of innovation in their future. Experts George Yip and Bruce McKern explain this epic transformation and propose strategies for both Western and Chinese companies. This book is for everyone who does business with China or in China, or is interested in the development of the world's fastest-growing economy. Western CEOs can learn from Chinese companies and can create an effective innovation process in China, for China and the world. Chinese CEOs can benefit from understanding the strategies of their peers as they strive to enter foreign markets. And all Western businesses should prepare for disruption from their new competitors. Yip and McKern provide case studies of successful firms, outline ten ways in which the managerial and innovative capabilities of these firms differ from those of Western firms, and describe how multinationals doing business in China can become part of the Chinese ecosystem of new knowledge and technology. Yip and McKern argue that these innovation capabilities will be the basis for creating world-class products and services to meet the challenges of a new era of global competition.


The scarcity of fossil energy resources in conjunction with increasing demand has recently created record commodity price rises. Global warming and dimming are some of the harmful effects of increasing use of this resource. Furthermore, fossil fuel exhaust emissions, produced in internal combustion engines (ICE), generate significant health concerns. For decades, fears and numerous alarms have been raised regarding these problems. Many researchers believe that hydrogen would be an ideal alternative solution. Reduced fossil fuel consumption and lower thermal emanations (CO, CO2, HC and NO) are expected if hydrogen is used, as a principal or supplementary fuel, in standard ICE's. However, hydrogen dual-fuel use has historically been associated with injection and/or detonation problems. Direct injection (DI) strategy, in spark and compression engines, is commonly used to overcome some, but not all, of these difficulties. This experimental research investigated detonation free, diesel-hydrogen fuel consumptions, and exhaust emissions using an indirect injection (IDI) strategy in a generic compression diesel engine.
A novel analogue Mechatronic Injection Unit (MICU) in conjunction with a multi point injection tactic (MPI) were devised to indirectly deliver low pressure hydrogen to a stationary Lister-Pitter diesel engine combustion chamber. The hydrogen injection system was created to be used as a generic dual-fuel kit. With off-the-shelf parts the MICU design was simple, robust, and purposeful in its function. The MICU component also formed an important element of a proposed innovative dual-fuel conversion kit. Nine hydrogen injection rates were tested. Diesel consumption savings were measured and the 'effectiveness' of hydrogen vitiated injection was computed.
The research outcomes demonstrated that with a conventional diesel mechanical governor and an assumed engine compression ratio of 15.5, detonation free combustion can be achieved with low pressure hydrogen vitiation and enrichment . However, an injection rate limit existed above which detonation occurred. The study also demonstrated that through low pressure hydrogen vitiation and enrichment, diesel consumption savings were achieved. The research confirmed that the experimental fuel mass savings were lower than their expected/theoretical counterparts. The research particularly established that vitiation and enrichment effectiveness was only realised at low rather than high loads indicating that hydrogen achieved more than diesel mass substitutions.
In this study a new confined area dual-fuel static emission testing procedure, coupled with an on-site use test cycle was proposed and termed the Dual-fuel fixed speed emission-testing guideline. Dry thermal emissions were measured, and both the cycle average and median dry- and wet-emissions were computed, substance/species comparisons were performed and conclusions were drawn. The shortcomings of the procedure however were also highlighted.
Finally, the research established that one action or measure, such as dual-fuel hydrogen vitiation and enrichment, can not address all the environment and health concerns. Contrary to the common belief, green house gases, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons and opacity substances do not coincidently all increase and/or decrease. Indeed, this experiment demonstrated that although the diesel-hydrogen nitrogen monoxide (NO) wet-emissions at all injection rates were partially lower than the diesel baseline, carbon oxides, hydrocarbon emissions, opacity (N) and absorption coefficients (k) were higher. In other words, a measure taken to limit the harm done to human health can increase the damage to the environment and vice versa.


Biographical literature has not yet come of age in the Philippines. True, there is today a relative abundance of major biographies of important personalities in Philippine history. Furthermore, we have various published biographical profiles, sketches and data on major and minor Filipino artists, writers, architects, playwrights, poets, essayists, novelists, painters, inventors, educators, physicians, lawmakers, actors/actresses, movie directors, military generals, guerrillas, economists, engineers, scientists, musicians, journalists, critics and other prominent persons in their fields of endeavor. Except for E. Arsenio Manuel's, we lack monumental and encyclopedic biographical literature like the scholarly, well-edited, and excellently-written multivolume Dictionary of American Biography and Who's Who in America, the Dictionary of National Biography, and the Dictionary of Canadian Biography or Webster Biographical Dictionary. Manuel's Dictionary of Philippine Biography, can still be termed the germ of encyclopedic biography in the country.


The reader will find herein a collection of unsolved problems in mathematics and the physical sciences. Theoretical and experimental domains have each been given consideration. The authors have taken a liberal approach in their selection of problems and questions, and have not shied away from what might otherwise be called speculative, in order to enhance the opportunities for scientific discovery. Progress and development in our knowledge of the structure, form and function of the Universe, in the true sense of the word, its beauty and power, and its timeless presence and mystery, before which even the greatest intellect is awed and humbled, can spring forth only from an unshackled mind combined with a willingness to imagine beyond the boundaries imposed by that ossified authority by which science inevitably becomes, as history teaches us, barren and decrepit. Revealing the secrets of Nature, so that we truly see 'the sunlit plains extended, and at night the wondrous glory of the everlasting stars', requires far more than mere technical ability and mechanical dexterity learnt form books and consensus. The dustbin of scientific history is replete with discredited consensus and the grand reputations of erudite reactionaries. Only by boldly asking questions, fearlessly, despite opposition, and searching for answers where most have not looked for want of courage and independence of thought, can one hope to discover for one's self. From nothing else can creativity blossom and grow, and without which the garden of science can only aspire to an overpopulation of weeds.


Democracy has proved to be especially hard to achieve and consolidate in divided societies in general, and in post-conflict societies in particular. Many countries that have recently experience intrastate war decay into civil war after a few years of peace. Both these findings point to the need of addressing the challenges facing postwar societies. I argue that an important piece has been missing from the research agenda: public opinion. How do people respond to exposure to warfare? How does civil war affect people as political beings? This is the overarching question that this dissertation addresses. Very little is known about how individual attitudes are affected by civil war. Yet, the conflict literature is full of assumptions, whether explicit or implicit, about how people react to warfare. Using data from the Western Balkans I examine the effect of civil war exposure on individual attitudes of ethnonationalism, reconciliation, and authoritarianism. The attitudes are chosen because of their perceived relevance for future stability and democratic consolidation. A main finding is that warfare has no uniform effect on public opinion, but that post-conflict countries are dominated by values that are commonly assumed to be detrimental to the development of peaceful democracies. In some cases, ethnonationalism increases with exposure to war, but the effects are not always consistent. Proximity to violence can reduce support for a peace agreement, but not all the aspects of it. Authoritarianism can increase from some types of exposure to violence, but this is contingent on the measure of violence, and the effect is not uniform across cases. In sum, these divergent findings make it clear that a large degree of caution is necessary when making assumptions about individual attitudes and behavior after a violent conflict.


Abstract: Here we present the first use of calcareous microfossils to examine the late Quaternary paleoecology of the endorheic Pozuelos Basin (Argentina). Modern deposition in the basin centers on Laguna de los Pozuelos (LP), a shallow playa-lake that is fed by axial rivers and groundwater and dominantly accumulates siliciclastic sediments. Today, the distribution of limnocytherid and cypridoidean ostracodes across southern LP is strongly influenced by distance to the Río Cincel delta, whereas the northern end of the playa-lake is characterized by a paucity of ostracodes due to frequent sub-aerial exposure. Ten ostracode biofacies define a sediment core retrieved from LP, which reveal progressive changes in aquatic environments that varied in salinity, depth, and proximity to deltas over the late Pleistocene. Closed lakes occupied the basin from ∼ 37.6–30.7 ka, ∼ 28.0–25.0 ka, and ∼ 23.0–16.6 ka, whereas saline wetlands occurred when these lakes contracted. Extant LP has no analog in the late Pleistocene record; it formed after ∼ 7.2 ka, following a hiatus that removed the Pleistocene–Holocene transition. Paleoecological evidence indicates that the core site was influenced by deltaic inflows from the eastern basin margin until ∼ 24.3 ka, an area where today dry alluvial fans are found. Reorganization of the watershed by normal faulting, most likely at ∼ 18.0 ka, appears to have reduced the influence of these deltaic inflows. Extensional neotectonics, perhaps induced by incorporation of the Pozuelos Basin into the Andean hinterland, is a mechanism that along with tropical climate change is potentially important to water balance and ecology in high-altitude convergent orogenic basins.


The patent statutes establish that any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof [can be patented.] Whereas, the wording of the statute is broad, it is nonetheless well-established that mathematical algorithms, laws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas cannot be patented. The Supreme Court, in interpreting the patent statutes, has consistently held that such discoveries are not the kind of 'discoveries' that the statute was enacted to protect. In a recent Federal Circuit case, Metabolite Labs., Inc. v. Laboratory Corp. of Am. Holdings, the court held claim 13 of Metabolite's 4,940,658 patent valid. The claim has two limitations: [1] assaying a body fluid for an elevated level of total homocysteine; and [2] correlating an elevated level of total homocysteine in said body fluid with a [vitamin B] deficiency . . . . The Federal Circuit ruled that [t]he correlating step is a simple conclusion that a [vitamin B] deficiency exists vel non based on the assaying step. The court also found that every time a doctor orders any total homocysteine level assay, whether it is patented by Metabolite or is part of the prior art, and merely thinks about the natural relationship between elevated homocysteine level and vitamin B deficiencies, she directly infringes claim 13. The Supreme Court has granted certiorari on this case and should overturn the decision. As it stands, the ruling would set a precedent that those who discover laws of nature can obtain patents on methods comprising [1] collecting data related to a law of nature and [2] thinking about the law of nature. Such patents, especially when taken in aggregate, have the potential to stifle the practical application of science. Such a result would be antithetical to the patent system's goal of promotion of the useful arts. In this paper, I argue that Metabolite's claim 13 is unpatentable because it is drawn to a law of nature in view of Parker v. Flook and Diamond v. Diehr. I then argue that, even if claim 13 were not a patent on the law of nature, it precludes all practical use of the law of nature and therefore is unpatentable under Gottschalk v. Benson and Diamond v. Diehr. I further argue that claim 13 is unpatentable because it merely claims what the Funk Bros. Seed Co. v. Kalo Inoculant Co. and Diamond v. Chakrabarty courts termed the handiwork of nature.


Ice was never considered to be of microbiological concern, due to it's low temperature. However, this perception is contradictive with a number research that shows several outbreaks of enteric Illness caused by ice. Evaluation of microbiological quality of ica In Bogor, emphasize on the presence of sanitation indicator bacteria (coliform fecal and non fecal) is associated with hygiene and sanitation implemantation on Ice handling. The presence of sanitation indicator bacteria on ice Is an Indication of poor hygiene on Ice handling, and also as an indicator of the presence of fecal pathogenic bacteria that can be harmful since they can cause foodborne diseases. The objective of this research is to examine the microbiological quality of ice through out Its distribution chain In Bogor, with coliform presence as the criteria. A total of 31 samples were analysed, consisted of 4 samples from ice manufactures, 6 samples from distributors ('depot'), and 21 samples from ice vendors. The result showed the total plate count of the samples are in the range between 2.8xl02 CFU/ml to 1.1x106 CFU/ml, while coliform were 1.5x102 MPN/100 ml to 1.2x106 MPN/100 ml. There were 31 samples (100%) coliform positive, 14 samples (45%) fecal coliform positive, 31 samples (100%) non fecal coliform positive, and 3 samples (10%) E.coli positive. The results shawed that ice cubes in Bogor area did not meet the microbiological criteria specified In SNI and Kepmenkes (coliform and E. coli absence in 100 ml) indicating of poor hygiene of Ice handling In Bogor.


Text clustering divides a set of texts into clusters (parts), so that texts within each cluster are similar in content. It may be used to uncover the structure and content of unknown text sets as well as to give new perspectives on familiar ones. The main contributions of this thesis are an investigation of text representation for Swedish and some extensions of the work on how to use text clustering as an exploration tool. We have also done some work on synonyms and evaluation of clustering results. Text clustering, at least such as it is treated here, is performed using the vector space model, which is commonly used in information retrieval. This model represents texts by the words that appear in them and considers texts similar in content if they share many words. Languages differ in what is considered a word. We have investigated the impact of some of the characteristics of Swedish on text clustering. Swedish has more morphological variation than for instance English. We show that it is beneficial to use the lemma form of words rather than the word forms. Swedish has a rich production of solid compounds. Most of the constituents of these are used on their own as words and in several different compounds. In fact, Swedish solid compounds often correspond to phrases or open compounds in other languages. Our experiments show that it is beneficial to split solid compounds into their parts when building the representation. The vector space model does not regard word order. We have tried to extend it with nominal phrases in different ways. We have also tried to differentiate between homographs, words that look alike but mean different things, by augmenting all words with a tag indicating their part of speech. None of our experiments using phrases or part of speech information have shown any improvement over using the ordinary model. Evaluation of text clustering results is very hard. What is a good partition of a text set is inherently subjective. External quality measures compare a clustering with a (manual) categorization of the same text set. The theoretical best possible value for a measure is known, but it is not obvious what a good value is – text sets differ in difficulty to cluster and categorizations are more or less adapted to a particular text set. We describe how evaluation can be improved for cases where a text set has more than one categorization. In such cases the result of a clustering can be compared with the result for one of the categorizations, which we assume is a good partition. In some related work we have built a dictionary of synonyms. We use it to compare two different principles for automatic word relation extraction through clustering of words. Text clustering can be used to explore the contents of a text set. We have developed a visualization method that aids such exploration, and implemented it in a tool, called Infomat. It presents the representation matrix directly in two dimensions. When the order of texts and words are changed, by for instance clustering, distributional patterns that indicate similarities between texts and words appear. We have used Infomat to explore a set of free text answers about occupation from a questionnaire given to over 40 000 Swedish twins. The questionnaire also contained a closed answer regarding smoking. We compared several clusterings of the text answers to the closed answer, regarded as a categorization, by means of clustering evaluation. A recurring text cluster of high quality led us to formulate the hypothesis that "farmers smoke less than the average", which we later could verify by reading previous studies. This hypothesis generation method could be used on any set of texts that is coupled with data that is restricted to a limited number of possible values.


Background: Dental caries is a multifactorial, infectious disease where genetic predisposition can play an important role. Its susceptibility may be modified by functional polymorphisms in genes linked with the folate metabolic pathway, such as methionine synthase (MTR), methionine synthase reductase (MTRR), and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR). The aim of this study was to analyze four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the genes for these enzymes in the group of caries free children vs. subjects affected by dental caries in the Czech population. Methods: This case-control study included 1017 subjects: 145 caries free children (with decayed/missing/filled teeth DMFT=0) and 466 subjects with dental caries (DMFT 1 or higher) aged 13-15 years from the European Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood (ELSPAC) and 282 children aged 2-6 years with early childhood caries (ECC, dmft 1 or higher) together with 124 caries free children (dmft=0). MTHFR C677T (rs1801133), MTHFR A1298C (rs1801131), MTR A2756G (rs1805087) and MTRR A66G (rs1801394) SNPs were determined by qPCR. Results: Although no significant differences in the allele or genotype frequencies of all four SNPs between the caries free children and those affected by ECC were observed (P higher than 0.05), MTHFR 1298 AA vs. AC+CC and MTHFR 677 TT vs. CT+CC genotypes were found as protective factor for dental caries (P lower than 0.05 and P lower than 0.01, respectively) in children with permanent dentition. There were no significant differences in the allele or genotype frequencies in both MTR and MTRR SNPs between these patients and healthy controls (P higher than 0.05). Conclusions: MTHFR polymorphisms may be associated with caries protection in permanent but not primary dentition.


Jini connection technology forms a network of devices on the fly, without manual connection or configuration. It can also complement other technologies that strive for "anytime, anywhere" connectivity. The article looks at lookup and discovery services; reliability and scalability; Jini architectural requirements; service for non-Jini devices; Jini mobile edition for wireless devices; Jini implementations; and competing and related technologies.


Purpose: As the second of two papers addressing challenges in applying best evidence to physiotherapy practice, the purpose of this paper is to explore health and clinical reasoning models that can facilitate evidence-based practice. Summary of Key Points: The challenge and importance of using skilled clinical reasoning in applying research evidence and managing patients that fall outside the available evidence are discussed. The importance of a holistic understanding of health and illness is emphasised and three models of health and disability are considered and the concept of "hypothesis categories" is proposed to assist therapists to transfer these conceptual models to actual decision making in practice. Next, research supporting therapists' use of "Clinical Reasoning Strategies" is reviewed distinguishing between diagnostic reasoning and narrative reasoning. Lastly, the organisational behaviour management practice of benchmarking is proposed as an important strategy to further facilitate application of research evidence in practice behaviour. Conclusion: A key challenge facing the profession is how best to assist clinicians' application of research findings to practice and how to optimise experience-based evidence when research evidence is either poor or missing. To practice in a truly holistic patientcentred, evidence-based way clinicians need good conceptual understandings of health, pain and disability and equally good critical and reflective reasoning and management skills.


Development economists should stop acting as categorical advocates (or detractors) for specific approaches to development. They should instead be diagnosticians, helping decisionmakers choose the right model (and remedy) for their specific realities, among many contending models (and remedies). In this spirit, Ricardo Hausmann, Andres Velasco, and I have developed a "growth diagnostics" framework that sketches a systematic process for identifying binding constraints and prioritizing policy reforms in multilateral agencies and bilateral donors. Growth diagnostics is based on the idea that not all constraints bind equally and that a sensible and practical strategy consists of identifying the most serious constraint(s) at work. The practitioner works with a decision tree to do this. The second step in growth diagnostics is to identify remedies for relaxing the constraint that are appropriate to the context and take cognizance of potential second-best complications. Successful countries are those that have implemented these two steps in an ongoing manner: identify sequentially the most binding constraints and remove them with locally suited remedies. Diagnostics requires pragmatism and eclecticism, in the use of both theory and evidence. It has no room for dogmatism, imported blueprints, or empirical purism.


Hydrogen is considered as a universal energy carrier for the future, and biomass has the potential to become a sustainable source of hydrogen. This article presents an efficiency analysis of hydrogen production processes from a variety of biomass feedstocks by a thermochemical method – gasification as well as biochemical methods – fermentation and anaerobic digestion. The exergetic efficiency of H2 production by gasification of more dry biomass is comparable to that of the commonly used Steam Methane Reforming. The detailed exergy analysis of H2 production by biomass gasification shows that the largest exergy losses occur in the gasifier.


A simple and accurate wavemeter for measuring the wavelength of monochromatic light is described. The device uses the wavelength-dependent phase lag between principal polarization states of a length of birefringent material (retarder) as the basis for the measurement of the optical wavelength. The retarder is sandwiched between a polarizer and a polarizing beam splitter and is oriented such that its principal axes are 45 deg to the axis of the polarizer and the principal axes of the beam splitter. As a result of the disparity in propagation velocities between the principal polarization states of the retarder, the ratio of the optical power exiting the two ports of the polarizing beam splitter is wavelength dependent. If the input wavelength is known to be within a specified range, the measurement of the power ratio uniquely determines the input wavelength. The device offers the advantage of trading wavelength coverage for increased resolution simply through the choice of the retarder length. Implementations of the device employing both bulk-optic components and fiber-optic components are described, and the results of a laboratory test of a fiber-optic prototype are presented. The prototype had a wavelength accuracy of +/-0.03 nm.


This article is focused on evolution of baseflow from part of the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands. This is a topical issue and, given the current situation, is also often discussed. The problem of groundwater and its recharge is an important (not only) hydrogeological problem, as climatic conditions in recent years, especially low precipitation, have a negative impact on groundwater recharge.


This article suggests that a single interpretative framework can be used to understand Islamist militant rhetoric, and to compare it to supposedly more orthodox campaigns such as Irish Republican militancy, differences of culture, scale, and lethality. Both refer to histories of persecution; cite exemplars of their just cause drawn from historical precedent; maintain utopian ideals and justifications of violence that drawn from culturally relevant versions of piety; and use examples of perseverance against overwhelming odds drawn from their respective histories. This framework of "4Ps"— persecution, precedent, piety, and perseverance—is apparent even on the Internet, where rhetoric is necessarily atomized.


The environmental impact assessment (EIA) regulations published in terms of the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 (NEMA) have extended an unprecedented degree of environmental oversight into the domain of agricultural decision-making. However, threatened Cape flora occurring in remnants of less than three hectares in extent will be denied such protection pending their incorporation in a national list of threatened ecosystems. Until such listing, unresolved legal questions that inhibited the effective consideration of biodiversity in agricultural decision-making prior to the promulgation of the NEMA EIA regulations are likely to persist—to the detriment of a globally imperilled biodiversity.    This contribution sets out to identify some of the key issues that inhibited mainstreaming of biodiversity in agri-environmental decision-making in the Western Cape.  It also attempts to show that the NEMA EIA dispensation has inherited some problems in respect of cultivation that would result in the transformation or removal of less than three hectares of vegetation in Critically Endangered and Endangered ecosystems—which, until listed in terms of biodiversity law, will have no legal protection. Lastly, the contribution provides an analysis of, and suggest a number of options for ensuring that biodiversity is given its appropriate due in the issuing of cultivation permits that otherwise may contribute to the further degradation and loss of some of the most threatened elements of the globally unique Cape flora.


I. INTRODUCTION A. Why Serious Reform of Family Law Is Needed B. Basic Flaws in the Reporters' Response C. The Reporters' Failure to Reign In Judicial Discretion II. THE REPORTERS' RATIONALES FOR "COMPENSATORY PAYMENTS" A. Compensation for Loss of Marital Living Standard Under Section 5 B. Back Pay for Child Care Under Section 5.05 C. Back Pay for Morally Obligated Care Under Section 5.11 D. Claims for Restoration of Premarital Living Standard After A Short Marriage Under Section 5.13 E. Claims for Contributions to the Other Spouse's Education or Training III. THE REPORTERS' RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DURATION, JUDICIAL MODIFICATION, AND TERMINATION OF AWARDS OF COMPENSATORY PAYMENTS A. Termination of Awards B. Duration and Judicial Modification of Awards Made Under Sections 5.04 and 5.05 C. Effect of Obligee's Cohabitation IV. CHARACTERIZATION AND DIVISION OF PROPERTY ON DISSOLUTION A. Enhancement of Separate Property by Spousal Labor 1. The Definition of "Substantial Time" 2. The Determination of the Marital Property Portion B. Property Derived from Earnings Before Marriage or After Divorce 1. Goodwill 2. Employee Stock Options C. Financial Misconduct as Grounds for Unequal Division of Marital Property D. Recharacterization of Separate Property as Marital Property Under Section 4.12 V. SEPARATION AGREEMENTS VI. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution: Analysis and Recommendations (the "Principles") (1) reflects eleven years' work by a massive team of reporters, advisors, and consultative groups. (2) A former director of the ALl described the project as "among the most important that the Institute has ever undertaken." (3) The task took on Herculean dimensions. Unfortunately, the final result is profoundly disappointing, particularly in contrast to the ALI's outstanding work in the Restatements, which have often exerted a strong positive influence on major areas of law. (4) My concern is that the Principles, published with the prestigious imprimatur of the ALl, may impede much needed reforms and even lead the legislators, judges, and rule makers to whom they are addressed to adopt unsound policies. In seeking to ward off these potentially harmful effects, I want first to analyze exactly what the Institute's imprimatur on the Principles really means and then to demonstrate why their uncritical acceptance as guideposts would be unwise. They contain serious deficiencies that should be corrected. At the outset, I have concerns about the procedures under which the Principles were passed. Although its bylaws require authorization by the membership and approval by the Council for publication of any work as the Institute s position, (5) the bylaws also provide that [a] quorum for any session of a meeting of the members is established by registration during the meeting of 400 members...." (6) Thus a quorum is conclusively deemed to be present for all sessions of a meeting as soon as a little over 10% of the approximately 3800 members (7) have registered, even though the number present and voting at a given session may be minimal. "A majority of the members voting on any question during any meeting or session is effective as action of the membership," (8) and there is no proxy voting. As a result, fundamental matters of policy may be decided by a handful of votes, (9) and may reflect the views of only a tiny fraction of the membership. Yet the Principles are published as the position of the Institute, with no indication of the number of members who actually voted on any given portion or the narrow margin by which it was adopted. Even a careful reader of the Proceedings of the Institute's Annual Meeting may learn no more than that a given motion was adopted (or defeated) by a voice vote, with no way of knowing how many voices were heard. …


Biomedical informatics (BMI) competencies are recognized as core requirements for the healthcare professional, but the amount of BMI educational interventions in the curricula of medical schools is limited. UNAM Faculty of Medicine in Mexico is a large public medical school, with more than 7000 undergraduate students. The undergraduate program recently underwent a major curricular revision, which includes BMI education. Two one-semester BMI courses (BMI-1 and BMI-2) were designed, with a blended-learning educational model. A department of BMI was created, with budget, offices and personnel. The first class of 1199 students started the course in 2010, with 32 groups of 40 students each. BMI-1 includes core conceptual notions of informatics applied to medicine (medical databases, electronic health record, telemedicine, among other topics), and BMI-2 embodies medical decision making and clinical reasoning. The program had a positive evaluation by students and teachers. BMI can be successfully incorporated in a large-scale medical school program in a developing country, using a blended-learning model and organizational change strategies.


OBJECTIVE
The present study aimed to evaluate the profile of patients with decompensated heart failure hospitalized in a tertiary hospital.

METHODS
It was designed an observational and retrospective study where data from clinical records of patients suffering from heart failure along 2005 were registered randomly.

RESULTS
209 patients were collected (average age: 78.6 +/- 9.1; male: 52.4%) with a comorbidity rate of 87.55%. Almost one third of them have not stimation of systolic function and among the others 72.4% have it preserved. Most of decompensated were due to respiratory infections. Ischemic-hipertensive cardiopathy was the most frequent aetiology of systolic disfunction. Average stay was 12.9 days with a mortality rate of 9.56%. Its main risk factors were advanced stages in NYHA od Red Cross scales, as so as dementia or ictus.

CONCLUSIONS
The present study shows a patient hospitalized for decompensated heart failure roughly different from that one reported at clinical trials. It makes difficult to apply therapeutical interventions, previously well documented to be useful.


IMPORTANCE
Endovascular intervention for acute ischemic stroke improves revascularization. But trials examining endovascular therapy yielded variable functional outcomes, and the effect of endovascular intervention among subgroups needs better definition.

OBJECTIVE
To examine the association between endovascular mechanical thrombectomy and clinical outcomes among patients with acute ischemic stroke.

DATA SOURCES
We systematically searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane Library without language restriction through August 2015.

STUDY SELECTION
Eligible studies were randomized clinical trials of endovascular therapy with mechanical thrombectomy vs standard medical care, which includes the use of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (tPA).

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS
Independent reviewers evaluated the quality of studies and abstracted the data. We calculated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs for all outcomes using random-effects meta-analyses and performed subgroup and sensitivity analyses to examine whether certain imaging, patient, treatment, or study characteristics were associated with improved functional outcome. The strength of the evidence was examined for all outcomes using the GRADE method.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Ordinal improvement across modified Rankin scale (mRS) scores at 90 days, functional independence (mRS score, 0-2), angiographic revascularization at 24 hours, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within 90 days, and all-cause mortality at 90 days.

RESULTS
Data were included from 8 trials involving 2423 patients (mean [SD] age, 67.4 [14.4] years; 1131 [46.7%] women), including 1313 who underwent endovascular thrombectomy and 1110 who received standard medical care with tPA. In a meta-analysis of these trials, endovascular therapy was associated with a significant proportional treatment benefit across mRS scores (OR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.14-2.13; P = .005). Functional independence at 90 days (mRS score, 0-2) occurred among 557 of 1293 patients (44.6%; 95% CI, 36.6%-52.8%) in the endovascular therapy group vs 351 of 1094 patients (31.8%; 95% CI, 24.6%-40.0%) in the standard medical care group (risk difference, 12%; 95% CI, 3.8%-20.3%; OR, 1.71; 95% CI, 1.18-2.49; P = .005). Compared with standard medical care, endovascular thrombectomy was associated with significantly higher rates of angiographic revascularization at 24 hours (75.8% vs 34.1%; OR, 6.49; 95% CI, 4.79-8.79; P < .001) but no significant difference in rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within 90 days (70 events [5.7%] vs 53 events [5.1%]; OR, 1.12; 95% CI, 0.77-1.63; P = .56) or all-cause mortality at 90 days (218 deaths [15.8%] vs 201 deaths [17.8%]; OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.68-1.12; P = .27).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
Among patients with acute ischemic stroke, endovascular therapy with mechanical thrombectomy vs standard medical care with tPA was associated with improved functional outcomes and higher rates of angiographic revascularization, but no significant difference in symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage or all-cause mortality at 90 days.


A new micrometeorological technique is applied to measure gas emissions from soils. The technique relies on a single open-path FTIR sensor (OP-FTIR) with motorized aiming to give gas concentrations along vertically separated paths (not necessarily parallel with each other). Emission rates are inferred from the vertical difference in concentration using two alternative methods: flux-gradient and inverse dispersion calculations. Our objective is to assess the capability of the technique in a field study measuring nitrous oxide (N2O) and ammonia (NH3) emitted from cattle overwintering areas during the spring thaw. Two field configurations were examined: a slant path configuration in which the OP-FTIR is aimed directly at high and low reflectors at the far end of the path (average vertical path separation ∼ 1 m), and a periscope configuration where the lower FTIR path was directed closer to ground along the whole path (average path separation ∼ 1.5 m). Measured emission rates were generally above the detectability threshold of the system and consistent with the scientific literature showing an emission rise during thawing. At one −1 of our sites the pulse of N2O emitted during thawing was among the largest reported (9.9 kg N-N2O ha during April). Of the two alternatives tested for calculating emissions, the inverse dispersion approach is more flexible, but with a computation time that can be prohibitive. With large measurement fetches the flux-gradient approach can be equally good and computationally faster. We conclude that the open-path gradient system provides a practical option for studying emissions in difficult environments.


E-marketing is more than just marketing carried out over the Internet. It involves the effective use of Information Communication Technology in playing a supportive role that aids business and marketing needs of an organization. The study has reviewed various literatures in order to get an in-depth understanding of the relationship between electronic marketing practices, corporate culture and organizational performance. The review indicates that organizations are able to benefit from e-marketing practices when they have the right culture that encourages adoption of new technology, including e-marketing practices. The paper also details the barriers as well as the enablers of e-marketing adoption while highlighting possible future of e-marketing as a discipline. It also provides reviews on the future direction for researchers.


During a full tidal cycle, the beach profile is exposed to continuously changing hydrodynamical conditions. Consequently, the profile evolves constantly to adapt to these changes. The equilibrium condition on tidal beaches is defined in terms of the relative occurrence of swash, surf zone and shoaling processes. We have assumed that the tidal beach profile is in equilibrium when the net sediment transport along a tidal cycle is zero. In this model the contribution of swash is considered negligible. A simple and easy-to-apply equilibrium profile formulation is proposed. This model is based on the assumption that surf zone processes dominate the profile morphology wherever wave breaking occurs during the tidal cycle. The obtained equilibrium profile is valid from the high tide level to the breaker point at low tide level. The tidal influence on the profile morphology is the lengthening of the surf profile. The higher the tidal range, the longer the surf profile. The model was tested against field and laboratory data, showing reasonable predictions of measured beach profiles.


Soluble growth factors are potent regulators of normal and pathological processes. Mechanical factors are emerging as similarly important, but there has been no obvious mechanism linking the different factors. A recent report now demonstrates that cell-generated mechanical tension results in release of active transforming growth factor–β from stiff extracellular matrix, providing a mechanism for differentiation and maintenance of myofibroblasts in processes like fibrosis. More broadly, the work suggests that matrix stiffness could regulate the equilibrium between storage and release of a host of matrix-bound growth factors.


For the last 40 years the Supreme Court has been engaged in a measured attack on the sovereignty of Indian tribes when it comes to tribal court jurisdiction over people who are not members of the tribe asserting that jurisdiction. The Congress has already enacted legislation partially restoring some tribal courts' criminal jurisdiction over non-members. This Essay proposes to legislatively reconfirm the civil jurisdiction of tribal courts over such non-members. After examining the Supreme Court's jurisprudence in this area and summarizing the Court's main concerns with such tribal jurisdiction, this Essay explores various legislative options before settling on a preferred course of action. The proposal set forth in the last part of this Essay would reconfirm tribal court civil jurisdiction over non-members provided the tribal courts has established personal jurisdiction over the parties. However, tribal courts' determinations on this subject would be appealable to federal courts. Furthermore, the Essay proposes to allow non-members being sued in tribal courts the option of removing their cases to federal courts under certain conditions.


Background: Although many studies show an inverse association between operator procedural volume and short-term adverse outcomes after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), the association between procedural volume and longer-term outcomes is unknown. Methods: Using the National Cardiovascular Data Registry CathPCI registry data linked with Medicare claims data, we examined the association between operator PCI volume and long-term outcomes among patients ≥65 years of age. Operators were stratified by average annual PCI volume (counting PCIs performed in patients of all ages): low- (<50 PCIs), intermediate- (50–100), and high- (>100) volume operators. One-year unadjusted rates of death and major adverse coronary events (MACEs; defined as death, readmission for myocardial infarction, or unplanned coronary revascularization) were calculated with Kaplan-Meier methods. The proportional hazards assumption was not met, and risk-adjusted associations between operator volume and outcomes were calculated separately from the time of PCI to hospital discharge and from hospital discharge to 1-year follow-up. Results: Between July 1, 2009, and December 31, 2014, 723 644 PCI procedures were performed by 8936 operators: 2553 high-, 2878 intermediate-, and 3505 low-volume operators. Compared with high- and intermediate-volume operators, low-volume operators more often performed emergency PCI, and their patients had fewer cardiovascular comorbidities. Over 1-year follow-up, 15.9% of patients treated by low-volume operators had a MACE compared with 16.9% of patients treated by high-volume operators (P=0.004). After multivariable adjustment, intermediate- and high-volume operators had a significantly lower rate of in-hospital death than low-volume operators (odds ratio, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.86–0.96 for intermediate versus low; odds ratio, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.75–0.83 for high versus low). There were no significant differences in rates of MACEs, death, myocardial infarction, or unplanned revascularization between operator cohorts from hospital discharge to 1-year follow-up (adjusted hazard ratio for MACEs, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.96–1.01 for intermediate versus low; hazard ratio, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.99–1.04 for high versus low). Conclusions: Unadjusted 1-year outcomes after PCI were worse for older adults treated by operators with higher annual volume; however, patients treated by these operators had more cardiovascular comorbidities. After risk adjustment, higher operator volume was associated with lower in-hospital mortality and no difference in postdischarge MACEs.


This study sought to describe and analyse the relationship between existing working conditions and labour unions agitations in Cross River State Civil Service, Nigeria. The study specifically examinedthe extent to which workers"remuneration and safety incites labour unions agitations. The research adopted a descriptive survey design. The instrument used for data collection was a 30-item questionnaire titled working conditions and labour unions agitations (WCLUA). Nine hundred and twelve (912) copies of the instrument were distributed to staff of Cross River State Civil Service. Copies of all the questionnaire were completed, retrieved and found usable, thus, giving a response rate of 100 percent. The generated data were statistically tested using linear regression statistical method. The survey results indicated that poor workers"remuneration and safety incites labour unions agitations. It was therefore concluded that working conditions significantly affect labour unions agitations. The study recommended among others that government should recognize and support workers" defined safety rights; and improved remuneration of Cross River State Civil Servant as well as government should adequately compensate the workers for their efforts so as to reduce dissatisfaction among the staff.


The Nobel Prize committee awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank "for their efforts to create economic and social development from below." The microfinance revolution has come a long way since Yunus first provided financing to the poor in Bangladesh. The committee has recognized microfinance as "an important liberating force" and an "ever more important instrument in the struggle against poverty." Although several authors have provided comprehensive surveys of microfinance, our aim is somewhat more modest: This article is intended as a non-technical overview on the growth and development of microcredit and microfinance.


A total of 263 individual badgers Meles meles provided 718 blood samples which were screened for parasites. This revealed that 77.2% of individuals tested positive for Babesia missirolii at least once over 3 years, whereas 7.7% did so for Trypanosoma pestanai . However, the prevalence was highest in younger age classes, except in 1990 when it was high in most categories. There was some evidence that following a positive test for Babesia badgers were more likely to be caught again in subsequent years when compared to individuals testing negative. For Trypanosoma , although prevalence decreased from a peak of 29.2% from June onwards in 1990, we found no significant corollaries of infection. These results are discussed in the light of inter-annual variation in weather and other factors.


Welcome to Centennial College's COMM170/171 College Communications 2 library guide. This guide will introduce you to the processes and resources needed to successfully complete your papers and assignments.


The aim of this prospective follow-up study of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) with onset in childhood and adolescence is to describe the long-term outcome of social adjustment. Methods: 48 of 58 former patients treated for OCD in the Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of the University of Wurzburg were assessed by standardised measures after a follow-up period of 5.8 years. Results: At follow-up, 45.8% of the participants fulfilled the criteria for OCD according to DSM-IV. The level of psychosocial functioning was closely connected to the severity of OCD, however impairment regarding social-communicative skills as well as partnership was found in the sample as a whole. Discussion: A great focus in therapy of OCD patients should be laid on the mediation of social skills. Time latency between onset of OCD and consultancy seems relevant not only in the course of symptom development but also for the level of psychosocial adjustment.


"Australian universities recognise cultural competency as an essential attribute for graduates. Within this context, The Australian Psychology Accreditation Committee (APAC) has enforced requirements for students within psychology programmes to have access to Indigenous content. Though Indigenous participation rates are low, the inclusion of Indigenous content or what is often labeled 'Indigenous psychology' acts at least as a symbolic gesture and important step forward in reconciling the massively disadvantaged position of Indigenous Australians. However there is little to date in the way of guides to help develop appropriate teaching methods to include such content more substantially in programmes. This paper reflects on embedding Indigenous issues and content within curriculum of qualitative research methods. While all content areas can or could include Indigenous content, the teaching of qualitative research methods has enormous capacity to bring Indigenous content to life for students. First, a general argument for the inclusion of Indigenous content within the qualitative research methods curriculum of psychology is suggested. Second, several case study examples of teaching praxis including Indigenous content are provided. Finally, evidence on the utility of such examples for students in learning about Indigenous peoples and key processes and skills for working with Indigenous communities from student feedback are discussed."


The economic sustainability of future mobile networks will largely depend on the strong specialization of its offered services. Network operators will need to provide added value to their tenants, by moving from the traditional one-size-fits-all strategy to a set of virtual end-to-end instances of a common physical infrastructure, named network slices, which are especially tailored to the requirements of each application. Implementing network slicing has significant consequences in terms of resource management: service customization entails assigning to each slice fully dedicated resources, which may also be dynamically reassigned and overbooked in order to increase the cost-efficiency of the system. In this paper, we adopt a data-driven approach to quantify the efficiency of resource sharing in future sliced networks. Building on metropolitan-scale real-world traffic measurements, we carry out an extensive parametric analysis that highlights how diverse performance guarantees, technological settings, and slice configurations impact the resource utilization at different levels of the infrastructure in presence of network slicing. Our results provide insights on the achievable efficiency of network slicing architectures, their dimensioning, and their interplay with resource management algorithms at different locations and reconfiguration timescales.


Interchange is a three-level course for learners of English as a foreign language. Written in American English, Interchange reflects the fact that English is a language of international communication. The multi-skills syllabus on which the course is based integrates structural, functional, lexical, phonological, situational and thematic syllabuses, while the methodology emphasises a communicative approach, focusing on both accuracy and fluency. Interchange is attractively designed to appeal to adult and young adult learners who want a course that provides them with extensive opportunities to express their own ideas and opinions, while developing the skills they need to communicate effectively in English. Key Features of the Course are: - Snapshots' contain interesting real-world information to stimulate thought and discussion related to the themes of the units - Conversations present structures and functions in a situational context and serve as language models for speaking tasks - Word Power' exercises present and practice key language used in each unit - Pair work, group work, and role-play activities provide freer and more personalised practice of the language - All four skills are developed through discrete exercises and within integrated activities - Special tasks called Interchange activities' provide a communicative extension to each unit, allowing learners to use the language they have acquired in creative ways - Review units after every three units review and recycle material - Tests accompanying the review units are in the teacher's book and are photocopiable - Interchange was field-tested widely in many countries before publication Level 1 takes learners from false-beginner to low-intermediate level, presenting and practising basic language items with opportunities for personalisation right from the start. Level 2 extends and develops language from Level 1, through a range of motivating material, taking learners up to the intermediate level. For intermediate learners and above, Level 3 further extends the grammatical, functional and lexical skills of learners, with challenging contemporary readings and recordings.


A comparative study conducted between Berangan and Mas banana cultivars at the same maturity index 6 (fully yellow-good eating stage) revealed that Berangan was more suitable for value added processing because of its lower soluble protein concentration, peroxidases and polyphenoloxidase activity. The two enzymes are responsible for developing browning in fruit tissues and also ultimately in the juice. Berangan has better sensory attributes in terms of taste, colour and over-all acceptability. Inulin and oligofructose are non-digestible oligosaccharides found in banana at 0.3-0.7%, respectively. These are considered too low to have any significant prebiotic effect for host health. Therefore clarified banana juice was prepared and fortified with inulin and oligofructose in order to increase its nutritional and functional properties. The fortification levels of inulin and oligofructose optimized at 2% and 10%, respectively yield banana juice with acceptable sensory and physical characteristics without effecting the original taste and flavour of banana. Storage study was conducted for 8 weeks at 4 0C, 25 0C and 35 0C to determine the storage stability of clarified banana juice fortified with inulin and oligofructose. The juice quality remained stable in terms of its physicochemical, microbiological and sensory characteristics for 8 weeks at different storage temperatures except for turbidity, whose continuous increase during storage in all the samples was found a critical quality problem especially for samples stored at 35 0C. However juice samples stored at 4 0C had less turbidity problem and were rated highest and most acceptable for different sensory parameters. The results of the in vivo study revealed that administration of fortified banana juice significantly increase the growth of health promoting bacteria i.e. Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus, short chain fatty acids especially butyrate in the gut of the treated rats compared to rats fed distill water and with plain clarified banana juice. There was also an increase in mucosal thickness in cecum and proximal colon of rats fed with fortified juice, hence reduces the chances of many large bowel diseases. Rats of this same group also observed significant reduction in total cholesterol and LDL (Low density lipoprotein) concentration in the serum lipid thus contributing to hypochlesterolemic effect for patients with high serum cholesterol level.


Conclusions The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is a force of slowly improving, but still limited capabilities. Doctrinal and financial deficiencies will delay the PLA's ability to conduct sustained force projection for at least a decade. PLA leaders have been forced to pursue selective modernization. Specific improvements in naval, air, and ground force capabilities will enable the PLA to maintain the credibility of Chinese claims in the South China Sea and influence the decisions of Taiwan's leaders. But the PLA cannot seize and hold territories in the South China Sea. If China were to unch a war of attrition against Taiwan, China could eventually prevail, at a very high cost. A blockade might enable China to gain a political settlement on its terms. However, either action could fail if Taiwan were to receive significant external assistance. Economic development imperatives will motivate civilian and military leaders to avoid conflict unless China's sovereignty is directly challenged. Substantive relations between the U.S. military and the PLA are essential. PLA leaders need to make critical professional, technical, and political decisions about the future. It is important that the United States engage the PLA while it is possible to affect outcomes. Military Modernization and Regional Uncertainties Among the many uncertainties of the Asian security environment, none is more compelling than that surrounding the modernization program of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. For some observers, the combination of economic growth and force improvement signals Beijing's intention to establish regional hegemony. Others acknowledge that the PLA can "spoil" United States' interests. But, citing the selective nature of PLA force improvements, Beijing's interest in regional stability, and the growing conventional capabilities of other regional powers, they tend to discount a PLA military threat. Chinese secrecy compounds the difficulty. China has greater military power today than it did a decade ago. If Beijing were willing to pay the price, the PLA could wreak great damage. However, in assessing China's future threat potential, it is essential to consider the economic, political, and strategic constraints on PLA modernization. Such considerations suggest that the PLA is years away from achieving the capability to project military force in a sustained manner. Strategic Intentions: National Objectives and National Strategy PLA officers enthusiastically support the defining objective of Beijing's national strategy, which is to see China assume the status of a great power. Nationalism and the weight of the past are important factors. A strong China will never again be subject to the humiliations of the past. China's leaders believe that the key to great power status is to build a world-class economy and military. This requires maintaining a stable external environment to support high levels of economic growth. Conflict is to be avoided. Obvious exceptions involve sovereignty issues such as Taiwan, Hong Kong, or the South China Sea. PLA leaders actively support China's present economic policies. Military leaders feel that, in addition to serving national strategic objectives, the policies provide the best means of acquiring the capabilities required in high-technology warfare. Reconstituting the PLA into a modern military force has been the goal of the military modernization program the PLA has pursued since the early 1980s. Lack of information about the military modernization program, in turn, is also the source of much of the uncertainty about China's future intentions. Uncertain Progress During the last decade, the military reduced its numbers by more than one million, introduced ranks, reformed education and training systems, implemented a reserve system, began to modernize its doctrine, and entered upon a modest program of weapons and equipment modernization. …


Zinc oxide is an important semiconductor material, which is useful in various applications such as photo-electric devices electronic devices, surface acoustic wave, devices field emitters sensors, ultraviolet lasers and solar cells. With a wurtzite hexagonal phase, ZnO have a direct band gap of 3.37 eV with the larger exciton binding energy (60 meV), possesses a wide range of technological applications including flat panel displays, UV lasers and chemical and biological sensors. Till now, many methods have been developed to synthesize zinc oxide nanocrystals including vapor phase growth, ultrasonic irradiation, hydrothermal, pulsed lased deposition, vapor–liquid–solid process, soft chemical method, electrophoretic deposition, sol–gel process. Depending on the adopted synthesis method, zinc oxide nanocrystals would show various morphologies under different formation mechanisms.In this work, we studied preparation of ultra fine and nano sized ZnO by four important methods. ZnO nanoparticle, nanorod, nanowire have been successfully synthesized by facile methods like ultrasonic irradiation, sol-gel method, decomposition of Zn substrate and hydrothermal methods.
In our work, three anionic surfactants Cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), Tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) and Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have been used as capping agent in the hydrothermal process. The results demonstrated that structure of the surfactant and its carbonyl chain group is important to crystal growth of the products. SEM and TEM micrograph revealed that nano fiber and ultrafine spherical ZnO prepared in the presence of CTAB and TBAB, but in the presence of SDS, sheet form of ZnO was prepared.
The effect of ultrasonic irradiation was studied on preparation of ZnO. Nanoparticle of ZnO was synthesized after precipitation of zinc nitrate by urea at 90°C with irradiation of waves into the reaction flask for 2h. After heat treat at 350°C, sample was characterized with FT-IR, XRD, SEM, TEM and UV-vis. The results shows the nanoparticles of ZnO are in size range of 50-120nm.
The effect of solvent was studied in this work, too. Ethanol, ethylene glycol and isopropanol were used as solvent in the reaction. In the other hand, characterization of products was shown that morphology and particle size of products was very different and depended to the dielectric constant of the solvents.


It is a scientific fact that people's gestures give away their true intentions. This authoritative guide, written with great humour and insight, reveals all the secrets of body language to give you more confidence and control in any situation. Learn how to: choose the right partner get others to cooperate make yourself likeable and approachable tell if someone is lying read between the lines of what is being said how to use body language to get what you want


In cognitive ergonomics, laboratory experimentation using computer-based simulations (microworlds) has played a significant role in understanding human decision making and reasoning. In this paper, we describe the design and deployment of a social work microworld (BRIGIT), which simulates the electronic recording systems now widely implemented in UK children's services. BRIGIT provides a fabricated but realistic social work environment, enabling the fine structure of professional information processing to be studied in response to experimental manipulations, such as time pressure, etc. A preliminary experiment is described here, which shows BRIGIT to provide a convincing psychological experience and a useful research tool. As well as demonstrating its face and external validity, the results highlight BRIGIT's utility as a way of probing 'practice culture' and for examining different patterns of professional sense making. We conclude that the microworld paradigm provides a valuable and innovative approach for researching social work practice. A range of possible applications are discussed, not only in fundamental research, but as a practical tool for use in the workplace, such as for supporting staff selection. There is also obvious potential for 'design research' aimed directly at improving the usability and effectiveness of electronic systems, which is important given the widely reported problems of current ICT systems in social work.


This exchange of letters picks up where Professors Adrienne Davis and Robert Chang left off in an earlier exchange that examined who speaks, who is allowed to speak, and what is remembered. Here, Professors Davis and Chang explore the dynamics of race, gender, and sexual orientation in the law school classroom. They compare the experiences of African American women and Asian American men in trying to perform as law professors, considering how makeup and other gender tools simultaneously assist and hinder such performances. Their exchange examines the possibility of bias that complicates the use of student evaluations in assessing teaching effectiveness. It hypothesizes that the mechanism by which this bias manifests itself is a variant of stereotype threat, one that they call projected stereotype threat, where stereotypes of incompetence or accent are projected onto the bodies of teachers marked by difference. They examine how institutions respond or, as is more typically the case, fail to respond to these problems. They conclude with some suggestions for change, asserting that if institutions want to pay more than lip service to the goal of diversity, the success and employment conditions of women and minorities will improve only through the hiring of more women and minorities and by addressing directly the issue of bias to educate students about bias and its discriminatory effects on instructors whose bodies are marked by perceived differences and how such bias interferes with their learning.


The focus of this research has been on detecting changes in lakes vegetation, land surface temperatures, and snow cover, using data from remote sensing. The study area covers the main (central) part of the Lena River catchment in the Yakutia Region of Siberia (Russia) where continuous permafrost coverage's is up to 90%.
The remote sensing analyses are based on MODIS (NASA) and Landsat (USGS) satellite data. Time series of remote sensing products of MODIS land surface temperature were produced for the study region between 61°N and 65°N, and between 117.5°E and 131.5°E. The MODIS Land Surface Temperature level 3 product, MOD11C3 are configured on a 0.05° latitude/longitude MODIS Climate Model Grid (CMG) raster. The LST product is a monthly composited average and represents clear-sky LST values. The monthly land surface temperature were analyzed over the eleven year interval from May 2000 to April 2011. Linear trend calculations for the 11 year temperature measurement interval were performed separately for each two month interval, in each pixel, using the least squares method. Water bodies were extracted using the Landsat Short Wave Infrared SWIR band 5.
Within the study region's 315,000 sq. km, the total area covered by lakes increased by 17.5% between 2002 and 2009. The amount of lake increase differs between 42-11% depending on the region. The overall trend in land surface temperature is around 0.15°C/year, but with seasonal warming trends in April-May of up to 0.45°C/year in some areas and cooling of -0.2 to -0.3°C/year in July-August in other areas. These regional differences and potential causes of the land surface temperature changes will be discussed with respect to land cover changes.


PURPOSE
Despite efforts to intensify chemotherapy, survival for patients with metastatic osteosarcoma remains poor. Overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) in osteosarcoma has been shown to predict poor therapeutic response and decreased survival. This study tests the safety and feasibility of delivering biologically targeted therapy by combining trastuzumab with standard chemotherapy in patients with metastatic osteosarcoma and HER2 overexpression.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Among 96 evaluable patients with newly diagnosed metastatic osteosarcoma, 41 had tumors that were HER2-positive by immunohistochemistry. All patients received chemotherapy with cisplatin, doxorubicin, methotrexate, ifosfamide, and etoposide. Dexrazoxane was administered with doxorubicin to minimize the risk of cardiotoxicity from treatment with trastuzumab and anthracycline. Only patients with HER2 overexpression received concurrent therapy with trastuzumab given for 34 consecutive weeks.

RESULTS
The 30-month event-free and overall survival rates for patients with HER2 overexpression treated with chemotherapy and trastuzumab were 32% and 59%, respectively. For patients without HER2 overexpression, treated with chemotherapy alone, the 30-month event-free and overall survival rates were 32% and 50%, respectively. There was no clinically significant short-term cardiotoxicity in patients treated with trastuzumab and doxorubicin.

CONCLUSION
Despite intensive chemotherapy plus trastuzumab for patients with HER2-positive disease, the outcome for all patients was poor, with no significant difference between the HER2-positive and HER2-negative groups. Although our findings suggest that trastuzumab can be safely delivered in combination with anthracycline-based chemotherapy and dexrazoxane, its therapeutic benefit remains uncertain. Definitive assessment of trastuzumab's potential role in treating osteosarcoma would require a randomized study of patients with HER2-positive disease.


Current techniques for road-traffic monitoring rely on sensors which have limited capabilities, are inflexible and often, both costly and disruptive to install. The use of video cameras (many of which are already installed to survey road net works), coupled with computer vision techniques offers an attractive alternative to current sensors. Vision based sensors have the potential to measure a far greater variety of traffic parameters compared to conventional sensors. This thesis presents two vision based traffic-monitoring systems. The first is a number-plate recognition system. This is capable of monitoring the output from a video camera and detecting when a vehicle passes by. At this moment an image is captured and the vehicle''s number-plate is located and deciphered. The second system is a generic road-traffic monitoring sensor which utilises model based techniques to track vehicles as they manoeuvre through complex road scenes. The position of the vehicle in the image is transformed to the vehicle''s position in the real world enabling, among other things, vehicle speed and path to be easily measured. The development of each system is described in detail and results from testing the systems on images from real traffic scenes are presented.


Precise control of the oligomeric state of proteins is of central importance for biological function and for the properties of biopharmaceutical drugs. Here, the self-assembly of 2,2'-bipyridine conjugated monomeric insulin analogues, induced through coordination to divalent metal ions, was studied. This protein drug system was designed to form non-native homo-oligomers through selective coordination of two divalent metal ions, Fe(II) and Zn(II), respectively. The insulin type chosen for this study is a variant designed for a reduced tendency toward native dimer formation at physiological concentrations. A small-angle X-ray scattering analysis of the bipyridine-modified insulin system confirmed an organization into a novel well-ordered structure based on insulin trimers, as induced by the addition of Fe(II). In contrast, unmodified monomeric insulin formed larger and more randomly structured assemblies upon addition of Fe(II). The addition of Zn(II), on the other hand, led to the formation of small quantities of insulin hexamers for both the bipyridine-modified and the unmodified monomeric insulin. Interestingly, the location of the bipyridine-modification significantly affects the tendency to hexamer formation as compared to the unmodified insulin. Our study shows how combining a structural study and chemical design can be used to obtain molecular understanding and control of the self-assembly of a protein drug. This knowledge may eventually be employed to develop an optimized in vivo drug release profile.


Troponin T measurement is a relatively new diagnostic test to evaluate myocardial damage. The test was performed on sera from 52 patients, 42 with proven myocardial infarction (WHO criteria) and 10 control patients without myocardial infarction. The serum troponin T levels did not correlate with the serum creatine kinase levels. A raised serum troponin T level had a sensitivity of 95% and a specificity of 100% in predicting myocardial damage in patients with myocardial infarction. It was also raised for a longer period than serum creatine kinase levels, making it a sensitive and specific diagnostic test in the patient who presents 72 hours after a myocardial infarction.


Humanism psychology is a psychological trend of thoughts which rose in America in 1950s and 1960s, with Maslow and Rogers as its main representatives. In 1960s, they applied the humanism psychological theory to the education field, and then formed the new humanism teaching theory, and it had a profound effect on the education reform movement, also it gave a new inspiration to the educators. They had a new view on the type of study, motivation of study, principle of study and the method to promote study. It is a challenge to the traditional education. After we have the inspiration to apply the humanism teaching theory to teaching approach, how to use it becomes a new question for study. This text will elaborate the application of humanism teaching theory in teaching approach from the aspects of teaching aim, teaching process, and teaching principle to improve the relationship between the teacher and the student and the student-centered teaching method, and will comment on the advantages and disadvantages of the theory. Key words: Humanism theory; Humanism teaching theory; Teaching method; Inspiration application


Objective: The purpose of this study is to assess the frequency of vitamin B 12 deficiency in patients with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection to determine whether low serum vitamin B12 levels correlate with serological evidence of H. pylori infection.
Background: An association between H. pylori infection and vitamin B12 deficiency has been recently reported.
Subjects: From 200 people blood was collected. For each subject serum vitamin B12, folic acid, complete blood count and H. pylori IgG antibodies were measured. 150 subjects have H. pylori infection and 50 subjects healthy control group. The following cases were excluded, history of H. pylori eradication or antacid take, liver disease, chronic alcoholism inflammatory bowel disease, previous gastrointestinal surgery and a vegetarian diet or multivitamin supplementation.
Results: Vitamin B12 deficiency was found in 87(58%) patients with seropositive H. pylori IgG antibodies (HP+) versus 9 (18%) patients with seronegative H. pylori IgG antibodies (HP).The mean±SD of serum vitamin B12 level in overall subjects (males and females) was 345.717± 215.214 and 271.254±35.234 (p < 0.01) respectively. The mean±SD of serum vitamin B12 level in H. pylori infected subjects was 295,574±71,482 versus 411,973±368,241in healthy group (p < 0.02). The mean±SD of serum vitamin B 12 level in overall H. pylori infected subjects with vitamin B12 deficiency (male and female) was 142±24.423 and 144.322±18.736 (p < 0.02) where it was 565.197±149.488 and 615.33±139.981 with normal serum vitamin B12 level in the same group.
Hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were significantly lower in H. pylori positive subjects, hemoglobin (g/dL) was 13.5±0.15 mean±SD versus 14.2±0.25, p < 0.05 and hematocrit (%) 40.1±0.35 versus 42 ±0.7 p < 0.05, Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) (μm3) was 95±2% versus 85±2%.
Folic acid levels (normal range 4.6-12.7 ng/ml) were significantly lower in H. pylori seropositive subjects (5.65±0.2 versus 9.1±0.5 p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Collectible results suggest a causal relationship between H. pylori infection and vitamin B12 deficiency in Jordanians.


An investigation of the air velocity profile above progressive, mechanically-generated waves was made m the wind and wave facility at Stanford University. The influence of propagating waves on the mean velocity profile was sought especially. Both the instantaneous and mean velocity profiles were obtained with the use of high response total head and static pressure probes, m conjunction with a wave height gage. Experimental evidence is presented which suggests that the air velocity field responds to the wave motion. The dependence of the mean velocity profile on wave frequency was investigated experimentally over mechanically generated waves having a constant amplitude. Also, the dependence of the mean velocity profile on wave amplitude was investigated over mechanically generated waves with a specified frequency. The theoretical results suggest that the wave influence is threefold. The first is due to the fact that a velocity-measuring instrument continuously shifts streamlines when measuring the air velocity above a perturbed water surface. The second is due to the wave-induced perturbation in the air velocity. The third is due to the interaction between the two effects just described. The results contribute towards explaining the lack of consistency in the existing data.


Al-Qassim Region has a diverse range of heritage buildings and sites, as mentioned in many references. King Abdul Aziz Palace in Qebah town is one of the significant historical buildings which were built by order of King Abdul Aziz in 1351 AH in Al-Qassim Region — sustainingthe historic buildings as an approach to economic diversity adopted by Saudi Vision 2030, to reduce Saudi Arabia's dependence on oil. This paper aims to discuss the sustainability of historical buildings in Al Qassim Region with the help of the implementation of conservation policies in order to enhance the diversity of the economy.
Keywords: sustainable; historic buildings; heritage and conservation; economic diversity
eISSN 2514-751X © 2019. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/aje-bs.v4i13.347


One embodiment of the present subject matter includes a system that includes a battery, an electric vehicle, the battery coupled to the electric vehicle to propel the electric vehicle, and a charging circuit to charge the battery. The embodiment includes a charging cost circuit to estimate a charging cost rate and to turn on the charging circuit. The embodiment also includes a timer circuit to provide a time signal to the charging cost circuit. The embodiment is configured such that the charging cost circuit is to turn on the charging circuit during a first time period in which the charging cost rate is below a first threshold until the battery reaches a first energy stored level, and to turn on the charging circuit during a second time period in which the charging cost rate is above the first threshold.


The phenomenon of heat stress refers to heat received in excess of that which the body can tolerate without physiological impairment. It is one of the major consequences of global warming. By 2030, the equivalent of more than 2 per cent of total working hours worldwide is projected to be lost every year, either because it is too hot to work or because workers have to work at a slower pace. This report shows the impact of heat stress on productivity and decent work for virtually all countries in the world. It presents innovative solutions based on social dialogue to promote occupational safety and health for the most vulnerable groups of workers.


In this study, we estimate (i) the SNP heritability of educational attainment at three time points throughout the compulsory educational lifecourse; (ii) the SNP heritability of value-added measures of educational progress built from test data; and (iii) the extent to which value-added measures built from teacher rated ability may be biased due to measurement error. We utilise a genome wide approach using generalized restricted maximum likelihood (GCTA-GREML) to determine the total phenotypic variance in educational attainment and value-added measures that is attributable to common genetic variation across the genome within a sample of unrelated individuals from a UK birth cohort, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Our findings suggest that the heritability of educational attainment measured using point score test data increases with age from 47% at age 11 to 61% at age 16. We also find that genetic variation does not contribute towards value-added measures created only from educational attainment point score data, but it does contribute a small amount to measures that additionally control for background characteristics (up to 20.09% [95%CI: 6.06 to 35.71] from age 11 to 14). Finally, our results show that value-added measures built from teacher rated ability have higher heritability than those built from exam scores. Our findings suggest that the heritability of educational attainment increases through childhood and adolescence. Value-added measures based upon fine grain point scores may be less prone to between-individual genomic differences than measures that control for students' backgrounds, or those built from more subjective measures such as teacher rated ability.


A series of food-related crises--most notably mad cow disease in Britain, farmer protests in France against American hormone-treated beef, and the European Union's banning of genetically modified food--has turned the regulation of food safety in Europe into a crucible for issues of institutional trust, legitimacy, and effectiveness. What's the Beef? examines European food safety regulation at the national, European, and international levels as a case of "contested governance"--a syndrome of policymaking and political dispute in which not only policy outcomes but aso the fundamental legitimacy of existing institutional arrangements are challenged.The discussions of European food safety regulation in What's the Beef? open into consideration of broader issues, including the growing importance of multilevel regulation (and the possibility of disagreements among different levels of authority), the future of European integration, discontent over trade globalization, the politicization of risk assessment and regulatory science, the regulation of biotechnology, the shifting balance between public and private regulation, agricultural protectionism, and the "transatlantic divide." After addressing the historical, social, and economic context of European food safety regulation, the book examines national efforts at food safety reform in France, Britain, and Germany and such regional efforts as the creation of the European Food Authority. The book also looks at the international dimensions of European food safety regulation, discussing the conflicts between EU safety rules and World Trade Organization rulings that occur because EU rules are more risk averse ("precautionary") than those of its trading partners, including the United States.


Ceramic electrolytes that conduct either oxygen ions or protons at intermediate temperatures are important materials for use in e.g. solid oxide fuel cells, the prime candidate to produce electricity by electrochemical reactions. There are still challenges with respect to the cell performance which have to be solved before solid oxide fuel cells become a commercial success. One of the main topics in this field concerns the enhancement of ionic conductivity at suitable operation temperatures. During the last decade nanocrystalline materials have received considerable attention. Nanocrystalline ionic conductors may have higher ionic conductivity compared to traditional ceramics with grain sizes in the micrometer range.The aim of this work has been to develop electrolyte ceramic materials with a designed microstructure. CeO2- and LaNbO4-based materials have been prepared through a complete route, from preparation of powders to densification of ceramics including characterization of selected properties. CeO2-based materials are oxygen ion conductors and show higher ionic conductivity compared to the more common yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ), thus a lower operation temperature is possible. LaNbO4-based materials have recently been suggested as a promising proton conductor stable in CO2/H2O atmosphere.In Paper I, powder synthesis of nanocrystalline CeO2-based powders (CeO2, Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 and Ce0.8Sm0.2O1.9) using combustion synthesis with glycine as fuel and nitrate as oxidizer is reported. The influence of glycine to nitrate (G/N) ratio on the pure CeO2-based powders was investigated. The influence of calcination temperature on crystallite size, surface area and carbonate species remaining from combustion reaction was studied, with special attention to powders prepared using a near-stoichiometric G/N-ratio. A G/N-ratio of 0.55 and calcination at 550°C in oxygen flow resulted in high quality powders with a crystallite size of ~10 nm with low degree of agglomeration due to the vigorous combustion. The G/N-ratio influenced the densification behavior of the powders. A G/N-ratio of 0.55 resulted in excellent sintering properties with an onset of sintering at ~600°C and fully dense materials were obtained at ~1300°C.In Paper II, three different sintering techniques have been used to prepare dense (>95%) CeO2-based materials from the high-quality powders described in Paper I: Spark plasma sintering, hot pressing and conventional sintering. The three different sintering techniques resulted in different grain sizes, ranging from 160 nm by spark plasma sintering, to 50 μm by conventional sintering mainly due to difference in sintering temperature and the applied pressure. The materials were reduced after hot pressing and a minor reduction was observed after spark plasma sintering. The materials were easily reoxidized at temperatures above 200°C. The electrical conductivity, measured by van der Pauw method, revealed no clear dependence on grain size, but instead a dependence on the sintering method used. The substituted materials prepared by hot pressing had a lower electrical conductivity and higher activation energy compared to the materials prepared by both conventional and spark plasma sintering. Thus, it is proposed that the reduction of Ce observed during hot pressing might be detrimental for the ionic conductivity even after reoxidation. Hardness and fracture toughness, measured by Vickers indentation, were more influenced by chemical composition than the grain size of the materials. Higher fracture toughness and lower hardness were observed for pure CeO2 compared to the substituted materials.A novel route to prepare large quantity of sub-micron LaNbO4-based powders by spray pyrolysis is presented in Paper III. An aqueous solution containing stable La-EDTA complex and Nb-malic acid complex was spray pyrolysed using an in-house spray pyrolysis unit. The pure, nonagglomerated powders had a particle size of ~0.1 μm, narrow particle size distribution and high purity after calcination at 800°C. The sintering behavior, microstructure, phase content and electrical conductivity of La1-xAxNbO4 (x = 0, 0.005 and 0.02 and A = Ca, Sr and Ba) prepared by spray pyrolysis is presented in Paper IV. The powders had excellent sintering properties and achieved high density after conventional sintering at 1200°C or as low as 1050°C by hot pressing at 25 MPa. A grain size down to 0.4 μm was achieved by hot pressing. The acceptor doped materials had a more homogenous microstructure due to secondary phases inhibiting grain growth compared to pure LaNbO4. Liquid secondary phase was formed at elevated temperatures in acceptor doped LaNbO4, resulting in tremendous grain growth (~70 μm) and microcracking in La0.98Ba0.02NbO4. The solubility of Sr on La-site in LaNbO4 was determined to 1% at 1500°C, and similar low solubility of CaO and BaO in LaNbO4 was inferred. Protons were found to be the main charge carrier up to 1000°C in wet hydrogen. Higher grain boundary resistivity was observed compared to previous work, possibly due to lower sintering temperature resulting in secondary phases due to lower solubility of AO.The thermal and mechanical properties of LaNbO4-based materials are presented in Paper V. The materials possessed a ferroelastic to paraelastic phase transition at ~500°C and the linear thermal expansion was significant lower for the paraelastic compared to the ferroelastic phase. The pure LaNbO4 had a significantly lower hardness compared to acceptor doped (Ca, Sr and Ba) LaNbO4 due to large grain size and microcracking. The fracture toughness of La0.98Sr0.02NbO4, measured by SEVNB method, was 1.7±0.2 MPa·m1/2. The ferroelastic properties were confirmed by non-linear stress-strain relationship and remnant strain. The remnant strain decreases with increasing temperature and increasing acceptor doping. The latter was possibly due to secondary phases pinning the ferroelastic domain boundaries.