Carbonate platforms are increasingly being studied using sequence stratigraphic concepts and models borrowed from the study of siliciclastic shelves in passive margin settings. The direct transposition of the stratigraphic model for a siliciclastic shelf to its carbonate counterpart, the carbonate shelf, assumes that the two systems respond in a very similar way to changes of relative sea-level, the interpreted major control upon depositional stacking patterns. Current models depicting the sequence stratigraphic evolution of carbonate shelves are and have been frequently applied without regard for the differences between the siliciclastic and carbonate shelf depositional systems. It is the purpose of this study to test the current sequence stratigraphic model and its assumptions for a carbonate shelf. Carbonate shelves do differ quite fundamentally from their siliciclastic equivalents. The carbonate shelf has the capacity to respond in quite different ways to changes in relative sea-level, compared to siliciclastic systems, as a result of the strong physio-chemical control upon carbonate sedimentation and the potential high rates of carbonate production at the shelf margin in comparison to rates of relative sea-level rise. Carbonate sedimentation rates are also differential across a shelf and highly sensitive to slight environmental' changes such as nutrient upwelling and temperature increases or decreases. This can lead to abrupt changes of sedimentation rate not necessarily related to changes of relative sea-level. Because of these differences carbonate shelves can develop stratal patterns similar to siliciclastic settings, but in the majority of cases they are very different. In direct contrast to siliciclastic systems the lowstand systems tract is normally impoverished on the flanks of carbonate shelves. Two different end-members of lowstand sedimentation are distinguished for carbonate shelves and these reflect the inherited morphology of the slope: low angle, mud-dominated slopes are characterized by basin-floor slides and debrites during times of falling relative sea-level and by a relatively large volume autochthonous slope wedge. In direct contrast, high angle slopes are characterized by basin-floor megabreccias and volumetrically very small or even absent autochthonous slope wedges. The carbonate transgressive systems tract can also develop a wide variety of stratal patterns, a reflection of the often complex interplay of variable sedimentation rates and rates of relative sea-level rise. Two different types of geometric stacking pattern are distinguished: type 1 geometries, developed when sedimentation rates are less than rates of relative sea-level rise, and type 2 geometries formed when sedimentation rates are equal to or greater than rates of relative sea-level rise. The highstand systems tract is the time of maximum carbonate production potential and is normally associated with rapid basinwards progradation. For the highstand systems tract two different types of foreslope progradation are distinguished, slope aprons and toe-of-slope aprons. These differences between carbonate and siliciclastic depositional models suggest that simple application of the previously published models can lead to incorrect interpretation of systems tracts, sequences and therefore relative sea-level curves. Sequence stratigraphic models and concepts are tested by application to the spectacular seismic scale exposures of the mid-Cretaceous Urgonian platform, SE France. The platform is divided into a lower regressive' part, the Glandasse Formation and an upper 'transgressive' part the Urgonian Limestone Formation. These are dominated by progradational outer-shelf grainstone facies and aggradational shelf-lagoonal facies respectively. Criteria are developed to identify key surfaces and stratal packages upon the Urgonian platform. On the shelf sequence boundaries are readily defined and are marked by sub-aerial exposure surfaces associated with meteoric diagenesis. Lowstand sedimentation is generally absent, but can be represented by lacustrine facies. Strong erosional truncation is only developed on the shelf if siliciclastics are introduced during lowstand of sea-level. Thus, the transgressive and highstand systems tracts dominate shelf sedimentation but can only be distinguished if a clear flooding surface is developed, and this is not always the case. On the slope large-scale erosional surfaces developed by sedimentary bypass and/or slope collapse can develop at any stage of a sequence and make identification of the sequence boundary more difficult Similarly, on the basin-floor allochthonous debris derived from slope collapse and/or bypassing is not restricted to times of falling relative sea-level. From the criteria developed for identification of key stral surfaces and packages a sequence stratigraphy for the Urgonian platform is built This is placed within the time scale of Haq et al. (1987), and relative sea-level curves for the platform are constructed. These are compared to the eustatic sea-level charts from which they differ significantly. Minimum aggradation rates are also compared to other well known ancient carbonate platforms, from which the Urgonian is shown to have very high sedimentation rates.


SCADA systems are the control backbone of the utility industry where control is critical to the treatment, generation, and distribution of electrical, water, sewage, oil, and gas utilities. These SCADA systems utilize well-known behavior with limited variability. Trust of these control systems is vital to proper operation since improper operation could lead to catastrophic environmental disasters. Trust anchors can be used to provide this desired trust for the SCADA systems and these trust anchors can provide integrity for the required signals and assist in ensuring high availability of the SCADA system. However the implementation of a large number of trust anchors may not be possible due to the size of the deployed system and cost of a complete system replacement. This paper defines how a trust anchor implementation could be optimized and can utilize a security fusion methodology to provide adequate security protection and trust in the system for a reasonable investment.


Eukaryotic pre-mRNA is processed within the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) resulting in cleavage and polyadenylation. The efficiency of the cleavage reaction is dependent on the binding activity of the 64-kDa subunit of CstF, CstF-64, to the pre-mRNA and is increased with elevated levels of CstF-64. There is evidence that alternative polyadenylation occurs in the presence of increased CstF-64. Our results showed that CstF-64 levels increased with LPS stimulation of RAW 264.7 macrophages while the expression of other pre-mRNA processing factors remained unchanged. Because of the evidence that several macrophage genes exhibit alternative polyadenylation and post-transcriptional regulation under LPS stimulation, we used a reporter mini-gene to identify alternative polyadenylation in LPS-stimulated RAW macrophages. Upon LPS stimulation we measured a 2.5-fold increase in proximal poly(A) site selection that correlated with elevated levels of CstF-64. Forced expression of CstF-64 demonstrated similar alternative polyadenylation. Microarray analysis demonstrated 515 genes changed expression with LPS stimulation, 15 of which also changed with CstF-64 over-expression. A closer analysis of 5 of these 15 genes demonstrated alternative polyadenylation within their 3'-UTR. Closer analysis of the 3'-UTRs showed putative AU-rich regulatory elements. There is also evidence that pre-mRNA processing is coupled with transcription. Previous work has shown that the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of RNAP-II is necessary for 3'-end processing, that CstF binds to RNAP-II CTD and that this binding is CTD phosphorylation dependent. Because our lab has also shown that increases in CstF-64 binding activity upon B-cell differentiation causes alternative polyadenylation on the Ig heavy chain gene and occurs in the absence of CstF-64 increases, we believe that the local concentration of CstF-64 to the nascent pre-mRNA is increased in plasma cells through the phosphorylation-dependent recruitment of CstF-64 to RNAP-II CTD. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), we measured an increase in Serine-2 and Serine-5 phosphorylation of the RNAP-II CTD at the promoter and variable regions of the Ig heavy chain gene in plasma cells compared to memory B cells. We believe that this increase in RNAP-II CTD phosphorylation plays a role in either increased transcription of the Ig heavy chain gene or recruitment of pre-mRNA processing factors to the transcriptional machinery.


The aim of this work is the modelling of the effects of a pollutant on an organism including time as a variable. The model developed will permit the evaluation of the toxicity globally, at short or long term, for low or high concentrations. This approach would permit the determination of values for very small effects or values for no-effect which could be utilised in the extrapolation of the laboratory results to the environment. To develop this approach, two organisms were chosen, a microcrustacea (Daphnia magna) and a green algae (Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata). The pollutant tested is a pesticide, dinoseb, which acts as a herbicide and as an insecticide. The measured effects are survival and reproduction for daphnids as well as growth, pH, chlorophyll a, photosynthesis and respiration for algae. To introduce time as a variable for the interpretation of the results, these parameters are measured during the life-cycle of daphnids and during the entire culture of algae. In the first part of this work, daphnids and algae cultures are studied to obtain a better knowledge of the biology of the organisms in laboratory conditions and to evaluate the natural variability of the measured parameters. For daphnids, this work permits us to establish a typical behaviour for survival and reproduction. This behaviour allows the evaluation of the quality of the cultures (and consequently of the test organisms) and the quality of a test, comparing the controls to the cultures. For algae, the study of the cultures permits us to establish the growth curve and the variability of the parameters measured during the test. In the second part, the effects of the pollutant on the different parameters are measured regularly to introduce time as a variable. The results show that dinoseb has an abrupt effect on daphnids and on algae, which could be attributed to the fact that the number of processes affected increases with the concentration. Indeed, dinoseb is a pesticide with a non specific mode of action. The range of concentrations producing effects on daphnids and algae are similar. For daphnids, the reproduction is slightly more sensitive than survival, and for algae, the growth is the most sensitive parameter. These parameters are therefore retained for the modelling. The variable time is directly taken into account in the survival time of daphnids. However, for the reproduction of daphnids and the growth of algae, the time must be introduced as a supplementary axis (longitudinal data). This results in a three dimensional graph with the effects measured as functions of time and concentration. In the third part, a model is adjusted to the survival data of daphnids. The model chosen is a simple logistic model with three interpretable parameters. It enables a global evaluation of dinoseb toxicity on survival. The model points out the effects on life-cycle time and on population for high and low concentrations. Its application permits us to define effects values (ECx, LCx), and especially a statistical no effect value which is more sensible then the NOEC (No Observed Effect Concentration). We propose to call this value SNEC (Statistical No Effect Concentration).The SNEC, as well as the other effect values, could be used for the evaluation of the impact of pollutants on the environment. This constitutes an interesting tool for ecotoxicology.


Nuts have high energy and fat contents, but nut intake does not promote weight gain or obesity, which may be partially explained by their proposed high satiety value. The primary aim of this study was to assess the effects of consuming almonds versus a baked food on postprandial appetite and neural responses to visual food stimuli. Twenty-two adults (19 women and 3 men) with a BMI between 25 and 40 kg/m2 completed the current study during a 12-week behavioral weight loss intervention. Participants consumed either 28 g of whole, lightly salted roasted almonds or a serving of a baked food with equivalent energy and macronutrient contents in random order on two testing days prior to and at the end of the intervention. Pre- and postprandial appetite ratings and functional magnetic resonance imaging scans were completed on all four testing days. Postprandial hunger, desire to eat, fullness, and neural responses to visual food stimuli were not different following consumption of almonds and the baked food, nor were they influenced by weight loss. These results support energy and macronutrient contents as principal determinants of postprandial appetite and do not support a unique satiety effect of almonds independent of these variables.


Abstract Spatial and temporal variations in biological diversity are critical in understanding the role of biogeographical regulation (if any) on mass extinctions. An analysis based on a latest database of the stratigraphic ranges of 89 Permian brachiopod families, 422 genera, and 2059 species within the Boreal, Paleoequatorial, and Gondwanan Realms in the Asian–western Pacific region suggests two discrete mass extinctions, each possibly with different causes. Using species/family rarefaction analysis, we constructed diversity curves for late Artinskian–Kungurian, Roadian–Wordian, Capitanian, and Wuchiapingian intervals for filtering out uneven sampling intensities. The end-Changhsingian (latest Permian) extinction eliminated 87–90% of genera and 94–96% of species of Brachiopoda. The timing of the end-Changhsingian extinction of brachiopods in the carbonate settings of South China and southern Tibet indicates that brachiopods suffered a rapid extinction within a short interval just below the Permian/Triassic boundary. In comparison, the end-Guadalupian/late Guadalupian extinction is less profound and varies temporally in different realms. Brachiopods in the western Pacific sector of the Boreal Realm nearly disappeared by the end-Guadalupian but experienced a relatively long-term press extinction spanning the entire Guadalupian in the Gondwanan Realm. The end-Guadalupian brachiopod diversity fall is not well reflected at the timescale used here in the Paleoequatorial Realm because the life-depleted early Wuchiapingian was overlapped by a rapid radiation phase in the late Wuchiapingian. The Guadalupian fall appears to be related to the dramatic reduction of habitat area for the brachiopods, which itself is associated with the withdrawal of seawater from continental Pangea and the closure of the Sino-Mongolian seaway by the end-Guadalupian.


This thesis examines and assesses the transformation and implementation of the Dubai Government's operation, governance and delivery of public services through its use of ICT. The research design includes a critical examination of the evolution of ICT and its role in changing public services and government operations worldwide as an early move towards E-Government. Three recognised theories are used to examine the E-Government transformation and its effects of on governments, namely: the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOI) and the Lens of Max Weber's Theory of Bureaucracy.

Generally, the study seeks to determine what were the important factors for Dubai to achieve its strategic plan. Six questions were addressed by the research, stating the scope of work undertaken. First, to measure the status of eGovernment initiatives in terms of usefulness and ease of use. Second, to assess the extent of eGovernment application in terms of Government-to-Customer, Government-to-Business, Government-to-Government, and Government-to-Employees. Third, to determine the level of acceptance of eGovernment initiatives. Fourth, to explore the factors/challenges in a successful eTransformation of Dubai. Fifth, to assess the impacts/opportunities of eGovernment initiatives in the development of Dubai. Sixth, to formulate the model to achieve a successful implementation of eGovernment.

A purposive sampling method was used for selecting citizens/customers, business employees and government employees, totalling 1500 equally distributed respondents. The researcher has prepared, administered and empirically tested three questionnaires, and also prepared and administered structured interviews with some officials of eGovernment. Data obtained are presented and analysed. Also, the study examines the catalytic role of eGovernment in the development of society, commerce and government, and shows fundamental changes from traditional systems or from bureaucratic paradigms to eGovernment paradigms. Comparisons are made with eGovernment applications in other countries as per rankings made by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). The researcher has selected top ranked states to examine best practices in e-Government.

Most importantly, this research presents a unique and original contribution to knowledge of the subject treated in its programme for achieving successful eGovernment through the proposed rocket ship model Al Bakr eGovernment Model of implementation, adoption, conclusions and findings of the study.


This study was purposed to analyze the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors in patients with primary gastrointestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (PGI-NHL). The pathological data of 101 PGI-NHL patients admitted in our hospital in the past 15 years were analyzed retrospectively. The results showed that 101 patients with PGI-NHL accounted for 14.49% of NHL in the same period, there were 64 males, 37 females, the range of ages was from 18 to 87 years old, median age was 61 years old; in disease distribution, the stomach PGI-NHL accounted for 58.42%, intestine PGI-NHL accounted for 39.60%, multiple GI involvements (MGI) accounted for 1.98%; in pathological type, diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) accounted for 66.34%, mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma accounted for 17.82%, mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) accounted for 3.96%, enteropathy-associated T cell lymphoma (EATL) accounted for 7.92%, extra-nodal nasal type NK/T cell lymphoma accounted for 1.98%, follicular lymphoma (FL) accounted for 0.99%, small lymphocyte lymphoma (SLL) accounted for 0.99%. Eighty-nine out of 101 patients were followed up (49 cases live, 40 cases dead), data of the 12 patients were lost; the median survival time was 29 months (1 - 173). The three-year OS and five-year OS were 58.4% and 52.6% respectively. Univariate analysis revealed that the factors affecting OS included sex (P = 0.004), lesion site (P = 0.002), tumor size (P = 0.011), clinical Lugano staging for gastrointestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (P = 0.003), IPI score (P = 0.000), pathological cell phenotype (P = 0.001), and pathological type (P = 0.006), their differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that clinical Lugano staging for gastrointestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, IPI score, pathological type were independent prognostic risk factors affecting OS. It is concluded that clinical Lugano staging for gastrointestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, IPI score and pathological type are independent risk factors affecting OS.


Taking Haspelmath's definition of the infinitive as a grammaticalized purposive used as complement predicate as a starting point, the article shows that the Old Irish construction consisting of do 'to' plus verbal noun with preposed subject or object fulfills these criteria. It is demonstrated that the infinitival phrase developed out of a purposive adverbial phrase that underwent desemanticization and came to be used as complement. In addition, reanalysis of an argument of the matrix clause as overt subject or object of the infinitive led to the typical shape of the do-infinitive with preposed subject or object.


Robust and reliable water-resource mapping in ungauged basins requires estimation of the uncertainties in the hydrologic model, the regionalisation method, and the observational data. In this study we investigated the use of regionalised flow-duration curves (FDCs) for constraining model predictive uncertainty, while accounting for all these uncertainty sources. A water balance model was applied to 36 basins in Central America using regionally and globally available precipitation, climate and discharge data that were screened for inconsistencies. A rating-curve analysis for 35 Honduran discharge stations was used to estimate discharge uncertainty for the region, and the consistency of the model forcing and evaluation data was analysed using two different screening methods. FDCs with uncertainty bounds were calculated for each basin, accounting for both discharge uncertainty and, in many cases, uncertainty stemming from the use of short time series, potentially not representative for the modelling period. These uncertain FDCs were then used to regionalise a FDC for each basin, treating it as ungauged in a cross-evaluation, and this regionalised FDC was used to constrain the uncertainty in the model predictions for the basin. There was a clear relationship between the performance of the local model calibration and the degree of data set consistency - with many basins with inconsistent data lacking behavioural simulations (i.e. simulations within predefined limits around the observed FDC) and the basins with the highest data set consistency also having the highest simulation reliability. For the basins where the regionalisation of the FDCs worked best, the uncertainty bounds for the regionalised simulations were only slightly wider than those for a local model calibration. The predicted uncertainty was greater for basins where the result of the FDC regionalisation was more uncertain, but the regionalised simulations still had a high reliability compared to the locally calibrated simulations and often encompassed them. The regionalised FDCs were found to be useful on their own as a basic signature constraint; however, additional regionalised signatures could further constrain the uncertainty in the predictions and may increase the robustness to severe data inconsistencies, which are difficult to detect for ungauged basins.


. In this paper, the adaptation of the SibCIOM three-dimensional thermodynamic model is considered that allows modeling a three-dimensional velocity and temperature distribution, as well as a two-dimensional field of the ice cover for the Novosibirsk reservoir with seasonal changes in the water level. An analysis of the numerical results shows that the simulated processes, such as the main directions of the currents, seasonal changes in the basin water temperature and the dynamics of the average thickness of the ice cover, do not differ from that of the real processes characteristic of the Novosibirsk reservoir.


Abstract. An analysis of the attribution of past and future changes in stratospheric ozone and temperature to anthropogenic forcings is presented. The analysis is an extension of the study of Shepherd and Jonsson (2008) who analyzed chemistry-climate simulations from the Canadian Middle Atmosphere Model (CMAM) and attributed both past and future changes to changes in the external forcings, i.e. the abundances of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) and well-mixed greenhouse gases. The current study is based on a new CMAM dataset and includes two important changes. First, we account for the nonlinear radiative response to changes in CO2. It is shown that over centennial time scales the radiative response in the upper stratosphere to CO2 changes is significantly nonlinear and that failure to account for this effect leads to a significant error in the attribution. To our knowledge this nonlinearity has not been considered before in attribution analysis, including multiple linear regression studies. For the regression analysis presented here the nonlinearity was taken into account by using CO2 heating rate, rather than CO2 abundance, as the explanatory variable. This approach yields considerable corrections to the results of the previous study and can be recommended to other researchers. Second, an error in the way the CO2 forcing changes are implemented in the CMAM was corrected, which significantly affects the results for the recent past. As the radiation scheme, based on Fomichev et al. (1998), is used in several other models we provide some description of the problem and how it was fixed.


T HE GROUP OF SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS THAT includes JAMA and the Archives specialty journals is undergoing a major evolution. In April 2012, we launched The JAMA Network, a new editorial/publishing system that closely interconnects JAMA and the 9 Archives Journals. In May, the new JAMA Network website was launched, and soon, The JAMA Network smartphone/ tablet app will be available. We are now pleased to announce formally that effective January 1, 2013, all 9 of the Archives Journals will be officially renamed JAMA Dermatology, JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery, JAMA Internal Medicine, JAMA Neurology, JAMA Ophthalmology, JAMAOtolaryngology–Head&NeckSurgery, JAMA Pediatrics, JAMA Psychiatry, and JAMA Surgery. These changes continue the evolution of The JAMA Network, and the new journal names will coincide with the first major print redesign of The JAMA Network Journals in more than 20 years. While we all realize that changes in the names of our journals, which have been revered for decades, may raise some concerns among our loyal readers and authors, we believe that standardization of format and integration into The JAMA Network will justify these changes in the long run. The creation of The JAMA Network unites 10 journals linked by their commitment to the same high standards of publication, medical and scientific excellence, pursuit and development of outstanding content, and the use of technology to present that content in novel and creative formats. The JAMA Network is well served by our new website, which uses semantic tagging to link articles by concepts rather than words and ensures and reinforces the vision of a network of high-caliber journals. As a group of journals, we are stronger and more flexible. The effect of the network will be greater than the sum of its parts. The JAMA Network editors are meeting as a group more frequently and intensively to advance our common editorial, scientific, and publishing goals. Manuscripts that are not accepted for publication by one JAMA Network journal may, with the authors' consent, be referred for prompt assessment and consideration by another JAMA Network journal. In addition, information and commentaries about articles published in one journal that have importance and relevance for another journal will be featured across the Network. What will the future bring for The JAMA Network Journals? We will continue to publish the best content— including original research reports, practical review articles, and scholarly opinion pieces. Our goal is not to be print-centric or web-centric, but rather to be usercentric, regardless of who those users are—authors, researchers, clinicians, educators, policy makers, librarians, journalists, and, in some cases, patients. We will continue to introduce new article types, we are designing more contemporary structured abstracts, and we are considering data optimization in some of our research reports. We envision offering our content in different languages, available in print or on the web, to read or listen to, in short or long form. The goal is to harness the forces of innovation and technologic change to enhance the experience of our users. While The JAMA Network will continue to evolve, the primary goal will remain unchanged—to provide the best content possible to advance medical science and to help improve patient care. We look forward to hearing from you with your ideas and suggestions about The JAMA Network Journals.


Any symposium on private-equity firms and the going private phenomenon would be incomplete without discussion of Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs). These government owned investment vehicles have and will continue to play an important role in the going private phenomenon. SWFs have not only helped fuel that phenomenon through their participation as limited partners in private-equity funds and hedge funds, but their massive capital infusions into ailing financial institutions and private-equity firms in the wake of the subprime mortgage crisis may, in a very real sense, save it. It is not hyperbolic to suggest that the future of private equity - including the going private phenomenon - and the future of SWFs are inescapably intertwined. Misguided regulation of the latter will, quite foreseeably, operate to the detriment of the former. And the scope of potential mischief is broad. SWFs have existed for decades, but today they face heightened scrutiny due to their recent rapid growth and a concomitant shift in their investment strategy from primarily conservative debt instruments to higher risk/reward equity investments. This shift in strategy has stoked fears in the United States and Europe that these funds - which find home primarily in the Middle East and Asia - will use their economic clout to pursue political goals. This type of rhetoric has led some to call for increased regulation of SWFs. In this Article we argue against imposing any additional burdens on investments by SWFs in the United States, at least at present. In our view, at this point a policy of watchful waiting is preferable to any immediate effort to impose special restrictions on SWFs. On the one hand, the nightmare scenarios painted by SWF critics often involve activities that would be caught by existing laws, either as they relate to national security or to various forms of business regulation under the securities and antitrust laws. On the other hand, we do not possess perfect foresight and cannot say that every possible permutation of SWF investment should escape a regulatory response in the future. What we do know, however, says that the burden of proof lies on those who think that further prophylactic regulation is in order at this juncture. To date, SWFs have acted as model investors, and the risk that they may act strategically in the future is significantly mitigated by existing safeguards. A far greater danger to America's economy and security inheres in taking unnecessary action that would encourage SWFs to redirect their investments elsewhere, or to harbor resentment toward the United States that could express itself in a wide range of hostile actions.


Synthetic Biology
One of the most successful areas of synthetic biology is modifying microorganisms for applications in biotechnology. However, these engineered microbes could pose a risk if released into open environments. To overcome this, Chan et al. engineered two modular gene circuits into the bacteria Escherichia coli that act as kill switches. The "Deadman" circuit requires a specific small molecule to prevent a toxin from being expressed and killing the cell. In the "Passcode" circuit, small molecules must induce two transcription factors to inhibit toxin expression. An advantage over other biocontainment systems is that these circuits can be reprogrammed to respond to different inputs or to induce different killing mechanisms.

Nat. Chem. Biol. 10.1038/NCHEMBIO.1979 (2015).


Abstract. Major deltas and their adjacent coastal plains are commonly linked by means of coast-parallel fluxes of water, sediment, and nutrients. Observations of the evolution of these interlinked systems over centennial to millennial timescales are essential to understand the interaction between point sources of sediment discharge (i.e. deltaic distributaries) and adjacent coastal plains across large spatial (i.e. hundreds of kilometres) scales. This information is needed to constrain future generations of numerical models to predict coastal evolution in relation to climate change and other human activities. Here we examine the coastal plain (Chenier Plain, CP) adjacent to the Mississippi River delta, one of the world's largest deltas. We use a refined chronology based on 22 new optically stimulated luminescence and 22 new radiocarbon ages to test the hypothesis that cyclic Mississippi subdelta shifting has influenced the evolution of the adjacent CP. We show that over the past 3 kyr, accumulation rates in the CP were generally 0–1 Mt yr−1. However, between 1.2 and 0.5 ka, when the Mississippi River shifted to a position more proximal to the CP, these rates increased to 2.9 ±1.1 Mt yr−1 or 0.5–1.5 % of the total sediment load of the Mississippi River. We conclude that CP evolution during the past 3 kyr was partly a direct consequence of shifting subdeltas, in addition to changing regional sediment sources and modest rates of relative sea-level (RSL) rise. The RSL history of the CP during this time period was constrained by new limiting data points from the base of overwash deposits associated with the cheniers. These findings have implications for Mississippi River sediment diversions that are currently being planned to restore portions of this vulnerable coast. Only if such diversions are located in the western portion of the Mississippi Delta plain could they potentially contribute to sustaining the CP shoreline. Our findings highlight the importance of a better understanding of mud-dominated shorelines that are often associated with major deltas, in light of the enormous investments in coastal management and restoration that will likely be made around the globe, now and especially later during this century.


Computational problems that involve dynamic data, such as physics simulations and program development environments, have been an important subject of study in programming languages. Building on this work, recent advances in self-adjusting computation have developed techniques that enable programs to respond automatically and efficiently to dynamic changes in their inputs. Self-adjusting programs have been shown to be efficient for a reasonably broad range of problems but the approach still requires an explicit programming style, where the programmer must use specific monadic types and primitives to identify, create and operate on data that can change over time. We describe techniques for automatically translating purely functional programs into self-adjusting programs. In this implicit approach, the programmer need only annotate the (top-level) input types of the programs to be translated. Type inference finds all other types, and a type-directed translation rewrites the source program into an explicitly self-adjusting target program. The type system is related to information-flow type systems and enjoys decidable type inference via constraint solving. We prove that the translation outputs well-typed self-adjusting programs and preserves the source program's input-output behavior, guaranteeing that translated programs respond correctly to all changes to their data. Using a cost semantics, we also prove that the translation preserves the asymptotic complexity of the source program.


A synthetic circuit implementing density-controlled bacterial motility autonomously produces a tunable stripe pattern. Periodic stripe patterns are ubiquitous in living organisms, yet the underlying developmental processes are complex and difficult to disentangle. We describe a synthetic genetic circuit that couples cell density and motility. This system enabled programmed Escherichia coli cells to form periodic stripes of high and low cell densities sequentially and autonomously. Theoretical and experimental analyses reveal that the spatial structure arises from a recurrent aggregation process at the front of the continuously expanding cell population. The number of stripes formed could be tuned by modulating the basal expression of a single gene. The results establish motility control as a simple route to establishing recurrent structures without requiring an extrinsic pacemaker.


Abstract. Actinic fluxes at large solar zenith angles (SZAs) are important for atmospheric chemistry, especially under twilight conditions in polar winter and spring. The results of a sensitivity experiment employing the fully coupled 3D chemistry-climate model ECHAM4.L39(DLR)/CHEM have been analysed to quantify the impact of SZAs larger than 87.5o on dynamical and chemical processes in the lower stratosphere, in particular their influence on the ozone layer. Although the actinic fluxes at SZAs larger than 87.5o are small, ozone concentrations are significantly affected because daytime photolytic ozone destruction is switched on earlier, especially at the end of polar night the conversion of Cl 2 and Cl 2 O 2 into ClO in the lower stratosphere. Comparing climatological mean ozone column values of a simulation considering SZAs up to 93o with those of the sensitivity run with SZAs confined to 87.5o total ozone is reduced by about 20% in the polar Southern Hemisphere, i.e., the ozone hole is "deeper'' if twilight conditions are considered in the model because there is about 4 weeks more time for ozone destruction. This causes an additional cooling of the polar lower stratosphere (50 hPa) up to -4 K with obvious consequences for chemical processes. In the Northern Hemisphere the impact of large SZAs cannot be determined on the basis of climatological mean values due to the pronounced dynamic variability of the stratosphere in winter and spring. This study clearly shows the necessity of considering large SZAs for the calculation of photolysis rates in atmospheric models.


The purpose of this paper is to seek a breakthrough for the Korea-EU FTA negotiation in agriculture which started last year, but has not made much progress yet. The EU has been asking Korea to open its agricultural market to the same extent that was agreed upon in Korea's free trade agreement with the U.S. while the Korean government firmly opposes the EU's request, saying that FTA negotiations differ from multilateral trade talks as in the WTO. An examination of agricultural trade among Korea, the EU, and the U.S. shows that there may be many niche markets of which the EU can take advantage over other agricultural exporting countries including the U.S. Also, it is expected that the EU could gain much from its agricultural trade with Korea through an FTA, even without a market access level equal to one stipulated in the Korea-U.S. FTA accord. As far as agriculture is concerned, the slower does the talk proceed, the better to Korea, with the EU losing huge expected trade gains. It is suggested that the EU needs to be more flexible in the talks by focusing on a new strategy that can maximize trade diversion effects stemming not only from price but from non-price factors, rather than simply asking for the same level of market opening as in Korea-U.S. FTA. This would be the better way for the EU to become a winner in the battle for Korean agricultural market.


Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine whether practicing self-regulation strategies involved setting goals, selfevaluation and self-correction on formative tests improved students' positive attitudes toward learning mathematics. The students' attitudes toward mathematics were measured of the factors in their perceived confidence, motivation, usefulness of the subject, and perception about teacher's attitude toward their learning. The study also aimed at exploring self-regulation characteristics of different performing groups of mathematics achievement so that appropriate instructional design can be introduced and imposed within the mathematics classroom. The study utilized a one-group pretest-posttest design for exploratory purposes. The selfregulation strategies were introduced to 46 tenth-grade secondary students. Their perceived motivation, confidence, anxiety, usefulness of the subject, and perception about teacher's attitude were measured as the pretest measures before they were trained with setting goals, self-evaluation, and self-correction strategy training. These measures of the factors were compared at the end of the academic year. The study found that students' perceived confidence, motivation, usefulness of the subject, and perception about teacher's attitude toward student learning were significantly different after they underwent the training. The high-performing group of students was more confident, motivated, less anxious, and highly engaged in self-reflection as compared to their counterparts, low-performing group of students. In addition, students' confidence, motivation, anxiety, and engagement in selfreflection were found significantly correlated with mathematics performance.


The aim of this study is to understand the operational practices of copyright exploitation and protection from the perspective of the Scottish publishing industry. The study begins with a historical overview of the development of copyright legislation in the United Kingdom, which helps to build a theoretical framework to understand copyright. The study then explores the contemporary publishing environment and details the progression of rights exploitation within the publishing industry. It analyses how the historical development of copyright informs contemporary practices, particularly the role of globalisation, new technologies, 'piracy', and the Romantic notion of authorship in shaping copyright legislation. Furthermore, this research charts the professionalisation of authorship, which helps to build a case of contemporary Scottish authors. These issues are elucidated with a multi-method analysis of the Scottish publishing industry, and its approach to copyright exploitation and protection. As the focus of the empirical research is the Scottish publishing industry it has been contextualised within national and international copyright development and discourse.

The key issues from the review of literature are explored in the context of the Scottish publishing industry through interviews and questionnaires with key players. Consequently, this thesis argues that copyright exists to promote and protect the interests of the triadic relationship between the author, the publisher and the public and, as such, the interests of each party should be considered equally. The empirical research found that the majority of Scottish publishers, authors and literary agents are not fostering intellectual property rights effectively across international markets and new media: The failure to do this means that the operational practices of the Scottish publishing industry are not in harmony with the burgeoning digital publishing environment. If Scottish publishers and literary agents continue with current practices it will become increasingly difficult for them to compete in the national and international publishing environment. Digital publishing has been considered as a panacea to bridge the gaps between different sized publishing companies: allowing small, independent companies to compete on an equal footing with cross-media conglomerates. However, this study has found that Scottish publishers and literary agents are not capitalising on new technology and new platforms for dissemination: this is detrimental to the authors they represent. This study found that Scottish authors' earnings were insufficient so fostering their rights more effectively could help supplement their income. This study concludes that only by better training, education and knowledge exchange, in matters of rights exploitation and digital publishing, can Scottish publishing compete in the international arena and contribute to, and benefit financially from, the knowledge economy.

This study impacts all the key stakeholders in the Scottish publishing industry, and other regional publishing industries, by addressing gaps in the literature and highlighting the shortcomings of inefficient operational practices, and provides recommendations to improve these practices.


Objectives: We investigated changes in breast milk whey and casein proteins, between fore and hind milk during breast expression, between breasts and within 24-hour period during breast-feeding. This has implications for developing an appropriate sampling protocol for investigating the influence of milk composition on gastric emptying and infants' feeding behaviour. Methods: Breast milk samples were collected from mothers (n = 25) of healthy term infants ages 1 to 8 months. A total of 17 mothers provided fore and hind milk samples, which were collected during simultaneous expression of both breasts. Fifteen mothers provided samples from each breast-feed during 24-hour period, of which samples were selected from 4 time points (morning, day, evening, night). Whey and casein were isolated from skim milk, and protein concentration of the skim, whey, and casein fractions were determined. Results: Mean protein concentrations were found to be 13.5 ± 2.1 (skim milk), 7.6 ± 1.5 (whey), and 3.4 ± 0.97 g/L (casein). Protein concentrations were not significantly different between fore and hind milk. During a 24-hour period, no significant differences were found in protein concentration of any fraction at the 4 time points or between left and right breasts. Large variations were seen between mothers with coefficient of variances of 15.5%, 19.8%, and 28.4% for skim milk, whey, and casein, respectively. Conclusions: Although there was wide variation between mothers, the small variations within mothers indicate that for sampling purposes, a single breast milk sample (fore or hind from each breast at any time point of the day) will be representative of that mother's protein concentration of skim, whey, and casein fractions for that day.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a group vocational guidance program on the certainty, satisfaction and realism of vocational choices made by grade eleven students. -- The guidance program was carried out in the grade eleven classes in one Newfoundland high school. Grade eleven students in another school in the same community and in a third school in a similar community were used as a comparison or control group. The guidance program consisted of a variety of activities designed to increase the students' self-knowledge and occupational information. The objectives of the program were to increase the levels of certainty, satisfaction, and realism of the vocational choices made by the students. -- A random sample of the experimental group and of the control group was administered a questionnaire prior to the introduction of the group vocational guidance program. The purpose of this particular administration of the questionnaire was to determine the comparability of the two groups on the three criteria and to assess the levels of these criteria at the beginning of the treatment period. At the end of this period the same questionnaire was completed by all students in both groups. It was then possible to ascertain the extent to which each group had changed on the three variables over the six-month period. A two-way analysis of variance, followed by application of Duncan's New Multiple Range Test, was carried out on the data related to the main hypotheses of the study. -- It was found that of those students who changed their choices over the treatment period, only those in the experimental group made significant increases in certainty and satisfaction, while the control group made a significant increase in the level of realism. -- It was also found that, of the students who did not change their choices from pre-test to post-test, only those of the experimental group whose choices were judged to be unrealistic showed any significant increases in certainty and satisfaction. The hypothesized change for these students had been in the opposite direction. -- It is suggested that further research be carried out to determine the effectiveness of vocational guidance at different levels of pupil development. It is also suggested that a study be conducted to determine which factors are most likely to influence students to make realistic choices. The effect of students being aware of the objectives of a group vocational guidance program is another area considered to be worth studying. Finally, it is suggested that the effects of individual counseling in addition to group vocational guidance should be compared with the effects of group guidance without individual counseling.


Author(s): Linz, George; Werner, Scott; Niner, Megan; Homan, Jeffrey | Abstract: Anthraquinone is an effective chemical seed repellent that protects newly planted crops from depredation by granivorous birds. We are experimenting with foliar applications of 9,10-anthraquinone (AQ) to reduce blackbird (Icteridae) damage to ripening sunflower. Sunflower heads generally turn downward as the achenes mature. With the methods currently available for spraying crops, application of AQ directly onto sunflower achenes is nearly impossible. Blackbirds sometimes remove sunflower bracts prior to eating achenes. Thus, getting AQ droplets directly on the achenes may not be necessary, and spraying the heads should expose blackbirds to AQ as they remove bracts. Studies using caged red-winged blackbirds showed that AQ sprayed onto the backs of sunflower heads reduced damage. However, field trials using fixed-wing aerial sprayers and ground sprayers produced inconclusive results. We are currently experimenting with methods to increase spray coverage of AQ while simultaneously attempting to reduce AQ contamination of achenes, thus reducing the likelihood of having to establish food tolerance limits for this comparatively long-lived compound. In this paper, we summarize results from several AQ studies and speculate on when a repellent might be available for sunflower producers.


Background: Lack of alignment or harmony between information technology (IT) and business imperatives continues to plague organisations despite decades of research. Strategic information systems planning (SISP) is the process of coordinating the relationship between IT and the business in order to steer alignment. Shared domain knowledge (SDK) is a factor that is posited as important for improving both SISP and alignment, which is theorised to be the main outcome of SISP. Objectives: The aim of this article is to examine the impact of SDK on SISP and alignment. Method: Data were gathered from management consultants in a large, global IT organisation, through the use of a structured questionnaire, and analysed. Results: It was shown that SDK positively influences SISP characteristics and the alignment outcome. Specifically, it was found that high levels of rationality in SISP positively influenced the intellectual dimension of alignment, whilst IT manager participation in business planning influenced the social dimension of alignment. SDK was found to have a bearing on all of the SISP characteristics measured (i.e. rationality, adaptation, business planning-SISP integration and IT manager participation in business planning). SDK was also found to positively impact both the intellectual and social dimensions of alignment. Conclusion: The implications of the findings are that fostering a knowledge sharing environment in organisations will help improve alignment, as well as the formal processes designed to steer alignment such as SISP.


In most research on living standards, material deprivation is measured using household-level material deprivation indicators. However, if resources are not shared equally within households, conventional material deprivation indicators may mask important variations in individual living standards. In this paper we make use of individual adult-level deprivation data included in the 2014 European Union Statistics on Incomes and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) ad-hoc material deprivation module to examine the implications of intra-household inequality for material deprivation measurement. Results from a series of regression models which examine how adult deprivation indicators vary by various household and individual characteristics suggest that the share of total household income brought in by an individual (our proxy of individuals' bargaining power within households) has a significant negative effect on the individual's deprivation risk in most countries, pointing to the incomplete sharing of household resources.


We examine the relationship between house price synchronicity and global financial conditions across 40 countries and about 70 cities over the past three decades. The role played by cross-border banking flows in residential property markets is examined as well. Looser global financial conditions are associated with greater house price synchronicity, even after controlling for bilateral financial integration. Moreover, we find that synchronicity across major cities may differ from that of their respective countries', perhaps due to the influence of global investors on local house price dynamics. Policy choices such as macroprudential tools and exchange rate flexibility appear to be relevant for mitigating the sensitivity of domestic housing markets to the rest of the world.


The European Commission's call for energy communities has motivated academia to focus research on design and trading concepts of local electricity markets. The literature provides a wide range of conceptual ideas and analyses on the technical and economic framework of single market features such as peer-to-peer trading. The feasible, system-wide integration of energy communities into existing market structures requires, however, a set of legal adjustments to national regulation. In this paper, we test the implications of recently proposed market designs under the current rules in the context of the German market. The analysis is facilitated by a simplistic equilibrium model representing heterogeneous market participants in an energy community with their respective objectives. We find that, on the one hand, these proposed designs are financially unattractive to prosumers and consumers under the current regulatory framework. On the other hand, they even cause distributional effects within the community when local trade and self-consumption are exempt from taxes. To this end, we introduce a novel market design— Tech4all —that counterbalances these effects. With only few legal amendments, it allows for ownership and participation of renewable technologies for all community members independent of their property structure and affluence. Our presented analysis shows that this design has the potential to mitigate both distributional effects and the avoidance of system service charges, while simultaneously increasing end-user participation.


Purpose

Big Data Analytics provides a multitude of opportunities for organizations to improve service operations, but it also increases the threat of external parties gaining unauthorized access to sensitive customer data. With data breaches now a common occurrence, it is becoming increasingly plain that while modern organizations need to put into place measures to try to prevent breaches, they must also put into place processes to deal with a breach once it occurs. Prior research on information technology security and services failures suggests that customer compensation can potentially restore customer sentiment after such data breaches. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the authors draw on the literature on personality traits and social influence to better understand the antecedents of perceived compensation and the effectiveness of compensation strategies. The authors studied the propositions using data collected in the context of Target's large-scale data breach that occurred in December 2013 and affected the personal data of more than 70 million customers. In total, the authors collected data from 212 breached customers.

Findings

The results show that customers' personality traits and their social environment significantly influences their perceptions of compensation. The authors also found that perceived compensation positively influences service recovery and customer experience.

Originality/value

The results add to the emerging literature on Big Data Analytics and will help organizations to more effectively manage compensation strategies in large-scale data breaches.


Arizona recently dedicated its first utility-scale wind plant, the 63-MW Dry Lake Wind Project on private, state and BLM land near Holbrook. While Arizona has developable wind resources and some available transmission capacity, wind power development has not taken off in the state, and this is often attributed to policy issues and resource quality. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Western Wind & Solar Integration Study quantified the wind capacity that should be built in Arizona under various wind development scenarios, including all-in-state development, least-cost wind resource across the western electric grid in the inter-mountain west, and a scenario providing some accounting for local economic impacts of wind development. In scenarios in which up to 20% of Arizona's electrical energy was served by wind resources developed within Arizona, the study found that instate wind development actually resulted in a lower overall system operating cost of energy to state consumers than any other scenario (despite higher capacity factor sites being available outside of Arizona). In addition, the economic impacts of this potential development offer revitalization to many of the rural areas in the state. However, the state lacks coherent policies to attract wind power development and to bolster the services available in rural areas to meet the needs of developers during construction and operation of wind power plants. This study presents and evaluates policy mechanisms for use by the state, county, or tribal governments to increase wind penetration, attract wind development through financial incentives, and increase the local economic impacts of the development once it takes place. Example policies from other states, counties, and tribal governments are evaluated with regard to their appropriateness in Arizona, and suggestions are made for changes to federal policy that would increase the viability and impact of wind development projects on tribal land nationwide.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


The purpose of this research was to study sand filtration as a treatment technology for drinking water sources in Newfoundland and Labrador to reduce the arsenic (As) concentration to the level of 7 micrograms (µg) per litre without using chemicals. The effect that various ions present in groundwater have on As removal efficiency using sand filters was also investigated.

Water sampling locations were narrowed down based on the composition of groundwater provided by the Department of Environment and Conservation. Two different water samples were collected from the town of the Wabana on Bell Island. One with high As and iron (Fe) concentrations and the other the normal Wabana water supply. Water samples were also collected from the Town of Freshwater in Carbonear. The composition of the water samples (arsenic, iron and other element concentrations) was determined using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS) from the Department of Earth Sciences at the Memorial University of Newfoundland. The Fe to As ratio is the most important parameter in successfully removing arsenic from groundwater to the level below an acceptable concentration.

Capital Ready Mix supplied the washed sand required for this project. The sand had a finesse modulus (FM) of 2.9. The sand for all the experiments was first washed with 60˚C hot distilled water to dissolve all the impurities. The water was then drained to collect the washed sand. The sand was dried in the oven at 105˚C for 24 hours to remove all the moisture. Batch Column tests were conducted for treating the arsenic contaminated water.

The test equipment, two columns, was manufactured by Technical Services in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The columns were partially filled with the washed and dried sand. In order to uniformly distribute the water along the whole cross section and to control the flow of solution into the column, either a Ceramic disk or the cloth was used. Similarly, at the bottom of the column, either the ceramic disk or cloth was used. The purpose of using either the ceramic disc or the cloth at the bottom of the column was to allow the flow of the solution out of the column and to retain the sand. 1000mL of distilled water was passed through the column prior to commencing the batch tests to remove all the very fine particles which results in turbidity. Once the clear water was collected at the bottom of the column, only then the tests were initiated.

It was concluded that hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) can play a very vital role in mitigating the arsenic concern in the groundwater of the Newfoundland and Labrador. The higher the iron content, the greater will be the arsenic removal but the sand filter replacement frequency may decrease. It is therefore suggested to use sand filtration in combination with aeration and dilution to deal with the growing arsenic concern in the province of the Newfoundland and Labrador.


We compare the rate of a multiple-antenna relay channel to the capacity of multiple-antenna systems to characterize the cooperative capacity in different SNR regions. While it is known that in the asymptotic regime, at a high SNR or with a large number of cooperating nodes, cooperative systems lack full multiplexing gain, in this paper we consider cooperative capacity gain at moderate SNR with a fixed number of cooperating antennas. We show that up to a lower bound to an SNR threshold, a cooperative system performs at least as well as a MIMO system with isotropic inputs; whereas beyond an upper bound to the SNR threshold, the cooperative system is limited by its coordination costs, and the capacity is strictly less than that of a MIMO orthogonal channel. The SNR threshold depends on the network geometry (the power gain g between the source and relay) and the number of cooperating antennas M; when the relay is close to the source (g [unk] 1), the SNR threshold lower and upper bounds are approximately equal. As the cooperating nodes are closer, i.e., as g increases, the MIMO-gain region extends to a higher SNR. Whereas for a populous cluster, i.e., when M is large, the coordination-limited region sets in at a lower SNR.


The availability of well-educated researchers is necessary for the fruitful analysis of social and economic data. The increased data offer made possible by the creation of the Research Data Centers (RDCs) has resulted in an increased demand for PhD students at the master's or Diplom levels. Especially in economics, where we find intense competition among the various individual subjects within the course of study, survey statistics has not been very successful in laying claim to a substantial proportion of the coursework and training. The situation is more favorable in sociology faculties. This article argues that the creation of new CAMPUS Files would help foster statistical education by providing public use files covering a wider range of subjects. It also presents some suggestions for new CAMPUS Files along these lines. Additionally, it argues for the establishment of master's programs in survey statistics to increase the availability of well-trained statisticians. An outline of such a master's program is presented and current PhD programs are evaluated with respect to training in survey statistics. Training courses are also offered outside the university that promote the use of new data sets as well as expanding the knowledge of new statistical methods or methods that lie outside standard education. These training courses are organized by the RDCs, (i.e. the data producers), the Data Service Centers, or by GESIS (Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences). The current tendency to strengthen ties and collaborate with universities should be supported by making it possible to earn academic credit for such courses.


In this pre-registered study, we gathered two online samples totaling 615 subjects. The first sample was nationally representative with regards to age, sex and education, the second was an online convenience sample with mostly younger people. We measured intelligence (vocabulary and science knowledge, 20 items each) using newly constructed Dutch language tests. We measured stereotypes in three domains: 68 national origin-based immigrant crime rates, 54 occupational sex distributions, and 12 provincial incomes. We additionally measured other covariates such as employment status and political voting behaviors. Results showed substantial stereotype accuracy for each domain. Aggregate (average) stereotype Pearson correlation accuracies were strong: immigrant crime .65, occupations .94, and provincial incomes .85. Results of individual accuracies found there was a weak general factor of stereotype accuracy measures, reflecting a general social perception ability. We found that intelligence moderately but robustly predicted more accurate stereotypes across domains as well as general stereotyping ability (r's .20, .25, .26, .39, β's 0.17, 0.25, 0.21, 0.37 from the full regression models). Other variables did not have robust effects across all domains, but had some reliable effects for one or two domains. For immigrant crime rates, we also measured the immigration preferences for the same groups, i.e. whether people would like more or fewer people from these groups. We find that actual crime rates predict net opposition at r = .55, i.e., subjects were more hostile to immigration from origins that had higher crime rates. We examined a rational immigration preference path model where actual crime rates→stereotypes of crime rates→immigrant preferences. We found that about 84% of the effect of crime rates was mediated this way, and this result was obtained whether or not one included Muslim% as a covariate in the model. Overall, our results support rational models of social perception and policy preferences for immigration.


Cast shadows are an informative cue to the shape of objects. They are particularly valuable for discovering object's concavities which are not available from other cues such as occluding boundaries. We propose a new method for recovering shape from shadows which we call shadow carving. Given a conservative estimate of the volume occupied by an object, it is possible to identify and carve away regions of this volume that are inconsistent with the observed pattern of shadows. We prove a theorem that guarantees that when these regions are carved away from the shape, the shape still remains conservative. Shadow carving overcomes limitations of previous studies on shape from shadows because it is robust with respect to errors in shadows detection and it allows the reconstruction of objects in the round, rather than just bas-reliefs. We propose a reconstruction system to recover shape from silhouettes and shadow carving. The silhouettes are used to reconstruct the initial conservative estimate of the object's shape and shadow carving is used to carve out the concavities. We have simulated our reconstruction system with a commercial rendering package to explore the design parameters and assess the accuracy of the reconstruction. We have also implemented our reconstruction scheme in a table-top system and present the results of scanning of several objects.


The concept of fairness is essential to the administration of justice. The right to a fair trial embodies this notion of fairness and informs the development of almost every aspect of law. This is most clearly visible in the criminal process. However, the practical application of the right to a fair trial raises a number of issues. In part, its presence in almost every area of law means that the right is composed by a number of other rights. Further, because the concept of fairness is not static, the right to a fair trial has an ever changing scope, content and meaning. These considerations have resulted in the absence of clear principles guiding the application of the right in the everyday administration of justice. If left unattended, there is real risk that this lack of guidance may eventually dilute the substance of the right to a fair trial. As a consequence of its fundamental nature, a weakening of the right brings implications for the continued public confidence in the administration of justice. This paper will contend that the application of the right to a fair trial should be directed toward the goals of the criminal process. This means that the right to a fair trial should protect the rights of the defendant to promote the legitimacy of the verdict. Fundamentally however, the right to a fair trial means the right that all persons have to a factually accurate verdict. The continued significance of the right to a fair trial therefore requires the formation and application of the law to be directed toward the goal of factually accuracy in the verdict and also, to reach such a verdict in a way that is fair to all parties.


Peoples speaking languages of the Bantu family are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa, from the equatorial rainforest to the Cape of Good Hope. Their present-day distribution is the result of a remarkable expansion, which started about 4000–5000 years ago in the borderland between Cameroon and Nigeria. The genetic distances among Bantu-speaking populations are significantly lower than those between the Bantu and other ethnolinguistic groups from Africa, suggesting an actual movement of people, rather than cultural diffusion. However, this genetic homogeneity places a challenge to the reconstruction of their actual routes of dispersal, with existing hypotheses being mainly based on data from linguistics and archaeology. While the indigenous populations they encountered did not provide a major contribution to the Bantu gene pool at large, admixture studies reveal different patterns of social interaction, which range from Bantu dominance in the rainforest to a more levelled exchange in southern Africa.

Key Concepts

Most speakers of modern-day Bantu languages share a distinctive genetic component.
The spread of the Bantu languages corresponds to a migratory movement, rather than to cultural diffusion.
The Bantu migrations correlate with the appearance of technological innovations and new subsistence strategies in western Central Africa.
The range of sampled populations and the resolution of the genetic analyses need to be increased to further explore the genetic relationships among different Bantu groups and infer the dispersal models that best explain them.
The best documented cases of admixture between Bantu and non-Bantu populations are provided by studies that were undertaken in the Central African rainforest and the southern African Kalahari basin.

Keywords:

Bantu;
languages;
human migrations;
admixture;
human population history


On October 28,2003, representatives of Pfizer pharmaceuticals gathered at corporate headquarters in New York City to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the launch of their wonder drug Viagra. The guest list for the big event, along with the requisite press, public relations executives, NASCAR luminaries, and satisfied customers, featured erstwhile Texas Rangers first baseman and designated hitter Rafael Palmeiro. (1) Not only has Palmeiro had a spectacular career, both at bat and in the field, but during the 2002 and 2003 seasons Palmeiro, currently of the Baltimore Orioles, also played the role of Viagra pitchman. The connection of Viagra--an official and, as its ads would have us know, proud sponsor of Major League Baseball since 2002--is not limited to Palmeiro's endorsement, nor did it end with his term as pitchman. Prominent outfield signage, a sweepstakes tied into the 2003 All-Star Game, and even an online fantasy baseball game entitled Clutch Performances[TM] reintroduced for the 2004 season, reinforce the connection between Major League Baseball and Pfizer's drug. What is it about baseball, as opposed to any other professional sport, that prompted Pfizer's marketing wizards to link it to their performance-enhancing drug? Why associate Viagra with professional sports in the first place? And what is it about Rafael Palmeiro, certainly a high-profile player but hardly Johnny Damon or Derek Jeter, that makes him the right spokesman for this particular product? After all, Palmeiro is not the first well-known celebrity to endorse Viagra. Who can forget the image of Bob Dole offering enthusiastic testimonials for Pfizer's little blue pill in those early ads, which became so familiar to American consumers that the former U.S. Senate majority leader went on to parody them in spots for Pepsi, along with Britney Spears? So why should consumers pay attention when Palmeiro steps forward with the bold statement, "I take Viagra. Let's just say it works for me"? Looking at the way pharmaceutical companies brand and advertise prescription drugs, as well as the specific challenges presented by marketing this particular preparation, I will attempt to answer some of these questions. I will also consider recent attempts by Pfizer's competitors in the marketplace, perhaps inspired by Viagra's success, to market similar performance-enhancing preparations with their own sports tie-ins. NUXATED IRON At the outset the connection between baseball and pharmaceuticals seems tenuous at best. Yet Viagra is hardly the first drug to advertise using baseball imagery, and Palmeiro is hardly the first baseball star to endorse a pharmaceutical product. As far back as the nineteenth century advertisers sold American consumers patent medicines with the help of testimonials from a variety of celebrities, famous "European physicians," and other quacks. Celebrity endorsers of patent elixirs were, for the most part, women. But baseball players such as Ty Cobb, chief promoter of Nuxated Iron, a performance-enhancing concoction of sorts, also played on this particular field. Still, athlete endorsers of such patent preparations were few and far between. With time, and with the eventual enactment and enforcement of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, patent medicines gave way to more efficacious remedies, ones with an official stamp of approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Still, the legitimate pharmaceutical industry did not really blossom as a commercial force until the years following World War II. Even when drug companies began to grow exponentially, and advertising for over-the-counter medications proliferated, ads for these products did not, for the most part, feature figures from the baseball world. There are undoubtedly scattered examples, but drug endorsements by baseball players were certainly not the norm. Recently, however, things have changed. Having retired after pitching for the New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros, and Texas Rangers, Nolan Ryan went on to pitch for Advil. …


The present paper proposes an extension to the phase-field model of Kobayashi, Warren and Carter (KWC) as described in (Warren et al 2002 Acta Mater.) to incorporate the recrystallization process which occurs during heat treatments of alloy systems with predeformed defect structure. The standard KWC model is extended by an additional order parameter for recrystallized grains and describes the general results for the steady-state moving boundary. The simulation results of the initial grain growth and recrystallization process in various systems show that the extended phase-field model is able to describe the influence of the initial grain boundaries on the recrystallization kinetics and to incorporate the misorientation dependency of the low angle grain boundary mobility which strongly influences the orientation distribution in the resulting microstructure.


As experiments with class actions spread to more distant shores, especially in countries of civil law backgrounds, a recurring question arises. What is the relation of the private class action to the customary regulatory power of the state? The response offered here is that in fact the class action stands in three different postures to state authority: as a direct challenge, as a complement, and as a rival. Recent class action cases in the U.S. are analyzed to examine these three functions and to give a distinct justification for each. At bottom, each justification turns on a contested commitment to a diversity of regulatory authority – here termed "regulatory pluralism" – that lends coherence to all three forms of interaction between the state and private authority claiming the mantle of the "private attorney general."


Disclosed are various embodiments of voltage protectors that include a first voltage clamping device configured to clamp a voltage of an input power applied to an electrical load, and a second voltage clamping device configured to clamp the voltage applied to the electrical load. A series inductance separates the first and second voltage clamping devices. Also, a switching element is employed to selectively establish a direct coupling of the input power to the electrical load, where a circuit is employed to control the operation of the switching element.


ENDANGERED SPECIES ACTEnvironmental groups have long vilified Julie MacDonald, the Bush Administration's point person at the Interior Department on endangered species. Last week, their complaints got some support from the agency's in-house watchdog, who has concluded that the political appointee played fast and loose with research. ([Read more][1].)

 [1]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/316/5821/37b


The project developed a demand-based forecasting model for rural and highway road transportation planning to assist decision-makers in predicting transportation demand flows of wheat in the Pacific Northwest. In order to be sensitive to policy changes, the model is based upon the disaggregate, individual shipment decisions of wheat elevators. The research found that the mode/market selection process significantly affects the usual regression estimates of mode/market demand flows. Therefore, estimates of the parameters on the major determinants of transportation demand were obtained by weighted least squares that were corrected for selectivity bias. Procedure was developed to aggregate the disaggregate predictions into total regional flows. This procedure retains the policy-sensitivity of the disaggregate model and is computationally practical in applications. Finally, the aggregate forecasting model was developed into an interactive computer program which can be used in a variety of policy-relation applications.


The paper describes the Version 2 of the CO2FIX (CO2FIX V.2) model, a user-friendly tool for dynamically estimating the carbon sequestration potential of forest management, agroforesty and afforestation projects. CO2FIX V.2 is a multi-cohort ecosystem-level model based on carbon accounting of forest stands, including forest biomass, soils and products. Carbon stored in living biomass is estimated with a forest cohort model that allows for competition, natural mortality, logging, and mortality due to logging damage. Soil carbon is modeled using five stock pools, three for litter and two for humus. The dynamics of carbon stored in wood products is simulated with a set of pools for short-, medium- and long-lived products, and includes processing efficiency, re-use of by-products, recycling, and disposal forms. The CO2FIX V.2 model estimates total carbon balance of alternative management regimes in both even and uneven-aged forests, and thus has a wide applicability for both temperate and tropical conditions. Results for the model testing and validation in selected temperate and tropical forest management systems are presented and discussed.


We apply a density functional approach for arbitrary branched liquid-crystalline (LC) heteropolymers consisting of elongated rigid rods coupled through elastic joints developed in a companion paper (Wessels and Mulder 2006 J. Phys. Condens. Matter. 18 9335) to a model for side-chain liquid-crystalline polymers. In this model mesogenic units are coupled through finite-length spacers to a linear backbone polymer. The stereochemical constraints imposed at the connection between spacer and backbone are explicitly modelled. Using a bifurcation analysis, analytical results are obtained for the spinodal density of the I–N transition and the variation of the degree of ordering over the various molecular parts at the instability as a function of the model parameters. We also determine the location of the crossover between oblate and prolate backbone conformations in the nematic phase.


&NA; The production of marine habitat maps typically relies on the use of habitat classification schemes (HCSs). The choice of which HCS to use for a mapping study is often related to familiarity, established practice, and national desires. Despite a superficial similarity, HCSs differ greatly across six key properties, namely, purpose, environmental and ecological scope, spatial scale, thematic resolution, structure, and compatibility with mapping techniques. These properties impart specific strengths and weaknesses for each HCS, which are subsequently transferred to the habitat maps applying these schemes. This review has examined seven HCSs (that are commonly used and widely adopted for national and international mapping programmes), over the six properties, to understand their influence on marine habitat mapping. In addition, variation in how mappers interpret and apply HCSs introduces additional uncertainties and biases into the final maps. Recommendations are provided for improving HCSs for marine habitat mapping as well as for enhancing the working practices of mappers using habitat classification. It is hoped that implementation of these recommendations will lead to greater certainty and usage within mapping studies and more consistency between studies and adjoining maps.


Innovation diffusion studies have been popular. However, usually the focus has been on two dimensions: Either the innovation's diffusion is studied on the micro level by examining the individual's adoption of an innovation, or on the macro-level by modelling the sigmoid diffusion curve. The third dimension of the diffusion of an innovation, spatial diffusion, has gained less attention. Spatial diffusion models mostly base on the effect of distance on an innovation's diffusion process. Generally, it is seen that the innovation is adopted later in places further away from the innovation centre, even though there are also other, mainly complementary, hypotheses about the diffusion of an innovation. One common approach for studying the spatial diffusion of an innovation, the spatial gravity model, builds on the distance of places in explaining the diffusion process. As the name of the model implies, the hypothesis is that the diffusion is due to different pulling forces of regions. In other words, regions adopt the innovation at a different time because of a different pulling force. In this study, a gravity-based spatial diffusion model is employed for studying the spatial diffusion of mobile communications within the European Union. The model considers the diffusion process on a national level, the adoption units being the member countries of the European Union. The countries' annual penetration rates of mobile subscribers are used as the diffusion data. Also, a variable testing the effect of the country's economic situation, measured by GDP per capita, on the spatial diffusion process is included in the model. Moreover, by extrapolating the model may be used for forecasting purposes, thus giving annual information about the diffusion of mobile communications in the near future. The European Union is a leader in the mobile field. This kind of first-mover position makes the studying of its diffusion process interesting: The results might give information, which could be utilized in controlling the followers' diffusion processes. Also, if there is a significant effect of the economic situation on the diffusion process, it comes with some interesting implications: If an economic recession is found to hinder the diffusion of mobile communications, is the current timing of launch of the third generation the optimal one, noting that the EU simultaneously faces a slowdown in growth? For judging this, the effect of different economic growth scenarios on the diffusion of mobile communications could be estimated, as the model might be used for forecasts.


Background: Air pollution from industrial food animal production may increase vulnerability to pneumonia among individuals living in nearby communities. We evaluated the association between individual-level residential proximity to high-density poultry operations and diagnosis with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Methods: We conducted a nested case–control study among patients of a large health system in Pennsylvania, USA. We used diagnostic codes for pneumonia and chest imaging from electronic health records from 2004 to 2015 to identify 11,910 child and adult cases of CAP and 59,550 frequency-matched outpatient controls. We estimated exposure to poultry operations using data from nutrient management plans, calculating an inverse-distance squared activity metric based on operation and residential addresses that incorporated number, size, and location of operations. Mixed effects logistic regression models evaluated associations between quartiles of the activity metric and CAP diagnosis. Models controlled for sex, age, race/ethnicity, Medical Assistance (proxy for low socioeconomic status), and smoking status. Results: Individuals living in the highest (versus lowest) quartile of the poultry operation metric had 66% increased odds of CAP diagnosis (adjusted odds ratio [confidence interval]) Q2, 0.98 [0.74, 1.31]; Q3, 1.17 [0.93, 1.46]; Q4, 1.66 [1.27, 2.18]). Conclusions: Findings suggest that living in closer proximity to more and larger poultry operations may increase risk of CAP, contributing to growing concern regarding public health impacts of industrial food animal production.


In parallel with the rapid development of oncology in Australia, palliative and supportive care has evolved rapidly. The sponsorship for such development was largely generated by oncology services in response to unmet needs that were encountered daily. Development of state, territory and national strategies has mirrored the professional development in service delivery, education (of existing practitioners and tomorrow's clinicians) and research. More recently, national programs are delivering better outcomes for palliative care patients and their families, world-leading clinical research, improved access to essential medications in the community and the ability to access quality evidence to inform practice and policy. These initiatives provide a valuable foundation for continuing to improve access to high quality clinical care wherever people live.


A practice survey of hypertension management has suggested that hypertension prevalence in the UK may be less than previously thought. This article discusses the survey and its implications. This study evaluated primary care hypertension management against UK quality targets and prescribing guidelines through a survey of 738 hypertensives in an urban three-partner personal list practice in April 2005. It looked at screening rates, prevalence, blood pressures of under 150/90 mmHg, measurement bias, ABCD prescribing and cost. The survey found that 94% of adults aged 25-79 years had been screened. With 738 confirmed cases, prevalence was 11.7% for all ages; 14.4% for those aged more than 16 years; and 46% in those over 65-years of age. Some 442 patients had 'potential' hypertension with their last blood pressure measurement being greater than 140/90 mmHg but inadequate follow-up. Blood pressure control of less than 150/90 mmHg was achieved in 83% of hypertensives with a six-fold terminal zero measurement bias. Looking at ABCD agents, 1,186 had been prescribed (1.84 per patient) costing £129,100 per annum. We believe that QOF hypertension prevalence in the practice (11.7%) and England (11.3%) is less than half the rate reported from community surveys. The practice demonstrated that QOF outcome targets are achievable by improving blood pressure targets to under 150/90 mmHg from 52% of patients in 2002 to 83% of patients by April 2005. Practice organisation, personal patient lists and quality targets were important factors in delivering successful care. Automated blood pressure measurement could eliminate observer bias. Restructuring therapy repeat instructions to include ABCD data encourages logical prescribing.


In this paper we address some of the issues surrounding the use of educational technology solutions with first year net generation students in an introductory education studies unit. These issues include the need for more engaging learning experiences, the role of technology in supporting this need, and the possible mismatch between expectations and actual needs. The student usage and access of a low-cost, flexible alternative to face-to-face individual or group-based academic support was the focus of this case study. We describe our rationale and attempt to help students with their assignment requirements in a first year teacher education unit through the development of a small-scale self-directed intervention program, and report on student engagement with the model. Analysis of the data brings to light findings that have implications for policy design and shows a need for timely research to better inform lecturers of their students' digital literacy, acceptance and access, and use of innovative learning designs. This also highlights the requirement for a greater awareness of the technologies that students embrace, the technologies that may pose a challenge and the differing needs of first year students to those of the more experienced learners.


This dissertation aims to describe a contemporary Muslim subjectivity as it is formed in response to globalization, universalism and secularism. The central theoretical focus is Jean-Luc Nancy's deconstruction of Christianity, and its claim that secularism and globalization are connected to the internal form of monotheism. Where Nancy accords a special privilege to Christianity as the most autodeconstructive of the Abrahamic faiths, he also sees it losing its specific contours, as it becomes the naturalized form of the world through globalization. I set this thesis alongside narrative descriptions of my own experience as a cosmopolitan artist, theorist and traveller, to discover to what extent Nancy's philosophy can satisfactorily account for a Muslim experience. Talal Asad's examination of the complex genealogies of secularism, and his strong refusal of any necessary historical link between Christianity and modern secularism are contrasted with Nancy's use of the term. Since both Asad and Nancy refer repeatedly if unsystematically to Wittgenstein, I show how his thinking on culture and religion informs the two very different thinkers. I proceed by examining four different histories of the idea of 'universalism' in contemporary philosophy: in the writings of Judith Butler on Hegel, Alain Badiou on Paul the Apostle, Akeel Bilgrami on Gandhi, and Louis Massignon on al-Hallaj. A recurrent motif within Christian universalism is Paul's distinction between 'circumcision of the heart' and 'circumcision of the flesh', which I examine in Badiou's philosophy and in the context of my own Muslim experience. I then examine the roots of a certain identity struggle in modern and contemporary art from Pakistan, linked to its emergence as a country founded in the name of Islam, but with the forms and traditions of 19th century European liberalism as well. Through a reading of one of my own art works as well as those of some of my contemporaries, I illustrate and expand on the nature of this conflicted identity. Finally, I suggest a rereading of Nancy that might incorporate Asad's critique, and allows the possibility of rehabilitating 'exoticism' as a model of global encounter.


Will the Arab Spring lead to long-lasting democratic change? To explore this question, I examine the determinants of the Arab world's democratic deficit in 2010. I find that the percentage of a country's landmass that was conquered by Arab armies following the death of the prophet Muhammad statistically accounts for this deficit. Using history as a guide, I hypothesize that this pattern reflects the long-run influence of control structures developed under Islamic empires in the premodern era and find that the available evidence is consistent with this interpretation. I also investigate the determinants of the recent uprisings. Taken in unison, the results cast doubt on claims that the Arab-Israeli conflict or Arab culture or Muslim theology is a systematic obstacle to democratic change in the region and point instead to the legacy of the region's historical institutional framework.


Galileons are a class of scalar field theories which have been found to arise in a disparate variety of contexts and exhibit a host of interesting properties by themselves, both classical and quantum. They obey non-trivial shift symmetries which restrict their self-interactions to be of higher derivative form, yet their equations of motion remain second order so that they are free of ghost instabilities. Further, when used as a force mediator between massive objects, galileons provide a natural realization of the Vainshtein screening mechanism which shuts off the fifth force at distances close to massive sources. As such, they are well suited for cosmology and are naturally incorporated into theories of modified gravity such as the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati braneworld model and the de Rham-Gabadadze-Tolley theory of massive gravity. Treated as a quantum field theory, galileons obey a non-trivial non-renormalization theorem which proves that they are not renormalized to any numbers of loops. In this thesis, we explore the properties of galileon theories and their generalizations through a combination of geometric and algebraic means. On the geometry side, we demonstrate that generic galileon theories are naturally thought of as the description of branes moving in higher dimensional spacetimes. On the algebraic side, we show that there exists a precise interpretation in which galileons can be thought of as Goldstone modes which arise when spacetime symmetries are spontaneously broken. In particular, when viewed in this light the galileons are the analogue of the Wess-Zumino-Witten term of the chiral lagrangian and thus represent interactions which are technically special. These methods provide both new technical tools for analyzing galileon-like theories and offer conceptual changes for how these theories can be viewed. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Physics & Astronomy First Advisor Mark Trodden