The spontaneous pair production of charged scalars in a near extremal Kerr-Newman (KN) black hole is analytically studied. It is shown that the existence condition for the pair production is equivalent to the violation of the Breitenlohner-Freedman bound in an AdS$_2$ space. The mean number of produced pairs in the extremal black hole has a thermal interpretation, in which the effective temperature for the Schwinger effect in the AdS$_2$ space persistently holds, while the mean number in the near extremal black hole has an additional factor of the Schwinger effect in the Rindler space. In addition, the holographic dual conformal field theory (CFT) descriptions of the charged scalar pair production are respectively realized both in the $J$ and $Q$ pictures in terms of the KN/CFTs correspondence.


Since the construction of the fi rst British example of a cantilever stone staircase
(Inigo Jones' 'tulip' staircase in Queen's House in Greenwich, 1629–35), this
technique has served as both grand statement and modest utility. The structural
principles are now widely understood, but by adopting a creative approach to
structural analysis, design and detailing, they can be combined and extrapolated to
design and construct more refi ned structures in myriad applications.


THE KEYS TO THE CASTLE: A NEW STANDARD FOR WARRANTLESS HOME SEARCHES IN United States v. Knights, 122 S.Ct. 587 (2001). The technicalities of the Fourth Amendment have permeated popular culture to such an extent that many Americans are conversant about basic constitutional search and seizure issues. (1) Some of that knowledge may have recently become largely obsolete. In United States v. Knights, (2) the Supreme Court held that a warrantless search of a probationer's apartment in which the search was based on reasonable suspicion and a condition of probation was that defendant would submit to such searches was reasonable within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. While the holding in Knights is wholly consistent with prior cases, the opinion introduces a new straightforward standard of reasonability for warrantless home searches that reflects an increased consideration of society's interest in aggressive prosecution of criminal activity. Critics have complained that modern Fourth Amendment jurisprudence has been a "vast jumble of judicial pronouncements that is not merely complex and contradictory, but often perverse." (3) With Knights, the Court has offered a streamlined Fourth Amendment jurisprudence with a straightforward test to determine whether a search is constitutional. I. FACTS Mark Knights was sentenced to summary probation for a drug offense by a California trial court. The probation order Knights signed read, in part, that he would "[s]ubmit his ... person, property, place of residence, vehicle, personal effects, [sic] to search at anytime, with or without a search warrant, warrant of arrest or reasonable cause by any probation officer or law enforcement officer." (4) In 1996, Knights and his associate Steven Simoneau were identified as suspects in a vandalism spree against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG & E) facilities in Napa County. The spree began shortly after PG & E filed a theft-of-services complaint against Knights and discontinued his service for failure to pay. Detective Todd Hancock of the Napa County Sheriff's Department had noticed that the acts of vandalism coincided with Knights's PG & E-related court appearances. On May 24, 1998, a sheriff's deputy had stopped Knights and Simoneau near a PG & E gas line. Knights and Simoneau could not explain their presence in the area. The deputy observed pipes, pieces of chain, tools, and gasoline in the pickup truck. He asked permission to search the vehicle, but was refused. A few days later a pipe bomb was detonated not far from Knights's residence. On June 1, 1998, after Knights was placed on probation, a PG & E power transformer and a Pacific Bell telecommunications vault were set on fire using gasoline accelerants. Brass padlocks had been pried off to allow the arsonists access. After the arson a sheriff's deputy drove past Knights's residence and saw Simoneau's truck parked in front. He felt the hood of the truck and found it was warm. On June 3, 1998, Detective Hancock ordered surveillance of Knights's apartment. Early in the morning, Simoneau was observed exiting the apartment carrying three cylindrical items He walked across the street to the bank of the Napa River and returned without the cylinders, wiping a glass jar with a cloth. Detective Hancock heard three splashes from the river at the time Simoneau was at its bank. Simoneau drove away, parked his truck in a driveway, and left. Detective Hancock approached the truck and observed a Molotov cocktail and explosive materials, a gasoline can, and two brass padlocks that fit the description of those removed from the PG & E transformer vault. The truck was seized, impounded, and later searched pursuant to a warrant. Hancock then conducted a search of Knights's apartment. Hancock was aware of Knights's probation order and its conditions. Based on the probation order, he believed he did not need a warrant for the search. …


Doppler Effect with a Twist The Doppler shift is a familiar and well-understood effect in acoustics. Radar guns use the same effect to determine the speed of moving vehicles. Applied to a rotating object side-on, however, a linear Doppler effect would register no movement. Using twisted light, whereby photons are imprinted with a given amount of optical angular momentum, Lavery et al. (p. 537; see the Perspective by Marrucci) detected rotation with an analogous angular Doppler shift, which may be useful for remote sensing and observational astronomy. Orbital angular momentum modes of light can be used to detect rotation. [Also see Perspective by Marrucci] The linear Doppler shift is widely used to infer the velocity of approaching objects, but this shift does not detect rotation. By analyzing the orbital angular momentum of the light scattered from a spinning object, we observed a frequency shift proportional to product of the rotation frequency of the object and the orbital angular momentum of the light. This rotational frequency shift was still present when the angular momentum vector was parallel to the observation direction. The multiplicative enhancement of the frequency shift may have applications for the remote detection of rotating bodies in both terrestrial and astronomical settings.


The recent reduction in commodity prices and farmland values following the substantial growth in the agriculture sector has called into question the risk profile of agricultural enterprises. Following the boom witnessed in the 1970's, the sector witnessed a contraction in prices, demand for goods, and asset values that led many farm enterprises and commercial, agricultural banks to bankruptcy. Many factors of the current evolution of the sector have proven different than those of previous sector cycles yet understanding the reoccurring timeline of events and considering possible causal relationships between major drivers of stability prove pertinent to the continued operation of the most vulnerable farm operations and agricultural lenders. Substantial debt accumulation and repayment capacity have been a precursor and likely catalyst of the previous so called "busts" of farm sector cycles. The analysis performed will address drivers of debt accumulation and the ability of the agriculture sector to service debt. Specifically, the leverage ratio, debt relative to assets, and the debt-burden ratio, debt relative to income, are analyzed. These ratios signal vulnerability to changes in performance of a sector or a specific enterprise's ability to endure a downturn in the market.


This thesis demonstrates in-situ characterization of a 5kW solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack and a 165W proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) stack at the electrical terminals, using impedance spectroscopy and time-domain modeling. The SOFC experiments are performed using excitation from the power electronic ripple current and exogenous excitation generated from several different sources including a hybrid system which uses a secondary power source for the generation of the small-signal currents. The PEMFC experiments are performed using exogenous excitation from a boost converter. In contrast to typical off-line analysis using specialized instrumentation, the measurements are made as the stacks deliver power to their respective loads. The power electronic switching waveform is used as a source of excitation. This technique could be implemented on-line for continuous condition assessment of the stack. The results show typical data from the stack, comparison of model predictions and measured data, and whole-stack impedance spectroscopy results.


The magnitude of the 9.0 Tohoku earthquake and the ensuing tsunami on 11 March 2011, inflicted heavy damage on the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant (FNPP1). Fission products were emitted, falling over a broad range in the Northern Hemisphere, and water contaminated with radionuclides leaked into the ocean. In this study, we described the horizontal distribution of the Fukushima-derived radiocesium in zooplankton and in seawater in the western North Pacific Ocean (500–2100 km from the FNPP1) 10 months after the accident. 134 Cs and 137 Cs were detected in zooplankton and seawater from all the stations. Because of its short half-life, the 134 Cs detected in our samples could only be derived from the FNPP1 accident. The highest 137 Cs activity in zooplankton was the same order of magnitude as it was one month after the accident, and average activity was one or two orders of magnitude higher than 137 Cs activities observed before the accident around Japan. Horizontally, the radiocesium activity concentrations in zooplankton were high at around 25° N while those in surface seawater were high at around the transition area between the Kuroshio and the Oyashio currents (36–40° N). We observed subsurface radiocesium maxima in density range of the North Pacific Subtropical Mode Water and the occurrence of many diel vertical migratory zooplankton. These suggested that the high activity concentrations in the subtropical zooplankton at around 25° N were connected to the subsurface radiocesium and active vertical migration of zooplankton. However, the high activity concentrations of radiocesium in subsurface seawater did not necessarily correlate with the higher radiocesium activity in zooplankton. Activity concentrations of radiocesium in zooplankton might be influenced not only by the environmental radiocesium activity concentrations but also by other factors, which are still unknown.


THE BOOK: Stifled by the torpor of colonial South Africa, and trapped in a web of reciprocal oppression, a lonely sheep farmer seeks comfort in the arms of a black concubine. But when his embittered spinster daughter Magda feels shamed, this lurch across the racial divide marks the end of a tenuous feudal peace. As she dreams madly of bloody revenge, Magda's consciousnessstarts to drift and the line between fact and the workings of her excited imagination becomes blurred. What follows is the fable of a woman's passionate, obsessed and violent response to an Africa that will not heed her.


In this work, the impact of two different house-heating systems on pollution scenarios in the Turin town centre is evaluated by means of the three-dimensional modelling system RMS. The first scenario (present situation) refers to the NOx ground level concentration due to an existing Combined Heat and Power Plant (CHP-plant) and to domestic heating, whereas the second one (future situation) considers the possible advantages of substituting the domestic heating of a central town district with a second Combined Heat and Power Plant to be installed in the district itself. A five consecutive days simulation has been carried out in a particularly severe dispersion situation, characterised by thermodynamic stability and low wind conditions. This period was selected on the basis of in situ observations and its choice was then confirmed as appropriate by means of a statistical analysis of the meteorological model outputs. The main result of the study is that hourly NOx maxima g.l.c. in the centrally heated district is lower in the future scenario than in the present one; while maxima keep approximately the same in the rest of the town. Then, top-ten ground level concentrations of daily maxima over all the domain decrease in the new scenario.


The Rio Puerco volcanic necks and Mesa Prieta, located in the transition zone between the Rio Grande rift and southeastern Colorado Plateau, New Mexico, are part of the larger Mount Taylor volcanic field. The comparatively small volume, but numerous, eruptions represented by the volcanic necks provide geochronologic insight to the larger magmatic system at Mount Taylor and in a broader sense to regional late Cenozoic volcanism of the southeastern Colorado Plateau transition zone. Whole-rock 40 Ar/ 39 Ar ages from 17 basaltic plugs, flows, and dikes range in age from 4.49 to 2.05 Ma and overlap the 3.73 to 1.57 Ma volcanism observed at Mount Taylor. Volcanic eruptions in the Rio Puerco Valley were few and sporadic prior to 3.17 Ma; after this time, eruptions progressively increased to a zenith at ca. 2.70 Ma and ceased altogether after 2.56 Ma. Volcanism at Mesa Prieta (2.36–2.05 Ma) is significantly younger than that recognized for the volcanic necks and is considerably more voluminous and chemically evolved. Paleomagnetic data from the volcanic necks show that basalts carry reliable thermoremanent magnetizations; 9 of 13 sites exhibit well-grouped statistical characteristics. Polarity results provide an independent check of the 40 Ar/ 39 Ar analytical accuracy and are useful in resolving problems associated with excess Ar and/or Ar loss. The magmatic evolution of the Rio Puerco necks differs from the rest of the Mount Taylor volcanic field in duration of volcanism, erupted volume, and composition. These differences are believed to be related to the nonuniform character of the lithosphere9s structure and dynamic thermal construct across the Jemez zone in the vicinity of the Mount Taylor volcanic field. Our model proposes a zone of localized high heat flow and higher magma production beneath Mount Taylor volcano from 3.73 to 1.57 Ma to produce a suite of voluminous basalt-rhyolite compositions. However, east of Mount Taylor in the Rio Puerco Valley where the lithosphere is proposed to be cooler and more rigid throughout the same time interval, small-volume, xenolith-bearing, mafic eruptions are more typical. A cooler lithosphere is consistent with both low magma production rates and the observed small-volume eruptions of the Rio Puerco necks. A preexisting structural trend in the Rio Puerco Valley is believed to have assisted the ascent of volatile-rich, Rio Puerco magmas, particularly through the upper crust.


The Pylons used for the transmission network of the Electricity transport from the generation point to the distribution point can be optimized in that it can also be used for transportation; that is the electric train system. The Chinese Electric train systems have used this technology in which Pylons used for transmission of Electricity are used at the same time as a power supply to their electric train system. The normal installation of these Pylons is a straight line or row along the boundaries of our road highway system. My suggestion to this high tech system is instead of the one long row system of the installation of the Pylons it has to be two rows or networks and a coupler placed between the two cables side by side of each of the Pylons will serve as a Power supply to the electric train running between the two rows of Pylons. In this case, the Pylons being a carrier ofelectricity will also act as a Power supply of electricity to our electric train system. This means as it solves our Power issues; it also solves our transportation issues.


As software organizations try to mitigate operational and technical risk that occurs when using software, there is need to develop a knowledge intensive system to assist team members in mitigating both operational and technical risk. Knowledge mapping in risk mitigation context is in its infancy and has the potential to address both operational and technical risk faced by software organizations. However, as the amount and depth of organizational knowledge increases, it poses some challenges to software organizations. The key challenges for knowledge intensive organizations are how to identify, assimilate, disseminate, and apply these risk knowledge; particularly between different team members in same software development project. Thus this paper proposes a knowledge mapping process model to assist in mitigating risk (operational and technical) that occurs in software organizations. Knowledge mapping is the field within Knowledge Management (KM) that aims to optimize the efficient and effective use of the organization's knowledge. The mapping process model can support software management teams in measuring and treating risk, thus aiding decision making in software management. Data was collected using semi-structured interview through case study. The interview transcripts were coded and categorized using Nvivo software. Keywords: Knowledge Map, Knowledge Mapping Technique, Risk Mitigation, Software Management, Nvivo


Post stroke dysphagia has been related to an increased risk for pulmonary complications and higher rate of morbidity and mortality. A developing body of evidence has pointed to noninvasive brain stimulation techniques as efficient neurorehabilitation approaches in treatment of post-stroke dysphagia. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) depending on frequency and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) depending on the duration and polarity of stimulation can activate or suppress activity in cortical regions. Enhancement of cortical excitability in the undamaged hemisphere has been related to the improvement of swallowing function in post stroke dysphagia. Developing data suggest that adjunct of cortical stimulation and following reorganization of the intact swallowing cortex augmented the speed of improvement of oropharyngeal dysphagia after a unilateral hemispheric stroke. This Review aims to evaluate the effects of the role of noninvasive brain stimulation techniques including TMS and tDCS as facilitators of recovery from post stroke dysphagia.


We define and study precision and consistency criteria for spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction (SPIDER), an interferometric technique for the characterization of ultrashort optical pulses. Precision quantifies the similarity of different estimates of the electric field reconstructed from a single experimental data set. Consistency is a measure of the match between the reconstructed field and the data. These powerful experimental criteria allow one to monitor the fidelity of the reconstruction of the electric field from the experimental data by tracking systematic errors and random noise. Because of such imperfections, such criteria are necessary even for pulse characterization methods based on a direct algebraic inversion. In the case of SPIDER, the redundancy of data in each interferogram and the principle of shearing interferometry allow simple calculation of the precision and consistency measures.


Power control has been proposed as a tool to improve the performance of packet radio systems in terms of increased throughput and battery lifetime for mobile terminals. In this paper we study the tradeoff between transmitter dynamic range, average energy consumption and the achievable throughput for a simple path-gain based power control algorithm in a slotted ALOHA radio system. The results show that increasing the throughput significantly by means of transmitter power control requires only a very moderate increase in energy consumption and transmitter dynamic range.


Ukraine is struggling with both external aggression and the dramatically poor shape of its economy. The pace of political and institutional change has so far been too slow to prevent the deepening of the fiscal and balance-of-payments crises, while business confidence continues to be undermined.

• Unfortunately, the 2015 International Monetary Fund Extended Fund Facility programme repeats many weaknesses of the 2014 IMF Stand-by Arrangement: slow pace of fiscal adjustment especially in the two key areas of energy prices and pension entitlements, lack of a comprehensive structural and institutional reform vision, and insufficient external financing to close the expected balance-of-payments gap and allow Ukraine to return to debt sustainability in the long term.

• The reform process in Ukraine must be accelerated and better managed. A frontloaded fiscal adjustment is necessary to stabilise public finances and the balance-of-payments, and to bring inflation down. The international community, especially the European Union, should offer sufficient financial aid backed by strong conditionality, technical assistance and support to Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity.


The purpose of this observational retrospective clinical study was to assess the post-operative sensitivity reported by patients following the placement of bulk-fill composite restorations. Patient records of the seventy-two subjects with previously untreated teeth requiring restorations due to caries lesions were used. Seventy-two restorations that were radiographically judged to be located in neither middle nor inner one-third of dentin were included in the study. Two resin composites had been used: Group 1- bulk-fill posterior resin composite (Filtek Bulk Fill Posterior Restorative); Group 2- conventional resin composite (Filtek Z250). The same resin adhesive system (Single Bond Universal Adhesive) had been used with both composites. Patients had been contacted on days 2, 7, 14 and 30 postoperatively and asked about any presence sensitivity, the stimuli that created the sensitivity, if any, the duration of any sensitivity, and the intensity of any sensitivity using a rating from none too severe. The chi-square test showed cavity deepness (p=0.003) significantly affected post-operative sensitivity, while no significances between the different resin composites (p=0.465), cavity sizes (p=0.702) were revealed at day 2, respectively. By day 2, 8.3% of restorations placed in the middle one-third, and 37.5% of restorations placed in the inner one-third of dentin were slightly sensitive. By day 14, there had been no sensitive tooth. Both composite types have potential post-operative sensitivity with limited duration following their placements. The use of bulk-fill posterior restorative for restoration of the deep carious lesion does not seem to affect postoperative sensitivity of composite restorations.


BACKGROUND
Anticipated circumstances during the next severe influenza pandemic highlight the insufficiency of staff and equipment to meet the needs of all critically ill victims. It is plausible that an entire country could face simultaneous limitations, resulting in severe shortages of critical care resources to the point where patients could no longer receive all of the care that would usually be required and expected. There may even be such resource shortfalls that some patients would not be able to access even the most basic of life-sustaining interventions. Rationing of critical care in this circumstance would be difficult, yet may be unavoidable. Without planning, the provision of care would assuredly be chaotic, inequitable, and unfair. The Task Force for Mass Critical Care Working Group met in Chicago in January 2007 to proactively suggest guidance for allocating scarce critical care resources.

TASK FORCE SUGGESTIONS
In order to allocate critical care resources when systems are overwhelmed, the Task Force for Mass Critical Care Working Group suggests the following: (1) an equitable triage process utilizing the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scoring system; (2) the concept of triage by a senior clinician(s) without direct clinical obligation, and a support system to implement and manage the triage process; (3) legal and ethical constructs underpinning the allocation of scarce resources; and (4) a mechanism for rapid revision of the triage process as further disaster experiences, research, planning, and modeling come to light.


Sample degradation of LaNiO3 ultrathin films on SrTiO3 (001) substrate caused by air exposure is examined by means of crystal truncation rod (CTR) scattering method. Although the film is conductive right after the sample deposition, long term storage makes it insulating. CTR measurements were performed on threeand four-unit cell-thick samples just after the sample deposition and after six months of storage in air. The results show that the storage induced a significant increase in the lattice spacing along the surface normal direction with keeping in-plane periodicity. Such a structural change can be caused by escaping oxygen atoms by the thermal fluctuation. [DOI: 10.1380/ejssnt.2016.14]


Mac OS X, Apple's super-advanced, Unix-based operating system, offers every desirable system-software feature known to humans. But without a compatible software library, the Mac of the future was doomed. Microsoft Office X for Macintosh is exactly the software suite most Mac fans were waiting for. Its four programs-Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage-have been completely overhauled to take advantage of the stunning looks and rock-like stability of Mac OS X. But this magnificent package comes without a single page of printed instructions. Fortunately, Pogue Press/O'Reilly is once again there to rescue the befuddled and overwhelmed-with Office X for Macintosh: The Missing Manual. It tackles each of the primary Office applications with depth, humor, and clarity, and provides relief for the hapless Mac user who'd rather read professionally written printed instructions than hunt through a maze of dryly written help screens. Office X for Macintosh: The Missing Manual is coauthored by a dream team of Macintosh experts: Tonya Engst, coeditor of the popular TidBITS Macintosh newsletter; David Reynolds, former executive editor of MacAddict magazine (now working at Apple); and Nan Barber, Macworld contributor and coauthor of Office 2001 for Macintosh: The Missing Manual, on which this book is based. Once again, the authors are joined by series founder David Pogue, who has closely edited the book to ensure excellence of depth, accuracy, and prose.


This paper reports the first laboratory study of the swing voter's curse and provides insights on the larger theoretical and empirical literature on "pivotal voter" models. Our experiment controls for different information levels of voters, as well as teh size of the electorate, the distribution of preferences, and other theoretically relevant parameters. The design varies hte share of partisan voters and the prior elief abouta payoff relevant state of the world. Our results support the equilibrium predictions of the Feddersen-Pesendorfer model, and clearly reject the notion that voters in the laboratory use naive decision-theoretic strategies. The voters act as if they are aware of the swing voter's curse and adjust their behavior to compensate. While the compensation is not complete and there is some heterogeneity in individual behavior, we find that aggregate outcomes, such as efficiency, turnout, and margin of victory, closely track the theoretical predictions.


Network diasporas are but the latest bridge connecting developing economy insiders, with their risk-mitigating knowledge and connections, to outsiders in command of technical know-how and investment capital. This book examines the interaction of expatriate talent with institutions in expatriates' countries of origin in an attempt to make the potential of diasporas and their knowledge a reality. The question of how to trigger and sustain such a virtuous cycle is a central concern of this book. The focus is on the "how to" details of how to design effective diaspora networks and transform brain drain into brain gain.


The human resource is of all resources the most productive, the most versatile, and the most resourceful. Thus an enterprise's wealth does not depend on the financial and material resources available but rather on the people who make things work. It is therefore important for owners and managers of firms to understand how best to manage this most resourceful – human resource – of the firm. This study examined the human resource practices in the informal sector in Ghana, using the situation in the Cape Coast Metropolis as a case study. The main objective of the study was to find out how the human resources within the informal economy were being managed. Six major informal sector operators were randomly selected. A combination of cluster sampling and quota sampling techniques were applied to generate the sample for the study. The total sample for the study was one hundred and seventy. The results of the study show that human resource management practices within the informal sector enterprises are inadequate and therefore impede the development of the workforce which invariably affects the growth of the enterprises. The findings suggest that assistance programmes that encourage the efficient and effective human resource management practices in the informal sector should be provided. The main limitation of the study is that it could not cover all informal sector enterprises within the Metropolis due to time and financial constraints. In this respect, the interpretation of the results of the study should not be over-generalised.


BACKGROUND
Often, in severe obesity, diet and physical activity are not enough to achieve a healthy BMI. Bariatric surgical approach, in particular laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB), has encouraging results in terms of weight loss and resolution of obesity-related comorbidities. However, several months after LAGB, some patients are enable to lose weight anymore and don't tolerate a further calibration because of its collateral effects (excessive sense of fullness, heartburn, regurgitation and vomiting).

AIM
The aim of this study is to identify the potential role of high protein-low carbohydrate ketogenic diet (KD) in managing weight loss in patients who underwent gastric banding and didn't lose weight anymore.

METHODS
50 patients underwent LAGB between January 2010 and December 2013. In twenty patients (GROUP A) we observed a stop in weight loss so we divided this patients into two groups. One group (group A1: 10 patients) continued to follow a LCD low calorie diet and underwent a further calibration; the other group (group A2: 10 patients) started to follow a KD for the next 8 weeks.

RESULTS
Both group resumed a significant weight loss, however group A1 patients reported collateral effects due to calibration and a higher Impact of Weight on Quality of Life - Lite (IWQOL-Lite) that correlates with a lower quality of life than patients following KD.

CONCLUSIONS
KD can improve the weight loss and quality of life in patients who underwent LAGB and failed at losing more weight allowing a weight loss comparable to that obtained with a further calibration and it is useful to avoid drastic calibrations and their collateral effects.

KEY WORDS
Laparoscopic adjustable gastric binding, Quality of life, Very low calory ketogenic binding.


We use a standard metric from international finance, the currency risk premium, to assess the credibility of fixed exchange rates during the classical gold standard era. Theory suggests that a completely credible and permanent commitment to join the gold standard would have zero currency risk or no expectation of devaluation. We find that, even five years after a typical emerging-market country joined the gold standard, the currency risk premium averaged at least 220 basis points. Fixed-effects, panel-regression estimates that control for a variety of borrower-specific factors also show large and positive currency risk premia. In contrast to core gold standard countries, such as France and Germany, the persistence of large premia, long after gold standard adoption, suggest that financial markets did not view the pegs in emerging markets as credible and expected that they devaluation.


Clearing trees to develop land for exotic pastures that enhance pasture production and hence the financial gains, is an important issue in Queensland. Gains from clearing woodlands are questioned. Three tree communities i.e. Acacia harpophylla, Eucalyptus melanophloia and Eucalyptus populnea were selected at three different ages of clearing i.e. 5 yr, 11-13 yr and 33 yr to collect the data on pasture production, soil properties (biological and physicochemical), litter production and nutrient recycling and pasture plant diversity over 2-3 year period of the study. The net economic gains from clearing in terms of pasture production were compared to uncleared pastures and assessed against the tradeoffs of ecological services. The increase in pasture production post-clearing was not consistent with age of clearing. A bioeconomic model, applied to predict pasture production over the 50 years of time of clearing, though suggested economic benefits, however, it is difficult to predict how the loss in ecosystem functions in cleared pastures (> 30 years of clearing), by implication, affect pasture yield over time.


There has been growing interest in using neural networks and deep learning techniques to create dialogue systems. Conversational recommendation is an interesting setting for the scientific exploration of dialogue with natural language as the associated discourse involves goal-driven dialogue that often transforms naturally into more free-form chat. This paper provides two contributions. First, until now there has been no publicly available large-scale data set consisting of real-world dialogues centered around recommendations. To address this issue and to facilitate our exploration here, we have collected ReDial, a data set consisting of over 10,000 conversations centered around the theme of providing movie recommendations. We make this data available to the community for further research. Second, we use this dataset to explore multiple facets of conversational recommendations. In particular we explore new neural architectures, mechanisms and methods suitable for composing conversational recommendation systems. Our dataset allows us to systematically probe model sub-components addressing different parts of the overall problem domain ranging from: sentiment analysis and cold-start recommendation generation to detailed aspects of how natural language is used in this setting in the real world. We combine such sub-components into a full-blown dialogue system and examine its behavior.


It is well known that the dynamics of three point vortices moving in an ideal fluid in the plane can be expressed in Hamiltonian form, where the resulting equations of motion are completely integrable in the sense of Liouville and Arnold. The focus of this investigation is on the persistence of regular behavior (especially periodic motion) associated to completely integrable systems for certain (admissible) kinds of Hamiltonian perturbations of the three vortex system in a plane. After a brief survey of the dynamics of the integrable planar three vortex system, it is shown that the admissible class of perturbed systems is broad enough to include three vortices in a half-plane, three coaxial slender vortex rings in three-space, and 'restricted' four vortex dynamics in a plane. Included are two basic categories of results for admissible perturbations: (i) general theorems for the persistence of invariant tori and periodic orbits using Kolmogorov-Arnold-Moser and Poincaré-Birkhoff type arguments; and (ii) more specific and quantitative conclusions of a classical perturbation theory nature guaranteeing the existence of periodic orbits of the perturbed system close to cycles of the unperturbed system, which occur in abundance near centers. In addition, several numerical simulations are provided to illustrate the validity of the theorems as well as indicating their limitations as manifested by transitions to chaotic dynamics.


S-acylation, commonly known as S-palmitoylation, is a reversible posttranslational lipid modification in which fatty acid, usually palmitic acid, covalently attaches to specific cysteine residues of proteins via thioester bonds. Palmitoylation enhances the hydrophobicity of proteins and contributes to their membrane association. It plays roles in protein trafficking, signalling, protein-protein interaction, protein stability and other important cellular functions. A family of Protein S-acyl Transferases (PATs) is responsible for this reaction. PATs are multi-pass transmembrane proteins that possess a catalytic Asp- His-His-Cys cysteine rich domain (DHHC-CRD) of ~50 amino acids. In Arabidopsis there are at least 24 such DHHC-CRD containing PAT proteins and they are named as AtPAT01 to AtPAT24. The function of only 2 AtPATs, AtPAT10 and AtPAT24 were studied in some detail, and a recent survey showed the ubiquitous expression pattern and different membrane localization habit of all 24 AtPATs. However, the biological function of the remaining 22 AtPATs in Arabidopsis was not reported when I started my project. Therefore, we carried out an initial screen of all the available T-DNA insertion lines of the 22 Arabidopsis PATs and identified transcriptional null mutants of 18 of the AtPATs. Among them, the k/o mutant plants of only 3 genes showed significantly altered phenotypes compared to wild-type Arabidopsis, and the mutants are named as atpat14, atpat21 and plp1(PAT-like Protein 1). This project aims to characterize these three putative PATs in details in terms of their PAT activities, catalytic domains, expression patterns, subcellular localizations and biological functions. AtPAT14 was proved as a PAT by yeast complementary and in vitro auto-acylation assays. Mutagenesis studies clearly demonstrated that the cysteine residue in the DHHCmotif is essential for the enzyme activity of AtPAT14. Transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressing AtPAT14-GFP were observed and it was shown that AtPAT14 is predominantly localized at the Trans-Golgi. The phenotype was observed in both atpat14-1 and atpat14-2 mutant lines and this showed that the leaves of both lines were aging much faster than the WT. Analysis of the levels of different phytohormones revealed that the mutant leaves contained much higher salicylic acid (SA) than the WT. This coincided with the increased transcript levels of genes involved in SA biosynthesis and signalling. Therefore, AtPAT14 mediated protein S-acylation plays important roles in leaf senescence via the regulation of SA biosynthesis and signalling pathways. AtPAT21 was also confirmed as a PAT and the DHHC its functional domain by similar approaches as for AtPAT14. The plasma membrane (PM) localized AtPAT21 plays essential roles in both male and female gametogenesis. As such, loss-of-function by TDNA insertion in AtPAT21 leads to the plant being completely sterile. Therefore, AtPAT21-mediated S-acylation of proteins(s) plays important roles in the reproduction of Arabidopsis. AtPLP1 (PAT-like Protein 1) contains the signature DHHC-CRD. However, it does not rescue the growth defects of akr1, pfa3 and swf1, the 3 yeast PAT mutants used in enzyme activity assays of other known PATs from plant and animals. Further, the cysteine residue in the DHHC motif was not essential for the function of AtPLP1 as mutated variant containing serine in place of cysteine of the DHHC motif can still rescue the growth defects of atplp1-1. Seedling establishment of atplp1-1 was impaired without external carbon source. This is because the efficiency in converting the seed storage lipid to sugar in the mutant is much lower than WT due to the defective β-oxidation process involved in the degradation of free fatty acids released from lipid during post-germinative growth. In addition, atplp1-1 seedlings are also de-etiolated in the dark, and this was coincided with more cytokinin (CK) and less active gibberellin (GA) related pathway in the mutant. Other defects were also found in atplp1-1, such as hypersensitive to abscisic acid (ABA) and sugar during seed germination and abnormal shoot apical meristem (SAM) in older plants. Therefore, protein S-acyltransferases play distinct and diverse roles throughout the life cycle, from seed germination, seedling growth to seed production in Arabidopsis. This is most likely through the palmitoylation of an array of proteins they modify. Hence, our results provide vital clues for future studies on the molecular mechanism as to how AtPATs operate in plant.


Ankara : The Department of Teaching English as a Foreign Language, the Institute of Economics and Social Sciences, Bilkent University, 2001.


Theories of empathy suggest that an accurate understanding of another's emotions should depend on affective, motor, and/or higher cognitive brain regions, but until recently no experimental method has been available to directly test these possibilities. Here, we present a functional imaging paradigm that allowed us to address this issue. We found that empathically accurate, as compared with inaccurate, judgments depended on (i) structures within the human mirror neuron system thought to be involved in shared sensorimotor representations, and (ii) regions implicated in mental state attribution, the superior temporal sulcus and medial prefrontal cortex. These data demostrate that activity in these 2 sets of brain regions tracks with the accuracy of attributions made about another's internal emotional state. Taken together, these results provide both an experimental approach and theoretical insights for studying empathy and its dysfunction.


* Introduction to Health Care Agencies * The Nursing Assistant * Work Ethics * Communicating with the Health Team * Understanding the Person * Understanding Body Structure and Function * Caring for the Older Person * Promoting Safety * NEW! Preventing Falls * Promoting a Restraint-Free Setting * Preventing Infection * Body Mechanics * NEW! Safely Handling, Moving, and Transferring the Person * Assisting With Comfort * Assisting With Hygiene * Assisting With Grooming * Assisting With Urinary Elimination * Assisting With Bowel Elimination * Assisting With Nutrition and Fluids * Assisting With Assessment * Assisting With Specimens * Assisting With Exercise and Activity * Assisting With Wound Care * Assisting With Oxygen Needs * Assisting With Rehabilitation and Restorative Care * Caring for Persons With Common Health Problems * NEW! Caring for Persons With Mental Health Problems * Caring for Persons With Confusion and Dementia * Assisting With Emergency Care * Caring for the Dying Person


This creative dissertation is composed of fabulist stories (fiction) and speculative essays (creative nonfiction) at the cutting edge of current discussions of experimental literature, including allegorical fiction and hybrid nonfiction, with a special interest in new literary forms arising from commercial genres. In one story, a teenager and her brother struggle to make ends meet after their father's death fighting a wildfire; a mysterious rabbit arrives on their doorstep and increases in size proportionate to their grief. In another, a house left abandoned after the recession speaks the stories hidden in its walls. A creative nonfiction essay told in the form of a ghost story describes a community theater haunted by a beloved actor's suicide. Both creative nonfiction and fabulism are to some extent staid forms, with many examples within each tradition of authors merely replicating the devices of their forbears, sans innovation. While attempts at "speculative memoir" do not necessarily get outside the marketplace dynamics of memoir-the-genre and commercial genres (including fantasy, horror and science-fiction), the fusion of these forms opens up a potent space of possibility for the creation of works of prose and fiction that can be highly critical of and resistant to marketplace influences on literary production. Operating in the fabulist tradition of authors like Kij Johnson, Kate Bernheimer, Octavia Butler, and Anna Joy Springer, The Art of Falling explores how free-market capitalism turns intimate relationships entropic and what it means to make art when economic logics fetter the artist's imagination.


BACKGROUND Long-pulsed pulsed-dye lasers permit treatment of facial erythema and telangiectasia with purpura-free technique, which may be more comfortable for the patient than purpura-inducing treatment. However, there are anecdotal reports of treatment-associated discomfort even when purpura is not elicited. OBJECTIVE To determine whether patients experience clinically significant erythema, edema, and pain after purpura-free treatment with pulsed-dye laser. METHODS In this prospective, controlled study, subjects included 15 patients who were undergoing purpura-free treatment of diffuse erythema and fine telangiectasia of at least half the facial surface area with purpura-free pulsed-dye, and it included 15 age, gender, and skin-type matched control subjects who were undergoing similar treatments but with the induction of trace to mild purpura. Patients were seen in person and were surveyed by phone regarding symptoms and signs during their postoperative courses. RESULTS Postoperative erythema of a mean 3.3-days duration and 3.4/5.0 intensity was reported by 73% (11 of 15) of the purpura-free patients. Among purpura patients, the duration was 5.6 days. The intensity was 4.0, and again, 73% of patients reported this finding. Postoperative edema occurred among 87% of purpura-free patients, but such edema occurred in all of the purpura patients, in whom it lasted longer and was more intense. Symptomatic eye swelling and uncom-fortable/painful edema were seen in 27% and 20%, respectively, of purpura-free patients, but in 40% and 53% of purpura patients. Among purpura-free patients receiving fewer than 250 laser pulses per treatment, erythema and edema lasted less than 1 day and 2.5 days, whereas the mean durations were 3.4 and 5.0 days for purpura-free patients receiving greater than 250 pulses. CONCLUSION Extensive purpura-free treatment for erythema and telangiectasia of the face with the long-pulsed pulsed-dye laser can lead to clinically significant erythema, edema, and discomfort in patients. The duration, magnitude, and frequency of these undesired effects are markedly less with purpura-free treatment compared with purpura-inducing treatment and are also less for less extensive purpura-free treatments.


In Arguments as Relations, John Bowers proposes a radically new approach to argument structure that has the potential to unify data from a wide range of different language types in terms of a simple and universal syntactic structure. In many ways, Bowers's theory is the natural extension of three leading ideas in the literature: the minimalist approach to Case theory (particularly Chomsky's idea that Case is assigned under the Agree function relation); the idea of introducing arguments in specifiers of functional categories rather than in projections of lexical categories; and the neo-Davidsonian approach to argument structure represented in the work of Parsons and others. Bowers pulls together these strands in the literature and shapes them into a unified theory. These ideas, together with certain basic assumptions--notably the idea that the initial order of merge of the three basic argument categories of Agent, Theme, and Affectee is just the opposite of what has been almost universally assumed in the literature--lead Bowers to a fundamental rethinking of argument structure. He proposes that every argument is merged as the specifier of a particular type of light verb category and that these functional argument categories merge in bottom-to-top fashion in accordance with a fixed Universal Order of Merge (UOM). In the hierarchical structures that result from these operations, Affectee arguments will be highest, Theme arguments next highest, and Agent arguments lowest--exactly the opposite of the usual assumption. Linguistic Inquiry Monographs 58


Equilibrium crystallization experiments have been performed on a primitive high-MgO basalt (HMB) from Soufriere, St. Vincent, with three initial H2O contents (0·6, 2·3 and 4·5 wt %), at pressures of 0·4, 0·7, 1·0 and 1·3 GPa and temperatures from 1350 to 950°C. Redox conditions, as determined by µXANES analysis of Fe3+ in experimental glasses, were 1–4 log units above the nickel–nickel oxide (NNO) buffer. The aim of the study was to explore the differentiation conditions that gave rise to the observed geochemical variation in lavas and plutonic (cumulate) xenoliths from St. Vincent. An experiment with 4·5 wt % initial H2O is multiply saturated close to its liquidus (1180°C and 1·3 GPa) with a spinel lherzolite assemblage, which is consistent with a primary origin for HMB in the mantle wedge. Multiple saturation of HMB with 2·3 wt % H2O was not observed, but is inferred to occur at pressures >1·3 GPa. The experimental results show that initial H2O content has significant influence on differentiation paths of primary HMB magma, with different lava varieties generated under discrete, well-constrained P–T–H2O conditions. Low-magnesian basalts (LMB) can be generated from HMB with 2·3–4·5 wt % H2O at pressures of 1·0–1·3 GPa, corresponding to Moho depths beneath St. Vincent. The CaO contents of LMB are sensitive to differentiation pressure: high-CaO LMB are produced at pressures >0·5 GPa. Basaltic andesites (BA) can be generated at 0·7–1·0 GPa from HMB with 0·6–2·3 wt % H2O. High-alumina basalts (HAB) are produced at mid- to upper-crustal conditions (≤0·4 GPa) by differentiation of HMB with high initial H2O (≥4 wt %) through delay of plagioclase crystallization and dominant fractionation of olivine, clinopyroxene and spinel. St. Vincent andesites could be produced from relatively dry (≤0·6 wt % H2O) HMB only at lower-crustal conditions. This is suggestive of a partial melting origin from precursor HMB that had solidified at depth to produce gabbros with ∼30% hornblende (i.e. ∼0·6 wt % structurally bound H2O). The experimentally determined differentiation conditions are consistent with polybaric differentiation within a hot zone that extends from the Moho and uppermost mantle to the mid- or upper crust. Within the hot zone differentiation occurs by a combination of crystallization of HMB with 2–5 wt % H2O and partial melting of ancestral HMB gabbros. Although the experimental melts provide an excellent match to erupted lava compositions, experimental crystal compositions do not match either phenocrysts or cumulate crystals, as preserved in xenoliths. The failure to reproduce natural crystal compositions suggests that these are formed as differentiated magmas ascend and attain their H2O-saturated liquidi at shallower pressures. Thus there is a disconnect between the high-pressure phase compositions and assemblages that generate liquid compositional diversity and the low-pressure composition and assemblages that occur as phenocrysts and in cumulate xenoliths. This finding lends support to the idea of cryptic fractionation in the generation of arc magmas.


Forward osmosis (FO) has shown advancement towards recovery of useful water from various waste streams. A major issue that arises is the accumulation of salts due to reverse solute flux (RSF) from a draw solution into a feed solution that can result in several negative effects such as decreased water flux and inhibition of biological activities. This paper aims to provide a concise discussion and analysis of methods that can help to alleviate the effects of solute buildup. New parameters, solute removal/recovery rate (SRR) and removal/recovery ratio (ReR), are proposed to help better define the performance of reducing solute buildup and employed in case studies to evaluate selected reduction methods. Solute removal can be accomplished by physical separation, chemical precipitation, and biological removal. Recovery of solutes, one step beyond removal, is discussed and demonstrated by using bioelectrochemical systems and electrodialysis as examples. This work has highlighted the concerns associated with solute buildup and will encourage further exploration of effective tools to mitigate solute buildup for improved performance of FO-based water/wastewater systems.


Burglary and stealing are crimes that have a significant impact and cost on its victims and society. To mitigate such crimes, property marking is a situational crime prevention strategy that attempts to prevent through dissuasion. There are many forms of property marking, yet there is limited research of its efficacy. Where there have been such studies, there has been some indications of success. Therefore, the study assessed the efficacy of property marking to reduce burglary and stealing crimes. The study undertook a quantitate approach using nonequivalent control groups to assess the geo-spatial impact of property marking when applied at a saturation level. Three housing groups were established (N878), comprising an experimental (n278), adjacent (n300) and control (n300) groups, with significance measured using a Wald Chi-square method. Results indicated that when property marking is applied at saturation levels (≥80%), both burglary and stealing crimes decreased significantly. Furthermore, that displacement for both burglary and stealing occurred in the adjacent area. Recommendations suggest that property marking should not be used in a sporadic manner; instead, targeted at an optimal saturation level. Such targeting should have the aim to target burglary and stealing hotspots and saturate these areas for property marking to work effectively.


When The Knowledge-Creating Company (OUP; nearly 40,000 copies sold) appeared, it was hailed as a landmark work in the field of knowledge management. Now, Enabling Knowledge Creation ventures even further into this all-important territory, showing how firms can generate and nurture ideas by using the concepts introduced in the first book. Weaving together lessons from such international leaders as Siemens, Unilever, Skandia, and Sony, along with their own first-hand consulting experiences, the authors introduce knowledge enabling-the overall set of organizational activities that promote knowledge creation-and demonstrate its power to transform an organization's knowledge into value-creating actions. They describe the five key "knowledge enablers" and outline what it takes to instill a knowledge vision, manage conversations, mobilize knowledge activists, create the right context for knowledge creation, and globalize local knowledge. The authors stress that knowledge creation must be more than the exclusive purview of one individual-or designated "knowledge" officer. Indeed, it demands new roles and responsibilities for everyone in the organization-from the elite in the executive suite to the frontline workers on the shop floor. Whether an activist, a caring expert, or a corporate epistemologist who focuses on the theory of knowledge itself, everyone in an organization has a vital role to play in making "care" an integral part of the everyday experience; in supporting, nurturing, and encouraging microcommunities of innovation and fun; and in creating a shared space where knowledge is created, exchanged, and used for sustained, competitive advantage. This much-anticipated sequel puts practical tools into the hands of managers and executives who are struggling to unleash the power of knowledge in their organization.


Phase Change Materials (PCMs) are known to be capable of storing a substantial amount of energy in relatively low volume. Also, since the phase change process occurs in a nearly constant temperature, PCMs are suitable to be used as storage units. The present study focuses on the effect of Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) flow parameters on heat transfer and melting process of PCM. The numerical results are validated against available experimental data. Then, the numerical study is extended to investigate the impacts of HTF flow parameters such as inlet temperature and mass flow rate. According to the obtained numerical results, the overall performance of the system is enhanced by increasing the inlet parameters of the HTF flow. In addition, the exergy analysis indicated that the stored exergy increases with increasing flow rate and inlet temperature of HTF. On the other hand, the exergy efficiency does not increase monotonically, but it reaches its maximum value in intermediate values of inlet flow rate and temperature. Research history:


In 2012, Niger was affected by a food crisis that caused large population displacements. The NGO Arbeiter- Samariter-Bund Deutschland e.V. (ASB) distributed unconditional cash transfers in areas of food insecurity to improve food access for those displaced and those affected, and to help repatriate people to their villages of origin in the Zinder, Agadez and Maradi regions. By means of cash transfers, ASB repatriated 672 internally displaced households to their communities of origin in time for the sowing season (June, 2012). This CaLP case study outlines the project, looks at the impacts of the cash transfers as well as the challenges, solutions and lessons learned.


The civil justice gap is well-known, well-documented, and widening. Although judges, practitioners, and scholars have attempted for more than fifty years to increase the supply of civil legal services available to those in need, demand continues to dramatically outstrip supply. This article argues that given the static (or worsening) state of the civil justice gap, and the millions of Americans who do not even seek legal help for problems that otherwise might fall within that gap, legal literacy is paramount. Our colleagues in the public health profession use health literacy to help prevent health problems and temper demand for health services, and in fact, high levels of health literacy lead to fewer emergency room visits and better health outcomes. Health literacy is regularly included in public K-12 education. This article contends that we should try a similar approach for legal literacy. Legal literacy has the potential to prevent problems from reaching the point of needing formal legal intervention; it also can empower individuals to take advantage of existing legal protections on their own or make informed decisions regardless of the ultimate outcome. Increased legal literacy might also mean that Americans come to legal aid before problems are too far-gone and with more realistic expectations about results and remedies. After decades of chasing after supply-side solutions, it is time to look at demand.


Symbols in computer programs are not necessarily isomorphic in form or capability to neural processes. Representations in our models are stored descriptions of the world and human behavior, created by a human interpreter; representations in the brain are neither immutable forms nor encoded in some language. Although the term "symbol" can be usefully applied to describe words, smoke signals, neural maps, and graphic icons, a science of symbol processing requires distinguishing between the structural, developmental, and interactive nature of different forms of representing.


Fuel storage systems for vehicles require a fail-safe design strategy. In case of system failures or accidents, the control electronics have to switch the system into a safe operation mode. Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) or Failure Tree Analysis (FTA) are performed already in the early design phase in order to minimize the risk of design failures in the fuel storage system. Currently, the specifications of requirements for pressurized and liquid hydrogen fuel tanks are based on draft UN-ECE Regulations developed by the European Integrated Hydrogen Project (EIHP). Used materials and accessories shall be compatible with hydrogen. A selection of metallic and non-metallic materials will be presented. Complex components have to be optimised by FEM simulations in order to determine weak spots in the design, which will be overstressed in case of pressure, thermal expansion or dynamic vibrations. According to automotive standards, the performance of liquid hydrogen fuel tank systems has to be verified in various destructive and nondestructive tests.


A comprehensive survey was conducted to assess departmental, interpersonal and attitudinal variables related to Canadian student experiences in science and engineering graduate programs. The present study uses a subset of the survey variables to examine the experiences of women and men graduate students and to identify relationships between contextual factors and four specific outcomes: intention to leave current program, intention to pursue a career in field of study, science/engineering self-efficacy and confidence in establishing a career in one's field. Quantitative and qualitative results show that departmental climate and advisor support predicted student intentions, confidence and self-efficacy. Gender differences in self-efficacy and confidence were also found.


English speech rhythm is closely associated with the patterns of lexical stress and prominence in a stream of speech. Older varieties of English (OVEs), such as British and American English, which usually operate as the model in English language teaching, are often described as 'stress-timed', meaning the time between stressed syllables is more or less equal, in comparison with 'syllable-timed' languages (e.g., French or Cantonese), for which the time between successive syllable onsets is more or less equal. The usefulness of this distinction, however, has been disputed; e.g., Cauldwell (2002) talks about 'functional irrythmicality' in English speech.

Cutler (1984) explains that native speakers of English focus on stressed syllables when listening to a stream of speech as part of the decoding process; i.e., for native speakers, lexical stress and the rhythm of the incoming signal play an important part in perception. Couper-Kuhlen and colleagues (e.g., Auer, Couper-Kuhlen, & Muller, 1999) have shown that speech rhythm plays an important part in the coordination of turn-taking in conversation. Anderson-Hsieh and Venkatagiri (1994) argue that speakers' intelligibility will be affected if they do not sufficiently weaken English unstressed syllables. Such research indicates that the differences in the lexical stress and/or speech rhythm patterns of learners of English, or speakers of New Varieties of English (NVEs) which are not 'stress-timed', could create difficulties in comprehension and cooperative interaction for native speakers of OVEs and also, plausibly, for other speakers of English if they are using similar strategies. However, whether the majority of speakers of English in the world have a speaker of an OVE as their target interlocutor is coming increasingly under question.

This chapter gives an overview of English lexical stress, prominence and speech rhythm in OVEs, including theoretical approaches to their description, and includes suggestions for pedagogical approaches for the English language classroom.


We present a new approach for the analysis and modeling of catchment rainfall‐runoff relationships that uses as predictor variables input history summary variables only. The latter are defined as linear combinations of inputs at a given number of previous time steps. This transforms the dynamic identification problem into a static one. As the identification algorithm we use regression trees, which act as a nonlinear nonparametric model. The original algorithm is adapted to account for serial correlation in variables. The new method is applied to two subcatchments of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Andrews Experimental Forest Watershed (Oregon, United States). Simple and interpretable tree models explain more than 80% of the initial deviance of the observations in both calibration and validation. This suggests that the selected variables have a good predictive power and that further modeling attempts using them are warranted. The models show a distinct pattern of the selected explanatory variables. Applications of the method include data quality control, comparative analysis, assessment of hydrological change, and multicriterion evaluation of parametric hydrological models.


In American classrooms in the first half of the twentieth century, students using the popular history textbook Growth of the American Republic were taught that slaves "suffered less than any other class in the South from its 'peculiar institution.' ... There was much to be said for slavery as a transitional status between barbarism and civilization. The negro learned his master's language, and accepted in some degree his moral and religious standards" (Morrison and Commager 415). This idea of slavery stems directly from U. B. Phillips's massive history American Negro Slavery (1918), which dominated the historiography of slavery well into the 1950s. In Phillips's words, "the plantations were the best schools yet invented for the mass training of that sort of inert and backward people which the bulk of the American negroes represented," and Phillips emphasizes that the "process of transition from barbarism to civilization" was "essentially slow" (343). White plantation owners, in this metaphor, instill order and attempt to teach the methods of rationality to "superstitious and ignorant" slaves. It is not surprising then to find that Arna Bontemps, when researching slave narratives before writing his historical novel of slavery, Black Thunder (1936), rejected Nat Turner's rebellion as the basis for his novel because he was uneasy about "the business of Nat's 'visions' and 'dreams' " ("Introduction" xii). Instead, he chose Gabriel Prosser and his attempt to capture Richmond, Virginia, in 1800, because Prosser "had not depended on trance-like mumbo-jumbo," and he emphasizes that Prosser "had not been possessed, not even overly optimistic" (xiii). Bontemps appears to have valued Prosser's logical planning and organization, his "strategy," and his "dignity." It would be easy to read this as revealing Bontemps's desire to counter the dominant image of slaves as "superstitious and ignorant," except for the fact that Bontemps depicts in his novel slaves who fear "signs" and "bad hands," who visit conjurers for protection, and who see the ghost of the slave Bundy, who was beaten to death by his master. It is true that Gabriel himself dismisses the other slaves' superstitions, and this has led Eric Sundquist to note that, "although conjure has undeniable power in the slave world recreated in Black Thunder, it is set in contrast to the decidedly rational foundation provided for Gabriel's bid to be free" (97); Sundquist argues that ultimately conjure remains ambivalent in this novel, since it both causes a "disabling fear of 'stars,' 'signs,' and 'bad hands' " that dooms the rebellion, and "ultimately becomes a mechanism for power and revenge within the community" (121-22). While I find Sundquist's reading insightful and comprehensive in relation to the slaves themselves, my own reading draws on Houston Baker's theory of conjure as narrative and William Covino's theory of magic rhetoric to explore how this conflict between rationality and conjure within the novel's plot is mirrored at the level of the novel's discourse, inviting the reader to participate actively in choosing conjure over the type of rationality that Phillips's text presents. Many of the slaves in Black Thunder are caught in an epistemological dilemma between trusting the "rational" word that comes to them from masters and books, and trusting a conjure epistemology that they themselves often dismiss as "superstition." Ben, the slave who confesses and thus reveals Gabriel's plot to overthrow Richmond, is haunted by the ghost of Bundy, a slave beaten to death by his master, and yet rejects the ghost's call for retribution. Gabriel himself, at more than one crucial juncture, faces the choice between "reading" the world according to an empiricist mode and "reading" events in the natural world as signs or symbols that would reveal a conjure knowledge based on the assumption of an animate and interconnected world. By revealing Ben and Gabriel as tragic "misreaders," and by providing the reader with opportunities to interpret the text through a conjure epistemology, Bontemps argues not only for a revised history of slavery that acknowledges the slaves as sources, but also for a way of knowing both the past and contemporary reality that does not rely on objectivist discourse. …


Introduction DOCK8 mutations are responsible for a rare autosomal recessive immunodeficiency syndrome associated with severe cutaneous viral infections, elevated IgE levels, environmental allergies, autoimmunity, and malignancy. DOCK8 activates CDC42, which is important for cell signalling and actin reorganisation. Natural killer cells play a vital role in tumour surveillance and defence against virally infected cells. NK cell function relies on the accumulation of actin at the NK cell immunologic synapse formed with target cells. Although abnormalities in T and B cell function have been described in DOCK8-deficient patients, the role of NK cells in this disease is poorly understood. Objectives/Aims Given the susceptibility to severe cutaneous viral infection and malignancy, we hypothesised there was a substantive defect in NK cell function in patients with DOCK8 deficiency. Methods 10 patients with genetically confirmed DOCK8 deficiency as well as NK cell lines with stably reduced DOCK8 expression were evaluated experimentally using in vitro NK cell cytotoxicity, F-actin content, and confocal immunofluorescence microscopy assays. Results DOCK8-deficient patients and cell lines all had decreased NK cell cytotoxicity and function could not be restored after IL-2 stimulation. Importantly, DOCK8 deficiency did not affect NK cell F-actin content, but impaired F-actin accumulation at the lytic immunological synapse. Conclusions DOCK8 deficiency results in severely deficient NK cell function owing to an inability to form a mature lytic immunological synapse via focal F-actin accumulation. This defect may underlie important and previously perplexing attributes of the DOCK8 deficiency clinical syndrome including the unusual susceptibility to viral infection.


Polypeptide Nucleic Acids, PNAs, are analogues of DNA and have the potential to bind to
DNA by base-pairing and hence act as therapeutic agents. Amino acids carrying
heterocycles in their side-chains are valid targets as natural products and as components of
these potential therapeutic agents (PNAs) for use in living organisms. The aim of this
investigation was to synthesise a range of heterocyclic amino acids, that could be used in
the formation of PNAs. The proteinogenic amino acids, serine and cysteine and the
unnatural amino acids, homocysteine, 2,3-diaminopropionic acid and 2,4-diaminobutyric
acid, have been used in the formation of said heterocyclic amino acids via a C–X bond
(where X=C, S, O or N) in a linker chain.
It was decided to approach the synthesis of heterocyclic amino acids by way of a linker
approach, joining the ready-formed heterocycle with an amino acid. Once the amino acids
had been suitably protected several different methods were attempted in order to form
heterocyclic amino acids. To form a carbon–carbon (X=C) bond in the linker chain, radical
and organocuprate conjugate addition reactions and hydroboration and metathesis coupling
were attempted. The formation of a linker containing a carbon–heteroatom bond (X=S, O
or N) was investigated using a substitution approach. [Continues.]


An influence of matter on the vacuum energy density is considered and a treatment of gravitation as inhomogeneity of quantum diffusion is developed. A treatment of quantum theory as conservative diffusion [1] is briefly presented, where quantum fluctuations of energy and momentum of a classical particle occur because of interaction with physical vacuum. The increasing of particle's mean energy at such fluctuations appears as quantum phenomena, while corresponding local decreasing of mean vacuum energy to the same value appears as gravitation. For one a particle the decreasing is extremaly small and in particle physics it can be neglected. However, when large number of particles are concentrated in a small volume, consequences of the vacuum energy decreasing become appreciable and they appear as gravitation. The diffusion treatment of quantum processes thus leads to the diffusion treatment of gravitation with natural synthesis of theories of both phenomena. New properties of inhomogeneous diffusion related by local decreasing of vacuum energy, such as slowering of fluctuations of particles with delay of intensity of processes (including redshift of frequencies), drift of particles toward slower fluctuations region and their diffusive acceleration, which is independent on mass of particles, are studied. Observable effects following from the new treatment are discussed. PACS: 02.50.Ey, 03.65.Ta , 05.40.Jc,


Introduction
The figure shows a typical Hymenolepis nana egg found in feces from a 2-year-old child with
diarrhea. An oncosphere containing the hexacanth embryo with three pairs of hooks and two polar thickenings can be observed. The polar filaments are
present in the space between the oncosphere and the eggshell; those filaments
are difficult to see in this picture, however.
Methods
The feces were collected in a sterile wide-mouth
plastic bottle and prepared using the formalin-ethyl acetate sedimentation procedure; the sediment was analyzed using light microscopy. The egg was photographed with a
digital camera (Leica) using an
oil
immersion objective (1,000x).
Discussion
H. nana
, known as
the dwarf tapeworm, is the smallest of the adult human tapeworms.  It is
normally a parasite of mice, in which the life cycle involves various beetles
as intermediate hosts. In humans, transmission is usually accomplished by
direct ingestion of infective eggs containing oncospheres.  Also humans may
acquire the tapeworms by accidental ingestion of infected beetles, often occurring
in dry cereals.  H. nana has a worldwide geographic distribution but is the most
common tapeworm infection of humans in the United States.
References
1.  Forbes, B. A., D. F. Sahm, and A. S. Weissfeld
. 2002.  Bailey & Scott's diagnostic microbiology,
11th ed.,
p. 690–695.  Mosby, St. Louis, MO.2.  Jawetz, E., J. L. Melnick, and E. A. Adelberg
.  1979. Review of medical microbiology,
12th ed.
, p. 512.  Lange Medical Publications, Los Altos, CA.
3.  Murray, P. R., E. J. Baron, J. H. Jorgensen, M. A. Pfaller, and R. H. Yolken
. 2003. Manual of clinical microbiology,
8th ed.,
vol. 2, p. 2043–2045. ASM Press, Washington, D.C.


Establishing precise neuronal connections is crucial for normal brain function. In many parts of the brain, this is accomplished by refining initially diffuse neuronal connections during development. In contrast to our understanding of the mechanisms by which excitatory connections are refined, the refinement of inhibitory circuits is poorly understood. In this thesis, I investigated the refinement of inhibitory connections in the lateral superior olive (LSO), a mammalian auditory brainstem nucleus involved in sound localization. The glycinergic, and during development also GABAergic, projection from the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body (MNTB) to the LSO is tonotopically organized with a single-cell-level precision in adults. I asked whether and by what mechanisms the precise organization emerges during development.I found that the refinement of this inhibitory pathway is achieved by a large degree of functional elimination of exuberant inputs and strengthening of maintained inputs. Elimination of inputs occurred in a frequency-specific manner, resulting in a sharper inhibitory topography. The topographic refinement occurred while the MNTB inputs act excitatory, raising the possibility that depolarizing action of GABA and glycine is a mechanism underlying the rearrangement of inhibitory synaptic connections. In parallel with the elimination, synaptic responses elicited by the maintained MNTB inputs increased over 10-fold. This was due to a moderate increase in quantal size and a large increase in the number of release sites formed by each MNTB fiber. I further investigated whether olivocochlear efferent neurons that project from the brainstem back to the cochlea play a role in the topographic sharpening. I found that the refinement of the MNTB-LSO pathway is impaired in animals with compromised efferent projections. In both efferent-lesioned rats and mice lacking the ?9 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit, LSO neurons received a greater number of weak MNTB inputs than in control animals. These results indicate that normal olivocochlear efferent projections are necessary for the refinement of the MNTB-LSO pathway. I discuss the possibility that the effect of efferent manipulation could be due to altered levels or temporal patterns of spontaneous activity before hearing onset.


All Henderson Dores dreams of is fitting in. But America, land of the loony millionaire and the subway poet, down-home Bible-basher and sharp-suited hood, of paralyzing personal frankness and surreally fantasized facilities, is hard enough for an Englishman to fit in to. Henderson could never shed enough inhibitions to become just another weirdo. Or could he? This hilarious fish-out-of-water comedy, which Boyd also adapted for screen for the 1980s film starring Daniel Day Lewis, was described in the "Guardian" as, 'splittingly shrewd and engaging ...with an extra and uneasy little something fretting away at the ribald content'.


Objective To establish the current evidence base for the use of orthotics and taping for people with osteoporotic vertebral fracture (OVF). Design Systematic review of quantitative and qualitative studies. Data sources Medline, Medline-In Process, EMBASE, AMED, CINAHL, PEDro, TRIP, EThOS, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses and Cochrane (CDSR, DARE, CMR, HTA, EED) plus Cochrane Central, UK Clinical Research Network portfolio, Controlled Clinical Trials register and the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials register. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies All study designs were considered if they reported in English and evaluated the impact of using an external support, such as a spinal brace, orthosis or postural tape, with adults with OVF. All outcomes were considered. Results Nine studies were included comprising two parallel-group randomised controlled trials, four randomised cross-over trials, two before-after (single arm) studies and a parallel group observational study. No qualitative studies were identified. A wide range of outcomes assessing impairments, activities and participation were assessed but the findings were mixed. The quality of studies was limited. Conclusions The current evidence for using orthotic devices or taping for people with OVF is inconsistent and of limited quality and therefore careful consideration should be taken by clinicians before prescribing them in practice. Systematic review registration number CRD42015020893.


This paper details a longitudinal interpretative field study of an information technology (IT) organization in which a new chief information officer (CIO) implemented a major organizational redesign. The redesign increased the degree of codification in activities of the IT organization so as to control, coordinate, and deliver services more cost effectively to its business clients. We examine different stakeholders views of the change, the implementation processes, and the consequences of the redesign.

The case analysis emphasizes specific challenges that designers of support organizations face when increasing the degree of codification. Key implications include the need for these designers to (1) pay as much, if not more, attention to the local organizational context as they do to the external environmental conditions; (2) communicate and negotiate constantly with various stakeholders concerning the appropriate degree of codification and control; (3) be wary of how a strict alignment of all design elements can blind the designer to important, unrecognized issues; and (4) consider that increased codification may help support organizations compete more efficiently with external vendors, but may also ease the process of outsourcing.


We present the SDSS-XDQSO quasar targeting catalog for efficient flux-based quasar target selection down to the faint limit of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) catalog, even at medium redshifts (2.5 ≲ z ≲ 3) where the stellar contamination is significant. We build models of the distributions of stars and quasars in flux space down to the flux limit by applying the extreme-deconvolution method to estimate the underlying density. We convolve this density with the flux uncertainties when evaluating the probability that an object is a quasar. This approach results in a targeting algorithm that is more principled, more efficient, and faster than other similar methods. We apply the algorithm to derive low-redshift (z < 2.2), medium-redshift (2.2 ⩽ z ⩽ 3.5), and high-redshift (z>3.5) quasar probabilities for all 160,904,060 point sources with dereddened i-band magnitude between 17.75 and 22.45 mag in the 14,555 deg2 of imaging from SDSS Data Release 8. The catalog can be used to define a uniformly selected and efficient low- or medium-redshift quasar survey, such as that needed for the SDSS-III's Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey project. We show that the XDQSO technique performs as well as the current best photometric quasar-selection technique at low redshift, and outperforms all other flux-based methods for selecting the medium-redshift quasars of our primary interest. We make code to reproduce the XDQSO quasar target selection publicly available.


Summary Ramphastidae (Aves: Piciformes) are animals recognized for their exuberant colours and long bill, with distribution range from south Mexico to north Argentina. They are important seed dispersers eating little vertebrates eventually. When in captivity, animals usually live in limited spaces, with high density and near by species that do not share a evolution history, facilitating the occurrence of infectious diseases for what they may not have a competent immune system against, including the parasitic ones. This study analyzed the endoparasites that occur in captive Ramphastidae at São Paulo Zoo in the period January 2009 to September 2011. Seven species of toucans and toucanets had parasitological results positive for Trichuridae nematodes, Eimeria sp., Giardia sp., non sporulated coccidian oocists and unidentified nematode eggs, and microfilarie was the only hemoparasite found.


The emphasis in this article is on the impact of fault ride-through requirements on wind turbines structural loads. Nowadays, this aspect is a matter of high priority as wind turbines are required more and more to act as active components in the grid, i.e. to support the grid even during grid faults.

This article proposes a computer approach for the quantification of the wind turbines structural loads caused by the fault ride-through grid requirements. This approach, exemplified for the case of a 2MW active stall wind turbine, relies on the combination of knowledge from complimentary simulation tools, which have expertise in different specialized wind turbines design areas. Two complimentary simulation tools are considered i.e. the detailed power system simulation tool PowerFactory from DIgSILENT and the advanced aeroelastic computer code HAWC2, in order to assess of the dynamic response of wind turbines to grid faults. These two tools are coupled sequently in an offline approach, in order to achieve a thorough insight both into the structural as well as the electrical wind turbine response during grid faults.

The impact of grid requirements on wind turbines structural loads is quantified by performing a rainflow and a statistical analysis for fatigue and ultimate structural loads, respectively. Two cases are compared i.e. one where the turbine is immediately disconnected from the grid when a grid fault occurs and one where the turbine is equipped with a fault ride-through controller and therefore it is able to remain connected to the grid during the grid fault. Copyright copy; 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A detailed examination of a high-resolution Fourier-transform spectrum of a platinum hollow-cathode discharge in the near infrared has yielded one Pt i and four Pt ii parity-forbidden magnetic dipole transitions. Theoretical calculations and analysis of the hyperfine structure are used to confirm these assignments, and applications to astrophysics and lasers are suggested.


The fact in the education world, we still found many study that defend to the old method, for example lecture, memorize, and dry discussion. If we see objectively, from the elementary school level until university level, some teacher still apply that old study method. Admitted or
not that old method make a little involved by students in study. Of course the mentioned doesn't give a chance to students to communicating optimally.
Active study, innovative, creative, effective, and fun (PAIKEM) is one of solution to presentation the study that concentrates on students and effort to increase the students mathematic communication ability. The application of PAIKEM will make students active in asking for something, give conception, and reveal their idea or their brainchild. Students more creative in problem solving, so those study more effective and fun for student.
This research aims to: (1). See and describe students activity, (2). See and describe the students output, and (3). To know the students mathematic communication ability. This research use a qualitative approach and the kind of this research is descriptive. Data that taken in this research are data of activity students, data of output students, and data of students mathematic communication ability. The subject is 3B grade student of SD 9 Muhammadiyah Malang that number 28 students.
The analysis that got, show that the category of activity of students is good, the student output has achieved completion classically that is 75%, the category of students mathematic communication ability in writing ability is good and the average percentage is 91%, and the
category of students mathematic communication ability in verbally is good and the average percentage is 78%.


Psychological stress has been implicated as a risk factor in the progression of breast cancer, however the biological mechanisms are not well understood. In animal models of psychological stress, anincrease in mammary tumour burden and metastatic spread has been observed.1 Furthermore, in breast cancer cells, the stress hormones cortisol and noradrenaline, released as part of the stress response, have been shown to promote DNA damage through the generation of reactive oxygen/nitrogen species.2 The research presented here aimed to first explore the in vitro effects of cortisol by measuring the induction of DNA damage and the generation of nitric oxide (NO). An in vivo mouse model of psychological stress was also employed to study the impact of stress on the progression of breast cancer, alongside an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) (L-NAME). Through pharmacological inhibition of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), as well as selective and non-selective inhibition of NOS, this research aimed to elucidate a mechanism through which stress may impact breast cancer progression. In mammary tumour cells treated with cortisol, an increase in both NO and DNA damage was observed. This was abrogated with inhibition of the GR, as well as pan-inhibition of NOS and, specifically, the isoform inducible NOS (iNOS). Cortisol upregulated the expression of iNOS, a marker previously suggested as an indicator of poor survival in breast cancer.3 Induction of chronic stress in a syngeneic mouse model of breast cancer had no effect on the growth of the primary tumour;however, inhibition of NOS in stressed mice significantly decreased tumour volume compared to stress alone. A significant increase in tumour microvasculature was observed in the primary tumours, as there was an increase in metastatic sites per mouse in stressed mice, compared to the control. This was also reversed through the inhibition of NOS. This study indicated that stress may impact tumourigenic progression through the induction of DNA damage, mediated by the release of NO. Inhibition of NOS was able to negate the effects of stress on tumour growth and metastasis, providing an insight into the potential benefits of NOS inhibitors in breast cancer treatment. However, presentation of this research at the ESMO congress raised some potential implications of inhibition of NO signalling. Primarily, these included the effects of NOS inhibition on haemodynamics, because L-NAME has been used previously in a clinical setting to increase blood pressure. In future studies, this limitation could be resolved through cotreatment with antihypertensives, as was thecase in a previous study that demonstrated the growth inhibitory effects of iNOS inhibition in breast cancer.4 Discussion also focussed on the effects of glucocorticoid signalling in the immune system, since previous research has demonstrated that stress can adversely affect the immune response in breast cancer models, and in patients.5,6Furthermore, an increase in the expression of the GR has been observed to correlate with poor prognosis in oestrogen receptor-negative breast cancer patients, indicating that glucocorticoid-mediated signalling can influence cancer progression.7 As such, current trials using novel GR inhibitors in breast cancer patients are underway. Future perspectives for this work would seek to use pharmacological therapeutics, including using selective GR inhibitors in combination with NOS inhibitors, in highly stressed patients with breast cancer.


The Concept of Law is the most important and original work of legal philosophy written this century. First published in 1961, it is considered the masterpiece of H.L.A. Hart's enormous contribution to the study of jurisprudence and legal philosophy. Its elegant language and balanced arguments have sparked wide debate and unprecedented growth in the quantity and quality of scholarship in this area--much of it devoted to attacking or defending Hart's theories. Principal among Hart's critics is renowned lawyer and political philosopher Ronald Dworkin who in the 1970s and 80s mounted a series of challenges to Hart's Concept of Law. It seemed that Hart let these challenges go unanswered until, after his death in 1992, his answer to Dworkin's criticism was discovered among his papers. In this valuable and long-awaited new edition Hart presents an Epilogue in which he answers Dworkin and some of his other most influential critics including Fuller and Finnis. Written with the same clarity and candor for which the first edition is famous, the Epilogue offers a sharper interpretation of Hart's own views, rebuffs the arguments of critics like Dworkin, and powerfully asserts that they have based their criticisms on a faulty understanding of Hart's work. Hart demonstrates that Dworkin's views are in fact strikingly similar to his own. In a final analysis, Hart's response leaves Dworkin's criticisms considerably weakened and his positions largely in question. Containing Hart's final and powerful response to Dworkin in addition to the revised text of the original Concept of Law, this thought-provoking and persuasively argued volume is essential reading for lawyers and philosophers throughout the world.


We have applied a simple GUM-based procedure to estimate the uncertainties of physical and mechanical properties in geological materials. First, we define the quantity to measure and decide whether we want to work with units or relative quantities. Subsequently, we calculate the repeatability standard deviation (sr) and the standard uncertainty. If we have proficiency test data or use certified reference materials, we use them to estimate the laboratory bias, the reproducibility standard deviation (sR) and the reproducibility standard uncertainty. We also make sure that we know or have estimated the standard uncertainty of the instruments that we use in the measurements. The latter is typically taken from the instrument calibration or precision statement. We estimate the standard uncertainty of the reference materials and the standard uncertainty of the laboratory bias. The final two steps include the calculation of (1) the laboratory standard uncertainty uncorrected for bias and corrected for bias, and (2) the laboratory expanded uncertainty at the 95% confidence limit.


This paper investigates personalized voice characters for in-car speech interfaces. In particular, we report on how we designed different personalities for voice assistants and compared them in a real world driving study. Voice assistants have become important for a wide range of use cases, yet current interfaces are using the same style of auditory response in every situation, despite varying user needs and personalities. To close this gap, we designed four assistant personalities (Friend, Admirer, Aunt, and Butler) and compared them to a baseline (Default) in a between-subject study in real traffic conditions. Our results show higher likability and trust for assistants that correctly match the user's personality while we observed lower likability, trust, satisfaction, and usefulness for incorrectly matched personalities, each in comparison with the Default character. We discuss design aspects for voice assistants in different automotive use cases.


The Cambrian to Ordovician Durness Group was deposited on the Scottish sector of the passively-subsiding, continental margin of the Laurentian craton, and now forms part of the Hebridean terrane, lying to the west of the Moine Thrust zone. It represents c. 920 m of shallow marine, peritidal carbonates with minor siliciclastic and evaporitic strata. Facies analysis shows that the carbonates represent deposition within coastal sabkha, intertidal and shallow subtidal to shelfal environments and sedimentary logging of all available sections has revised the thicknesses of the lithostratigraphic formations within the Durness Group. A diverse array of microbialites is documented, and their application for interpreting the sea-level and palaeoenvironmental history is discussed. The enigmatic 'leopard rock' texture is here concluded to represent a thrombolite, thus significantly increasing the abundance of microbial facies within the section. A revised conodont biostratigraphy for the Ordovician upper five formations of the Durness Group allows more precise correlation with the once contiguous sections in western Newfoundland and Greenland and dating of the lithostratigraphical and sequence stratigraphical subdivisions for the first time. Based upon the new conodont biostratigraphy, a sequence stratigraphical model for the Cambro-Ordovician strata in Scotland is proposed, comprising four depositional megasequences, which correlate well with the Sauk sea level sequence recognised across Laurentia. This study allows for further correlation with Laurentian margin sections and the global sea-level record.


Performance-based financing (PBF) schemes have been expanding rapidly across low and middle income countries in the past decade, with considerable external financing from multilateral, bilateral and global health initiatives. Many of these countries have been fragile and conflict-affected (FCAS), but while the influence of context is acknowledged to be important to the operation of PBF, there has been little examination of how it affects adoption and implementation of PBF. This article lays out initial hypotheses about how FCAS contexts may influence the adoption, adaption, implementation and health system effects of PBF. These are then interrogated through a review of available grey and published literature (140 documents in total, covering 23 PBF schemes). We find that PBF has been more common in FCAS contexts, which were also more commonly early adopters. Very little explanation of the rationale for its adoption, in particular in relation with the contextual features, is given in programme documents. However, there are a number of factors which could explain this, including the greater role of external actors and donors, a greater openness to institutional reform, and lower levels of trust within the public system and between government and donors, all of which favour more contractual approaches. These suggest that rather than emerging despite fragility, conditions of fragility may favour the rapid emergence of PBF. We also document few emerging adaptations of PBF to humanitarian settings and limited evidence of health system effects which may be contextually driven, but these require more in-depth analysis. Another area meriting more study is the political economy of PBF and its diffusion across contexts.


Direct-conversion radio receivers can offer highly integrated low-cost hardware solutions for spectrum sensing in cognitive radio systems. However, these receivers are susceptible to radio frequency (RF) impairments, such as in-phase and quadrature-phase imbalance, low-noise amplifier nonlinearities and phase noise, which limit the spectrum sensing capabilities. In this paper, we study the joint effects of RF impairments on energy detection based spectrum sensing in multi-channel environments. In particular, we provide an analytical framework for the evaluation of the probabilities of detection and false alarm, assuming Rayleigh fading and approximating the joint effects of RF impairments by a Gaussian distribution. Numerical results illustrate the detrimental effects of RF imperfections on the spectrum sensing performance, which bring significant losses in the spectrum utilization.