This introduction, coming out during the two hundredth anniversary of
Karl Marx's birth, discusses the distinctiveness of Marxian anthropology and what
it has to offer to our efforts at understanding, and confronting, the complexities
of the social contradictions constituted by—and constitutive of—twenty-first century
capitalism. The article points out common denominators of Marxian anthropology
going back to Marx's insights, but also offers a cursory social history of the
diverse lineages of enquiry within Marxian anthropology, shaped by the relations
and inequalities of the context in which they emerged. Finally, we discuss certain
crucial fields of engagement in contemporary Marxian anthropology as reflected
in this theme section's contributions.


Objective To develop a short instrument to measure determinants of innovations that may affect its implementation. Design We pooled the original data from eight empirical studies of the implementation of evidence-based innovations. The studies used a list of 60 potentially relevant determinants based on a systematic review of empirical studies and a Delphi study among implementation experts. Each study used similar methods to measure both the implementation of the innovation and determinants. Missing values in the final data set were replaced by plausible values using multiple imputation. We assessed which determinants predicted completeness of use of the innovation (% of recommendations applied). In addition, 22 implementation experts were consulted about the results and about implications for designing a short instrument. Setting Eight innovations introduced in Preventive Child Health Care or schools in the Netherlands. Participants Doctors, nurses, doctor's assistants and teachers; 1977 respondents in total. Results The initial list of 60 determinants could be reduced to 29. Twenty-one determinants were based on the pooled analysis of the eight studies, seven on the theoretical expectations of the experts consulted and one new determinant was added on the basis of the experts' practical experience. Conclusions The instrument is promising and should be further validated. We invite researchers to use and explore the instrument in multiple settings. The instrument describes how each determinant should preferably be measured (questions and response scales). It can be used both before and after the introduction of an innovation to gain an understanding of the critical change objectives.


Research on the secure communication applications of chaotic synchronization is reviewed. A number of secure communication methods and devices using different types of synchronous behavior are examined. For the purpose of comparing existing methods, quantitative characteristics of operating capacity of various schemes are introduced and estimated. An extremely noise-stable secure information transmission method, based on the phenomenon of generalized chaos synchronization, is proposed. All of the methods considered are systematically checked for efficiency for the first time by numerically simulating unidirectionally coupled chaotic Rössler systems selected for transmitting and receiving oscillators. The key advantages and disadvantages of secure information transmission schemes using synchronized chaotic oscillations are discussed. The experimental data gathered in this field are also reviewed.


As fiber amplifiers and lasers achieve higher power, gain fiber designs are pushing toward extremely large-mode area. In this regime, bend-induced distortion of fiber modes becomes large and can severely impact amplifier performance. Previous results describing bend-induced reduction of effective area are reviewed and extended with a numerical analysis of how bend distortion impacts interaction with the gain. Distortion-resistant designs such as the parabolic fiber are shown to substantially improve gain-interaction indicators as well as all other performance metrics simulated, and are predicted to dramatically outperform step-index fibers.


Abstract. The stable isotopic composition of fossil resting eggs (ephippia) of Daphnia spp. is being used to reconstruct past environmental conditions in lake ecosystems. However, the underlying assumption that the stable isotopic composition of the ephippia reflects the stable isotopic composition of the parent Daphnia, of their diet and of the environmental water have yet to be confirmed in a controlled experimental setting. We performed experiments with Daphnia pulicaria cultures, which included a control treatment conducted at 12 °C in filtered lake water and with a diet of fresh algae and three treatments in which we manipulated the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C value) of the algae, stable oxygen isotopic composition (δ18O value) of the water and the water temperature, respectively. The stable nitrogen isotopic composition (δ15N value) of the algae was similar for all treatments. At 12 °C, differences in algal δ13C values and in δ18O values of water were reflected in those of Daphnia. The differences between ephippia and Daphnia stable isotope ratios were similar in the different treatments (δ13C: +0.2 ± 0.4 ‰ (standard deviation); δ15N: −1.6 ± 0.4 ‰; δ18O: −0.9 ± 0.4 ‰), indicating that changes in dietary δ13C values and in δ18O values of water are passed on to these fossilizing structures. A higher water temperature (20 °C) resulted in lower δ13C values in Daphnia and ephippia than in the other treatments with the same food source and in a minor change in the difference between δ13C values of ephippia and Daphnia (to −1.3 ± 0.3 ‰). This may have been due to microbial processes or increased algal respiration rates in the experimental containers, which may not affect Daphnia in natural environments. There was no significant difference in the offset between δ18O and δ15N values of ephippia and Daphnia between the 12 and 20 °C treatments, but the δ18O values of Daphnia and ephippia were on average 1.2 ‰ lower at 20 °C than at 12 °C. We conclude that the stable isotopic composition of Daphnia ephippia provides information on that of the parent Daphnia and of the food and water they were exposed to, with small offsets between Daphnia and ephippia relative to variations in Daphnia stable isotopic composition reported from downcore studies. However, our experiments also indicate that temperature may have a minor influence on the δ13C, δ15N and δ18O values of Daphnia body tissue and ephippia. This aspect deserves attention in further controlled experiments.


International Journal of Exercise Science 6(1) : 20-28, 2013. Skinfold (SKF) measurement is arguably the most ubiquitous method of estimating percent body fat (%BF) because of cost, ease, and feasibility. However, it is unknown how accurately novice exercise science students measure SKF thickness. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine the validity with which exercise science students in an Exercise Physiology course measured skinfold thickness and estimated percent body fat (%BF) when compared to a skilled technician. Twentythree novice undergraduate students were afforded both verbal measurement instruction and visual measurement demonstration and, subsequently, assessed SKF thicknesses of a male and female testee. %BF was calculated using measurements obtained by the skilled technician and students. Comparisons were made between measurements taken by the skilled technician and students using error, absolute error, and one sample t-tests. For the female testee, average error ranged from -0.5 mm to -4.8 mm for the 7-sites, 1.7±15.4 mm for the sum of 7-sites, and -3.7±2.6% for %BF. The average absolute error ranged from 1.2 mm to 4.9 mm for the 7-sites, 23.3±12.7 mm for the sum of 7-sites, and 3.9±2.2% for %BF. For the male testee, average error ranged from 0.0 mm to 0.9 mm for the 7-sites, 2.9±8.5 mm for the sum of 7-sites, and 0.5±1.4% for %BF. The average absolute error ranged from 0.6 mm to 1.1 mm for the 7-sites, 4.8±7.5 mm for the sum of 7sites, and 0.8±1.2% for BF%. The one sample t-tests revealed no significant differences in the sum of 7-sites and %BF for the male model (p>0.05), but significant differences were found for the female model (p<0.05). From a practical perspective, when novice exercise science students were provided both verbal and visual instructions of SKF measurement technique, students were able to accurately assess %BF of a male testee as compared to the skilled technician. With respect to the female testee, however, students underestimated the sum of the 7 SKF sites by ~ 20 mm when compared to the skilled technician. Additional tutelage and practice may be necessary when teaching SKF measurement of females and/or individuals with higher %BF to novice undergraduate exercise science students.


The European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) has been promoted as a way to strengthen citizens' participation in EU lawmaking. Taking stock of the ECI's first few years of operation, this article aims to identify the influence of the ECI on EU lawmaking and its position in the EU institutional triangle (Commission – European Parliament – Council). In particular, the article examines whether the ECI has shifted the EU institutional status quo vis-à-vis the Commission's power of legislative initiative. It focuses on the first few ECIs that have managed to collect the necessary number of signatures to be formally considered by the Commission, and evaluates the Commission's discretion to respond to these ECIs. It argues that there is currently a mismatch between, on one hand, the expectations of EU citizens from the ECI and, on the other hand, the ECI's capacity to lead to legislative output. The article addresses the challenges that arise from this mismatch.


Background: Recent studies highlight a role for vitamin D (VD) in the growth and differentiation of various cell types. The biologically active form of vitamin D3 is 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. Most cells of the body including prostate cells have vitamin D receptor (VDR) and VD metabolizing enzymes, and can respond to 1,25-VD. Literature supports multipronged effects of 1,25-VD in the prevention of prostate carcinoma development and progression. However, the relationship between prostate carcinoma and VD is still not entirely understood. There are no studies conducted on the association of VD and prostate carcinoma among the Asian population and our study is the first of its kind in literature and hence the need for the same. Methods: All men more than 50 years of age who presented to our hospital between July 2015 and July 2017 with lower urinary tract symptom (LUTS), and had a suspicious digital rectal examination (DRE) and hypoechoic areas on transrectal ultrasound (TRUS), were considered for the study. Those patients whose biopsies came as malignancy were taken as study subjects and patients with a negative biopsy were taken as controls. VD and serum prostatic-specific antigen (PSA) was done for all patients undergoing biopsy. Results: Eighty-six men underwent prostate biopsy for suspicious DRE with hypoechoic areas on TRUS. Out of the 86 men, 66 men had a positive histopathology, suggestive of adenocarcinoma of the prostate gland (group A), and the remaining 20 men (group B) had a negative biopsy. All patients diagnosed with malignancy had severe VD deficiency and was found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: VD deficiency is a risk factor for development of prostate carcinoma and there is a strong correlation between them. Further trials are however required to study the effect of VD supplementation on the natural course of the disease. World J Nephrol Urol. 2017;6(3-4):21-24 doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/wjnu317w


The problem of measuring the velocity of light by signals sent in one direction, instead of the usual method, by signals sent out and back, is studied. This requires two clocks, and the necessary steps to set the two clocks are discussed. It is found desirable to distinguish between "velocity" in its elementary and traditional sense, and the "rod-clock-quotient" directly obtained by measurement with rods and clocks experiencing the Fitzgerald-Larmor-Lorentz contractions. The precise formula derived for the one-way measurement of the velocity of light involves two rod-clock-quotients. The use of one-way light signal measurements in the Lorentz transformations and the Special Theory of Relativity is discussed.


Multi-gigabyte data sets challenge and frustrate R users even on well-equipped hardware. C/C++ and Fortran programming can be helpful, but is cumbersome for interactive data analysis and lacks the flexibility and power of R's rich statistical programming environment. The new package bigmemory bridges this gap, implementing massive matrices in memory (managed in R but implemented in C++) and supporting their basic manipulation and exploration. It is ideal for problems involving the analysis in R of manageable subsets of the data, or when an analysis is conducted mostly in C++. In a Unix environment, the data structure may be allocated to shared memory with transparent read and write locking, allowing separate processes on the same computer to share access to a single copy of the data set. This opens the door for more powerful parallel analyses and data mining of massive data sets.


Some developing biotechnologies challenge accepted legal and ethical norms because of the risks they pose. Xenotransplantation (cross-species transplantation) may prolong life but may also harm the xeno-recipient and the public due to its potential to transmit infectious diseases. These transboundary diseases emphasise the global nature of advances in health care and highlight the difficulties of identifying, monitoring and regulating such risks and thereby protecting individual and public health. Xenotransplantation raises questions about how uncertainty and risk are understood and accepted, and exposes tensions between private benefit and public health. Where public health is at risk, a precautionary approach informed by the harm principle supports prioritising the latter, but the issues raised by genetically engineered solid organ xenotransplants have not, as yet, been sufficiently discussed. This must occur prior to their clinical introduction because of the necessary changes to accepted norms which are needed to appropriately safeguard individual and public health.


In the current investigation, the piezoresistive effect in a van der Pauw (VDP) stress sensor subjected to biaxial stress was considered. The VDP resistance equations were combined with the silicon piezoresistivity equations to yield relations for the change in resistance of a VDP sensor in terms of the applied state of stress. Then the sensitivity of the VDP sensor to biaxial stress was determined analytically and simulated numerically. The biaxial stress states considered were those for a circular diaphragm under pressure. The numerical calculations involved the use of anisotropic conduction based simulations, implemented in MATLAB using the finite difference technique. The VDP sensitivities to biaxial stress were compared to the sensitivity for the conventional piezoresistive stress sensor. It is observed that the theoretical (based on analytical and numerical results)pressure sensitivity of the new VDP sensor is about three times greater than the conventional counterpart. Analysis was performed for both p-type and n-type Silicon. It is determined that the angle of the VDP sensor with respect to the Silicon crystallographic axes can and should be optimized, depending on Silicon dopant, and the optimum orientation angles are determined.Copyright © 2007 by ASME


Personal recommendation systems nowadays are very important in web applications because of the available huge volume of information on the World Wide Web, and the necessity to save users' time, and provide appropriate desired information, knowledge, items, etc. The most popular recommendation systems are collaborative filtering systems, which suffer from certain problems such as cold-start, privacy, user identification, and scalability. In this thesis, we suggest a new method to solve the cold start problem taking into consideration the privacy issue. The method is shown to perform very well in comparison with alternative methods, while having better properties regarding user privacy. The cold start problem covers the situation when recommendation systems have not sufficient information about a new user's preferences (the user cold start problem), as well as the case of newly added items to the system (the item cold start problem), in which case the system will not be able to provide recommendations. Some systems use users' demographical data as a basis for generating recommendations in such cases (e.g. the Triadic Aspect method), but this solves only the user cold start problem and enforces user's privacy. Some systems use users' 'stereotypes' to generate recommendations, but stereotypes often do not reflect the actual preferences of individual users. While some other systems use user's 'filterbots' by injecting pseudo users or bots into the system and consider these as existing ones, but this leads to poor accuracy. We propose the active node method, that uses previous and recent users' browsing targets and browsing patterns to infer preferences and generate recommendations (node recommendations, in which a single suggestion is given, and batch recommendations, in which a set of possible target nodes are shown to the user at once). We compare the active node method with three alternative methods (Triadic Aspect Method, Naïve Filterbots Method, and MediaScout Stereotype Method), and we used a dataset collected from online web news to generate recommendations based on our method and based on the three alternative methods. We calculated the levels of novelty, coverage, and precision in these experiments, and we found that our method achieves higher levels of novelty in batch recommendation while achieving higher levels of coverage and precision in node recommendations comparing to these alternative methods. Further, we develop a variant of the active node method that incorporates semantic structure elements. A further experimental evaluation with real data and users showed that semantic node recommendation with the active node method achieved higher levels of novelty than nonsemantic node recommendation, and semantic-batch recommendation achieved higher levels of coverage and precision than non-semantic batch recommendation. This Thesis is dedicated to my Family, Parents and my Brothers ACADEMIC REGISTRY Research Thesis Submission Name: OSSAMA HASHEM KHAMIS EMBARAK School/PGI: School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences (MACS) Version: (i.e. First, Resubmission, Final) First Degree Sought (Award and Subject area) Doctor of Philosophy (Computer Science)


I. INTRODUCTION As recently as a year ago, the business conditions facing the American steel industry were, by any standard, extremely grim. Steel prices had reached their lowest point in almost twenty years and showed little sign of recovery.1 These depressed prices pushed many U.S. steel producers to the breaking point; between 1998 and 2001, thirty-two American steel companies filed for bankruptcy protection.2 Three of these bankrupted companies were among the five largest U.S. steel producers: Bethlehem Steel, LTV, and National Steel.3 The effect of low steel prices on steel workers was equally dramatic; between 1990 and 2001, job losses in the U.S. steel industry averaged nearly five thousand per year.4 In response to this domestic steel "crisis," on March 5, 2002, after months of lengthy internal debate and intensive lobbying by major American steel companies and steelworker unions, the Bush Administration announced a wide-ranging regime of protective tariffs and quotas for the U.S. steel industry.5 The decision included a three-year schedule of tariffs, rangIMAGE FORMULA5 ing from 8% to 30% on a wide range of imported steel products from a variety of countries.6 Another major element of the plan was a quota system designed to allocate shares of the U.S. import market among major foreign steel producers.7 While the plan technically was conditional on a competitive restructuring of the U.S. steel industry and subject to periodic official review, industry observers generally agreed that the plan represented the "most dramatically protectionist step of any president in decades."8 While American steel companies and their unions initially were guardedly enthusiastic about the tariff announcement, reaction outside the U.S. steel industry was swift and overwhelmingly negative.9 Media commentators criticized the decision as a political betrayal of sound economic and foreign policy.10 Overseas reaction was even stronger, as several foreign governments responded to the decision with retaliatory tariffs on both steel and non-steel products from the U.S.11 In addition to these classic "trade war" countermaneuvers, the governments of numerous nations initiated formal complaint procedures against the U.S. for the steel tariffs at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva.12 In the wake of the tariff announcement, the effects of the tariffs on the U.S. steel industry have been mixed, while the tariffs have remained a persistent sore point in diplomatic and trade relations between the U.S. and other nations. While market prices of some steel products have, by some IMAGE FORMULA7 measures, risen by as much as 60% and some U.S. steel operations have slowly begun to rehire laid off workers, most large steel manufacturers have remained unprofitable since the tariff announcement.13 Indeed, some evidence has indicated that the tariffs are actually making the long-term problems of the steel industry worse by giving the weakest and least efficient steel companies barely enough new revenue to resist market exit and by encouraging new inefficient production capacity to come online.14 Meanwhile, the tariffs have significantly increased diplomatic tensions with allies and trading partners of the U.S., who have made the tariffs an important issue in discussion of other international topics.15 In response to this criticism, the Bush Administration has quietly begun to scale back some of the tariffs, recently exempting about 25% of the thirteen million tons of steel imports originally hit by the duties.16 Unsurprisingly, these exemptions have fostered significant dissatisfaction among U.S. steel companies and their political allies.17 Because of the mixed economic and diplomatic success of the U.S. steel tariffs, a retrospective analysis of the decision to enact them seems both appropriate and timely. At first blush, an ex post analysis of the Bush Administration's steel policy decision seems constrained by the simple binary choice of whether protective steel tariffs should or should not have been implemented. …


Forerunners (precursors) in linear, temporally dispersive, bigyrotropic materials are investigated with time-domain techniques. Bigyrotropic materials are characterized by 12 constitutive parameters (integral kernels). Specifically, the four susceptibility dyadics are all gyrotropic with a common gyrotropic axis. Pulse propagation along this axis is analyzed with dispersive (noncoupling) wave splitting and complex, time-dependent field vectors. Two numerical examples illustrating the method are presented.


The low weight polynomial multiple problem arises in the context of stream ciphers cryptanalysis and of efficient finite field arithmetic, and is believed to be difficult. It can be formulated as follows: given a polynomial f ∈ F2[X] of degree d, and a bound n, the task is to find a low weight multiple of f of degree at most n. The best algorithm known so far to solve this problem is based on a time memory trade-off and runs in time O(n) using O(n) of memory, where w is the estimated minimal weight. In this paper, we propose a new technique to find low weight multiples using lattice basis reduction. Our algorithm runs in time O(n) and uses O(nd) of memory. This improves the space needed and gives a better theoretical time estimate when w ≥ 12 . Such a situation is plausible when the bound n, which represents the available keystream, is small. We run our experiments using the NTL library on some known polynomials in cryptanalysis and we confirm our analysis.


Batch ozonation experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of various operating options (i.e. additions of acid, ethanol, ammonium ion, and hydrogen peroxide) on the formation of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in six different source waters. Formation of bromate, total organic bromines, total aldehydes (the sum of 13 aldehydes) was evaluated, assuming they represent three different types of DBPs during ozonation (i.e. inorganic bromine DBPs, organobromine DBPs, and non-brominated organic DBPs, respectively). Among the tested options, acid addition was found to be the best one to control all the three types of DBPs simultaneously on an ozone exposure basis.


Thousands of foreign-born children enter the United States every year. Many, particularly those crossing at the Mexican border, arrive without legal immigration status and unaccompanied by adults. Once here, these children have certain rights under the Constitution and the immigration laws of this country. Their primary right is to a deportation hearing. Under the current procedures used by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), however, these children are encouraged to waive that right and "elect" voluntary departure. The voluntary departure process requires that they admit to having entered the country illegally, choose the country to which they will return, and leave without having had any hearing.1 If the children are Mexican, as most are, they spend a short time in a "staging facility" before they are quickly returned to their homeland. If they come from a country that is not contiguous with the United States, however, they are transferred to a long-term facility, where they remain until transportation is arranged back to their home country.2


Today in Russia there is a task of import substitution, the market of lubricant additives sets very high requirements for quality and economic performance. An integral part of the compositions of modern motor oils are detergent-dispersant additives. Specialists must quickly cope with such requests, so it is worth paying special attention to the collection and analysis of previous technologies and discoveries in order to be able to improve them. It is the superalkaline alkylphenol additives that have shown high technological performance in various operating modes for many years, and this is precisely what meets the requirements of today. Also, great attention should be paid to the availability of raw materials. The challenge is to find the optimal production scale synthesis of alkylphenol, as well as a new catalyst, and the production of alkylphenol salts with a selected metal cation that will meet operational requirements.


Text classification deals with allocating a text document to a predetermined class. Generally, this involves learning about a class from representations of documents belonging to that class. In this paper, we propose a classifier combination that uses a Multinomial Naïve Bayesian (MNB) classifier along with Bayesian Networks (BN) classifier. The results of two classifiers are combined by taking an average of the probability distributions calculated by each of the two classifiers. Feature extraction and selection techniques have been incorporated with the model to find the most discriminating terms for classification. This classification model has been tested on three real text datasets. According to experiments, this approach showed better performance and the overall accuracy is higher than the accuracies of the two constituent classifiers. This technique also surpasses the accuracy of other well known, standard classifiers. This approach differs from the previous classification techniques in that it successfully incorporates MNB and BN classifiers and shows significantly better results than using either of the two classifiers separately. A comparative study of previous approaches with our method indicates a significant improvement over a number of techniques that were evaluated on the same dataset.


An apparatus has been assembled and is presently being used to evaluate the color temperatures of incandescent tungsten lamps by physical comparison techniques. A red-to-violet ratio method of establishing the effective slope of the radiometric function is utilized. The apparatus uses a single 931-A photomultiplier to receive radiations from the "standard" and "unknown" lamps through red and violet filters sequentially. Resultant oscilloscope patterns are judged for equality. Accurate results can be obtained in a short period of time, thus permitting large quantities of lamps to be calibrated with a minimum of effort.


Struggling readers have been the central focus of American politics for decades. Teachers of all ages and experiences across America deliver reading instruction in a variety of ways. The purpose of this study is to determine the characteristics of an effective teacher of reading in an elementary classroom setting. The study was conducted in a public and a private sector school in a capital city in the southern United States. Two principals, two second grade teachers, and two fourth grade teachers were participants in this study. A qualitative research focus provided the methodological basis for this study. The research design for this study emulated the work of James P. Spradley (1980), author of Participant Observation, and his Developmental Research Sequence Method. The researcher assumed the role of participant observer in the classroom. The participant role of the study involved becoming a member of the classroom. Field notes were used to record accurate data throughout the study. All six participants were interviewed, and a tape recorder was used to record each teacher's verbal language communicative patterns. Observation data and interviews developed into cultural themes. The cultural themes applied in recurrent activities and were located in two or more domains. The themes were established as educational background experience, communication and selfefficacy, observation and modeling, assessment, environment, behavior management, free-choice, instructional time, writing, and technology. Results indicated that although different strategies and approaches were used among the principals and teachers, the same elements and philosophies were required to effectively teach reading in an elementary school classroom, whether it be a public or private sector school. iv CHAPTER


Shared-use vehicle services provide members access to a vehicle fleet for use on an asneeded basis, without the hassles and costs of individual auto ownership. From June 2001 to July 2002, the authors surveyed 18 U.S. shared-use vehicle organizations on a range of topics, including organizational size, partnerships, pricing, costs, and technology. While survey findings demonstrate a decline in the number of organizational starts in the last year, operational launches into new cities, membership, and fleet size continue to increase. Several growth-oriented organizations are responsible for most of this expansion. The authors explore several factors that challenge shared-use vehicle growth, such as high capital investment (or start-up costs), dramatic insurance rate hikes, and scarcity of cost-effective technologies. The authors conclude that while early niche market findings are encouraging, the ability of this emerging sector to actualize its total environmental, economic, and social goals may be limited without the collective support of private industry (e.g., automakers, insurance providers, technology producers); public agents (e.g., transit and governmental agencies); and shared-use vehicle programs. Indeed, public-private partnerships and cooperation among shared-use vehicle providers may play a key role in addressing insurance and technology costs and assuring the long-term viability of this market.


SUMMARY I. By using a whole-body monitoring technique iron metabolism has been investi gated in patients suffering from chronic renal failure who required regular dialysis treatment. 2. Oral absorption of inorganic iron was low. 3. The incorporation of radioactive iron into erythrocytes was diminished. 4. The rate of loss of radioactive iron from the body was significantly greater than in normal control and non-dialysed patients with chronic renal failure. 5. Iron exchange between dialysate and patient was studied. Patients with chronic renal failure are known to have a decreased rate of erythropoiesis and to develop abnormalities in iron metabolism (Kaye, 1958; Logue, Lange & Moore, 1958; Boddy, Lawson, Linton & Will, 1970). However, considerable controversy exists about the effect of haemodialysis on iron metabolism in such patients (Shaldon, 1966; Eschbach, Funk, Adamson, Kuhn, Scribner & Finch, 1967; Eschbach, Cook & Finch, 1970). The use of a whole-body monitor permitted measurement in a single study of the oral absorption of a tracer dose of 59Fe, its incorporation into erythrocytes and the subsequent long-term rate of loss of 59Fe from the body. We have previously reported the results of an investigation of iron metabolism by using this method in patients with chronic renal failure (Boddy et al., 1970). We now report the results of a similar investigation of iron metabolism in patients with chronic renal failure undergoing regular haemodialysis therapy.


The vast expanse of ocean has often been seen as a limitless source of
animal protein for mankind. As this source is depleting in recent years due to more
intense fishing pressure, maritime countries have given priority to aquaculture
development with the objective of preserving and increasing their natural resources.
The expansion of culture industry of any species chiefly relies on an improved
understanding of the biology of the species, particularly on spawning characters.
Dependence on the natural seed resources for culture is risky because it is extremely
variable in quality and quantity and off-season availability. So artificial seed
production is the only alternative for the expansion of aquaculture especially when the
distribution of the species is limited. Diligent work by fishery scientists in many parts of
the world is bringing the reproductive process and seed production of more organisms
under control.
Molluscs are one of the most compact groups of animals with more species
known from marine environments than of any other animal phylum. In number of
species, the mollusca are the second phylum to the Arthropoda, comprising about
80000 species. A major part of the world marine aquaculture production is made up of
molluscs including clams, cockles, oysters, mussels, scallops and abalones. In
aquaculture production, molluscs are the third largest commodity in the Asia-Pacific
region providing about 16% of the total. Three quarters of molluscs are gastropods
with about 1650 genera. Gastropods are among the most conspicuous sea animals,
and species of limpets, snails and slugs are found in all the marine habitats. Members
of this class have one shell, as opposed to clams and oysters with two. The most
valuable gastropod from an epicurean point of view is certainly the abalone.
Abalones, commonly kno':Vn as ear shell, are economically important
marine gastropods belonging to the genus Haliotis. There are about 100 species of
abalones in the world. They are found in both the hemispheres, but the larger
varieties exist in the temperate regions, while the smaller ones live in tropical and
arctic regions. Because these animals have been of commercial value since ancient
times much has been written about their natural history beginning with Aristotle
(Croits, 1929). The first fisheries of abalone were in China and Japan over 1500
years ago, but it is only in the last 30 years that the fisheries for abalone have
burgeoned worldwide and become economically important in many countries.


Fluctuations in real interest rates affect every aspect of an investment program, including the present value of the liability, as well as the returns on each asset class. We review the history and causes of real interest rate fluctuations using a nonmathematical very simple macro model, then assess the risks to each major asset class (and also to liabilities) from likely changes in the real rate. The objective is to help investors defend their portfolios against this important risk. An appendix provides deep history, showing that real interest rates have declined over very long periods of time as markets and political institutions have become more developed. TOPICS: Real assets/alternative investments/private equity, real estate, commodities other real assets, currency, private equity Key Findings • Rapidly rising real rates pose a substantial risk to the whole portfolio, through both fixed income and equity assets. Although the risk posed to fixed income is direct and mechanical, the risk posed to equities and alternative assets is complex and subtle. • This asset-side risk may be offset, to a greater or lesser degree, depending on the real interest rate duration of the liability, by a decrease in liability valuation due to rising real rates (again, depending on duration). • The risk of a decline in real interest rates comes from the opportunity-cost of being out of a rising bond fixmarket. Many investors, leery of the potential for rising rates, have shortened the duration of their holdings and would not participate to a satisfactory extent if a bond rally were to occur due to rates falling further.


We introduce a novel method and system for fast detection of dust- and vapour-based narcotics and explosives traces. A micro fluidic vapour-to-liquid adsorption interface was built-in to an existing electronic nose instrument, reducing the detection time, machine size, weight, and cost. The system was successfully tested with 50 ng cocaine samples rendering 15 Hz frequency shifts and with 100 ng heroine samples rendering 50 Hz frequency shifts. Also the gravity invariance of the open liquid interface was successfully tested with the interface mounted up side down as well as vertically. The detection time was reduced to half of the time needed in commercial systems.


As satellite receiving signals are affected by complex radiative transfer processes in the atmosphere and on land surfaces, aerosol retrieval over land from space requires the ability to determine surface reflectance from the remote measurements. To use the Bremen Aerosol Retrieval (BAER) method for aerosol optical thickness (AOT) retrieval over land at a spatial scale of 1×1 km2 from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data, a linear mixing model with a vegetation index was used to calculate surface reflectances. As the vegetation index is affected by the aerosol present in the atmosphere, an empirical linear relationship between short wavelength infrared (SWIR) channel reflectance and visible reflectance was estimated to calculate a modified aerosol free vegetation index (AFRI) value. Based on a modified AFRI obtained from MODIS SWIR channel reflectance, an improved linear mixing model was applied for aerosol retrieval. A comparison of results between calculated and apparent surface reflectance was satisfactory, with a linear fit slope above 0.94, correlation coefficients above 0.84, and standard deviation below 0.008 for the study area. These results can therefore be used for improved aerosol retrieval over land by the BAER method with MODIS Level 1 data.


In respiratory-gated radiotherapy, it is important to maintain the regular respiratory cycles of patients. If patients undergo respiration training, their regular breathing pattern is affected. Therefore, we developed a respiratory training system based on a micro electromechanical system (MEMS) and evaluated the feasibility of the MEMS in radiotherapy. By comparing the measured signal before and after radiation exposure, we confirmed the effects of radiation. By evaluating the period of the electric signal emitted by a tactile sensor and its constancy, the performance of the tactile sensor was confirmed. Moreover, by comparing the delay between the motion of the MEMS and the electric signal from the tactile sensor, we confirmed the reaction time of the tactile sensor. The results showed that a baseline shift occurred for an accumulated dose of 400 Gy in the sensor, and both the amplitude and period changed. The period of the signal released by the tactile sensor was 5.39 and its standard deviation was 0.06. Considering the errors from the motion phantom, a standard deviation of 0.06 was desirable. The delay time was within 0.5 s and not distinguishable by a patient. We confirmed the performance of the MEMS and concluded that MEMS could be applied to patients for respiratory-gated radiotherapy.


"The War Ledger" provides fresh, sophisticated answers to fundamental questions about major modern wars: Why do major wars begin? What accounts for victory or defeat in war? How do victory and defeat influence the recovery of the combatants? Are the rules governing conflict behavior between nations the same since the advent of the nuclear era? The authors find such well-known theories as the balance of power and collective security systems inadequate to explain how conflict erupts in the international system. Their rigorous empirical analysis proves that the power-transition theory, hinging on economic, social, and political growth, is more accurate; it is the differential rate of growth of the two most powerful nations in the system-the dominant nation and the challenger-that destabilizes all members and precipitates world wars. Predictions of who will win or lose a war, the authors find, depend not only on the power potential of a nation but on the capability of its political systems to mobilize its resources-the "political capacity indicator." After examining the aftermath of major conflicts, the authors identify national growth as the determining factor in a nation's recovery. With victory, national capabilities may increase or decrease; with defeat, losses can be enormous. Unexpectedly, however, in less than two decades, losers make up for their losses and "all" combatants find themselves where they would have been had no war occurred. Finally, the authors address the question of nuclear arsenals. They find that these arsenals do not make the difference that is usually assumed. Nuclear weapons have not changed the structure of power on which international politics rests. Nor does the behavior of participants in nuclear confrontation meet the expectations set out in deterrence theory.


Our comic combines visual literacy, progymnasmata, and critical pedagogy to showcase a classroom study that used comics production to teach visual literacy. The comic first looks at comics criticism, visual rhetoric, and comics scholarship to set a base to build a methodology build in critical pedagogy and ancient rhetoric. Critical pedagogy's tradition of inviting students to find meaning in the origin of ideas fits in with having students design and study a medium that's often overlooked during their college experience. Such an approach echoes Freire's ideas of using critical strategies as an effective model for change. Progymnasmata, and Quintilian's work in general, allows students to approach the new medium of comics through reading and production through an ancient rhetorical practice that relies on a step-by-step process. Looking at Quintilian's pedagogy, we demonstrate a modern classroom study that uses progymnasmata to make the strange familiar while introducing visuality. The actual study is briefly discussed as well. This amalgamation of ancient rhetoric, comics studies, and critical pedagogy is the basis of the research behind this pieces' goal of exploring comics as a multimodal means of composition.


Objective(s): Cucurbita moschata Duchesne (pumpkin) is a well-known plant with several pharmacological effects. The aim of the present study was to assess burn wound healing activity of C. moschata peel extract (CE). Also, standardized CE was assessed for antioxidant activity and antibacterial effects against major pathogens of burns. Materials and Methods: Healing properties of topical preparation of 10% and 20% concentrations of CE were assessed on second degree burn in rats during a 14-day period as well as histological studies, total antioxidant power, lipid peroxidation and total thiol content of skin tissue samples. Results: Radical scavenging IC50 and ferric-reducing antioxidant power value were 4.015±0.20 mg/ml and 142.63±2.65 mmol Fe2+/g, respectively. Total mucilage content was 13.8%. The optimal results were obtained by 20% CE that showed 90.80±5.86 % wound closure and tissue repair as well as significant reduction of tissue oxidative stress biomarkers. Histological analyses confirmed wound healing activity of pumpkin peel extract. Conclusion: Considering the high mucilage content of the plant, providing a moist environment for wound, C. moschata peel extract could be a natural remedy for treatment of burns. Further clinical studies are suggested to confirm C. moschata peel extract as a wound healing agent.


The owners of a company often can form an Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") § 831(b) captive insurance company ("CIC") to insure certain risks of the company while retaining insurance management, eliminating underwriting fees, claiming current income tax deductions for insurance premium expense, and controlling the investment portfolio of the CIC. Furthermore, the use of a CIC may defer the realization of ordinary income or even re-characterize ordinary income as capital gain to the common owners of the company and CIC, due to the current qualified dividend tax rate preference. While these tax benefits are substantial, a CIC cannot defer taxation to the parent corporation shareholder indefinitely. A CIC generally must be a Subchapter C corporation to comply with local jurisdictional requirements and thus may be subject to the Accumulated Earnings Tax ("AET"). The AET is a penalty tax designed to prevent corporations from unreasonably retaining after-tax earnings and profits in lieu of paying current dividends to shareholders, where they would be again taxed as ordinary income at applicable shareholder tax rates. If a C corporation is liable for the AET under IRC § 532(a), there will be imposed a tax for each taxable year of fifteen percent (15%) on the corporation's accumulated taxable income. Accumulated taxable income is reduced by a credit for an accumulation amount sufficient to satisfy reasonable current and future anticipated business needs.Reasonable current business needs of a CIC generally include (but are not limited to): the amount needed for employee compensation and benefits for the current business cycle; the amount needed for facilities overhead expenses for the current business cycle; and the amount needed to fund the probable claims payable, as determined by actuarial tables. Reasonably anticipated future business needs of a CIC may include (but may not be limited to) planned for expansions of facilities; expansions of workforce; acquisition of stock or assets for diversification or other business needs; redemption of CIC shares; and retiring bona fide business indebtedness of a non-shareholder creditor. The reasonableness of accumulations may be challenged under several scenarios. First, the IRS may claim the CIC had no specific plan outlining how the earnings accumulations are to be utilized. Second, if a CIC claims that accumulations are made in accordance with a plan, but actually has no intent to carry out the plan (as shown through a lack of substantial steps to further the plan), the accumulations may be deemed unreasonable. Third, if a CIC actually makes expenditures in furtherance of a plan for accumulation in fixed assets but does not use those fixed assets for business purposes, the fixed assets may be deemed liquid assets subject to the AET, since such liquid investments are considered available to satisfy the capital needs of the CIC. Lastly, if accumulated earnings are received in liquid form but converted to non-liquid form, the accumulation may be deemed to be objectively unreasonable, made for tax avoidance purposes, and thus deemed liquid assets subject to the AET.This article discusses (i) the requirements, benefits, and tax attributes of an IRC § 831(b) CIC; (ii) an overview of the AET and the reasonable needs test which must be met to avoid the AET; and (iii) the potential future application of the AET to an IRC § 831(b) CIC and the negative results that could arise if the IRS chooses to do so. Given that the IRS has yet to announce any policy about applying the AET to combat the growth of this popular tax arrangement, this article seeks to analyze how the IRS may prospectively make use of this tool and how CIC owners and mangers should conduct themselves to not run afoul of the IRS.


Since the need of having adequate amount of vocabulary is increasing, learners of English are supposed to have certain ways for expanding their vocabulary. In this case, the investigation was concerned with the ways of the English Department students learned vocabulary with and without instruction, and the ways they persistently practiced the words they had gained. The research design employed in this study was descriptive-qualitative. The target population was the fourth-year English Department Students of Muhammadiyah University of Malang. They all belonged to the 2001-2002 English Department Senior. The number of population was 200 students. The writer used a simple random sampling procedure and the total number of the sample was 40. In collecting data, the writer used questionnaire as the instrument to get the data. The questionnaire consisted of thirty-three items, which were divided into 13 parts. From the findings, when reading textbooks, the students often consulted their dictionaries, either the monolingual one or the bilingual, to obtain good marks. When reading for pleasure, students rarely consulted dictionaries. Then, when reading for instructional purposes, students did not rely on their guessing strategies because they were not quite sure about the result. Short stories, films, songs, newspapers, magazines, and poems were made use of as the source of expanding students' vocabulary besides reading text to learn. Of the 40 respondents, there were merely 11 (27.5%) students who still put the new words they have gained into practice through some activities such as, make a small conversation with their friends, make an English writing like poems, short stories, letters, essays, etc. In summary, the findings gained in the present study overall indicate that most of the students (29=72.5 %) are considered having average to low degree of efforts in learning vocabulary.


The study evaluated the biochemical effects of methanolic seed extract of Aframomum melegueta (MEAM) on biochemical parameters of the brain of rats treated with monosodium glutamate (MSG) with a view to considering the possibility of using the plant as a remedy for the management of neurotoxic disorders. MEAM was prepared according to standard methods, phytochemically screened and followed by evaluation of its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potentials as well as its biological activities. Phytochemical screening of the methanolic extract (ME) revealed the presence of alkaloids, cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, saponins, steroids, tannins and terpenoids. Administration of MSG (2 g/kg bwt) caused alterations in the levels of glutathione, nitric oxide, Vitamin C and E, as well as in the reduction of activities of enzymatic antioxidants. There were increases in the activities of brain marker enzymes, protein and peroxidation levels. Histopathological observations of brain sections revealed that MEAM protected the brain from glutamate-induced neurotoxicity. Conclusively, extract of A. melegueta elicited appreciable and potent neuroprotective potentials against neuro-degeneration caused by MSG oral administration, in a concentration dependent manner.

 Key words: Neurotoxicity, Aframomum melegueta, methanolic extract, monosodium glutamate, antioxidant enzymes, neurotransmitters, brain biomarkers.


The Sun is the main external driver of Earth's climate.
Various mechanisms of the solar influence on climate have been proposed. The debate is ongoing, but variation in the radiative flux of the Sun is among the main candidates. Direct measurements of the solar irradiance exist for merely 40 years, which is a rather short period to derive conclusions about any possible long term changes in solar irradiance and their possible influence on climate.

The main driver of the irradiance variations on time-scales of days to decades, and possibly longer, is believed to be the solar surface magnetism. Models have been developed that reconstruct the irradiance by using appropriate proxies of the magnetic activity of the Sun.
Irradiance models require input data representing both dark and bright magnetic features emerging at the solar surface. The most widely ever used proxies are the sunspot areas (available since 1874), the sunspot number (available since 1700), and the sunspot group number (available since 1610). However, these records do not provide direct information on bright features. Their evolution has to be inferred from the sunspot data via certain assumptions whose justification is still very unclear.
Therefore, there is a strong need for a more direct facular proxy. %in order to resolve the ambiguities of the models.

Ca II K full-disc spectroheliograms are uniquely suited for that purpose. Observations in the Ca II K line started as early as in 1892 at various sites, providing a good temporal coverage of the whole 20th century.
However, these data suffer from a variety of problems hindering their immediate applicability.
The historical Ca II K observations are stored in photographic plates or films, which have a non-linear response to the incident radiation. Information on this relation has not been recorded for the majority of the historical observations. Furthermore, a plethora of artefacts have been introduced on these images during their various life stages. These artefacts need to be accurately accounted for in order to provide meaningful results from such data.

We have developed a method to recover the relation for the response of the plates to the incident radiation by using information that is stored on the solar disc of the image. This method is based on the assumption that the darker parts of the quiet Sun regions remain unchanged in time. We have also developed a method of calculating the quiet Sun background of the images, which includes the centre-to-limb variation and takes into account
various large-scale artefacts. We have shown that the accuracy of this method is greater than that of previously proposed techniques.

We have also reassessed the relation between the magnetic field strength and the Ca II K contrast, by using a larger number of Ca II images than was done in earlier such studies.
We find that this relation can be well described with a power law function, and the best fit parameters are unaffected by the activity level or the position on the disc. Hence this relation potentially allows a reconstruction of pseudo-magnetograms from the available Ca II K observations covering almost the whole 20th century, that can be used by irradiance models.

The sunspot data (i.e. records of sunspot number), despite their extensive use, are not free of problems either. The process of cross-calibrating different records by individual observers has recently become a matter of debate. This debate brought to light that the majority of the methods used so far fail to take into consideration the non-linearity that arises due to different observing capabilities of the observers. We addressed the issue of the shape of the relation for the inter-calibration between different group sunspot number series.
We have shown, with the aid of synthetic observations derived from the royal Greenwich observatory sunspot area records, that it is strongly non-linear, contrary to what is commonly assumed.
We have developed a method to recalibrate the sunspot group number series with a non-linear non-parametric method based on daily statistics between the observers. Using Monte Carlo simulations we have accounted for the error propagation, which has not been done by any previous reconstruction.
Our reconstruction of the group sunspot number favours moderate activity levels for the 18th and 19th century and supports the existence of the modern grand maximum of solar activity.


Imaging of the venous system plays a vital role in the diagnosis and management of a wide range of clinically significant disorders. There have been great advances in venous imaging techniques, culminating in the use of magnetic resonance venography (MRV). Although MRV has distinct advantages in anatomic and quantitative cross sectional imaging without ionizing radiation, there are well-known challenges in acquisition timing and contrast administration in patients with renal impairment. The latest advancement involves the addition of new contrast media agents, which have emerged as valuable alternatives in these difficult scenarios. In this review, we will focus on a group of specific contrast agents called blood pool agents and discuss their salient features and clinical applications.


Background A previous study on postoperative acute anaemia in orthopaedic surgery was conducted in 2011 (S1), showing that anaemia is recurrent and not always treated. We have recommended prescribing oral iron in the month preceding surgery. A pre-dispensed oral iron prescription has been set up for use during preoperative anaesthesia consultations. We decided to evaluate the impact of this recommendation by a second study in 2012 (S2). Purpose To assess the impact of preoperative oral iron prescription on the prevalence and treatment of postoperative acute anaemia in orthopaedic surgery. Materials and Methods Both studies included patients who underwent total hip or knee arthroplasty (THA/TKA). S1 was conducted retrospectively on all patients operated on in 2011. S2 was conducted prospectively on patients who had been prescribed preoperative iron in September/October 2012. We collected data about operations, iron prescriptions, haemoglobin levels, transfusions and lengths of stay. Results Operations: 327 (S1): 205THA/122TKA vs. 30 (S2): 13THA/17TKA. Postoperative iron prescription: 69% of patients (S1): oral iron 32%, intravenous iron 20%, both oral and intravenous iron 17% vs. 43% of patients (S2): oral iron 23%, intravenous iron 13%, both oral and intravenous iron 7%. Haemoglobin levels: between preoperative and immediate postoperative periods, mean decrease was from 12.9 ± 0.2 g/dl to 11.1 ± 0.1 g/dl (S1) vs. 13.3 ± 0.2 g/dl to 11.7 ± 0.2 g/dl (S2), between preoperative period and hospital discharge, mean loss was 2.2 ± 0.2 g/dl (S1) vs. 1.9 ± 0.17 g/dl (S2) (p < 10–3). Transfusions: 29% of patients (S1) vs. 20% (S2) (p < 10–3). Length of stay: mean was 10.6 ± 0.8 days (S1) vs. 8.3 ± 0.3 days (S2) (p < 0.005). Conclusions The prospective study showed that oral iron preventive treatment significantly decreases haemoglobin level fall, transfusion rate and length of stay. Therefore it is necessary to sensitise prescribers concerning preventive iron coverage. A further study is needed to evaluate the impact of a longer iron preventive treatment on a larger number of patients. No conflict of interest.


It is claimed that in languages without a synthetic passive verbal morphology, the passive diathesis is compositional derived by implication or radical underspecification rather than generated in a direct way. As finitizing auxiliaries, equivalents of BE/ESSERE or HAVE/HAB¯ERE are employed together with the participial ANTERIOR ('past') morpheme. A distinction needs to be made between 'passive sense' and 'passive denotation'. The claimis that languages such as German, along with numerous other languages, may be seen to provide a 'passive' by derivation from the complex 'AUX+past participle'. The main body of the paper consists of evidence for the assumption that no direct passive meaning is provided by this complex 'AUX+Anterior participle', foremost from German. The past participle form has more than one function, an active and a passive one. The claim is that the past participle is void of any diathetic/ voice denotation except for the categorial status of adjectival. The latter allows the inference of a number of syntactic properties, i.e., most prominently a none-agentive external argument which, in syntactic collocation with the monovalent copulas sein and werden , contributes to the passive sense. A further distinction will be made between two different past participle lexicals: one on the basis of aspectual perfectivity implying an 'approach phase', antecedent to a result phase and presupposing an agentive external argument; and another, imperfective PP, which is amenable to the presupposition of such an 'approach phase' by way of pragmatic implicature. This distinction will be spelled in some detail in terms of formal semantics. Evidence for the formal and empirical correctness of this approach will be drawn from various languages similar to German in some, but not all, respects: Russian, Swedish, Dutch, and Latin. Turning to passive syntax it will be shown that the mere assumption of a passive morpho-syntax to be represented directly in UG-terms will not do justice to the evidence provided by the data and their distributional properties. Rather, it will be held and shown in some detail that passives are to be distinguished in accordance with their derivational basis as perfectives or imperfectives, not only as lexicals but also in terms of true clausal aspectual phrases (e.g., as regards directional vs. non-directional adverbs). Ergatives, commonly held to be a verbal class in their own right, will turn out as belonging to the perfective type of voice. In essence, this paper wants to demonstrate that there are principally two pathways toward a solution for the undecided semantics of the past participle forms: the 'pragmatic' solution presented in Section 4.5., where the fundamental semantics of the participle form is taken to be past without any voice reading. In Section 10, on the other hand, it is assumed that the participle formis a categorially underspecified 'root' in terms of Distributed Morphology reaching a specific reading only in an extended morphosyntactic context.


BACKGROUND
Although diet beverages are typically consumed to promote weight control, positive associations with increased cardiometabolic risk have been reported.

OBJECTIVE
The objective was to examine the joint and independent association between dietary pattern and diet beverage consumption with 20-y cardiometabolic risk.

DESIGN
We analyzed a prospective 20-y cohort of young adults from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study. With the use of cluster analysis, we identified 2 baseline (year 0) dietary patterns [Prudent (higher intakes of fruit, whole grains, milk, and nuts and seeds; n = 1778) and Western (higher intakes of fast food, meat and poultry, pizza, and snacks; n = 2383)] and examined the interaction with diet beverage consumption (Consumers compared with Nonconsumers) by using proportional hazards regression models.

RESULTS
Among Consumers, 66% were classified as having a Prudent diet. In fully adjusted models, being a Nonconsumer with a Prudent diet was independently associated with a lower risk of the metabolic syndrome through year 20. Lower risk in the Prudent than in the Western dietary pattern was maintained after stratification by diet beverage consumption: Prudent Nonconsumers had the lowest risk of high waist circumference (HR: 0.78; 95% CI: 0.62, 0.97), high triglycerides (HR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.56, 0.93), and the metabolic syndrome (HR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.50, 0.82) compared with Western Consumers.

CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that both overall dietary pattern and diet beverage consumption are important, to various degrees, for different metabolic outcomes. This covariation and interaction may partially explain differences in the relation between diet beverage consumption and cardiometabolic health observed in previous studies.


Motivated by the 'subgraphs world' view of the ferromagnetic Ising model, we analyse the mixing times of Glauber dynamics based on subset expansion expressions for classes of graph, hypergraph and matroid polynomials. With a canonical paths argument, we demonstrate that the chains defined within this framework mix rapidly upon graphs, hypergraphs and matroids of bounded tree-width. This extends known results on rapid mixing for the Tutte polynomial, adjacency-rank ($R_2$-)polynomial and interlace polynomial. In particular Glauber dynamics for the $R_2$-polynomial was known to mix rapidly on trees, which led to hope of rapid mixing on a wider class of graphs. We show that Glauber dynamics for a very wide class of polynomials mixes rapidly on graphs of bounded tree-width, including many cases in which the Glauber dynamics does not mix rapidly for all graphs. This demonstrates that rapid mixing on trees or bounded tree-width graphs does not offer strong evidence towards rapid mixing on all graphs.


An unexpected detour can change the course of our lives forever, and, for white American anthropologist Margaret Willson, a stopover in Brazil led to immersion in a kaleidoscopic world of street urchins, capoeiristas, drug dealers, and wise teachers. She and African Brazilian activist Rita Conceicao joined forces to break the cycles of poverty and violence around them by pledging local residents they would create a top-quality educational program for girls. From 1991 to the graduation of Bahia Street's first college-bound graduate in 2005, Willson and Conceicao 's adventure took them to the shantytowns of Brazil's Northeast, high-society London, and urban Seattle. In a narrative brimming with honesty and grace, Dance Lest We All Fall Down unfolds the story of this remarkable alliance, showing how friendship, when combined with courage, insight, and passion, can transform dreams of a better world into reality. Watch the book trailer: http://www.youtube.com/user/UWashingtonPress#p/u/3/KVXj44o3rVE


IntroductionThe risk of cardiovascular events amongst people with epilepsy who are receiving enzyme-inducing anti-epileptic drugs (EIAEDs) seems to be higher than those on other medications and the general population. National-level record linkage enables development of case-control studies at a wider scope accounting for multiple factors.
Objectives and ApproachPeople with epilepsy were identified between 2003-01-01 and 2017-12-31 and were matched to a control group on: age, gender, deprivation quintile and year of diagnosis, accounting for any changes in clinical therapeutic guidelines. Primary and secondary care population records were linked to capture relevant comorbidities and major cardiovascular events. Annual district birth and death extract were used in combination with the Welsh Demographic Service (WDS) dataset to capture demographic and cardiovascular related death records. The WDS dataset was used to identify eligible control groups for each case and a linkage approach between the control and case database was developed for matching cases and controls with replacement and randomization. Survival analysis was conducted to evaluate the difference in time to first major cardiovascular event in patients receiving EIAED versus Non-EIAEDs and controls.
Results10,241 cases (mean age 49.6 years, 52.2% male) with diagnosis of epilepsy were matched to 35,145 controls. 3,180 (31.1%) cases received EIAEDs and 7,061 (68.9%) received non-EIAEDs. The risk of experiencing a major cardiovascular event was higher in cases compared to controls (adjusted hazard ratio 1.52,95%CI[1.50–1.55];p<0.001). There was no significant difference in cardiovascular events between those treated with non-EIAEDs and EIAEDs (adjusted hazard ratio 1.04,95%CI[0.95-1.12];p=0.407).
Conclusion / ImplicationsData linkage provides a unique opportunity and insight into studying disease risk factors. We have shown that individuals with epilepsy prescribed antiepileptic drugs, re at an increased risk of a major cardiovascular events regardless of treatment type (EIAED,NEIAED) compared with a matched control population.


This article questions the frequently-asserted axiom that Congress's taxing power knows no bounds. It does so in the context of recently-enacted legislation that creates a special definition of citizenship that applies only for tax purposes. Historically, a person was treated as a citizen for tax purposes (and therefore taxed on her worldwide income and estate) if, and only if, she was a citizen under the nationality law. As a result of the new statute, in certain circumstances a person might be treated as a citizen for tax purposes (and therefore taxed on her worldwide income and estate) for years or even decades after she is no longer a real citizen under the nationality law. The analysis first looks at international law principles, concluding that in certain circumstances the new statute exceeds the prescriptive jurisdictional limits of customary international law. It then examines the constitutional implications, arguing that the statute, at least in certain circumstances, reflects a rare occasion where Congress might have exceeded its Article I taxing powers. Moreover, even to the extent the statute is within Congress's powers, certain aspects of it violate the due process limitations of the Fifth Amendment. These conclusions highlight the importance of Congress taking constitutional and international law considerations more seriously with respect to future legislation in the increasingly important area of international taxation.


BACKGROUND
The first pandemic season of A/H3N2 influenza virus (1968/1969) resulted in significant mortality in the United States, but it was the second pandemic season of A/H3N2 influenza virus (1969/1970) that caused the majority of deaths in England. We further explored the global pattern of mortality caused by the pandemic during this period.

METHODS
We estimated the influenza-related excess mortality in 6 countries (United States, Canada, England and Wales, France, Japan, and Australia) using national vital statistics by age for 1967-1978. Geographical and temporal pandemic patterns in mortality were compared with the genetic drift of the influenza viruses by analyzing hemagglutinin and neuraminidase sequences from GenBank.

RESULTS
In North America, the majority of influenza-related deaths in 1968/1969 and 1969/1970 occurred during the first pandemic season (United States, 70%; Canada, 54%). Conversely, in Europe and Asia, the pattern was reversed: 70% of deaths occurred during the second pandemic season. The second pandemic season coincided with a drift in the neuraminidase antigen.

CONCLUSION
We found a consistent pattern of mortality being delayed until the second pandemic season of A/H3N2 circulation in Europe and Asia. We hypothesize that this phenomenon may be explained by higher preexisting neuraminidase immunity (from the A/H2N2 era) in Europe and Asia than in North America, combined with a subsequent drift in the neuraminidase antigen during 1969/1970.


It has been long recognized that in the presence of market power, positive import tariffs can be optimal. The rationale is that higher tariffs reduce import demand, which in the presence of inelastic export supply from the rest of the world allows the importing country to increase its terms of trade. Indeed, there is empirical evidence suggesting that countries often set tariffs to exploit their market power when they have policy space to do so. However, optimal tariff-setting often results in a negative externality for trading partners. Such externalities create incentives for trading partners to cooperate within a negotiating framework such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) or regional trade agreements. Indeed, there is large empirical evidence suggesting that WTO negotiations do facilitate cooperation in tariff-setting by providing a negotiating table to internalize terms-of-trade externalities. This paper empirically explores whether any cooperative behaviour in tariff-setting extends beyond the WTO accession process. In principle, the possibility of further cooperation is provided by the presence of policy space in regard to tariffs within the WTO framework. Indeed, a key aspect of the WTO process is the negotiation of bound tariffs, rather than applied tariff levels. WTO members can apply tariffs below the bound, if they choose to do so. The difference between the tariff that a country applies at the border and the country's commitments to other WTO members is referred to as "tariff water", or "binding overhang". In principle, tariff waters provide the policy space for country to set their tariff at non-cooperative levels. The findings of this paper suggest that countries do cooperate both during the accession process and beyond it. However, non-cooperative tariff-setting is observed in the presence of sufficiently large amounts of tariff water. We find that in the absence of tariff water, importing countries' market power tends to be negatively correlated with applied tariffs, which is consistent with a cooperative tariff-setting. On the other hand, in the presence of tariff water, the relationship between importers' market power and tariffs tends to become positive, suggesting a tendency towards non-cooperative tariffs. However, the positive correlation between importers' market power and tariffs is only observed when levels of tariff water are above 20 percentage points. In the presence of moderate levels of tariff water, WTO members tend to set their tariffs cooperatively. One possible explanation for setting tariffs at non-optimal levels in the absence of legal constraints is the fear of retaliation from trading partners. We show that WTO members that have little to lose from retaliation tend to set tariffs non-cooperatively within their tariff waters, while WTO members that may have more to lose in case of retaliation are more likely to set tariffs cooperatively within their tariff waters.


Data collected at 42oN, 10oW in the intergyre region of the Northeast Atlantic show significant year to year variability in the T-S characteristics of the upper 800m of the water column. Taking salinity values on the sq = 27.1 kg m -3 isopycnal as representative of the Eastern North Atlantic Central Water mass it was found that the variability correlates well with the wind stress at 43oN, 11oW, with cumulative river discharge (which we take as an index of precipitation over the ocean) and with the NAO (which is an index of the strength and position of storm tracks and the state of the evaporation-precipitation balance). The covariation illustrates the close coupling between water mass formation and climate in the North Atlantic, where climate changes affect the deep ventilation by which ENACW is formed and the evaporation-precipitation balance from which the T-S signature results. Hints of a 20 year cycle in the ocean correlate with a 20 year periodicity in the NAO. It remains to be established whether there is a feedback mechanism by which water mass anomalies affect the climate and the intensity and variation of the NAO pattern, and the extent to which upper ocean observations can be used as an indicator of future climate trends.


Despite previous research findings that suggest that same-sex couples often experience unique stressors within their relationships, other findings indicate that same-sex couples demonstrate similar levels of relationship satisfaction as compared with heterosexual couples. The study described in this article was conducted to examine the extent to which various personal, relationship, and contextual resources may contribute to relationship satisfaction among individuals in same-sex couples. The findings indicated that individuals in same-sex couples may have more variability in the levels of support they receive from contextual resources. In addition, relationship resources were predictive of relationship satisfaction among the study participants, although personal and contextual resources did not contribute any unique variance to relationship satisfaction. The article concludes with implications for theory, practice, and research in couple and family counseling.


Aging can significantly modify the dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric performance of ferroelectrics. However, little attention has been paid to the aging effect during ferroelectric-ferroelectric phase transitions that is essentially correlated with real applications. In this letter, the authors report the aging effect evolution between two ferroelectric phases in an acceptor-doped piezoceramics. The results show that aging-induced double hysteresis loops were exhibited in different ferroelectric phases, but disappeared during ferroelectric-ferroelectric phase transitions, suggesting the mechanism that the intrinsic restoring force for the reversible switching of domains caused by the alignment of defect dipoles was weakened due to ferroelectric dipole reorientation.


Once colonised by the British, Malaysia inherited the British political and legal system, as well as written and judge-made laws. We trace the development of the law on the shareholders' oppression remedy in Malaysia, and compare it with the development in England. We found that the influence of English case laws is still very pervasive in the courtroom. The reasons for this includes, among others, the use of a company law statute based on the British statute, the reliance of English case laws and other legal materials, the legal training of members in the legal profession, as well as the use of the English legal tradition and the English language in the Malaysian courtroom. We conclude that despite a similarity in the written law, the sharing of a common legal heritage and a propensity by Malaysian lawyers and judges to use English laws, the laws as applied by the courts in Malaysia is not identical to the law in England. There was a desire to keep up with English developments, but in the whole the Malaysian courts have not been able to keep pace. In the courtroom, the lack of resources and expertise are probably the main factors contributing to the underdevelopment of the law. The propensity to rely on the reforms in other countries with little emphasis to the peculiarity in the local environment has undermined law reform. We argue that an effective law-making process and legal institutions are as important as the law itself.


A visible light activity was induced in ZnS nanocrystallites through carbon doping using environment friendly biodegradable starch as stabilizer for controlling particle size and as a source for carbon doping. Synthesized materials exhibits higher photocatalytic activity as compared to undoped bulk ZnS for the reductive dechlorination of chlorinated benzene derivatives to benzene in the presence of isopropyl alcohol as a sacrificial electron donor under visible light irradiation (λ ≥ 400 nm). The structure, morphology, chemical composition and photocatalytic activity of the nano particals have been investigated by XRD, TEM, EDAX and UV-Visible spectrophotometer. Nano size of synthesized C-doped ZnS has been confirmed by peak broadning in XRD and TEM, while visible light absorption is confirmed by UV-DRS.


In large-scale optimization problems, distributed asynchronous stochastic gradient descent (DASGD) is a commonly used algorithm. In most applications, there are often a large number of computing nodes asynchronously computing gradient information. As such, the gradient information received at a given iteration is often stale. In the presence of such delays, which can be unbounded, the convergence of DASGD is uncertain. The contribution of this paper is twofold. First, we propose a delay-adaptive variant of DASGD where we adjust each iteration's step-size based on the size of the delay, and prove asymptotic convergence of the algorithm on variationally coherent stochastic problems, a class of functions which properly includes convex, quasi-convex and star-convex functions. Second, we extend the convergence results of standard DASGD, used usually for problems with bounded domains, to problems with unbounded domains. In this way, we extend the frontier of theoretical guarantees for distributed asynchronous optimization, and provide new insights for practitioners working on large-scale optimization problems.


Vessel traffic negatively affects marine mammals by causing behavioural disturbance, acoustic masking, contamination (i.e., oil spills), and ship strikes. Few studies have examined the effects of vessels on marine mammals in the Arctic, but beluga whales appear to be especially sensitive to vessel traffic. We examine how the vocalizations of belugas are impacted by vessel traffic in the Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area in the Mackenzie River estuary of the western Canadian Arctic. Between one and four acoustic recorders were deployed between June and August each year between 2015 and 2018 near the only shipping channel at this site. We examined beluga vocalizations from acoustic recordings over four summers and assessed how the distance to the nearest vessel passing the acoustic recorder affected the number of vocalizations. Beluga vocalizations within the range of the acoustic recorder decreased significantly when vessels were within 5 km of the acoustic recorder. This result suggests either that belugas are avoiding the vessel or that they reduce their vocalization in response to vessel traffic. Future work is needed to assess exactly how belugas are reacting to vessel traffic in this area and what the long-term consequences of these reactions are. Management measures for reducing these impacts must be carefully considered, especially since these vessels are very restricted in where they can travel, and many of the vessels are necessary for the livelihoods of local communities.


Interactive Phishing Filter by Rushikesh Joshi Phishing is one of the prevalent techniques used by attackers to breach security and steal private and confidential information. It has compromised millions of users' data. Blacklisting websites and heuristic-based methods are common approaches to detect a phishing website. The blacklist method suffers from a window of vulnerability. Many heuristics were proposed in the past. Some of them have better accuracy but a lower performance. A phishing filter should have better accuracy and peformance. It should be able to detect fresh phishing websites. Jo et al. [2] present a list of attributes of the web page to find the disparity between an original website and a spoofed website. The main aim of this project is to integrate the approach presented by Jo et al. [2] into web browser via Firefox add-on. Our phishing filter collects the list of attributes and compares it with the help of approximate string matching algorithms and WHOIS [14] server queries. For machine learning techniques, we used Weka [21]. All the algorithms, available in Weka were applied to our testing data set. Our phishing filter achieves 94.3% accuracy with reasonable performance.


Since 1994, our team has gained extensive experience applying accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon analysis for mortar dating, totaling over 465 samples and 1800+ measured CO2 fractions. Several samples have been analyzed repeatedly. The research covers both Medieval and Classical archaeology. We therefore believe our experience can be helpful when developing preparation procedures for different kinds of mortars in different areas and in varying chronologies. So far, the main areas of interest have been (a) the churches of the Åland Islands (in the archipelago between Finland and Sweden); (b) the churches in the Åboland Archipelago (SW Finland); (c) sites in the Iberian Peninsula including Torre de Palma (a Roman village in Portugal); and (d) Rome, Pompeii, and Herculaneum (Italy). Most of the analyses before 2000 were hydrolized in only two CO2 fractions per sample, and reliability criteria were defined on the basis of how well the ages of the two fractions agree with each other. These criteria have proved most helpful in determining the reliability of 14C mortar analyses. Different types of mortar have been investigated, including lime mortars made both from limestone and marble, pozzolana mortars, fire-damaged mortars, and mortars based on burnt shells. Most importantly, separate lime lumps sampled from these mortars have been analyzed sporadically and recently more systematically. The research also includes different types of hydrolysis applied in the pretreatment. In addition to using 85% phosphoric acid (H3PO4), the experimental research includes tests with smaller concentrations of phosphoric acid, and tests based on 2–3% hydrochloric acid (HCl) dissolutions. To characterize the dissolution process, results are presented as age profiles of 2–5 CO2 fractions. In our experience, pozzolana mortars have been difficult to date, and HCl dissolution should be used only in special cases and in complementary tests.


Many possible factors influence the accumulation of biogenic amines in wines, correlated both to agronomical practices in the vineyard and during the winemaking process. In the literature, it is reported that the quantities of biogenic amines found in many wines are not alarming, especially with regard to those of toxicological interest (histamine and tyramine). For subjects in specific physiological conditions (histamine intolerance, taking class of drugs that inhibit monoamine oxidase enzymes), the risk of creating toxic reactions is related to the composition of the whole meal, not only the consumption of wine. It would be desirable to establish a regulatory system, as already existing for sulphites, allowing to read a label with the claim specifying their absence (e.g., histamine free) in order to enhance the quality of wines that would be a priori forbidden.


Simulation methodology has become popular among computer and telecommunication network researchers and developers worldwide. This popularity is due to the availability of various sophisticated and powerful simulation packages, and also because of the flexibility in model construction and validation offered by simulation. For selecting an appropriate network simulator for a simulation task, it is important to have good knowledge of the simulation tools available, along with their strengths and weaknesses. It is also important to ensure that the results generated by the simulators are valid and credible. The objective of this paper is to survey, classify, and compare telecommunication network simulators to aid researchers in selecting the most appropriate simulation tool. We compare the network simulators based on type, deployment mode, network impairments and protocol supported. We discuss simulator evaluation methodologies and techniques, and provide guidelines for best practice in network simulation.


Improving Irrigation in Asia is based on a longitudinal study over two decades on innovative intervention for sustained performance of irrigation systems. The work identifies key factors that can help explain the performance of interventions, and explicates lessons for resource management and the management of development assistance.


Electronic and algorithmic trading has become part of a mainstream response to buy-side traders' need to move large blocks of shares with minimum market impact in today's complex institutional trading environment. This book illustrates an overview of key providers in the marketplace. With electronic trading platforms becoming increasingly sophisticated, more cost effective measures handling larger order flow is becoming a reality. The higher reliance on electronic trading has had profound implications for vendors and users of information and trading products. Broker dealers providing solutions through their products are facing changes in their business models such as: relationships with sellside customers, relationships with buyside customers, the importance of broker neutrality, the role of direct market access, and the relationship with prime brokers. "Electronic and Algorithmic Trading Technology: The Complete Guide" is the ultimate guide to managers, institutional investors, broker dealers, and software vendors to better understand innovative technologies that can cut transaction costs, eliminate human error, boost trading efficiency and supplement productivity. As economic and regulatory pressures are driving financial institutions to seek efficiency gains by improving the quality of software systems, firms are devoting increasing amounts of financial and human capital to maintaining their competitive edge. This book is written to aid the management and development of IT systems for financial institutions. Although the book focuses on the securities industry, its solution framework can be applied to satisfy complex automation requirements within very different sectors of financial services - from payments and cash management, to insurance and securities. "Electronic and Algorithmic Trading: The Complete Guide" is geared toward all levels of technology, investment management and the financial service professionals responsible for developing and implementing cutting-edge technology. It outlines a complete framework for successfully building a software system that provides the functionalities required by the business model. It is revolutionary as the first guide to cover everything from the technologies to how to evaluate tools to best practices for IT management. This is the first book to address the hot topic of how systems can be designed to maximize the benefits of program and algorithmic trading. It outlines a complete framework for developing a software system that meets the needs of the firm's business model. It provides a robust system for making the build vs. buy decision based on business requirements.


Bribes by firms in Indonesia arise principally from regulations --licenses and levies --imposed by local government officials. Regulations generate direct revenues (fees) plus indirect revenues in the form of bribes. The expected value of the latter is capitalized into lower salaries needed by localities to compensate public officials. Localities in Indonesia are hampered by insufficient revenues from formal tax and transfer sources to pay competitive salaries plus fund demanded' levels of public services, because local tax rates are capped by the center and inter-governmental transfers are limited. Thus the direct and indirect revenues from local regulations are critical to local finances. The paper models and estimates the key aspects of corruption -- the relationship between bribes, time spent with local officials, and different forms of regulation. It models how inter-jurisdictional competition for firms limits the extent of local regulation and how greater sources of tax or inter-governmental revenues reduce the need for regulation and corruption. The paper estimates a large reduction in regulation in better funded localities. The findings are directly relevant to Indonesia where corruption is high and the country is in the throes of major decentralization and local democratization efforts.


The division between high-art electronic music and pop electronic music is best defined in terms of rhythmic content. Pop electronic music uses repetitive beats, primarily in 4/4 time, but a new generation of composers is working within that structure to create what is essentially the new art music. This phenomenon is an outgrowth of such historical currents as minimalism and postmodernism, along with the continuing development of a global technoculture; it is part of a larger cultural shift in which art is becoming more connected with society rather than being created by and for specialists. This positive development is being accelerated by the rapid evolution of new technologies for producing and reproducing music today, as well as by new possibilities for distribution and dissemination of music electronically.


This cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the determining factors for delayed diagnosis and treatment among malaria patients in Myanmar.

 The sample comprised 220 respondents diagnosed with malaria last year, living in the upper, middle, and lower part of Myanmar. In 2017, data were collected through interviews and analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation, and the chi-square test.

 The results affirmed that most of the respondents were in the working age group and of low educational level. They also had poor knowledge and perception of malaria, and more than half of the respondents visited health centers or volunteered for their first treatment of choice. Most respondents received little social support for malaria. There were significant associations between age, sex, education, marital status, occupation, and delayed diagnosis and treatment (p < 0.05). Knowledge and perceptions of malaria, health-seeking behavior, and low social support on malaria services were also significantly associated with delayed malaria diagnosis and treatment (p < 0.05).

 According to the findings, appropriate strengthening of cooperation and collaborations among different sectors upon diagnosis, coverage of treatment services, interventions to increase community awareness, effective communication, behavioral changes, and improved capability of the village health volunteers are evidently needed.


The pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the presence of extracellular deposits of misfolded and aggregated amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide and intraneuronal accumulation of tangles comprised of hyperphosphorylated Tau protein. For several years, the natural compound curcumin has been proposed to be a candidate for enhanced clearance of toxic Aβ amyloid. In this study we have studied the potency of feeding curcumin as a drug candidate to alleviate Aβ toxicity in transgenic Drosophila. The longevity as well as the locomotor activity of five different AD model genotypes, measured relative to a control line, showed up to 75% improved lifespan and activity for curcumin fed flies. In contrast to the majority of studies of curcumin effects on amyloid we did not observe any decrease in the amount of Aβ deposition following curcumin treatment. Conformation-dependent spectra from p-FTAA, a luminescent conjugated oligothiophene bound to Aβ deposits in different Drosophila genotypes over time, indicated accelerated pre-fibrillar to fibril conversion of Aβ1–42 in curcumin treated flies. This finding was supported by in vitro fibrillation assays of recombinant Aβ1–42. Our study shows that curcumin promotes amyloid fibril conversion by reducing the pre-fibrillar/oligomeric species of Aβ, resulting in a reduced neurotoxicity in Drosophila.


Part I of this dissertation focuses on the synthetic chemistry of arylnitromethanes as both products and reactants. Use of these compounds as key building blocks in the synthesis of vicinal diamines was explored via a catalytic aza-Henry strategy. These studies resulted in the identification of simple cinchonidinium acetate as an effective catalyst for the asymmetric synthesis of syn-1,2-diarylethylenediamines with excellent diastereocontrol. Difficulties in synthesizing arylnitromethanes from existing techniques provided impetus for the development of an improved method of greater generality. Ultimately, successful conditions were identified for the palladium-catalyzed cross coupling of nitromethane with readily available aryl halide partners, providing facile access to an array of functionalized arylnitromethanes. A tandem reductive Nef process was incorporated to provide a one-pot transformation directly to aryl aldehyde or oxime, thereby exploiting the use of nitromethane as a formylation equivalent. Application of the nitromethylation conditions to vinyl halides resulted in the discovery of a unique tandem cross-coupling/π-allylation nitroethylation reaction. Part II of this dissertation focuses on the use of colorimetric sensors for the quantitative measurement of catalyst strength via LUMO-lowering of electrophiles. Despite rampant growth in catalyst synthesis and application, understanding of controlling factors of catalyst activity, particularly for those functioning through hydrogen-bonding, remains limited. A simple pyrazinone chromophore was found to exhibit hypsochromic shifts upon binding to an array of known hydrogen-bond catalysts. These wavelength shifts showed high correlation to relative rate enhancement of the catalysts in Diels Alder and Friedel Crafts reactions. Acidity values, often used to estimate hydrogen-bond strength, were illustrated to be poor indicators of catalytic activity, in contrast to that of the wavelength shifts. The results establish the catalyst-sensor wavelength is a useful tool with which to gauge catalyst strength and also reveal catalyst structure-activity relationships. Current efforts for measuring stronger Brà ̧nsted and Lewis Acid catalysts with an alternate colorimetric sensor are also described. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Chemistry First Advisor Marisa C. Kozlowski This dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/1490


Multicolored multipartite entanglement is of great importance in quantum communication and quantum information networks. In this paper, we calculate the quantum fluctuations of the fundamental frequency pump beam and second-harmonic beams in a two-port frequency doubling resonator, and investigate the tripartite continuous-variable entanglement generated by this device for the first time, to our knowledge. The quantum correlation among fundamental frequency pump beam and two harmonic beams is studied using a necessary and sufficient criterion for Gaussian entanglement states, the positivity under partial transposition. It is found that two-color tripartite entanglement exists in a large range of pump intensities and analysis frequencies.